Rep. Dan Goldman said his office was gathering info but said, "it certainly appears as if ICE has outright defied a court order.." Background on order yesterday: www.thecity.nyc/2026/05/19/j...

A day after a judge's order barring most ICE arrests inside immigration courts, masked agents detained a Honduran man at 26 Federal Plaza, according to advocates who witnessed it... www.thecity.nyc/2026/05/19/i...

CHANGE! The public testimony for libraries will not take place 5/26 - it is taking place on 6/10 at 9:30am.

How can you help, you say? You can send a letter to your city councilperson actionnetwork.org/letters/city... or call them nycplan.org/actions/call... or sign up & we'll help you set up a meeting with them docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F.... It's not too late to fight for our libraries! (More soon) 3/3

In fact, adjusted for inflation, this executive budget is _lower_ than last year's budget and a smaller percentage of the city's overall budget. This is a crucial time to support our library workers & constituents and I know the mayor wants to do better, so let's help him with loving pressure! 2/3

For folks who've been following the NYC Budget news, here's a fact sheet re: how libraries are still not being funded near the level @mayor.nyc.gov had committed to during the campaign nycplan.org/nyc-librarie... (cc @marisakabas.bsky.social @maxrn.bsky.social @katiehonan.bsky.social) 1/3

Mamdani gets applauded for hiring activists and being down with community organizers, and both considered signs of him being a different and better politician. But when organizers demand he keep his campaign promises, like his promised library budget, they get chastised by many of his supporters.

On the matter of NYC's public libraries, to be a good Leftist is to side with Dylan and the others at @nycplan.org over Z. And by taking sides, I mean: participate in the actions that NYC PLAN is leading and calling on all of us to do—including this one (to write to our respective Council members👇)

What they don't teach you in school: austerity for the many continues because a majority honestly believe government leaders who say it's necessary. But here's the truth: once a majority is organized enough to demand more, the money will be found or made—because politics makes most of the economy.

After his May 12th Executive Budget came up $97 million short for libraries, Mamdani was questioned about his 0.5% public library funding promise and when he’d deliver on it. He said “yes, that 0.5% goal continues to be a goal, and we will achieve that goal by the time I'm done being mayor.”

Libraries are such radicalising places. In a world where so many people get nickel and dimed for just sitting down, that anyone can access a free world of books, internet, and so many other resources, for free, and you get to be a space that doesnt reduce you to your bank balance. It is very moving.

“The vast majority of public spaces, including bookstores, reflect the common misunderstanding that the Covid pandemic is over or at least no longer a real threat, though people continue to develop Long Covid at a high rate and vaccines offer limited protection.” www.whoevenreads.com/indie-bookst...

“I don't understand what it's supposed to do. Every time I see a video on Instagram that's like, 'Hollywood is cooked,' what follows is, like, the most stupid dog shit I've ever seen in my life…”

Our Library of Congress RPTF caucus, the HBCU Radio Preservation Project, featured by The Guardian today!

This is great, but you're still $97 million short of the funding you campaigned on (at 0.5% of the City budget), Mayor Mamdani. Please keep your promise to the people's libraries! @nycplan.org

GOOD: Adding $32M for libraries to the Executive Budget. BAD: Not sharing that he was the one who made the prior cut. GOOD: Associating Council members with the good news. BAD: Siphoning members from a Council effort to get Z to keep his campaign promise of 0.5% for libraries. Politics is complex.

Today marks Nakba Day, an annual day of remembrance to commemorate the expulsion of more than 700,000 Palestinians between 1947 and 1949 during the creation of the State of Israel and the year that followed.   Inea is a New Yorker and a Nakba survivor. She shared her story with us.

“Crime” will have you believing these people are the good guys.

The money you put into libraries, parks, schools, and museums you get back a thousandfold. Without indulging cliches about social class, it literally raises the conversation. You’ve got people wondering about van Gogh’s colors instead of ranting and complaining. We all see this in our own lives

While Mamdani's executive budget reversed cuts to NYC public libraries, it doesn't make good on his pledge to allocate 0.5% of city spending for library spending. He tells @katiehonan.bsky.social that he will make good on that promise at some point in his first mayoral term, though.

The Executive Budget is $97 million short of the mayor's commitment to fund libraries at 0.5% of the city expense budget. Today he acknowledged this, and said it may take until 2029 for him to deliver. That's not good enough, we want 0.5% now! nycplan.org/press-releas...

The executive budget is still $97 MILLION SHORT of the campaign promise of 0.5% for libraries. @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social

Mayor Mamdani promised 0.5% and for that to happen he needs to dedicate $623.5 million. In addition, we ask that the 0.5% of the total city budget be the benchmark for all future library budgets.

NYC Libraries Budget Fight: An Overview @nycplan.org The current FY ‘26 library budget is $523 million, which is 0.42% of the overall city budget. This was adopted last year during the Adams administration.

Here is @nycplan.org's press release re: the Mayor's executive budget re: public libraries: nycplan.org/press-releas...

New: The NYPD is on track to spend nearly $1B on police overtime this fiscal year — a clear sign the department has made little headway on Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s goal of driving down the entrenched form of spending. www.politico.com/news/2026/05...

My millennial retirement dream is to open a radical bookstore/bar/community space.

HEY! FELLOW NEW YORKERS! You an author? Your book been banned? Has it been banned somewhere in New York State? Please do this survey to help Authors Against Book Bans et al gather data on the extent of book ban issues in our state: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... everyone else: please boost

Our libraries deserve stable and increased funding. Our library workers deserve stable and funded salaries. We deserve a city with a stable and flourishing library system. This is just the start of how we get that. Talk to the mayor, talk to your City Council rep, demand 0.5% for libraries.

Yesterday Mayor Mamdani released his executive budget for FY27, and NYC PLAN is disappointed to see that it falls $97million short of his promise to fund our libraries at 0.5% of the city expense budget. Our libraries deserve stable and increased funding, and we’re ready to continue this fight!

Statement from @ulunyc.bsky.social about the FY27 executive budget - www.facebook.com/urban.unite/...

For decades, DOC's budget has kept growing while the number of people in jail shrank. We commend Mayor Mamdani for taking this first step to reign in DOC's bloated budget, as New York City prepares to #CloseRikers.

As mentioned in this article, @mayor.nyc.gov "falls short of his campaign promises to dedicate 1 percent and 0.5 percent of the city’s overall spending to libraries and parks, respectively." He shorted libraries by $97 million and parks by $562 million. www.politico.com/news/2026/05...

Mayor Mamdani came in $97M short of what he promised for libraries *repeatedly* on the campaign trail and in early Jan this year. Libraries are an essential service in this city and this is frankly super disappointing from a socialist mayor. We want what was promised: just 1/2 of 1% of the budget

folks seem jazzed about yesterday's libraries exec budget news. HOWEVER, we at @nycplan.org are not thrilled. it is still 97 million dollars short on @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social's campaign promise... 0.5% for libraries. he only restored the cut HE made in Jan. budget is basically the same as last yr

Good morning, as promised some info and thoughts on the NYC library budget. First, here's some background in case people are unaware of what came before: open.substack.com/pub/prisoncu...

I understand that people wanna support Mamdani. But he didn’t make good on his promised library budget. And those organizing to rightfully hold him accountable deserve to do so and all benefit from their efforts. Like Mamdani said, “Politics is not something you have, it’s something that you do.”

The fight for library funding in NYC is not over. Follow @nycplan.org to find out how you can get involved. Mayor Mamdani wants an ambitious budget that sustains the long term health of the city. Let’s help him achieve that by holding him accountable to his campaign promises.

This video explicitly says you’re “increasing” library funding. In fact you’re just undoing a cut you threatened and bringing the library budget roughly back to what it was going to be before you threatened to cut it. You promised 0.5% on the campaign and now you’re playing in our faces.

Ok, Executive Budget's now available. Here are the big-picture numbers for the public libraries: $526,629,157 For libraries $124,700,403,150 Expense Budget total That amounts to 0.42% of the Expense Budget. His promise was 0.50%, so let us prepare to follow @nycplan.org's lead.

My opinion remains that it feels like the next four years of statewide priorities were traded away for this year's concessions for the city.

Pied a terre is not a win for taxing the rich or the left. It is the least Hochul could concede to appear as though she was giving Zohran a win.

Statement from NYCPLAN on the city budget & the NY library funding "win" (via Instagram)

In today’s Executive Budget, Mamdani delivered $97 million less than the 0.5% he promised to public libraries. We will keep pushing to hold him to his promise. Email your city council member here: actionnetwork.org/letters/city...

Mamdani's $124B budget is balanced in part because it stretches out NYC's public pension contribution schedule, saving the city $1.6B for FY27, per source. Fiscal watchdogs are concerned about that, saying it saddles NYC with an untenable future burden. subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...

“New York City contributed 54.5%, or $68.8 billion, of state revenues whereas the rest of the state contributed 45%, or $57.5 billion.“ “New York City received 40.5%, or $47.6 billion, of State Operating Expenditures, whereas the rest of the state received $69.7 billion, or 59.5%.” 2/2

Yet still overlooked (similar to how blue states subsidize red states) is the degree to which New York City subsidizes the rest of New York State. 1/2 islg.cuny.edu/blog/fiscal-...

Hochul and Mamdani announce there's $4b in the state budget to stabilize the city's finances. Announcement is very light on the details..