By Carla Zanoni
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
INWOOD — Rep. Charlie Rangel forcefully defended a politically connected but financially troubled Northern Manhattan nonprofit he helped steer $2.6 million in funding toward, saying Sunday that many people have benefited from the work of Alianza Dominicana.
“You’re not just attacking one person, you’re attacking a whole organization, it’s unfair,” he said at a breakfast kicking off the Dominican Day Parade on Sunday.
“If you were to ask anyone in this community about Alianza Dominicana, you would get a whole other picture of that organization.”
The non-profit group already owes $526,000 in back wages to 200 workers, hundreds of thousands of dollars in rent and money to the IRS, according to the New York Post, raising questions about why the congressman would funnel money to such a troubled organization.
But Assembly Adriano Espaillat, who was also present at the morning event at Mamajuana Café on Dyckman Street, also defended Alianza Dominicana.
“We will not accept that on the day that we celebrate our culture, on the day we celebrate everything we have given this great city, that mud is thrown on us,” said Espaillat, who recently faced allegations that he had used his influence to get jobs for his political friends and family.
“That’s the spirit of this year’s parade, it’s the spirit of fight back,” he said, moments before bestowing a written commendation for work in the community to Rafael Lantigua, one of the founders of Alianza Dominicana.
The most recent allegation comes at a time when Northern Manhattan elected officials — including Rangel who has been charged with 13 ethics violations and Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez who is accused of improperly "touching" a Council staffer — are already doing their fair share of fighting back.
“The Dominican Day Parade is the maximum expression of our Dominican culture and what this community has given this city,” said Rodriguez, adding later, “These attacks are an attack on all of our major Dominican institutions.”
Councilwoman Inez Dickens was notably missing from Sunday's event, despite being listed on the event’s invitation. She headed the City Council Standards and Ethics committee, which unanimously recommended Rodriguez be suspended from his position as chair of the Council’s Higher Education committee until he completes a 24-hour employee relation course.
Councilman Robert Jackson, who splits Washington Heights and Inwood with Rodriguez, was also missing in action. He serves on the ethics committee with Dickens.
Despite the no-shows, the parade collected a bevy of support at the breakfast from attendees including State Senator Eric Schneiderman, City Comptroller John Liu, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Assemblyman Keith Wright, as well as Rangel’s rival in September’s primary, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. and former Councilman Guillermo Linares, who is running to fill Espaillat’s Assembly seat.
“Today, we are all Dominican,” said Liu, who repeated himself in Spanish, “Hoy todos somos Dominicanos.”
