Senator Parker Advances the American Dream for Permanent Residents

Brooklyn, NY- On Saturday, November 9, 2013, State Senator Kevin Parker, Council Member Jumaane Williams (D-45) and The City University of New York Citizenship Now partnered to host a free citizenship application assistance event at Brooklyn College. Over 200 permanent residents from across Brooklyn and New York City received free one-on-one counseling, pro bono legal services and assistance in assessing and completing their applications.

"I am proud to be able to work with Council Member Jumaane Williams, and the CUNY Citizenship and Immigration Project to help Central Brooklyn’s eligible individuals take important steps on their journeys to become U.S. Citizens,” said Senator Parker.  “Our goal is to ensure that applicants are educated on what the requirements and the responsibilities of becoming a United State's citizen entail. This event grows each year as more members of our community step forward to become a part of the American Dream.”

"As an elected official and a first-generation Brooklynite of West Indian heritage, I know firsthand the importance of ensuring that all Americans, first-generation or not, have access to the resources needed to fully integrate into American life, said Council Member Williams."This is why my office, in collaboration with State Senator Kevin Parker, hosted this citizenship event. With the significant number of Caribbean, Latin and Asian residents in my district, my hope is that events like today encourage permanent residents to take the next step in becoming U.S. citizens."

CUNY established the Citizenship and Immigration project in 1997 to address the growing need for immigration services among foreign-born students, faculty and staff.  The mission of the CUNY project is to provide free, high quality, and confidential citizenship and immigration law services to help immigrants on their path to U.S. citizenship.  In keeping with their strong commitment to community service, they later expanded the program to assist all New Yorkers.

For more information on Citizenship Now events, visit their website at www.cuny.ed/citizenshipnow.

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About Senator Kevin Parker

Senator Kevin S. Parker is intimately familiar with the needs of his ethnically diverse Brooklyn community that consists of 318,000 constituents in Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood, Ditmas Park, Kensington, Windsor Terrace, and Park Slope. He is the Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Telecommunications Committee and the Committee on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, Assistant Democratic Leader for Intergovernmental Affairs, and Chair of the Democratic Task Force on New Americans.