Rep. Nydia Velázquez, a member of the U.S. Congress representing New York’s 7th district since 1993, has used her social media platform to address a range of pressing issues including environmental policy, immigration enforcement, and international conflict.
On August 25, 2025, Velázquez voiced opposition to a proposed energy infrastructure project in New York. She stated, “The proposed NESE fracked gas pipeline is a direct threat to New York’s climate goals. At a time when we should be investing in clean energy, this project would lock us into decades of fossil fuel dependence and place environmental justice communities at greatest risk.”
Later that day, Velázquez commented on an immigration enforcement action by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), writing on August 25: “ICE’s arrest of Kilmar Abrego this morning is another brutal reminder that we are living under a government that uses fear, detention, and deportation as weapons. This is the machinery of a fascist state tearing families apart. #FreeKilmar”
In the evening hours of August 25, Velázquez addressed violence in the Middle East with regard to recent events at Nasser Hospital. She wrote: “Israel’s deliberate, horrific strikes on Nasser Hospital killed doctors, journalists, and rescue workers. A hospital should never be a war zone. The U.S. cannot keep funding these war crimes.”
Velázquez was born in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico in 1953 and currently resides in Brooklyn. She graduated from the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras with a BA in 1974.
