By Joe Anuta
The Southeast Queens Young Democrats had its inaugural meeting Saturday, but some of its members looked suspiciously long in the tooth.
The crowd of about 25 people, which ranged from pre-teens to octogenarians, gathered at the St. Albans Congressional Church, at 172-17 Linden Blvd. in Jamaica, for a lengthy discussion about issues affecting the community and why Jamaica’s youth need to become more politically active.
“Our main goal is to educate,” said Adrienne Felton, an executive board member. “Everything is politics.”
Felton said communities in southeast Queens face unique sets of problems that are not found in other parts of the borough.
“This area has different issues than northern Queens,” she said.
Some of those issues include a wealth of fast food options but a lack of nutritious ones as well as rampant home foreclosures, loss of jobs and some troubled schools.
State Assemblyman William Scarborough (D-St. Albans) spoke about these problems throughout the nearly two-hour meeting and fielded questions from the audience.
“Young people need to be involved in politics and involved in government,” Scarborough said.
And he would know. Scarborough’s political career sprouted from the grassroots. After joining a young Democrat club himself, his first elected position was on a Jamaica school board more than 30 years ago. He subsequently rose through the ranks of the community and was elected to the Assembly in 1994.
Scarborough, chairman of the Assembly Committee on Children and Families, elicited gasps from the crowd with horror stories of child abuse and prostitution. But the grisly tales were meant to show the power of politics and how his office found solutions to the most heinous of crimes.
“A lot of what we do is try to help and change the quality of life for the people in our area,” he said to the crowd. “I would hope that some of you are interested in going into politics.”
But even if no budding Assembly members were in the audience, Scarborough and Felton at least encouraged them to vote and stay informed.
“We are doing things with their tax money in their name,” Scarborough said.
The topic of the meeting, the function of the Assembly, was dealt with quickly through a written speech by Scarborough. But the young and old Democrats present were concerned about more pressing issues.
“What can young people do to affect what happens in Albany?” asked Corey Terry, another executive board member.
Many members of the audience had questions about jobs and lamented the lack of vocational options at local high schools.
“College isn’t for everybody,” said 84-year-old the Rev. Charles Norris.
The Young Democrats was started by Felton and four other board members, all politically involved people who decided that the area needed a wake-up call.
“Somebody had to do something,” Felton said. “And we all thought we had something to bring to the table.”
Felton said she hopes the feeling of political empowerment will spread throughout an area that seriously lacks it at the moment.
“A lot of people weren’t actively involved,” she said.
Felton said the best solution to the area’s problems can be found within the Democratic Party.
“Everyone is a Democrat,” she said. “That party speaks to us as a people more than the other parties.”
The Young Democrats will meet on a biweekly basis to discuss various political issues.
Reach reporter Joe Anuta by e-mail at januta@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4566.
