ALBANY, NY – Senate Deputy Leader Michael Gianaris met with Ben Stiller to discuss refugee resettlement aid as part of the actor’s recent visit to the State Capitol in Albany.

“I am appreciative of the tremendous effort Ben Stiller is making with non-profits and other organizations to help new Americans build a better life,” said Senate Deputy Leader Michael Gianaris.

A child of immigrants, Sen. Gianaris was born and raised in Astoria, Queens, where he continues to reside. He is the product of New York City public schools and graduated from Fordham University and Harvard Law School before embarking upon on a career in public service.

As a first-generation American, Sen. Gianaris knows the struggle of immigrant families and leads the fight against harmful federal policies that tear apart families and unfairly discriminate against immigrant communities. He supports and works with community groups, such as Immigrant Families Together, to reunite families separated at the border and wrote legislation barring discrimination based on immigration status.  He secured funding for community groups providing legal services to immigrants in need  and was one of the first state legislators in the United States to call for abolishing ICE – the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency – when it began separating parents from children at the border.