Transcript: Mayor Mamdani Attends NYPD Medal Day Ceremony
Zohran Mamdani on NYC Mayor's Office transcripts.
Passages
Good morning, everyone. It is a privilege to join you this morning as we celebrate the courage and the commitment of the NYPD [and] the work that you do every day to keep New York City safe. This is not only a proud day for each officer being honored, it is a proud day for our city as a whole. Though she cannot be here with us today, I want to thank Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch for her leadership, and I want to thank First Deputy Commissioner Tania Kinsella for leading in her stead. I also want to recognize the NYPD faith leaders, co-chaplains, labor leaders and staff for standing with our service members, giving them the foundation they need to do their jobs. And I want to acknowledge the family members, partners and friends that are here today. I know that each of you make sacrifices, too, and that few of those we are honoring would be able to excel without your love and the support that you provide every day. Most of all, thank you to every NYPD service member who we are here together today to honor for their contributions to this city. There are 96 officers being honored today; service members who have made incredible sacrifices — including their own lives — to protect New Yorkers across the five boroughs. New York City stands apart from every other city in the world, and the NYPD is no different. Eight and a half million New Yorkers call this city their home. Tens of millions more visit every year. The threats and challenges our city faces are unlike any other. We require a police force that holds itself to the highest possible standard, that is capable of confronting even the most dangerous situations with professionalism and courage. Whether you work from a desk, whether you walk the beat, you have met those great expectations. Expectations that do not just come from your sergeants or commissioner, or frankly, even City Hall. Expectations that come from the New Yorkers you serve; that you will go after corruption and cruelty, that you will stand up to violence. Expectations that come from the communities you have come to know well as you walk that beat — that when called upon, you will be there. Expectations from families you do not know but yet you keep safe. And from your own families that wait for you to return home at the end of the day. Every officer being honored today has met that standard of excellence. That includes Brett Boller, today's recipient of the Medal of Honor, who, like so many other officers, went to work knowing he was assuming incredible risk. While responding to what he thought was a routine call in Jamaica, he put his life on the line. We are so grateful to him for his service, and that he is here with us today. That includes those who, when two men launched incendiary devices towards a crowd of people outside of Gracie Mansion, ran towards the danger — and the men who threw them — so that others could run away. Thanks to their bravery, no one was injured that day. It includes Detective Didarul Islam, a man of humility, integrity, generosity and kindness, who was senselessly murdered last summer in the largest mass shooting our city has seen in the last 25 years. And it includes the 42 members of this department who lost their lives in the years after 9/11 due to illness and injury. Each of those officers arrived at a scene of unimaginable chaos and suffering and did not turn away from the horror. They helped New Yorkers to safety, and then they rushed back in. They spent day after day on the pile. We mourn them today, and we mourn them every day. The officers being recognized today did not do what they did because they hoped they might one day get a medal out of it. They did it because it was the right thing to do, because it is what they were trained to do. They did it because they love the city that they serve. You will hear many more stories like these throughout today's ceremonies. Stories that illustrate what it truly means to serve New York City as a member of the NYPD. Stories that demonstrate what sets this department apart. Today's awards are more than a gesture of recognition. They are a powerful reminder of all that bonds this department to the 8.5 million New Yorkers that you protect. I hope that today, just as you do every day, you feel the power and the pride that comes from protecting your fellow New Yorkers. Our police force is better with you in it. Our city is better with you working for it. Thank you and congratulations.
Zohran MamdaniCheck at the source
Every passage above is taken from this recording: NYC Mayor's Office transcripts, Transcript: Mayor Mamdani Attends NYPD Medal Day Ceremony.