On the heels of her recent visit to the Caribbean community in Brooklyn, during which she stopped at Allan’s Bakery and Hello Restaurant and Bar on Nostrand Avenue, Gov. Kathy Hochul on Saturday, Aug. 29, made a whistle-stop tour of the “Little Caribbean” in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, joined by Assembly Member Monique Chandler-Waterman.
The governor — accompanied by Chandler-Waterman, the daughter of Barbadian and Jamaican immigrants, who represents the 58th Assembly District in Brooklyn — stopped at Nonie’s Health Food Store and R&R West Indian Cuisine on Church Avenue before greeting vendors at Church Avenue and Utica Avenue.
In the process, Hochul interacted with several Caribbean merchants and listened to their assessment of the business atmosphere in the East Flatbush/Church Avenue business district.
At a brief press conference outside R&R West Indian Cuisine on Church Avenue, the governor touted her investment in the community and plans to continue doing so, if re-elected, highlighting her over $1 billion investment in SUNY Downstate Hospital and University Hospital and her childcare investments that will save families thousands of dollars.
“We’re investing in these neighborhoods; we’re investing in the identity of this community,” she said, responding to a question posed by Caribbean Life. “You have to keep the Little Caribbean so vibrant, and there’s a lot of people that are engaged.
“I’m looking forward to following up on a lot of the issues that were brought to my attention this day,” she added. “That’s why I show up. I can learn more by coming out. I love walking the streets, asking questions, ‘how can we help?’”
The governor also defended her policy in opposing United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) attacks in New York, particularly in the Haitian community in Brooklyn.
“ICE is prohibited from going to sensitive locations,” she said. “We’re very focused when it comes to ICE and its devastating impact on the community.
“People are terrified, and [ICE’s tactics] seem very un-American,” Hochul added.
Last week, Caribbean immigration advocates in New York welcomed a lawsuit by the governor and Attorney General Letitia James against the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office in Upstate New York for failing to comply with the state’s Local Cops, Local Crimes Act that prevents collusion with ICE agents.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, left, with Assembly Member Monique Chandler-Waterman during a press conference outside R&R West Indian Cuisine on Church Avenue in Brooklyn.Nelson A. King
The legislation prohibits New York State and local law enforcement agencies and local governments from entering into or maintaining 287(g) agreements with ICE for federal civil immigration enforcement and requires any agreements in place to be terminated by Aug. 25, 2026.
Rensselaer County Sheriff Kyle Bourgault has refused to terminate its 287(g) agreement.
Following an unprecedented escalation in aggressive Trump administration immigration enforcement, Hochul said she has been fighting to protect New Yorkers from federal actions that “indiscriminately target” Caribbean and other immigrant communities.
In addition, among other things, the governor established a state law under which New Yorkers can bring a lawsuit against federal, state and local government officials for a violation of their constitutional rights, and keep immigration authorities out of sensitive locations.
In her continuing campaign stops in the Caribbean community in Brooklyn, on Aug. 19, Hochul joined Brooklyn State Sen. Roxanne J. Persaud during Persaud’s Fun Day and Back-to-School Giveaway at Canarsie Park on Seaview Avenue in Brooklyn.
The Guyanese-born legislator, who represents the 19th Senate District in Brooklyn, told Caribbean Life that the governor attended the event to present two fundraising checks: $4.2 million to StartCare to expand primary care and behavioral health services, and $2 million to the New York City Housing Authority to renovate the community center at Breukelen Houses.
“The annual SD-19 Fun Day and Back-to-School Giveaway serves as a great resource for the community,” Persaud told Caribbean Life. “It allows my team and me to connect with constituents and ensure that children in our community have the tools they need and are ready to head back to school.
“I must thank the organizations who partnered with me to distribute 600 backpacks with supplies to excited children,” she added. “It was great to see children and families enjoying this great free event.”
Hochul said: “Strong communities depend on having quality healthcare and welcoming spaces where families can access the services and support they need.
“These investments will help StartCare expand critical health services for Brooklyn residents and strengthen the Breukelen Houses Community Center for the families who rely on it,” she added.
Following the giveaway, the governor said she and Persaud joined representatives from StartCare and Breukelen Houses to announce the two investments.
“The Governor’s Office has been receptive since day one of my advocating for these much-needed projects,” Persaud said. “As a result, both StartCare and the Breukelen Houses Community Center will have significantly improved facilities to deliver essential programs and services to my constituents. Thank you, Governor Hochul.”
As Hochul greeted merchants on Utica Avenue on Saturday, one passerby exclaimed: “It’s beautiful that she comes to our community at a time like this. Thanks for looking out for us!”
During the press conference, minutes before, Chandler-Waterman said the governor is “doing a good job” and “believes in putting people first.
“Our older adults are first, our Caribbean families are first, our youth, our families are first,” she said. “We want to move forward, not backward
“In addition to that, [Hochul] is being very bashful,” Chandler-Waterman added. “Downstate Hospital is what? Open. Why is it open? $1 billion dollars to make sure it’s rebuilt. And Utica Crescent, 322 units, black-owned, minority-owned developers, and also the management.
“A lot of people say, ‘I got in.’ A lot of people are standing here today that [sic who] live in Utica Crescent because of the governor and her voice,” Chandler-Waterman continued. “We don’t have to look on TV and dream about what’s happening. We have [Governor Hochul] here in the flesh. She said, ‘I’m going to come to Little Caribbean to speak to our people on the ground and hear what’s going on.’
Community and political activist Ernest Skinner told Caribbean Life that, “not unexpectedly, I had to reason with an elderly Black Caribbean woman whom I overheard spouting the tired refrain that we only see the politicians at election time.
“I made her aware of the ribbon-cutting at the 322 units; 100% affordable housing development; Utica Crescent, at 561 Utica Avenue that Governor Hochul did much earlier this year,” said the Trinidadian. “I went on to tell her of the $1 billion investment that Governor Hochul made for the rehabilitation of SUNY Downstate Hospital, which has a heavy Caribbean patient load.
Trinidadian community and political activist Ernest Skinner, far left, with Gov. Kathy Hochul, second from right, front, and community residents in “Little Caribbean.”Nelson A. King
“Much to my surprise at the interaction with the press at the end of the tour, both the governor and Assemblymember Monique Chandler-Waterman cited these investments,” Skinner added. “Coming on the heels of Mayor Mamdani’s tour of Little Caribbean and his participation in the 2025 WIADCA (West Indian American Day Carnival Association) parade, this signals that the politicians recognize the potential influence of the Caribbean community in Brooklyn.
“What we as Caribbean people need to do is come together and strategies’ on how best to leverage our access,” he continued. “We have to be engaged and vigilant.”
Wayne Ragguette, the Vincentian-born owner of Nonie Health Food Store, who is also a community activist and political consultant, applauded Hochul’s tour on Saturday.
“It was a nice gesture,” he told Caribbean Life. “And I hope, if she wins re-election, she brings more investment in the East Flatbush community.
“It’s really nice for her to come,” Ragguette added. “It’s nice for her to see the East Flatbush/Church Avenue Business District and what she can do to help it.”