The People’s Candidate Forum covered issues including jobs, climate and justice, while allowing the District 38 City Council candidates to state their cases for being elected. The candidates included Alexa Aviles, Rodrigo Camarena, Erik Frankel, Jacqueline Painter and Cesar Zuniga.
Though there were a lot of important questions asked, many of them resulted in similar answers from all of the candidates with the exception of Frankel. I think the question that produced answers giving the most insight into each candidate was simply, “Why should voters choose you?”
Frankel spoke about his experience as a Sunset Park resident in addition to living in Vietnam and Myanmar as well as his experience raising a Vietnamese son as a single parent.
“Deep down we all want the same thing,” Frankel said. “We want clean streets, we want good schools for our kids, we want clean air to breathe. You don’t have to be of a certain skin color to feel empathy for other people.”
Aviles also spoke about her deep ties to the community and said that she was inspired to run because the stakes are high for this election.
“I am persistent, I am resilient, and I think I offer a different perspective and form of leadership as a mother and as a professional woman,” Aviles said. “I have lived experience and a whole range of policy experience on all the issues that impact us. I’m offering my community to be a true fighter and fight for integrity, respect and human dignity for all of us because we all deserve that.”
Zuniga talked about the importance of his professional experience serving as chair of Community Board 7 as well as his personal experiences as the son of immigrants. He praised the example set by his parents, especially his father who was a community leader and organizer.
“I will continue to do what I’ve done in my public role as community board chair, which is to bring people together and create space to have really hard conversations,” Zuniga said. “I excel at bringing in diverse points of view and starting conversations.”
Camarena also spoke about the importance of his background as an immigrant who was born in Mexico and became a U.S. citizen ten years ago. Like Zuniga, he understands the issues immigrants are facing because he has experienced them first-hand. He also believes his professional experience gives him an advantage over the other candidates.
“Building immigrant and working-class power has been my life’s work,” said Camarena. “I’ve been working on the ground helping deliver food and I’ve been supporting too many GoFundMe’s for sick families that weren’t supported by their government. My vision is community-led and grounded and I think that’s the type of leadership we need.”
The last candidate to answer the question was Painter, who highlighted the importance of her grassroots work in the Red Hook and Sunset Park communities. Earlier, she explained her plan to cut police funding by 60 percent if she’s elected and reallocate the money to mental health services, healthcare and other programs to serve the community.
“The city has truly neglected our district for as long as I can remember,” said Painter. “I have been working with the Red Hook Senior Center and on the ground distributing food. I’ve spent five years advocating for NYCHA tenants and I understand the needs of the community on the ground.”
A key point in the debate that divided the candidates was rezoning, as Frankel was the only one to voice his support for it, saying that “the same people who are against rezoning also don’t want last mile warehouses coming in.”
In addition, Frankel didn’t agree with the other candidates who voiced their support for the wind turbine company Equinor, which has a massive project in Sunset Park. They believe it is a form of renewable energy that they want in District 38, while Frankel believes the company is corrupt and will hurt District 38.
Choosing a candidate in this election is an important decision which also allows everyone to have a say in the future of the community. The election will be held on June 22, so take advantage of this opportunity and vote!
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