Mayor Bill de Blasio and the City’s Immigrant Affairs Office CommissionerCommissioner Nisha Agarwal announced the City is celebrating its annual Immigrant Heritage Week this week, April 17-23, with events in all five boroughs.
The theme for 2016, “From Many, Making NYC One,” reflects the many ways in which New York City immigrant communities contribute to the vitality of our city, including civic and economic participation, cultural contributions and an ongoing commitment to civil rights and justice.
“New York City is an amalgamation of cultures and nationalities, and we strive to be inclusive of each and every one of them. What better way to advance this goal than to celebrate inclusivity with the beginning of Immigrant Heritage Week, during which we will be kicking off NYCitzenship to help immigrant New Yorkers take the final leap into becoming citizens. It is an honor to partake in such meaningful celebration,” said de Blasio.
“During this Immigrant Heritage Week, the de Blasio administration will expand our ongoing work to ensure that all immigrant New Yorkers have access to justice and city services,” said Agarwal. “Through the launch of NYCitizenship, immigrant New Yorkers will have the support they need as they pursue a pathway to citizenship. Further, Immigrant Heritage Week’s dialogue and events will demonstrate New York City’s commitment to include all New Yorkers in the fabric of our City, regardless of their status.”
Immigrant Heritage Week 2016, will also see the city’s formal launch of NYCitizenship services, which will help the some 650,000 immigrant New Yorkers move closer to citizenship with free citizenship services and financial counseling at 12 public library branches alongside services available at the New York City Human Resources Administration sites.
New York City residents simply have to call 311 and say “citizenship appointment.”
NYCitizenship is a collaborative effort by the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, Brooklyn Public Library, New York Public Library, Queens Library, New York City Human Resources Administration, New York Legal Assistance Group, and the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, with support from Citi Community Development, Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the Robin Hood Foundation.
“In this city, we proudly celebrate our immigrant New Yorkers. Our national political leaders need to wake up and embrace the truth: when we open the doors of government to everyone, we move our cities and nation forward in the name of human dignity and progress,” said City Council Member Carlos Menchaca (Sunset Park, Red Hook), Chair of the Committee on Immigration.
Among the upcoming Brooklyn events include:
Tuesday April 19, 2016
The Changing Face of Brooklyn’s Latino Community*
Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs and Brooklyn Historical Society
6:30 PM
128 Pierrepont Street in Downtown Brooklyn.
Editor’s note: This event has a five dollar fee as part of museum’s event entrance policy
Thursday April 21, 2016
Bilingual Birdies: Putonghua/Mandarin
Brooklyn Public Library- McKinley Park Branch
10:00 AM
6802 Fort Hamilton Parkway (at 68th street) where Borough Park, Dyker Heights and Bay Ridge meet.
For a full calendar of community events, visit nyc.gov/ihw2016.
