Editorial: Two for the price of one

The New York City Districting Commission is in the process of changing the lines that determine the city council districts. The commission does this once every 10 years, once new census data is released, and they try to draw city council districts to ensure fair representation.

If the commission’s plan, which is currently in its second draft, is accepted as is, the 16th and 17th districts will change ever so slightly. As a result, the residents of Highbridge south of 167th Street may soon have a new representative, Jose Serrano.

The reason: Council Member Helen Foster, who currently represents all of Highbridge, realized that this neighborhood has become largely Latino. Despite the fact that Highbridge residents voted for her in the last election, Ms. Foster chose to keep an area on East 161st Street east of Boston Road—which includes Woodstock Terrace Cooperative, McKinley Houses, Forest Houses, and Al Goodman Plaza, whose residents are largely African-American—at the expense of the southern part of Highbridge. She needs their votes to keep the district’s African-American representation.

While residents may understand the motivation for her actions—she is simply trying to ensure African-American representation in the Bronx—the fact that she “dumped” part of this community so quickly and easily is still upsetting. The commission also bears part of the blame. While the commission members are struggling to ensure fair representation, they also are supposed to keep communities together.

Still, this change may not be a bad thing. Serrano, for his part, has represented Mott Haven and Hunt’s Point since last year. He seems like he would be a good representative; he is familiar with the issues of this community—from housing to education to social services—because he grew up in the South Bronx. He says he is looking forward to meeting Highbridge residents and representing them. He seems to be in touch with both the Latino and African-American communities.

The question that remains is whether Highbridge will be represented well under this mixed representation. One possibility is that the two could work together to represent and unite Highbridge politically. Another possibility is that each will leave Highbridge to the other, and no one will work the political circuit for Highbridge’s betterment.

The Horizon hopes the former possibility comes to pass. Highbridge, after all, is a community, and to separate it, even if just politically, could cause confusion among residents and politicians alike. The Horizon hopes for cooperation between Ms. Foster and Mr. Serrano, and for representation of all residents of Highbridge.