Stonewall Democratic Club of New York City

Mayoral Candidate Questionnaire

Candidate Information Full Name: Margaret S. Chin Do you currently hold elected office? Yes If yes, when were you first elected? November 2009 Campaign Information From which parties are you seeking a nomination: Democratic Full Name of Campaign Committee: Margaret Chin 2013

Additional Candidate Information Endorsements

List here the union, organizations (community, civic, media, issue groups), and elected officials that have endorsed you.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver U.S. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez Council Member Rosie Mendez Diane Lapson, IPNTA President John Scott, District Leader Jean Grillo, District Leader Gigi Li, Chair of CB3 Catherine McVay Hughes, Chair of CB1 Jessica Thomas, Tenant Association Leader, LaGuardia Houses Aixa Torres, TA Leader, Smith Houses Nancy Ortiz, TA Leader, Vladeck Houses Michael Steele, TA Leader, Rutgers Houses Bob Wilson, TA Leader, Knickerbocker Village

Candidate Experience

Please explain any activities and/or experiences that demonstrate your commitment to the LGBT movement.
As a longtime progressive, I have always been a supporter of the LGBTQ movement. I am a cosponsor of many pieces of legislation promoting LGBTQ rights including: Reso 1717 (calls upon federal government to simplify tax filing for same-sex married couples); Reso 1711 (includes call for federal immigration reform that protects same-sex couples equally); Reso 1390 (amicus brief against Defense of Marriage Act); Reso 1331 (condemning passage of Amendment 1 in North Carolina); Reso 903 (calling on Immigration Services to accept petitions from same-sex, binational partners seeking permanent residency); Reso 895 (prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity); Reso 759 (support for Respect for Marriage Act of 2011); Reso 197 (Uniting American Families Act); Intro 260 (requiring the City Clerk to provide the public with information regarding where same-sex marriages can be obtained and the rights of those with same-sex marriage versus domestic partnerships); Reso 1244 (provide appropriate care services to transgender persons); Reso 895 (federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act); Reso 758 (NYC DOE to implement curriculum that includes LGBT history and individuals); Reso 706 (GENDA); and Reso 474-A (Student Non-Discrimination Act). In the Council, I have been an advocate for funding for HASA and funding for homeless runaway youth, and I have allocated funding for LGBTQ services provided by Hetrick Martin Institute and SAGE. I have particularly fought for funding for APICHA, a health clinic that specifically serves the Asian American LGBTQ community and offers special services for patients with HIV/AIDS. APICHA plays a very important role in a community that has traditionally been more closeted than other groups. Lastly, I have spoken out against Stop and Frisk of transgender youth, who often get accused of being prostitutes simply because they are transgender and carrying condoms. In sum, I have always been and continue to be very committed to supporting the LGBTQ movement.

What experience do you have to demonstrate you are the best person to represent the district office you seek?
I have worked hard as the Council Member for District 1 for the last three and a half years. Prior to this, I worked for three decades as an advocate for low-income and working families and immigrants. I have been a teacher, a civil rights and community activist, and a housing organizer. I served as a Democratic State Committee Member from 1986 to 1990. In the Council, I helped found the Progressive Caucus, and through the Caucus Ive worked to support legislation on progressive issues including the defense of equal rights for LGBT community. I have lived in Lower Manhattan since I came to this country for 50 years, and I know the district intimately.

Please detail any specific policy proposals you may have that will affect the LGBT community, that are not addressed in the next section.
Policy Positions Please answer the following questions in full, using your policy proposals and including specific examples of your previous actions on any given topic when possible. Marriage

Do you support full marriage equality for same-sex couples? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES Will you work with New Yorks congressional delegation to support the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES

Adoption:

Do you support full adoption rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender couples? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES

Human Rights

Do you support equal rights and treatment for people of transgender experience in the New York Shelter System, both adult shelters and youth shelters? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES

HIV/AIDS

In 2011, Mayor Bloomberg proposed cutting 248 case managers and millions in rental assistance from the HIV/AIDS Services Administration (HASA). Individual legislators ended up using discretionary funds to fill the gap. Do you support increased funding for the HASA? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES Please explain your position on using discretionary funds to support agencies like HASA. For my own discretionary funding, I have looked to fund groups that provide LGBTQ services in my district including SAGE, Hetrick Martin, and APICHA. As a Council Member I have also fought against cuts to Councilwide discretionary for HASA.

What actions do you think the City Council should be taking to provide emergency housing for homeless people living with AIDS? We have Council restoration each year for HASA. This is funding that should be baselined, not put back with a Council restoration each year. I believe housing stability is essential to effective medical treatment for people with HIV/AIDS and is important for public health. It is humane and it is the responsibility of the government to provide the housing and services. I also am in disagreement with the policy that requires clients to put in a portion of the broker fee this policy is a barrier to individuals gaining their independence.

AIDS funding no longer corresponds to the demographics of which communities represent the greatest number of HIV cases in NYC. Would you support yearly statistics of both the geographic areas where HIV is most prevalent and as well as which populations in those neighborhoods are most affected, and then allocate yearly funding to services and communities based on these results? Absolutely. Though I would want to make sure that the city does not allocate based on zip code need the way they do with DYCD. This is far too broad brush and results in pockets of high concentration of need not getting served. Community Boards:

Many Community Boards routinely oppose applications for liquor licenses in their areas, particularly if the proposed venue is tailored to appeal to the LGBT community. Please explain your position on the appropriate balance between support for nightlife, minority communities and respect for neighborhood concerns. One important thing is to ensure that Community Boards are diverse in their membership so that they represent the neighborhood appropriately and make decisions that are not bigoted or biased. There are sometimes real reasons to oppose liquor licenses there are some places in my community where the nightlife has taken over residential concerns in a way that has nothing to do with what clientele are served or what ethnicity the establishment is. In these cases, I do support local Community Boards in opposing liquor licenses. When we look at liquor license issues we look at severity of noise complaints, sanitation complaints, disorderly reports, and the density of liquor establishments already in an area. This being said, I have always been willing to meet with all stakeholders in these situations restaurant owners and supporters and detractors before making up my mind whether or not to write a letter in support of a CB resolution against an SLA application.

Please outline the criteria you would use in selecting Community Board members.

I look at whether there is a gap in the current Community Board makeup in terms of diversity of background and in terms of geography. Then I consider whether the individual has attended Community Board meetings before and indicated an ability to keep up with the meetings. When individuals dont show up it really makes it difficult for the Community Board to get a quorum. NYPD

The NYPD often targets bars, restaurants and clubs serving the LGBT community for increased scrutiny. They have used health code violations, allegations of drug use or sale, allegations of prostitution, allegations of serving minors, and a myriad of tools at their disposal. What changes would you implement to ensure LGBT institutions are treated equally by enforcement agencies? I am always willing to speak to city agencies on behalf of constituents and to speak up against these acts in public. I would be happy to support legislation that would strengthen protections in this regard for the LGBT community.

Do you support reforming Stop-and-Frisk? Please detail any specific changes to the program you believe are necessary. YES I was an early sponsor of the Community Safety Acts including an end to profiling and stop-and-frisk. I think NYPD practice of stop-and-frisk for transgender youth is especially damaging policy it falsely criminalizes a youth population already under culture stress and it is extremely traumatizing. A transgender youth should not be stopped and falsely charged with prostitution just for carrying condoms for example.

Do you oppose the use of condoms as evidence of prostitution in criminal cases? Please explain your support or opposition. YES I believe condoms are not valid evidence of prostitution. In practice, I have heard it is part of the false criminalization of transgender individuals for one thing. Additionally, by using them as evidence we are discouraging people from carrying condoms, which in turn discourages people from using condoms this is dangerous public policy.

Runaway and Homeless Youth

Will you support increasing the funding for both emergency shelter beds and transitional beds for homeless youth, a huge percentage of whom are from the LGBT community and will you pledge to support capital and expense funding for programs serving this population? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES What will you do to expand access to services for runaway and homeless youth? I have advocated for more funding for these services during budget hearings.

LGBT Services and Funding:

The LGBT community has no direct funding for the arts from the NEA or other funding sources because of institutional homophobia. Would your office help with funding for LGBT Arts? If yes, please explain how. I am interested in learning more about these groups and which they are. I am always happy to write support letters for applications for funding at other levels of government. I am also willing to support my local arts groups through discretionary funding.

The LGBT community is in great need of senior housing for many of our aging population. Many seniors experience homophobia in senior facilities making them feel they must be closeted. Would you help with the funding of senior housing for the LGBT community? (Y/N If no, please explain) YES If you are currently in office, have you made member item grants or supported LGBT funding requests? If seeking office for the first time, would you give strong consideration to LGBT social service organizations seeking funding from your office if elected? Please explain your position. YES I have always supported LGBT funding requests from groups in my district including SAGE, APICHA, Hetrick Martin Institute, and recently for the LGBT center at Pace University. I think these services are extremely necessary and important.

What actions will you take to help support the LGBT community center in your borough? If there is not an LGBT community center in your borough, what actions will you take to help develop one? In Chinatown, weve supported Project REACH, which is a program where transgender youth, together with youth from all backgrounds, can come together in a safe space and share ideas, and have advocacy and councilors for them. We also have a community health center APICHA - where they provide services to transgender individuals in a safe and friendly environment. These are the projects in our community that were proud to support. We fund SAGE, which is not in our district but close to our district and serves many of our constituents.

On a basic level it is important to ensure that funding persists at current levels, and then to fight for capital funding for these centers to be constructed. This issue requires support from the Council as a whole body. Other:

Please state concrete achievements for the LGBT community that you are responsible for in your current, or previous, elected office/s. I have supported numerous legislation to expand the rights of LGBT community. I have ensured that important LGBT organizations and programs are able to continue and get the funding they need in my district. I particularly worked with Congresswoman Velazquez to get national legislation regarding bullying and hazing in the military I believe this legislation is important not only for minorities but also for LGBT individuals.

Have you endorsed any LGBT candidates? Which ones? YES Council Member Rosie Mendez

If endorsed will you display the endorsement of the Stonewall Democratic Club of NYC in your literature whenever you list other endorsements and will you display the endorsement on your website? YES I would proudly list Stonewall Democratic Club on my literature and website. I was thrilled to get the endorsement before and I would be thrilled to get the endorsement again.

Will you hire openly LGBT staff and/or designate a liaison to our communities if elected? (Y/N If no, please explain) I am very open to hiring LGBT staff and would welcome having LGBT staff. However, it is not a question you can necessarily ask in interviews; I hope my progressive track record ensures that candidates feel comfortable identifying as such.