Candidate Answers to JOLDC: Marjorie Velázquez for City Council District 13
Candidate Name: Marjorie Velázquez
Office Seeking Election for: New York City Council District 13
Campaign Website: https://www.mvelaz.nyc/
Twitter/Facebook/Instagram: @mvelaznyc
1. Do you consider yourself a member of the LGBTQ community? NO
2. If you answered “yes” to the first question, do you believe members of hate groups should be permitted to join the City Council LGBTQIA+ caucus? Do you believe the Republican party is a hate group? If you answered yes to both questions, do you support ejecting Republicans from the caucus?
3. What work have you done on behalf of the LGBTQ community? This can include endorsing LGBTQ candidates, drafting or advocating for legislation directly benefiting the LGBTQ community, working with LGBTQ organizations, allocating funds to LGBTQ organizations, marching in Pride parades, attending rallies/protests/press conferences in support of LGBTQ issues, and/or employing openly LGBTQ individuals. I worked to secure funding for drag story hour, and made my support public in an effort to push back against the homophobic attempts across the country to suppress and outright ban drag performances. I also delivered $500,000 in funding for Destination Tomorrow to support their work in my district and across the Bronx to empower LGTBQ+ cultural awareness campaigns and help young LGBTQ+ people.
4. Has Mayor Eric Adams met the needs of the LGBTQ community? Please include “yes” or “no” in your answer, and explain your answer. YES, but there is always room for improvement. Mayor Adams has worked with me and my colleagues to get funding to LGBTQ+ programs throughout the city including in my district, which I am proud of, but I don’t think we should ever stop pushing for more. Making NYC the national standard for LGBTQ+ rights and advancement is the goal we have to dedicate ourselves to, and I look forward to working with people in positions of power to make that a reality.
5. Would you demand that the Mayor re-institute its office of LGBTQ affairs, with its leader being a member of the LGBTQ community chosen in consultation with the City Council LGBTQIA+ Caucus? YES
6. Have you made requests to the Office of the Mayor to demand inclusion of LGBTQ community in city administration and on city boards? Can you give examples? YES, I have supported the
7. Do you support reparations for slavery? YES
8. Do you oppose all efforts to weaken bail reform? YES
9. Do you support closing Rikers Island? Do you support the administration’s plan to open borough-based jails? YES/YES
10. Do you support legislation outlawing solitary confinement in all jails and prisons, including city jails, and do you support Intro 549 (regarding solitary confinement)? NO
11. Will you publicly call on the governor to use her clemency power for the many incarcerated New Yorkers who can safely return home? Will you tweet out your support for this or issue a public statement? Would you be willing to be critical of a governor who does not exercise their power to grant clemencies and commutations to those worthy of release? Have you ever spoken out in
such a way? YES / YES / YES / NO, but would want to discuss effective ways to do so in the future.
12. If elected, will you include in your office’s newsletter instructions for your constituents on how their loved ones can apply for clemency? YES
13. Do you commit to visiting constituents who are incarcerated in state prisons and city jails? When did you do so last? YES / I will be there in the coming weeks, I have not visited in person but have helped constituents in the past through contacts I have there.
14. Do you believe in the decriminalization of sex work? If so, do you support full decriminalization, including decriminalizing purchase and facilitation? Will you commit to opposing the Nordic model, which continues criminalizing purchase and facilitation while decriminalizing sale? YES / YES / YES. The Nordic model ignores the violence that sex workers face in their daily lives.
15. What proposals will you advocate for to protect immigrants and further New York as a “Sanctuary City”? I supported the creation of an Office of Refugee and Migrant Settlement to not only address the humanitarian crisis created by far-right governors DeSantis and Abbott, but also to find ways to place them in housing and help them find good-paying jobs, and will continue to do so.
16. Did you support legislation, which passed, to allow non-citizen New Yorkers to vote? Do you support the appeal of the case in which the law was held unconstitutional? This legislation passed before I was elected, so I wasn’t able to sign onto it. Yes I do support the appeal.
17. Do you support the establishment of supervised drug consumption spaces in your district? Yes, and as someone who has represented an area hit hard by the opioid crisis, I have worked to support efforts to give people better services in phases of addiction, worked in provisions to the Metro-North expansion to assist struggling people, and supported legislation to provide Narcan to bars.
18. Do you support ending qualified immunity for police and other law enforcement individuals?
NO
19. Are you in favor of removing police from any of the following? a) Schools; b) Mental health response calls; c) Homeless outreach and social services; or d) Traffic enforcement. NO
20. Should law enforcement "Vice Squads" be eliminated? NO
21. Should the Gangs Database be abolished and do you / will you co-sponsor Intro 360 on the subject? NO
22. Do you support the Progressive Caucus’s requirement that members support cutting funding to NYPD in favor of alternative safety infrastructure? NO
23. What concretely have you done to improve access to reproductive healthcare? If elected, what more will you do? Be specific. I have held hearings on and sponsored bills aiming to expand reproductive healthcare, including delivering $1 million in funding for the NYC abortion fund, and working both through legislation and through my capacity as a public figure to expose fake clinics that seek to deceive pregnant people as they seek real, meaningful care options.
24. Do you approve of Mayor Adams’ approach to sweeping homeless encampments? I appreciate the efforts to address this important issue, but would like to engage in the future with more community input before, during, and after this process.
25. Do you commit to speaking with restaurant and nightlife industry representatives before taking a position on any policies that affect their businesses? YES, as Chair of the Office of Nightlife, I make sure to engage in these discussions with industry representatives often and prioritize their input.
26. Do you commit to speaking personally with liquor license applicants and license holders before opposing any bid for a liquor license? Likewise for an applicant seeking your support? YES
27. In view of the fact that Ed Koch has been documented to have caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people with AIDS, and was blatantly racist, would you support a city bill to rename the former Queensboro Bridge? Do you authorize the use of your name for such a purpose? YES
/ YES
28. Do you commit to removing the Christopher Columbus statue in Columbus Circle? NO
29. Who did you support for Mayor in the 2021 Democratic primary? Did you make an endorsement in the general election? I did not publicly support a primary candidate, but I supported Mayor Adams in the general.
30. Are you currently a member of the Progressive Caucus? If you are not currently an incumbent, will you join if elected? NO
31. Do you believe the Progressive Caucus should have qualifications to ensure that its members are actually progressive? Please explain. NO
32. If you are a sitting Councilmember, name three votes you took in the City Council that differed from the position of the Speaker. I have voted on bills to identify spaces to create affordable housing and build shelters that have sometimes not had the support of everyone else in my conference, but always stay true to what will help my district.
33. The rules of the City Council often make it difficult to get a hearing and/or vote on bills of which the Speaker does not approve. Would you support, and introduce if necessary, legislation that could force the City Council to print, introduce, hold hearings on, and hold votes on legislation. NO.
34. Will you refuse money from individuals or Political Action Committees representing the real estate industry or law enforcement unions/associations? NO
35. Will you refuse and refund any contributions from executives at corporations who donated funds to any of Donald Trump’s campaigns? YES
36. With the continued boycott of Equinox fitness on the basis of owner Steve Ross’ support of Donald Trump and institution of “Don’t Say Gay” policies in his residential buildings, do you commit to opposing his application for a casino? YES
37. If you receive the Jim Owles endorsement, do you agree to identify the club on all literature and electronic materials where you list endorsements? YES