New York: ICNA-Relief distributed Halal chicken among the needy families as part of the Thanksgiving Day in New York City.

The volunteers also organized a one-dish party for each other to make the day more special.

The organization distributed halal chicken and other daily essential items to more than 200 families in the Flushing area of New York on Thanksgiving Day.

A long queue was seen on the occasion, in which people of all races and colors were present.

ICNA-relief volunteers, including women and children, cheerfully shared their joy and happy moments with each other and area residents.

The community has highly appreciated ICNA’s contributions towards the society.

After distributing food to the needy families, these volunteers celebrated Thanksgiving Day and organized a one-dish party for each other in which the women prepared and brought different types of dishes from their homes.

ICNA-Relief New York Area Manager Ishaq Alpar and other guests praised the role of volunteers. They said ICNA-Relief has arranged the event to share their happiness with the needy ones. On this special occasion, one must remember the the marginal segments of the society and bring smile to their faces.

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New York: As the annual Thanksgiving Day is being celebrated across the United States today,  the American-Pakistani Advocacy Group (APAG) distributed more than three hundred halal turkeys amongst needy families in New York.

APAG set up its stalls in New York on Thanksgiving Day, the festival of sharing happiness as the organization distributed Halal turkey along with fresh fruits, vegetables, and essential food items among more than three hundred families.

Speaking on the occasion, Assemblyman David Weprin and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards said, “Be it tough times or any festival, we have always seen APAG bring joy to the community.”

There were a large number of needy people outside the stalls of APAG, on this occasion.

APAG President Ali Rashid thanked everyone and said that he would continue all such activities in the future.

Volunteers of the American-Pakistani Advocacy Group also actively participated in the Thanksgiving Day event.

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New York: The American Council of Minority Women (ACMW), an organization consisting of Pakistani women in New York has distributed halal turkey among as many as five hundred needy families, as part of the Thanksgiving Day, being observed across the United States, Today.

The American Council of Minority Women, in partnership with Islamic Relief of the USA, celebrated the third annual Day of Thanksgiving on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn.

A large number of needy people from different areas gathered outside ACMW to get halal turkey and other items.

On this occasion, the chairperson of the organization, Baza Ruhi said that they are trying to contribute their part while providing assistance to the people, who cannot afford to eat halal turkey throughout the year.

The distribution ceremony of halal turkey was attended by Pakistan Consulate staff, ACMW team members, volunteers and staff from Councilwoman Rita Joseph’s office who expressed their happiness to participate in the process of sharing happiness.

Thanksgiving Day participants included a large number of women and older adults. The staff of the American Council of Minority Women compiled lists before distributing the halal turkey to ensure fairness.

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New York: New York City Comptroller Brad Lander wrote to Tesla’s Board of Directors expressing concern regarding CEO Elon Musk’s explicit support of antisemitic statements, which have not yet been removed, and the Board’s silence about the comments.

The New York City retirement systems have approximately $946 million in Tesla shares as of September 30, 2023.

“As CEO, Mr. Musk is the face of Tesla, and his behavior here, for better or worse, directly reflects on the Company,” the letter reads. “As Chair of the Board, you have a responsibility to all shareholders to hold Mr. Musk accountable for actions when they harm the Company and contravene the Company’s Code of Business Ethics. If the Board takes no action against Mr. Musk, it sends a message to all Tesla employees that the behavior of the company’s CEO is unassailable, the Company’s Code of Business Ethics is toothless, and employees are free to take any action or utter any words, no matter how hateful or harmful.”

On November 15, Musk stated that an antisemitic post on X was “the actual truth.” Because the dangerous language in the post was written by Musk it poses a threat to all his portfolio companies including Tesla. On November 16, X CEO Linda Yaccarino condemned antisemitism on the platform but Musk’s original comments still remain active.

The impact has already presented a financial and reputational impact, with condemnation by the White House and major advertisers pulling advertising, including but not limited to Apple, Disney, IBM, Warner Bros, Lionsgate, Sony Pictures and Paramount on the platform X. Lander insisted that shareholders, as well as employees, customers, and decent people everywhere are counting on the board to take action and that Tesla should not condone this troubling behavior. The behavior stands contrary to Tesla’s Code of Business Ethics, which reads in part: “Tesla has been, is and always aspires to be a Do the Right Thing company—in other words, engaging in conduct that you and your family would be proud of.”

Musk’s social media usage has drawn negative attention to his portfolio companies in the past. Prior behavior led to a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over his posts regarding taking Tesla private.

In the correspondence, Comptroller Lander also notes that the Tesla Code of Business Ethics has a specific section for CEO and Senior Financial Officers, which reads:

“The Board of Directors shall determine, or designate appropriate persons to determine, appropriate actions to be taken in the event of violations of the Code of Business Ethics or of these additional procedures by the CEO and Tesla’s senior financial officers. Such actions shall be reasonably designed to deter wrongdoing and to promote accountability for adherence to the Code of Business Ethics and to these additional procedures, and shall include written notices to the individual involved that the Board has determined that there has been a violation, censure by the Board, demotion or re-assignment of the individual involved, suspension with or without pay or benefits (as determined by the Board) and termination of the individual’s employment.”

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New York: On Thursday afternoon, taxi and for-hire-vehicle drivers in a massive class action against New York City won the first test case trial for 10 drivers whose licenses were suspended based on arrest and not given a fair opportunity to challenge their suspensions, awarding these drivers $190,000.

There are more than 8,000 individual class members in this case. Friday morning, November 17th, drivers, attorneys and organizational plaintiff New York Taxi Workers Alliance will hold a press conference to discuss this major development.

Triumphant Drivers and Attorneys held Press Conference to brief media on major developments in Taxi and For-Hire-Vehicle Drivers’ Class Action on Friday outside the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse, United State District Court, 500 Pearl St, New York, NY

Drivers involved in the lawsuit were Bhairavi Desai, New York Taxi Workers Alliance Executive Director Attorneys Shannon Liss-Riordan, Daniel Ackman, David Goldberg, Bradley Manewith

Over the last 20 years, nearly 20,000 NYC taxi and for-hire-vehicle drivers licensed by the TLC were suspended based on arrests alone– before the drivers were convicted or even tried and without any consideration of the driver’s record or the facts underlying the arrest. A group of drivers and NYTWA filed a lawsuit in 2006 challenging the constitutionality of the TLC’s practices. In 2019, a federal appeals court found the TLC violated the drivers’ constitutional rights by not providing them a fair hearing to allow them to get their licenses reinstated if doing so would not threaten public safety.

After that, a federal district court certified this case as a class action including drivers who were suspended based on an arrest between 2003 and 2020.

More than 8,000 class members sought a hearing to recover damages, and the court set the first test case trial that was held this week. Today, a federal jury awarded the 10 plaintiffs in the test case trial a total of $190,000.

Attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan, said: “This is an incredible affirmation by a jury of their peers that the hard-working taxi drivers of New York City were wrongly denied their constitutional rights and need to be made whole from the financial impact they suffered as a result. It’s now 10 down, and 8,290 to go, and we look forward to obtaining justice for all of these drivers who were unconstitutionally deprived of their right to their livelihoods without a fair chance to show they were able to continue safely working while resolving their criminal charges.”

Attorney David Goldberg, said: “Today’s verdict, rendered unanimously by 8 fair-minded New Yorkers, is an important, but long overdue, step toward justice. The practices at issue in this case are cruel and pointless. That the City’s government has, for decades, maintained and defended them is shameful —and rooted in failure to respect the humanity of tens of thousands of hard-working immigrant New Yorkers who toil daily, under harsh conditions, to provide services that make life easier for the City’s most privileged residents.”

“With great power comes great responsibility. Voltaire said it. Spider-Man said it and I say it, too. I think the TLC is starting to get that message, but slowly, “ said attorney Dan Ackman, who first filed the lawsuit in 2006.

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New York: New York City Mayor Eric Adams has warned of a potentially serious economic crisis in the near future due to the unprecedented influx of immigrants, saying if the federal government does not provide funds as required, the New York City government may face a deficit of $7 billion, that may prompt the administration to go for considerable cuts in the budget of some key civic departments.

Adams revealed this at a press conference at City Hall. He said that more than 124,000 immigrants have arrived in the city, and the number of immigrants is increasing by 2000 to 4,000 every week.

“Considering the situation, it is estimated that if this grim situation continues for one and a half years, we will need funds of $12 billion during the next two years to deal with the problems. If the federal government does not provide funds as required, the city government may face a deficit of $7 billion,”  the Mayor said.

The mayor added that the city administration is following the federal government’s policy for the arrival of immigrants and their care, but due to the unusual arrival of refugees, the budget of the city government has become unbalanced.

If necessary, the police department, fire department, and sanitation department may face cuts next year. Therefore, the federal government has a responsibility to help New York City in the current situation.

The mayor was asked if the civic services are being affected by the budget cut, so will he contact the federal government, the mayor said that the consultation on the whole situation is going on.

Every time I have been to Washington, I have presented the problems caused by the unprecedented influx of immigrants like limited resources, budget imbalances, and requested them to resolve problems.

He said the Federal government should play its role for the influx of immigrants.

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New York: New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced the appointment of hospitality industry veteran Jeffrey Garcia to lead the Office of Nightlife (ONL) in its new home at the New York City Department of Small Business Services (SBS).

Joined by SBS Commissioner Kevin D. Kim and business leaders, Mayor Adams also announced actions to support small businesses through his “Small Business Forward” initiative, better connect nightlife establishments to SBS resources, and reduce financial burdens on local businesses. These steps come as part of Mayor Adams’ “Working People’s Tour,” continuing to create jobs and power New York City’s economic recovery after the city set an recovered all of the nearly 1 million jobs lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Finally, Mayor Adams signed three pieces of legislation — Intro 687-A, Intro. 845-A, and Intro. 1083-A that implement dozens of regulatory reforms to help New York City’s small businesses, move ONL under SBS, and provide New Yorkers with more information to make healthy food choices.

“From the dance venues of Brooklyn to the Latin clubs of Queens and everything in between, nightlife has always been part of what makes New York City so vibrant and unique. Today, we are taking steps not only to bolster the businesses that make nightlife special, but also to usher in a new chapter in our efforts to support the industry,” said Mayor Adams. “By transferring the Office of Nightlife to SBS and cutting red tape for the nightlife industry, this legislation will make sure that nightlife establishments get the resources they need to thrive and help our economy grow to new heights. With the appointment of Jeffrey Garcia — an experienced entrepreneur and hospitality veteran who has long advocated for minority-owned businesses — we are also ensuring that the Office of Nightlife has the strong leadership needed to uplift nightlife businesses across the city.”

“This administration is focused on making it easier for this city’s small businesses to grow and thrive, and the bills passed today exemplify that. With the passage of Intro. 845, we have now cleared the path for over 100 reforms to be implemented that will reduce fines and fees for this city’s small business community, saving them millions of dollars a year. And with the move of the Office of Nightlife to SBS under Jeffrey Garcia’s leadership, the city’s nightlife community will have a fierce advocate in their corner and access to more resources than ever before,” said Deputy Mayor for Housing, Economic Development, and Workforce Maria-Torres Springer. “Thank you to the Council for the partnership, and congratulations to Executive Director Jeffrey Garcia. I am confident that under his leadership ONL will flourish in its mission of elevating the city’s nightlife and businesses in every neighborhood across the entire city at a critical time for the industry.”

“New York’s 25,000 nightlife and hospitality establishments are more than just engines of economic growth — they are part of the fabric that makes up the city,” said SBS Commissioner Kim. “At SBS, ONL will be able to help bars and restaurants across New York City grow and expand while also fostering positive relationships in their respective communities. All of us at SBS are excited to work with Executive Director Jeffrey Garcia and his team in our shared mission of lifting up New Yorkers and building the ‘City of Yes’ for small business.”

“As the son of a single mom from the Dominican Republic, born and raised in Washington Heights, I am grateful to Mayor Adams and Commissioner Kim for entrusting me with this opportunity to serve my city as executive director of ONL. This is my dream job,” said ONL Executive Director Garcia. “My family knew struggle, but we had a strong foundation of hard work and service, which I brought with me as I rose through the ranks at the NYPD, opened my own hospitality businesses, and went on to elevate minority-owned bars and restaurants across New York as an advocacy leader. I am looking forward to this transition to SBS, as ONL grows to provide more resources to support the nightlife industry across New York City.”

“Today signifies a major milestone as we advance two bills with a clear mission: cutting red tape and streamlining regulations for small businesses through codifying portions of the mayor’s ‘Small Business Forward’ executive order and providing crucial assistance to our nightlife establishments,” said New York City Councilmember Julie Menin, chair, Committee on Small Business. “As the former MOME commissioner who created the Office of Nightlife, I believe it is a logical shift of the Office of Nightlife to the Department of Small Business Services for enhanced small business support. Thank you, Mayor Adams, for signing my bills into law.”

Intro. 687-A — sponsored by New York City Councilmember Keith Powers — requires chain restaurants with 15 or more locations to prominently post added sugars to menus, allowing New Yorkers to make informed decisions about their health. The new law builds on the Mayor’s Office of Food Policy’s work to increase food security; promote access to and consumption of healthy foods; and support economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and equity in the food system.

Intro. 845-A — sponsored by New York City Councilmember Menin — implements more than 30 regulatory reforms that stem from Mayor Adams’ Executive Order 2 “Small Business Forward” initiative, which required city agencies to review existing business regulations and ensure local businesses face fewer fines and penalties without jeopardizing public health or safety. These reforms were identified by Mayor Adams, Deputy Mayor Torres-Springer, and SBS Commissioner Kim to save small businesses time and money when navigating city regulations.

Intro. 1083-A — also sponsored by New York City Councilmember Menin — and Executive Order 37 will integrate ONL under SBS. ONL’s move to SBS will help broaden the office’s reach and deepen its impact on New York City nightlife businesses, while doubling down on promoting public safety and addressing quality-of-life concerns. The move will also foster a strong industry partnership between nightlife and city government, ensuring that more nightlife businesses directly benefit from SBS services, such as connections to affordable financing, free legal assistance, a pipeline of qualified New Yorkers looking for work, and the NYC Business Express Service Team program, which helps businesses expedite permits and licenses, accelerating the process of opening a business, and more.

Small business creation has boomed since Mayor Adams took office, with approximately one in seven businesses in New York City launched since January 2022. In that time, the Adams administration has delivered on the promise of Small Business Forward, developed the MyCity Business site, created the historic NYC Small Business Opportunity Fund, and undertaken additional efforts to save small businesses millions of dollars in avoided violations, fines, and fees. In addition to dozens of reforms implemented over the last year through agency rulemaking and policy changes, the full savings to small businesses is estimated at close to $8.9 million annually.

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A large number of needy citizens lined up to receive the thanksgiving gifts as COPO head Mohammad Rizvi along with various American legislators and politicians distributed halal turkey and chicken to 650 people.

At the Thanksgiving Day distribution, Fred Kurzman, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Community Affairs Unit, also mingled with the needy people and distributed essential items from COPO’s stalls.

He said that COPO gathered people of different nationalities in one place and made a bouquet as a symbol of unity.

New York State Assembly Member Robert Carroll, Woman Member Farah Louis and others also participated on this occasion.

The American officials also distributed turkey, chicken, fresh vegetables and fruits among the participants with their own hands.

They said that for any event or festival, all communities always come together, that’s the beauty of this city and that’s what we need.

Various community members also volunteered and worked hard with COPO on Thanksgiving Day.

Councilwoman Farah Louis and others said that it was a pleasure to see people of different races, nationalities and religions working together here today, it is an example for all.

While distributing daily necessities to the needy, everyone took care not to hurt any self-esteem and self-respect of the citizens.

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New York: The U.S. Department of State, in collaboration with the Institute of International Education (IIE), has released the annual Open Doors Report for 2022-23 which highlights a substantial increase in the number of students from Pakistan studying in U.S. higher education institutions.

According to the report, during 2022-2023, there were 10,164 Pakistani students, compared to 8,772 in the previous year, indicating an impressive 16% increase.

This growth positions Pakistan among the top eight countries experiencing a notable rise in the number of students pursuing education in the United States, according to the U.S. Open Doors Report on International Students Exchange.
The report underscores the United States’ continued prominence as the top destination for international study in the 2022-2023 academic year. Notably, the data reveals a significant milestone, with the U.S. hosting over one million (1,057,188) international students during this period, marking a remarkable 12% increase from the previous academic year and representing the fastest growth rate in over four decades.

Welcoming significant increase in numbers, Pak Ambassador to the United States Ambassador Masood Khan expressed the hope that the ongoing efforts would result in doubling the existing numbers in next three years.

He thanked the US administration for its cooperation in education sector and observed that the presence of Pakistani male and female students, from across the country, in various US institutes not only reflected close cooperation of the two countries in education sector but also guaranteed strong Pak-US relations in the future.

Masood Khan said that focus was being laid on providing Pakistani students with greater opportunities in STEM subjects especially in science, technology, engineering and mathematics so that they could benefit from US expertise and knowledge in these disciplines.

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Washington DC: An International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff and Pakistani authorities have reached a staff-level agreement on the first review under Pakistan’s Stand-by arrangement SBA under which Pakistan will have access to around US$ 700 million, subject to approval by the IMF’s executive board.

The agreement supports the authorities’ commitment to advance the planned fiscal consolidation, accelerate cost-reducing reforms in the energy sector, complete the return to a market-determined exchange rate, and pursue state-owned enterprise and governance reforms to attract investment and support job creation, while continuing to strengthen social assistance.

It is pertinent to mention that IMF team led IMF mission chief for Pakistan Nathan Porter, visited Islamabad from November 2-15, 2023, to hold discussions on the first review of Pakistan’s economic program supported by an IMF Stand-By Arrangement (SBA).

At the conclusion of the discussions, Mr. Porter issued the following statement:

“The IMF team has reached a staff-level agreement (SLA) with the Pakistani authorities on the first review of their stabilization program supported by the IMF’s US$3 billion (SDR2,250 million) SBA. The agreement is subject to approval of the IMF’s Executive Board. Upon approval around US$700 million (SDR 528 million) will become available bringing total disbursements under the program to almost US$1.9 billion.

“Anchored by the stabilization policies under the SBA, a nascent recovery is underway, buoyed by international partners’ support and signs of improved confidence. The steadfast execution of the FY24 budget, continued adjustment of energy prices, and renewed flows into the foreign exchange (FX) market have lessened fiscal and external pressures. Inflation is expected to decline over the coming months amid receding supply constraints and modest demand. However, Pakistan remains susceptible to significant external risks, including the intensification of geopolitical tensions, resurgent commodity prices, and the further tightening in global financial conditions. Efforts to build resilience need to continue.

“In this regard, strengthening macroeconomic sustainability and laying the conditions for balanced growth are key priorities under the SBA. The authorities’ policy priorities include:

Continued fiscal consolidation to reduce public debt, while protecting development needs. The authorities are determined to achieve a primary surplus of at least 0.4 percent of GDP in FY24, underpinned by federal and provincial government spending restraint and improved revenue performance supported, if necessary, by contingent measures. The authorities are building capacity to expand the tax base and raise revenue mobilization and are committed to improving the quality of public investment and spending.

Strengthening the social safety net to better protect the vulnerable. The authorities will continue the timely disbursements for social protection under BISP’s budget allocation—which are about a third higher than in FY23. This will allow for the expansion of the Unconditional Cash Transfers (UCT) Kafaalat program to 9.3 million families this fiscal year, with an annual inflation adjustment of the stipend. Looking forward, the authorities are seeking to improve the UCT Kafaalat generosity level and to increase enrollment into the Conditional Cash Transfers programs supporting children’s education and health.

Further reforms to reduce costs in the energy sector and restore its viability. With the combined circular debt (CD) across power and gas sectors exceeding 4 percent of GDP, immediate action was critical. While protecting vulnerable consumers, the authorities implemented power tariff adjustments that were pending since July 2023 and increased gas prices after a long time, effective November 1, 2023. While these increases were substantial, they were necessary to avoid further arrears that threatened the viability of these sectors and the provision of critical energy supplies. The authorities are also moving to tackle cost-side pressures, including bringing private sector participation to DISCOs, institutionalizing recovery and anti-theft actions, improving PPA terms, and reducing the incentives for captive power.

Returning to a market-determined exchange rate and rebuilding FX reserves. While inflows following increased regulatory and law enforcement helped normalize import and FX payments and rebuild reserves, the authorities recognize that the rupee must remain market-determined to sustainably alleviate external pressures and rebuild reserves. To support this, they plan to strengthen the transparency and efficiency of the FX market and to refrain from administrative actions to influence the rupee.

Proactive monetary policy to lower inflation toward its target. With appropriately tight monetary policy, inflation should steadily decline and the authorities stand ready to respond resolutely if near-term price pressures reemerge, including due to second-round effects on core inflation or renewed exchange rate depreciation.

Building financial sector resilience. Continued vigilance is warranted to safeguard the soundness of the banking system. Priorities include addressing undercapitalized financial institutions, ensuring foreign exchange exposures within regulatory limits, and aligning bank resolution and crisis management frameworks with best practice.

Continuing state-owned enterprise and governance reforms to improve the business environment, investment, and job creation. Following passage of the State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) law, the authorities are moving forward with their SOE policy and implementation of their triage plan, including the privatization of select SOEs. High governance and transparency standards will apply to the management of assets under the ownership of the newly created Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) and the operations of the SIFC. To further strengthen governance, the authorities will ensure public access to asset declarations from Cabinet members and a task force, with participation from independent experts, will complete a comprehensive review of the anticorruption framework.

Deepening cooperation with international partners. The authorities have accelerated the engagement with multilateral and official bilateral partners. Timely disbursement of committed external support remains critical to support the authorities’ policy and reform efforts.

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New York: New York City Mayor Eric Adams has said that there is no place for hate in our city, in the current situation we need to work together to solve hate crimes.

Mayor of New York Eric Adams, while holding a weekly press conference in his office, informed the media representatives about the various challenges facing the city government and the measures taken to deal with them.

On this occasion, the mayor was asked that due to the incidents of Islamophobia and hate crime, parents of both the Muslim and Jewish religions are worried about their children, and what measures the government is taking in such situations.

On this occasion, Mayor Eric Adams responded that his administration has organized several round tables and other events to bring people of different religions closer to each other and eliminate hatred.

New York is a city of diversity. It’s a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-generational city. Look at Crown Heights, the neighborhood consists of around 150 thousand residents among them largely the Jews. Similarly, in Cony Island, there are a large number of people originally hailing from Pakistan.

The Mayor said that he encourages more conversation on a local level so that people from different cultures and ethnic backgrounds know each other, and live in a peaceful manner.

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