NYDIA VELáZQUEZ
Name: Nydia Margarita Velázquez
Born: 28 March 1953 Yabucoa, Puerto Rico
Nydia Margarita Velázquez (born March 28, 1953) is a Puerto Rican politician who
has represented New York's 12th Congressional District in the United States
House of Representatives since 1993. She was the first Puerto Rican woman to be
elected to Congress.
Velázquez, whose father worked the sugar cane fields, was one of nine siblings
born in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico. She was raised with the influence of political
dinner table conversations. Her father was a local political activist and, from
a young age, she would accompany her father to political rallies. Her father
would focus on the rights of sugar cane workers and denounce the abuse
perpetrated by wealthy farmers.
After skipping grades, she entered high school when she was 13. In high school
she organized her classmates on a protest and the school was closed down. Their
protest against the dangerous and unsanitary conditions of the school caused the
necessary renovations to be made.
In 1969, when she was 16, she enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico (Universidad
de Puerto Rico). In 1974 she graduated magna cum laude and became the first one
in her family to receive a college diploma. She then went to New York City,
where she attended and studied political science, on a scholarship, at New York
University. In 1976 she received her Master's degree.
Velázquez was a university professor for many years, first in the University of
Puerto Rico's Humacao branch (1976–81) and then at New York's Hunter College (1981–83).
In 1983, she was appointed Special Assistant to Representative Edolphus Towns (D-Brooklyn).
In 1984, she became the first Latina appointed to serve as a member of the New
York City Council.
In 1986, she served as the Director of the Department of Puerto Rican Community
Affairs of the U.S. During that time, she initiated a successful Latino
empowerment program called "Muevete" (Move on).
In 1992, she was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing New
York's 12th District (map),and became the first Puerto Rican woman member of
Congress. The sprawling 12th district encompasses parts of Brooklyn, Queens and
Lower Manhattan. It includes such neighborhoods as Ridgewood, Maspeth, and
Woodside in Queens, Bushwick, Williamsburg, Red Hook, and Sunset Park in
Brooklyn and part of Manhattan's Lower East Side. She also became the first
Hispanic woman to serve as Ranking Democratic Member of the House Small Business
Committee. She oversees federal programs and contracts totaling $200 billion
dollars annually. She also serves on the House Financial Services Committee.
During her campaign for the House seat, her medical records, including
documented clinical depression and an attempted suicide, were leaked to the
press. She quickly held a press conference and said that she had been undergoing
counseling for years and was emotionally and psychologically healthy.
Her district is the only one in New York City that covers residential areas of
three boroughs (Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan). Charles Rangel's district, the
Manhattan-based 14th Congressional District, also includes parts of the Queens
and The Bronx, but the district's only territory in The Bronx is the Riker's
Island jail.
On April 3, 2003, Velázquez was named "Hispanic Business Woman of the Year" by
Hispanic Business magazine, becoming the first woman to be named as such, in
recognition of her national influence in both the political and business sectors.
Among her "firsts" are: the first Hispanic woman to serve on the New York City
Council; the first Puerto Rican woman to serve in Congress; the first woman
Ranking Democratic Member of the House Small Business Committee. Velázquez
became first woman to chair the United States House Committee on Small Business
in January 2007.
Name: Nydia Margarita Velázquez
Born: 28 March 1953 Yabucoa, Puerto Rico
Nydia Margarita Velázquez (born March 28, 1953) is a Puerto Rican politician who
has represented New York's 12th Congressional District in the United States
House of Representatives since 1993. She was the first Puerto Rican woman to be
elected to Congress.
Velázquez, whose father worked the sugar cane fields, was one of nine siblings
born in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico. She was raised with the influence of political
dinner table conversations. Her father was a local political activist and, from
a young age, she would accompany her father to political rallies. Her father
would focus on the rights of sugar cane workers and denounce the abuse
perpetrated by wealthy farmers.
After skipping grades, she entered high school when she was 13. In high school
she organized her classmates on a protest and the school was closed down. Their
protest against the dangerous and unsanitary conditions of the school caused the
necessary renovations to be made.
In 1969, when she was 16, she enrolled in the University of Puerto Rico (Universidad
de Puerto Rico). In 1974 she graduated magna cum laude and became the first one
in her family to receive a college diploma. She then went to New York City,
where she attended and studied political science, on a scholarship, at New York
University. In 1976 she received her Master's degree.
Velázquez was a university professor for many years, first in the University of
Puerto Rico's Humacao branch (1976–81) and then at New York's Hunter College (1981–83).
In 1983, she was appointed Special Assistant to Representative Edolphus Towns (D-Brooklyn).
In 1984, she became the first Latina appointed to serve as a member of the New
York City Council.
In 1986, she served as the Director of the Department of Puerto Rican Community
Affairs of the U.S. During that time, she initiated a successful Latino
empowerment program called "Muevete" (Move on).
In 1992, she was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing New
York's 12th District (map),and became the first Puerto Rican woman member of
Congress. The sprawling 12th district encompasses parts of Brooklyn, Queens and
Lower Manhattan. It includes such neighborhoods as Ridgewood, Maspeth, and
Woodside in Queens, Bushwick, Williamsburg, Red Hook, and Sunset Park in
Brooklyn and part of Manhattan's Lower East Side. She also became the first
Hispanic woman to serve as Ranking Democratic Member of the House Small Business
Committee. She oversees federal programs and contracts totaling $200 billion
dollars annually. She also serves on the House Financial Services Committee.
During her campaign for the House seat, her medical records, including
documented clinical depression and an attempted suicide, were leaked to the
press. She quickly held a press conference and said that she had been undergoing
counseling for years and was emotionally and psychologically healthy.
Her district is the only one in New York City that covers residential areas of
three boroughs (Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan). Charles Rangel's district, the
Manhattan-based 14th Congressional District, also includes parts of the Queens
and The Bronx, but the district's only territory in The Bronx is the Riker's
Island jail.
On April 3, 2003, Velázquez was named "Hispanic Business Woman of the Year" by
Hispanic Business magazine, becoming the first woman to be named as such, in
recognition of her national influence in both the political and business sectors.
Among her "firsts" are: the first Hispanic woman to serve on the New York City
Council; the first Puerto Rican woman to serve in Congress; the first woman
Ranking Democratic Member of the House Small Business Committee. Velázquez
became first woman to chair the United States House Committee on Small Business
in January 2007.