Neighborhood public schools make our communities healthier. No matter where you live, your race, age or how much money you have, everyone should have easy access to high-quality public education in preparation for a life of civic engagement. Public school buildings should be well-maintained and equipped with needed tools and supplies. Schools should be staffed not only by caring and competent teachers and administrators, but also social workers, counselors, librarians, nurses, and special education instructors.

As a foundation, school should be a safe place for everyone, including students, teachers, and faculty. We need to employ culturally responsive teaching models which recognize that students may be coming into the learning environment after facing many challenges outside of school. Conflict can be resolved using restorative justice programs which already exist but are underutilized.

While Alderpeople don’t get to control budgets and contracts or pick school superintendents and board of education members, we can educate and encourage parents and residents to run for Local School Councils (LSC), participate in the electoral process, and share with our constituents why public schools matter. As a parent representative on the Jones College Prep LSC, I had the opportunity to participate in my child’s school culture and support the teachers and faculty.

As alderwoman, I will:

• Promote community involvement with Local School Council; every Chicagoan over the age of 17 has the right to vote in their LSC, regardless of citizenship or whether or not they have a child enrolled in the school. All politics is local.

• Support teachers and the Chicago Teachers Union.

• Champion TIF reform with the surplus of TIF funds returned to CPS. We need investments in school buildings and infrastructure, and we also need funding so that public schools are fully staffed, including social workers, counselors, and support staff.

• Support the efforts of Chicago’s first elected school board in 2024. Elected officials should work for the public. I will advocate for a diversity of representation on the board that cuts across race, ethnicity, and economic status.

The 48th ward borders Chicago’s beautiful lakefront, including some of Chicago’s most treasured parks like Foster Beach, Berger Park, and Hollywood Beach. Climate change is impacting the water levels on Lake Michigan, leading to flooding and erosion problems that require costly stabilization strategies. We must protect our shoreline and coordinate across government agencies, nonprofits, and the community for a long-term climate action plan. Lake Michigan is also our source for drinking water, which must be protected for all. I oppose efforts to privatize our drinking water.

As alderwoman, I will advocate to re-establish the City of Chicago’s Department of Environment, which is critical to implementing the city’s bold new Climate Action Plan and We Will Chicago initiatives Additionally, I will work to:

• Partner with the IL Clean Jobs Coalition to ensure the state of Illinois fully implements the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA).

• Advocate for Chicago’s commitment to meeting its goal of 100% transition to renewable energy by 2035, including an all-electric fleet of CTA buses.

• Champion the replacement of all 400,000 of Chicago’s lead water service lines, with mandates for an efficient process and a reasonable timeline. We must work with the state and federal government to prioritize funding for low-income areas especially those on the South and West sides which have been disproportionately burdened.

• Pass a Cumulative Impact Ordinance to address Chicago’s legacy of environmental racism, which continues to concentrate pollution on the city’s South and West sides. I will partner with grassroots coalitions, such as the Chicago Environmental Justice Network to protect low-income, frontline, and impacted communities and give them a voice in their futures.

• Improve Chicago’s dismal recycling rates and support a citywide composting program to sustainably use the food waste that constitutes up to 50% of our landfills. In Andersonville, dozens of businesses participate in the Clark Street Composts program, which can be expanded and serve as a model for the rest of the city.

Housing is a human right. We are proud of the diversity of our unique neighborhoods in the 48th ward and we all deserve truly affordable housing. When our neighbors are supported and not priced out of the community, everyone benefits. 

Houselessness is an issue that impacts many members of our community, disproportionately the most marginalized, such as trans youth and people facing reentry after incarceration. I support lifting the ban on rent control, stabilizing rental fees, and preserving and expanding SROs to include wraparound services and mental health supports. We can engage and empower residents if we utilize community-driven zoning processes and help “mom-and-pop” landlords get the resources they need to pay their property taxes and maintain their buildings.

As a community organizer, I have fought for these issues and, as alderwoman, I will continue that work by supporting the following:

• Bring Chicago Home would provide a dedicated revenue stream to combat homelessness in Chicago by levying a one-time real estate transfer tax on high-end properties sold for over $1 million. This would generate $163 million dollars annually to be used to combat homelessness

• Accountable Housing and Transparency Ordinance would create one centralized waitlist for CHA affordable housing units. There would be placement preferences for vulnerable people, and processes would be streamlined, making it quicker and easier for people seeking affordable housing to find a home that fits their needs.

• Equitable Transit Oriented Development encourages affordable housing development close to transit lines, while working with local businesses and residents so that they are not negatively impacted by construction in their neighborhoods.

• Just Cause Eviction Ordinance, a proven solution to protecting tenants' right to housing. We must end no-fault evictions, which disproportionately harm our most vulnerable neighbors.

The 48th ward is home to one of the proudest and largest LGBTQ+ communities in the city of Chicago. I myself am queer and have lived, worked, and raised my family here since 1999.

As a small-business owner, I have adopted the inclusive principles behind the Chicago Therapy Collective’s Hire Trans Now initiative, which advocates for policies that help reduce barriers to employment for trans people, and I will continue to incorporate these practices in my aldermanic office. Through the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce’s DEI committee, I worked with CTC to ensure that businesses across the ward had access to free LGBTQ+ training and education resources, and I am still deeply committed to that work.

For many LGBTQ+ community members, the risk of homelessness, economic instability, and economic disparity begins when they are children. LGBTQ+ youth, especially trans youth, are significantly more likely to experience homelessness as a result of transphobia and homophobia at home and school. Nearly half of trans adults report experiencing workplace discrimination (being fired or not hired) based on their trans identity. This is unacceptable and as alderwoman I will address this inequity.

As a community organizer, I have fought for these issues and, as alderwoman, I will continue that work by supporting the following:

• I will build coalitions inside City Council to address anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination and bullying in schools. This includes increased funding for school counselors with training on racial equity and holding CPS accountable to already established guidelines regarding the support of transgender and gender nonconforming students.

• Interventions that foster trans-inclusion must be implemented on a city-wide scale to ensure trans communities have access to the opportunities they deserve.

• Individual autonomy is essential for everyone’s mental health and well-being. I will work to protect and further the client-centered and gender affirming mental healthcare that our residents deserve.

Healthcare is a human right. There is no health and wellness without mental health. The pandemic has challenged us financially, physically, and emotionally, calling for a transformation of how mental health is understood and cared for.

We must ensure access to care for all Chicagoans, regardless of where they live or how much they earn. I have worked with young Black and brown disability advocates at Access Living to pass CESSA (Community Emergency Services and Support Act) at the state level. As your alderwoman, I will champion expanding comprehensive, culturally relevant, and high-quality mental health care in our ward and will fight to end the stigmatization of mental health treatment. 

As a community organizer, I have fought for these issues and, as alderwoman, I will continue that work.

• For every dollar that is invested in the police, the City of Chicago currently invests less than one cent in public mental health services. The Treatment Not Trauma ordinance would call for the funding and expanding of Chicago’s shuttered mental health clinics, assuring accessible and quality culturally affirming health care.  

• An effective mental healthcare system requires coordination at the municipal, state, and federal levels. I will engage all relevant officials to fight for the funding we need in our community.

• Individual autonomy is essential for our mental health and well-being. I will work to protect and further the culturally relevant, community-based, voluntary mental health care that residents in our ward deserve. I will center those on the margins, and in that way, we all do better.

Safety is a human right. Everyone deserves to live in a world free from violence. The 48th ward is one of the most densely populated and most diverse wards on the North Side, which means that we’re in this together. Caring for our whole community leads to safety for everyone.

Our current city budget is tied up with 40% going to policing, and yet not everyone is safe. Investing in neighborhoods by funding mental health care, substance-abuse treatment, housing, and education has a clear and sustainable impact on reducing crime.

As a community organizer, I have fought for these issues and, as alderwoman, I will continue that work by supporting the following:

• Empowering Communities for Public Safety ordinance (ECPS) places police accountability in the hands of the people. I will engage with newly elected district council members to develop and implement safety initiatives, introduce and expand restorative justice practices, build connections between CPD and the community, and educate residents on how community control of the police increases public safety for all. 

• Treatment Not Trauma offers an alternative to police response in the event of mental health crisis emergencies.

• Peace Book ordinance, created by GoodKids MadCity, calls for diverting a small portion of the CPD budget to fund job training and violence prevention programs led by young people. As alderwoman, I will champion this and other youth-driven and community-led violence disruption programs.

Healthcare is a human right, including comprehensive reproductive health. This means abortion on demand, without apology. The decisions any person makes about their reproductive health is between them and their medical provider. The national attacks on reproductive rights make it more important than ever that we have strong local advocates and ordinances that protect individual bodily autonomy for everyone.

Illinois may be a safe haven for abortion access now, but we must remain proactive and think beyond abortion. Understanding and having control over reproductive health is a major step in fighting institutionalized oppression.

As a community organizer, I have fought for these issues and, as alderwoman, I will continue that work.

• I have partnered across the state and nation with advocacy groups such as Planned Parenthood, Personal PAC, Chicago Abortion Fund, and NOW to stand up to threats against our access to healthcare and reproductive freedom. I have engaged elected officials at every level of government on the issue of reproductive freedom, and together with my coalition partners, we helped push for the passage of HB40 in 2017 and the Reproductive Health Act in 2019, ensuring that abortions would remain legal in Illinois even with the fall of Roe v Wade.

• Reproductive health care includes, but is not limited to, contraception, sterilization, preconception care, maternity care, abortion care, and counseling regarding reproductive health care. This definition is from Rosanna Rodriguez in the Bodily Autonomy Sanctuary City Ordinance O2022-2486 which I support.

• As alderwoman, I would encourage the City Council to create a public service campaign to educate the public on the inaccuracies and fraudulent activities of “crisis pregnancy centers.” These entities do not provide accurate information, discourage users from accessing all of their options, and are clearly pushing a dangerous agenda.

The 48th ward is home to unique and vibrant business corridors. Retaining the unique characteristics of our communities, such as Asia on Argyle, the historical district on Bryn Mawr, and all other commercial corridors, means protecting our locally-owned small business base. A study commissioned by the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce in 2004 found that every $100 spent at a locally owned business in Andersonville generates $68 worth of local economic activity, compared to only $43 for $100 spent at a chain. This study formed the basis of American Express’ Small Business Saturday movement and spurred successful economic revitalization in Andersonville. (For more details, check out the Always Andersonville Podcast Episode 155 -The Story of the Small Business Saturday Movement.)

Like many business corridors across the country, those in the 48th ward continue to rebuild as one in four businesses closed during the pandemic. Development cannot displace longtime residents, like myself, who have deep roots in the ward and are the reason why our community is so great. As a small-business owner for over 20 years, current board member of the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce where I co-chair the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, I’m proud that the 48th ward is home to some of the most vibrant economic corridors in the city, with a large percentage of unique, local, independently owned small businesses.

As your alderwoman, I will work with our community, the local chambers of commerce and across public and private agencies to fight to retain the unique characteristic of all our commercial corridors as development happens in our ward.

The 48th ward is one of Chicago’s most densely populated areas, making the issue of transportation especially critical for us. But the very nature of transportation moves beyond the boundaries of our ward. We must take a holistic approach to the transportation issues facing our community and the city at large.

The path forward requires us to prioritize saving lives and creating a community that is sustainable for people and the planet. Let’s prioritize mass transit over highways. We must hold the CTA accountable and work towards a return to safe and reliable public transit. Expanding protected bike lanes and pedestrian crosswalks will give us infrastructure that gets us where we need to go, while being good stewards of the land.

• I support the Connected Communities Ordinance, which prioritizes Equitable Transit Oriented Design. This ordinance strengthens the connection between transit and affordable housing density, helping us retain the vibrant historic character of our neighborhood while also supporting low- and moderate-cost housing.

• Everyone should have safe access to our roads. A citywide network of protected bike lanes and pedestrian crossings is critical. We also need a massive public awareness campaign on sharing public spaces, including sidewalks, roads, and trails. One death is too many. We must work together to share our resources responsibly.

• One of the most important jobs of the alderperson is to be a good steward of the land. We must decrease our carbon footprint by electrifying not only our CTA buses, but our entire city fleet of vehicles as we work across agencies to prevent any more deaths.