Stated Meeting, May 15, 2025

Thank you very much. The Chair recognizes Majority Leader Gilmore Richardson.

Thank you very much, Council President. I wanted to take the opportunity to remind all of our colleagues and team members that your office is hosting the Gift of Life Program briefing after session today at 1:30 in the Caucus room. So we are imploring each office to please attend the briefing at 1:30 today. Thank you.

Thank you very much. The Chair recognizes Councilmember Rue Landau.

Thank you, Council President. to present four resolutions that look ahead to Pride Month in June as a time of celebration and a time of reflection. While this is my second Pride Month as an elected official, declaring June as Pride Month in the City of Philadelphia still feels like a privilege as the city's first openly LGBTQ+ Councilmember and one I will never take lightly, especially as our community faces new aggressive attacks at the federal level. More on that in a moment. I'm also excited to declare Frank Kameny Day in the City of philadelphia. May 21st would have been Kameny's 100th birthday. And for those of you might not be familiar with his name, Kameny is one of the parents of the LGBTQ+ Rights Movement in from Harvard. He also was an Army veteran. S. C. But in October 1957, he was fired from his job and barred from future employment in the federal government because he was gay. " Rather than shrink back, he fought back. He became one of the first to challenge the court, took his case all the way to the Supreme Court and later organized some of the earliest public protests for gay rights outside of the White House and right here outside of Independence Hall. His bravery helped lay the legal and cultural groundwork for generations of activists who followed, including those of us working in city government today. I should note that he never succeeded in his legal challenge unfortunately, and was always barred from federal employment but really worked as an activist to make sure the message was heard as the first openly LGBTQ+ member of City Council and former head of the Human Relations Commission. I stand on the shoulders so many others who refused to be silent. My time at the PCHR was in part defined by defending the rights of those who were being discriminated against at work, and Kameny opened the door to allow some of those protections. Declaring May 21st as Frank Kameny Day is not just about honoring our past. It's about reminding ourselves of the ongoing fight for dignity, equity and full inclusion. Let this day service as both a tribute and a call to action as we continue to build a city where all of us can live and love freely. I also introduced a resolution naming tomorrow May 16th as National Honor our LGBTQ+ Elders Day, and I believe I fall in that category at this point. Our queer community elders bravery and for LGBTQ+ youth in the years following them. It was their goal to envision a future free from stigmatization and discrimination and create a safer space for the next generation. My office is holding an LGBTQ+ Senior Expo at the John C. Anderson Apartments next month with State Rep. Ben Waxman's office. And I encourage any of my colleagues and constituents to please reach out to my office for more information and any interest in joining us. And finally, I introduced a resolution declaring May 28th as LGBTQ+ Domestic Violence Awareness Day in Philadelphia. At the national level, LGBTQ+ adults and teens are more likely to experience intimate partner violence than their heterosexual, cisgender peers and are less likely to find resources to support them. in LGBTQ+ youth experiences intimate partner violence. This day is about increasing visibility about this issue and encouraging victims and survivors to seek the support they need.

To close and bring all of this together, as we officially declare June 2025 as Pride Month here in the City of Philadelphia, we do so with full recognition that this year's celebration carries a deeper urgency. With renewed attacks on the LGBTQ+ people coming from the highest level of federal power, including from the presidential administration's intent on rolling back our rights, our visibility, resistance matter now more than ever. Pride has always been rooted in protest, and this year we recommit to that legacy. Here in Philadelphia we're working to make it clear no matter what happens in Washington, we will protect our communities, uplift our histories, and keep fighting for a future where everyone can thrive. Thank you. )

Thank you. The Chair recognizes Councilman Jeffrey Jay Young.

Thank you, Mr. President. So today I just want to announce to the city and to the residents of the 5th District a few events that is happening. m. m. This will be on Girard Avenue from College Wall to 29th Street. It is produced by Park to Broad Arts and Business District, formerly known as Fairmount CDC. My office, State Senator Sharif Street and also State Representative Keith Harris. So if you are in the area, please stop by. Again, 11:00 to 5:30 this Saturday in Brewerytown on Girard Avenue. Also, this Saturday is also Founders Day at Girard College. So if you're Girard College and them, please come back to Founders Day. It is the Class of 2005, you know, 20-year anniversary. 21st, the Committee on Transportation and Public Utilities will be holding a hearing to discuss the innercity bus terminal. m. where we'll have this hearing to discuss this very important issue in our city. On May 27th, we will bring to you Your City, Your Budget Town Hall to Hope Partnership School, 2601 North 11th Street. That's 11th and Huntington. Again, May 27th, the Your City, Your Budget Town Hall at Hope Partnership School. , again, May 27th. Also, this Sunday, May 18th is the deadline to apply for the City of Philadelphia's Career Connected Learning Program. This is paid work for youth between the age of 12 and 24. gov/c2l-phl or you can give them a call at 833-750-5627. To the listening public, the Philadelphia Activity Fund's grant application is out and that deadline is May 31st. org to apply for a Philadelphia Activities Fund grant application. So that gets my notes out the way. Mr. President, today was a little somber in here because we had the family of LGP Qua in here. It's another mother's pain that I got to look at and it just saddens me that, again, we have these preventable deaths through gun violence. I'm honored to be a part of your Gun Violence Special Task Force so we can really take a look at some of the issues that really create this epidemic that we call gun violence. And hopefully, what comes out of this is that we create our own Vision Zero for gun violence because gun violence is a preventable death. I want to thank my today for introducing a resolution regarding Lupus Awareness. And people probably think I make these stories up. But when you're a real person, you deal with real things. My wife's closest friends, two of them, have Lupus. One, which right now is in the hospital battling her condition right now. So, Monifa McCoy,I'm thinking about you and I'm praying for you while you're in the hospital right now. So these are real things that happen to real people. Today I also introduced a resolution honoring National Foster Care Month. We all know what's been happening in our child welfare system here in the city, but we have to pay homage to those who step up to rear children as so, I just wanted to put that out there. Growing up, most of my best friends were in foster care because there was a woman on our block who always had kids around -- boys around my age. And sadly, because of mental health issues and other things, neither of -- it was three young men and neither of them are here today. One committed suicide, one was murdered through gun violence, and one died of an overdose last year, right. So we have to really address the issues that are happening in our city in our foster care system with our mental health systems to really address the root causes of it. Putting band-aids on things will not help what we experience as a city on a daily basis. We have to this. And lastly, Mr.

President, today I introduced a bill that would clarify what type of dangerous weapons are prohibited in the City of Philadelphia, particularly around spring guns and air guns. And the premise of this legislation is because every recreation center I go to throughout the summertime where there are young boys playing, I see them shooting these Orbeez guns and these gel blasters at each other, and those things cause real violence. And so, we want to let the parents know that those types of air guns, compressed air guns are still illegal. Although they might not be shooting hard BBs as they're known, but they are still pellets. so, this legislation would clarify that the pellet, whether it's a liquid, a solid or any particular matter, or guns that shoot those types of things are illegal in the City of Philadelphia. And the legislation also makes it clear that certain types of crossbows and things like that are illegal to sell to minors in the City of Philadelphia. As we look to keep our city safe, we have to do things that keep things out of the hands of our youth. Because again, it can lead them on the wrong path. So thank you, Mr. President, for indulging me today.

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councilmember Cindy Bass.

Thank you, Mr. President. Today Dr. Nina Ahmad and I introduced a resolution calling for a joint hearing between the Special Committee on Child Separation and the Committee on Public Health and Human Services to investigate the recent provisional licensing status of the Philadelphia Department of Human Services and the Philadelphia Juvenile Justice Services Center. And when we talk about, you know, my colleague just finished talking about experiences with young men in the foster care system, we just cannot overlook the importance of this moment, and here we are yet again. And so, the state's downgrade follows serious allegations of unauthorized access data, potential retaliation against whistleblowers and reports of abuse and misconduct in juvenile detention. Now, we know on a federal level that unauthorized access to confidential information and retaliation and whistleblowing, these are things that we often talk about in this chamber in a different context, when it comes to what's happening really in Washington right now. So at the same time, we cannot overlook or ignore when a very vulnerable population here in the City of Philadelphia is being affected by these very same sorts of actions and it really requires each and every one of us to stand up and speak out about it. These are not just that strike at the heart of our moral and legal responsibility to protect the most valuable among us, our children. We must act and this resolution seeks not only answers but accountability. It demands transparency and reform to restore the public's trust, and we owe that to every child whose safety and dignity has been compromised in our care. My second resolution authorizes a hearing to explore how we can better incorporate youth voices in the decision-making process of our parks and recreation system. I spoke to students at Palumbo this week, including my own daughter, who's a student. And these inspiring young people are not just users of our public lived experiences, creative ideas and a deep understanding of what their neighborhoods need. Yet too often their voices are missing from the tables when decisions are made. We can't continue to shape programs and policies for youth without you. This resolution is more than about civic engagement. It's about equity, inclusion and building trust. If we want safe, responsive and thriving public spaces, we must empower our young people to help us lead in that vision. Palumbo High School students have already shown us that the interest in leadership are there, and now it's time for all of us as a city to create the space. And I urge all of you to support this important step toward desperately needed. And we need to make these spaces safer. And again, we cannot make decisions for the youth without including the youth. Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. Chair recognizes Councilmember Isaiah Thomas.

Good morning, Council Pres -- good afternoon. Most of my stuff was already taken. I was just going to send a few reminders as well. One reminder that I wanted to put out there was that Tuesday is Election day, and we want to encourage everybody to make sure that they make a plan to vote this Tuesday. myself, my colleague to my right and my colleague to my right, right, we all have three different important measures that will be on the ballot, Ballot Questions No. 1, 2 and 3. So when people make your plan to go vote this Tuesday, please do not forget the ballot questions. This weekend we'll be doing another Barber Shop Talk. We've done a number of initiatives, whether it's trips for high school students, visits to high schools. The same things we all did last year to push people to come out to vote, this year's election is just as important, especially when I listen to some of the issues that my colleagues talked about around young people, separation and things like that. decisions are made by judges, and that's one of the important things we'll be voting for, along with the ballot measures that myself and my colleagues put on the ballot. So please make sure you make a plan to vote. As I close out, Council President, I just want to thank you for your leadership as well as Councilmember Young and Councilmember Brooks. Listening to everything that you guys talked about with LGP Qua, just on a personal level I'm a big hip hop fan. Anybody who follows me on social media, I do not hide it at all. And I'm old now, 40. So my taste in hip hop is very different -

You're not old.

I'm sorry. In the world of hip hop, that's old. So my taste in hip hop is very different than what the young people listen to today. But I feel like LGP was an exception to some of the music that we would consistently hear from young people coming from his generation. I try to compare his generation to my generation. And even for me growing up, I think the closest person I could come up to is maybe Cassidy, right. Like, you don't really see many young people with the lyrical ability that he had while simultaneously putting a positive message there that really inspired you, that made you think about the social ills that we had as a city, like these institutional problems. I even remember when the elected, he even threw her in one of his lyrics. And so, that's how conscious he was. So when I first heard about his passing, the kid, the young person was so positive that I thought it was -- my instincts was like, oh man, I hope it wasn't like a car accident or something like that because I never would have thought that it would involve what it actually involved, because that was literally the opposite of how he lived his life. So I just wanted to offer my thoughts and prayers to his family. And then also, Council President, in the midst of us convening around gun violence and young people and some of the things that we do, we got to really take in consideration the trauma of this generation, right. A couple years ago, they lost PnB Rock, right. PnB Rock getting killed out on the West Coast, that was a big deal. We also lost Phat Geez. Phat Geez was another young person who I actually watched grow up in the city of Philadelphia playing basketball, remember, when he was in high school. And for him to get to the point in his life where he was trying to do positive stuff and then he ended up getting gunned down. We got to recognize that for a lot of us growing up outside of the pandemic and ghost guns and all that stuff, the trauma of seeing your real-life heroes being gunned down puts a ceiling, whether conscious or subconscious, puts a ceiling on what you feel like your trajectory is as it relates to your future and your life. heartbroken, Council President. I really am. But I'm optimistic because of your leadership and the people who we work with in this legislative body, that we know the problem and we'll continue to work to address what we call preventable deaths here in the city of Philadelphia. Thank you, Council President. Thank you, colleagues.

Thank you, Member Thomas. The Chair recognizes Councilmember Dr. Nina Ahmad.

Thank you, Council President. And thank you to my colleagues for all their speeches today. Because just picking up on what Councilmember Young said, Vision Zero for gun violence deaths, Vision Zero for accidents criminal activity in our human services sector. We can do this if we have a body like this who is focused on making sure we are solutionoriented. And today I join my colleague Councilmember Cindy Bass to express deep concern and shared commitment to do better in understanding the circumstances that led to the provisional licensing of our Philadelphia Department of Human Services and the Philadelphia Juvenile Justice Center. As Chair of the Committee on Health and Human Services, I recognize the complex and important work being done by our child welfare and juvenile justice systems. At the same time, the recent reports of unauthorized and other concerning practices call for a thorough and transparent review. These are serious matters that require our full attention to ensure we are safeguarding both the integrity of our institutions and the well-being of the children and families they serve. Additionally, findings from the Philadelphia youth ombudsman and local media have -and thank you to the state for keeping us on our toes, for doing the digging to get this information. It is critical. I see them as partners to do the work, that they have resources to do that we don't sometimes. So I appreciate that. And they have raised questions about conditions at the our responsibility to listen carefully, gather facts and work collaboratively towards thoughtful reforms that center child safety and care. It is more than about casting blame or you know. It is really about upholding standards we all believe in, transparency, accountability and commitment to continuous improvement. Our children and families deserve nothing less. I also wanted to make a reminder to this issue of human services. We already have a hearing for Human Services on June 6th at 10:00 a.m. and we're putting our panels together and invite the public to that. And there's a public notice that's already out there. remind folks that tomorrow -- tomorrow's Friday, right? Yeah. Tomorrow we have a Special Committee on Kensington that will convene for a hearing regarding best practices in substance use disorder outreach. This is Resolution 240760. And on behalf of our leader of this Special Committee and Kensington Caucus, Councilmember Quetcy Lozada, I hope all of you will attend and share with us your thoughts and experiences. And finally, I wanted to just speak on the resolution that I introduced today which is recognizing and celebrating the 2025 Philippine Independence Week Celebration. May is still AAPI Heritage Month Celebration. And the reason why these resolutions and recognitions are talk about the diversity in Philadelphia, this mosaic. This American mosaic that we are tightly bound together is really important for all of us to recognize each other, what we bring to the table. And so, it is a great privilege for me to recognize folks that some people don't see sometimes. And I want to make sure we all understand we're pulling together for a better Philadelphia. So thank you, Council President.

Thank you very much. As there are no more speeches, I just want to say I am truly honored and privilege to work with the hard-working members of this distinguished body. Some may measure our work by resolutions. work by bills introduced. But I know for a fact that the work we are doing is having a positive impact, specifically focusing on change, changing the system, addressing issues of injustices in all different areas. And so, it should never go unnoticed the work that all of you are doing, each and every last member of this body. So just continue to keep up doing the good work, speaking truth to power and addressing the issues that's very near and dear to you as well as the constituents in which we all represent. At this time, the Chair recognizes Councilmember Isaiah Thomas for a motion to adjourn.

Thank you, Council President. stands adjourned until Thursday, May 29th, notice the date, until Thursday, May 29, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. (Duly seconded.)

It has been moved and properly seconded that Council stand adjourned until Thursday, May 29, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. All those in favor will signify by saying aye. (Aye.)

Those opposed? (No response.)

The ayes have it and the motion carries. Thank you all very much. ) C E R T I F I C A T I O N I, hereby certify that the proceedings and evidence noted are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me in the foregoing matter, and that this is a correct transcript of the same. m. C. E. org. L. m. d. 36:14, 119:22 203:10, 121:18 11 phian 171:20 217:7 26:19 pharma 37:16 126:23 205:6 permit Philadel 148:3 43:17 128:10, 209:16 96:3,12 45:4,8 11 211:10, phians permitti Phat 131:12 49:2,15 129:3 21 ng 240:5,6 207:14 50:4, 139:10 212:2 94:21 Phil 15,16 142:17 214:19 philanth person 183:17 51:13, 145:24 216:9, ropy 44:21 phila. N. S.