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Antonio Pagán (August 22, 1958 – January 25, 2009) was an American politician, who held roles in the municipal government of
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. He represented the 2nd district of the New York City Council for six years, and was subsequently appointed the city's commissioner of the Department of Employment by mayor Rudy Giuliani in 1998.Sewell Chan
"Antonio Pagán, 50, Ex-Councilman, Is Dead"
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', January 26, 2009. Pagán, a native of
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
who spent much of his early life in Puerto Rico, became one of the two first openly gay men elected to the New York City Council in 1991, along with
Thomas Duane Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...
, after Pagán narrowly upset the incumbent, Miriam Friedlander, in a close-fought Democratic primary.


Background

Pagán was born in
Manhattan, New York Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, and spent most of his childhood in
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
. He was educated at the
University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...
and
John Jay College of Criminal Justice The John Jay College of Criminal Justice (John Jay) is a public college focused on criminal justice and located in New York City. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY). John Jay was founded as the only liberal arts ...
.


Political career

Although he was a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
, Pagán was noted for his more conservative positions on certain issues, including opposition to low-income housing, and was frequently criticized by both gay and Puerto Rican activist groups for taking positions they felt were contrary to community interests. However, he also often fought to protect small local and independent businesses that were threatened by increased competition from national chain stores. At the end of his second council, Pagán opted not to run for a third term on council — instead he sought the Democratic nomination for Manhattan borough president, coming in fourth in the primary. He broke party ranks to endorse Giuliani over Democratic challenger Ruth Messinger in that year's mayoral race. Following the election, Giuliani named Pagán as commissioner of The Department of Employment, a post he held until 2002.


Death

Pagán died in 2009, aged 50. The cause of death was kidney failure; other people within his network of acquaintances claim he had a stroke. He was survived by his mother and three brothers.


See also

* LGBT culture in New York City * List of LGBT people from New York City *
Nuyorican Nuyorican is a portmanteau of the terms "New York" and "Puerto Rican" and refers to the members or culture of the Puerto Ricans located in or around New York City, or of their descendants (especially those raised or currently living in the N ...
*
Puerto Ricans in New York City Puerto Ricans have both immigrated and migrated to New York City. The first group of Puerto Ricans immigrated to New York City in the mid-19th century when Puerto Rico was a Spanish colony and its people Spanish subjects. The following wave o ...


References

1958 births 2009 deaths American politicians of Puerto Rican descent American gay politicians New York City Council members Hispanic and Latino American New York City Council members New York (state) Democrats Politicians from Manhattan Puerto Rican people in New York (state) politics University of Puerto Rico alumni American LGBT city council members LGBT people from New York (state) 20th-century American politicians LGBT Hispanic and Latino American people 20th-century American LGBT people 21st-century American LGBT people {{NewYork-politician-stub