Beep compares Twitter user to KKK after calling out placard abuse
By Kevin Duggan
The turning lane on Jay Street at Tillary Street Downtown had three cars illegally parked with police placards in a No Standing Anytime zone in August 2019.
Photo by Kevin Duggan
Borough President Eric Adams likened a social media user to the Ku Klux Klan after slamming the beep for his weak stance on placard parking abuse in Downtown Brooklyn.
Twitter user CorruptBrooklyn accused Adams and Councilman Stephen Levin (D-Downtown) of cowardice in failing to condemn police for parking illegally in a Jay Street turning lane at Tillary Street.
"It's a sad day in Brooklyn when our own borough president @BPEricAdams is too scared to say that it's wrong for the police to park in a TURNING LANE. That shouldn't be a bold statement in 2019. Same goes to you @StephenLevin33," the user wrote.
Brooklyn's commander-in-chief fired back at his critic for the anonymous gripe, bizarrely comparing him to the southern white nationalist group notorious for terrorizing and murdering black men, women, and children throughout the late 19th and most of the 20th century.
"Not sure of what you are talking about but the greatest level of fear is reflected in people who hide their faces while throwing insults. My life work speaks of my courage. Your hidden face is in the tradition of others who hid themselves with white hoods," Adams wrote on Twitter.
The beep's surprise attack failed to cow his online opponent, who said Adams has allowed illegal placard parking to persist just a stone's throw away from Borough Hall ever since he took office more than five years ago.
"Instead of a lane of turning cars, there are parked cars, with MTA vests, Police placards, etc. This has been going on since 2014. No amount of 311 reports or complaints to the [Department of Investigation] have gone anywhere," CorruptBrooklyn tweeted.
This reporter found three cars illegally parked at the Jay Street turning lane Wednesday afternoon, including two vehicles sporting Police Department placards and another where the driver had amazingly placed the results of his 2018 Police Officer Exam on the dashboard of his car! He passed with a B-, which is apparently good enough to park in the no-standing zone scot free — neither of the three cars had received parking tickets.
Adams — a former cop, who is now running for mayor — has positioned himself as an advocate for safer streets in the past and recently one-upped current-Mayor Bill de Blasio's "Green Wave" bike plan by saying the city should accelerate the installation of bike lanes and CitiBike stations throughout the borough.
"It's clear we need to go further on street safety, further than the 'Green Wave' plan or any of our existing Vision Zero efforts," Adams said in response to the death of a cyclist in Sunset Park on July 29.
But one advocate said that reforming the city's placard system was key to getting more cars off the road and making the streets safer.
"Part of limiting and reducing number of cars is reforming the placard system," said Transportation Alternatives spokesman Joseph Cutrufo. "Special privileges for drivers regardless who they are is a thing of the past."
On Wednesday afternoon, Adams doubled down on his statements — but added that he would host an open community meeting on placard abuse, at Borough Hall next week.
"I'm true to what I say," he wrote on Twitter. "I will always be open for engaging in real civic dialogue. No matter the issue, we solve it better together."
Both a spokesperson for Stephen Levin's office and the Police Department's press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Borough President Eric Adams will host the meeting on placard abuse and related issues at Borough Hall on Sept. 3 at 5:30 p.m. Anyone interested is invited to RSVP online.
Following Adam's online tirade, CorruptBrooklyn changed their Twitter profile to read "Jewish, Activist, a member of the KKK according to Eric Adams."
Reach reporter Kevin Duggan at (718) 260–2511 or by e-mail at kduggan@cnglocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @kduggan16.
One driver got creative and left the certificate of his police exam in the windshield to avoid getting ticketed.
Kevin Duggan
Kevin Duggan hails from the distant shores of Ireland and Switzerland. He covers northern and brownstone Brooklyn neighborhoods, with a special focus on transit.
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