Esteemed Students!
On Thursday, March 25, we’ll welcome two terrific guest speakers! By 9am Thursday, March 25, please reply to this post with at least one question for either or both of our speakers! This assignment will not be accepted late.
Tevin Williams is Community Liaison and Legislative Aide to NY State Senator Brad Hoylman, a Manhattan Democrat and the first openly gay man in the New York State Senate. Tevin is responsible for assisting all of Sen. Hoylman’s constituents with their issues, as the liaison to Community Boards 2 and 7, and assisting with Senator Hoylman’s legislation in Albany. Previously, Tevin had a 10-year career with YMCA between Georgia, Florida, and now New York City before joining Senator Hoylman’s office. Tevin enjoys community impact, and also working towards the greater good. Tevin plans to attend law school and is currently preparing to take the LSAT. Tevin’s ultimate goal is to be a Federal Judge. Tevin is currently volunteering with the campaign of our other guest speaker, Elizabeth Adams.
Elizabeth Adams is a candidate for City Council District 33 in Brooklyn, which includes the neighborhood around City Tech as well as Greenpoint, Vinegar Hill, and Williamsburg. Elizabeth has worked as a Planned Parenthood advocate, and is now Legislative Director for a City Council Member. You can learn more about her and her candidacy at her campaign’s website, https://www.elizabethadams.nyc/.
They both look forward to talking with you!
Cheers, Prof. C.
Hello,
I have a couple of questions for both of our guest speakers for our 3/25 class.
Question one is for Mr. Tevin Williams.
1. What obligations does he have to fulfill for Senator Hoylman and does he want to get into politics after law school. Also what regiment does he follow to study for the LSAT? Any tips for people who want to take the LSAT?
Question two is for Ms. Elizabeth Adams.
2. Does she have any advice for people who have political aspirations? What kind of obstacles did she have to overcome in order to position herself to run for city council?
These are great questions, thanks Joseph!
Adams Questions:
-How are you going to improve awareness about the many opportunities inside the Navy Yard specifically for youth?
-Are you on board with the move to privatize NYCHA as NYC has failed working people that need them the most?
Williams Question:
-What are the most important skills that you learned from your 10-year tenure with the YMCA that will transition into your law career path?
Thanks Jasiyah, these are terrific questions! You’re tough. 🙂
Hi Jasiyah! I wanted to follow up on these questions, since we didn’t get to them in class.
– The Navy Yard has s a lot of great programs and has been expanding, thanks partly to the work of this current Council. I think there’s a lot to build on and want to do a few things: 1.) Expand the navy yard STEAM Program to more high schools in the District and across Brooklyn & have a staff person lead outreach to schools in the district about the programs. 2.) Increase funding for Summer Youth Employment & work with the Navy yard on more summer jobs. The Mayor tried cut funding for young people at a time when we need more jobs and things for people to do.
— I am not supportive of the move to privatize NYCHA, yet understand the distrust in the city’s failed operations. We need full funding for NYCHA, and yet have seen a decrease in city/state investment. A few developments have gone through RAD privatization and the concerns residents raised about rushed work, evictions and lease issues have come true, so I’m calling for a halting of conversion until there’s real tenant engagement. With a new federal govt. we have the opportunity for securing much-owed federal funding and the Mayor needs to be pushed to not leave money on the table. My priorities are: 1.)making sure for any work that happens in NYCHA, jobs go to tenants first. 2.) any decisions about the land/air rights/homes get made by tenants 3.) divesting from policing and investing in community centers/education/social services.
Hello!
question Mr. Williams:
What motivated you to want to be a federal judge rather than a lawyer that can advocate for those that need someone to represent them?
question for candidate Adams:
Advancing community justice, sounds pretty straight forward but can you explain more that topic of Decouple 911 from NYPD for crisis responses, including mental health, domestic abuse, and homeless services, and invest in community-led care responses.
Thanks Daniella, these are great questions!
Hi Daniella! Last year I joined advocates in calling for funding cuts from NYPD and investment in community services. Instead of real divestment, we got budget tricks. Part of divesting from policing to me is the importance of addressing the ways we’ve relied on policing as in so many spaces – not just NYPD, but also in our schools, in social services. We’ve seen an increase in policing in HRA offices and shelters, rather than addressing the root of what safety and services requires. Folks I’ve known in the shelter system haven’t always had great access to mental healthcare and many of the mental health shelters are lacking in trauma-informed care. NYPD is often the first responder when someone is in distress, which can escalate a situation, when we should have healthcare professionals responding first. I’ve worked with constituents who were crisis and called the mental health crisis hotline, but was told it would take 48 hours for a response — far too late when someone’s in emotional distress. I’m also proposing outpatient mental health clinics and drug treatment services, for people to access services more easily.
Overall, I believe that we ask NYPD to do too much: only 5% of what NYPD does is responding to violent crime — we should be examining why we use NYPD as the default for so much, when community organizations or other responders may be more appropriate.
Question for Tevin Williams – What was your position in the YMCA for 10 years and how did it help you determine that you wanted to pursue a law career and become a judge ?
Thanks Sherona, yes I was wondering about that connection too!
For both speakers: has there ever been a time where you wanted to quit college ? And if so what motivated you to keep going ?
Wow, terrific question, thanks Nyiah!
Question for Ms.Adams:
How do you feel like your campaign/approach has been altered by all of events in the past year, including the pandemic?
Thanks Mackenzie, I’m interested to hear about that too!
Hi Mackezie! The pandemic really reaffirmed why I’m running — to have government step up and do more of the work that our community has long shown up to do and deserves more of.
I’ve prioritized community work over the last year and thought about the ways our campaign can be a conduit to break down the ways government and our social safety net has been inaccessible or confusing for people looking for information or resources. I want to use our council office to meet people more directly where they are on housing, HRA, and school needs, and over the past year I’ve been expanding community networks through social media/whatsapp and mutual aid, which I hope will serve as a base for those direct connections. I would like to have satellite office spaces across the district, like in public housing, so that neighbors can have more access to government.
Questions for Tevin Williams
How are you preparing yourself for the LSAT’s?
Why do you want to be a federal judge?
Questions for Elizabeth Adams
In what moment in your life did you know that you wanted to help your community?
What changes do you want to see in your community?
Thanks Yaire, these are terrific questions!
My questions for both speakers, what are their perspectives on college affordability in America, where do they stand on the issue of making college more affordable and accessible to all?
Hi Namadou,
College affordability is extremely important to me and I believe we need student loan relief over at least $50k and free CUNY. I’m a strong advocate for a New Deal for CUNY and making school more affordable across the board!
Thanks Nasser, that’s a really important issue, I’m glad you raised it!