She has long been one of the most controversial figures in New York politics, having been denounced over the years by numerous public officials, but Lenora Fulani hasn’t gone anywhere. In fact, she has carved out something of an official role in helping to train New York City police officers. NY1's Bobby Cuza filed the following report.
You might have expected Lenora Fulani to bow out of public life. But quite the contrary. The controversial activist, therapist and sometimes political candidate, in her role directing workshops between police officers and kids, has been fully embraced by the establishment.
The workshops, put on by her nonprofit group, the All Stars Project, are an official part of NYPD training.
Embraced by former Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, the partnership has continued under the de Blasio administration and his commissioner, Bill Bratton.
"We committed to re-double our efforts to continue the Cops and Kids program," said NYPD First Deputy Commissioner Benjamin Tucker.
Long a leader of New York’s Independence Party, which helped catapult Mayor Michael Bloomberg into office, Fulani has come under fire for comments, including some made 25 years ago that Jews were "mass murderers to people of color." She was also a close associate of Fred Newman, whose psychotherapy practice was criticized as a cult. Newman, who approved of sex between therapists and their patients, died in 2011.
The workshops are part improv and part heartfelt confessional.
"I shouldn't be stopped by a private eye in a all-black-tinted-window car on my way home from school just because I’m walking in a group," said one kid participating.
"The most difficult thing to deal with is walking out the door every day telling my family I love them, and not knowing if I'll make it back," said one police officer participating.
The idea is to break down barriers.
"Performance is a tool that helps people to see one another," Fulani said.
No longer a leader in the Independence Party, Fulani nonetheless still commands an audience. Thursday night’s workshop was attended by about 1,200 people, including 400 new police officers.