New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer Leads Delegation Of Latino Leaders On Trip To Israel

(New York, NY) – New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer recently returned from a trip to Israel with a delegation of prominent members of the City’s Latino community. The trip was organized in cooperation with the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York.

“Our trip strengthened the longstanding ties of friendship and solidarity between New York City and Israel and helped us to forge closer links between our City’s Latino community and the Israeli people,” Comptroller Stringer said.

During their visit, Comptroller Stringer and the delegation met with government officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Nir Barkat, Mayor of Jerusalem, Yuli Edelstein, Speaker of the Knesset, as well as other Knesset members, and Peter Lerner, Chief Spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces.

“We must always strive for peace, but the bottom line – now and forever – is that Israel has a right to exist, and its security is non-negotiable. We were proud to bring that message of support from New York City,” Stringer said.

The delegation also saw construction on the high-speed rail line that will link Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, met with business leaders such as the Chairman of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, visited Google’s Tel Aviv headquarters, and toured classrooms and met with students and officials from Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, which is a partner with Cornell University on the Roosevelt Island tech campus in New York City.

“As the steward of the City’s economy I am focused on expanding economic opportunity for all New Yorkers. It was important to meet with the innovative leaders who are driving Israel’s economy – particularly its dynamic high-tech sector – and exchange ideas about what we can learn from each other’s successes,” Stringer said.

Delegation members also visited the Western Wall and Yad Vashem in Jerusalem, Kibbutz Mefalsim, and schools including Bialik Rogozin, where children of immigrants, refugees and foreign workers learn together and the Hand in Hand School for Jewish and Arab students.

Delegation members included:

• Grace Bonilla, President and CEO of The Committee for Hispanic Children and Families, Inc.
• Guillermo Chacón, President of the Latino Commission on AIDS
• Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez, Senior Vice President of Corporate Relations and Government Affairs at Emblem Health
• Wendy Garcia, Deputy Diversity Officer for New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer
• Henry Garrido, Executive Director of District Council 37, AFSCME, AFL-CIO
• Jeffrey Leb, Managing Director of Government and External Relations for UJA Federation of New York
• Michael S. Miller, Executive Vice President and CEO, Jewish Community Relations Council of New York
• Annie Minguez, Director of Government and Community Relations of Good Shepherd Services
• Sascha Owen, Chief of Staff for New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer
• Eduardo Peñaloza, Executive Director of Mixteca Organization
• Maria del Pilar Avila, Chief Executive Officer of the New America Alliance
• Scott M. Stringer, New York City Comptroller

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