Queens Borough President Donovan Richards will host his fourth annual Queens Tech & Career Expo in Corona this Saturday as part of efforts to “break down barriers” to jobs in the tech industry for historically marginalized communities.
The expo, which runs from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the New York Hall of Science on Jan. 31, will feature more than 50 different career and technology vendors along with a number of interactive activities geared toward people from historically disenfranchised communities.
Those activities include opportunities to explore artificial intelligence (AI) and tech learning labs; an opportunity to help build an AI tool for government use; and an information and engagement session carried out by Google.
Other activities at Saturday’s expo include a gaming battle for prizes; special prizes awarded by Meta; on-site demonstrations from the New York Power Authority on technology, clean energy and workforce pathways; and a mentoring and career lounge hosted by mentoring platform WERULE.
One attendee will win a gaming console personally donated by video game influencer Gerard “HipHopGamer” Williams, while AT&T and the Queens Economic Development Corporation (QEDC) are giving away free laptops to 100 previously selected families with students who attend schools in Community School District 28.
Queens Public Library will provide families with tutorials on how to use the laptops.
Richards’ office said the expo aimed to address long-standing inequities in the tech sector, citing reports from the Center for an Urban Future, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Brookings Institution, which found that Black and Latino New Yorkers are “significantly underrepresented” in the tech sector, despite making up roughly 40% of the city’s workforce.
The reports found that Black and Latino New Yorkers are especially underrepresented in high-wage and technical roles.
Black workers hold only 7% of the city’s tech jobs despite making up 19% of the New York City workforce, the Borough President’s office said, while Latino New Yorkers face a similar disparity.
Richards, who will deliver an address at Saturday’s expo, said Queens must enable residents from minority communities to fully participate in the tech sector if it is to become a leading tech hub in the United States.
“If Queens is to become the nation’s leading tech hub like we know it can and should be, we must break down the barriers to entry that have made it difficult for members of historically marginalized communities to fully participate in New York’s fastest-growing economic sector,” Richards said in a statement.
“Our entire borough and city are better off when everyone has a fair opportunity to benefit from the high-paying jobs that are increasingly available in the tech sector, and I look forward to seeing many of our neighbors on Saturday.”
Deputy Borough President Ebony Young said it is “more important than ever” that individuals from marginalized communities are not “passed over” amid the ongoing AI revolution.
“There is a deep pool of talented people in these communities who deserve the chance to contribute their knowledge and ideas to the development of technology,” Young said.
