The New York City Task Force on Transgender, Gender Non-Conforming, Non-Binary, and Intersex (TGNCNBI) individuals called on Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Bill de Blasio to immediately end their plan to transfer women and TGNCBI people from Rikers Island to correctional facilities upstate, as reported by The Nation.

This past weekend, over 70 incarcerated women and transgender New Yorkers at Rikers Island released a petition condemning the plan forcing them to transfer from New York City jails.

The Task Force, commissioned by the City Council to advise the Department of Correction (DOC) on TGNCBI-related matters at local jails, urged the Governor and Mayor to consult with advocates and those directly impacted to discuss community-informed solutions to address the multiple and historic concerns on Rikers Island. 

“Women and TGNCNBI people should not be used as pawns,” a letter from the group reads in part. “Their safety, however minimal in any jail setting, should not be jeopardized due to staffing and crowding issues they did not create, and are not responsible for exacerbating.”

The Task Force further echoed what advocates have been saying since the beginning of the crisis in City jails: decarceration is the only real solution. They demand that the Governor work with the Mayor and community advocates and organizations to immediately release all vulnerable populations from DOC custody.

“This move is rushed, ill-conceived and will surely inflict further trauma on our clients” said Tina Luongo, Attorney-in-Charge of the Criminal Defense Practice at The Legal Aid Soceity. “We again demand decarceration.”