Eric Adams’ unlikely bodyguard as fiery civil rights activist, 92, screams at crowd calling for him to resign after bribery indictment
Beleaguered New York Mayor Eric Adams was backed by older civil rights leaders as New Yorkers drowned him out, shouting for him to resign following his corruption indictment.
The Democrat was flanked by respected black activists including Hazel Dukes, 92, and the Rev. Herbert Daughtry, 90, as he denied allegations of corruption and bribery against him on Thursday.
Dukes, a former NAACP leader, shouted back at protesters who drowned her out as she tried to speak outside Gracie Mansion in defense of Adams.
“Will you be quiet?” Dukes asked as the crowd sang. “Will you shut up?”
Dukes continued, “I am 92 years old. I have known this young man for over 40 years. I come today with a heavy heart, but my head is not bowed. He will celebrate his day in court and we will stand by him.”
New York Mayor Eric Adams was backed by senior civil rights leaders as New Yorkers shouted at him to resign following his corruption indictment
People protest as New York Mayor Eric Adams addresses the press outside his official residence Gracie Mansion on Thursday
The defiant Adams made a point of showing the support he enjoys from prominent black clergy and activists like Dukes, but protesters insisted the mayor’s legal issues have nothing to do with race.
“This is not a black thing, this is for you, this is for you, Eric Adams,” one protester shouted through a megaphone as Adams tried to speak.
The protester added: “Your policies are anti-black, you are a disgrace to all black people in this city. The things you have done are unconscionable. Our children are being harassed by the police. This is ridiculous, this is ridiculous.
“You can silence me all you want, but the people are with us. This is not a black issue, this is a justice issue.”
Another protester told the mayor to resign because he is “a disgrace.” Another called him ‘corrupt’ and said he should have been handcuffed.
Dukes, a former NAACP leader, shouted back at protesters who drowned her out as she tried to speak in defense of Adams outside Gracie Mansion.
“Will you be quiet?” Dukes asked as the crowd sang. “Will you shut up?”
Adams vowed to continue his mayoral duties and urged New Yorkers to wait to pass judgment until after he presented his defense.
‘It’s an unfortunate day. And it is a painful day,” he said. “But within all of this, there is a day when we will finally reveal why I went through this for ten months. And I look forward to defending myself.”
According to the indictment, Adams accepted tens of thousands of dollars in free flights and upgrades on Turkey’s national airline for him and his companions, stays in luxury hotel suites, as well as other amenities such as a car and driver, a boat tour, a Turkish bath at a seaside hotel and luxury restaurant meals.
Adams failed to disclose his free and discounted travel, created a false paper trail to suggest he had paid for it, claimed to an employee that he had deleted his text messages, and instructed the employee to ensure his activities were shielded from the public in Turkey in 2021. prosecutors alleged.
Another protester told the mayor to resign because he is “a disgrace.” Another called him ‘corrupt’ and said he should have been handcuffed. A protester talks to law enforcement personnel and the media during his demonstration
The mayor and his co-conspirators, who are not named in the indictment, “continued their efforts to thwart scrutiny of their criminal conduct after the federal investigation into these crimes became known to them,” the indictment said.
Last November, when FBI agents knocked on her door to execute a search warrant, Adams’ fundraiser called the mayor five times and Adams later called her phone as agents left her residence, the complaint said. The fundraiser refused to tell agents who paid for her 2021 trip to Turkey, the complaint said.
Adams was in Washington DC at the time, but when he heard of the search, he canceled the meeting and immediately returned to New York City. A few days later, the FBI executed a search warrant for Adams’ electronic devices.
According to the indictment, Adams had two cellphones with him, but not the personal cellphone he used in connection with his alleged crimes. Adams later turned over the phone in response to a subpoena, but it was locked and required a password that Adams claimed to have forgotten, the complaint said.