Why are you running for mayor?

“The Socialist Workers Party campaign is the only campaign with a program for the vast majority – the working class. Capitalism is the source of the economic, social and moral crises faced by working people worldwide, including in Minneapolis, which includes the drive toward another world war. The SWP campaign opposes Jew-hatred and supports Israel’s right to exist. Only a movement of workers to take power out of the hands of the capitalist class can begin to solve these crises in the interest of our class.”

As mayor, how will you advocate for immigrants and communities of color?

“To fight for a union-led campaign for amnesty for immigrant workers to build the unity of the working class and to halt the arrests and deportations. Unemployment and other social ills bred by capitalism always hits Blacks, Native Americans, and other oppressed harder. The Socialist Workers Party candidates call for a massive public works program to provide employment at union-scale wages building housing, schools, roads and other needed infrastructure, including building and staffing childcare centers to ease the burdens on working-class families, especially women.

“Working class families need a supplement to their income, an income sufficient for workers to maintain steady employment, as the labor movement fights for universal childcare and medical care.”

Should homeless encampments be allowed to exist in Minneapolis? When should the city clear homeless encampments?

“Frederick Engels, in his book “The Housing Question,” said “In order to put an end to the housing shortage there is only one means: to abolish altogether the exploitation and oppression of the working class by the ruling class.” While various initiatives find some housing for some people, the capitalist system continuously recreates the crisis anew. The Socialist Workers Party candidates call for a massive public works program to provide employment at union-scale wages building housing. But we need more. We need to build a proletarian party to lead our class to take power out of the hands of the capitalist class before their drive for profit ends in a new world war. That is the only way “to abolish altogether the exploitation and oppression of the working class by the ruling class.””

Do you agree with how the city handled its presence at the federal drug investigation on Lake Street in June, and how can Minneapolis improve its response in future incidents?

“The Socialist Workers Party opposes all attacks on democratic rights. Whether a militarized and heavily armed attempt to serve warrants at a restaurant on Lake Street or at the home of a former president at Mar-a-Largo. The SWP is opposed to the use of national guard and federal troops in cities across the country, as well as the increased use of all federal cop agencies under the guise of “fighting crime.” The ultimate target is the working class and the growing resistance to the attacks by the bosses.”

Do you support the policing reforms in the recently abandoned federal consent decree against Minneapolis police? If yes, how should the city ensure these reforms are enacted?

“Decades of police "reform" have not resulted in any meaningful change. The role of the cops is the same -- to protect the property and privileges of the ruling capitalist class. That role becomes sharper in times of increased class struggle. We are for the prosecution of cops who brutalize or kill working people. Because of the social ills bred by capitalism, including crime in working class communities, it is not possible to do away with the police. In Cuba it took a proletarian revolution of millions to change the system and replace the old regime's brutal police force with one that serves the interest of the working class.”

How can the city make up for lost federal grants and revenue due to cuts from the Trump administration?

“The Socialist Workers Party candidates call for a massive public works program to provide employment at union-scale wages building housing, schools, roads and other needed infrastructure, including building and staffing childcare centers to ease the burdens on working-class families, especially women. Working class families need a supplement to their income, an income sufficient for workers to maintain steady employment, as the labor movement fights for universal childcare and medical care.”