The City
“I think they are on the right track,” said Victoria Phillips, the community, health and justice organizer for the Urban Justice Center’s Mental Health Project. “It becomes fluff — it becomes window dressing — when there’s no follow-up, when there’s no next step. This city is big on the grand idea and then the mediocre follow-through, and our community has suffered long enough.”NY Times
“Then, as conditions worsened in the summer, the board canceled its July meeting and, for lack of a quorum, could not reschedule it for August. When the board finally met in September, advocates’ frustration was evident. That was when Victoria Phillips, who works with the Urban Justice Center, pleaded for the board to do its work before there were any more deaths... "Yes, they did put out a statement,” said Jennifer Parish, the director of criminal justice advocacy at the Urban Justice Center. “But there’s so much more that could have been happening along the way.”
The Jewish Voice
“As per the Times, there certainly appear to be violations at the jail—even personal hygiene rules and regulations about how long inmates can be in intake. “You’re the oversight!” said Dr. Victoria A. Phillips, who works with the Urban Justice Center. “Oversee this work. Make sure it happens. Please do it, before someone else dies.”NY Times
“You’re the oversight!” Dr. Victoria A. Phillips, who works with the Urban Justice Center, testified. “Oversee this work. Make sure it happens. Please do it, before someone else dies.”The City
“I feel positive that they are working really hard to change around a system that’s just a disaster,” said Jennifer Parish, director of criminal justice advocacy at the Urban Justice Center Mental Health Project.City & State
"Several groups including JustLeadershipUSA, the Mental Health Project at the Urban Justice Center and Brooklyn Defender Services have also outlined plans for additional avenues for mental health support. Their recommendations include creating more “crisis respite centers” where people in mental health crisis can go for services and expanding the city’s mobile mental health treatment efforts."Gotham Gazette
For New York City’s communities of color, immigrants, people who are LGBTQ+, and people with disabilities and mental health concerns or substance use problems, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted flaws in our health care system, including inadequate access to needed mental health services.© 2023 Urban Justice Center | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
