Ira Daneek Miller (born November 6, 1960) is an American politician who served as the Council Member for the 27th district of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs. The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...

. He is 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 ...

. The district included

Cambria Heights Cambria Heights is a residential neighborhood in the southeastern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bounded by Springfield Boulevard and Francis Lewis Boulevard to the west, the Elmont, Nassau County border on the east, Queen ...

Hollis Hollis may refer to: *Hollis (singer) *Hollis (name) Places * Hollis, Alaska * Hollis, Kansas * Hollis, Maine * Hollis, Missouri * Hollis, New Hampshire * Hollis, Oklahoma * Hollis, Queens, neighborhood in New York **Hollis (LIRR station), its Lon ...

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

Jamaica Estates Jamaica Estates is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. Jamaica Estates is part of Queens Community District 8 and located in the northern portion of Jamaica. It is bounded by Union Turnpike to the north, Hillside Avenue to t ...

, Laurelton,

Queens Village Queens Village is a mostly residential middle class neighborhood in the eastern part of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bound by Hollis to the west, Cambria Heights to the south, Bellerose to the east, and Oakland Gardens to the north ...

Springfield Gardens Springfield Gardens is a neighborhood in the southeastern area of the New York City borough of Queens, bounded to the north by St. Albans, to the east by Laurelton and Rosedale, to the south by John F. Kennedy International Airport, and to the we ...

and

St. Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major town on the old Roman ro ...

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

Life and career

A lifelong resident of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Miller previously co-chaired the MTA Labor Coalition, which represents 29 unions and more than 60,000 workers, and President of

Amalgamated Transit Union The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) is a labor organization in the United States and Canada that represents employees in the public transit industry. Established in 1892 as the Amalgamated Association of Street Railway Employees of America, the un ...

(ATU) Local No. 1056, representing drivers and mechanics who work for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Queens Bus Division. Miller led his union’s successful effort to secure fair wages, improve working conditions and better benefits for its members and safety reforms for the riding public.

New York City Council

Miller was elected in the 2013 New York City Council elections, securing the Democratic nomination from a crowded field of six candidates and then winning the general election with 96.9% of the vote. Miller is currently the only

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

on the Council. After his first election, he was appointed chair of the City Council Committee on Civil Service and Labor. Miller also became a member of the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus and the

Progressive Caucus The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) is a congressional caucus affiliated with the Democratic Party in the United States Congress. The CPC represents the most left-leaning faction of the Democratic Party. " e Congressional Progressive Caucu ...

. In March 2014 Miller was named to the Council's new Policy Working Group. In 2016, Miller was arrested with Council Member

Inez Barron Inez Barron (née Smith) (born February 16, 1946) is an American educator and politician who served in the New York City Council for the 42nd district from 2014 to 2021. She is a Democrat. The district includes Broad Channel, Brownsville, Can ...

and 41 others during a union protest outside Governor Cuomo's Midtown office demanding a state budget that includes "adequate funding for CUNY and a fair contract for its Professional Staff Congress". In 2017, Mayor

Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who served as the 109th mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he held the office of New Yor ...

signed two measures introduced by Miller aimed at reining in so-called dollar vans that are either unlicensed or break city laws while operating legally. In partnership with Council Member

Donovan Richards Donovan Richards, Jr. (born April 9, 1983) is an American politician serving as the Borough President of Queens. He is also a former New York City Council member, having represented the 31st district. He is a member of the Democratic Party. His ...

, Miller also helped bring $426 million in capital investments to expand access to the New York City sewer system over several years starting in 2014. Miller has been a vocal opponent of the Governor's proposed

congestion pricing in New York City In New York City, a planned congestion pricing scheme will charge vehicles traveling into or within the central business district of Manhattan. First proposed in 2007, this disincentivizing fee to cut down on traffic congestion was approved and ...

, even writing an Op-Ed condemning the idea wholeheartedly. Following

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was a deadly Saffir–Simpson scale#Category 5, Category 5 Tropical cyclone, hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the wo ...

, Miller joined his NYC Council colleagues to

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 ...

to survey the damage caused by the hurricane. In 2017, Miller was re-elected to the New York City Council over his Democratic Primary challenger Anthony Rivers and Sondra Peeden. After his re-election, he was continued to serve as Chairman of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor. Miller was appointed to several other new committees under the new Speakership of Council Member Corey Johnson and elected co-chair of the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus. Asked in 2021 to reflect upon his two terms in office, Miller remarked that foreclosure prevention and the development of new housing in

Jamaica, Queens Jamaica is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is mainly composed of a large commercial and retail area, though part of the neighborhood is also residential. Jamaica is bordered by Hollis to the east; St. Albans, Springfi ...

, the creation of Atlantic Ticket and its discounted

Long Island Railroad The Long Island Rail Road , often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a commuter rail system in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County on Long Island. With an average week ...

fares, and public funding for

Roy Wilkins Park Roy Wilkins Park, originally known as Southern Queens Park, is a park in the St. Albans neighborhood of southeastern Queens in New York City. It is located on an irregular plot of land bounded by 115th and 116th Avenues to the north, 175th Stre ...

to be among the highlights of his work in office.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Daneek New York City Council members Living people New York (state) Democrats African-American New York City Council members 1960 births Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations alumni Politicians from Brooklyn 21st-century American politicians Amalgamated Transit Union people 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American people