In the Haynes-Robinson lawsuit accusing New York State officials, RIOC and one board member of supporting racial discrimination, the pair mention a “dossier” that establishes a racist backlash against them. The so-called dossier includes posts in The Daily and The Roosevelt Islander that Haynes and Robinson categorize as racist. We were shot down in a FOIL request for the document itself.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
The Dossier: What Is It?
After learning about the allegedly incriminating document while reading the wordy, rambling Haynes-Robinson lawsuit, I requested a copy using the established freedom of information process. Normally, RIOC goes out of its way to undermine the intent of the law, but with new leadership, I thought different results were possible.
But RIOC returned a complete denial, but this time, it was different. RIOC’s interim co-leader, Deputy General Counsel Gerrald Ellis, invited me in for a conversation.
We met in the first floor quarters of Blackwell House along with Communications Director Bryant Daniels. Our conversation was casual, comfortable and a complete reversal from the Haynes era. Unless otherwise agreed, it was also 100% off the record which allowed for openness and relationship building.
While out the windows, cars and pedestrians went about their business on Main Street, we shared stories and insights. This was not the shades fully drawn Blackwell House of recent years.
“For the record now,” I finally interrupted the looser atmosphere, “I need to report on the dossier and why you won’t release it.”
I’d already made the point that all the denial did was protect Haynes and Robinson. Technically, I believed that their going public with it in their lawsuit surrendered their “interagency communications” protection and that RIOC’s whole process was invalid. That’s because denials include an opening for an appeal to an “appeals officer.”
But guess who the appeals officer is… None other than Gretchen Robinson. So, any appeal goes to someone with a direct interest in the matter… and a reputation for playing games with FOIL requests already.
The denial…
Ellis explained that he’d consulted with, not just RIOC staff, but with other attorneys before making his decision. The decision was a disappointment for me mainly because I misunderstood the dossier itself.
Believing it was a factual document with actual statistics as suggested in the Haynes-Robinson lawsuit, it was merely a spreadsheet filled with Haynes and Robinson’s opinions – which are protected under FOIL.
The annoyingly humorous truth is that these two highly paid executives ( Haynes $226K, Robinson $190K) had nothing better to do than sit around reading all of my and the Roosevelt Islander‘s posts, judging them, one by one, as racist or not.
They then relayed the spreadsheet to their state overseers, looking for approval to attack the media.
They were, of course, turned down. As a lawyer herself, you’d expect that Robinson knew that the First Amendment allows free speech and a free press with few restrictions. If, for example, either The Roosevelt Islander or I were racists, we’d still be free to express our bigotry. Even that’s constitutionally protected, and many use that protection for nefarious purposes.
But neither The Roosevelt Islander nor I did. It seems that reporting to Roosevelt Islanders in a way that flattered neither Haynes nor Robinson was deemed racist. Just because… well, what other reason would there be for criticizing their performances?
Next Step
Because Haynes and Robinson used their lawsuit to slander me personally, by name, and because both report to RIOC’s board and the governor’s Executive Chamber, I will demand a meeting where I can confront the charges they approved against me.
If RIOC has a thread of justice in its heart, it will listen with an open mind and without any member spewing profanities. And I will ask them to issue a statement divorcing themselves from Haynes’s and Robinson’s accusations.
Before the Door Closed
The May 14 RIOC board meeting began with public concern over the steam plant and ended with two votes that revealed more than any report could. Some meetings announce themselves by what is said. This one announced itself by what the room permitted to move and what it stopped before it could breathe.
