More than 250 community members packed Liberty Palace Banquet Hall in Richmond Hill on Thursday, May 22, eager to hear from five City Council candidates in the Queens District 28 race. The forum was a mixture of intensity and levity, but above all, showcased the commitment of the candidates and attendees to their community.
New York City Council Speaker Adrienne E. Adams is the first Black woman to serve in that position. She is term-limited and currently running for mayor. Her council seat in District 28 encompasses the neighborhoods of Jamaica, Richmond Hill, Rochdale Village, and South Ozone Park.
The candidates vying to replace Adams include her chief of staff Tyrell D. Hankerson; the exonerated former Councilmember Ruben Wills; Japneet Singh, a young Sikh community leader; Latoya LeGrand, an aide to Assemblymember Vivian Cook; and real estate broker Romeo Hitlall.
District 28
Ariama C. Long photos
This district is spotlighted, not only because of Adams, but because it is a culturally diverse Black and Brown (meaning South Asian and Indo-Caribbean as well as Hispanic) immigrant community that’s split up among numerous city council districts due to redistricting. It’s also bifurcated by the Van Dyck Expressway, said attendees, with mostly Little Guyana on the left and South Jamaica’s Black community on the right. This feeling of segregation was highlighted in the forum numerous times, especially considering that the Liberty Palace venue, where the forum was held, was redistricted out of District 28. It now technically lies on the border of District 29 on Liberty Avenue.
Regardless of being split up, District 28 is a voting stronghold. Approximately 74% of roughly 90,755 registered voters in the district identify as Democrats, 5% as Republicans, and 18% are unaffiliated with any party at all, said APA VOICE.
The forum was organized by a host of community organizations under the umbrella of APA VOICE, including Caribbean Equality Project (CEP), South Queens Women’s March, Jahajee, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)–Jamaica Chapter, DRUM: Desis Rising Up & Moving, MinKwon Center for Community Action, and the Chhaya Community Development Corporation (CDC). Additional cosponsors included Sadhana Coalition of Progressive Hindus, South Asian Youth Action (SAYA), Kaurageous Love, Persaud Community Affairs Pantry, Guyanese American Workers United, and New American Voters Association.
“This race is really important and people are invested,” said Shivana Jorawar, co-executive director of Jahajee. “People may hold different beliefs, but it’s important to hear from the candidates. The person who wins the election will have the power to make laws that impact the lives of everyone in our city, and will have the great responsibility to fight with everything that they have for the residents of District 28.”
The forum was moderated by Candace Prince-Modeste, president of the NAACP Jamaica Branch, and Mohamed Q. Amin, founder and executive director of CEP. Their questions focused on topics such as immigration; public safety; gender-based violence; quality of life; small businesses; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and more (LGBTQ+) rights and discrimination; gun violence; mental health funding distribution; legalizing basement apartments; street vendors; and education. Moderators also had a rapid-fire session of quick short-answer questions.
Candidates and their platforms
Many of the candidates stressed having a sense of unity and the need to work together across perceived racial lines. They addressed deportation-induced trauma rampant in the community under the current federal administration and President Donald Trump.
Hankerson draws on his experience from working with Speaker Adams. He supports legalizing basement apartments safely, educating street vendors, introducing an Indo-Caribbean–based curriculum in schools, protecting the city’s status as a sanctuary city, passing the New York for All Act; and introducing more cultural sensitivity training in the NYPD, especially when it comes to interactions with transgender New Yorkers.
“If you look around this is what District 28 looks like, it’s a beautiful mosaic of different cultures ultimately achieving one goal,” he said. “This is the community that raised me.”
In the lightning round, Hankerson said that Adams will be opening a second office in Richmond Hill on June 1. Many audience members shouted criticisms about why that initiative took so long for her to get done. Because of changes in rules regarding city council funding allocations, Hankerson said, it took longer than expected.
Wills draws on his experience as the former council member for District 28 from 2010 to 2017. He didn’t support legalizing basements, but instead advocated for better flood infrastructure and building more affordable housing. He said he’d rather see the abandoned properties along Liberty Avenue subsidized to house street vendor businesses and educate them about proper licensing. He felt that there was a lot of “fear mongering” in immigrant communities in regard to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in city schools. He supports LGBTQ+ rights.
“I’m running on a record that I’m proud of,” said Wills. “I’m proud to be here tonight and stand before you, once again asking for your vote.”
Singh emphasized transparency and community engagement. He supports legalizing basements safely, local businesses, and street vendors. He criticized Speaker Adams and Hankerson about allocating budgeting and resources properly for the district. He believes strongly in fighting back against anti-immigrant rhetoric and Sikh hate crimes in the district and the city. He supports LGBTQ+ rights.
“We’re up against a system that has divided our communities for far too long. The faces change, but the system remains,” said Singh.
LeGrand is an on-the-ground mental health and domestic violence survivor advocate. She supports economic development for street vendors and educational town halls; smaller classroom sizes under state law; and making sure mental health resources are easily accessible for those in need, especially for women and domestic violence survivors in shelters. She supports LGBTQ+ rights.
“Working in government, working as a nonprofit founder, and working on a community board as an executive leader, making decisions for this district–part of it is seeing the challenges. I want to make sure I am that bridge to [the] government and the people,” said Legrand.
Hitlall, a real estate broker and active community member, said he supports legalizing basement apartments, street vendors, and more space in schools. As a formerly undocumented immigrant, he is passionate about protecting the district’s undocumented population and getting them legal status.
“I’ve seen where this community came from and where it is today. We have a problem. We have a major problem,” said Hitlall. “We have members of City Council who promise us everything. Most of us knows that. They come to us, they promise us the world, and we support them. You have one of your own today.”
On the topic of LGBTQ+ rights, Hitlall said he is an ally and has taken steps to support the community as the annual Phagwah Parade chair. In 2016, CEP made history as the first Caribbean-oriented LGBTQ organization allowed to march and wave the rainbow flag in the 28th Annual Phagwah Parade, a traditionally Hindu and fairly conservative celebration. Amin confirmed that he met with Hitlall privately at Atlantic Diner about access to the parade. However, Amin noted that those meetings had “very dehumanizing questions” about how the group would participate in the parade and dress, and whether they would be “holding hands” or “kissing.” Amin said every year since 2016 has involved multiple rounds of questioning before they receive approval to participate in the parade. Hitlall disagreed about the nature of these conversations with Amin.
“[Systemic] oppression is when we have to have a sit down conversation with somebody before we even get approved to participate,” said Amin.
With the primary election set for June 24 and the curveball of ranked choice voting, voters in District 28 voters certainly have a lot to consider in the coming month.