Principles of racial equity and justice have guided my leadership as an appointed and elected official during the past five years when I chaired the Charter Review Committee in 2019 and served as the Ward 1 City Councilor in 2022 and 2023.

I continue to be mindful of the impact on the city’s most vulnerable residents – including people of color and other underserved communities – during decision-making on issues including affordable housing, education spending, pandemic recovery, public safety, voting rights, response to the climate emergency, and access to affordable, high-speed broadband.

The lens of racial equity and inclusiveness must be used in all decisions affecting policies, programs, spending, and hiring.

Here are some specifics.

VOTING RIGHTS: The Charter Review Committee that I led in 2019 worked with the Pioneer Valley Workers Center to encourage participation by members of underserved communities, including people of color. Their compelling testimony led to one of the committee’s key recommendations – extending voting rights in municipal elections to resident non-citizens. That awaits action in the state Legislature, and I continue to work with the city’s legislators to advocate for its approval.

BARRIERS TO SERVICE: In its final report, the Charter Review Committee emphasized further work the city must do to affirm its commitment to racial equity, including identifying and removing barriers to diversity in municipal government.

As a city councilor, I voted for the creation in February 2022 of a select committee to study barriers to service on city boards and committees, and opportunities for the city to work with residents to overcome those barriers. I will continue to support implementing those recommendations, including multilingual materials to increase participation, and child-care options for members of boards and committees.

ARPA GRANTS: Between April 2022 and January 2023, I served on the American Rescue Plan Act Community Recovery Projects Advisory Commission and its Review Committee that helped guide the mayor in awarding grants totaling $4 million for COVID-19 pandemic community recovery projects. Throughout the process I advocated for directing money to programs that will assist people of color, lower-income residents and others disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

I am pleased that more than half the money awarded for 61 projects is directed at housing and shelter services (27 percent) and addressing food insecurity (25 percent).

PUBLIC SAFETY: Northampton achieved a public safety milestone in September 2023 when the Division of Community Care began offering an alternative to traditional policing with unarmed civilian responses to nonviolent calls, including mental health and substance abuse crises, and assisting people experiencing houselessness. I support its operation as part of the Department of Health and Human Services, and its mission to care for some of the most vulnerable members of the community by providing support, advocacy and connection to resources by peer responders who are trained in de-escalation and harm reduction and knowledgeable about referral to services outside of the criminal justice system.

I will support resources ensuring continued growth of the Division of Community Care, so it is an equal partner with Fire/Rescue and the Police Department to ensure public safety for all in Northampton. That will achieve one of the major recommendations of the Northampton Policing Review Commission 2021 report “Reimagining Safety.”

I will continue to review other recommendations for action in that report, including alternative responses to minor traffic offenses to prevent a recurrence of the violent arrest resulting from an April 4 traffic stop of a woman of color on King Street, which video evidence shows was wrongfully escalated by the responding officers.

ANTIRACISM: To achieve racial equity and justice, it is necessary to acknowledge systemic racism that has existed in the U.S. and Northampton, to have community conversations about racism’s impact on people of color, and to understand how to redress those who have been harmed. That is why during the spring of 2023 I joined other elected officials and city staff in 12 hours of interrupting racism training.

Moving forward, I will support the work of the Commission to Investigate Racialized Harms Perpetrated Against Black Residents and Workers in Northampton. It was appointed after the City Council in February 2023 unanimously approved a resolution endorsing that examination to atone for “entrenched segregation, discrimination and systemically racist outcomes in areas such as zoning, housing, licensing, and business development.” During the 2024-25 term, I will advocate for the resources needed to implement recommendations by the commission to fulfill its charge “to restore, grow, and nourish Black community and culture in Northampton for future generations.”