Brad Lander

Template:TOCnestleft Brad Lander is a New York City Councillor.

Background

Before being elected to the New York City Council in 2009 — which he won, on the Democratic Party and Working Families Party tickets — with 70 percent of the vote – Brad Lander was a community organizer. He’s taken those skills with him into city government, viewing his office as a catalyst for community and labor empowerment. He’s become a master at the inside/outside game.

After graduating from the University of Chicago and earning a master’s degree at the London School of Economics, Lander served for a decade as executive director of the nonprofit Fifth Avenue Committee, garnering national recognition for a combination of grass-roots organizing and community development. At the FAC, he oversaw the development of almost 1,000 units of low-cost housing, the preservation and renovation of dozens of Brooklyn buildings facing abandonment, organized tenants against evictions and displacement by unscrupulous landlords and created a successful reentry program to help ex-prisoners find jobs and housing.

After FAC, Lander spent six years as director of the Pratt Center for Community Development, which works with grass-roots groups to strengthen their capacity for organizing and neighborhood improvement. At Pratt, Lander led a successful campaign to create NYC’s inclusionary zoning program, which requires developers to set aside 20 percent of their units for low- and moderate-income families and to pay their building service workers a living wage.

On the City Council, Lander, 44, who represents part of Brooklyn, has led the fight for a living wage law, community involvement in the budget process and a greater focus on the construction and preservation of affordable housing. He has fought successfully to hold banks accountable to communities, to protect manufacturing jobs and stop tax breaks for millionaires and funding cuts to schools, firehouses, parks, libraries and day care centers. Lander led the Council’s efforts to reform police abuses, including racial profiling, stop-and-frisk practices and surveillance of innocent Muslims. He co-sponsored a bill to create an inspector general’s office to monitor the police and “conduct independent reviews of the department’s policies, practices, programs and operations.”

Lander is co-founder and co-chair of the Council’s Progressive Caucus and has been working to recruit new candidates with activist credentials to run for office and expand the body’s liberal left wing. With City University of New York urban studies Professor John Mollenkopf, Lander catalyzed a group of activists and academics to formulate Towards a 21st Century City for All, a progressive manifesto for economic development in the city. Lander has played a key role in Bill de Blasio’s mayoral campaign and will be one of de Blasio’s strongest Council allies.

Center for Working Families

In 2008 Brad Lander, Pratt Institute served on the advisory board of Center for Working Families.

Progressive Caucus

The New York City Council Progressive Caucus was formed early in 2010 to fight for progressive values and combat Bloomberg, a mayor who has often, in the words of caucus co-chair Brad Lander, "undermined grassroots democracy." By June 2010, 12 of the city's 51 council members had joined the caucus. Prominent members include;

• Brad Lander, caucus co-chair.
• Melissa Mark-Viverito, a council member who represents East Harlem and who is the caucus's other co-chair.
• Daniel Dromm, who represents Jackson Heights, Elmhurst and other parts of northwest Queens.

Unity Statement

The Unity Statement Signed by Those Arrested was signed by 56 activists arrested in New York City, in front of 26 Federal Plaza June 1 2010, the "third in a series of civil disobedience actions in New York aimed at highlighting the growing human tragedy and unsustainable moral crisis caused by a broken U.S. immigration system badly in need of reform".

Signatories included New York City Councillor Brad Lander.

New York "progressives"

According to Communist Party USA member Danny Rubin, writing in the People's World;

The possibility for a turn in direction also depends on the outcome of the city council elections, where there is a substantial Progressive Caucus led by Melissa Mark-Viverito and Brad Lander. Viverito will seek election to the powerful post of speaker and has a real shot at it. There are also progressives running with serious shots at victory, such as Letitia James for public advocate and Ken Thompson for Brooklyn district attorney. Robert Jackson is running for Manhattan Borough president. All three are African American.

AAFE 40th Anniversary

Asian Americans for Equality celebrated the Year of the Horse at their 40th Annual Lunar New Year Banquet Thursday, March 13, 2014, at the Jing Fong Restaurant, 20 Elizabeth Street, in Manhattan’s Chinatown.

Community leaders recognized with the Dream of Equality Award were:

• The Honorable Brad Lander, New York City Councilman, District 39
• Jennifer Jones Austin, Executive Director, Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies
• Michelle de la Uz, Executive Director, Fifth Avenue Committee
• Bill Chong, Commissioner, Department of Youth and Community Development

"A Progressive Vision for New York City"

Community Voices Heard Power organized "A Progressive Vision for New York City" panel discussion, June 19 2014.

Panelists were Melissa Mark-Viverito, Speaker of the NYC Council, Afua Atta-Mensah, Esq., Director of Litigation, Safety Net Project at the Urban Justice Center and CVH Power Board Member, Brad Lander, City Council Member (District 39, Brooklyn), Co-Founder of the Progressive Caucus, Deputy Leader for Policy, Carlos Menchaca, City Council Member (District 38, Brooklyn), Member of the New York City Council Progressive Caucus, Estela Vasquez, Executive Vice President 1199SEIU, United Healthcare Workers East, Health System 6, Marvin Holland, Political and Legislative Director, Transport Workers Union Local 100. Moderator:

Dr. Christina Greer, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Fordham University.

Kopkind Colony

The Kopkind Colony Program Advisory Committee, as of 2015; The Kopkind Colony Honorary Board, as of 2015; Angela Ards, Fred Azcarate, Jennifer Berkshire, Pamela Bridgewater, Francis Calpotura, Margaret Cerullo, Tim Costello, Kim Diehl, Heidi Dorow, Scott Douglas, Theo Emery, Laura Flanders, Ku‘umeaaloha Gomes, Joe Grabarz, Jennifer Gordon, Pronita Gupta, Muna Hamzeh, Amber Hollibaugh, Mary Howell, Janine Jackson, Si Kahn, Robin D. G. Kelley, KipuKai Kuali‘i, Brad Lander, Eric Mann, Nikki Morse, Scot Nakagawa, Debbie Nathan, Amy Newell, Rev. James Orange, Robert Pollin, Verandah Porche, Luis Rodriguez, Deb Schwartz, Barbara Smith, Makani Themba-Nixon, Jerry Tucker

People's Climate March endorsements

According to their website:

"Here are some of the leading artists, athletes and influencers helping to spread the word about the People's Climate March, including Brad Lander."

POWER to the People's Convention

Eric Mar July 10, 2016.

POWER to the People's Convention in Pittsburgh! An INSPIRED thank you to the Center for Popular Democracy/Local Progress, Make the Road, WORKING FAMILIES PARTY!, Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), SEIU 32BJ, and so many others! — with Brad Lander, Helen Gym, Nikki Fortunato Bas, John Avalos, Tarsi Dunlop, Sarah Johnson and Ady Barkan at Center for Popular Democracy.

Local Progress Board Members

Local Progress Board members, As of August 10, 2018:

• David Alvarez, San Diego, CA
• LaToya Cantrell, New Orleans, LA
• Gregorio Casar, Austin, TX
• Helen Gym (Vice-Chair), Philadelphia, PA
• Megan Green, St. Louis, MO
• Bill Henry, Baltimore, MD
• Robin Kniech, Denver, CO
• Brad Lander (Chair), New York, NY
• Marcelia Nicholson, Milwaukee, WI
• Meghan Sahli-Wells, Culver City, CA
• Andrew Friedman, Center for Popular Democracy
• Tefere Gebre, AFL-CIO
• Bob Master, CWA
• Becky Wasserman, SEIU International

References

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