For Edenwald residents, the annual National Night Out event on Aug. 5 took on a solemn, yet celebratory tone as they mourned NYPD officer Didarul Islam, a Parkchester resident and 47th Precinct officer who was killed by a suicidal gunman in Midtown Manhattan on July 28.
On the warm evening, hundreds of Edenwald residents took to the street across from the precinct to enjoy a climbing wall, bouncy house, Jamaican food, and loud Afrobeats and hip-hop music. Representatives from elected officials, city agencies, and local organizations were also on hand to give out swag and talk to people about issues in the community, such as gun violence, public health, and development along White Plains Road.
Mayor Eric Adams took the stage around 5 p.m. on Aug. 5 and praised residents for coming out to celebrate their community and remember Officer Islam. “The streets of New York belong to the people of the city of New York,” he said.
Adams said nearly 23,000 illegal guns have been removed from the streets during his administration and thanked the district attorney, NYPD and state elected officials for their help.
Despite advances in anti-crime technology such as drones, “Nothing takes the place of everyday interaction with the people of our city,” Adams said.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch marked National Night Out as a solemn occasion as well as a strengthening of community bonds.
“This is a time to come together, to rededicate ourselves to the public safety mission that Detective Islam believed so strongly in,” she said.
To applause, Tisch thanked the 47th Precinct officers for reducing the number of shooting incidents to the lowest level since the NYPD began recording statistics in 1994.
“It matters that we’re out here in our neighborhoods together,” Tisch said.
District Attorney Darcel Clark praised 47th Precinct residents for having the largest turnout of the six other National Night Out events she attended that night.
Clark said her husband retired from the NYPD two years ago after 40 years of service, so she understood firsthand the dangers of the job and the fear of a loved one not returning home.
She urged the crowd to keep Islam’s family and his fellow officers in their hearts. “He gave the ultimate sacrifice, but these men and women give a sacrifice each and every day when they leave their homes and hope that they get to return.”
Stand Up to Violence (SUV), based at Jacobi Hospital, hosted an outreach table at the event. The outreach group works with youth ages 14 to 24 in the 43rd, 47th and 49th Precincts who are at high risk of being shot or committing a shooting.
Kevin Isaacs works with SUV after spending his youth on the other side of the coin. Now, as a senior outreach worker with four years of experience, “We actually love to do this work,” he said.
Assistant Program Director Jennifer Montalvo said gun violence has “drastically reduced” in SUV’s coverage area in recent years. She said their outreach teams are well known in the community and work in conjunction, not in competition, with police. “They understand the work that we do,” she said. “They let us do our jobs.”
Despite the stark reminder of the dangers of policing, two young members of the NYPD Explorers who attended National Night Out said their goal of becoming an officer has not changed.
One 18-year-old who did not give his name said the recent mass shooting “didn’t discourage” him. He still wants to be an officer because “I’ll give back to my community what they give me.”
Fatou Dolla, also 18, agreed, saying that many Bronx youth are headed down the wrong path and would benefit from mentorship, as she has had in six years with the NYPD Explorers.
There should also be more events like National Night Out to keep kids off the streets, Dolla said.
“It means a lot,” she said. “It brings the community out together.”
Reach Emily Swanson at eswanson@schnepsmedia.com or (646) 717-0015. For more coverage, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @bronxtimes
