🌱 Expanded Language Access Bills Passed + Santos Under Investigation

Good morning, Queens! ☕️

• 🗣 Councilwomen Julie Won and Sandra Ung and community advocates saw their legislation to greatly expand language access for immigrant New Yorkers pass in the City Council on Dec. 21.
• ⚖️ The Nassau County district attorney Anne Donnelly said in a statement on Wednesday that her office would open an investigation into Representative-elect George Santos.
• 💉 According to new ZIP code-level data released by the city last week, 17 percent of residents in Astoria and Long Island City have gotten their latest bivalent booster doses.

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Here are the top stories in Queens today:

1. Councilwomen Julie Won and Sandra Ung and community advocates saw their legislation to greatly expand language access for immigrant New Yorkers pass in the City Council on Dec. 21. "As our city continues to welcome thousands of new migrants and refugees with the end of Title 42, it's critical to provide culturally competent language translations and interpretation services to our new neighbors," Won said. "My bills, Intro 136 and Intro 700, will expand language access for vulnerable populations so that our immigrant neighbors and business owners have access to critical information in their own languages. We have secured $5 million in funding to establish the first language access co-op in the country, as well as a Community Interpreter Bank in partnership with the Language Access Coalition." Immigrants comprise more than 30% of New York City's workforce, and own about one-half of the city's small businesses, making it is essential that the city is linguistically accessible to all residents.

Queens Courier

2. The Nassau County district attorney Anne Donnelly said in a statement on Wednesday that her office would open an investigation into Representative-elect George Santos days after he admitted to misrepresenting his background while campaigning. She told Newsday: "The numerous fabrications and inconsistencies associated with Congressman-elect Santos are nothing short of stunning. No one is above the law, and if a crime was committed in this county, we will prosecute it." Despite Santos confirming some of the inaccuracies identified by The New York Times, he has not lost the broad support of his party, though many of his supporters say they were disappointed by his actions and angry with his response.

The New York Times ; Newsday ; ABC7 New York

3. According to new ZIP code-level data released by the city last week, 17 percent of residents in Astoria and Long Island City have gotten their latest bivalent booster doses, making them among the most-boosted neighborhoods in the city. The updated booster shot was introduced in September, and protects against the original coronavirus strain as well as two subvariants of Omicron. Despite repeated pleas from health officials, only 11.9 percent of New Yorkers have gotten their bivalent booster, which has been shown to protect seniors in particular from severe illness and death. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that seniors who have gotten the latest shot are dying from COVID-19 at far lower rates than those without it. New York City's slow uptake of the lasted booster is in line with national trends — just 14.6 percent of Americans ages 5 or older have gotten the updated dose — but these low rates are troubling as cases of COVID-19 remain prevalent.

Patch

4. Southwest Airlines has canceled 2,505 of its LaGuardia Airport flights Wednesday — that's 62% of its flights. The troubled airline has also already canceled 58% of its flights, 2,348, for Thursday, leaving irate customers stranded, with any unable to get refunds for canceled flights or their luggage. "We are past the point where they could say that this is a weather-driven issue," said Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary. "What this indicates is a system failure, and they need to make sure that these stranded passengers get to where they need to go and that they are provided adequate compensation."

ABC7 New York ; The New York Times

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🗞 Hungry for more news? 🍽 Snack on these headlines:

• Helter Shelter: Internal reports reveal harrowing violence inside NYC homeless facilities (New York Post )
• Ardila prepares to serve AD37: 'I want to give everything I have' (Queens Ledger)
• NYC DOT looks to reconstruct BQE's Triple Cantilever area with tunnels and greenspace (CBS News New York)
• 'Keep Your Seat Belt On:' Chilling Details Revealed in Queens SUV Wife Attack Case (NBC New York)
• Building In Jamaica Receives Historic Preservation Award (Patch)
• Year in Review: A tumultuous year for politics in Queens in 2022 (Queens Courier)

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🗓 To Do Today in Queens:

• Volunteer at 9 Million Reasons / Evangel Food Pantry (8:45 a.m.)
• MoMA PS1 Free Admission Thursdays (11 a.m.)
• Kids Week: Forever Wild Hike (11 a.m.)
• Art Workshop | Hand-Paint Plaster Doll (1 p.m.)
• Museum of the Moving Image Free Hours (2 p.m.)
• Exhibition - Living with The Walking Dead (2 p.m.)
• Amaze Light Festival (4 p.m.)
• Illuminate the Farm (5 p.m.)
• Chess At the Rock (5 p.m.)

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🗣Queens Chatter:

• 🚨Emergency Rockaway support: "For all our Rockaway neighbors impacted by last week's storm, a Rockaway Emergency Resource Center will be open today and tomorrow from 11am to 6pm at 430 Beach 67th Street. We'll have city agencies on hand to assist you, answer your questions about what relief you may be eligible for and more." (Queens Borough President Donovan Richards via Facebook)
• 🌱 The 100% organic Queens Botanical Garden: ""As the only NYC botanical garden that is 100% organic (every weed is pulled by hand!), QBG also pioneered green buildings, operations, and landscaping that ensures we steward the land, water, and resources responsibly." Read more from our Executive Director @evie4us and make a tax-deductible gift to the Garden: https://queensbotanical.org/give2022⁠" (Queens Botanical Garden via Facebook)
• 🎡 A gigantic ferris wheel shaped like a rubber tire: "Could you imagine a ferris wheel in Flushing Meadows Corona Park? At the 1964-65 World's Fair, there was one! This week's World's Fair Wednesday, we're highlighting the U.S Royal Tires ferris wheel at the Transportation Zone. You may have spotted a miniature version in our World's Fair Collection Vitrine! The 86 foot-tall ferris wheel hosted riders during the Fair. It was shaped like a gigantic rubber tire, but was actually made out of steel and fiberglass. When the Fair ended in 1965, the tire was dismantled and shipped to Detroit with 22 trucks. It was reassembled without its gondolas outside a Uniroyal office. Later, the office moved but the tire remained, becoming an icon of #Detroit automotive industry..." (Queens Museum via Facebook)
• ⬆️ The incredible progress the borough of Queens is making: "There's no borough rising faster than Queens. Great to sit down with Ben Max of Gotham Gazette recently to talk about the progress we're making as a borough in everything from affordable housing to transit to culture and more. Check out the full interview below" (Queens Borough President Donovan Richards via Facebook)

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You're officially in the loop for today. I'll see you around!

— Emma Radu Fighera

About me: Emma Radu Fighera is a reporter born and raised in Queens, New York. She studied Literature and Studio Art at Hamilton College, where she helped run the only daily publication on campus, The Daily Bull newsletter. This past spring she earned her M.S. from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Queens Daily? Contact me at queens@patch.com