Role Of Queens General Assembly Discussed At CB7 Meeting
"At the Queens General Assembly we have a chance to discuss what it means to live in our multi-cultural borough," said Susie Tanenbaum, Community and Cultural Coordinator for Borough President Marshall at the January meeting of Community Board 7 in Flushing. "We are looking for both new immigrants and long-time residents."
BY RICHARD GENTILVISO

Borough President Helen Marshall was set to deliver her sixth State of the Borough Address at York College. The Queens General Assembly was one of the many accomplishments she noted.

In February 2003, Marshall proposed the Queens General Assembly as one of the core initiatives of the Marshall Plan, introduced at her first inauguration in 2002.

"At the Queens General Assembly we have a chance to discuss what it means to live in our multi-cultural borough," said Susie Tanenbaum, Community and Cultural Coordinator for Borough President Marshall at the January meeting of Community Board 7 in Flushing. "We are looking for both new immigrants and long-time residents."

Marshall strongly believes that the diversity of Queens is one of its greatest strength. Citywide, foreign-born residents now comprise 60 percent of the population and more than half the residents in Queens do not speak English at home, according to the American Community Survey, a new, annual version of the Census Bureau's once-a-decade count released in August.

During the inaugural speech she gave last January at the start of her second term as Borough President, Marshall said, "I have created a Queens General Assembly so that our multiethnic population has a forum to share their cultures and foster tolerance and understanding between people. We cherish being the most multi-ethnic county in the world."

Marshall, of Guyanese descent herself, was also inspired by the idea of a United Nations Assembly within the borough of Queens. "We are like world travelers in our own neighborhoods, enjoying the richness of all cultures in our own backyard," she said in last year's inaugural address.

Linna Yu and Carlos Talisaysay, both members of Community Board 7 who also serve on the Queens General Assembly, spoke. They said the Assembly promotes greater understanding, with opportunity to learn more about each other's cultures and to discuss quality of life issues they have in common.

On Aug. 16, 2006, Marshall, other elected officials, the Director of the Queensborough Community College Holocaust Resource Center and members of the Queens General Assembly condemned a hate crime committed against four Asian men in Douglaston on August 12.

The Queens General Assembly consists of a permanent 14-member Advisory Committee and a number of delegates. At the start of each term (delegates serve for a term of approximately 15 months), Borough President Marshall appoints two delegates from each of the Borough's 14 community boards.

One delegate from each pair is a current board member and the other represents an ethnic, religious, cultural or civic group. Delegates participate in monthly dialogues and informational meetings, attend cultural events and prepare a final presentation that is videotaped and aired on Queens Public Television. Former delegates stay on as alumni, mentoring new delegates and conducting outreach in their communities.

In the long term, the Queens General Assembly plans to create a speakers bureau that can serve as a resource to neighborhoods, and to produce educational materials. There is a selection process for interested participants. For more information, contact Tenenbaum at 718-286- 2741.