Palo Alto has reached an inflection point. The COVID-19 pandemic has altered business practices, disrupting our local economy, and the social unrest across the nation in furtherance of Black Lives Matter has brought renewed attention to a centuries old struggle for racial equality in America and here at home. Many commentators have already coined this strange era as the “great reset,” where society will have a limited window of time to reset our world in order to build a more prosperous, equitable, and environmentally healthy future.
The legacy of this moment does not need to be tragedy and despair—we can control our own destiny and forge ahead with a vision for Palo Alto that is inclusive and diverse, protects the lives and rights of all community members through meaningful police reform, preserves and promotes community-serving small businesses, provides new affordable housing opportunities, and reimagines our government-community partnership so our city council reflects the will of the voters.
Palo Alto is where I grew up and where I've learned invaluable life lessons that have inspired me towards public service. I left the fulltime practice of law to become a public school teacher here in Palo Alto. I am the Student Activities Director at Paly, and I teach US History at Gunn. I previously taught at J. L. S. Middle School. In addition to educating our city's youth, I am also a neighborhood leader, both as a Block Preparedness Coordinator and as chair of the Midtown Residents Association, the city's largest residents association.
One of my greatest passions is social justice. I am the vice-chair of the Santa Clara County Human Rights Commission, and chair of the Justice Review Committee. I was appointed to the commission by Supervisor Simitian in 2017 and have proudly represented Palo Alto, and the rest of north county, on the commission by advocating for racial and social justice issues. Previously, I served as chair and vice-chair of the Palo Alto Human Relations Commission. These experiences of growing up here, teaching our city’s youth, and representing Palo Alto at the county level have all provided me with a rich understanding of our city's most pressing issues and the leadership experience necessary to tackle those issues and help usher in a more prosperous future.
This great reset is providing us a unique opportunity to forge the type of city and community we want Palo Alto. In order to obtain that desired future, we must commit ourselves to economic recovery while preserving the essential city services we rely on. I have dedicated myself to social justice issues my entire career, as an attorney, human rights commissioner, and now as an educator, and I plan to bring that passion and experience to city hall by using that social justice lens on issues ranging from police reform and city services to housing and beyond.
As a teacher and role model for young people in our community, I have dedicated myself to running a positive, issue-focused campaign. If elected I will work with all my council colleagues, regardless of philosophical differences, because my focus is on public service above politics. I hope to earn the honor of your vote so that together we can create a more inclusive, prosperous, and community-focused Palo Alto.