Mayor Bloomberg and Fernando Ferrer’s Baile Latino

Posted on June 14, 2004 by New York News Network

By Maurice Pinzon
A recent poll indicated that Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s overall job approval rating hit 50 percent for the first time in two years. But the same poll suggested that Mayor Bloomberg had significantly less support from Latinos and African-Americans. As a result of a scheduling coincidence, and perhaps with an eye to the election in 2005, the mayor devoted considerable attention to Latino voters last week.

According to the Quinnipiac University poll, Mayor Bloomberg has a 60 percent positive approval rating among whites, but in sharp contrast, most African-Americans and Latinos in New York disapproved of his performance. Only 38 percent of Latinos approved of Mayor Bloomberg’s job performance, while 39 percent of African-American voters approve of his performance.

Last Thursday Mayor Bloomberg sidestepped a question from a reporter who asked him to explain why there was a disparity in the poll numbers. He responded by saying, “I think the only poll that really disturbed me before is not my poll, but it was the polls that said a year-and-a-half, two years ago that the public didn’t have a lot of confidence in the future.”

Mayor Bloomberg said New Yorkers were now more optimistic about the future,
which was good for the city. He said New Yorkers understand that “we’re going in the right direction.” He added, “In terms of my own political future, I’ll be just fine as long as this city keeps improving.”

Yesterday, just before the start of the Puerto Rican Day Parade on Fifth Avenue, Mayor Bloomberg responded to a similar question, “There are groups that tend to be more Democratic or Republican. I’m going to cross those lines.”

He added, “I think the most encouraging thing in the polls – I said it the other day – was that if you go back two years ago or a year-and-a-half ago, the depressing thing was not my polls. The depressing thing was that a lot of people didn’t think that the future of this city was bright. If you look at the polls today, that’s changed. My personal polls will be fine, but the most important thing is this city will be fine.”

Jordan Barowitz, a spokesman for Mayor Bloomberg, disputed any suggestion that the mayor had changed his schedule. Mr. Barowitz said the mayor has always reached out to a multiplicity of ethnic communities. When Mr. Barowitz was asked to explain the disparity in the poll numbers, he replied, “I’ll leave that to the pundits.”

Barnard College Professor Esther Fuchs, who is also an adviser to Mayor Bloomberg, took a crack at the question. She said, “It’s because of the Republican label.” Prof. Fuchs added, “That he has 39 percent as a Republican is huge.” Prof. Fuchs said that for a Republican reaching out to heavily Democratic voters, “You have to build trust.” Latinos in New York City traditionally have voted heavily Democratic.

In any scenario, Latino voters would appear to be an important component in the mayor’s re-election bid – especially since the same Quinnipiac poll puts former Bronx borough president and former mayoral candidate, Fernando Ferrer, ahead of the mayor. In the poll, Mr. Ferrer, a Democrat, beats Mayor Bloomberg at 45 percent to 39 percent.

Of all the potential Democratic candidates, Mr. Ferrer seems to be in the strongest position to challenge Mayor Bloomberg in 2005. City Council Speaker Gifford A. Miller appears to be self-destructing under the gaze of New York Times reporter Winnie Hu, while some pundits have suggested that Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. may hold off until the 2009 mayoral race. Another possible contender, Congressman Anthony Weiner, is still untested and unknown, and Council member Charles Barron, who has been endorsed by Rev. Al Sharpton, is at the bottom of the polls against the mayor.

At a Gracie Mansion reception Mayor Bloomberg held last Thursday in honor of the Puerto Rican Day Parade, Bronx resident Alberto Quinones said that when the mayor first took office, he instituted policies that negatively affected Latinos. “But he’s changing things – even starting to speak in Spanish,” Mr. Quinones said.

He added, “The most important thing he can do is talk about education.” Mayor Bloomberg seems to agree. He has said that he expects his administration to be judged on its educational reforms.

When asked about the disparity in approval ratings among Latino voters and other ethnic groups, Herman Badillo suggested that Mayor Bloomberg had “to go out more.” Mr. Badillo said, “The most important thing is to be able to touch him.” Mr. Badillo suggested two approaches: a Giuliani-type town hall meeting or Robert F. Kennedy’s eager physical embrace of New Yorkers. Mr. Badillo – who served in the Giuliani administration and was a Congressman from the Bronx – said former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s town hall meetings were a good way for New Yorkers to see the mayor, question him and get a direct feel for him. Mr.
Badillo also recalled the way Robert F. Kennedy plunged into crowds of New Yorkers to shake their hands.

Awilda Cordero, president of Bronx service organization, Emergency Rights Inc., also attended the Gracie Mansion reception. Ms. Cordero gave the mayor positive marks, adding that the low poll numbers among Latinos would change because it was too early to tell how people really felt. Ms. Cordero even saw the mayor’s wealth as positive, explaining that it was clear to her that Mayor Bloomberg was not doing this job for the money. And at an event with plenty of Puerto Rican pride, Ms. Cordero was not keen on Mr. Ferrer. “Freddy Ferrer didn’t do anything for the Bronx when he was there,” she said.

At yesterday’s Puerto Rican Day Parade, however, Mr. Ferrer received an enthusiastic reception from most in the crowd. A woman in Mr. Ferrer’s entourage shouted into a bullhorn in Spanish, “Meet the next mayor of the City of New York!”

In an interview with New York News Network, Mr. Ferrer was asked if this message meant he was already running for mayor. Mr. Ferrer said, “I’ll make my formal announcement some time after the presidential election.”

Mr. Ferrer then commented on the recent poll numbers, saying, “It’s a very interesting phenomenon. The mayor has increased his approval ratings and apparently my lead over him has widened. Go figure.” Mr. Ferrer then pointed out, “I’ve been sort of low-key, have you noticed that?”

After he was asked to explain how he could increase his lead by being low-key, Mr. Ferrer said, “I take the bus and subway like millions of New Yorkers – every morning – walk the streets, don’t have a car and a driver. I see a lot of people, I guess.”

Then he added, “Maybe people remember the service that I tried to give to this city over a course of 25 years.”

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Mayor Bloomberg Opposes Parks Permit for Protesters

Posted on June 2, 2004 by New York News Network

By Maurice Pinzon
Yesterday, at the 2nd Annual Citywide Choral Festival, about 200 people gathered in Bryant Park on 42nd Street to hear an announcement about New York City school arts programs. During a question and answer session, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg refused to consider reversing the Parks Department’s denial of a rally permit for United for Peace and Justice’s (UFPJ’s) proposed protest in Central Park.

Just last week, UFPJ held a press conference to mobilize New Yorkers to support their march up Eighth Avenue, past Madison Square Garden, with the event culminating in a rally on the Great Lawn of Central Park. The organizers plan to hold the event on August 29, the day before the Republican National Convention.

When a reporter asked Mayor Bloomberg if he would overrule the Parks Department’s decision, the mayor said, “No, we are not going to issue a permit for 250,000 people for a place in Central Park that only holds 80,000 people.” The mayor said City officials “would be derelict in our duty to provide public safety” for an event that large.

In addition, Mayor Bloomberg insisted that the gathering could “destroy an enormous investment” ”” not just the Great Lawn’s grass, but also the park’s infrastructure. The Police Department could suggest other venues that would be safer, he said.

Bill Dobbs, media coordinator for UFPJ, responded by saying, “With a crisis in Iraq, only Bloomberg could turn a protest about issues of war and peace into a discussion about lawn care.”

In a recent telephone conversation with New York News Network, the Police Department’s Deputy Commissioner for Public Information, Paul Browne, said the department and protest organizers were continuing their discussions about the rally. Last week, Leslie Cagan, the national coordinator for UFPJ, confirmed that the Police Department was talking to the group and had suggested alternative proposals, including a street march ending in a rally in downtown Manhattan.

But UFPJ and supporters said the Police Department’s proposal would be a circuitous movement of people through the streets of Manhattan, ending in the crowded and narrow streets downtown. The organizers indicated this option was impractical.

In contrast, Ms. Cagan said demonstrators could safely gather in Central Park, adding that the park had a history of holding large events. Ms. Cagan also said people could get off at multiple subway stops and that numerous park entrances would allow protesters and other New Yorkers to gather safely.

The UFPJ disputes the number of people the Great Lawn can hold. The Parks Department’s estimate of 80,000 people appears to come mostly from corporate ticketed events. The organizers contended that plenty of adjoining spaces were available that would allow for a larger crowd. In addition, they argued, the 250,000 is simply an estimate of the maximum number of people who might attend the Central Park rally.

Tony Kushner, the playwright of “Angels in America,” “Caroline, or Change” and “Homebody/Kabul,” was also present at the UFPJ news conference.

Mr. Kushner said, “If Bloomberg’s administration continues with this policy that was begun really under Giuliani, of repeatedly denying New Yorkers the right to organize in a planned fashion, to get the word out about where people need to meet, and so on, it’s going to be madness on the streets in August. And that’s madness that’s created by the Bloomberg administration.” Mr. Kushner added, “What this does, of course, is it discourages dissent.”

The protest permits may be heading into a legal maze. Today the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) announced that in Manhattan Federal Court, Judge Robert W. Sweet would be hearing three cases against the New York Police Department about the February 15, 2003 anti-war demonstrations. The NYCLU will argue that the street restrictions set up by the New York Police Department that day were unreasonable because the use of pens made it difficult for demonstrators to gain access to the rally site.

The NYCLU apparently believes the lawsuit will be important because it may impact the Police Department’s actions during the Republican National Convention. The lawsuit also seems to buttress UFPJ’s argument that street demonstrations with various obstacles are more unwieldy than their proposed march to Central Park.

Anything short of a large gathering on the Great Lawn seems unlikely to appease many of the demonstrators, precisely because of UFPJ’s experiences in February of last year.

Mr. Kushner said, “And of course security is a concern, but if you were on the streets in February, you saw what happened as a result of an endlessly and needlessly protracted battle in the courts to get an organized march to happen: chaos is created.”

He added, “I think the refusal of this permit is a scandal, or will be a scandal, if it is finally refused by the Police Department.”

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A Conversation with Tracy Quan

Posted on May 7, 2004 by New York News Network

By Thessy Mehrain

Tracy Quan (Photo by Finn Fons)

Tracy Quan (Photo by Finn Fons)

Author Tracy Quan discusses her semi-autobiographical novel, “Diary of a Manhattan Call Girl” (Three Rivers Press) and the rationale behind her decision to become a prostitute ”” and secretly, a writer. Known for her contribution to the increasingly popular “chick lit” genre, Ms. Quan’s rise to fame began when her fictional series on prostitution were published on Salon.com. The series revolves around a character named Nancy Chan, who struggles to keep the two halves of her double life in New York City separate from one another.

Tracy, the protagonist of your novel ”” the character of Nancy Chan ”” is based on your life. At what point did you first think about sharing your story? Who do you see as your audience, and what is your message?

At 13, I had this vague ambition to write a novel ”” but not about sex. At that point, I didn’t have much of a story to tell. I was starting to have a sex life and I also thought I would become a prostitute one day, but I saw writing and sex as two unrelated activities. I didn’t realize that I would one day write something inspired by my own sexual observations.

I don’t have one message to convey because it changes from one project to the next. How my life got reinterpreted in this novel is a mystery, sometimes even to myself, so I think it’s too narrow to say that Nancy’s character is based on my life.

My readers don’t fit a mold. Some are relaxing, escaping from their daily toil. I’m not ashamed to say that the book is successful at airports. Some are students in philosophy or women’s studies, where sex work is getting a lot of attention. I don’t have a target audience in mind. When I began writing my novel, I was told that I had a mostly female readership, but I know that my work appeals to men and women. I have transgender readers, too. We are hearing lately that chick lit needs to evolve ”” and some women tell me that this is “street smart chick lit,” but that is really for the reader to judge.

In your story, Nancy Chan has an unsuspecting boyfriend and lives a double life. The societal stigma surrounding this line of work, forcing sex workers into lying and therefore denying who they are, seems to be a disadvantage of a call girl’s job. Nancy Chan handles it pretty well, though. What do you see as the pros and cons? Is it a job and a lifestyle you would recommend? In your opinion, is being a call girl a profession like any other?

Nancy does lie to her boyfriend, but I don’t think stigmatization tells the whole story. Women have complex, egotistical reasons for lying to their men. Women have been lying to men for centuries and Nancy is part of that tradition. Until DNA testing was invented, women could more easily lie about paternity. Nancy lies because she wants her boyfriend to treat her a certain way. She wants a conventional romance. When people lie to a partner, it’s because of how they think they will be treated. People lie to carve out privacy, to make someone happy, to maintain an upper hand. Prostitutes often lie to their boyfriends but so do many other people. Now, some people assume that there is an authentic self, a person you “truly are,” hiding behind the public image. I think that’s naïve. You can minimize one aspect of yourself in order to play up another.

Pros and cons? If you are a prostitute, you learn to be versatile. But if you are too versatile and you get found out, you may be accused of dishonesty or moral turpitude.

There is NO job or lifestyle I recommend because every path involves risk or pain, but there will always be people who are attracted to the prostitute’s way of life, whether you condone or discourage [it]. The call girl is like other people but she is also in a category of her own. Aren’t all professions a bit distinct or different?

I agree. All professions are different, though there aren’t too many jobs that people feel they have to lie about ”” like Nancy, who tells people that she does “copy editing” for a living.

Many jobs do require confidentiality, though. The denial that hookers practice can be viewed as a form of confidentiality. If you run into a client at a party and you say hello, it’s a lot safer when the world doesn’t know you are a hooker! If the world knows, he will run to another corner of the room. And everybody will look at him oddly.

I used to hide my profession when I was hanging out with another call girl. I would go undercover with her friends, even though I was being very open with mine. This is a valuable skill. Information is a resource. What you do with it says a lot about your intelligence, integrity and agility. It’s more important to be trustworthy than to be honest.

And writers can lead double lives, far more than people realize. There is a wonderful story by Somerset Maugham: “The Colonel’s Lady.” The colonel’s wife writes and publishes a collection of poetry right under his nose without telling him. The poems are based on her secret romantic life.

For you, personally, how did the aspect of keeping a double life affect your relationship to friends, family and lover?

I mostly led a very open life. When I did choose to keep things a secret, I rather enjoyed it. I enjoyed the intrigue ”” having my privacy. It made me feel more in control of my life and gave me freedom. I used to argue with my friends in “The Life,” as we called the profession. They would always tell me that they preferred having a double life. I thought they were crazy. When I finally had a reason to play that game, I saw why they enjoyed it. I don’t regret telling [my boyfriends and family] the facts”¦.And I also don’t regret hiding it from others. It’s about striking a balance ”” doing what works for the moment. So I had a boyfriend who knew, but when I went to parties with his uptight corporate friends, they did not know. For a long time, my family didn’t realize I was writing a column at Salon.com. But they knew I had been a hooker. My writing was more of a secret than my sex work!

Did it change over the years? Obviously, writing the book is also a “coming out” of sorts.

Not as much as you might think. My parents have known about my sex work for years. Even when I hid the details, they knew I had friends who were hookers. But I was nervous about coming out as a writer ”” my friends in the sex trade did not always know I was writing. I was worried because I thought they would dislike the book or disagree with my choice. I was worried that my hooker friends would treat me like a leper. So far, they have been supportive and very nice about it.

When adults consent to renting out their time, which might include a physical and/or mental exchange for compensation, charging for sex implies denial of “free sex.” Do you think sex workers are indeed smarter than others who “give it away for free”?

Well, this is something hookers like to joke about ”” the freebie factor ”” but that’s not the whole story. When you are giving it away you also have some leverage. You are giving a thing of great value so you can require something valuable in return. Non-commercial sex can be a glorious and highly prized gift, if a woman has a high opinion of herself or just a healthy ego. That’s where romantic love comes into play. Then, I guess, it’s not free.

As a teenager, I was casual about sex ”” I made little distinction between love and adventure, and I was a bit of a tomboy. I only wanted to collect scalps. I was giving it away, but at 14 this is ”” or should be ”” okay. When I hear about American teenagers who worry about being virgins or hoes, I think they’ve lost their innocence. The loss of innocence is the moment when you don’t like to be viewed as a slut. Sexual innocence, for me, is sexual freedom and not caring about such labels ”” when you don’t care if you give it away.

But I’m not sexually innocent anymore. I’m an adult”¦and I don’t want to be seen as a freebie.

When you give it away, you are under no obligation to do things in bed that don’t interest you ”” you can be sexually selfish. In fact you should be. I’m not sure I would put down the free sex, much as the hooker in me would sometimes like to shut down the supply. I think women should be upfront with themselves and make their own deals. If you are giving it away, don’t lie to yourself ”” enjoy it for what it is. It’s the deluded freebie who feels bad the next day. Sex is a commodity but we don’t have to be petty about it.

Interestingly there are feminists who argue that sex work is humiliating to women, while others say it is empowering and means working on the front line, fighting the patriarchy.

I don’t take a side in this debate but some of my fictional characters do.

Prostitution is much older than feminism, and feminism needs to justify itself to prostitution ”” not the other way around. Is feminism good for the prostitute? Maybe it is, maybe it’s not. Show me how. These other people are worrying about whether prostitution is good for feminism. They’ve got their priorities backward.

“Let the feminists justify their ideology to us, the oldest profession!” Well, in my book, that’s what Nancy’s best friend, Jasmine, is basically saying! I’m too much of a novelist at this point. I enjoy these ideas because they are fun to play with, and I get to decide what my characters think. Allison, Nancy’s other best friend, is dabbling with pro-sex feminism. Jasmine is the voice of reason, snapping her fingers in the wilderness. Nancy is not ideological ”” she just takes it all in and tries to get along with her two warring friends. I’m getting to be a bit like Nancy.

You mention Nancy Chan meeting the New York Council of Trollops, a cross-
section of sex-worker activists, post-feminists and politically correct, New Age people.
It becomes very apparent that there are different levels and issues within sex work ”” that the work on the street is entirely different than the work for a madam or a high-priced call girl. I know you are an active member of PONY (Prostitutes of New York.) Who is represented there? What are the goals of this organization?

There are some very touchy-feely types in the PONY circle who spend their free time getting cosmetic surgery and reading self-help books. There are also some angry personalities who have been through hard times on the streets or in the dance clubs, which can be rough places. Until I joined PONY and met some dancers, I had no idea that dancing could be such a brutal experience. There are ex-addicts who have survived police violence, bad pimps and god knows what. There are grad students and rock musicians who show up at meetings with holes in their jeans, and there are call girls of a certain age who don’t realize that the holes in the jeans are intentional. There are even hookers from the suburbs who would never come to Manhattan, but they will come because there’s a PONY meeting.

The basic idea is to bring together people from all over the sex trade so that we’re less isolated and we learn from each other. The goals of PONY change depending on the needs of the members. At various moments, we have focused on educating the public about our issues, teaching sex workers how the law works, and providing support for sex workers who encounter violence or police harassment. I regard prostitution arrests as police harassment.

Tracy, I saw a photography show recently at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), “(The Photographs of Reagan Louie: Sex Work in Asia)” for which you wrote the introduction. [Ms. Quan wrote an introduction to this exhibit and to a catalog about this exhibit.] You also participated in the related panel discussion.

That panel event was my first opportunity to really enjoy SF. We ”” the panelists ”” got into a contentious pre-panel discussion in the MOMA Café. I was defending the headscarf and other modest gear, as an aesthetic or personal choice. My liberal co-panelists were uncomfortable with non-Western modesty. Some feminists are as disturbed by non-Western “modesty” as they are by non-Western prostitution. Think about it. The real problem is that “foreign” is still frightening.

Then I had to defend my sexual past as a teen prostitute. That’s another topic that tests the tolerance of liberals. I don’t think being a legal adult means you are qualified to make sexual decisions, and I don’t think being a teenager disqualifies you. Some adults need to have very sheltered sex lives; some teenagers do not. By the time we got to the actual panel, I think we were a little wary of each other! But I really enjoyed myself and I had my first balsamic Bloody Mary at Zuni. And the pictures at MOMA by Reagan Louie were so amazing. I was very proud to be part of his project. It got people talking about the global nature of sex work.

What other events are coming up ”” another book? A film in the making? What projects would you like to do [next]?

After my second novel, I might explore nonfiction again. I’m working on the sequel to Diary, and both books take place in the wonderfully provincial bubble that is Manhattan, here and now. I love New York beyond reason. It is the only place that feels like home, but I’d like to write about other places that are meaningful to me, like Canada and Trinidad. And other historical periods, as well. I’ve been asked to [consider holding] more speaking engagements.

My first novel has been optioned by Revolution Studios for a feature film, and Darren Star is the creative energy behind that. I’m looking forward to seeing what Mr. Star does with my babies ”” Nancy and her call-girl friends. And her clients, too, of course.

In the sequel to “Diary,” I’m taking Nancy’s contradictions to the next level. This will be a seriously playful chapter in Nancy’s life. And, perhaps, in mine.

For more information about Ms. Quan you can visit her personal website: http://www.tracyquan.net

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