22 THE QUEENS COURIER • JANUARY 18, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Jamaica celebrates the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
BY RYAN KELLEY
rkelley@qns.com
Twitter @R_Kelley6
Queens residents of all
ages gathered at the Jamaica
Performing Arts Center on
Martin Luther King Jr. Day, what
would have been the civil rights
leader’s 89th birthday, to honor
his legacy by discussing modern
Photo by Ryan Kelley/QNS
Local elected offi cials pose with girls from The Edge School of Arts after their performance at the Jamaica Performing Arts
Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Queens leaders respond to Trump’s derogatory comments
BY RYAN KELLEY
rkelley@qns.com
Twitter @R_Kelley6
In the wake of reports about President
Donald Trump’s infl ammatory remarks
over immigrant communities and nations
across the globe, leaders from around
Queens, one of the most diverse counties
in America, have responded in force.
During a meeting at the White House
on Jan. 11, while discussing a deal that
would include protections for people
from Haiti and some nations in
Africa, the president reportedly asked
the room why he should accept people
from “s***hole countries.” A source with
knowledge of the conversation advised
the Washington Post, which fi rst reported
the story. Th e article also points out
that the sources said the president specifi
cally asked, “Why do we want people
from Haiti here?”
Elsie Saint-Louis, executive director
of the Haitian-Americans United for
Progress (HAUP), released a long statement
condemning the president’s comments,
and encouraging the Haitian people
of Queens to stay vigilant.
“Be outraged, yes,” Saint-Louis said
in the statement. “But channel the outrage
into productive and organized eff orts
to build bonds, strengthen community
structures and develop sensible advocacy
strategies on immigration, social issues
and Haiti’s future.”
Th e Haitian-American community in
Queens began to form in the 1960s, when
middle-class Haitians who could aff ord
it fl ed the country during the Duvalier
dictatorship. Th e Sacred Heart church
in Cambria Heights has served as the
center of the local Haitian community
for decades, said HAUP Advocacy
Coordinator Jocelyn McCalla.
Haiti has been regarded as the poorest
nation in the Western Hemisphere. An
earthquake in 2010 devastated the country
to the point where an offi cial death
toll could not be counted, though it was
believed to be in the hundreds of thousands.
Th e United States quickly added Haiti
to the list of countries with Temporary
Protective Status (TPS) designation aft er
the earthquake. On Jan. 22, the TPS will
expire and it is up to the Trump administration
to renew it or not.
With the impending deadline combined
with the president’s comments, the
most important part of the HAUP’s message
to Haitians in Queens is to “keep
your eyes on the prize and don’t get distracted,”
McCalla said.
“To build community you have to build
respect and integrity and remain dignifi ed
and fi ght for the welfare of the people in
that community,” McCalla added.
Also part of the reported Oval Offi ce
discussion was El Salvador, which will
have its TPS status revoked by the administration
as announced last week. Jose
Calderon, president of the Hispanic
Federation, was straightforward in the
statement he released about Trump’s
comments.
“We are outraged by this bigoted, vulgar
and appalling attack on people of
color,” Calderon said in the statement.
“It is a grotesque betrayal of American
values of openness and respect for diversity.”
Just days before Martin Luther King
Jr. Day, the president’s comments were
also in reference to African nations that
were to be included in the proposed
deal. Congressman Gregory Meeks, who
represents much of southeast Queens,
released a lengthy statement that touched
on the importance of African nations to
our “shared security and prosperity,” and
called on one of King’s messages about
the dangers of remaining silent during
troubled times.
“I am disappointed when many of
my Republican colleagues fail to speak
out against President Trump’s repeated
assaults on basic American values,”
Meeks said. “In this instance, with only a
few honorable exceptions, their deafening
silence continues.”
Photo via Shutterstock
In the wake of President Trump’s latest comments
about immigrants, Queens leaders have
responded.
day civil rights issues.
Organized by Councilman
I. Daneek Miller and his staff ,
the event featured performances
from poets, singers, dancers
and other musicians, as well as
a keynote address from Roger
Toussaint, former president of
the Transport Workers Union
Local 100.
Toussaint, who actively fought
for MTA workers’ grievances
and organized a strike in 2005
that resulted in him being sentenced
to 10 days in jail, spoke to
the audience about the similarity
between things happening in America
today and the things King fought against.
“You don’t get to the chokeholds and
to the modern-day lynch mobs without
going by way of terrorizing people
around the world and letting that become
the norm,” Toussaint said. “Th is is real
and we have to actually confront it, and
it’s appropriate to use Dr. King’s day to
focus on this.”
Toussaint drew comparisons between
the Vietnam War during King’s era and
the Iraq war and ongoing confl icts in
the Middle East today. He pointed out
that 60 percent more Americans are living
below the offi cial poverty line than
during the Vietnam War, and the “criminalization
of poverty” has led to 1.5 million
people in our nation’s prisons.
In driving his point home, Toussaint
also spoke to something that King himself
preached about: the more you ignore
the problems with the world, the worse
they will become. He said that too many
good people decide to be indiff erent
about certain issues because it doesn’t
directly aff ect them. Such as with the
Black Lives Matter movement, he said,
where people became off ended and started
using the phrase “all lives matter”
instead.
“Since when has it been acceptable to
stand in front of a burning home and
scream ‘all houses matter’?” Toussaint
said.
Toussaint and the elected offi cials who
spoke aft er him also addressed the red
elephant in the room, President Donald
Trump, whose rhetoric has oft en off ended
African Americans and other ethnic
groups. State Senator Leroy Comrie
said that despite the whirlwind of news
from Washington, D.C., he is encouraged
about the future.
“We have a community that has an
ability to make things happen when we
come together,” Comrie said. “I feel good
about what’s going on in D.C. because it
has ignited us to be together better
than ever before.”
Assemblywoman Alicia
Hyndman added that she
thought the most encouraging
part about the event was the fact
that members of the audience
brought their young children
who had the day off from school.
“It’s not a day off , it’s a day
to educate them about a legacy
that we need to make sure that
we’re fulfi lling,” Hyndman said.
“Do not be fooled by this president,
because if you think he’s
talking crazy now, it will continue
to increase because he has to
increase his base to get reelected.”
Hyndman also urged southeast
Queens residents to pay attention
to what is not said in Governor
Andrew Cuomo’s budget proposal
and continue to push back
to address things like the transportation
dessert in the area.
In his closing remarks, Miller
addressed the ongoing labor strike with
employees of Spectrum, 10 percent of
whom reside in southeast Queens, he
said. Aft er the company was bought out,
the new ownership tried to cut many
workers’ benefi ts and pensions, Miller
said. He also reiterated Hyndman’s point
that the importance of young people
attending these types of events cannot be
overstated.
“I am so glad that we have so many
young people here so that we can continue
to cultivate and develop our next generation
of leadership,” Miller said. “Th at’s
what Dr. King would have done, and
that’s what we’re doing.”