Transcript: Mayor Adams Hosts “Hear from The Mayor” Radio Show

March 10, 2024

Gary Byrd: Well, each and every Sunday of the month WBLS is proud to welcome the 110th mayor of New York City, the second mayor of color, and the first hip hop mayor in the city's history. It's time this morning to hear from the mayor, our mayor, Eric Adams on 107.5 WBLS. Mr. Mayor, good morning and welcome.

Mayor Eric Adams: Hey, Gary. Thank you so much, and it's really good being on again and hearing from New Yorkers. I want to welcome everyone back to another episode of Hear from the Mayor. I'm your mayor, Eric Adams.

And if you're a first‑time person that has tuned in, the purpose of the show is to hear from you, directly from you, everyday New Yorkers. Listeners should give me a call and hear directly from your mayor on what we are doing to build a better New York City.

You can sign up to hear more from me by visiting nyc.gov/hearfromeric. You can sign up on your website to textwitheric, talk with me on WhatsApp and listen to my Get Stuff Done podcast. But today, the best way to do it is just hit me up on (212) 545-1075. (212) 545-1075. 

You know, the administration, we continue to believe the importance of leaders and moving forward with leaders. We have put in place an amazing Summer Youth Employment Program, 100,000 young people. But we didn't stop there. We also put in place a year‑round education opportunity with our Summer Rising program, a record setting 110,000 young people participated in that last year.

We're going to continue to expand opportunities for both those programs. But there's a deadline. Nothing stays open forever. The deadline for our Summer Youth Employment Program is coming up, so we want to make sure you apply by March 15th. And to learn more— you should write this down— you can visit nyc.gov/syep. And now the Summer Rising Program, the deadline is March 25th; and for that, you can go to nyc.gov/summerrising.

And these are great opportunities for young people. I did it as a young man. I was involved in the Summer Youth Employment Program. It helped me buy those Converse back then. You know, people don't remember those sneakers, but I remember buying my first pair, you know?

But I'm excited today because the two young ladies who I have in the Gracie Mansion with me— we're actually speaking from Gracie Mansion—- these two young ladies, Faith and Elizabeth, they are after my own heart. A lot of people don't know I was a computer geek growing up. I used to do programming in COBOL, Fortran and Assembly language.

And these are the new tech giants that we're going to see. They'll probably go on to start their own company. They're going to go on and do some great things. And that was really a foundation for me.

And they are here today to talk about their participation in the Summer Youth Employment Program and how it impacted them. These two women of color from Far Rockaway Queens, and they're interested in going to college and entering tech related careers.

And so I want to really dig into a conversation with them. They participated in our DYCD's Work, Learn, Grow program where students complete CUNY college coursework in the fall and intern part‑time in winter and spring. They're working at Rockaway Development and Revitalization Corporation, an amazing organization, I remember hearing about them over and over again.

And so I'm excited that these young ladies are really taking advantage of the opportunities that are out here, especially during Women's History Month. And these young women, these young ladies are really going to become leaders of not for tomorrow, but leaders of today as they continue their pursuit. So, Faith and Elizabeth, welcome to the show.

Faith Adeniyi: Oh, good morning, everyone.

Elizabeth Warner: Good morning. Thank you for having us.

Mayor Adams: So now, are you two classmate classmates at high school?

Adeniyi: No, we're not classmates, but our schools are close to each other. I would say they're both in the Rockaways.

Warner: Yes, we meant through RDSC.

Mayor Adams: And which school do you attend?

Adeniyi: I attend Challenge Charter High School.

Warner: I currently go to Rockaway Collegiate High School.

Mayor Adams: Love it, love it, love it. So, tell me about, let me start with you, Faith. How did you get interested in technology?

Adeniyi: I became interested in technology when my family first emigrated here from Nigeria. I would watch a lot of WWE on Friday nights and Monday Night Raw a lot, so you know, just has to do with a lot of TV and things like that. So, like just cable and everything like that, it just interested me just from the get go, so that's really how I got interested in technology, watching TV.

Mayor Adams: When I traveled to Lagos, I landed on a Friday, I didn't sleep again until Tuesday. [Laughter.] I love Lagos.

You know, so when you think about technology and being a young person, what comes to mind? How do you define technology to someone of your generation?

Adeniyi: I would define technology to someone of my generation as like an everyday thing. So, we kind of grew up in an era where we kind of like grew up in a time where we created like the first iPhone and things like that, so it's something that we do on a day‑to‑day basis, something that we utilize in everything So, it's literally a part of become a part of us, so we have no choice but to relate to it.

Mayor Adams: And Faith you want to study geological engineering?

Adeniyi: Yes.

Mayor Adams: Okay, you know what? [Laughter.] I'm not even going to try to figure that out. [Laughter.] Tell me about that.

Adeniyi: So, geological engineering is considered like the bridge between the world of civil engineering and geology. So, it basically has to do with the extraction of like fossil fuels and like through from mines, basically. So, that's where also technology comes to play with that, because we use programs such as OpenSCAD that's usually used for architecture. So, it's kind of like that civil engineering / geology work mixed with technology, basically.

Mayor Adams: That is powerful.

Elizabeth, you know, this is an area that I'm really concerned about and interested in, and that's cybersecurity. Talk to me a moment about that.

Warner: Okay, so my introduction to the career of cybersecurity was just me looking through YouTube and seeing like people document their everyday lives working in cybersecurity careers. And I realized that it was something that I just like the idea of, you know, usually in cybersecurity careers you work from the comfort of your own home, and you help people.

So, like I feel like it was two things that I was very interested in, helping people and you know, working in a comfortable environment. So, I felt like it would be something that I'd want to pursue in the future.

Mayor Adams: And that's such a growing field. We have a cybersecurity command center and we have a cybersecurity school. I want to connect you with the person who's in charge of it, Matt Fraser, he's our chief technology officer.

But that field is going to expand. Cybersecurity is dealing with all types of methods of protecting your data, protecting your information. And you know, many people experience fraud it and lose great amounts of money and security issues because of that.

Warner: Yes, right. And growing up in such a technological society where there are people who were older and didn't grow up with as much technology surrounding them, they're more susceptible to, you know, being taken advantage of in, you know, today's digital society.

So, you know, it's people that will go into careers like cybersecurity and people like me that can, you know, help out those people who weren't raised in the digital era like myself.

Mayor Adams: Well said. Like particularly our parents and our parents' parents, you know, they're not familiar and they can be easily duped online and give up their information.

Tell me something. Tell me more about Rockaway Development and Revitalization Corporation. How did you learn about it, Faith?

Adeniyi: I learned about the RDRC through school because this is in the Rockaways, so everybody that.... We're all around, everyone in my grade is around the same age group, so we all kind of already knew that SYEP existed. It was more of a, let's just get to that age where we can actually apply for it.

So, a lot of the times our counselors and guidance counselors tell us about SYEP, and they'll be the ones that like my first year for the 14 and 15‑year‑old section my guidance counselor told us about it and you know gave us the link and we registered through that way online.

Mayor Adams: And is that how you learned about it as well, Elizabeth?

Warner: Yes. I learned about it through more so word of mouth. You know, growing up in Far Rockaway, you know, being around other people who were interested in getting that foot in the door for work experience and making money, you know, as a young adult. So, that's how I really learned about SYEP and RDRC.

Mayor Adams: So, I wanted money back then to buy me some Converse, what are the sneakers of today? [Laughter.]

Adeniyi: Well, the sneakers of today I think would be like the New Balances, the Air Jordan 4s.

Mayor Adams: So, what do they cost about $50?

Adeniyi: Ooh, no, no, no. It's up there. It's up there. it's up there. Like some Air Jordan 4s just dropped the other day. They're like $300.

Mayor Adams: $300?

Adeniyi: Yes, sir. Yes.

Mayor Adams: Okay, I'll be keeping my Converse.

See, we have been successful in this administration in bringing back jobs, 4.73 million to be exact. That's the most jobs in the city history. And our tech industry is growing at a rate when many of these jobs are coming in, we're becoming a tech giant right here in New York City. Do you want to go into one of the large corporations, or would you like to start your own business in the two areas that you're looking for?

Adeniyi: I would rather start my own company due to the fact that when you enter into a bigger corporation you're kind of doing what they tell you to do, you don't really have... You may not as though you don't have a say. So, when you start your own you're building your own foundations, making your own rules, making your own mission statements. So, it's all about what you feel as though needs to be done in the world.

Mayor Adams: Tell me something, Elizabeth. The Summer Youth Employment Program was how you really engage. Where did you work over the summer, the two of you? You remember where you worked, Elizabeth?

Warner: Pretty much I just worked on... Over the summer… because I was in younger youth. I worked on getting that foot in the door towards like just building work experience and preparing myself for the workforce. So, I just worked with other kids I think in just like a recreational community center and I worked with other kids my age, too, just like build, I guess bond with other people my age and get career experience or like an entrance into the workforce before I actually started older youth which is where I started actually getting into working and gaining that real experience.

Mayor Adams: Which is so important. You know those what they call soft skills of going into being in a work environment is a real transition, what's expected, what's not expected. And it's just skills that we need to acquire, and that's what the Summer Youth Employment Program is about, is how do we give you the beginning skills of being in a work environment.

Did you work for a company, Faith or a center? What did you actually do over the summer?

Adeniyi: Over the summer, like this last summer, I was already 16, so I could get like an actual physical placement. I worked at [inaudible] discount, which was like a retail store. I didn't do, I think that's, I had, for the survey, I hadn't really known what to pick, so I just picked something close to home. So, there I worked in retail over the summer.

But before, like right before you do, like get your placement, we do hats and ladders, which basically what, like you were saying, teaches us those soft skills about, you know, how to dress for the job you want, how to talk to your co‑workers, arriving on time.

Teaches you things like reliability, hard work, which actually helps you, you know, do the work you're meant to do, right?

Mayor Adams: But even when you do something in retail you start the process of seeing the impact of technology, because retail and technology, they're places where you don't even pay anymore, you just walk passed with facial recognition.

Adeniyi: Yes. Yes.

Mayor Adams: Okay. That music is telling us we're going to hit a break. And I just really want.... Was that my, when I hear that new music? Okay, that's my imagination. [Laughter.]

You know, so the introduction, so I want to swing back into what you stated. Something even like retail, there are stores now in other countries where you walk in, you pick up your soda and you walk out, where facial technology take us from your account. So, even in retail you see technology playing a role.

Adeniyi: Yes, yes, we do.

Mayor Adams: The store that you were in, did they have any new form of technology?

Adeniyi: I feel like the newest form of technology that we have from like the biggest corporations to the small delis around the block would be the Apple Pay, being able to just put your phone on to the little scanner and it just, you know, you're able to digitally pay for whatever you want. So, my story had that Apple Pay to be able to…

Mayor Adams: What would you tell the young people who are looking to enter the field of any form of technology with information, with instructions, what you tell them? How to get prepared for it?

Adeniyi: I think to get prepared for like just entering the job world you just have to familiarize yourself with soft skills. So, before we get to hard skills like being able to program and things like that, the soft skills— which are like everyday things such as having manners, like I was saying earlier, just for the job you want, being able to have like the appropriate mannerisms for working is what I would like try to implement on to kids.

Mayor Adams: Love that, love that. And you know, when we come back, Faith... I mean, Elizabeth, I want to ask you, both of you, are your parents in technology? I want to dig into sort of your upbringing as well. Okay? But that's when we come back.

Now I hear music [Laughter] and so we're going to take a break. I'm gonna shoot it back over to you, Gary.

Byrd: All right. It's Hear from the Mayor, and the mayor wants to hear from you. (212) 545‑1075. (212) 545‑1075. New York, New Jersey, Connecticut; and of course, right through the five boroughs especially, Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Long Island, Staten Island, Westchester, wherever you are. (212) 545‑1075. We'll line up your calls and take them when we come back right after this from 107.5 WBLS.

[Intermission.]

It's Hear from the Mayor; and of course, the key to that is the mayor wants to hear from you. Let's get back to Mayor Eric Adams and his special guests from 107.5 WBLS as we celebrate Women's History Month 2024. Mayor Adams.

Mayor Adams: Yes. Thank you. Thank you so much, Gary, and it's great to have these two young ladies in at Gracie Mansion with me.

Are your parents in tech, Faith, your mom, your dad?

Adeniyi: I wouldn't really say my parents are in tech but they also utilize tech every day. My mom is a Licensed Practitioner Nurse, and I know that she sits at her computer a lot, which is where they upload that information about the patients and everything like that.

I think they also utilize an app called Athena Patient, which is where you can talk to your doctors and things like that through your phone, which is another great utilization of technology.

Mayor Adams: Yes, like telemedicine, that's another way.

Adeniyi: Yes. Yep, yep.

Mayor Adams: And what about you, Elizabeth? Are your parents in tech?

Warner: Okay. So, just like Faith, my mom is also a Licensed Practitioner Nurse, and I feel like it's really just evolving into something that uses more tech. So, I can't really speak for it because my mom does the job, not me, but as with everything, it's evolving and building on its tech inclusion.

Mayor Adams: Yes. It just goes to show you how tech is very much part of our lives. You know, you're doing something really exciting with RDRC, Grow With Google Cybersecurity Workshop in April. Tell me about that. Elizabeth?

Warner: Yes. I'm very excited to start it. Right now I'm doing the Cisco IT Essentials course, and we're learning about, again, IT basics, and we're getting that foot into the door. And by the end of the program we'll have a certificate in IT basics, you know, basically stating that we know our stuff.

And so starting that Grow with Google program in April, I'm very excited to do that so I can get, you know, further experience in the tech realm and just build on my resume and you know, start with the help of our RDRC. So, yes, I'm very excited and grateful.

Mayor Adams: Love it, love it. And now you already have, Faith, you already have, you earned a Cisco IT Essential Training certification?

Adeniyi: Yes, we're on our way to basically like come to the ending of that program, which is going to end close to the ending of this month or the middle of April. But I can see that the program has definitely helped us like you know already get our foot into new doors, because I think it was in January we were at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center with our Queensborough President Donovan Richards— I'm sure you know him— so we were at the Art Center and we basically got to, because we were like the youngest people there as well.

So, we were basically there at our table and we got to go up on the stage and show how to disassemble and assemble a computer in front of everybody, which was really interesting and really cool.

Mayor Adams: Wow, love it, love it. So, we're gonna shoot to our calls. Any questions for me or our two guests, dial (212) 545‑1075. Try to be as brief as possible so we can get as many callers as possible. (212) 545‑1075. Are we going to have first caller?

Question: Hi. I'd just like to ask the mayor a question in reference to the migrant situation.

Mayor Adams: Yes, I can hear you loud and clear.

Question: Well, hi Mr. Mayor, how are you? It's so nice to hear your voice.

Mayor Adams: Thank you.

Question: First thing is, you're doing a great job, but I just have a question. Who makes the decision as to where the migrants will relocate to?

Mayor Adams: When you say "relocate," are you talking about within the city or in the country?

Question: Within any state where there's available housing. I live in Rockland County, and there's an enormous push for buildings, and they have so many residents, I don't know if they're open or available, but I'd like to know why they are only going to the locations of Black mayors.

Mayor Adams: And that's a great question. Right now, many of the local municipalities like Rockland Counties and others that we try to communicate with, their position is we don't mind having the migrants come to our areas, but we will want them to work. And not having work authorization is a major problem and a major sticking point not only in the state, but throughout the entire country.

But you're right in your assessment. You look at Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston, New York City, these are mayors of color, even Boston that are really shouldering this entire crisis in this northern region.

Byrd: Next caller, good morning, welcome to Hear from the Mayor.

Question: Yes, hi, how are you?

Mayor Adams: Great, and yourself?

Question: I'm doing well, thank you so much. So, I just had a question I guess for the mayors as well as for the scholars. And pretty much might make question is, how have educational leaders supported you in growing your love for tech? Because I'm an educator as well, and so I'm just curious at what educational leaders supported them in their research of…

Mayor Adams: I love that, and thank you. I love that and thank you for being an educator. You know, my teachers shaped my life and my outlook and my support, so your question is a big one. So, Elizabeth why don't you answer that? How have educator leaders supported you?

Warner: Well, generally just the adults in my school have helped me, you know, hone in on the skills that I want to improve regarding tech but specifically within our RDRC. My supervisor that's helping me with the Cisco IT Essentials course has helped me a ton in just like learning more about computers, learning more about you know computer programs and stuff like that, and just helping me evolve my skills as well as my fellow participants. And so, yes, educational leaders have helped me so much in regards to me building my skills in tech.

Mayor Adams: That's good stuff. Do we have time for one more call? I hear music. You know, do we have time for another caller?

Okay, okay. Well, you know, we'll be back on in the month of April. March comes in as a lion and leaves as a lamb. And so I'm looking forward to the lamb, because I'm tired of this darned lion.

You know, so listen, thanks, callers. We look forward to communicating with you next month. And I really want to thank Elizabeth and Faith for coming in, talking to all the young people, information sharing and just the future of technology in our city, if not our globe, because the skills you learn in technology, those are global skills.

Cybersecurity in New York is the same cybersecurity issues in the Netherlands, so you can go anywhere in the globe with the skills that you are acquiring. Good luck to both of you.

Byrd: Giving thanks to, of course, Mayor Eric Adams and to his special guests this morning who certainly look as if they are poised and well ready to enter the future.

Well, as we come to the close of our Sunday morning broadcast and entering the middle of Women's History Month, on the third phase of Black History Month 2024, we thank you for joining us. And of course thanks to our crew, the GBE team, led by mixmaster, the ENG himself, brother Rick Wright. Of course, brother Lloyd Williams, Marco Lobos, and the GHCC.

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