To inform voters and to help the baiduhai Editorial Board make endorsements, the board posed a series of questions to the candidates running for alderman. See their answers below. See how other candidates answered here.
Name: Desmon Yancy
Ward: 5th
Current job: Senior Director of Organizing and Advocacy at Inner-city Muslim Action Network
Previous political experience: I have never been elected or appointed to office. I am a first time candidate.
Education: I graduated from Kenwood Academy and studied Computer Information Systems at DeVry Institute of Technology. I did not complete my degree.
Spouse’s occupation: N/A
Sources of outside income: None
The rise in violent crime remains a top priority for City Hall. Homicides, shootings and carjackings are all unacceptably high. Tell us how city government can be innovative in combating crime, and explain what measures you would propose if elected.
Violent crime is rising and many Chicagoans are feeling less and less safe. The current system of public safety we have in place today is outdated. We need to increase access and funding for mental health programs, community-based violence reduction programs, reentry programs for formerly incarcerated people, and youth programming for ages 5-21 to keep our city safe. I also support the implementation of the Community Commission on Public Safety and Accountability and District Councils, whose mission is to increase public safety and provide civilian oversight of police and accountability.
The CTA, one of the nation’s largest transit systems, remains a troubled agency grappling with issues ranging from violent crime and ghost buses and trains, to flagging ridership. Give us your thoughts on what specific measures CTA should take to make train and bus service safer, more reliable and more equitable for Chicagoans.
First, conductors need to be reinstated on trains to the level they were when former Mayor Rahm Emanuel replaced them with security cameras to much media fanfare. Cameras are not a deterrent to criminal activity in the same way as a person of authority would be. Second, the presence of extra officers and security on transit is playing a role in reducing violent crime. Although, the numbers of officers, security and K-9 units are reported to be at sufficient levels, their presence must be visible 24/7 whenever trains are operating.
Last, the City Council needs to pass the ordinance requiring agency officials to meet with the Council’s Committee on Transportation and Public Way on a quarterly basis to discuss service levels, operations, and security. Currently, the ordinance has the support of nearly every Chicago alderperson. The CTA is down 1,000 workers and should be engaging alderpersons throughout the city to help with finding qualified applicants to fill the agency’s openings.
Ten years ago, enrollment at Chicago Public Schools was 403,000 students. In September, enrollment stood at 322,000 students. Enrollment at CPS has dropped for 11 consecutive years. What specific measures should CPS undertake to reverse the trend of ever-dwindling enrollment?
I believe that on top of bringing in more revenue, we must look at the city budget and reallocate funds to our schools. In 2020 the City of Chicago spent more than $177M on police overtime. Public safety is important. I’m well aware that according to CPD they too, have a staffing shortage. But if we can find the money for the police department, we can surely find it for the children who call Chicago home. That being said, we must look at progressive revenue solutions that center on equity. If elected alderperson I would support revenue measures that don’t break the backs of everyday residents but still provide us with the funds to stabilize our schools.
In 2013, I marched for three days to protest the closing of schools in predominantly Black and brown communities. As a former board member with United Working Families, I supported the election of candidates that committed to fight for our children’s future by putting an elected school board referendum on the ballot.
We need to start with a strong early childhood education where we pay those who educate our children equitably. I would support the increase of funding for Foundational Positions to provide the critical needs and acute care our children require. Every school should have at least one nurse, counselor and social worker. There should be a sufficient number of paraprofessionals and substitute teachers to provide adequate attention to students, most of whom come from dysfunctional environments.
The City of Chicago should turn a number of the 50 schools closed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel into Sustainable Community Schools that provide resources and transform the buildings into community hubs.
Reducing class size, providing mental health care, arts and sports will help to decrease student and teacher stress so that school is a welcome oasis for students who live in challenging conditions.
In many countries, teachers are held in a position of honor. We need to pay educators their worth and provide them with the resources to free them up to teach. The City of Chicago has the money. What we lack is the will to make educating our children a priority.
Disinvestment on the South and West sides is a decades-long problem with myriad causes. Give us at least one innovative idea that you believe could play a role in reversing South and West side disinvestment, and explain why the idea is realistic and feasible.
I live in the South Shore community. It is a perfect microcosm for what we see on the Chicago South and West Sides. In one part, we have mansions, manicured lawns, and cul-de-sac blocks. In another portion of the community, the moniker “Terror Town” holds true on a daily basis for some residents who also call South Shore home. Crime directly correlates to access to opportunity or lack thereof. If elected alderperson, I would direct more city resources towards investing in job training and life skills.
Chicago continues to be a Tale of Two Cities. We live in communities that suffer from disinvestment, a lack of public safety, and a lack of resources. There are only two deterrents to crime–good schools and good jobs. Communities that have less crime have both.
City administrators need to create additional revenue streams that aren’t regressive. Additional funds into the city coffers would allow more money to be dedicated to the pension deficit. I support finding progressive revenue streams that improve the quality of life of all Chicagoans.
I support the South Suburban Airport as an economic generator for the Chicago Southland. I support a $2 tourist surcharge on the city’s 55 million visitors per hotel stay. While tourism decreased during the COVID-19 shutdown, projections indicate the city’s tourism is on the rebound to pre-COVID numbers. Last, I support reinstating the head tax. A reasonable fee on companies with more than 100 employees isn’t going to dissuade employers from doing business in Chicago.
Do you support giving Chicagoans property tax relief? If yes, please explain how you would accomplish it. If no, please explain why not.
Communities with a strong commercial tax base pay a lower percentage for property taxes. That’s why it’s so important to invest in all of Chicago’s 77 communities equitably. First, TIF’s should be used as they were intended. Not to offset the financial investment of developers in upper middle class and wealthy communities. When Mayor Harold Washington introduced TIF’s, he never imagined that someday $2.4 billion would be designated for the development of two new communities in parts of the city not suffering from a lack of development or decades of disinvestment by city leaders.
This is another reason why city leaders should support the development of the South Suburban Airport in the Chicago Southland. We need something transformational to help generate the level of taxes that will offset the continuing rise of property taxes and the decrease of property values.
Give us your take on the city’s use of tax increment financing districts. Do you feel they have been useful, or do you feel that the problems associated with them outweigh their usefulness? What if any reforms would you want to apply to the city’s usage of TIFs?
TIF’s were created to help blighted communities. That has not been the case for quite some time now. In the same mode of participatory budgeting I would shift control of TIF’s to the community. We would focus on equitable projects in the ward and across the city. We would vote on these things as a community, to help drive us forward.
Lead in drinking water is a major health concern for the city. It is estimated that in Chicago there are roughly 400,000 homes and small apartment buildings with lead service lines. So far, the city has replaced less than 300 lead service lines. Do you feel the pace of lead service line replacement should be expedited, and if yes, what is the best, most feasible way to accomplish that?
This is a public health emergency and should be treated as such. The city’s pace of replacing lead service lines is unacceptable. Again, this is a racial equity and public health issue that overwhelmingly affects the city’s Black and brown populations. For decades studies have shown the devastating health effects on children exposed to lead. The detriment to a child’s development is irreversible. We must make this a priority as other cities have done.
If you are an incumbent, please explain what is it about your service on the City Council that makes you most qualified for the job. If you have never served on the council, please explain what is it about your background that makes you most qualified.
Not answered.
What is the most pressing issue facing the people of your ward, and how would you address it?
As the former spokesperson for GAPA and son of a police officer, I’m determined to make sure the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability lives up to its mission of real police reform.
Support ongoing funding of proven programs that treat gun violence as a public health issue. Work with Dept. of Public Health to provide mental health services and support for residents suffering from trauma and environmental pollution, such as lead. Monitor federal consent decree of Chicago Police Dept. to ensure commonsense policies, adequate officer training and respectful interaction with residents.
Champion more affordable housing and equitable development in the ward. Work with lenders and housing organizations to ensure current residents preserve home ownership. Lobby Obama Presidential Center to work with South Shore residents to prevent displacement of renters and homeowners.
Sum up why should voters elect you and not your opponent(s)? (Please limit this to policy and approach, not a biography recitation.)
As a longtime community organizer and advocate, I have an established history of working in support of issues affecting Chicago’s working families. As the co-founder of and lead organizer for the Grassroots Alliance for Police Accountability, I led the community effort to create a civilian oversight body for the Chicago Police Department. This 6 year effort involved extensive community engagement, dozens of coalition partners, and the support of 36 alderpersons. No other candidate for 5th Ward alderperson has my community engagement background, which gives me an advantage over the other candidates.