#Sector Seven

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

Some Lambda gifts from my BBDW video here!

[askvectorprime]

Dear Vector Prime,

When Airazor said that the Maximals are warriors from the past and the future what did she mean by that?

Also, what happened to Sector Seven? Were they replaced by GI Joe or is GI Joe a successor to Sector Seven?

Dear Risen Razor,

The Transwarp Key unlocks not just the power of space, but of time. If Unicron were to obtain it, he would be capable of striking anywhere, anytime—even retroactively. The Maximals fight to preserve their history, and to secure a future for all living creatures. I must confess, Airazor's way of thinking comes very naturally to me, so I'm not sure how else to put it. Perhaps it's best not to worry about it too much.

As for Sector Seven, they are a separate government body, coexisting with G.I. Joe. Each independently confirmed the existence of my kind on your planet, but the knowledge is so strictly classified that neither agency is aware that the other has made the same discovery.

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Eight: 2021, Fall Semester: Emergency Meeting

Warnings: Government things, bitterness, hating on sam.

Word Count: 3.3k

Love’s Train Masterlist

Previous Chapter  |  Next Chapter

Quinn’s first Sophomore semester was going as well as it could. Her and her friend Andi got along well living in the same space together, her classes were harder but she knew she’d push through, and Optimus would give her a call. A call where she made sure to go to her bedroom for, but Andi knew something was up. A boyfriend maybe? She didn’t know for sure but she had her suspicions. Why else would Quinn come out of her room until an hour later? They talked for quite a while so unless the person on the other line was someone who needed Quinn to hand over some money, there was no other option in Andi’s eyes. 

Yeah, everything was going just fine.

But all good things must come to an end.

The week before Quinn’s midterms, the UN was supposed to be meeting and since she was the only alien ambassador that existed in the entire world that meant she had to go as well. At least she didn’t forget to pack her ‘professional’ clothes when moving into the apartment or else she’d be doomed. Not wearing a suit to a meeting like this was like wearing a costume in public when it wasn’t Halloween. It felt wrong, disgraceful even. 

As Quinn stuffed a carry-on suitcase with all the essentials she’d need, her phone started ringing. Optimus. It had to be. She quickly answered the phone as she exited her room with her bag in hand. “I’m accompanying you.” The deep baritone of his voice said. There was no disputing him this time, his decision was final.

“Okay but if some assholes figure you out, don’t tell me I didn’t warn you.” Quinn pursed her lips, brushing past her roommate who was doing homework on the kitchen table.

The phone on Quinn’s ear and the brevity of her actions caught Andi’s attention. “Oh! Is that your boyfriend? Tell him I said hi!” She called after Quinn before she shut the door on her. 

As soon as Quinn exited the building, she caught sight of the signature red and blue flame Peterbilt truck. Apparently, he was also driving her there himself with Bumblebee to lead the way. It was like they were some sort of convoy carrying precious cargo. Except it was a little funny to imagine a VW Beetle leading a semi truck of any kind. “You have got to be kidding me…” She hung up her phone as she lowered it into her pocket. Quinn huffed in frustration before the driver’s side door swung open, signaling her to climb in. So she did, throwing her bag in the passenger side before she used one of the steps to leverage herself inside.

Quinn had seen Optimus’ vehicular form many times but she’s never been inside him, so to speak. The driver’s cabin was actually pretty spacious and she’d probably be able to sleep in it if the drive would be too long. As soon as Quinn was strapped in, the engine started rumbling and the truck started to move. The vibration of the entire cabin gave Quinn goosebumps and not the bad kind. 

Optimus’ radio started to turn on after a while, flipping from station to station until it went quiet. “It has come to my attention that other humans we know intimately will be there. I suggest you make friends with them, they know us after all.” His voice rang out through the radio much like Bumblebee would do.

“And where did you get this information from?” Quinn asked, crossing her arms as she looked at the radio as if she was scolding a child.

The radio went silent. “... Crosshairs and Cade hacked into their data.” Optimus confessed, knowing what they did was wrong yet he still appreciated the heads up. Mostly for Quinn’s sake. Continuing when he felt it was appropriate, Optimus continued with his original point. “These humans are Colonel William Lennox, Ex-Sector Seven Agent Seymour Simmons, and Sam Witwikcy. Bee explained to me you’ve met Sam already.” 

“I did.” Quinn hummed, leaning back into the driver’s seat. Perhaps it was the simple fact Optimus was a Cybertronian so he was much more customizable than other trucks could be but the truck’s seats were incredibly comfortable… wait, was that a seat warmer button on the dash. As she turned it on, Quinn continued. “We talked for a second, didn’t say much but it looks like he didn’t know anything about the new Cybertronian laws being passed. Maybe now he does but it’s… weird. Especially for him being him.” Quinn let out a sigh. Perhaps she was so involved with the Autobots that she forgot normal humans didn’t care what happened to them. Sure, they thought they were cool but they had no idea that the Autobots protected them on a daily basis. Not so much anymore, every once in a while Optimus would send Hound, Drift, or Ironhide on a mission to investigate any sort of Decepticon activity.

Optimus’ engine hummed a little louder as a similar noise came out of the radio. “Sam is a much more… self-centered individual. But most humans are. If something does not directly involve him then he simply doesn’t care for it.” He explained. He remembered the time Sam said he couldn’t be an ‘alien ambassador.’ Perhaps he was right. Quinn was doing just fine on her own.

“What about the other two? Colonel Lennox and Agent Simmons, you know them?” Quinn asked. She knew about Simmons, he wrote some book about some big governmental secrets that came out years ago. She didn’t read it but her parents had a copy sitting on a shelf at home. Colonel Lennox on the other hand was a name she didn’t know. It was obvious he was in the military by his title, everything else was a mystery.

Optimus’ radio had to readjust for a moment before he could begin speaking properly again. “Colonel William Lennox was the head of a human–Cybertronian task force meant to take down any and all Decepticon threats on Earth. It was classified, top secret information never to be told to the public.”

“And you just told me. Great.” Quinn mumbled as Optimus continued.

“Agent Seymour Simmons was an agent of Sector Seven before it was disbanded after Megatron was originally reactivated. Since then he’s become a conspiracy theorist of sorts, helping the occasional Cybertronian in his retirement.” Optimus recounted. What a gift it must be to never forget anything. 

Yet also a great curse. 

—-----

A new day dawned on Earth, one where Quinn was lying in plush pillows and fluffy sheets. She may have only been there for business but she found pleasure in unexpected things. Like how she was riding in Optimus the whole way there. The rumbling of his engine, the vibration of the seats, the sound of his disembodied voice… She couldn’t stop thinking about it, those thoughts even invaded her in her sleep. Being in love with the leader of the Autobots will do that to a person.

Quinn woke up slowly, not really caring. The council wouldn’t start until mid-afternoon so she had some time to kill. All she really wanted to do was sleep in but she knew that if she did, she would never get out of bed. The human rolled over, her eyes fixated on the symbols imprinted onto her forearm as her mind slowly whirred back to life. Quinn slowly ran her fingers over them with a hum. She had Optimus’ mark on her and he had hers on him. She never quite realized just how possessive the nature of soul marks were, much like a wedding ring on the finger of a lover. 

Sitting up abruptly, Quinn got out of bed to get ready. Optimus has suggested it would be a good idea to try and get to know their other human allies. Quinn smoothed down her crimson suit once it was on. The shirt underneath a navy turtleneck, she had decided she wanted to match with Optimus. As subtly or not subtly as she could. Sharp black eyeliner graced her eyelids behind her usual thin black frames. 

Leaving her hotel room, three men were waiting outside Quinn’s door. Just the men she wanted to see, it seemed. She looked at each of them suspiciously. She recognized Sam, not much changed about him from last year although the suit he wore looked… worn and old. If that was Sam then the other two had to be Simmons and Lennox and, well, one of them looked like a Seymour. They stood in front of her awkwardly for a few moments until the tallest cleared his throat.

“I am Colonel William Lennox but you can call me Will or Lennox. Whichever one works for you.” So Quinn was right in her assumption as to which one was Simmons. The Colonel was dressed in a typical military uniform. Well, the suit kind, not the one with the camouflage and combat boots.

Simmons took a step closer to Quinn, a playful look in his eyes as he grabbed her hand and planted a kiss on the back of her hand. “You may know who I am already.” He smirked, trying to be suave while Lennox rolled his eyes and Sam let out a snort.

Quinn pulled her hand away from Simmons and wiped her hand on her blazer as she nodded. “I know who all of you are. Optimus and Bee filled me in.” She explained. At the mention of the Autobots, each of the men straightened up. It’s been a few years since any of them were able to make contact with either of those Cybertronians, even longer since Sam had met any Cybertronian.

“Is Optimus… here?” Lennox asked as Quinn started to walk down the hall to the elevator, all three men following her.

Quinn pursed her lips as she thought of a response. Optimus hadn’t set many rules on what she could and couldn’t say when talking to these people whom he trusted but she wouldn’t think he would appreciate his location being outed. “Can’t tell you, it would jeopardize them.” She hummed.

“C’mon, we would never do anything like that! Optimus and Bee know us.” Sam complained as they entered the elevator.

“Speak for yourself.” Simmons commented, letting out a scoff.

Quinn narrowed her eyes at Sam, her expression unimpressed. “Last time I checked, I’m in charge of human relations with Cybertronians. And the last time you even spoke to Bumblebee was more than ten years ago at this point so I could really care less that you feel some sort of entitlement over–” As the elevator stopped at the ground floor, her phone started to ring. Quinn quickly answered it, having a feeling she knew what–or who–it was.

Lennox shook his head as they all stepped out of the elevator. “Great going, Witwicky. What a nice introduction, huh?” He huffed in frustration while Sam rolled his eyes. It wasn’t the first time a woman would be difficult with him and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

“There’s no need to be so hostile with Sam.” Optimus said over the phone, his voice sounding amused. And Quinn thought he was the more protective one.

Quinn lifted her hand to her forehead and closed her eyes in frustration. “How many times do I have to tell you not to hack into my phone’s microphone?” She hissed in a hushed voice which caught the attention of the men behind her. Who was hacking into her phone? More importantly, why?

“I’m having Bee bring all of you to me. I trust all of them not to reveal that I am here.” Optimus completely ignored her question but Quinn was used to it by now. He would tease Quinn about conversations with Andi he’d hear through her phone’s microphone about a certain ‘man’ that would call her. “See you soon, soul spark.” The line cut as soon as those words escaped his voice processor.

Even after the months since they got together, Quinn’s cheeks always flushed at Optimus’ nickname for her. “Ahem.” She coughed, grabbing the attention of the men again. “There’s been a change of plans if you would all follow me.” They all looked at each other before Quinn led the way to a bright yellow Volkswagen Beetle in mint condition, parked in the middle of the hotel lot. 

“Wow.” Simmons hummed, running a hand over the expanse of its hood. 

Lennox cocked a suspicious eyebrow, eyes trailing from the car to Quinn. “For a girl who seems to be into modernity, I did not expect you to be driving a classic.” He admitted, a hand on his hip. Quinn shrugged with a smug smile on her face as she saw Sam piece it together.

“I don’t think she’s the one driving it.” Sam smiled softly as he pet the metal plate that made up the ceiling of the car. “It’s Bee.” 

The other two men fixated their gaze on the car when they realized. As far as they’ve known Bumblebee, he’s been a Camaro. He did upgrade to the current Camaro every few years simply for aesthetic reasons. But a Beetle? It seemed so… out of character.

The doors on either side of the car opened for all of them to climb in but when Sam tried getting in the driver’s seat, the door slammed closed. “This spot is reserved for the Captain only.” The radio sparked to life. Bumblebee could speak to all of them with his own voice now, a privilege he didn’t have before. Sam backed off, mostly because of shock. 

“Did Bee–” Sam started.

“Just speak. Yes, he did. Get in, please.” Quinn hummed as she sat in her place while Simmons and Lennox slimbed in the back. That left Quinn and Sam in the front. 

Sam blinked as he got in the car and Bee started to drive. “How? I mean, he’s been having problems for a while but you don’t seem… all that surprised that he could speak normally?” He questioned, still wrapping his head around it. 

Lennox let out a small laugh at Sam’s bewilderment. Looks like he didn’t read the files on Quinn that were sent to them weeks in advance to this council. “Quinn admitted to fixing Bumblebee’s voice box. It’s relatively common knowledge Ms. Harlow here is a Cybertronian mechanic, or a Cybertronian medic if you wanna call it that.” He shrugged as Sam studied Quinn for a moment. She was young, possibly the same age as him when all the weight of the world was on his shoulders. She was handling far more gracefully than him though.

“She really does work wonders.” Bumblebee chuckled through the radio as he turned onto a backroad with lots of trees and vegetation. He was thankful Quinn equipped him with tires that could withstand the gravel roads in this area.

For Sam, it was amazing to finally be able to hear Bumblebee’s real voice. Continually. He’d hear it sometimes, mostly when Bee was under stress or in the heat of battle when he thought he might die. To hear it over and over again without any glitches in his voice was unreal. The Beetle eventually came to stop in an opening in the forest, shielded by thick trees. As everyone got out, Bee transformed into his bot form and stood near the back to simply watch the events that were about to transpire. 

A rumbling of the ground could be felt under their feet, getting closer to their location. Optimus revealed himself from behind some trees, kneeling down to be a little shorter in size. “Gentlemen, I would like to reintroduce all of you to Optimus Prime.” Quinn smiled when she saw all of their shocked faces.

How could they not be? Optimus went through many upgrades throughout the years. His bot form looked less truck-like but still had hints of it with the exhaust pipes peeking out from his back and the metal mechanisms at work inside his legs and arms. 

—----

Soon, Bumblebee took the men back to their hotel after a short talk between them and Optimus Prime. It gave him and Quinn some time alone. And not the fun kind. Optimus had some things he wanted to speak about with Quinn regarding the undoubted questions the UN council would ask about him. 

"In response, I want you to say exactly what I tell you." Optimus said, in that voice that was soft and smooth yet demanding and could make one do whatever he wished. 

Quinn narrowed her eyes at Optimus as she sat in his metallic hand. "Alright then." She let out a breath. "Lay it on me."

—---

Entering the UN headquarters was a hassle, especially with all the energon detectors and the fact that Quinn was flagged for having energon radiation all over her. She was around Cybertronians all the time, of course she would emit energon radiation. Once the guards realized she was clean and, in fact, human, they let her through to the council room. 

The plate at her desk was simply named 'Autobots' instead of the other countries like France or Germany. Quinn took a breath as she sat down at her desk, Lennox and Sam were next to her. She didn't want to let Optimus down. So far, she hadn't but it would be quite frankly embarrassing if she messed up in front of over one hundred representatives of different countries. 

The meeting itself was boring, with countries fighting over who was entitled to who's resources and if one country would aid another in their quest to take over a country that wasn't involved in the UN. So much for the "United Nations." 

Quinn had to snap herself back into reality when she realized a representative was talking to her. "And what do you say, Autobot representative? Will the Cybertronians hand over some of their resources? Their weapons?" It seemed the speaker had a British accent. The Brits… always trying to look for some new form of war. Much like the United States, perhaps that's where it got it from. 

"The Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, has expressed his concern for what humans would do with the advanced weaponry he and his Cybertronian brothers possess." Quinn responded in as level a voice she could. She'd had great practice at this point, especially listening to the way Optimus talked all the time helped. 

The representative from Spain spoke up this time. "What of the Autobot leader anyway? None of us know who he is or what he looks like. Why conceal himself if he's looking for peace between our species?"

"He's not too keen on breaking bread with the people who tried to kill him just a few years ago." Quinn admitted, tilting her head to the side slightly. "I'm the liaison here, much like how the President of the United States is not here with us today." 

Perhaps the other representatives hated Quinn. For the way she spoke to them–firm yet calm, knowing her position was always right–or perhaps for the way she was so accomplished at such a young age. Being the ambassador for an alien race of sentient robotic beings that could transform into virtually any sort of vehicle sure looked great on a resumé. But if they knew of the relationship going on between her and the Autobot leader, Quinn was sure there'd be an uproar. 

Human-Cybertronian romantic relationships were unheard of. Deemed as unnatural by some while most others haven't even considered it to be a possibility. 

It was more of a possibility than one might think.

[dismalzelenka]

.

[transingthoseformers]

Still thinking so much about how differently shattered glass bayverse would go🥰🥰🥰

[chomesuke]

should do one of those memes with the positivity messages for characters and then murder is okay for one of them for ff7 but then it's murder is okay for all of them bc they're literally terrorists who haven't tried all too hard to avoid ppl dying (this is not abt remake)

[liure00]

【Kurenai】Seven Goat Sector【UTAU Cover】

[swallowtail-ageha]

Wait people on the r site actually fervently hate the Turks .... like come one guys they are silly villains enjoy a bit of whimsy in your lives

[sw5w]

Anakin Enters Space

STAR WARS EPISODE I: The Phantom Menace 01:53:04

[shadowcat222]

Sector Seven rlly just got sent to botbots to die with it huh

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

Lambda-11 was added to BBDW as a limited 5⭐ character on November 11th- which fits quite nicely, doesn't it??? As with several of the characters added later into the game's run, she was only given two costumes. She was still granted three story sprites, with her 02 sprite depicting her in full Murakumo battle armor, and an additional 04 sprite showing her in the same outfit but without the petals blades.

This means that while most characters in the files have their assets end in 00, 01, and 02, Lambda's end in 01, 02, 04. It seems a little strange, doesn't it??? Unfortunately, we'll probably never learn why this was done.

See also;

[Base Costume Gameplay] | [Non-Combat Costume Gameplay]

Her usual combat outfit, as seen in the C-series fighting games, was her default form upon summoning, though it was labeled as her final outfit in the game's files. Her art was also drawn by Yuuki Kato, a pretty prolific BlazBlue artist who also did the character select artwork in Central Fiction and Continuum Shift!

Her additional outfit, labeled 01, is her non-combat form seen in the C-series Story Mode.

Though I'm not entirely sure, her card art seems to depict her death from the climax of Continuum Shift, while she and Nu were merged.

If she had been given a third costume, I wonder what it would have been... I'd like to see a full outfit version of this Mori sketch, personally!

Though it would also be a lot of fun to see her and Noel fighting in their nun garb from Central Fiction's epilogue!

[askvectorprime]

Dear Vector Prime, is there a version of Bumblebee (2018) which involved Thundercracker instead? Were Buster and Marissa there?

Dear Thunderous Thespian,

In one universe, Thundercracker was the Decepticon who ended up following B-127 to Earth, and was involved in that fateful duel which cost the Autobot his voice box. Thundercracker lost almost his entire head, and while Sector Seven collected B-127's body, Thundercracker was left plunging into a river, washing up by a camper site.

To his disgust, he was forced to assume an automotive form in order to blend in and recuperate; fortunately, he happened upon a brand new BUBU Classic SSK, which appealed to his sense of fashion. Despite the car’s newness, his stasis-locked nature led those who found him to judge him broken, and he was sold to a scrapyard—where he was found by Charlie Watson. Her skill as a mechanic aided his recovery, though he was unable to remember details about his past life. In turn, he was able to succeed where Charlie’s family and friends had failed, helping her process her grief.

Meanwhile, Sector Seven were busy studying B-127, who struggled to communicate with them despite his damaged voice box. He was only able to offer a cryptic warning: "Still out there," coupled with a set of coordinates—which Jack Burns realized was referring to the other robot. When he tried to track down Thundercracker, however, he was thwarted by Charlie’s efforts to conceal him.

This game of hide and seek escalated into full blown conflict when Jack Burns called in air support, and in a desperate attempt to protect his new friend, Thundercracker scanned one of the Harrier Jump Jets. The skies above Brighton Falls were lit up with pyrotechnics, but in the end Sector Seven were driven away, and Thundercracker and Charlie were able to escape.

In the skies once more, Thundercracker remembered who he was before he came to Earth. And that he had invited his friends to join him.

[rocketbirdie]

pov: you are tifa lockhart on a pleasant walk to the sector seven train station

[zvaigzdelasas]

[ABC is Australian State Media]

While Australia debates the merits of going nuclear and frustration grows over the slower-than-needed rollout of solar and wind power, China is going all in on renewables.

New figures show the pace of its clean energy transition is roughly the equivalent of installing five large-scale nuclear power plants worth of renewables every week.

A report by Sydney-based think tank Climate Energy Finance (CEF) said China was installing renewables so rapidly it would meet its end-of-2030 target by the end of this month — or 6.5 years early.

It's installing at least 10 gigawatts of wind and solar generation capacity every fortnight.

By comparison, experts have said the Coalition's plan to build seven nuclear power plants would add fewer than 10GW of generation capacity to the grid sometime after 2035.[...]

Smart Energy Council CEO John Grimes, who recently returned from a Shanghai energy conference, said China has decarbonised its grid almost as quickly as Australia, despite having a much harder task due to the scale of its energy demand.

"They have clear targets and every part of their government is harnessed to deliver the plan," he said.

China accounts for about a third of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. A recent drop in emissions (the first since relaxing COVID-19 restrictions), combined with the decarbonisation of the power grid, may mean the country's emissions have peaked.

"With the power sector going green, emissions are set to plateau and then progressively fall towards 2030 and beyond," CEF China energy policy analyst Xuyang Dong said.[...]

The world's largest solar and wind farms are being built on the western edge of the country and connected to the east via the world's longest high-voltage transmission lines.[...]

Renewables have a "capacity factor" (the ratio of actual output to maximum potential generation) of about 25 per cent, whereas nuclear's is as high as 90 per cent.

So although China is installing solar and wind generation equivalent to five large nuclear power plants per week, their output is closer to one nuclear plant per week.[...]

To "firm" or stabilise the supply of power from its renewable energy zones, China is using a mix of pumped hydro and battery storage, similar to Australia.

"They're installing 1GW per month of pumped hydro storage," Mr Buckley said.

"We're struggling to build the 2GW Snowy 2.0 in 10 years."[...]

The China Energy Council estimated renewables generation would overtake coal by the end of this year.

The CEF's Xuyang Dong said despite the country's reliance on coal, "having China go green at this speed and scale provides the world with a textbook to do the same".[...]

"In China they decide they're going to do something and then they go and do it."

15 Jul 24

[heritageposts]

In his seminal The Wretched of the Earth, Frantz Fanon could be writing about Gaza when he said: “In all armed struggles, there exists what we might call the point of no return. Almost always it is marked off by a huge and all-inclusive repression which engulfs all sectors of the colonial people.” In Israel, Gaza and the West Bank, that point has arrived. From Gaza to the Red Sea, on all fronts the West is now unmasked as a lawless killing machine in terror of losing control. Genocide, starvation and war, defended with Olympic-level diplomatic double-speak, are its only answers to the fact that the Global South, and the nations of the Middle East (if not their leaders) no longer wish to live under US hegemony. Jean-Paul Sartre, in his preface to Fanon's work, wrote of western colonialism: “Our Machiavellianism has little purchase on this wide-awake world that has run our falsehoods to earth one after the other. The settler has only recourse to one thing: brute force… the native has only one choice, between servitude and supremacy.” Fanon was a revolutionary thinker and a practising psychiatrist of colonial racism and its psychic impact on the colonised, and the coloniser. He and Sartre were writing about France’s imminent defeat in Algeria after seven years of brutal war. [...] Western powers are involved in conflicts thousands of miles from home, as they were in Fanon's time in Algeria, Congo and Indochina. Today the western political class has united behind Ukraine and Israel, but for millions of people it is no longer clear that the wars are worth fighting.  As Yemen’s spokesman, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, put it: “The war today is between Yemen which is struggling to stop the crimes of genocide, and the American and British coalition [who] support its perpetrators. Every party or individual in this world has two choices that have no thirds… who do you stand with as you watch these crimes?” Fanon, writing 63 years ago, agrees: “The colonial world is a Manichaean world… at times this Manichaeism goes to its logical conclusion and dehumanises the native, or to speak plainly, it turns him into an animal. The native is declared insensible to ethics; he represents not only the absence of values, but the negation of values… he is the enemy of values, and in this sense he is the absolute evil. “The native knows all this, and laughs to himself every time he spots an allusion to the animal world in the other’s words. For he knows he is not an animal, and it is precisely at the moment he realises his humanity that he begins to sharpen the weapons with which he will secure victory.”

. . . full article on MEE (1 Feb 2024)

You can also find a free copy of Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth on the Internet Archive (available as a PDF, EPUB etc.)

[reasonsforhope]

"New York City officials have agreed to restore more than $111 million in funding to libraries and cultural institutions, the City Council announced Thursday [June 27, 2024].

The agreement is a victory for residents and organizations who had been pushing back for months against budget cuts in the nation’s largest city and one of the world’s foremost cultural capitals.

In November, the city announced it would cut the budget of the New York Public libraries by $58.3 million in fiscal year 2025, and slash the budget for other cultural institutions, including the Bronx Zoo and Carnegie Hall, by $53 million. The new deal reverses those cuts, and is set to be finalized in a City Council vote Sunday...

“Our arts and cultural institutions and libraries are foundational pillars of our city, and New Yorkers depend on their services every day,” said New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, thanking the mayor’s administration for reaching the deal. “The Council has consistently championed funding restorations for these institutions as a top priority, and we’re proud to reach an agreement with Mayor Adams and the administration to successfully secure these critical investments for them in the city budget.”

The news was received with collective approval from New York institutions that had been forced to cut hours and public access due to lack of funding.

“The Museum of the City of New York is delighted to learn of the restoration of cuts to the cultural sector,” the museum’s president Stephanie Hill Wilchfort told CNN in a statement.

“This support makes it possible for MCNY to be open seven days a week, starting on July 1,” said Wilchfort, who serves as Executive Vice Chair of the Cultural Institutions Group, a coalition of 34 non-profit organizations such as the city’s museums, gardens, and arts centers. “As such, the Museum’s exhibitions exploring history, popular culture, and art will be open to the public on Tuesdays and Wednesdays for the first time since the pandemic. City support also allows the Museum to operate as a cooling center, open at no charge to anyone who seeks relief from warm weather.”

The city’s three public library systems — New York, Queens, and Brooklyn — issued a joint statement thanking the administration, the city council and New York residents, who overwhelmingly supported the campaign to restore library budgets. More than 174,000 people sent letters to City Hall in support of the “No Cuts to Libraries!” campaign since the cuts were announced in November [2023].

“This funding will allow us to resume seven-day service, a priority for many New Yorkers,” the libraries said in a statement shared with CNN. “We expect that service to begin in the coming weeks, bringing our branches back to the same hours of operation prior to the November 2023 cuts. The funding also allows us to continue universal six-day service, which New Yorkers have enjoyed for nearly a decade.”

-via CNN, June 28, 2024