Darlene Mealy (born August 31, 1964) is an American politician who is a member of the New York City Council from the 41st district, which includes Brownsville, Bushwick, Crown Heights, East Flatbush and Prospect Lefferts Gardens in Brooklyn.
Following high school, she attended the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) and later pursued coursework in Labor & Women’s Studies offered by Cornell University.
[2] She brought controversial attention to herself in 2009 when she voted to give $5,000 of public money to Lynval Samuels (also known as Dr. Bidi XiLi Bey), for teaching "etymology".
Referred to by some as a lunatic,[3] Samuels "has been a fixture at Union St. and Utica Ave. for years, neighbors said - stopping traffic, splattering paint on parking meters and fire hydrants, and handing out flyers for his self-styled etymology classes.
[7] Mealy was re-elected to her third term on the City Council in 2013, beating her Democratic rival Kathleen Daniel 66% to 20%.