New York City Council Member Letitia James.

Letitia "Tish" James is an American lawyer, activist and politician. She is the current New York City Council member for Brooklyn's 35th Council District. Elected in November 2003, she represents the neighborhoods of Clinton Hill, Fort Greene, parts of Crown Heights, Prospect Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant. She serves on the committees for Economic Development, Housing & Buildings, Parks & Recreation, Small Business, Technology in Government and Veteran Affairs. Letitia James picture from [1] File links The following pages link to this file: Letitia James ... Letitia James picture from [1] File links The following pages link to this file: Letitia James ... A lawyer is a person licensed by the state to advise clients in legal matters and represent them in courts of law and in other forms of dispute resolution. ... Activism, in a general sense, can be described as involvement in action to bring about change, be it social, political, environmental, or other change. ... A politician is an individual involved in politics. ... The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of the City of New York. ... A map highlighting Brooklyn and the rest of New York City. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for November, 2003. ... Clinton Hill is a small neighborhood in north-central Brooklyn, New York. ... The neighborhood of Fort Greene is listed on the National and New York State Registry of Historic Places, and is a New York City designated Historic District. ... Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City, USA, located to the east of Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. ... Prospect Heights is a neighborhood in Brooklyn, USA, bounded by Flatbush Avenue, Atlantic Avenue, Eastern Parkway and Washington Avenue. ... Bedford-Stuyvesant (aka Bed-Stuy) is a neighborhood in central Brooklyn, New York. ...

Early life and Education

James is a life-long resident of Brooklyn, aside from her law school education (earning her J.D.) at Howard University in Washington, DC. She attended New York City public schools and received her Bachelor of Arts from City University of New York's Lehman College. During her law career, James served as a public defender for the Legal Aid Society. In 2003, James completed her Master's Degree in Public Administration at Columbia University's Graduate School of International and Public Affairs. J.D. redirects here; for alternate uses, see J.D. (disambiguation) J.D. is an abbreviation for the Latin Juris Doctor, also called a Doctor of Law or Doctorate of Jurisprudence, and is the law degree typically awarded by an accredited U.S. law school after successfully completing three years... Howard University is a historically black university in Washington, D.C. It was established by a congressional charter in 1867, and much of its early funding came from the Freedmens Bureau. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... The term public school has different meanings: In Scotland, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and most other English-speaking nations, a public school is a school which is financed and run by the government and does not charge tuition fees. ... A Bachelor of Arts (B.A. or A.B., from the Latin Artium Baccalaureus) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or program in the arts and/or sciences. ... The City University of New York (CUNY; acronym usually pronounced kyoo-nee or coo-nee), located in New York City, is the largest urban university in the United States, with more than 198,000 enrolled in degree programs, about 20,000 enrolled in non-degree programs and more than 200... Lehman College is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York. ... The Legal Aid Society is the United States oldest and largest provider of legal services to the indigent. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ... Public administration is, broadly speaking, the implementation of policy within a state framework. ... Columbia University is a private university in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. ...

Political career

Letitia James' early political career centered around pressing for the passage of pertinent New York City legislation and reforms as a conscious member of her community. She established the Urban Network, a coalition of African-American professional organizations aimed at providing scholarships for young people. An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black), is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ...

In 1994, James championed the Primary Health Case Development Bill in the City Council, which expanded day care resources for working families across the city. 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... Day care is the care of a child during the day by a person other than the childs parents or legal guardians, often someone outside the childs immediate family. ... Working poor is a term used to describe individuals who maintain full-time jobs but remain in relative poverty due to low levels of pay and dependent expenses. ...

In 1996, James negotiated the Welfare Reform Act on behalf of the New York State Black & Puerto Rican Caucus. James also served on former New York Governor Mario Cuomo’s Task Force on Diversity in the Judiciary. 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Welfare reform is the name for a political movement in countries with a state-administered social welfare system to institute changes in that system, generally in a more conservative direction. ... Cuomo making a speech in mid 2004, (C-Span). ... Diversity is the presence of a wide range of variation in the qualities or attributes under discussion. ...

Additionally, James has served as Counsel for Albert Vann, Chief of Staff for Roger Green in the New York State Assembly, and also worked in the administration of New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer. She was appointed the first Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Brooklyn regional office in 1999. While working in that position, James worked in many capacities but notably focused on consumer complaints involving predatory lending. This page is a candidate to be moved to Wiktionary. ... The term Chief of Staff can refer to: The White House Chief of Staff, the highest-ranking member of the Executive Office of the President of the United States. ... The New York Legislature is the U.S. state of New Yorks legislative branch, seated at the states capital, Albany. ... See also Attorney General. ... Eliot Spitzer Eliot Spitzer (born June 10, 1959) is the Attorney General for the State of New York. ... In most common law jurisdictions, the Attorney General is the main legal adviser to the government, and in some jurisdictions may in addition have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) is a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The term predatory lending has no universally-accepted meaning. ...

James' first run for the 35th Council District was in November 2001. In a close race, James received 42% of the vote on the Working Families Party line but lost to James E. Davis, a Democrat. In July 2003, just months before the next election, Mr. Davis was assassinated by Othniel Askew, a striving politician from the area. Following the tragic event, James Davis' brother, Geoffrey, had decided he was going to take over the Council seat running on the Democratic platform, but on election day, November 15th, he lost by an overwhelming margin to Letitia James as the Working Families Party nominee. 2001 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and also: The International Year of the Volunteer The United Nations Year of Dialogue Among Civilizations Events January January 1 - A black monolith measuring approximately nine feet tall appears in Seattles Magnuson Park, placed by an anonymous... The Working Families Party (WFP) is a left-wing-progressive minor political party in the US state of New York, which has now expanded efforts into a number of other states, including the creation of the Connecticut Working Families Party and organizing projects in a number of other states. ... James E. Davis (April 3, 1962 - July 23, 2003) was a New York City policeman, corrections officer and councilman. ... The Democratic Party, founded in 1792, is the longest-standing political party in the world. ... 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December A timeline of events in the news for July, 2003. ... This is an incomplete list of persons that were assassinated for political and other reasons, and who have individual entries. ... Geoffrey A. Davis is an American politician, the brother of the late N.Y.C. Council member James E. Davis and Democratic and Independence candidate for the 35th District to succeed his brother. ... November 15 is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 46 days remaining. ...

During her 2003 race, James officially became a member of the Working Families Party, having been a Democrat. She is the first member of the Working Families Party to win office in New York State, and the first third-party member to be elected to the city council since 1977. In any two-party system of politics, a third party is a party other than the two dominant ones. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ...

In 2005, Letitia James became very involved in advocating for her community's needs in regard to the proposed Brooklyn Nets Arena in her district. Going against mayor Michael Bloomberg, Borough President Marty Markowitz and developer Bruce Ratner, James opposed the use of eminent domain to evict her constituents, selling the MTA's Atlantic Yards property below the market value, and keeping the planning of the project out of the New York City Council. Perhaps the most surprising turn of events for the arena project was when Bertha Lewis, a Working Families Party and ACORN founder, decided to endorse the stadium development once Bruce Ratner accepted her plan for affordable housing. Lewis characterized James to Brian Lehrer as an elected official who "doesn't choose to represent all of the people in her district." James responded that she is all in favor of affordable housing (she wants to include the area used for the stadium to be housing also) but is concerned about other issues in the project as well, like the height of office towers Ratner plans to build that are, she claims, out of character with the rest of the neighborhood. 2005 (MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Brooklyn Nets Arena is a proposed US$3. ... A mayor (from the Latin maīor, meaning larger,greater) is the politician who serves as chief executive official of some types of municipalities. ... Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Mike Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is a prominent businessman, the founder of Bloomberg L.P., and the 108th and current Mayor of New York City. ... Marty Markowitz is the Borough President of Brooklyn, New York. ... A real estate developer builds on land, thereby increasing its value. ... Bruce Ratner is president and CEO of Forest City Ratner, New York Citys most active developer during the 1990s. ... Eminent domain (US), compulsory purchase (England and Wales), compulsory acquisition (Australia) or expropriation (Canada, South Africa) in common law legal systems is the power of the state to appropriate private property for its own use without the owners consent. ... The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is a public benefit corporation of the State of New York chartered by the New York State Legislature in 1965. ... The Atlantic Yards is an area in the residential brownstone neighborhood of Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. ... Market capitalization, often abbreviated to market cap, mkt. ... ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, is the largest community organization of low and moderate-income families in the United States. ... Brian Lehrer is a radio talk show host for New York Citys WNYC, a public radio station. ...

Regardless, James picked up the Working Families nomination and won the Democratic party nomination by a large margin against main opponent Samuel Eric Blackwell, an urban planner at Long Island University and pro-stadium advocate. Tish was later re-elected on November 8, 2005, with 88.11% of the vote, compared to 6.80% for Republican Anthony Herbert, and 5.08% for Independent Charles B. Billups. [1] Urban planners work with local governments to formulate plans for the short- and long-term growth and renewal of urban and suburban communities. ... Long Island University (LIU) is a private university located on Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. ... November 8 is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 53 days remaining. ... This article is about the modern United States Republican Party. ...

External links

• Official NYC Council Website about Letitia James