Int 1085-2023

Be it enacted by the Council as follows: Section 1. Section 856 of the New York city charter is amended by adding a new subdivision e to read as follows: e. 1. Definitions. As used in this subdivision, the term "crimes against humanity" means a widespread or systemic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack, including murder, extermination, enslavement, deportation or forcible transfer of population, imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty, torture, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity, persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, or other impermissible grounds, enforced disappearance of persons, the crime of apartheid, or other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health. 2. No later than 180 days after the effective date of the local law that added this subdivision, and annually thereafter, the commission, in consultation with the department of parks and recreation, the landmarks preservation commission, and any other relevant agency, shall review works of art and submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council and post on its website a plan to remove certain works of art. The commission may consider any existing or future reports issued by the task force established by local law number 131 for the year 2019 when creating the plans, and shall prioritize for removal works of art that depict a person who meets one or more of the following criteria: (a) Participated in or otherwise promoted the trade of enslaved persons; (b) Received significant economic benefit directly from the institution of slavery, including through owning or insuring enslaved persons or from entities that did so; (c) Participated in or directly promoted the systemic murder, enslavement, or forcible transfer of indigenous people in the United States or other countries; or (d) Participated in or otherwise promoted crimes against humanity. 2. If the commission or any relevant agency determines a work of art cannot be removed but meets the one or more of the criteria for removal described in paragraph 1 of this subdivision, the commission shall include in the plan steps the commission will take to create and install a plaque adjacent to the work of art that includes a description of the work's connection to the criteria for removal described in paragraph 1 of this subdivision. 3. The plan required by paragraph 1 of this subdivision shall include, but need not be limited to, the following: (a) A list of the works of art that meet any of the criteria for removal described in paragraph 1 of this subdivision, and the location of each work of art; (b) A list of the works of art that meet any of the criteria for removal described in paragraph 1 of this subdivision that will be removed, and the reasons for removal; (c) A list of the works of art that meet any of the criteria for removal described in paragraph 1 of this subdivision that will have a plaque installed adjacent to the work of art, and the reasons why a plaque will be installed instead of removing the work of art; and (d) The steps the commission will take to remove each work of art pursuant to subparagraph (b) of this paragraph, or install a plaque adjacent to each work of art pursuant to subparagraph (c) of this paragraph. � 2. Subchapter 1 of chapter 1 of title 19 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new section 19-159.7 to read as follows: � 19-159.7 Explanatory plaques adjacent to schools. a. Definitions. As used in this section, the term "crimes against humanity" means a widespread or systemic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack, including murder, extermination, enslavement, deportation or forcible transfer of population, imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty, torture, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity, persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, or other impermissible grounds, enforced disappearance of persons, the crime of apartheid, or other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health. b. No later than 180 days after the effective date of the local law that added this section, and annually thereafter, the department, in consultation with the department of education, shall review the names of schools and submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council and post on its website a plan to install explanatory plaques on sidewalks or other public space adjacent to certain schools. The department shall prioritize the installation of a plaque at each school which is named after a person who meets one of the following criteria: 1. Participated in or otherwise promoted the trade of enslaved persons; 2. Received significant economic benefit directly from the institution of slavery, including through owning or insuring enslaved persons or from entities that did so; 3. Participated in or directly promoted the systemic murder, enslavement, or forcible transfer of indigenous people in the United States or other countries; or 4. Participated in or otherwise promoted crimes against humanity. c. Any plaque installed pursuant to subdivision b of this section shall be installed on a sidewalk or other public space directly adjacent to a school, and shall include a description of the school name's connection to the criteria for installing a plaque described in such subdivision b. � 3. This local law takes effect immediately. JEF LS #12441 6/2/23 12:30pm 2 1