Rep. Ritchie Torres

Congressman for #NY15 (Bronx). Bronx native, product of public housing. Fighting every day for the essential borough.

Official House account.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

The Cross Bronx Expressway has polluted the Bronx for generations and treated our community as expendable.

That ends with us.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

The Bronx is mourning the tragic loss of 15 year old Javits Frimpong. I am standing with his family and community during this unimaginable time. I’m urging the U.S. Embassy in Ghana to expedite his mother’s visa, and we will work with the State Department to help bring her to New York as quickly as possible.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

I am devastated to learn that the fire at the Patterson Houses that took 11-year-old Zion Maine’s life on Wednesday has now claimed three more members of his family, including two teenage boys. My deepest condolences go to everyone who loved them and to the Patterson community, which is now mourning four lives. I am praying for Zion’s father as he recovers.

This tragedy makes the need for a mandatory federal safety standard for e-bike and scooter batteries even more urgent. My bill to create one passed the House last year, and the Senate cannot keep waiting while families pay the price.

My office remains here for the family and for the residents of 320 Morris Ave.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Yesterday morning, 15-year-old Javits Frimpong was shot and killed near Crotona Park on his way to school. Javits came to the Bronx from Ghana just a year ago to join his father and begin a new life here. Our entire borough is mourning a young man who should have had his whole future ahead of him.

I am grateful to the officers of the 42nd Precinct who rushed Javits to St. Barnabas Hospital in an effort to save his life. Those responsible must be held accountable, and I urge anyone with information to call NYPD Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.

Every child in the Bronx deserves to walk to school without fearing for their life, and no parent should ever have to endure what Javits’s father, Thomas, is enduring now. My heart is with him and with everyone in Claremont grieving today.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

I am heartbroken by the death of a boy in an overnight fire at the Patterson Houses. My deepest condolences go to his family and to the entire Patterson community, who are grieving with them. I am praying for the four others who remain in critical condition.

The FDNY has determined that an e-bike battery caused the fire, and there is still no mandatory federal safety standard for these batteries. My bill to create one passed the House last year. The Senate needs to act before another family has to bury a child.

Thank you to the FDNY firefighters who pulled five people out of that apartment in the middle of the night. My office is here for the family and for the residents of 320 Morris Ave.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

I joined @MSNOWNews's @ahylton26 and longtime Bronx advocate Joseph McManus to call for Aleksander Nilaj's release from ICE detention. For over a decade, Aleks has fed Bronx families through his food pantry, @AaohaFoodPantry. His case shows the human cost of an immigration system that tears families apart. We need him home.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Earlier this month, Pal-Awda boasted about forcing a Jewish community event out of Queens. Now the group has set its sights on Riverdale, targeting Jewish families in our borough simply for gathering together. Riverdale is home to one of the most vibrant Jewish communities in New York, and its families deserve to come together without fear.

Organizing a campaign to hunt down these gatherings and drive them out of our neighborhoods is an attack on Jewish New Yorkers. Pushing anyone out of public life in our city because of their faith is nothing to celebrate, and the Bronx will not tolerate it.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

I am deeply disturbed by the outbreak of violence against protesters in Albania. The actions taken by the Albanian police are beyond the pale, and must end. Albanians have a right to peacefully protest, the police must respect the protesters right to protest, and the police must maintain the rule of law. The situation must deescalate to calm the alarming violence.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Earlier today, my Bronx district office received an envelope delivered by mail that contained a suspicious substance. Local law enforcement responded swiftly and, after investigating, determined the substance to be non-hazardous. The evidence will now be sent to the FBI for further investigation. I’m grateful to the officers and first responders who acted so quickly to keep my staff and constituents safe.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

“Families in the Bronx and across the country save up to buy these games, and they deserve better than a license that can vanish at any time. The Power To The Players Act ensures consumers own what they buy and can keep playing long after a company moves on.”

Read more below:

[Kotaku @Kotaku]

Democratic Congress member Ritchie Torres is introducing legislation in Congress to regulate digital video game ownership.

"A game that can be taken away the moment a company pulls the plug is not a purchase. It is a rental disguised as a sale."

https://t.co/bcgECOmnR2

[Kotaku @Kotaku]

Democratic Congress member Ritchie Torres is introducing legislation in Congress to regulate digital video game ownership.

"A game that can be taken away the moment a company pulls the plug is not a purchase. It is a rental disguised as a sale."

https://t.co/bcgECOmnR2

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

I am outraged by the ICE shooting of a man in Marble Hill today as he sat in his car beside a 5-year-old child.

Firing multiple rounds into a car with a child inside, on a busy residential street in the Bronx, is abhorrent and indefensible. It put an entire neighborhood in danger and left a man seriously injured.

ICE has long operated as a rogue agency, and today’s shooting is a chilling reminder of how little regard it has for the safety of New Yorkers. I am calling on the DHS Inspector General to open an immediate and independent investigation, and on ICE to release all footage of the shooting.

New Yorkers are owed a full accounting, not silence.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

SNAP helps nearly 3 million New Yorkers afford groceries. Today, the federal share of SNAP administrative costs falls from 50% to 25%, shifting more costs to New York. I'm fighting to delay Trump's next SNAP cost shift and protect this critical lifeline.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Wishing a meaningful Yom Kippur to everyone observing in the Bronx and beyond. May this be a time for reflection, forgiveness, and connection with the people who matter most. G'mar Chatimah Tovah.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Electric bill too high? You may be eligible for a monthly discount.

New York State’s Energy Affordability Program can save you up to hundreds of dollars a year. This is on top of the $200 rebate checks going to millions of homes.

See if you’re eligible: https://t.co/6tr154xxKp

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Generaciones de neoyorquinos latinos han ayudado a forjar el Bronx que llamamos nuestro hogar.

¡Feliz Mes de la Herencia Hispana! Sigamos celebrando nuestras culturas, tradiciones e historias, y construyendo juntos el futuro del Bronx.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

Generations of Latino New Yorkers have helped shape the Bronx we call home.

This Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate our cultures, traditions, and histories.

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! Let us continue to celebrate our roots and build the future of the Bronx together.

[Rep. Ritchie Torres @RepRitchie]

To our Jewish neighbors in the Bronx and beyond: wishing you and your loved ones a sweet and meaningful Rosh Hashanah.

May the new year bring health and happiness. Shana Tova!