Early voting will take place at JHS 56, 220 Henry Street, New York, NY 10002. The entrance is Madison Street Playground – Top of The Ramp and the accessible entrance is Montgomery Street (NYC Center for Aerospace). Lines should be short.

On May Day, Grand Street Dems joined 1000 home healthcare workers, elected officials, community advocates and other groups to pressure City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams to pass the “No More 24” bill (Intro 175) that is before the NY City Council. Currently, many home health care workers are required to work 24 hour shifts but are paid for only 13 hours of work. Intro 175 would end the cruel and destructive practice of 24-hour shifts, but City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams will not bring it to a vote. Continue to make your voice heard!

GSD member John deBary is a bar expert, author, consultant, co-founder and board president of Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation and on the board of Southern Smoke Foundation. On June 1, GSD joined in sampling John’s signature drinks and heard about his work as a mixologist, poll worker, author and the influence of 90s pop culture on us all.

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and Assembly Member Grace Lee were thrilled to have GSD at a joint celebration in honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month on May 19th at 5:30. At the event, they acknowledged the exceptional work of remarkable individuals and groups within the community who have made significant strides in breaking barriers and promoting equity.

The celebration concluded with a showcase of outstanding performances and an array of refreshing treats for attendees to enjoy.

The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) has announced that it is going forward with the proposed plan to build luxury housing at 5 World Trade Center with a minimal number of affordable units. This is public land that is being used to help private corporations maximize their profits instead of providing desperately needed affordable housing. We need to let them know that we will not stand for this. GSD joined the Coalition For a 100% Affordable Housing on May 19 at City Hall Park to demand that public land be used for the public good.

The Loisaida Festival happened on Sunday May 28. GSD members were there for some great food, music and art. May 24th-30th was Fleet Week in New York City. Memorial Day weekend was truly a great start to the summer.

It’s Primary season so that must mean the Grand Street Democrats’ Annual Democratic Primary Rally is coming up!  On Thursday, June 15th at 5pm, we will gather to hear from endorsed candidates, Christopher Marte, Caroline Laskow, Lee Berman and Dana Catanzaro as well as a fabulous roster of speakers!  We will enjoy light refreshments from local vendors. Save the date and join us!! 

We want to wish all our members and neighbors that celebrate these spring holidays a wonderful week. As the daffodils, cherry blossoms and magnolias bloom, this is certainly the time of year for reflection, renewal and for spending time with loved ones.

Thank you to all of our GSD members for their efforts at getting signatures for our petitions, whether you stood on street corners or knocked on doors. We have collected and submitted more than 700 signatures! That is community in action!

After a busy year of elections and redistrictings, our VP of Elections, Sandra Strother-Ribeiro, has resigned. We thank her so much for her partnership and expertise navigating an unusual election season! We wish her well and look forward to opportunities to collaborate.

Please look out for our upcoming events: GSD General Meeting on April 17th, Welcome Wednesday on May 10th and our June primary kick-off on June 15th. See below for details.