Name: David Schwartzman Position You are Running for: At-Large City Council Home Town: I have lived in Washington DC since 1976, grew up in Brooklyn, N.Y. I have been on the Howard University faculty since 1973. Age: 66 (but a very vigorous “senior citizen” who runs 4 hours a week; I will challenge my opponents, just as in 2008, to a race for DC Statehood and Human Rights from Adams Morgan to Anacostia). Previous/ Current Position(s) Held: None in DC Government DC Statehood; Green National Delegate (2008, 2010); Local Station Board, WPFW (2010-2012), International Committee, Green Party of the United States (since 2004). High School Attended: Stuyvesant H.S. (Manhattan) College(s) Attended: City College of NY (BS, 1964); Brown University (MS, 1966; PhD, 1971).
Q: Why did you decide to run for this position?:
I filed my candidacy on May 10 when no one else, in particular other worthy activists with a strong record of struggle for DC residents stepped forward to use this election as an opportunity to gain a Council seat for the DC Statehood Green Party, despite my efforts and those of my party to recruit someone else. We are the only party with ballot status which does not accept donations from the corporate sector, in particular, powerful developers and real estate lobbies. Democrats and Republicans do. My party refuses to be beholden to corporate interests, rather we pledge to be fully accountable to the great majority of DC residents who have borne the burden of policies coming out of the “Corporate-Occupied” Wilson Building, where the Mayor and City Council reside. I am running again because I ran for the same seat in November 2008, gaining 18,596 votes, coming in 3rd ahead of two “independent” Democrats who outspent me 5 to 1. I won the most votes per dollar spent of any At-Large candidate. With significant name recognition, especially among those who have been active in the struggle for basic human rights in our community, and with my long track record in DC human rights struggles, I plan to win this time, replacing the “independent” Republican David Catania on the City Council with a real independent progressive. (Please note: nearly 50 days after I filed my candidacy Darryl Moch filed to run against me in our DC Statehood Green Primary to held on September 14. I welcome this challenge since we are both committed to build the DC Statehood Green Party. Darryl Moch is a worthy opponent with an impressive background. I applaud his decision to run. I will respect our registered voters' choice in our Primary to pick the best candidate to defeat David Catania in November, placing this candidate on the City Council. A contested primary is a big plus for our party and the residents of the District, by boosting participation and recruitment and sharpening our positions on the issues. After Darryl Moch filed, I canvassed to get signatures on his nomination petition to ensure he would qualify and shared candidate forum information. If our registered voters choose Darryl Moch as our candidate for the November election I will work with all my energy to get him elected. So I challenge DC’s youth: learn more about our candidates and Party and consider registering DC Statehood Green to make your best choice for the November election by participating in our Primary in September. Of course, I do respect all those who choose to remain in the Democratic Party in order to vote in the Dem primary, hopefully to oppose Fenty’s reelection.)
MY FOCUS: Confronting the “crisis of everyday living” faced by our residents.
I STAND FOR: Jobs for DC residents, affordable housing, child care, first rate neighborhood schools, tax relief for our majority, paid for by modest tax hike for DC millionaires, ending taxpayer giveaways to developers. Curb the childhood asthma epidemic and DC carbon emissions. Lower Metro fares, students riding free, paid for by congestion charge for car commuters. Eliminate child poverty, create green jobs/apprenticeship programs in high schools. "BAN THE BOX!": end job and housing discrimination against ex offenders now! Workers Rights, Statehood Now! www.davidschwartzman.com dschwartzman@gmail.com 829-9063
Q: What do you plan to do about our need for improved parks and recreation facilities in the city?
First, restore the funding in our FY2011 budget. The FY 2011 budget for the Department of Parks and Recreation is one-fourth lower than in FY 2008 (for documentation go to: http://www.dcfpi.org/whats-in-the-final-fy-2011-budget). Second, put the youth who are in the summer jobs program to work to improve the conditions of the parks and recreation facilities. I have been informed that many youth in this program are given no meaningful work experience.
Q: What should we do about our education system?:
As an educator of over 40 years experience I know that the most effective form of school governance empowers all the stake holders in the educational process- teachers, school staff, parents, students and community. The present system of school governance is much too top down, with far too little collaborative involvement of parents and teachers. This is the assessment of experts in DC public education such as my friend Mai Abdul Rahman. The 23 neighborhood public schools that were closed by the Fenty/Rhee administration should be reopened. The time and expense of traveling to fewer schools has contributed to truancy and a higher student to teacher ratio in the classroom. Rehire the 400 teachers unjustly fired by Rhee. The greatest contributor to poor student performance is child poverty a glaring human rights violation that persists in our community. An eloquent analysis of this issue is the article by the late Tom Blagburn, Hope for D.C. public schools (http://www.statehood4dc.com/schwartzman/hopefordcschools). The Fenty administration and the City Council efforts to confront this issue have been woefully inadequate. A comprehensive poverty reduction program should put in place now with social work support in school facilities serving low income families. I oppose privatization of public education and acceptance of the depopulation of DC driven by gentrification.
Finally, our schools have become prison-like in a misguided attempt to impose discipline. Of course all schools should be secure places for learning, free of violence and bullying. But arbitrary suspensions and expulsions of students are violating the constitutional rights of students and their parents. The ACLU-NCA has represented over 75 students facing suspension and expulsion without due process including a right to a hearing. All too often bystanders to fights are unjustly accused (See Capital Area Liberties, July 2010, p8.). Good conduct and respect for the rights of students and teachers must be set by example, starting with the School Administrators themselves and school security. We should expand the PBS approach (positive behavior support) for all our schools.
Q: If elected, what would you do to make sure that youth are more involved in the decisions made within our city government?:
Chairman Gray has taken important initiatives to more fully involve youth in representing their concerns to our elected government. We should continue this approach after the election. If elected my office in the Wilson Building will be an organizing center for all worthy groups committed to realizing economic, social and environmental justice, especially for our children and youth. Further, greatly expanding outreach to youth is critical to encouraging their involvement in civic activities. I will have a community liaison with the special responsibility of leading focus groups in our schools, particularly in DC history classes. I will volunteer to teach such a class myself.
Q: How have you gotten youth involved in your campaign thus far/ how have you made your campaign accessible to youth thus far?:
My campaign is just getting started. I have already recruited several youth as campaign workers, plan to raise sufficient funds for supporting youth workers.
Q: What do you plan to do to curb crime and violence in the teen community?
First priority: begin an aggressive program to eliminate child poverty. Here’s what I propose: Lets create green collar jobs for our unemployed, especially our youth with apprenticeship programs in our high schools as well as for green economic development initiatives which employ the unemployed. Raise the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefit to above poverty level, provide substance abuse treatment for all in need, job training for 21st Century Jobs. Finally, police brutality must end. We should demand full transparency calling for an independent investigation of police shootings of our youth (e.g., DeOnté Rawlings and Trey Joyner). You can find more on my approach by going to my Testimony to the City Council, June 16, 2008 (http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org/testimony/public_safety_civil_liberties).
Q: Do you favor charter schools?
Not at the expense of DCPS. I favor a moratorium on the creation of new charter schools. I share every parent’s desire to get the best education for his or her child and I of course strongly support the rights of children to get a first rate education in presently organized charter schools. The specialized education experience should be an integral part of DCPS. Charter school enrollment has grown because of the deprioritization of public schools. But I respectfully submit that the emphasis on charter schools has undermined public education. Why close neighborhood schools and give first rights to replacing them with charter schools? Partial/full privatization of public schools is the corporate agenda, profit first, accountability last. DC taxes should go to fully accountable public education. Making DC millionaires pay their fair share of taxes and curbing corporate welfare will help sharply reduce child poverty, the root cause of poor school performance, and help create first rate public schools city-wide.
Q: What is your record on improving the lives of youth in the city?
Since I have been on the Howard University faculty since 1973 I have taught thousands of youth, many coming from the Metro DC area. As an activist in the DC Statehood Green Party with a focus on tax/budget and environmental issues I have been involved in many struggles to better fund programs which impact DC youth and improve environmental quality (e.g., reduce air pollution which is linked to our childhood asthma epidemic). I am a research environmental scientist with expert knowledge on how to connect the global and local challenges of climate change. Please go to my campaign website (www.davidschwartzman.com) for more details on my record.
Q: What kind of opportunities would you like to see created for youth in the District?
A critical initiative would be the implementation of a green jobs apprenticeship program in our public high schools. Green jobs means working to solarize the District energy supplies, energy conservation, and urban farming. Note that vocational education is not sufficient, apprenticeship programs would guarantee a job upon successful completion of the program at graduation. 21st Century science, math and environmental education must be the rule, not the exception in all our public schools. Every student must be challenged to go on to a college education. For this to become a reality, we must move from a top down dictatorial style of administration now being implemented by the Fenty/Rhee administration to a collaborative educational process fully involving parents, teachers and students themselves.
