A conservative group of women sued Mayor de Blasio and the city’s Department of Transportation for allowing a Black Lives Matter mural to be painted in front of Trump Tower, but prevented them from making a similar mural.
In the lawsuit filed Thursday night in Manhattan federal court, Women for America First said they sent a letter to the mayor asking for permission to paint a mural of his motto: “Engaging, inspiring and empowering women to do the difference!” – On a highway in Manhattan.
They said they never heard from the mayor about his request.
The Virginia-based nonprofit said in its lawsuit that they were led to believe that “there is no ‘application process’ to paint political messages, murals or other non-traffic related messages on the streets of the New York City”.
However, they said they later read in an article in the Post that a City Hall spokesperson claimed that the city actually had a process for painting murals on city streets, but they don’t know what that process is.
They added that de Blasio allowed the mural to be painted in front of the Trump Tower strictly as a political gesture, and that he can use it if he campaigns again for the national office.
“Blasio’s defendant ran in the Democratic primary for President in 2020 and, for information and belief, has political ambitions to run for a national office or other elected office as a Democrat after the end of his final term as mayor of the city of New York or to be appointed to a prominent position in an advance Biden Administration, “the lawsuit says.
“Regarding information and beliefs, De Blasio’s conduct as alleged in this document is intended to be a political gesture for the BLM movement and those who sympathize with it, which has been done to improve his future prospects as a candidate Democrat for office or nominee and gathering BLM to support Democrats, including in the 2020 presidential election, “they added.
The group claims that Hizzoner and DOT are infringing on their First Amendment rights by not allowing them to paint a mural.
They are asking a judge to grant them permission to make the mural and to pay the attorneys’ fees.
A retired New York judge criticized de Blasio’s decision to place the mural in front of the Trump Tower, calling it a political declaration and abandonment of his duties as mayor.
“The city’s position, at least as far as I understand it, is insane,” said David Saxe, a retired judge in the First Department of the Appellate Division.
“It is a political statement and why not everyone else should have the right to do the same,” he added. “It doesn’t seem to me that the function of a mayor is to start writing slogans on public streets that express political feelings. It shows a negligence of responsibility in the highest in terms of management of our city ”.
A city council spokesman did not immediately respond.
.
