Meet Queens Pride Parade grand marshal Billy Green, a NYC teacher who's a champion of inclusion
NEW YORK -- CBS New York is proud to be the media sponsor of the Queens Pride Parade, happening this Sunday in Jackson Heights.
One of the parade's grand marshals is high school teacher Billy Green.
"I am the emergency room of education"
Teaching can be a thankless job, but last year, the state of New York thanked Green, awarding him "Teacher of the Year."
"I am the emergency room of education. It is my job ... to ensure that any ill that society imposes on my classroom or my students, I am able to inject them with hope, motivation, inspiration, and then my biggest part: liberation," Green said.
Green teaches chemistry and physics at A. Philip Randolph High School in Harlem, and is a proud member of the LGBTQ community and a champion of inclusion, which, he says, means embracing different points of view.
"It's about respecting people in their spaces and making them feel welcome, which is something that he has continuously taught us," 12th grader Xavian Plasencia said.
"When we come together, we can collaborate towards greatness," Green said.
"He made his whole classroom a safe space for everyone"
Green describes himself as Puerto Rican, Black and Italian -- the embodiment of the melting pot that is New York City -- and the perseverance required to make it here.
"I was homeless. I was evicted at the age of 12," Green said. "I even slept in abandoned buildings ... That's where I first learned my knack for science because I had to take the electricity from the street."
"Everything he's been through and despite that he found himself and he still stays true to his self. He made his whole classroom a safe space for everyone," 11th grader Asa Sterling said.
Green's students describe him as a resource, confidant and friend.
"I've taken one class with him in my sophomore year, and I basically just followed him after," Plasencia said. "He's great at mathematics. He's great at science. He's great at that entire sphere and realm of teaching and also understanding. But his support does not end within that realm."
"These kids are everything. And they deserve the best. And that's why I do my job," Green said.
Green says he hopes his role as grand marshal in the Queens Pride Parade shows the city and the world that there is "a lot of love in being inclusive."
The parade kicks off on Sunday, June 2 at noon on 37th Avenue in Jackson Heights.
Green shares his grand marshal title with Amber Ferrer, an advocate and connector within the LGBTQ community of Jackson Heights. New York State Sen. Leroy Comrie will be the honorary grand marshal.
