FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JUNE 20, 2019 • THE QUEENS COURIER 29
E-bike reform gets Albany ‘green light,’ too
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
State lawmakers passed legislation on
June 19 that would legalize e-bikes and
e-scooters in New York City aft er a deal
was reached two days earlier.
Bills S5294 and A7431 introduced
by state Senator Jessica Ramos and
Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, which are
expected to be signed into law by Governor
Andrew Cuomo, will end the de Blasio
administration’s controversial ban on
e-bikes used by thousands of immigrant
delivery workers as a public safety issue
while NYPD statistics show they caused
just nine pedestrian injuries in 2018.
“For many of my neighbors, who are
immigrant delivery workers, using alternative
modes of transportation is a matter
of livelihood. Legalizing e-bikes and
e-scooters is a matter of equal access to
our streets and our city,” Ramos said. “It
is a criminal justice issue, a transportation
issue, an environmental issue and a labor
issue. I am proud of a bill today that delivers
justice to delivery workers who have
suff ered from crackdowns for too long,
while allowing municipalities regulation
over their own streets.”
Ramos added the legislation will
decriminalize the work of the estimated
30,000 food delivery workers who use
e-bikes daily across the fi ve boroughs.
“From lost wages and confi scations,
delivery workers in New York City have
been impacted by the ongoing criminalization
of unregulated e-bike for far too
long,” Rozic said. “Passage of this bill
would not only deliver economic justice
for thousands of workers, but also bring
New York into the fold as micro mobility
takes shape across the country as a means
to provide aff ordable transportation alternatives.”
Th e de Blasio administration adopted a
conciliatory tone.
“We appreciate this commonsense legislation
that clarifi es the rules around
e-bikes on our streets,” City Hall spokesman
Seth Stein said. “Safety for everyone
on our roads is a priority, and we look forward
to working with legislators and communities
as we deliver plans to implement
the new law.”
Th e immigrant community is also celebrating
passage of the Green Light Bill
which will restore their right to apply for
driver’s licenses in New York state.
Prior to 2001, undocumented immigrants
were able to apply and receive driver’s
licenses but that changed aft er the
Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the
legislation aft er is was passed Monday
night aft er originally expressing his concerns
that it would create a database that
could exploited by federal immigration
enforcement agents.
Cuomo had his administration’s counsel
Alphonso David vet the legislation
through Solicitor General Barbara
Underwood to ensure that undocumented
individual’s who apply for diver’s
licenses or identifi cation cards would
not be unintentionally exposed to a federal
government seeking to use their information
for deportation.
Attorney General Letitia James added
her support for the Green Light Bill, saying
it is Constitutional and vowed to
defend it against any legal challenge.
“Th e legislation is well craft ed and contains
ample protection for those who
apply for driver’s licenses,” James said.
David said, based on the AG’s representation,
that Cuomo would sign the bill.
“Governor Cuomo has supported this
policy for over a decade,” David said.
“Th e key to this bill is not the political
intent but the legal eff ect. We hope the
Attorney General’s assessment is correct
for the safety of the thousands of unprotected
individuals who are relying on her
legal opinion.”
Javier H. Valdés, the co-executive director
for the Jackson Heights-based Make
the Road New York called passage of
the Green Light Bill “one for the history
books” while Nesar Bhuyan, a leader with
DRUM, another Jackson Heights-based
immigrant organization which co-founded
the Queens Driver’s License Coalition
in 2004, praised the bill’s passage.
“As an undocumented worker from
Jamaica Queens, my economic and social
opportunities have always been limited
by my means of transportation and fear
of deportation,” Bhuyan said. “Th is has
been part of a larger climate of fear that
has been created by the Trump administration.
By passing this bill, New York is
making a clear statement against this climate
of fear and xenophobia. In the face
of such hate federally, we must turn to
the grassroots and fi ght for our protection
locally.”
Last commencement for outgoing LaGuardia president
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
LaGuardia Community College President
Gail O. Mellow presided over her fi nal commencement
at the college on June 13 at
the Barclays Center. She will step down in
August aft er 19 years.
Associated degrees were conferred to
nearly 2,000 graduated at the school’s 47th
commencement making it LaGuardia’s largest
graduating class to date.
“Presiding over the granting of associate
degrees each year for the past 19 years has
been an absolute privilege,” Mellow said.
“Th ese degrees represent the culmination
of an incredible amount of work, dedication,
and juggling for our students, many of
whom work, are parents of young children
or have other family responsibilities, or are
recent immigrants seeking a better life in
the U.S. It’s also a celebration for our dedicated
and creative faculty and staff , who
provide high-quality education, as well as
guidance and support for our students.”
Refl ecting the college’s diverse student
body, more than 20% of the graduates are
age 30 or older, and 25% are between the
ages of 25 and 29.
Students who identify as Hispanic remain
the largest ethnic group, at 45%. Sixty-two
% live in Queens.
“We each have our own story to tell. Th e
experience that you’ve had, whatever they
may have been, are instrumental and priceless
in building your character,” Kishuan
Givens, 30, said. “Know that these experiences
will take you to new heights that are
greater than your imagination. It is not by
chance that we are here; it’s the end result of
the hard work we’ve invested into attaining
another milestone in our lives.”
Givans received her associate degree in
therapeutic recreation and represented the
Class of 2019 in a speech in which she
shared her personal story about moving to
the U.S. from Jamaica to seek medical attention
for a mysterious illness that caused her
to be paralyzed from the neck down. She
recovered, and with a lot of hard work, she’s
regained most of her mobility.
“We have beaten the odds and now we
sit before each other on the cushion of
hard work and sacrifi ce,” Givans said. “I
am proving to the world that yes, this person
of color who overcame a serious illness,
completed her associate degree. Now
with the knowledge and power that we have
obtained at LaGuardia, let’s proudly walk
out of Barclay’s Center on this spectacular
day, because you hold the pen that writes
your future. Dare to be great.”
Aida Akim-Escriva represented
LaGuardia alumni in a speech to the graduates.
She spent her childhood in Kyrgyzstan,
Kazakhstan and Russia before moving to
New York City a decade ago to pursue a
degree that would allow her to advocate for
the rights of women around the world.
“Remember all the doors that were closed
before you? With graduation, many of them
will now open for you,” Akim-Escriva said.
“Society does not yet know the full potential
of a community college student and graduate.
Knock on the doors that are closed.
Teach them that graduating from a community
college takes determination and resilience.
Teach them that a person who held a
job to support their family while gaining a
degree is capable of great things. You might
be the fi rst community college graduate
they hire, but you will not be the last once
you pave the way for all those yet to come.”
A father and son were among those celebrating
their associate degrees. Unbeknownst
to one another, Ridgewood resident Julian
Linares and his stepfather, Victor Lopez, of
Kew Gardens Hills, enrolled simultaneously
at LaGuardia in 2018.
Victor, 45, is a realtor and Air Force
reservist who did four tours in the Middle
East. Th e two of them were “shocked
and pleased” when they both enrolled at
LaGuardia and grew closer through their
shared experience.
“Knowing that this was my last commencement
as LaGuardia’s president, a role
that has been the honor of my lifetime, has
been bittersweet,” Mellow said. “Just like
today’s graduates, I’m looking towards the
next phase of my life with excitement and
trepidation. One certainty is that each June,
I’ll be thinking about LaGuardia and its
newest graduates with pride.”
Courtesy Ramos’ offi ce
Courtesy of LaGuardia Community College
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