Marjorie Velazquez ’99 was recently sworn in as the representative of New York City’s City Council. Representing District 13 in the Bronx, Marjorie recently served Community Board 10 on the executive board as chair of the Municipal Services Committee. She was formerly treasurer.
As she begins her new role on the City Council, Marjorie says, “My hope is to create more equity in our healthcare system. In the Bronx, women particularly women of color suffer from the highest rates of maternal morbidity. My hope is to deliver a women's health clinic to our community to address this and many other health issues we, as women, experience.”
A native of the Bronx, Marjorie says she watched her parents, who came to New York from Puerto Rico, work hard to support their family. “As an adult, I understood how much of a challenge the American Dream really is and how it’s on all of us to help each other to create and support the opportunities to achieve this dream,” she says.
As a student at St. Catharine’s, Marjorie was very involved. A member of La Sociedad Latina, she also counts playing soccer and flag football among her favorite activities.
Marjorie also considers her classmates some of her closest friends to this day. “The Class of '99 went through some difficult moments and it was folks like Sister Dee that held us together,” she says.
When looking at her life in politics, Marjorie says, “Growing up my parents instilled in me a life of service and the responsibility of taking care of one another. My dreams were to become a lawyer and represent folks who are underserved. Interestingly enough, while my dreams were to interpret laws for the underserved, now I will have the ability to create laws.”
Read more about Marjorie in the next Pathways.
