The New York State Association of Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Legislators, Inc. (NYSABPRHAL) is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) charitable organization born from one of the most consequential acts of collective political courage in New York State history. When Black and Puerto Rican legislators made their historic Midnight Walk in 1966 — demanding equitable power, representation, and institutional voice — they ignited a movement that would reshape state government for generations. The Association was founded in 1985 to carry that movement beyond the Legislature and into the communities it serves.

For decades, the Association stands as convener, catalyst, and conscience — advancing the unfinished work first championed by trailblazers like Edward A. Johnson, Oscar Garcia-Rivera, Shirley Chisholm, Percy E. Sutton, Olga A. Mendez, Arthur Eve, Charles Rangel, and many others. Their legacy lives in everything we do.

Today, the Association operates as the programmatic, educational, and public-facing arm of the largest legislative caucus–affiliated nonprofit in New York State government, representing 77 legislators who collectively serve more than 8 million New Yorkers of color. Through our Annual Legislative Conference, scholarship and youth leadership programs, cross-sector policy convenings, and economic empowerment initiatives, we ensure that the pursuit of justice, equity, and opportunity reaches far beyond the halls of the Capitol — into classrooms, congregations, boardrooms, and neighborhoods across every corner of New York State.

We exist because power without purpose is incomplete — and because the communities that built this state deserve an institution that fights for their future every single day.