NY socialist assemblywoman: Stealing for ‘biological need’ should not be a crime

by WorldTribune Staff / 247 Real News August 16, 2026

New York state Assemblywoman Emily Gallagher, a self-proclaimed “democratic socialist,” contends that shoplifters who steal for “biological need” should not be charged with a crime.

In comments on Thursday outside Manhattan Criminal Court, Gallagher said:

“Most of what we saw were crimes of poverty-people who are stealing things like toothpaste, people who were stealing things like, you know, soap. And that means if you’re stealing those things, you need them. And we are choosing to protect billion-dollar companies, like CVS and Walgreens, over the people who are struggling to get by. So I would say that the true crime is that there is such incredible wealth disparity in this city that there are people who can be thrown in jail simply for having a biological need.”

Gallagher said her plan is to “pass things like treatment not jail and that we hold the line on the incredible criminal justice reforms that we have done over the last 10 and 20 years that are constantly being threatened by right-wing media who are looking to fear monger about people who are actually just in absolute dire straits.”

Edwin Pichado, the manager of a New York City supermarket, told the New York Post that Gallagher is living in a fantasy world: “You have to pay workers, utilities. Goods going out, but no money coming in. We cannot run a business like that. If they see that you do nothing, they’ll keep coming back. They tell their friends, and it becomes a free for all.”

New York Republican Reps. Claudia Tenney and Nicole Malliotakis are warning that socialist ideas like those being pushed by Gallagher are gaining traction among young people across the country as the November midterms approach.

Breitbart News reported Friday: “Malliotakis argued that socialist systems begin by gradually expanding government power through measures such as price controls and restrictions on individual freedoms. It is sort of the baby steps where they begin to implement changes. They begin to take away freedoms. They begin to ration things, to implement price controls that are very destructive to the economy.”

Tenney described her own experiences in Yugoslavia, saying she saw dramatic changes from her time there in the 1980s to what she has seen since. She recalled experiencing shortages while living there.

“There wasn’t anything on the shelves,” Tenney said. “I mean, you had to wait in line for bread, and everybody just figured that was part of it.”

The Post noted that Gallagher “has a long history of bizarre actions and remarks since being sworn into the state Assembly in January 2021, including using a GoFundMe campaign in October 2021 to raise money for her cat Roland’s emergency surgery bill.”

Gallagher has also racked up dozens of traffic and parking tickets despite pushing an anti-car agenda in Albany. And she has allegedly blocked constituents from posting comments she doesn’t like on her social media pages.

The socialist couldn’t stop those outside of her social media pages from lighting into her:

“The entire foundation for a civilized society rests on private property, ownership, and not stealing. If you legalized stealing, society would literally crumble overnight. Stealing should face SEVERE punishment,” one person posted.

“You know what else separates people from their jobs? Rampant shoplifting. Our nearest pharmacy closed due to unchecked shoplifting. All of those employees lost their jobs. Now all the elderly people in my neighborhood have lost their closest pharmacy. Last year I witnessed a guy clear out every toothbrush and every tube of toothpaste at my local CVS. He wasn’t doing that for his oral health. He was doing it to resell,” another commented.

Freedom Rocks! Until It Is Gone

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