Meet Ward 6 Challenger Lisa Hunter
What’s the biggest challenge facing Ward 6 right now?
Ward 6 has in many ways become the epicenter of the growing inequality we are seeing across DC. We have expensive condo buildings going up across the Ward, from The Wharf to Navy Yard to H Street, as our affordable housing crisis continues to grow. We see all this construction going on around us, and it’s looked at by some as a measure of success, yet many neighbors don’t realize that DC has the highest rate of homelessness in the nation, per capita. When it comes to our schools, we have the widest racial achievement gap of any Ward in DC, some of the worst wage, savings and health care disparities of not just anywhere in the city, but anywhere in the nation.
We’ve gotten to this point because we keep electing leaders who take most of their money from wealthy DC political insiders, developers and business owners, and cast their votes on the Council accordingly. Charles Allen is the most glaring example of that, having taken donations from just about every business owner and developer executive with a financial stake in the Ward. This pay-for-play governance is exactly why our community works great for some people, and so poorly for so many others.
That’s why this election matters. It can no longer be enough to feel good about ourselves because we vote for Democrats, because the Democrats we’re voting for are the ones who have underfunded our schools, public housing, and social services. They’re the ones who have cut corporate taxes and handed out the hundreds of millions of dollars in developer tax subsidies that have exacerbated these problems. It’s time for us, as a community, to take a hard look around and decide whether this is who we want to be.
You’ve been active in national politics at least since 2008, when you were a field organizer for Obama, and you worked on the Hill after that. How would you apply that experience on the Council?
Above all, my background reflects a commitment to work for people, not corporations or special interests. I have no interest in winning this race only to become a female version of Charles Allen; I’d much rather lose next week with my progressive values intact than ever have that happen, because I’m not in this for myself. My background, and my campaign, shows that I am willing to go anywhere, and listen to anyone, to make sure the most vulnerable members of our communities have a voice, and make sure the policies we adopt as a city reflect that voice. That’s what I’ve done in my career, and that’s what we need on our DC Council. A good example is the ongoing effort to fully implement paid family leave. I think it’s crazy that council members were even taking meetings with the DC Chamber of Commerce. This is a public health issue, why in the world, other than because they donate thousands of dollars to council members, should their opinion matter? The answer is, it shouldn’t, and I’m the only person who is unafraid to say that. I have demonstrated a commitment to working for people, not for donors or for myself, so there’s no amount of money that a business interest could hand over that would get me to disregard the advice of doctors and parents when it comes to matters of public health.
You work in health policy. Are there any local health issues you’re passionate about? (Could also ask about childcare.)
As the only person in this race with substantive health care experience, it bothers me to no end to see how our politicians try to frame access to healthcare in DC through a lens of success, when we really know that access to high-quality health care in DC, even before birth, varies greatly based on race in geography. It’s more than political failure at this point, it’s a humanitarian crisis as far as I’m concerned.
A good example of the disparity between DC Council talking points and reality is our current maternal health crisis. Maternal mortality and morbidity rates for Black women in DC more closely resemble those seen in developing nations than in other US cities, yet we claim to have addressed the problem by passing legislation to study the problem.
More accurately, we’re studying half the problem, because for reasons that remain unknown Charles Allen proactively removed maternal morbidity — which includes pregnancy-related deaths that occur in the months and years after delivery — from the legislation. So, as with many things in DC, we have a study that takes no tangible action now, commits to doing nothing in the future, and yet gives council members a talking point, to say they’re taking this on. How about policy changes, or funding in the budget, to actually address the crisis today, before more women die? We should be coordinating care providers–ranging from nutritionists, nurse midwives, doulas, lactation consultants, mental health providers and obstetricians–into a network for expecting families. We can’t let major changes, like the latest insurance contracts or clinic locations, slip through the cracks. Every step of a pregnancy and early childhood should be supported without administrative gaps or confusion. There are community organizations, government agencies, private sector, and academic initiatives aiming to improve maternal health care in DC, but their efficacy will be limited so long as they operate separately. We’ve acted on none of this, yet the Council has taken a victory lap.
You’ve mentioned you want fair wages for tipped workers. What’s your take on Initiative 77?
I fully support Initiative 77. I understand there are strong views on both sides, and a lot of money being spent by the National Restaurant Association to kill the initiative. My position is simple: when you strip away the talking points, all of the available data shows that women and people of color are doing better in every state that has eliminated the tipped minimum wage. As a woman, and as a person of color, supporting 77 is an easy choice.
It’s also important to put the debate in context. There is a lot of discussion about restaurant workers who are outwardly opposing 77, and that’s well within their right. But I get uncomfortable when people insist that all tipped workers, or even the majority, oppose 77. I’ve met with workers — mostly women and people of color — who are strongly in favor of 77, and they’re afraid to say so because they know they will be fired if they do. They cannot speak out publicly, they cannot attend rallies, they cannot tweet about it, because they will lose their jobs. One of the reasons that I’m continuing to speak loudly about this issue, even as restaurant owners send me hate mail, is because I know what a privilege it is to be able to speak out without fear of retaliation. I know that I’m speaking on behalf of people who don’t have a voice in this debate, because they’ve been silenced against their will. Being able to do things like this is exactly why I got into this race in the first place.
Let’s say as a rookie CM you’ve only got enough juice to get one signature initiative through. What’s something you think you could realistically pass next year?
I think we could get a tremendous amount of work done in the healthcare space if we elected someone who is willing to shine a light on the Council and get to work. I reject the idea that you must have seniority in local government if you wish to move common sense reforms that literally save lives, I think you need the expertise to identify and message solutions, and a willingness to fight until the job is done.
Let’s start with the tampon tax repeal, a bill that passed three years ago. The Council had their press conference and has taken their victory lap, but three years later they haven’t funded it. And nobody on the Council is speaking out on this, because they are all to blame. This is a public health program that would drastically improve the economic security of vulnerable women in DC, at a cost of only $3 million per year, and we can’t seem to find the money because nobody is willing to try. Meanwhile, we just added another $22 million per year in business tax cuts to the 2019 budget. Imagine a Council where councilmembers felt pressure to do more than pass bills, but were actually held accountable for following through with funding and implementation. I believe we could make a lot of progress when it comes to reforms and funding for programs that would address many of the health disparities we see in our city. These are complex problems, but they’re problems that our community wants to see solved; we just need to elect leaders with the skills and willingness to take them on. I would bring to the DC Council a level of experience and expertise in healthcare that doesn’t currently exist across the entire 13-member body.
What’s the best thing the Council did last year?
Finally putting to bed the debate over the current version of the paid family leave law. The law in its current form is common-sense, and the ongoing debate on behalf of business donors was unseemly. Now it’s time to work to expand the law in accordance with what doctors recommend is the appropriate amount of paid family leave, because the current law does fall short of what I believe should be an obvious low-water mark.
What’s the worst thing the Council did last year?
Voting to slash tenants’ rights by repealing a substantial portion of TOPA rather than considering targeted reforms. The process and outcome was an example of everything that’s wrong with DC government. Votes and testimony that occurred on a weekday, when many low-income tenants are at work and cannot take time off in order to speak out in defense of their rights. A final vote in a room filled with mostly white affluent male DC insiders who work in real estate who broke into cheers when the vote was final. It was one of the most glaring examples of our DC Council perpetuating the inequity that exists across our city. Their big donors got what they paid for, and vulnerable tenants across the city lost one of the few remaining footholds they had.
What’s your favorite place to canvass?
I have met great people in every corner of Ward 6, but I have really enjoyed canvassing at places like 2nd Northwest Co-Op, Rosedale, Greenleaf and Syphax. It means a lot to me to meet neighbors who say they’ve never had a politician come by to talk to them before. I still don’t consider myself a politician, but I do take a lot of pride in knowing that, win or lose, maybe I’m making people realize that good politicians come by to talk to everyone. We’ll be a stronger city if we start electing people who believe that, and live by it, and if I can help us get there just a little bit faster than we otherwise would, this whole experience has been well worth it.
Learn more about Lisa Hunter:
- Lisa Hunter for Ward 6 (official website)
- Charles Allen Challenger Lisa Hunter Drops More Than Just Provocative Videos (WCP)
- Lisa Hunter interview (The Hill is Home)
- Candidates debate tenants’ rights issues for Ward 5, Ward 6 and the D.C. Shadow delegation (StreetSense Media)
- What Ward 6 should know about Lisa Hunter (Capital Women)
