Lacey Schwartz Delgado

05/07/2026

I wasn’t born in Brooklyn (like my parents and kids were), but I lived there for many years in many iterations and it feels like my second home. So spending 24 hours there doing two of my favorite things was a literal treat: Running a race in Prospect Park (one of my favorite running routes) and supporting one of my favorite libraries ( run by the fierce Linda Johnson) where I unexpectefly got to spend the evening with my favorite Librarian, Dr. Carla Hayden - my forever Librarian of Congress (and they honored one of my favorite actors who as always enlightened the mases). Counting my blessings and internalizing the joy.

07/10/2025

I haven't reintroduced myself in a while so I figured it was time... Some of you know me as a filmmaker, a mom, Antonio Delgado’s wife or some of you are just getting to know me... But know this - I didn’t always do politics. After 2016, I knew I had to step in. So we built a movement, and we won.Now, we’re stepping up again. Antonio is running for Governor of New York — because families are struggling, and the status quo isn’t good enough.So we need you on the team:💥 First big fundraising deadline: Friday, July 11.💥 NY donations ($5–$250) = matched 6x
💥 Out of state donations also welcome. 💥 Let’s build this together.📲 https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ld-2

Let’s change the game.

https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ld-2

06/06/2025

I am excited to share some huge news: my husband Antonio Delgado is running for Governor of New York State.

I want you to hear from me why I am embarking on this journey with Antonio, and bringing the boys (and Leroy) with us... again.

As some of you may remember, I haven’t always been political. My wake-up call came after the 2016 election. Like so many of us, I realized that when we—smart, capable, connected, people who care deeply—stay out of politics, it creates a vacuum. And that vacuum gets filled by the likes of Donald Trump.

And so in 2018, when Antonio ran for Congress, I stepped up—not because politics was comfortable for me, but because the alternative was unacceptable.

Today, I feel that same urgency all over again. People are exhausted. Disillusioned. Fed up. I get it. But I also believe we’re standing at a crossroads. One path leads to more of the same—more gridlock, more fear, more status quo - which is what we have in New York right now. The other leads to bold, decisive, transformational leadership—the kind Antonio brings to the table. The kind that listens deeply, acts with integrity, and puts people—not politics—at the center of the agenda. That’s the leadership New York needs.

And honestly? It’s the leadership America desperately needs right now. Because New York State should be a model for the rest of the country. And, if we can’t make progress here—on housing, on child care, on opportunity—then how can we expect it to happen anywhere else?

As a storyteller, my life’s work has been about revealing what’s real—about telling the stories that are undeniable. And this campaign? This is one of those stories. A story about who we are, and who we want to be. A story about rising up, showing up, and standing together—one more time.

So I’m all in. As Antonio said in his launch post, we “are not here to play the game. [We] are here to change it.” Let’s write the next chapter. Let’s win this together.

05/30/2025

These four books have had the biggest impact on me in the last year.
Steal Like An Artist reminded me of all the dimensions of my creativity.

Miracle Morning helped me refine my center, gratitude and positivity.

Meditations for Mortals is just everything. Chances are if you have spoken to me in the last year I have mentioned this book. And if you aren’t aware of it yet, you’re welcome.

And as someone who does not enjoy cooking at all, reading Ina Garten’s memoir was nonetheless incredibly inspiring. Friends had told me she was the best and now I get why. I just wish I could have played beer pong with her at the Taylor Swift concert after party.

08/26/2023

I am leaving the Lincoln Memorial heading back to NYS inspired and re-energized by the March on Washington 60th Anniversary. Amazing to hear so many incredible speakers and see so many people that I admire.

Here are my full remarks from today:

“To paraphrase Dr. King who said, RIGHT HERE, 60 years ago, we cannot be satisfied as long as the black man in Mississippi cannot vote, and the black woman in New York thinks she’s has nothing to vote for.

Well I am a lifelong New Yorker and Im saddened to say that today New York, along with Mississippi, still ranks in the bottom 10 of all 50 states for voter turnout.

We have to change this because freedom comes from participating in power. And I can tell you in New York, and everywhere else in America, we damn sure have something to vote for.

So as a black, Jewish, woman in a rural town, who’s an artist, mother and the Second Lady of New York State, Im here to join all of you in speaking truth to power and recommitting to action.

This means empowering all communities to engage in our system, it MEANS voting, and it also means service to each other.

Truth telling is difficult work. I have personally experienced how hard it is to feel like the only one speaking the truth - when our most important relationships are on the line - when our emotional and physical security are at stake. But I have also experienced how transformative it can be when we dedicate time and energy to over come fear.

We must always believe in the transformative power of truth telling.

We cannot allow the dark forces of extremism, intolerance and hate, to corrupt us and make us cynical. Our capacity to care for one another must and will win out.

Together we will remain vigilant in protecting our democracy, knowing that IT IS US, the people, that will decide our fate. Our government is meant to be for the people, by the people.

And TOGETHER we are those people.”

06/15/2022

I am a New Yorker - Born & Bred. So three weeks ago today, I was proud to introduce my husband Antonio Delgado as he was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor for the great state of New York.
The last few months have been a whirlwind and a challenge juggling this huge change in our life, twin boys that need so much of our attention, and my own work and voice. But, through it all, our commitment as a family to public service has grown even stronger. And, when I look at our two boys, I am reminded why Antonio and I are in this together… We are in this for ALL of our children and ALL New Yorkers. It takes resilience. It takes self care. It takes amazing friends and family. It takes a supportive community. It takes love. But I know we're on a path to make New York's future brighter. We can get it done if we stay grounded in and committed to our values. I know Antonio is. I know I am. Thank you for being with us through it all.

06/01/2022

In collaboration with the MTV Entertaiment Group, I and made this short for Jewish American Heritage Month reflecting on the tradition of passover and the legacy of slavery in multiple parts of my identity. Very grateful to my family for always being willing to come together to ask the bigger questions... And special thanks to for the exquisite location.

01/25/2021

Check out my amazing business partner Mehret Mandefro’s TED talk on how strong creative industries help economies thrive.

When global leaders think about which industries can fuel economic growth, the arts are often overlooked. But filmmaker Mehret Mandefro says the creative sector actually has the power to grow economies -- while also helping safeguard democracy. In this captivating talk, she shares a behind-the-scene...

01/18/2021

“As Black women... our truth as artists is a unique truth and it’s a layered truth and it’s a complex truth... one that is so beautiful and it is so incredibly moving... and deserves to be told and heard and understood and recognized and celebrated.” Mehret Mandefro, Yoruba Richen, and I could not connect to or agree more with Alicia Keys sentiments in this clip from our film . We put fingers to keyboard and wrote out our related thoughts for Deadline (read full column in link below): “As we honor Martin Luther King Jr. this weekend and the nation prepares to inaugurate our 46th president, let us remember the Black women our Vice President-elect Kamala Harris described as “too often overlooked, but so often prove that they are the backbone of our democracy.” Specifically, let’s consider the all-too-often overlooked Black female performers, who have long used their art to challenge representations about Black people at a time when America was awakening to a new consciousness about what it means to be free. They sought to inspire Americans to see one another beyond stereotypes and showed Black audiences how to see themselves unencumbered by the burden of racism...” To keep reading, go to https://deadline.com/2021/01/american-masters-filmmakers-guest-column-black-performers-1234675665/amp/

And please tune in tonight on PBS American Masters at 9pm EST to watch How it feels to be free in its entirety.

01/18/2021

Take a look at Halle Berry’s thoughts in an exclusive clip on People from our film on the influence of Black women in the media, and how representation is crucial in finding your identity. "I was a Black child being raised by a white woman, so I didn't have those images in my household," she says. "Finding them on television and through movies became very, very crucial to me."

From exclusive article featuring the clip: “The documentary tells the story of how six celebrated women — Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Cicely Tyson, and Pam Grier — broke through an entertainment industry hell-bent on keeping them out and looks at their activism as precursor to contemporary movements like . The film features interviews and archival performances with all six women as well as original conversations with contemporary artists they influenced, including Berry, Alicia Keys, Lena Waithe, Meagan Good, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Samuel L. Jackson, and family members such as Horne's daughter Gail Lumet Buckley.”

American Masters: How It Feels to Be Free premieres tonight Jan. 18 9pm ET. Check local listings.

"I was a black child being raised by a white woman, so I didn't have those images in my household," Halle Berry says in the new PBS documentary American Masters: How It Feels to Be Free

01/18/2021

My latest film, How It Feels to Be Free (a feature documentary film about six iconic black female entertainers and the ways they used art as a political force to challenge representation) premieres tomorrow/Monday January 18, at 9pm est in the US on PBS's American Masters, and tonight, January 17th at 9pm in Canada on CBC Docs. Check your local listings.

Directed by the divine Yoruba Richen and executive produced by myself, Mehret Mandefro, Alicia Keys, Elizabeth Trojian and Elliot Halpern, this film explores the lives and trailblazing careers of Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson and Pam Grier - who changed American culture through their films, fashion, music and politics.

When I first met Yoruba as part of the Firelight Media Producer’s Lab I knew she was someone I would love to work with and, over 5 years ago, when she brought Mehret and I Ruth Feldstein's amazing book that this film is based on we knew this was the one. A special shoutout to Michael Kantor at American Masters, Independent Television Service (ITVS) and Black Public Media for believing in this film from Day One! And thank you to our amazing contributors Samuel L. Jackson, Halle Berry, Lena Waithe, Meagan Good, Salamishah Tillet, Latonya Jackson, Gail Lumet Buckley and many others for sharing your thoughts on these trailblazers.

New documentary about Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Diahann Carroll, Nina Simone, Cicely Tyson and Pam Grier premieres January 18th on PBS.