| Norman thanks all of you who visited this website and supported him in his campaign. Below is a copy of his remarks on election night. "Thank you all for being here and for your wonderful support throughout this campaign. "I want to begin by saying how very proud I am of New York City. Our rescue personnel, our leaders, and all New Yorkers have shown great courage, compassion and dignity in the face of incomprehensible tragedy. We have shown what I have always believed: that together there is nothing that we cannot overcome. "I want to congratulate Betsy Gotbaum and wish her luck in the challenges ahead of her. "I entered this campaign because I wanted a chance to take on many of the issues that face our city. Throughout the campaign, I have spoken candidly about some of our most pressing issues: racial tension, police-community hostility, unequal educational opportunity for children, insufficient affordable housing and an increasingly authoritarian government. Now we also face many new issues: we need to engage in a process of understanding what has happened, and how we will rebuild our city; we need to speak openly about both our past and our future; we need to create a process for informed public discourse about how we can effectively protect both our security and our freedom. "As we struggle to respond to the new sense of imminent threat, we will face these issues in many different forms. - In the area of intelligence gathering there may be a move to increase wiretapping, eavesdropping and the use of other such technology. We may see the creation of intelligence units like the old Red Squads, both at a local and Federal Level.
- We can expect increased airport and airplane security measures, including the use of new x-ray technologies and surveillance cameras. We will face the issue of profiling in airport security activities. We will consider increased cockpit security, law enforcement officers on airplanes and a prohibition against carry-on baggage.
- In our daily lives, we may see a move to increase surveillance cameras, metal detectors and perhaps even searches.
- We will need to conduct ongoing training on the standards for detaining people, and for stop and frisk activities.
- We may face new immigration issues concerning both the standards for legal entry and enforcement activity against those already here.
"None of these issues will be easy. We will need to visit and revisit them in the months to come as we adjust to a changing world. Let me assure you that while I may be leaving the campaign trail, I will NOT stop talking about these issues. I will not be your Public Advocate, but I will continue to be what I always have been, a private advocate defending the rights of New Yorkers and the principles of freedom and democracy that allow our unique spirit to flourish. "There are so many people that I want to thank for their help and support during this campaign: my campaign chairs, the many people who have contributed to my campaign, the many people who have volunteered their time, those of you who have publicly supported me and my dedicated staff. "I also want to take a special moment to thank John Perry. A police officer, lawyer, activist, actor, volunteer on this campaign and friend to all of us, John is now among those missing at the World Trade Center. He was last seen on Tuesday, September 11 helping people out of the building. In so many ways John embodies the spirit of all that is best about New York City: Smart, determined, exuberant, and always ready to help others. We miss him, but we will keep his memory and his spirit alive as we face the challenges ahead of us. "Finally, I want to thank all of the New Yorkers who voted for me today (some of you for the third time!). Your support and your trust mean a great deal to me. One of the extraordinary things about the last 285 days has been the number of people who have come up to me in the street, on the subway , as I travel around the city, to thank me for my work and express their support. I hadnt realized how many of you were out there. Throughout the campaign, you have reinforced my faith that there are New Yorkers who want to come together and who want to work for change. The last few weeks have reinforced that faith still further. I promise you that I will continue to work with you to realize the dream of what this great city can be. "Together we can continue to challenge the status quo. Together we can still be idealistic. Together we can still dream about how it should be, not how it is. Together, black, brown, red, yellow, lavender, gray, pink, green and white together, we shall overcome." Norman Siegel
October 11, 2001
| When we woke up on Tuesday, September 11, 2001, we all had politics on our mind. But political campaigning very quickly was put in its proper perspective as we faced fundamental issues of life and death. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of those who were killed, injured or missing in the World Trade Center attack. Since the September 11 catastrophe, New Yorkers have responded with compassion, determination and dignity even as we face the loss of family, friends and neighbors, and watch constant images of the destruction wrought by the attack. I am very proud of New York City, and of the courage and conduct of our rescue personnel, our leaders, and all New Yorkers. On the day of the attack, we had begun the primary elections, an integral part of our democratic process. While the attack disrupted that process it has not stopped it, and New Yorkers successfully completed the election on September 25. By voting New Yorkers affirm and proclaim our increased commitment to freedom and democracy. I hope you all will vote again in the runoff on Thursday, October 11. In the months ahead, New Yorkers will need to engage in a process of understanding what has happened, and how we will rebuild our city. We will need to speak openly about both our past and our future. We need to create a process for informed public discourse about how we can effectively protect both our security and our freedom. In the aftermath of this attack we have worked together, helped and supported each other. New Yorkers are tough, we are smart and we are compassionate. Together, there is nothing that we cannot overcome. Norman Siegel
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orman was endorsed September 6 by the Transport Workers Union, Local 100 and the Amalgamated Transit Union, Local 726 on the steps of City Hall.
Rachel Robinson Endorses Norman In A Television Spot orman began airing a new television spot featuring Rachel Robinson endorsing his candidacy for Public Advocate on August 23, 2001.The special spot puts the issue of racial justice in a historical context as Rachel Robinson recalls the time when her husband Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball and I saw New Yorkers gradually come together and cheer for fairness and racial justice. Thats what Norman Siegel is about, Robinson continues as she praises Siegels record, concluding as Public Advocate, Norman Siegel will build bridges to bring us together.
New York Dominican Officers Association Endorses Norman Siegel For Public Advocate he New York Dominican Officers Organization (NYDOO) announced July 17 that it is endorsing Norman Siegel for Public Advocate of New York City. NYDOO is the fourth organization of law enforcement officers to endorse Siegels candidacy, joining100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, theLatino Officers Association and theGrand Council of Guardians.
Latino Officers Association AndOne Hundred Blacks In Law Enforcement Who Care Endorse Norman Siegel For Public Advocate peaking from the steps of City Hall on Wednesday, May 16, leaders of two of the most respected law enforcement associations each announced his groups endorsement of Norman Siegel for Public Advocate.
Eric Adams, president and co-founder of 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care emphasized Siegels record of fighting for under-represented communities. No other candidate has Normans track record of advocating for the average New Yorker year after year, said Adams. He has engaged the concerns of all neighborhoods, from Park Avenue in Manhattan to Park Avenue in Brooklyn, from southeast Queens to the South Bronx. And he has a record of winning.Anthony Miranda, president of the Latino Officers Association also spoke in support of Siegel. Norman has led by example. Hes taken a stand when others are afraid to take a stand. said Miranda. Hes not asking for favors. By his record, hes simply the best candidate. Siegel thanked the two groups: Its an honor to be endorsed by the LOA and 100 Blacks. They are leaders not just among the NY police but among all New Yorkers. Siegel also spoke of what he plans to achieve as Public Advocate: I will not rest until we have a police department truly representative of the city it serves. He also called for improved community-police relations, an end to the 48-hour rule, a prospective residency requirement tied to an affirmative-action plan for NYPD employees, a special prosecutor for police misconduct cases, improved police training, and increased pay and improved working conditions for the NYPD.
Norman Siegel: 'A Constant Amid Sea of Politicking' oris Busch Boskey and Iris Baez each arose at 4:30 a.m. to make last Thursday's breakfast at the Sheridan hotel to kick off Norman Siegel's campaign for public advocate. Joining them at the breakfast was Amadou Diallo's uncle, Bobo Diallo. As the former head of the New York Civil Liberties Union, Siegel supported each of the families after the killing of their children by the police.Boskey, whose emotionally disturbed son, Gidone Busch, was shot by a circle of officers in August 1999, described how Siegel tried to obtain the Brooklyn grand jury minutes, after the officers were cleared. Baez recalled meeting Siegel on the steps of the Bronx county courthouse after her son, Anthony, died in a department-banned choke hold administered by officer Francis Livoti in December 1994. "If there is anything you need, I'm here for you," Baez said Siegel told her. Diallo said of Siegel: "He has always been there. We trust him." Siegel is one of the few constants in an election year where the players have all reinvented themselves.
Families Of Anthony Baez, Gidone Busch And Amadou Diallo Speak In Support Of Norman Siegel For Public Advocate upporters of Norman Siegel for Public Advocate gathered in the morning of May 10, 2001 at the Sheraton Hotel in New York. The crowd reflected the diversity of support Siegel has gathered and included many who recalled Norman's support for them and their causes over the course of his career.Among the speakers were the families of those slain in encounters with the police: Iris Baez, mother of Anthony Baez; Doris Busch Boskey, mother of Gidone Busch; andBobo Diallo, uncle of Amadou Diallo. 
Other speakers includedLeslie Hoffman, Executive Director of the Earth Pledge Foundation;Ann Northrup, Gay/Lesbian Rights Activist;Cathy Chen, first year law student; andCarmen Quinones, District Leader, East Harlem.
Senator David Paterson Endorses Norman Siegel alling him New York's "best hope for bringing the city together," State Senator David A. Paterson has endorsed civil liberties lawyer Norman Siegel for Public Advocate.Paterson, who has represented a large part of Harlem for 16 years, said he believed "nobody could better serve my constituents, and the people of the city as a whole" than Siegel. "He has been fighting for us all since I took office," Paterson said. "I watched and worked with him; now I take pride in supporting him." Paterson, Deputy Senate Minority Leader, is the first elected Democrat to endorse Siegel, the only one of five candidates in the race who has not held public office. Paterson ran for Public Advocate himself in 1994, finishing second to Mark Green in a six-person race. Siegel hailed the endorsement. "It is an honor to have David Paterson endorse my candidacy for Public Advocate. David's intelligence, compassion, commitment and wit combine to make a very special public official. His experience, insights and advice will be a huge plus for my campaign. I'm also very excited about David agreeing to be a co-chair and look forward to learning from and closely working with him. (Paterson joins David Geffen, Norman's high school-mate and co-founder of Dreamworks, Inc.; Sharon Robinson, daughter of Jackie and Rachel Robinson, and Lily Lawrence, labor union benefactor.) Paterson made the announcement while standing with Siegel on the steps of City Hall. He pledged to campaign with Siegel and to appear in future Siegel TV ads.
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