A contingent of hecklers drowned out a press conference held Thursday by New York City Mayor Eric Adams and his supporters as he rejected calls to resign following news of his federal indictment on criminal corruption charges.
Adams said there was no circumstance in which he would resign, when asked by a reporter at the mayor’s official residence. Some New York Democrats, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, had called for Adams to step aside Wednesday night when news of the indictment, which at the time had been sealed, broke.
“No, no. Listen, I’m here, I was elected by the people of this city,” Adams responded to the reporter. “This is a city that is extremely resilient. This is a city, we have gone through some difficult and hard times and we are going to continue to move forward as a city.”
Adams, surrounded by Black clergy members who supported him, was met with protesters at his media availability, even before he began his remarks. Adams largely ignored their attacks and calls to resign, but the group continued to grow in numbers and in volume as the press conference continued.
At the end of the press conference, they shouted, “resign,” as Adams walked away with his supporters.
“You are a disgrace to all Black people in this city,” one protester was heard saying at the start of the press conference, with another demonstrator calling him an “embarrassment.”
“This is not a Black day. This is a justice day,” another critic said.
There was at least one member of the audience shouting on behalf of Adams. While Adams refrained from attacking the protesters too forcefully, his supporters who spoke at the microphone after he did spoke directly to them at times.
“He’s not resigning. He’s not quitting. We’re standing behind him,” one of the speakers said, trying to shut down the protesters as they grew louder.
The calls to resign from protesters add to the pressure from some local officials, including Ocasio-Cortez, who called for his resignation Wednesday night.
“I do not see how Mayor Adams can continue governing New York City. The flood of resignations and vacancies are threatening gov function. Nonstop investigations will make it impossible to recruit and retain a qualified administration,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a post on the social platform X.
Adams’s public address came shortly after a federal criminal indictment against him was unsealed and just before federal prosecutors addressed the charges at their own press conference. Adams faces five counts, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, solicitation of a contribution by a foreign national and bribery.
Adams addressed the media, vowing to continue on as mayor and asking the public not to rush to judgment before hearing his defense.
“We are not surprised. We expected this,” Adams said at the start of his prepared remarks. “This is not surprising to us at all. The actions that have unfolded over the past 10 months — the leaks, the commentary, the demonizing — this did not surprise us that we reached this day.”
“I ask to wait and hear our side to this narrative. From here, my attorneys will take care of the case so I can take care of the city,” he added. “My day to day will not change. I will continue to do the job for 8.3 million New Yorkers that I was elected to do.”