Category Archives: Bill de Blasio

New Year’s Eve: Times Square crowds return, NYC hails new mayor and Miley Cyrus battles wardrobe malfunction

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New York tradition brings some normalcy as coronavirus pandemic leads to cancellation of shows around the world

A Miley Cyrus wardrobe malfunction, a celebrity rant about outgoing New York City mayor, Bill de Blasio, and the traditional dropping of a six-tonne ball in Times Square were among the highlights as America welcomed the new year, and bid good riddance to the old one.

The New Year’s Eve tradition of crowds at Times Square returned this year, though with only 15,000 of the usual 60,000 spectators there to watch the ball, encrusted with nearly 2,700 Waterford crystals, descend as couples embraced, some still wearing their masks.

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Coronavirus: Europe struggles to contain surge of cases

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Rise in infection rate in Paris as Spanish authorities clash over Madrid lockdown

Bars in Paris have been ordered to close for two weeks, Madrid residents may no longer leave their city and Ireland is set to introduce tighter national restrictions as governments struggle to contain a Europe-wide surge in Covid-19 cases.

As infections in the Paris area rose to 270 for every 100,000 people – and as high as 500 for every 100,000 among 20- to 30-year-olds – with 36% of intensive care beds occupied by Covid-19 patients, the city’s police chief said bars must close from Tuesday.

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Sadiq Khan urged to boycott Saudi-hosted G20 mayors summit

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Rights coalition calls on mayors to withdraw from U20, which coincides with anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi’s murder

Mainly leftwing mayors of some of the world’s biggest cities are being urged to boycott a G20 urban summit hosted by Saudi Arabia on the 2nd anniversary of the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The Urban 20 (U20) is being held as part of the Saudi Arabian chairmanship of this year’s G20. Among the mayors slated to attend include, Berlin’s Michael Müller, London’s Sadiq Khan, New York’s Bill de Blasio, Paris’s Anne Hidalgo, Rome’s Virginia Raggi as well as the mayors of Los Angeles and Madrid.

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‘It’s chaotic’: New York street partying fuels fears of coronavirus resurgence

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Cases of Covid-19 among the young are on the rise as outdoor drinking draws crowds in neighbourhoods across the city

Motorcycles revved, waiters served drinks, and food in busy outdoor street seating areas and, on the pavement, people gathered to sip to-go drinks.

On Saturday night in Astoria, in Queens, it was almost as if coronavirus had never hit New York City.

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New York City mayor helps paint Black Lives Matter mural outside Trump Tower – video

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Bill de Blasio on Thursday helped to paint the large, bright yellow mural on Fifth Avenue in front of Trump Tower in Manhattan. Similar murals have been painted on New York City streets and in other US cities including Washington DC, Raleigh in North Carolina, and Oakland in California. The Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum after the death of George Floyd who was killed by police in Minneapolis in May.

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New York City mayor helps paint ‘Black Lives Matter’ outside Trump Tower

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Slogan painted on Fifth Avenue a week after president tweeted it would be ‘a symbol of hate’

New York City’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, took part in painting “Black Lives Matter” in front of Trump Tower in Manhattan on Thursday, a week after Donald Trump tweeted it would be “a symbol of hate”.

De Blasio was flanked by his wife, Chirlane McCray, and the Rev Al Sharpton as he helped paint the racial justice rallying cry in giant yellow letters on Fifth Avenue in front of Trump Tower. Activists watching chanted: “Whose streets? Our streets!”

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No masks, no water: New York protesters held in ‘abysmal’ conditions, experts say

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More than 2,000 people have been arrested in the city and the police treatment of those detained is emboldening people

Protesters in New York have been unnecessarily arrested and detained for as long as 48 hours in “abysmal” conditions without access to masks, food and water, according to legal experts.

Since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis just over two weeks ago, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of New York City in protest over police brutality.

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New York enlists ‘army’ of contact tracers to beat coronavirus – but will it work?

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Both city and state aim to recruit thousands to trace contacts of those diagnosed with coronavirus as part of plans to reopen

New York faces enormous challenges in its attempts to implement one of the largest contact tracing schemes in the US, as the city prepares to reopen after nearly two months of coronavirus lockdown.

The New York governor, Andrew Cuomo, has said the state is recruiting an “army of people to trace each person who tested positive” for an “unprecedented, nation-leading contact tracing programme”. The New York city mayor, Bill de Blasio, announced a new test and trace corps, which he said would “lead the way in creating testing and tracing on a level we’ve never seen before in this city or this country”.

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New York City’s mayor Bill de Blasio apologises for tweet about Jewish funeral – video

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New York City's mayor, Bill de Blasio, has apologised for lashing out at the conduct of mourners at a packed funeral for a rabbi who died of Covid-19. In a tweet, the mayor called the large processional 'absolutely unacceptable' and vowed to shut down such gatherings. 'If you saw anger and frustration [in the response] you’re right,' de Blasio said. 'I spoke out of real distress. People’s lives were in danger right before my eyes.'

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Cuomo undercuts De Blasio bid to keep New York schools shut until September

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  • New York City mayor announces schools closed until autumn
  • Shortly afterwards, governor insists decision to close is his

New York governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City mayor Bill de Blasio once again had differing opinions on who has authority to implement certain Covid-19 policies.

This time, it involved De Blasio’s announcement on Saturday morning that New York City’s school district, which oversees 1.1 million students, would shutter for the rest of the academic year to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. De Blasio said his administration was forging a “comprehensive plan” to safely reopen schools in September and that “next year is going to have to be the greatest academic year New York public schools have ever had”.

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Democratic debates get underway as 2020 candidates go head to head – live

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Ten Democrats begin debating each other tonight – will they attack the party’s frontrunner, Joe Biden, or sell their own vision for the future?

We’re less than ten minutes away! Here’s some things to know:

Related: Where do the 2020 Democratic candidates stand on the key issues?

Tonight, the first batch of 2020 presidential candidates will likely face questions about gun control. It’s an issue that many of them have been putting front and center.

So far, some gun violence prevention experts say, New Jersey senator Cory Booker has produced the most ambitious and comprehensive plan, including funding for local gun violence prevention strategies in communities burdened with daily gun violence, and endorsing federal licensing for gun ownership, a policy that Obama labeled out of the question just three years ago.

“The person that has had the most thoughtful approach, as well as the most robust approach, is Cory Booker,” said Dakota Jablon, director of federal affairs at the Coalition to Stop Violence, a gun violence prevention group.

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Bill de Blasio announces 2020 presidential bid

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New York mayor has traveled to early primary states such as Iowa and Nevada with a message centered on economic inequality

New York’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, has jumped into the 2020 presidential race, joining at least 21 other declared Democratic candidates for the party’s nomination.

The mayor announced his run with a video released by his campaign.

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Corey Johnson ♥ NY (and even the city’s subway). Will he run for mayor?

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The speaker of the city council, 37, who was diagnosed with HIV in 2004, has overcome addiction and is mulling a mayoral run

Corey Johnson got his first brush with fame when, as the captain of his high school football team in a small town in Massachusetts, he came out as gay.

Related: The thorn in Trump's side: New York attorney general leads barrage of investigations

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