A proposal to impose new rules on charity work in Paterson is stirring controversy.
Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh says that work, although well-intentioned, is leaving city streets trashed. He is calling on the city council to enact new rules that would require charities to obtain a permit before hosting food distributions in the city.
“We’ve had outside organizations, I’m sure with well intentions, come in and, quite frankly, after they distributed food they leave a mess. And who is responsible for picking it up? Us. And it should be those organizations,” Sayegh said. “So this specific legislation will address any public health concerns we’ve had.”
But some of the organizations that would be affected say they’ve been caught off guard and are angry at the mayor’s accusation.
“How can they identify our trash from trash of anyone else? And we have receptacles, trash bins. We clean up after our events. So I think that is a boldface lie,” said Bre Azañedo, harm reduction program manager with Black Lives Matter Paterson.
