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By Donna Lamb |
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COUNCIL MEMBER YVETTE CLARKE: TRULY
COMMITTED TO HER COMMUNITY
 hen Yvette Clarke was elected to Brooklyn's 40th Council
District seat, previously held by her mother, Jamaican-born Una Clarke,
people were watching to see whether this young Council Member was going
to be "her own woman," or a copy of her mother. It was soon apparent
that Yvette Clarke was ready, willing and able to think and act for
herself - while still maintaining a close family relationship to her
mother.
 Clarke says that if you understand the type of nurturing relationship
she's always had with her mother, that's not at all surprising. "As to
putting forth my own views, independent of hers, that's something my Mom
always encouraged throughout my lifetime," she explained. "We haven't
always seen eye to eye, but the nature of the relationship all along
made it easy to stand up and assert what I think and feel."
Clarke observed, too, that when it comes to who and what she is
today, the parental guidance she received about setting values was also
crucial. "I was always encouraged to have a commitment, a dedication to
giving back to the community," she noted, "and also integrity and
conviction in the process of giving back."
When asked what it meant to her to have been elected, Clarke replied,
"I definitely feel it's an honor and a privilege to be in office." She
said that while she's never really sat down to analyze how things
manifested themselves, she feels that her election came about "through
the natural progression of the way things were occurring in my life.
There was all the preparation I'd done unwittingly in terms of my close
relation with my mother and her work, and the commitment I've had to the
community. There were choices I made in terms of community participation
as well as employment opportunities that put me on the path to
eventually becoming elected."
During the year plus that she's been in office, Clarke has certainly
continued her strong commitment to her community. "Even in the face of
New York's financial crisis, we've gotten an initiative off the ground
where we really unify individuals and organizations around specific
issues that impact on the district," she stated. "We've established a
youth task force, an HIV/AIDS taskforce, and, in the area of quality of
life, we've established a sanitation task force."
In the legislative arena, Clarke has been making a difference as
well. As Chair of the Fire & Criminal Justice Services Committee, she
has dealt with - and continues to be in the midst of - some monumental
pieces of legislation. However, she said that perhaps the thing that's
given her the most gratification has been her work on the Charles Barron
resolutions calling for the retrial of Charles Schwarz for the 1997
assault on Abner Louima. Clarke, who has lived her whole life in the
community where Louima resided when this atrocity was committed against
him, felt that much of what went on in Court regarding this case was an
outrage not only against Louima, but against the entire Caribbean
community.
"In my committee I was able to conduct a series of hearings on the
resolutions," she said. "There was personal satisfaction in 1) having
them heard, and 2) in having them pass." She pointed out that the
hearings took place before Schwarz himself finally admitted his guilt,
so "We had a very intense debate in the committee. We said he was
guilty, and ultimately we were shown to be correct."
Council Member Clarke is also aware that there's speculation and
discussion about whether she might seek to become the first African
American woman Speaker of the City Council. She says, however, that she
thinks it's premature to speculate on it, and besides, her attention is
focused elsewhere. "I want to do so much more to solidify what I'm doing
in my community," she stated. "I want to get the community to a level of
collective consciousness that will propel them into action about the
issues that are truly impacting on our lives. I'm trying to help create
a climate that will help us sort of recession-proof ourselves. I want
people to feel some fulfillment in being able to assist each other,
neighbor by neighbor, in the positive development of the communities we
live in."
Clarke went on to say, "As to the future, I know I want to contribute
politically, but what that will mean, in what capacity, it's too early
to say. I think there's going to be a natural flow and progression of my
career, and I believe my work will speak for itself. If opportunities
arise for me to advocate for my community in a different political
venue, I would certainly seek those opportunities. However, I'm really
concentrating on building upon the foundation that was set by my
predecessor."
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