Governor Hochul Delivers Remarks at United Way and My Brother's Keeper | My Sister's Keeper Legislative Breakfast

One of my favorite football coaches used to say, "Where would you rather be than right here, right now?" And that's what I'm feeling in my heart, to be able to look across the room, filled with people that are literally living the teachings of the church I was raised in, the teachings of Jesus Christ.

And when I came here, I started thinking about my upbringing and what my parents taught me, and what I was taught by the church. And what stuck out so clearly to me was whatsoever you do, to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do unto me. That is what each and every one of you are doing. Because our children - life is hard enough. And sometimes they just need someone, an adult, someone who's got heart, who cares, will give their time and their talents.

And whether it's our superintendents, our teachers, our parents, our community activists, and members of this great organization, started by the great President Barack Obama. And I have a special affinity for that president. He named my husband to be his United States Attorney for eight years while he was president, so he worked closely, administering justice on behalf of President Obama.

So this organization is important to me personally, but also as Governor for what you do every single day. And as you heard from my great friend, the Borough President, this is our moment. And yes, we reflected on the struggles of our ancestors, the ancestors who were given the worst in life, those who found themselves in bondage, brought across the rough seas. Some didn't even survive the journey.

If you go to the museum in Washington, D.C., where I made sure my children went and as soon as it opened, and you have that sense of desperation, despair, and you're in the lower levels, but as you progress through time and through each floor, you get higher and higher, and all of a sudden it culminates in this sense of great possibility.

I feel that in my bones today. That, yes, we have improved the number of individuals elected office and in positions of power, more diversity, more African Americans, more people of color, which is great. But what about the next generation? Have we paved the way to make their lives just a little bit easier than the struggles that you had to endure to be in your positions?

And that answer must be yes. That answer has to be yes. Because why are we taking up space on this planet otherwise? That is how we have to judge ourselves. I was blessed to grow up in a household - my parents didn't have a lot. They started out in a trailer park, and they got out of that trailer park for one reason. My dad worked at the steel plant. A lot of people lived there. It was a tough neighborhood. But they got out because my dad was able to work making steel by day, and was able to get a college degree at night. My life's fortunes, my family's fortunes changed forever when he can get a different job and make sure that his kids had opportunities.

That's the American dream I want for everybody, especially kids in neighborhoods where they don't have the role models or the expectation of success. We have to change that every single day - let them know that they have great potential, that God created them to do great things themselves, to make a difference. To get a good job and take care of their families, but also contribute back the way each and every one of you are.

So, what you're doing is modeling the behavior you want to see in that very next generation, so they reach back when they're older, they reach back, and it continues, and it continues. And we can do that. And the people you're honoring here today - some of my favorite people in the State of New York, starting with - I know I have a lot of sisters because she says she's my mama and everybody I meet says you're her mama.

But Mama Dukes, thank you - someone whose name has been synonymous with social justice since she stood back and fought against racist exclusionary policies in Roslyn on Long Island and brought lawsuits, and wanted to make sure that all the doors of every community were open to people. And I guarantee she's looking back and saying, "I thought we would've been further along by now," but she is at my side when we challenged that status quo, which still exist in the great State of New York today. So, let's give another round of applause to Hazel Dukes.

You heard from Donovan Richards? Yes. He loves saying Queens gets the money, because he is always asking me for money. But he's very persuasive. Okay? He's hard to say no to because his heart is in the right place. We are blessed to have him as a public servant.

Another individual who I adore, who was literally tested by fire in her first weeks as the Bronx Borough President, Vanessa Gibson. What a strong woman. I saw her in action after the horrific fire. She was thrust into the role of being the comforter in chief and the compassion that she showed to those families whose lives were forever destroyed, the survivors, and especially the parents who lost children. It was heartbreaking, but when I saw her moving from person to person, I said, "This is the kind of leader we need, and we're so blessed to have her." Let's give another round applause.

Senator Leroy Comrie. I work so closely with him, just spoke to him yesterday. And Stefani Zinerman, our State Assemblymember, Rita Joseph and Kevin Riley doing God's work on our City Council. So, thank you. Thank you for honoring them and letting them know that we don't take for granted their service.

But let me leave you with this: Talk is cheap, right? You can come out and say all the nice things, give a good speech. It doesn't mean anything if you don't put some resources behind it. So, that's what a budget allows me to do, allows me to show my priorities as the Governor of this great State. And I knew that when I became Governor, there was millions of dollars that had been denied for our most challenged communities because of the foundation aid formula being ignored.

I said, "We're going to right that wrong," and I know it's expensive. But as a result, we have invested more money in education of our children than ever imagined possible, $34.5 billion. We're investing in higher education, and literally last week we sent letters to 160,000 New York State high school seniors and said, "Guess what? You've just been admitted to a SUNY or CUNY college in your community. You are there." Because they don't always have parents sitting at home and hiring the person who's going to help write the essay for college and helping them study for the SATs with your private tutor.

I didn't have any of that stuff. I had to figure it all out too, but some kids don't even have an expectation that that's available to them because nobody in their family went before. None of their neighbors have gone before. So, instead of the streets, we're putting them in the classroom and making that transition a lot easier for them by literally showing them all the resources that are available to them.

And we're going to keep up that intentional approach, not assuming they're going to know how to get into a college. And that's how we start changing lives, investing in our higher education as well, and opening up those doors of opportunity. Literally 60 percent of all students go completely tuition free. And I know you know somebody who can be in that category. You all know them, right? Bring them along.

Workforce development, kind of a dry sounding phrase. Not my favorite phrase, but all it means is, getting people to training for the jobs that are waiting for them. And that's what I'm investing in as well, saying, "There's thousands of jobs out there, but how do you make that connection?" Give a person at least the basic skills to be able to go apply for that job - especially the good paying jobs where I'm not seeing enough diversity, I'm not seeing enough people in the tech and the STEM jobs and the semiconductors and the artificial intelligence. This is where the money is my friends, this is where I want to see the young people that you're working with, know that they have opportunities to make really good money here in the State of New York.

And finally, I'll say something I did have direct control over, which was my administration and our courts. And if you look at the record starting last year, I have the most diverse, the most talented, most fascinating administration in the history of the State of New York. And our judges are finally starting to look like New York.

Look at our Court of Claims judges, amazing individuals who never had that shot, who never had the opportunity because they didn't go to the same colleges and Ivy League law schools where everybody looks out for each other and lifts each other up. Those days are over. Everybody under my New York gets a shot. And I want to make sure that that happens.

So, thank you. Thank you for what you do. Know that you're not taken for granted. All of you could be doing so many other things. And this organization - my God, we're so grateful we have them. I'll quote my other mama, my real mom, but this is my mom on earth, the other mom is in heaven. And she raised us with this sticker on the refrigerator that said, "Go into the world and do well, but more importantly, go into the world and do good."

That is what we put on my mother's headstone when we lost her to ALS. So, all her grandkids who visited, would know the legacy of their mother, who was a civil rights champion, who protested the Vietnam War, who tried to make housing opportunities available for people of color back in the 1960s. That was my mom and dad.

They had nothing but a good heart and a social conscious, and that is the legacy they imparted to me and one that I want to make sure is imparted to everyone else. So, thank you for the honor of being your Governor, and thank you for the work that you're doing every single day, doing good. Thank you.

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