| New York State Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas represents the 34th Assembly District, which includes the diverse communities of Astoria, Corona, East Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, and Woodside in Queens county. She has dedicated her life to fighting for immigrant rights, racial justice, LGBTQ liberation, health care access, labor power, and gender equity while forging connections between various progressive movements. Jessica is a progressive champion and brings her advocacy and organizing expertise to her work as an Assemblymember.
Since she assumed office in 2021, Assemblymember Gonzalez-Rojas has introduced and passed several pieces of legislation on maternal health, transgender rights, transportation, election reform, worker protections, healthcare transparency, and more. She has also successfully advocated for funding in the state budget to increase outreach for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) enrollment for hard-to-reach communities, assistance to homeowners impacted by Hurricane Ida, and to require private insurers to cover all abortions at no cost to patients.
Assemblymember Gonzalez-Rojas is the Chair of the Subcommittee on Human Trafficking and the Climate Action and Environmental Justice Subcommittee of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, and Asian Legislative Caucus. She currently sits on the Board of Directors of the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL) and If/When/How, a national nonprofit network of law students and lawyers committed to reproductive justice.
Before running for office, Jessica served in leadership for 13 years at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice (formerly the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health), including as Executive Director.
The nonprofit is the only national reproductive justice organization dedicated to building power among Latinas to advance the health, dignity, and justice of over 30 million Latinas across the country. Jessica was an Adjunct Professor at New York University's (NYU) Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and the City University of New York's (CUNY) City College and has taught courses on Latinidad, reproductive rights, and gender and sexuality. She has authored essays in multiple publications on those topics as well. Jessica holds a master's degree from the NYU Wagner School, with a concentration in Public and Nonprofit Management and Public Policy, a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Executive Leadership Program at the Columbia University Business School, and a bachelor's degree in International Relations from Boston University, where she graduated cum laude. Jessica lives with her partner and their son in Jackson Heights. |