The Bronx Deserves a City That Fights for Its People

Bronx, NY – Following the November 4 New York City elections, Juval O. Scott issued the following statement on behalf of The Bronx Defenders: 

“As a public defender office representing one of the most heavily policed and under-resourced communities in New York State – and the poorest Congressional district in the country – we have witnessed for almost three decades how City administrations, to varying degrees, prioritize surveillance over support, control over care, and enforcement over opportunity. 

“As a result, for the nearly 20,000 people we represent each year in criminal, family, immigration, and civil court, a change in City administration often makes little difference to their lives. It has made the Bronx incredibly resilient, and we are consistently humbled and inspired by the power and resourcefulness with which the people we represent defend their dignity and fight their oppression while entangled in our legal systems. But they deserve better. 

“The people we represent need a City government that fights as hard for their dignity as they fight for theirs. That means ending the systematic and racial targeting of Black, brown, and immigrant New Yorkers; abolishing a family policing system that chooses to separate families instead of supporting them; treating youth as youth by supporting their futures not slamming shut the door of opportunity in their faces; and investing in services that build thriving communities, not double down on services designed only to control, surveil, and punish.  

“It also means targeting the root causes of legal system involvement, in part by funding service providers who are on the frontline of supporting New Yorkers who are entangled in it. For years, the City has failed to fund public defenders like their counterparts in other major cities, or to fix a broken contracting system so they get paid on time. This isn’t just unfair to workers who cannot cover the cost of living but severely limits people’s access to services to protect their rights. 

“At The Bronx Defenders, we believe in a Bronx where every person is seen not as a problem to be policed, but as someone worth defending, supporting, and believing in. Our staff fight every day to make that vision real. It’s time the City did too, and starting January 2026, we will do everything we can to ensure the City is held accountable to its own promises.” 

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