NY Leadership Awards 2006
New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn
Since entering the New York City Council in 1999, Christine Quinn has been a leader for more comprehensive health care, equal rights for all New Yorkers, rational rezoning, better schools and tenants' rights. Christine Quinn represents the 3rd Council District that encompasses Chelsea, the West Village, Clinton/Hell's Kitchen, and parts of Soho and Murray Hill. On January 4, 2006, Christine was overwhelmingly elected Speaker of the City Council. She is the first woman, openly gay or Irish Speaker of the City Council.
As Chair of the Health Committee, Christine has consistently worked to provide quality and affordable health care to all New Yorkers. She worked successfully to help make New York City smoke-free, expand access to emergency contraception to rape survivors and other New York City women, increase the availability of mammograms throughout the five boroughs, secure millions of dollars for HIV prevention services, and to expand access to quality health care for New York City's underserved children.
Councilmember Quinn has been a champion for equal rights for all New Yorkers. She led the passage and veto override of the Equal Benefits Bill, providing every New Yorker who works for a city contractor (value over $100,000) with equal access to health care for their spouses and partners.
Councilmember Quinn has also successfully advocated for rational rezoning that balances the goals of developers and the needs of neighborhoods. In her own district, she negotiated the rezoning of the Hudson Yards, ensuring thousands more units of affordable housing, lower density along the waterfront, and more responsible financing. Christine also made affordable housing part of the High Line Rezoning Plan.
Councilmember Quinn led the fight to stop the West Side Stadium from being built, spearheading a coalition to raise citywide public awareness of the project's problems and the benefits of more responsible development on the site.
Since her election in 1999, Councilmember Quinn has been a tireless advocate for the rights and dignity of all workers. She has championed labor issues such as the Living Wage Legislation and fair treatment of all City employees, and chaired Health Committee Oversight hearings on the low pay and high turnover in the home health care industry.
Christine has also been a vocal advocate for the improvement of public education, expanding computer labs in schools, renovating school playgrounds and buildings, and rehabilitating libraries in her district.
Before being elected to the City Council, Christine served for 5 years as Chief of Staff to Councilmember Thomas K. Duane. She later served as Executive Director of the New York City Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project. While at the Anti-Violence Project, Mayor Giuliani appointed Christine to be a member of the New York City Police/Community Relations Task Force. Christine has been rated one of the fifty most powerful women in New York City by the New York Post and one of the 'Forty Under Forty' by Gotham Magazine. She served as a delegate to the 2000 Democratic National Convention and was appointed to the 2004 Convention's Platform Committee.
Christine and her partner, Kim, live in Chelsea with their dogs Andy and Sadie.
