Police unions rip 'de Blasio flunky' for anti-NYPD ad in her bid to become New York's next mayor

One of the eight candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for New York City mayor in the June primary just launched a new ad that, the New York Post reported, ticked off one of Gotham's most powerful groups: the New York Police Department.

Maya Wiley, a civil rights lawyer and former MSNBC contributor as well as onetime adviser to current Mayor Bill de Blasio, posted a new ad in which she goes after the NYPD for ramming into and beating so-called "peaceful protesters" during the George Floyd and other Black Lives Matter protests — many of which turned into violent riots and massive looting events. She also criticized New York leaders for allowing these NYPD violations to happen and then defending them.

The ad, narrated by Wiley, shows police clashing with protesters last spring and summer. As the footage runs, Wiley says, "They rammed into peaceful protesters, beat others to the ground, and New York's leaders defended it. But it was an injustice to those of us who know black lives matter."

Wiley goes on to claim in her ad that she will "transform the police" and that, as mayor, she will "be in charge, and ... get it done."

"It's time the NYPD sees us as people who deserve to breathe," she concludes.

Unsurprisingly, NYPD officers were less than thrilled with Wiley's new ad, and their union leaders were not afraid to make sure the world knew exactly how their members felt.

The Sergeants Benevolent Association union President Ed Mullins said in a statement, "Maya Wiley is a de Blasio flunky and will soon be put on a shelf with other loser politicians who attempt to live off a government paycheck," the Post reported.

Noting the spike in crime New York has seen — much like many other liberal-run cities calling for the defunding of police — Mullins added, "Sadly, her silence on the increasing violence in NYC is indicative of how out of touch she is with the city and explains why she's losing in the polls."

"If she truly cared, she would stop self-promoting and start screaming about the gun violence taking the lives of young African American males on the streets of NYC," Mullins said.

The Detectives' Endowment Association union President Paul DiGiacomo went after Wiley's claim that the protesters were somehow "peaceful."

"Maybe Maya Wiley wasn't paying attention when the 'peaceful' riots were taking place in the streets of the city she wants to lead," DiGiacomo said in a statement reported by the Post, "but hundreds of cops were injured and the businesses of hardworking New Yorkers were destroyed. If not for the police, the damage would have been even worse.

"I also can't think of anyone who cares more for every person in every neighborhood than cops," he added. "To them it's more than politics and hashtags. They're on the ground risking it all every day to keep people safe — laying down their lives if necessary."

An anonymous detective told the Post that Wiley is doing nothing but "dividing the city" and should instead "be spending more of her time and ad money on trying to help the minorities that are getting shot by minorities every day in the city."

Wiley responded to the NYPD criticisms Tuesday, the Post said, claiming that after the June 22 primaries, "there's going to be a new sheriff in town."