She becomes the first Latin woman to occupy the position of president of the government agency.
Councilwoman Nury Martinez took office as president of the City Council of Los Angeles, and became the first Latina to assume that leadership in 170 years in the history of the United States.
“It's an honor, but I can't be the last. Women have full capacity for any position of power. To all the girls in Boyle Heights, Watts, Wesley and Pacoima, I say that this City Council is going to make nothing stand between you and your dreams, ”said Nury Martinez, presiding over her first Council session and outlining her vision for the immediate future, which will focus on the most vulnerable populations.
"Please, don't lose hope, and fight every worthwhile battle because you are going to be next," he added.
The new leader of the Angelino Council affirmed that she will work for a budget in which the families come first, "but we are not going to do it on the backs of the workers," he said.
In an emotional speech, he talked about his concern for children and families who at any time can face helplessness as when his daughter confided that his best friend's father had broken both arms, and asked him if they They would go to the street.
"The future of our children is in danger," he exclaimed. So he said he will work for affordable housing in Los Angeles, people do not lose their homes, reassess the strategy to address the problem of homelessness and the relationship with the county agency Authority for Homeless Services (LAHSA).
Daughter of immigrant parents from Zacatecas, Mexico, a dishwasher and a factory worker, the president of the Angelino Council grew up in Pacoima north of the San Fernando Valley. When he began his speech, he recalled the economic ravages his parents lived.
“My mother made a great meal with three dollars. I grew up looking at the stress in my parents' eyes when there was not enough money to pay the mortgage, ”said Martinez, who was accompanied by her family in her first Council session.
The official represents the 6th district of the Los Angeles Council, which covers the north of the San Fernando Valley. Together with Martinez, councilman Joe Buscaino took office as vice president. In December, the councilors voted because Martínez and Buscaino were the leaders of the Council.
Martínez is the second woman to be elected by her peers as president of the government agency. Pat Russell was the first and only woman elected. Ruth Galanter took office after the death of President John Ferraro.
The Los Angeles Council leader has years of experience in community and legislative defense. He has distinguished himself for fighting for families and women's rights. When she was elected in 2013, she was the only woman on the Los Angeles City Council. Currently, she is one of only two women in the Council composed of 15 members.
Martinez fought for the minimum wage increase to $ 15 per hour in the City of Los Angeles so that working and low-income families, They could have a living wage for the care of their children.
He also created a work team to increase efforts to help women trapped in the nightmare of human trafficking so they can escape and receive the assistance they need.
In addition, he proposed his own agenda for the environment focused on environmental justice and the communities of low-income minorities that historically suffer from air, water and land pollution, more than other affluent communities.
The now president leads an initiative to increase the time of work permit so that, who are parents in the city of Los Angeles, can care for their newborns without fear of losing their jobs or wages.
As for transport services, the official seeks public safety and street cleaning in the north of the San Fernando Valley, but also seeks more employment and housing in these communities.
It also aims to improve safety for pedestrians in several streets in the north of the San Fernando Valley, such as the Van Nuys and Roscoe boulevards, classified as roads with a high number of deaths.
Martinez designed the Ready for Women internship program to motivate female students to be interns in the offices of the 6th district of the Los Angeles Council, which she wants to expand to all City departments. Since its launch in 2014, 23 young people have completed their internships and three graduates of this program obtained full-time jobs in their office.
Before arriving at the Council, Nury was on the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) between 2009 and 2013. She also served on the San Fernando City Council between 2003 and 2009. She is a graduate of San Secondary School Fernando and the California State University in Northridge. She and her husband Gerry live in Sun Valley with their 10-year-old daughter Isabelle.
