Arun Venugopal

New York, NY —

The nation's largest and oldest civil rights organization marks its 100-year anniversary with a celebration this week here in New York City.

The NAACP's annual convention started over the weekend, and featured speeches from Mayor Bloomberg, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senator Charles Schumer. But many ...

Is the office of Public Advocate about to disappear? That's been the buzz these last few weeks, with 40 percent budget cuts and noise from Councilman Simcha Felder, radio guy Curtis Sliwa and the likes, that it's worth shutting it down. So, is it?

We put the question to several ...

New York, NY —

One of the more high-profile citywide races taking place this summer and fall is the one for the Public Advocate's office. The contest has drawn some of the most well known politicians in town. But even as they make their case to the public, other ...

New York, NY —

Demonstrators opposed to mayoral control of city schools rallied in Harlem yesterday, just a few feet from supporters of the law. The dueling protests took place outside a school, where the mayor, the governor, and other officials urged the State Senate to get its act ...

New York, NY —

The sentence was handed down to convicted investor who defrauded thousands of clients to the tune of almost $65 billion. Federal judge Denny Chin handed down the maximum sentence to Madoff in a downtown courtroom. Madoff victims who attended the proceedings errupted in applause and ...

New York, NY —

The weekend marked the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising and thousands of people filled the streets for the annual Gay Pride parade. Drea Lewis has been attending the pride parade for about 10 years, and the big difference, she says, is how much more ...

New York, NY —

Shouting "We condemn coup d'etat" and other chants, more than a hundred protesters gathered at Dag Hammarskjold plaza to dispute the results of the Iranian election.

Nazi Hajari came from New Jersey. She says there's no way Mir-Hossein Moussavi could have lost to the incumbent, Mahmoud ...

Are we seeing the subtle softening of Candidate Bloomberg? Check out the latest endorsement from the Bloomberg campaign. It's by Mohammad "Mo" Razvi, a well-known Muslim and Interfaith activist - and this is the first time I'm seeing anyone refer to him not as "Mayor Bloomberg" or "the mayor" or ...

New York, NY —

It was an improbable idea but the elevated park known as the High Line was inaugurated, ten years after it was first conceived. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more on the city's new aerial promenade.

REPORTER: The opening of the High Line was a pretty glam affair: ...

Ten years after it was conceived, the elevated park known as the High Line was unveiled today. Abandoned three decades ago as an industrial rail line, the new park sits 30-feet above the street and snakes from Gansevoort Street in the West Village up to 20th Street. Robert ...

Thousands of people flocked to Jackson Heights yesterday for the annual Queens LGBT Pride Parade. And while same-sex marriage was on the minds of many, one gay activist says it shouldn't obscure other causes. Reverend Pat Bumgardner is the pastor at Metropolitan Community Church and one of the ...

New York, NY —

Thousands of people flocked to Jackson Heights yesterday for the annual Queens LGBT Pride Parade. And while same-sex marriage was on the minds of many, one gay activist says it shouldn't obscure other causes. Reverend Pat Bumgardner is the pastor at Metropolitan Community Church and ...

New York, NY —

City comptroller and Democratic mayoral candidate William Thompson says the Mayor should no longer have complete control of the city's water board. Thompson says water rates have gone up sharply, in part because the mayor appoints all seven members of the board.

THOMPSON: This year, over ...

President Obama's historic speech in Cairo to the Islamic world generated intense interest among New York City's Muslims. WNYC's Arun Venugopal watched the speech with members of the community at a screening organized by the Council on ...

New York, NY —

President Obama's speech to the Islamic world has generated intense excitement among New York City's Muslims. Haroon Moghul works for the Islamic Center at NYU. He says he only realized what a big deal the speech would be when he woke up this morning.

MOGHUL: I ...

New York, NY —

The federal government is gearing up for the 2010 Census, and here in New York that means reaching deep into communities that tend to be undercounted. For city officials, an accurate count can mean a difference of billions of dollars in annual federal funds. But ...

New York, NY —

Municipal union leaders have agreed to let city workers shoulder more of their health care costs, in a concession to the city meant to prevent layoffs. The measures include co-pays of $50 to $100 for emergency room visits, and could save the city a $ ...

There's one less candidate vying for the democratic nomination for mayor. Queens Congressman Anthony Weiner announced he was dropping out, complaining that even if he won the nomination, no regular candidate could compete with the well-oiled, well-financed machine that is the Bloomberg mayoral campaign.

"I'll make no bones ...

New York, NY —

Among the thousands of bills vying for passage in the state legislature is one that would crack down on illegal dog and cockfighting operations. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has more.

REPORTER: Right now, seven badly maimed roosters are being housed at this Brooklyn rescue center. Its location ...

New York, NY —

Times Square may never be the same. On Monday, the city is beginning a pilot project to shut down stretches of Broadway to car traffic - from the theater district down to Herald Square - and open them up to pedestrians. WNYC's Arun Venugopal has ...