Kal Penn Endorses Jimmy Van Bramer for Queens Borough President

QUEENS, NY (01/06/2020) (readMedia)-- Kal Penn, Actor and former Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement under President Barack Obama, is endorsing Jimmy Van Bramer for Queens Borough President. Monday evening Penn and Van Bramer canvased voters for petition signatures in Queens with a group of volunteers. Penn joins a growing coalition of progressives backing Van Bramer, including Zephyr Teachout, Cynthia Nixcon, Jumaane Williams, and Cecilia Gentili.

"I got to know Jimmy Van Bramer this past year, and was quickly impressed with his progressive values and genuine ability to connect with his constituents; Queens is the most diverse cross section of America, and Jimmy is running to make sure that all of us, including immigrants, people of color, women, and LGBTQ communities can thrive despite national efforts to divide and tear us down. I'm proud to endorse him for Queens Borough President," said Kal Penn.

Penn starred in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, House, and most recently Sunnyside, a sitcom about a Queens local lawmaker helping immigrants apply for citizenship. He was an advocate for Obama's 2008 campaign before joining his administration. He is also an immigrant rights advocate and has supported the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East as well as organizations helping Syrian refugees.

"Kal Penn has done incredible work on behalf of immigrant and refugee communities. I am proud to have him in my corner, fighting back against the Trump administration for a Queens where everyone can succeed no matter where you come from or what language you speak. Together, we can build a Queens for all," said Jimmy Van Bramer.

Van Bramer is a life-long progressive activist who's been fighting machine politics for over three decades. He is the son of union workers and a lifelong Queens resident. Before being elected to the City Council, he organized for LGBTQ rights, public financing of elections, and for the Queens Public Library.

Background on Van Bramer

Jimmy Van Bramer, born and raised in Astoria, Queens, is the Deputy Leader of the New York City Council. He was first elected to the New York City Council on November 3, 2009, and re-elected in both 2013 and 2017. Van Bramer is a founding member of the progressive caucus of the New York City Council.

He works tirelessly to fight for working people, equality for all, and the importance of improving quality of life in our community- values instilled by his parents. His father, William Van Bramer, was a lifelong member of Printers' and Pressman's Union Local 2, and his mother Elizabeth Van Bramer helped support the family- even through bouts of homelessness and food insecurity- by working as a meat wrapper and cashier at local supermarkets, and was a member of Local 1893 of the International Brotherhood of Painters.

His first foray into organizing was when he was a St. John's University student in 1993, leading a queer group of students who fought to be officially recognized by the largest catholic university in the country. Later, he organized for Ed Sedarbaum's 1998 State Senate race, gravitating towards the nascent movement to elect queer people in Queens and starting his personal decades long fight with the Queens County Democratic Party machine.

In 1998, he was an organizer with Citizen Action of New York to create what-is-now today's current New York City campaign finance system with matching funds. At the same time, he lead civil disobedience actions with Irish LGBTQ folks trying to march in the city's St. Patrick's Day parades, which previously banned openly queer groups from marching.

In 2001, he stepped forward as the insurgent candidate against the Queens machine for City Council, coming in second. In the ensuing years, he worked as an organizer for the Queens Public Library and joined the board of the Queens Council on the Arts. In 2009, Van Bramer won his City Council election against Queens County machine pick Deirdre Feerick. He similarly bucked the machine to back Melissa Mark-Viverito for Speaker.

Recently he was a leader in the opposition to $3 billion of tax subsidies for Amazon HQ2 and was the first Queens elected official to endorse Tiffany Cabán for Queens District Attorney.

He currently lives in Sunnyside Gardens with his husband Dan Hendrick. Jimmy married Dan on July 28th, 2012, becoming the first openly-gay elected official to get married in the borough of Queens.