One of the many reasons that the 1930s and 1940s were a golden age for New York is its legendary mayor, Fiorello H. LaGuardia. Irascible, energetic, funny, polylingual, authoritarian, and deeply humane, he delivered the city government from Tammany Hall, built significant new infrastructure, and gave a voice to ethnic and racial minorities. Here, he assumes his duties for the first of his three terms, getting a good-luck handshake from his predecessor, John P. O'Brien, in the mayor's chambers in City Hall, January 1, 1934.

Photo: Associated Press

Someone said that in the new Ghostbusters movie, having a former EPA agent elected mayor of New York was even more implausible than having ghosts and demons walking the streets. Do you agree?

Depends on their career. I could see someone moving from the EPA to NYC’s Department of Environmental Protection, moving up the ranks there, and then parlaying that into a successful run for city council or the like.

More homes, fewer cars

But the truth is, there are only really two things that matter to this whole city. If we get them right, everything else gets easier. If we ignore them, we are left struggling, trying to put band-aids on our problems. This is the simple recipe: First, more people should be able to live where they want to live. Second, more people should be able to get around without a private car.

On This Day in New York City History March 4, 1933: Teacher, Women's Rights advocate and New York City and State government servant Frances Perkins is appointed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to his cabinet as the Secretary of Labor. In achieving this post, Perkins becomes the first women to hold a Presidential Cabinet position and was the first woman to enter the presidential line of succession. Perkins is the longest serving Secretary of Labor, having held the position for 12 years.

Perkins was influential in the development and application of many New Deal policies dealing with social security, unemployment insurance, federal minimum wage, and federal child labor laws. Perkins also served on the United States Civil Service Commission under President Harry Truman. While on the Civil Service Commission, Perkins advocated for women to be hired as secretaries and stenographer based on their qualifications instead of their physical attractiveness which had been the norm.

Prior to her Washington appointment, Perkins worked with then NYS governors Al Smith and FDR in a variety of commissions where she successfully advocated for women's labor rights. Her stance on labor rights for women was highly influenced by the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Fire that led to death of 123 women and girls and 23 men. Her efforts led to the passing of a 1913 NYS bill that capped the amount of hours women and girls could work in a week at 54-hours.

After her career in government service came to an end in 1952, Perkins would write a memoir of her time in FDR's cabinet entitled "The Roosevelt I Knew." She would also teach at the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University until her death in 1965, at age 85.

#FrancesPerkins #FirstFemaleCabinetMember #WomensHistory #WomensStudies #HERStory #WomensRights #CivilRightsHistory #WomensHistoryMonth #NewYorkHistory #NYHistory #NYCHistory #NYCPolitics #NYPolitics #History #Historia #Histoire #Geschichte #HistorySisco

https://www.instagram.com/p/CpXh6A_OhG9/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

NYC people don't forget to vote

Early voting started and I didn't even notice. You have a few days. Voting matters if you are in NYC since there is a governor's race and the republican is pretty bad. Most of the problems NYC has with the MTA are caused by the governor... indirectly. NYC had a republican for a long time the MTA just rotted and went broke. Things have been better recently, but it takes time. Transportation projects take like a decade to kick in. The democratic candidate for governor is kind of boring-- but at least she isn't screwing public transit over. The republican is anti-abortion and doing creepy rallies out in Long Island. He probably won't win... unless turnout is low in NYC. So creep into the voting booth and destroy his dreams.

Nothing to see here, just fire + floods + climate change

Eric Adams turning unused office buildings into housing is great but like what is the point if rent can be whatever the landlord wants? Like I get it capitalism, but it's useless to build apartments people ain't gonna be able to afford. At some point a rent cap will have to be given otherwise people gonna stop paying rent.

Daily reminder that New York City has a deeply corrupt cop mayor who lives in New Jersey and deeply despises the residents he allegedly represents and he's surrounded himself with other rotted individuals who are out to get money for themselves and their friends through the exploitation of the working class & impoverished populations of this city who are forced to live in sub-par conditions because there's no one for these slumlords to be held accountable to.

(Also, The City is an incredible independent local news source, and if you can support them please do!!)

THEY MADE A SHIRT LMAO

UN Security Council rejects ceasefire proposal in Gaza Strip

Of the 1.5 million people working in the central business district, 1.3 million take transit. About 143,000 people drive. Of those who drive, only 16,100—roughly one percent— are in low-income households. The number of people who earn less than $50,000 and commute into the central business district from a home that's more than half a mile from public transportation is just 1,560.

On This Day in New York City History February 16, 1951: The City Council of New York City votes for and unanimously passes the Brown Isaacs Bill that "prohibited and penalized discrimination or segregation in private housing projects enjoying total or partial excemption from city taxes or receiving direct or indirect financial aid from the city or any of their agencies."

The bill was introduced on September 28, 1950 by Democrat Councilman Earl Brown of Manhattan and Republican-Liberal Councilman Stanley M. Isaacs also from Manhattan. The bill came in direct response to the practices of discrimination mainly against African Americans at the Metropolitan Life owned Stuyvesant Town complex.

#BrownIsaacBill #EarlBrown #StanleyMIsaac #BlackHistory #BlackStudies #BlackHistoryMatters #AfricanAmericanHistory #AfricanAmericanStudies #CivilRightsHistory #RacialDiscrimination #NYCPolitics #NewYorkHistory #NYHistory #NYCHistory #History #Historia #Histoire

#Geschichte #HistorySisco (at City Council Chambers, City Hall)

https://www.instagram.com/p/CovkhGROHmb/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

I’m a sucker for stickers. NYC early voting took me 8min and that’s only because I insisted on reading all the ballot measures on the back. (they seemed OK would have liked to see that cost of living formula though…)

if you’re on the east coast/new england/anywhere that’s being affected by the canadian wildfires you better hecking have a mask on today and i am not playing