Sarah O'Brien opposes 561-A and supports language access
O'Brien, a young Queens native, says she is at risk of lung cancer despite not smoking and that children face school-bus and truck exhaust. She opposes 561-A and says her Arabic-speaking mother cannot use the English-only portal.
Hello.
My name is Sarah O'Brien.
I'm 24 years old, a native New Yorker, raised in Queens, your district actually.
Grew up in Niche, went to public school my whole life.
I still live here and intend to stay here in this great city.
And being that I'm a proud New Yorker and believe I have a lot to live for, I try to take good care of my health within my means, you know, like exercise, eat well, manage stress.
I don't drink and I certainly do not smoke.
And despite that,
Being that I live in this city, I'm at risk of lung cancer.
Why is it that 20% of lung cancer patients in this city have never smoked a cigarette in their life?
This is why I'm ashamed to see Intro 561A.
Why would anyone propose such a bill that puts this amazing program at risk, a citizen-led program that has generated over 350,000 complaints, a program that has generated over $145 million in fines, and above all, protected public health?
Public health for every New Yorker from all walks of life.
I was five years old in 2007, and I remember how much worse it was then before the program going to school in Queens.
And still, children of this city have to go to school and brace the exhaust from delivery trucks, construction vehicles, and their own school buses that sit in idle for hours on end.
Their fragile lungs cannot handle that.
Why should they?
Because a truck or bus driver wants to take a nap, eat lunch, charge their phone, or run the heat?
In New York City, children brace the cold to walk to school, bundled up in their puffers,
And these grown men and women, they can't do the same.
Like, these grown men and women...
Sorry.
No, take your time.
These grown men and women who operate these vehicles can't do the same to stay warm and not pollute the air that we share.
We need more people submitting complaints.
My mom, she speaks Arabic as her first language and wanted to participate in the program, but because the program is only available in English, she can't.
I mean,
Like from the DEP's testimony earlier, that's a joke that they say that they offer instructions in other languages because that's not the same as translating the portal.
Right.
Thank you.