Residents of Upstate NY are increasingly frustrated with the policies and laws that have been set forth that suit the needs of NYC and hinder the rest of the state. It has been shown that during elections, the voting population of NYC supersedes the voting population of the rest of the state. In turn, this causes laws and regulations that hinder the Upstate residents way of life, liberty, and happiness.
Upstate has an entirely different way of life compared to the down state, yet we are locked in with the NYC regulations and laws. Our property and state taxes are some of the highest in the country. Taxes are being used to fund projects and policies that pertain mostly to the City and Upstate has to wait for grants and funding from the state to fix our schools, roads, and even our infrastructure. Manufacturing jobs have been shut down, moved out of state and out of country. Upstate has beautiful lands that are used for farming, recreation, and hunting. Some of our schools and communities still have Rod and Gun clubs to teach children gun safety and to teach and encourage hunting and fishing. We have some of the lowest crime rates. Due to the crime rates in NYC our our 2nd Amendment rights are threatened and may possibly affect these very useful clubs for our communities.
Our voices and frustrations are not being heard and it is causing individuals and families to leave by the thousands. Over 100,000 people left NYS in 2023 and 545,500 left in 2022. Our upstate population is declining which is in turn silencing Upstate even more that we have been in the past.
It feels as though NYC politicians and politics have used and abused the hard working blue collar workers from upstate for the political and financial gain of themselves. Segregating the state from the city would greatly improve quality of life, safety, and financial status for upstate residents. We could reopen our factories and provide jobs for all, which would boost our own economy and cut our crime rates even more. We would have the ability to govern our part of the state that fits our grassroots more efficiently and most of all, become a more balanced, equal state for all of our residents.