Kensington's Bengali (বাঙালি) Speakers Can Now Get Local Help From Brad Lander's Office

KENSINGTON, BROOKLYN — Councilman Brad Lander, whose district includes Kensington, officially opened a satellite office space on Friday for the Bengali speakers in his district.

The office will be run out of the Saboor Waizun Medical Office, located at 486 McDonald Ave.

The space will be staffed by Lander's new Bengali-speaking community liaison, Rubina "Ruby" Abdul, who herself immigrated to the United States from Bangladesh at the age of five.

Starting on Oct. 25, Abdul will be at the office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

She can also be reached any time by email at rabdul@council.nyc.gov, or by calling 718-499-1090.

Rubina Abdul, standing at right, speaks at Friday's office opening.

Mamnunul Haq, an executive member of Community Board 12 who attended Friday's event, said that approximately 30-35,000 Bengalis live in the Kensington area, though an official number is hard to produce because some residents are undocumented.

"The big barrier is the language barrier," Haq said, explaining how immigrants to the country need government services, but lack the English skills needed to know where to go for help.

Lander said Abdul will help residents with any questions they have concerning issues like housing, immigration, signing up for SNAP benefits, obtaining Medicaid or Medicare, or getting assistance from the 311 system.

The councilman also said that his office will continue partnering with community organizations to connect residents to the specialized assistance they need.

Rabbi Yeruchim Silber, the executive director of the Boro Park Jewish Community Council, said that he will send a staffer who specializes in housing and immigration matters to the office at least twice a month.

And Larry Jayson, the head of the Albemarle Neighborhood Association, as well as the executive director of Housing and Family Services of Greater New York, said his organizations are also eager to work with Abdul and Lander's office to assist residents.

Jayson said he's lived in Kensington for 48 years, adding that it's "a wonderful neighborhood which has always been inclusive of every group that has come in." What he loves most about the area, Jayson concluded, is its diversity.

Pictured at top: Brad Lander, Rabbi Yeruchin Silber, and members of Kensington's Bengali community cut the ribbon outside the office space on Friday. Photos by John V. Santore.