“For me, I am all about material change. I want to see outcomes, and I want to see progress with tangible results. I think what Seattle does great is that we are all about making sure that all people are involved in conversations and understanding what is actually needed from our communities. But we are not good at creating tangible change and progress. I think a lot of people feel scared, disheartened, and discouraged. But I think I am in a position where, if we actually focus and put our energy collectively into certain things that we can all agree on, I really do think that there could be a material change to things that we are doing.”
“I would like to see more affordable homes. I want to see us increase housing supply and make it so that every single person in our region has a safe, affordable place to call home.”
“Jobs. Some jobs you will feel discrimination, and some you won’t. I would like to feel comfortable in the job scheme to be able to apply for Boeing or Microsoft, but I don’t have that confidence. You don’t see people that look like me, so that definitely has to change, because it only shows one part of Seattle, which is inaccurate. This is literally a melting pot, but every time you go to the Boeing website, or try to apply for any of the jobs, or see any of the Boeing media, it’s nobody that looks like me. So why would I think I have a chance at that job?”
“I would like to see them work with the homeless on campus, instead of trying to get rid of them and disperse them. I think they should really work with those people and involve them, and try to get them into re-education, rehabilitation stuff. I see a lot of housing issues going on, especially with low-income housing. We need to evolve that whole situation. We shouldn’t take advantage of it and use it for what it is for. I see a lot of programs out here being misused and mistreated, and not actually benefiting the community.”
“A lot of the time, almost every day, I look at the news and I see a bunch of crime and gun violence. So, how do we tackle that issue?”
“Well, the changes I would like to see would be difficult, but I would like to see a better way of dealing with people who are homeless, because clearly, we haven’t found a workable solution to that. As in the rest of the country, we have a great deal of economic inequality as part of the housing problem. So, I’d like to see more active efforts to improve that situation for people who need to be in Seattle to do all the jobs that we need to have, and to have some prospect of a good life for themselves and their children.”
