Julia Salazar: Biography
Julia Salazar is a New York State Senator representing the 18th Senate District, which encompasses the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bushwick and Cypress Hills as well as portions of Williamsburg, East New York, and Ridgewood in Queens 1. A member of the Democratic Socialists of America, she became the first DSA member to serve in the New York State Legislature when she took office in January 2019 2. She currently serves as Chair of the Senate Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and Correction, as Deputy Majority Leader for Senate and Assembly Relations, and as Treasurer of the legislature's Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Caucus 3.
Salazar was born in Miami, Florida, on December 30, 1990 2. Her mother is an American citizen by birth, and her father was a naturalized American citizen originally from Colombia 2. She grew up between the United States and Colombia, an experience that shaped her bilingual and bicultural identity . Her father passed away when Salazar was 18, an event she has described as pivotal in her personal and spiritual development .
Salazar attended Columbia University from 2009 to 2014 6. During her college years, she worked as a nanny and housecleaner on the Upper West Side, experiences she has cited as formative in her growing class consciousness and interest in labor advocacy 2. While at Columbia, she became involved in tenant organizing, launching a rent strike against poor conditions in her housing block, and advocated for the rights of domestic workers and service industry workers 7. Her academic focus on Middle Eastern history further informed her evolving political outlook 2.
Before entering electoral politics, Salazar worked as a community organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, an organization where she contributed to coalitions advancing criminal justice reforms and police accountability legislation 7. She also served as an organizer for United Auto Workers Local 2110 6. Upon her election to the State Senate in 2018, she became the youngest woman ever elected to the New York State Senate at that time 7.
Salazar's political trajectory included a notable evolution in her ideological views. During her early years at Columbia, she was involved in conservative and pro-Israel Christian student groups, including serving as president of Columbia Right to Life 2. Following a trip to Israel with Birthright Israel, her political perspectives began to shift, and she became increasingly engaged in progressive campus Jewish life and tenant organizing 2. By 2016, she had become an active member of the Democratic Socialists of America and was working within progressive coalitions .
Since taking office, Salazar has established herself as one of the most active legislators in the New York State Senate on issues of housing, criminal justice reform, and climate policy. Her legislative portfolio includes the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, the HALT Solitary Confinement Act, the Build Public Renewables Act, and the Good Cause Eviction law 3. She is also an appointed member of the New York State Council of the Interstate Commission for Adult Offender Supervision 9.
Overview
Julia Salazar is a New York State Senator representing the 18th Senate District, which encompasses the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bushwick and Cypress Hills as well as portions of Williamsburg, East New York, and Ridgewood in Queens 1. A member of the Democratic Socialists of America, she became the first DSA member to serve in the New York State Legislature when she took office in January 2019 2. She currently serves as Chair of the Senate Committee on Crime Victims, Crime and Correction, as Deputy Majority Leader for Senate and Assembly Relations, and as Treasurer of the legislature's Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Caucus 3.
Salazar was born in Miami, Florida, on December 30, 1990 2. Her mother is an American citizen by birth, and her father was a naturalized American citizen originally from Colombia 2. She grew up between the United States and Colombia, an experience that shaped her bilingual and bicultural identity . Her father passed away when Salazar was 18, an event she has described as pivotal in her personal and spiritual development .
Salazar attended Columbia University from 2009 to 2014 6. During her college years, she worked as a nanny and housecleaner on the Upper West Side, experiences she has cited as formative in her growing class consciousness and interest in labor advocacy 2. While at Columbia, she became involved in tenant organizing, launching a rent strike against poor conditions in her housing block, and advocated for the rights of domestic workers and service industry workers 7. Her academic focus on Middle Eastern history further informed her evolving political outlook 2.
Before entering electoral politics, Salazar worked as a community organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, an organization where she contributed to coalitions advancing criminal justice reforms and police accountability legislation 7. She also served as an organizer for United Auto Workers Local 2110 6. Upon her election to the State Senate in 2018, she became the youngest woman ever elected to the New York State Senate at that time 7.
Salazar's political trajectory included a notable evolution in her ideological views. During her early years at Columbia, she was involved in conservative and pro-Israel Christian student groups, including serving as president of Columbia Right to Life 2. Following a trip to Israel with Birthright Israel, her political perspectives began to shift, and she became increasingly engaged in progressive campus Jewish life and tenant organizing 2. By 2016, she had become an active member of the Democratic Socialists of America and was working within progressive coalitions .
Since taking office, Salazar has established herself as one of the most active legislators in the New York State Senate on issues of housing, criminal justice reform, and climate policy. Her legislative portfolio includes the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, the HALT Solitary Confinement Act, the Build Public Renewables Act, and the Good Cause Eviction law 3. She is also an appointed member of the New York State Council of the Interstate Commission for Adult Offender Supervision 9.