PRESS RELEASES
Contact: Walter Fields, 212-614-5453
David R. Jones Keynote Speaker at New York City Council’s Black,
Latino, and Asian Caucus Legislative Weekend
Milestone Event Spotlights Poverty Issues
for City Council’s Elected Officials of Color
May 22, 2006, New York, New York - The New York City
Council's Black, Latino, and Asian Caucus held its first Legislative
Weekend, May 20-22, 2006, at Pace University’s downtown New York
City campus. The conference marks an important milestone for elected
officials of color as they now comprise half of the City Council. The
event, which was open to the public and attended by about 100,
featured a keynote
speech (PDF) by David R. Jones, president of the Community Service
Society (CSS), on Saturday morning. There were
also panel discussions on key areas of public policy focusing
on poverty issues.
The event holds special significance for CSS. The CSS legislative
redistricting project in the early 1990's set the stage for the increase
in the number of Blacks and Latinos in the Council, and the eventual election
of the first Asian-American Council Member. Now, with a solid voting
bloc, the Caucus can exert significant influence on the policy
making and budget process in the City Council.
The Community Service Society (CSS) is a leading, independent,
nonprofit organization that provides innovative solutions to the most
urgent problems facing low-income New Yorkers. For more than 160 years,
we have worked to strengthen community life by conducting research,
policy analysis, advocacy, and service initiatives
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