http://nypost.com/2014/12/19/de-blasio-meets-with-protest-leaders/De Blasio secretly meets with protest leaders
By Kevin Fasick, Kirstan Conley and Danika FearsDecember 19, 2014 | 1:44pm
De Blasio after meeting with protest leaders.
Photo: Robert Miller
Mayor de Blasio held court on Friday with ringleaders of the city protests that have led to cop assaults and other mayhem — lending a sympathetic ear as they ticked off their demands.
Hizzoner had tried to keep the location of his meeting with the members of Justice League NYC a secret, but reporters discovered it was at the Midtown offices of a union connected to the one that employs a man charged with busting an NYPD lieutenant’s nose on the Brooklyn Bridge.
“They have a list of demands, some which I agree with, some which I don’t,” de Blasio said as he left the confab at 1199 SEIU’s headquarters.
The mayor listened to the agitators for over an hour during the closed-door meeting. He called it a “very honest conversation.”
He let them bash the NYPD’s “broken windows” crime-fighting strategy. He defended the tactic later, but still said, “There’s room for real dialogue.”
All told, the cop-haters had about 10 demands, and the mayor said some were “promising.” He called their request that police be retrained a “great demand” that’s already being addressed.
“I think the point is they put forward a set of ideas, and I said here’s some I think are promising, here’s some I disagree with, here’s some we have to think about more,” he recounted later.
And de Blasio wasn’t at all dubious when they vowed to help police find the protesters who attacked two lieutenants during demonstrations on the Brooklyn Bridge last week.
“They find it unacceptable, and they will work with the police to identify anyone who seeks to harm the police or seeks to harm anyone, and undermine their non-violent, peaceful progressive moment,” he insisted.
The mayor even thanked the Justice League members before heading out to talk from the other side of his mouth — to a crowd of promoted NYPD cops.
“I really appreciated this meeting,” he said. “It’s a group of young activists who want to heal, who want to bring police and community together, who want to ensure there’s fairness.”
Carmen Perez, co-founder of the Justice League, called the conference “productive” and urged the mayor to have more sit-downs with other activist groups. She demanded a meeting with Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.
“We feel the mayor should continue to meet with more organization that we know have sensible solution for this crisis,” she said, adding they’re looking forward to a more “substantive response” from the mayor.
The group is planning a protest in Harlem this weekend, she said.
After the vent session, de Blasio dashed off to an NYPD promotion ceremony, where he unabashedly praised cops for how they’ve handled the recent protests.
“You have upheld the best traditions of our democracy,” he gushed. “We say very clearly that people expressing their voices is part of the American way.”
“Any act against a police officer is an act against our values against our constitutional freedom against our society,” he said, while insisting the NYPD has “gained even more respect” since the protests began.
Asked if he would be willing to sit down with other organizations, including the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, he hedged, saying he’s “open” to other meetings but doesn’t have any planned.
De Blasio did add that he got a letter from Louis Turco, president of the Lieutenants Benevolent Association, that set the right tone.
“Your decision to speak with these organizers can be interpreted as your taking a one-sided stance to address the concerns of the persons responsible for fostering an atmosphere of disruption, destruction and violence,” it read.
“What I ask, Mr. Mayor, is that you extend the same courtesy you are offering the protest organizers and establish a dialogue with the police unions representing the men and women, in all ranks, of the New York City Police Department.”
Meanwhile, dueling rallies were held outside City Hall Friday evening, with pro- and anti-cop protesters demonstrating side by side.
By 6 p.m. around 40 pro-cop protesters arrived and started trading insults with about 250 anti-cop activists who showed up for a Shut Down the NYPD rally.
“Don’t resist arrest!” the cop supporters chanted, as the others yelled, “Whose streets? Our streets! I can’t breathe!”
