Brent Ritzel's Endorsement of Steven Haynes

In case you would like to read the whole thing, here it is:

Brent Ritzel’s Endorsement of Steven Haynes for Mayor of Carbondale

Tuesday, March 22, 2011 - 10:00 am - Carbondale Civic Center

Good morning. I would first like to thank everyone for their patience, as I was originally expecting to make these endorsements about three weeks ago. The combination of losing a grandparent and being rather sick for a week brought me pause, and made me realize the potential importance of these decisions that I make, and these words that I share with you now, in the future direction of Carbondale. At least, for the benefit of Carbondale and the region, I hope to play that role.

Two of the things that where made quite clear to me in this campaign season are that,

1) democracy only works if we participate in it... the less “we the people” vote, the more power, influence and control that MONEY has over our elections... and the further we slip away from being agents of our own destiny. The only thing that CAN trump money in an election IS participation, so please make absolutely certain to vote in our upcoming general election Tuesday, April 5th.

If what happens in Carbondale concerns you, but you are not a registered voter in the City of Carbondale, then please “adopt a voter.” Find a friend, someone you know, who is registered in the City of Carbondale, buddy up with them, and take responsibility for making sure that they make it to the polls to vote. There are a number of ways to participate in democracy, and voter education and advocacy is one of the more impactful.

The second thing made quite clear to me is that the residents of Carbondale crave “connection.” We crave connection to each other as a united community, we crave connection and access to our beautiful surroundings, and above all, we crave leadership that is truly connected to our needs and interests as the residents of Carbondale. We need leadership that is connected to the reality of 100% of the residents of Carbondale, and creates policy that reinforces those values.

Coming to know Steven Haynes through this election process I understand him to be a very intelligent, open minded, comprehensivist thinker and feeler, who prioritizes the residents of Carbondale over any institutional or ideological commitments.

Of all the mayoral candidates Steven has put forth the most positive and inclusive vision for Carbondale’s future that is grounded in immediately implementable plans that focus on local business creation, and a return to mixed use progressive city planning that takes advantage of natural cost saving measures like energy efficiency and utilizing renewable energy sources.

I also find Steven to be most insightful concerning the nature and make-up of the full diversity of Carbondale, including our economic diversity, as he stands as the only remaining "people's candidate" fully capable of considering 100% of ALL residents of Carbondale.

Steven Haynes understands the current reality of Carbondale as having the lowest median household income in the entire United States, for cities of 20,000 or more people. Steven understands that four out of nine of our residents live in poverty, and one in four Carbondale residents are living on less than $106 per week. There can be no doubt that we live in a special needs community.

Right now, we need the in-touch, engaged and collaborative leader that is Steven Haynes. According to my friend Peter Lemish, who has been leading a social and economic justice study of several candidates for local office, “Steven Haynes applies a balanced, comprehensive & inclusive approach to dealing with the town’s significant problems, such as housing, racism and economic growth.”

The most important thing that I want you to know about Steven Haynes is that he supports the continued AND expanded funding of Carbondale’s social service, educational, arts, and preservation non-profit organizations...

Now this is where comprehensivist thinking is essential to understanding complex non-linear systems like a City.... here is an example....

Ever since 1997 The City of Carbondale Police Department has been receiving funding from the U.S. Department of Justice Violence Against Women Grants Office to coordinate activities related to improving the criminal justice response to domestic violence offenses. For example, on September 23, 2009, the City of Carbondale was awarded $366,351 in funding under the Grants to Encourage Arrest Policies and Enforcement of Protection Orders Program (GTEAP).

At that time Mayor Brad Cole stated, “This award demonstrates the City of Carbondale’s commitment to enhancing victim safety and offender accountability in cases of domestic violence through pro-arrest policies and a coordinated community response. The collaborative partnerships between the criminal justices agencies, victim service providers and community organizations which respond to cases of domestic violence are an integral part of the criminal justice system and this grant will further enhance their efforts.”

The Project Steering Committee for the GTEAP consists of representatives of the City of Carbondale Police Department, Carbondale Women’s Center, Southern Illinois University Carbondale Department of Public Safety and School of Law, First Circuit Probation Services of Jackson County, Jackson County State’s Attorney Office, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and the Murphysboro Police Department.

Due to these Pro-Arrest grants, the city of Carbondale and Jackson County have achieved significant gains in providing a coordinated community response to domestic violence. These “charities” like the Women’s Center and the Boys and Girls Club are irreplaceable services AND vital players in our comprehensive problem solving strategies as a City. They are key to the City of Carbondale even getting these funds to begin with.

We simply cannot allow our own personal ideologies or purely intellectual commitments stand in the way of meeting the real life, day to day needs of the people of Carbondale. Steve Haynes understands that an individual’s personal ideological commitments can NEVER stand in the way of doing what is RIGHT for the residents of Carbondale, to always deliver the best possible Return On Investment.

Some candidates in this mayoral race prioritize their ideologies, the thoughts in their heads, over the practical needs of the residents of Carbondale. There simply is no room for such myopic perspectives in local government, especially when they run counter to the well-established values of our community.

Some candidates are committed to defunding all City-supported social service, educational, arts and preservation non-profits... dismantling decades of progress and the City of Carbondale’s comprehensive approach to problem solving... and erasing our civic commitment to high value programs that deliver proven returns on investment.

These programs are vital pieces of the City of Carbondale’s comprehensive problem solving methodologies that have both short and long term impacts on the most pressing issues of our community: childhood education, after school crime, domestic violence, and civil rights violations, among others.

These non-profits are essential partners in our city’s comprehensive problem solving strategies for economic development, criminal justice, and fostering civic-minded residents. These programs add immense value to our community, improve our overall quality of life, and are the type of amenities that attract people to live in our community.

Not only must we support them, we need to expand them. Why? Because it improves us on all levels as a community, and gets an incredible short term and long term Return On Investment. These essential services cannot be left to the vagaries of private tithing, especially given their proven effectiveness and impact, and the essential services role they play in our community.

Steven Haynes gets it. You can find the following on www.Haynes2011.com:

“As mayor I will fight to continue the current level of financing for community programs and support the efforts of those organizations. In order to provide a more stable revenue stream for these critical community programs 1/4 of 1 percent of the city sales tax should be dedicated to community service organizations. To do this I will ask the new council to place on the next available election cycle a request of the Community to vote on this proposal.”

Steven Haynes also understands that these key social service non-profits foster economic development, as they create jobs and they raise up the most vulnerable among us so that we are all more capable of participating in our economy!

We need a mayor that prioritizes the RESIDENTS of this community, especially those most vulnerable among us. Those ARE OUR VALUES as a community. That is why the City Of Carbondale is committed to supporting organizations and programs that deliver high Returns On Investment both socially and economically: Boys & Girls Club, The Women’s Center, The African-American Museum, Carbondale Community Arts, Carbondale Main Street, the I Can Read Program, Attucks Services Board...

As Steven Haynes has reminded me, “if we do not take care of those in most need now, our whole community will pay a much greater price in the future.”