Big wins in sight for grassroots activists
Up and down the coast!
Welcome to a premium Thursday edition of Progress Report!
There is a nice variety of stories to cover tonight, but first, a big update on a story we’ve been following for a while:
I don’t usually cheer when a Democratic lawmaker is implicated in or arrested for corruption, but in New York politics, such an incident is often the precursor for great progress. That’s why I’m celebrating this week’s arrest and subsequent resignation of now-former Lt. Governor Brian Benjamin on bribery and fraud charges.
Benjamin was elevated to the role of Lt. Governor by his predecessor, Kathy Hochul after she took over for the disgraced Andrew Cuomo. Benjamin has long been known as a useless lawmaker whose statewide campaigns have gone nowhere, and thanks to the timing of his arrest, he’s guaranteed to lose another primary. The deadline to get on the ballot has already passed, so he’s likely stuck there, save for his being forced to move out of the state to disqualify himself. That’s looking increasingly unlikely, though.
At the moment, there are two Democratic candidates left: Diana Reyna, who is running with conservadem Rep. Tom Suozzi, and Ana María Archila, a dynamic community organizer and civil rights leader who is running with NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. Today, Archila won the endorsement of a number of state organizations and lawmakers, making her the clear frontrunner.
If her name sounds familiar, it’s probably because we ran a long profile on her in this very newsletter just last month, which you can read right here:
This is a concrete example of the value in building an independent progressive media ecosystem. We dig into Republican corruption and report on resistance movements seeking to topple right-wing power structures in red states, and in blue states, we’re able to amplify the visionaries who so rarely get the attention they deserve from media cozy with the complacent incumbents.
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Housing
Miami: Florida had the highest rent spikes in the nation in 2021, a dubious distinction it has thus far maintained in 2022. We covered the great work being done and victories being won by tenants associations and activists in Tampa and St. Petersburg, and now grassroots, working-class activists across the state in Miami are closing in on notching their own big victory.
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