D.C. COUNCIL WARD 7
QUESTION: What is the most important issue facing your constituents, and what do you plan to do about it?</br></br>Lawyer; Ward 7, D.C. Board of Education: chairman, Finance Committee and three-term vice president; member, District of Columbia Bar; Who's Who in Black America; member, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Bar; former member, D.C. Democratic State Committee; general counsel, 1984 D.C. Jesse Jackson for President Campaign; cosponsor, Education Forum, Far Northeast/Southeast Council; lifetime member, PTA.</br></br>A) In Ward 7, we have the highest rate per capita of infant mortality than any place in the nation, the second-highest rate of unemployment in the city and one of the highest rates of teen-age pregnancy in the metropolitan area. The streets of Ward 7 are notorious as a supermarket for drug dealing in this city. In sharp contrast to the downtown area's building boom, entry into Ward 7 from any front reveals a depressed urban area with all the related signs of urban blight: substandard and boarded-up housing, lack of economic development, inadequate cultural and recreational facilities, untended vacant lots and a proliferation of fast-food establishments. I know that government can do a better job of serving Ward 7 residents than has been done in the past and believe that I have the commitment, skills and quality which will ensure that this happens.</br></br>President, real estate management company, Crawford-Edgewood Managers Inc.; BA, Chicago State University; LLD, North Carolina A&T University; was assistant secretary for Housing Management, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; president and chairman of the board, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, 1982 to 1985; D.C. Association for Retarded Citizens, 1988 Outstanding Public Service Award; Ward 7 Business & Professional Association Legislative & Neighborhood Development Award, 1987; IREM Property Manager of the Year Award, 1973; NAACP; Davis Goodwill Industries; Metropolitan Police Boys and Girls Club; Junior Citizens Corps; Kiwanis Club International (Northeast Branch).</br></br>A) The citizens of Ward 7 are very concerned about receiving better city services and about the pervasive use of illegal drugs and its crime-related violence. They want the government to close permanently open-air drug markets, stop drug trafficking, jail the distributors and the pushers, provide adequate police protection and provide treatment to those with substance abuse addiction. I will continue to intercede for and ensure that my constituents promptly receive vital city services like trash collection, street repairs, adequate police protection and youth programs. As Human Services chairman, I have increased the amount of funding available for substance abuse treatment programs to reduce the waiting list and to open additional treatment centers. Moreover, on the Judiciary Committee, I fought to increase the police force with new officers to protect my constituents. I have also consistently advocated using units of the National Guard to assist our police force in the real "War on Drugs."