Robert Lalah, Assistant Editor-Features

Dr. Yvonne Graham, deputy borough president of Brooklyn, takes a break in her well-decorated New York office. - Photo by Robert Lalah

In a spacious office inside Brooklyn's oldest public building, Borough Hall at 209 Joralemon Street, Dr. Yvonne Graham, a petite woman with short hair and a pleasant smile, is tapping away at her computer while sipping from a small mug.

The building, which was once the City Hall, is an imposing structure. Two armed security guards are positioned at the entrance and the place is abuzz with activity.

The little woman rises from her seat with a smile. "How you doing man?" she says in a thick Jamaican accent. As deputy borough president of Brooklyn, Dr. Graham oversees health-care policy and all human services, including public education, social services and community relations.

But how did this once shy, reserved girl from St. Ann get to have such great responsibility so far away from home?

"With a whole lot of hard work," she said with a smile.

Dr. Graham went to school at Manchester High and studied at the University of the West Indies before moving to New York in 1979. When she got there, she enrolled at Hunter College and earned a master's in public health. She later received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the college.

Hard work

She founded the Caribbean Women's Health Association, which provides culturally-sensitive health care, as well as immigration and social support services, and was appointed deputy borough president in January 2002.

"You have to work very hard when you leave Jamaica and enter the United States and believe me, you'll face some formidable obstacles, but if you keep at it, you can achieve whatever you want," Dr. Graham said.

She has served on the Mayor's Committee on Immigration, the New York City HIV Planning Council and the Mayor's Commission on the Status of Women. She has a particular interest in issues that affect immigrants, however, and feels that being from Jamaica has helped her perform her duties with compassion.

"Brooklyn has the largest community of Jamaican and Caribbean nationals anywhere in the United States. I oversee a lot of the issues that affect immigrants and I feel like my Jamaican background helps them to identify with me, and me with them," she said.

"I hope that when they speak to me they realise that I understand their experiences and I always place my focus on ensuring that all immigrants are afforded the rights they deserve," she said.

Published works

Dr. Graham has written and published many professional articles and recently co-authored a textbook that is used as a guide to the operations of community-based health organisations.

"I'm very proud of that. I've been in the field for more than 20 years so this is a milestone for me," she said, holding a copy of the textbook.

Dr. Graham has received many awards for her achievements in public service, including the National Association of Black Social Workers' Citizen of the Year Award, the Marcus Garvey Medal of Honour, the Ellen Lurie Community Service Award, the Frederick Douglass Medal of Honour and the Harriet Tubman Award from the Harriet Tubman Awards Jubilee.

She is divorced, and lives in Clinton Hill, New York.