Dante Arnwine- New York City Council District 41

1). Why do you want LID’s endorsement?

I want to be a part of the coalition fighting for LGBTQIA+ and non-binary individuals here in Brooklyn. For us to create safe spaces for our LGBTQ+ youth and seniors, we will need the coalition. For us to continue to pass gender-affirming and reproductive freedom policies, we have to continue to elect candidates who will fight of those values. I will fight for gender-affirming and reproductive freedom by supporting a thoughtful legislative agenda to bring individuals and families closer to care. Our aligned values will give added seats on the LGBTQIA Caucus; Black, Latino, & Asian Caucus; and Progressive Caucus.

2). If you have previously held office, describe a time while elected that you advocated and acted for the LGBTQIA+ community. If you have not held office, describe a time you have advocated for the LGBTQIA+ community.

I've attended multiple parades in the City, Brooklyn, and Queens supporting the community. I have spent more than enough money supporting LGBTQ+ owned businesses. And District Manager, I worked with the Brooklyn Community Pride Center to help them navigate the city bureaucracy to install signage of its facade.

3). Are you accepting campaign contributions from law enforcement or for-profit real estate?

No

4). Has Mayor Eric Adams met the needs of the LGBTQIA+ community? Please include “yes” or “no” in your answer.

No. The City must protect our most vulnerable populations. Cutting funding for HIV/ Aids services would certainly affect members of our community.

5). Are you committed to continuing and expanding city support for the Summer Youth Employment Program Pride Initiative (SYEP Pride)?

Yes

6). How will you support and empower the LGBTQIA+ community, particularly at this time when LGBTQIA+ rights, and transgender rights in particular, are under attack nationwide?

Work to create safe spaces in my district where the community can meet freely. And, work with like-minded elected officials to continue to pass legislation to support and empower the community. Consider the drastic budget cuts community, I will work with aligned elected officials, nonprofits, and private stakeholders to fill funding gaps affecting the most vulnerable of the LGBTQIA community.

7). How will you support and empower marginalized Brooklynites?

Use the office to write legislation to protect those marginalized communities and fund programs to fill in service and opportunities often missing from marginalized communities. I can help empower these communities by listening to their needs and bringing them into the coalition.

8). Nonprofit organizations play a vital role in safeguarding the social safety net for millions of New Yorkers. Nonprofit organizations, including LGBTQIA+ community centers, are more than contractors; they are essential partners in addressing homelessness, hunger, healthcare, education, and more. However, chronic delays in city payments have left these organizations on the brink of collapse, threatening the services our most vulnerable residents rely on every day. Will you commit to prioritizing timely payments to nonprofits, working to break down bureaucratic barriers that prevent timely payments, supporting financial stability for nonprofits, and working to uphold our critical NYC safety net?

Yes. This will be a priority, Day 1.

9). The city is currently behind the legally mandated timeline to close the jails on Rikers Island by 2027? Are you committed to this deadline and if so, what will you do to ensure the City meets it? If not, what steps do you propose taking to reduce incarceration and uphold the civil rights and human dignity of individuals confined in our City jails, particularly transgender, gender nonconforming, and nonbinary people?

Rikers Island needs to be transformed into a campus where violent offenders are incarcerated and nonviolent individuals are rehabilitated, train, employed, and released. I will fight for the restoration services and care for transgender, gender nonconforming, and. nonbinary people who are incarcerated in the budget.

10). Do you support the proposed Haven Green development in the Lower East Side, which would create much-needed housing for LGBTQ+ seniors, among others? What other steps will you take to address the affordability crisis and increase housing available to New Yorkers, particularly individuals moving here to escape harmful red-state Policies?

Yes. We need the housing for the aforementioned populations. Parks that have a clear history, we should preserve and landmark. We can create new parks that evolve with the community they serve.

11). What steps are you prepared to take to combat Trump Administration policies that harm New Yorkers?

Support directives and policies that direct our city agencies NOT to engage with the administration as it pertains to immigration. I will work with members of the LGBTQIA caucus and Progressive Caucuses to pass progressive and smart policies that protect the LGBTQIA+, trans, and nonbinary individuals here in the council. 

I will also work to help elect LGBTQIA+ candidates in municipal races in other Cities across the country. We have to start building our protections from the ground up.

YES OR NO QUESTIONS

Please answer YES or NO to indicate support for, or opposition to, the following city council initiatives:

1). Int. 3093-A: Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to access to gender-affirming care facilities and a cause of action related to interference with gender-affirming care.

Yes

2). Int. 3184-A: Local Law in relation to requiring the chair of the commission on gender equity to develop a plan to support newly arrived migrants 24-years-old and younger and transgender, gender non-conforming, non-binary, and intersex newly arrived migrants.

Yes

3). Int. 3183-A: Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the commissioner of health and mental hygiene to develop a health agenda to promote the health and wellbeing of transgender, gender nonconforming, nonbinary, and intersex New Yorkers.

Yes

4). Int. 3179-A: Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to a public information and outreach campaign regarding legal rights and resources available to Transgender, Gender Non-conforming, and Nonbinary (TGNCNB) individuals.

Yes

5). Int. 3105-Oversight: Ensuring Access to Supports for TGNCNB People in New York City.

Yes

6. Int. 0149-2024: The Sex Worker Protection Act, championed by LGBTQIA+ Caucus Co-Chair Council Member Tiffany Cabán, Council Member Crystal Hudson.

Yes

7. If endorsed, do you commit to using LID’s full logo and full name on all materials and other places where you list endorsees (with the exception of lists of specific organizations (unions, etc) or elected officials)?*

Yes

8. Do you commit to using inclusive and gender-neutral language in press releases and other announcements (e.g., “the people of the..” instead of “the men and women of the...”)?

Yes