“I Love the Press!”: An Interview With Gale Brewer

Gale Brewer is a City Councilmember, an Upper West Sider, and a strong believer in the importance of journalism. On June 15, the Journalism class at WESS got the unique opportunity to interview her over Zoom, discussing the role of the press and how today’s youth can and should make a change.

WESS students had previously lobbied Brewer to support the school’s Journalism for All program, which is part of an initiative by the Youth Journalism Coalition (YJC) that aims to establish journalism programs in public high schools across New York City. As one of 30 schools supported by a YJC pilot of the program, WESS introduced a year-long Journalism class this year, which has helped to revitalize the WESS Gazette. These efforts spurred Brewer’s interest in the initiative, making this interview possible.

Brewer began the interview by forcefully arguing that journalists play an important role in civic life, “even more important than my colleagues.” She described a deep respect for journalists over years of working with them, noting that she has relied on reporters for information and that “when [I] have a problem, I call the press,” unlike other city officials who may dislike or avoid them.

***

Selections from the interview are reproduced below. Questions and responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Callie Fromm ‘29: How did you know that politics was the kind of work that you wanted to do?

Brewer: I come out of the women's movement. We were always fighting for [the] Equal Rights Amendment, pro-choice, fairer wages, all that kind of stuff. And so I was head of a women's organization in the state…you become a leader, you become somebody that people will say, “oh, what does Gale think?”

But then you also have to do the work, which is to get other people to support the rally or support the project that you're working on. That's a lot of work.

So, that's how I became involved…through the women's movement. And since then, every issue I’m interested in – whether it’s childcare, health, sports, you name it – I'm interested in trying to make a difference.

[At the time] I didn't know that I was going to run for office…but sometimes it's an opening, and in my case, in 1989, the City Council passed [a law creating] term limits, [which means that] everybody can only be in office a certain number of years, and then there was an opening. That's how I got in. Not running against anybody – [there was an] open seat.

***

Athena Tan ‘28: As a representative of our city, what are your most important core values that you focus on day to day?

Brewer: I'm always conscious of people who have the least, making sure that they’re not forgotten. That could be immigrants. I actually took in migrants, so I have them in my house, so I can see they're trying to get their GED and also trying to work deliveries, security. We [also] get a lot of people who are about to be evicted, and we can usually stop the eviction, but that’s really scary.

A second [value] is don't tell one person one thing, and another person another thing. People do that – I don't. So if you're supportive of mental health [programs] coming to your neighborhood, you gotta tell people why. They may scream at you, but don't make up one story for one and another one for the other.

I'm a big believer in the public schools and CUNY. That's a core value. And I'm a big believer in the culturals – in, music, art, theater, all that.

I work hard, and I think that's a core value. Seven days a week, just so you know.

***

Camilla Spillmann ‘27: Some politicians view the role of a representative as taking their expertise and making decisions based on that, and others make decisions based on what their constituents say. What are your views on that?

Brewer: I’ll give you an example. The mayor wants to put a two-way bike lane [on 72nd St]. I like bikes, I believe in bike lanes, but it has to be done right. There are people in the neighborhood, mostly older people, screaming and yelling against it.

So I'm not gonna say I'm for or against, I'm gonna say, okay, let's get the facts. We walked around, we've had hearings, we’ve big meetings, small meetings, community board meetings.

The Department of Transportation has to get it right if they're gonna do this. So then you have to make sure that people with walkers or people getting into Access-A-Ride are safe. You have to be sure that the stores [can receive deliveries] – there's a paint store, a wine store, a shoe store.

And maybe they should get more trees to the area, more greenery. What's the neighborhood going to get out of it?

So the loud voices are against it. The people who want it are the bicyclists, but they're very quiet. So, you have to decide, you know, is it loud voices, or is it trying to do the right thing? It's hard.

***

Ryan Gold ‘27: How do you decide who you are going to endorse in the congressional race in our district, especially considering your own influence in the area?

Brewer: To answer your question: where you live, what you stand for, and whether you think he or she is a really good candidate. [I support] Micah Lasher…the reason I like him is because he is super smart, he is a public school parent of three kids, he grew up in the neighborhood, and he lives on the West Side.

There is competition between the East and West. You probably think, “you're just talking about San Antonio and New York” [in the NBA finals]. No, no, no. There's competition between the East Side and the West Side, and so if you live on the West Side, you're gonna vote, as long as it's a good candidate, for the West Side candidate. That's the honest answer. All the East Side elected officials are voting for Alex Boris, and all the West Side officials are voting for Micah Lasher.

I think he'll win because the West Side votes. We have people who will vote no matter what. On the East Side, they often vote on Long Island or upstate, and more of them are Republican. This is a Democratic primary.

***

Benjy Zhurbin ‘27: Could you elaborate on the geographical divisions in the district, between the West Side and the East Side?

Brewer: In the past, [Jerry] Nadler had a congressional [district seat that included] the West Side, Hell's Hitchen, the Village. Carolyn Maloney had the East Side all the way from the 90s to almost the East Village. Then about two years ago, a court decision [combined these two districts. 

[When] I ran for Borough President…I could see a difference [between the East and West Sides]. The West Side is more diverse. We have many affordable New York City Housing Authority [units]; they have none on the East Side. We have hundreds of units of Mitchell-Lama [affordable housing]; they have maybe one. 

They’re just different neighborhoods, and there’s always competition about how many people you can get to turn out to vote. They have different histories, too. The West Side has been Jewish longer, too – progressive Jewish.

***

Benjy Zhurbin ‘27: What are the best ways for people to effect change without running for office – just everyday people?

Brewer: Here’s an example. There's a big fight right now to have Manhattan Youth continue as your after-school program. We just left a press conference at City Hall on that topic. There were parents, students…guidance counselors, along with elected officials, trying to tell the press, who will then tell the Mayor, who will then tell the Department of Youth and Community Development, to please give back Manhattan Youth to West End and other schools. So these are not politicians – these are guidance counselors, teachers, parents, students.

You can always go to a demonstration. You can always write an op-ed in the newspaper, like a journalist. You can also write letters, meet with elected officials, you can be head of a block association and have tremendous power.

Someone from LaGuardia [High School], who's 16, who's an intern in our office – he's now on [Community] Board 7. That’s another way where you can be involved.

You have to become a leader, though. You can't just sit there like a wallflower. As an individual, you can make a difference.