Currently holds the office of New York State Assembly - District 51 until January 8, 2025.
Candidate for New York State Assembly - District 51 in 2024 New York General Election.
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Get StartedWe must redirect resources intended for law enforcement and reinvest them in programs that support the working class people in our community. Learn more
I support closing Rikers and instead of building new jails, we should invest in communities and restorative justice, not prisons. Learn more
I support repealing the “walking while trans” law (A654/S2253) which would no longer allow police to charge primarily trans people with “engaging in prostitution” and prohibiting police from lying during interrogations (S680). Furthermore, I will continue to sponsor “know your rights” trainings so people are prepared to interact with police. Learn more
We must wipe the criminal record of anyone convicted of a marijuana related crime and release anyone currently incarcerated for those crimes. Learn more
We cannot allow our waterfront, one of the few working waterfronts left in the City, to become a playground for the rich. Instead, we must have a green working waterfront that benefits its surrounding working class communities of immigrants and people of color. I will continue to put our community over profit. Learn more
In addition to requiring a shift to 100% renewable energy, New York must also take affirmative steps to end the use of fossil fuels. That is why I oppose development of any new pipelines and other fossil fuel infrastructure-- including the Williams pipeline, which harms many families in Staten Island and Brooklyn. Learn more
The goal of healthcare should be to keep people healthy. However under capitalism, its goal is to make as much profit as possible. We must ensure that all people have access to high quality healthcare regardless of their age, insurance or immigration status. We must stop predatory insurance companies from getting rich off of people’s illnesses. Learn more
No one should go into debt just to stay alive. Many New Yorkers are crushed with medical debt that prevents them from moving into the middle class. This process only serves to make banks and insurance companies richer on the backs of working people. I would propose eliminating medical debt for all New Yorkers. Learn more
In these unprecedented times we need to fight against cuts and for full funding of our health services. Healthcare is a right and should be free and accessible to all. Learn more
Decades of tax discounts for development of new housing have created thousands of vacant government subsidized luxury apartments, while thousands of New Yorkers are homeless or on the brink of eviction. We must end tax subsidies for luxury developments, and instead refocus on investing in truly and permanently affordable housing. Learn more
Helping New Yorkers pay their rent is better, and cheaper, than paying for shelter after they are evicted. This is why I support passing Home Stability Support (HSS), a proposal for the state to pay the difference between public assistance and market rent, to make New York rents affordable for low income households who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Learn more
Our public housing buildings are falling apart. Where the federal government fails us, New York State must act to protect its people. We must raise revenue, and invest in preserving our crumbling public housing and giving back democratic control to public housing residents. Learn more
We must invest in developing new affordable housing units with common sense requirements, like no “opting out” to become market rate, no flipping subsidized coops for a profit, requiring democratic ownership (like a community land trust or a cooperative), and guaranteeing tenants the right to buy the building before it can be sold to someone else. Learn more
We must eliminate MCI increases, which allow landlords to pass the cost of building repairs and renovations on to renters-- rather than paying for it out of the rent money they are already collecting. Also, to ensure that our hard-fought tenant protections are actually enforced, we must also fully fund the Office of Rent Administration (ORA, aka HCR or DHCR). Learn more
Immigrant families that are ineligible for Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance through NY State of Health (NY’s insurance marketplace, established under the Affordable Care Act) are unable to access affordable healthcare. Until we pass the NY Health Act (universal health insurance for all New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status), we must also expand and fund NY’s Essential Plan to include all New Yorkers with incomes up to 200% of the federal poverty level, regardless of immigration status. Learn more
In the absence of comprehensive immigration reform on the federal level, New York must act to recognize the humanity of our immigrant communities. We must pass the New York Is Home Act, which will grant state citizenship to all New Yorkers, regardless of federal citizenship status. This legislation guarantees human rights protections to non-citizens, grants voting rights in state and local elections, and extends access to social services. Learn more
Deportations terrify New York's immigrant families and disrupt our communities. We must expand funding for the Legal Defense Project and the Office for New Americans, and fight to create a right to counsel for New Yorkers facing deportation in immigration court. Learn more
Nobody should live under the threat of being torn apart from their family and deported. That is why I support banning ICE from arresting people at courthouses, schools, hospitals, and places of worship, and ending state contracts with companies that collaborate with ICE. In addition, I will also fight to protect immigrant privacy, by supporting legislation to limit when police and other government agencies can access information about immigration status. In addition, I will continue to use my position to help establish ICE watches and community support networks to defend our undocumented neighbors from ICE. Learn more
One of the single biggest changes in New York over the past four decades is the growth of the financial industry. Today, it represents a third of New York’s economy. Other global financial centers, like London and Hong Kong, impose a small fee called a financial transaction tax any time a stock, bond, or derivative changes hands. New York should follow suit. Learn more
Intergenerational wealth transfer enables the rich and powerful to ensure that their enormous wealth stays within their families. Right now, New York deals with this situation ineffectively by placing a small tax on only the largest estates. Instead, we should leverage an inheritance tax to increase funding for healthcare, housing, and public education. Our proposal taxes inheritances aggressively with a marginal rate of 50% on any inheritance over 10 million. Exceptions—like retirement funds, family-owned farms, and primary residences—are modeled after Oregon’s system. Learn more
Currently, New York’s constitution prohibits the taxation of intangible property like stocks and bonds. While all New Yorkers are taxed on their homes, the richest among us are allowed to hold on to their most valuable property tax-free. If we are to fund this state’s future and begin to address economic inequality in New York, we must amend our state’s constitution to allow for a wealth tax. Learn more
Donald Trump’s signature policy in 2017 was a massive handout to huge corporations. We can undo the impact of these policies at the state level. By adding a surcharge to New York’s corporate tax rate and on the income of certain kinds of “pass-through entities” businesses would pay the same rates they did four years ago while providing the state with billions in desperately-needed revenue. Learn more
As Brooklyn gentrifies and property values are skyrocketing, low income homeowners are struggling to keep up with their tax bills. We must enact equitable property tax reforms to protect low income homeowners. Learn more
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