JUNE 10, 11:19 A.M., COBBLE HILL, NY - Mayoral candidate and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio just tweeted a photo of his own arrest at a protest to save Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn.
After a flurry of tweets from his campaign Twitter account, @deBlasioNYC posted the photo seen above, with de Blasio being led from the hospital's front steps, his hands in zip ties.
"Taking a stand to keep community hospitals in New York City open," the feed said — likely not written by de Blasio's own bound hands.
The public advocate and mayoral candidate was arrested while joining in a protest of the hospital's closure. SUNY Downstate, which operates LICH, has filed to close the medical facility claiming it is too deep in debt.
After his release, de Blasio's campaign released a statement from the candidate on his act of civil disobedience.
"We are going to lose a vital community hospital in a matter of weeks unless something changes," de Blasio said. "The Governor must act to save LICH, and SUNY Downstate must stop its end run around a judge’s direct order and commit to keeping this hospital up and running. This is a moment for all New Yorkers to stand up and fight, and I’m proud to do my part.”
He also thanked the NYPD officers on Twitter for their "professionalism and respect."
But mayoral candidate Sal Albanese was unimpressed by the event, labeling it "sensational."
"Let's make one thing perfectly clear: LICH must be saved, and it can be saved, but the political class lacks the courage to make it happen," he wrote in a release. "Take Bill de Blasio, for example. He lives a stone's throw away from LICH, and hasn't lifted a finger to save this vital community institution."
Healthcare workers and local residents have mounted a statewide campaign to try and keep its doors open.
This article has been updated from its original version. Stay with Patch for more updates.
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