FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JANUARY 9, 2020 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3
QBP forum showcases diff ering styles to similar stances
BY MAX PARROTT
mparrott@schnepsmedia.com
One Queens Indivisible hosted
the fi rst Queens borough president
Center for the Women of New York founder dies at 97
BY JENNA BAGCAL
jbagcal@qns.com
@jenna_bagcal
Ann Juliano Jawin, a Douglaston resident
and founder of the Center for the
Women of New York, died on Dec. 31. She
was 97 years old.
News of Jawin’s death came less than
a month aft er she celebrated the grand
opening of a brand-new women’s center
in Fort Totten. Members of the community
expressed condolences for the pioneer
who dedicated her life to women’s equality
and empowerment.
“I am saddened to learn of the passing
of Ann Jawin, founder of the Center for
the Women of NY. Ann was an outspoken
activist who, for decades, devotedly dedicated
herself to improving the lives of all
women throughout the city of New York,”
said Councilman Paul Vallone on Twitter.
Born in 1922, Jawin was the youngest
of seven children in an Italian-American
family. Her parents came from Sicily
and settled in Brooklyn in modern-day
Bedford-Stuyvesant.
Th e educator and activist was a staunch
advocate for the second wave of women’s
liberation in the 1970s. In 1979, she
authored “A Woman’s Guide to Career
Preparation: Scholarships, Grants, and
Loans,” which taught women about fi nancial
independence and equal workplace
opportunity.
She joined the National Organization
for Women (NOW) and served as the
chair of the Task Force for Education and
Employment. In 1987, Jawin established
the Center for the Women of New York
(CWNY), which illuminated the importance
of pay equity, reproductive rights
and the elimination of sex traffi cking.
Th roughout the years, the Center also
taught the history of the women’s movement.
“Ann was a tenacious and unstoppable
trailblazer who devoted her life to
empowering women and never took no
for an answer. Just last month, she succeeded
in her 16-year legal battle with the
city to open CWNY’s beautiful new facility
in Fort Totten, which is the only building
completely dedicated to full equality
for women between the New York metropolitan
area and Seneca Falls. Th is new
building will ensure that Ann’s unparalleled
service and dedication to women’s
rights will be remembered by our community
for generations to come,” read a statement
from the Jeff erson Democratic Club.
In December 2019, Jawin celebrated the
opening of the CWNY building at 207
Totten Ave. Prior to the facility’s establishment,
CWNY operated out of another
building in Fort Totten before the city
kicked them out. A legal battle between
the two parties resulted in a deal, in which
the city gave the organization the opportunity
to restore and use another historic
building.
“Th e new building will allow the Center
to expand its function with corresponding
opportunities to reach many more
women,” said Jawin. “Th e renovation of
this beautiful historic building will allow
not only a ‘home’ for the Center but also
permit space for a wider variety of programs.”
Jawin intended to use the new facility
for multiple purposes including a
women’s history and culture museum,
career exploration and training and a
conference center. Th e conference center
would allow like-minded organizations
to come together and fi nd solutions for
long-standing women’s issues.
Jawin is survived by her children
Ronald and Paul Jawin and grandchildren
Alixandra, Rachel, Erica and Tom
Jawin. A funeral was held at 1 p.m. on
Sunday, Jan. 5, at the Unitarian Church at
Shelter Rock.
Photo by Dean Moses
Ann Jawin at the opening of the Fort Totten
women’s center in December.
forum of 2020 on Jan.
4 at Zion Episcopal Church
in Douglaston. It was also the
fi rst forum since Councilman
Donovan Richards nabbed the
endorsement of the Queens
County Democratic Party
and Assemblywoman Alicia
Hyndman dropped out.
Th e forum began with near
conformity between the fi ve
on housing aff ordability, went
on to cover transportation and
community board diversity, and
closed with a lightning round
that ended up splitting the candidates
on hot-button city issues
that don’t necessarily fall under
the purview of the offi ce.
Asked about what how to
make Queens aff ordable for
working class residents, all candidates
agreed that new residential
development needs to
include more aff ordable housing
and higher levels of aff ordability.
“I won’t approve any ULURP
application that does not have
deep aff ordability and union
work as part of that application,”
said Councilman Costa
Constantinides.
In her answer, former
Councilwoman Elizabeth
Crowley connected Queens’
housing crisis with a lack of
transportation infrastructure.
She pointed to the phenomenon
of families doubling or tripling
up in households because they
cannot aff ord to have their own.
“Where are families doubling
up the most? Along the 7 train.
Th ey are not close to opportunities
and jobs,” she said, alluding
to her plan to revive abandoned
Long Island Rail Road’s Lower
Montauk branch into a commuter
line.
Throughout the forum,
Richards distinguished his
answers by expounding to his
accomplishments as a Council
member in great detail. On
housing, he claimed that every
project that has come to his Far
Rockaway district aft er the devastation
of Hurricane Sandy was
100 percent aff ordable.
Richards style of answer set
a sharp contrast from that of
Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer,
who tended to use his answers
to rail against various state and
municipal systems from housing
construction subsidies to the
state control of the MTA.
“Most people who hear about
a new de Blasio aff ordable housing
plan have no faith and confi -
dence that it will actually deliver
aff ordable housing to those who
most need it,” Van Bramer said.
On the other hand, Anthony
Miranda, the National Latino
Offi cers Association chairman,
stood out as the only candidate
on the stage without a tenure
as a City Council member. He
used this bit of personal history
to profess his willingness to act
as a counterbalance on Council
members he sees as failing in
their duties.
Asked about how to diversify
community boards, Miranda
said that he would be willing
to push back against Council
members who have not appointed
new community board members
to refl ect the demographics
of their council district. He
also claimed that Queens members
of the City Council have
failed to create a unifi ed vision
of transportation in the borough.
At the tail end of the forum,
the candidates answered a series
of lightning round questions,
which limited them to a “yes” or
“no” answer. Th is style of question
put some distance between
the candidates’ answers.
Th e fi rst of these asked whether
they were in favor of getting
rid of cash bail — a question
that is sure to come up again
aft er former Assistant District
Attorney James Quinn entered
the race with a platform that
raises this as a central plank.
All responded with “yes,” except
for Crowley, who said that it
depends.
When asked about abolishing
the Specialized High School
Admissions Test, more interesting
diff erences arose. Van
Bramer and Crowley said “no.”
Miranda said “yes.” Richards
said yes, “but with trepidation”
and Costa, said no but “also with
trepidation.”
On the decriminalization of
sex work, all said “yes” except
Crowley. And on legalizing
e-bikes, all said “yes” except
for Miranda who said “no,” and
Crowley who tentatively said
she’s “open.”
Photo: Max Parrott/QNS
Five candidates for Queens Borough President attended a forum in Douglaston on Jan. 4.
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