Whereas, in 1613, Juan Rodriguez, a free Black man from La Española, was the first immigrant, the first Latino, and the first Dominican to have resided in what became New York City, intertwining the history of the Dominican people with the city forever; Whereas Juan Rodriguez’s biological brothers and sisters settled everywhere in New York City, and they established the largest concentration in Washington Heights and Inwood for decades; Whereas, from 1892 to 1924, hundreds of thousands of Dominicans entered New York through the famous port of Ellis Island, with many settling in or passing through Washington Heights, including the Brea and Lample families; Whereas Roumula A. Brea arrived in the United States on April 23, 1915; Whereas 9 years later, on December 23, 1924, Mr. Brea became a naturalized United States citizen; Whereas, at the time, Mr. Brea lived with his wife, Julia Brea, on 838 Riverside Drive, located between 159th and 160th Streets; Whereas Mr. Brea participated in both World War I and World War II; Whereas Federico Lample, a successful merchant, arrived in New York City in 1917 to join his wife Elizabeth Lample at 565 W. 162nd Street; Whereas the Lample’s son, Federico Lample, Jr., later joined them in 1921 to further his studies, but ended up staying permanently; Whereas, by 1947, Federico Lample, Jr., had already become a bona fide United States citizen, an act which at the time meant giving up his Dominican citizenship; Whereas, since the 1960s, Washington Heights has been the cultural heartland and the fountain of memory of Dominicans in New York City and more broadly, the United States; Whereas, for the past 40 years, people of Dominican descent have consistently made up the majority of Washington Heights residents as compared to any other single national group