Jumaane Williams

Jumaane Williams
Williams at an Occupy Wall Street rally, 2012
Member of the New York City Council
from the 45th district
Assumed office
January 1, 2010
Preceded by Kendall Stewart
Personal details
Born (1976-05-11) May 11, 1976
New York City, New York, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Education Brooklyn College (BA, MA)
Website Government website

Jumaane Williams (/dʒuˈmɑːneɪ/ joo-MAH-nay; born May 11, 1976) is an American politician serving as the member of the New York City Council from the 45th district since 2010. The district includes East Flatbush, Flatbush, Flatlands, Marine Park, and Midwood in Brooklyn.

A member of the Democratic Party, he currently serves as Deputy Leader of the New York City Council and Chair of the Task Force on City Workforce Equity. He was a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of New York in 2018.

Life and career

Williams' parents, Greg and Patricia Williams,[1] are from St. Andrew, Grenada. His father was a footballer and cricketer who represented the students of Grenada Boys Secondary School (GBSS) before moving to the United States to study medicine.[2]

Williams is an alumnus of Brooklyn Technical High School, he then attended Brooklyn College, earning a B.A. there in political science in 2001 and an M.A. there in urban policy and administration in 2005.[3]

On September 5, 2011, during the West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn, Williams along with Kirsten John Foy, director of community relations for New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, were arrested and handcuffed for walking along a closed-off sidewalk, after having received permission to do so from other officers.[4][5]

Although not a member of the DSA, Williams describes himself as a democratic socialist.[6]

New York City Council

Williams was elected after defeating incumbent Councilmember Kendall Stewart in the Democratic primary in September 2009 by a margin of 12 points.[7] Williams won the general election as well,[8] with an endorsement from the Working Families Party.[9] He was re-elected easily in 2013.

In June 2013, the New York City Council passed Williams' Community Safety Act, which established an Inspector General to oversee the New York Police Department (NYPD) and created an enforceable ban against bias-based profiling.[10][11] The Act was passed over then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg's veto.[12] Williams has been an outspoken opponent of the NYPD's approach to Stop-and-frisk in New York City.[13]

In July 2013, he introduced "house party" legislation where parties with 40 people in attendance or more would have to register with the police. He also wants event organizers who advertise on social media and those charging admission to pay fines.[14]

On Jun 29, 2015, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed Williams' legislation, the Fair Chance Act, commonly known as Ban the Box. The law prohibits public and private employers from inquiring about an applicant's criminal history until a conditional offer of employment is made.[15]

On August 13, 2015, the New York City Council passed Intro. 700, Williams' legislation which, along with bills sponsored by Council Speaker Melissa Mark Viverito and Council Member Dan Garodnick, established regulations for "tenant relocation specialists", individuals who are employed by landlords to buy out tenants. The legislation was signed into law by the mayor on September 9, 2015.[16]

Election history
Location Year Election Results
NYC Council
District 45		 2009 Democratic √ Jumaane D. Williams 36.50%
Kendall Stewart 25.48%
Sam Taitt 16.56%
Dexter A. McKenzie 11.56%
Ernest Emmanuel 5.73%
Erlene King 4.18%
NYC Council
District 45		 2009 General √ Jumaane D. Williams (D) 76.65%
Kendall Stewart (I) 17.25%
Salvatore Grupico (R) 6.11%
NYC Council
District 45		 2013 Democratic √ Jumaane D. Williams 76.51%
Godwin B. Williams 12.40%
Jean H. Similien 11.09%
NYC Council
District 45		 2013 General √ Jumaane D. Williams (D) 96.28%
Erlene King (Rent Is Too Damn High) 3.17%

References

  1. ↑ "Jumaane Williams celebrates birthday". Caribbean Life.
  2. ↑ "Jumaane Williams is the first Grenadian-American elected to political office in New York". Everybody's. September 16, 2009. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Jumaane D. Williams". New York City Council website.
  4. ↑ "Councilman Jumaane Williams arrested after altercation with NYPD at West Indian Day Parade: cops". Daily News. New York. September 5, 2012.
  5. ↑ Williams, Jumaane D. (September 9, 2011). "What happened to me at the parade: City Councilman Jumaane Williams explains how he ended up in cuffs". The Black Institute.
  6. ↑ Day, Meagan (August 15, 2018). ""I Have No Problem Saying I'm a Democratic Socialist"". Jacobin. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  7. ↑ Brydson, Nicole (January 7, 2010). "Community Activists are Brooklyn’s Newest Council Members". BKYLN.
  8. ↑ Chan, Sewell (November 5, 2009). "Election Remakes City Council, and May Give It More Bite, Too". The New York Times.
  9. ↑ Goldenberg, Sally; Seifman, David (January 1, 2010). "WFP's 'hire' power". New York Post.
  10. ↑ "Int 1079-2013 Investigating, reviewing, studying, and auditing of and making of recommendations relating to the operations, policies, programs and practices of the NYPD by the commissioner of the department of investigation". New York City Council.
  11. ↑ "Int 1080-2013 Prohibiting bias-based profiling". New York City Council.
  12. ↑ "City Council Votes to Increase Oversight of New York Police". New York Times.
  13. ↑ Gonnerman, Jennifer (2013-05-12). "114 Minutes With Jumaane Williams". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2015-09-29.
  14. ↑ "NYC Councilman Williams Proposes 'House Party' Legislation". CBS Local New York.
  15. ↑ "Mayor de Blasio Signs "Fair Chance Act"". Office of the Mayor, City of New York.
  16. ↑ "The New York City Council". New York City Council.
Political offices
Preceded by
Kendall Stewart		 New York City Council, 45th District
2010–present		 Incumbent
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