“Gaspard sees the potential for change – but only if there is agitation. That, he says, is where he comes in.”
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Sept 19, 2006
Rising Stars: 35 under 40
The Next Generation of Political Leaders in New York
Patrick Gaspard, 39
Vice President for Politics and Legislation, 1199SEIU
Patrick Gaspard says political activism is a Haitian birthright.
Gaspard’s involvement with 1199, regarded as one of the most powerful unions in the state, dates back to 1988 and Jesse Jackson’s presidential bid.
The next year he worked closely with the union to elect David Dinkins, the first black mayor in the city’s history.
More campaigns followed: in 1999, Gaspard was working as Council member Margarita Lopez’s chief of staff when Amadou Diallo was shot and killed by police officers in the Bronx.
The union was one of the central organizers of the civil disobedience that followed, and 1199 President Dennis Rivera and then-Political Director Bill Lynch asked Gaspard to coordinate those efforts. A position in the political department followed.
Now he is concentrating on 1199’s national campaign to help the Democrats take the House and Senate. Gaspard sees the potential for change – but only if there is agitation. That, he says, is where he comes in.
What is the most important thing you have accomplished so far?
“Raising two children of color in America.”
Two years from now, what do you want to have done?
“That’s the easiest question I’ve ever been asked – I want to begin to repair the imbalance in the Supreme Court by electing a Democratic President.”
— By Courtney McCleod
Patrick Gaspard, 39
Vice President for Politics and Legislation, 1199SEIU
Patrick Gaspard says political activism is a Haitian birthright.
Gaspard’s involvement with 1199, regarded as one of the most powerful unions in the state, dates back to 1988 and Jesse Jackson’s presidential bid. The next year he worked closely with the union to elect David Dinkins, the first black mayor in the city’s history. More campaigns followed: in 1999, Gaspard was working as Council member Margarita Lopez’s chief of staff when Amadou Diallo was shot and killed by police officers in the Bronx. The union was one of the central organizers of the civil disobedience that followed, and 1199 President Dennis Rivera and then-Political Director Bill Lynch asked Gaspard to coordinate those efforts. A position in the political department followed.
Now he is concentrating on 1199’s national campaign to help the Democrats take the House and Senate. Gaspard sees the potential for change – but only if there is agitation. That, he says, is where he comes in.
What is the most important thing you have accomplished so far?
“Raising two children of color in America.”
Two years from now, what do you want to have done?
“That’s the easiest question I’ve ever been asked – I want to begin to repair the imbalance in the Supreme Court by electing a Democratic President.”