JACK
EVANS
MAYOR
Solutions. Not Excuses

“I believe our city deserves leadership that offers solutions, not excuses...and a Mayor who not only demands accountability from others, but is also willing to be held accountable.”

Jack Evans
Mayoral Announcement Speech
John F. Kennedy Playground
Washington, DC
May 30, 1998

I'd like to begin today with a conclusion. And that is, if our city continues down the same path of resignation, frustration, and blame that we've walked for the last decade, we will have little hope of regaining the reputation our nation's capital deserves.

And that is simply unacceptable.

I believe this ... I believe Washington, D.C. is a place of rich diversity and vibrant culture, and needs to be again a place of opportunity, responsibility, tolerance, and hope. This is our home, and we have a right to be proud of it.

This is an exciting day for the Evans family. Over the course of today, I will visit every ward in this city and talk with people from every walk of life. Moving our city forward will require all of us working together, and, believe me, we have a lot of work ahead of us.

I believe our city deserves leadership that offers solutions, not excuses. And a Mayor who not only demands accountability from others, but is also willing to be held accountable. That's what our city deserves, and that's what it's going to take to reclaim our pride and make our city work again.

That's why here today, surrounded by family and friends ... at a time of great opportunity for the future of our city ... I am officially announcing my candidacy for the office of Mayor — because I know we can do better.

As all of you know, we begin this campaign at a unique moment in our city's history. As John F. Kennedy once said, "the torch has been passed to a new generation of leaders."

For the first time in nearly twenty years, we have the opportunity to forge a new spirit of cooperation, unity, and hope.. This is an opportunity that didn't exist even two weeks ago.

But rebuilding our city will take more than rhetoric. It will take a leader willing to offer specific solutions to tough problems, and it will take a leader who can bring people together to make it happen.

This is our home, and it deserves the best from all of us.

I decided to begin this campaign here in Shaw at the Kennedy playground because, to me, this playground is the center of our city. If you look at a map, you will see this spot at the heart of the diamond ... the heart of Washington.

But it's more than just a physical center, it's also a symbolic center.

In this neighborhood named after Major Robert Gould Shaw, the commander of the first all-black regiment in the Civil War ... in this playground dedicated by Robert F. Kennedy after the death of his brother, President John F. Kennedy ... we can see, all around us reminders of our challenges and symbols of our potential.

In the 1960s, this park represented everything good in Washington. It was a safe place for neighborhood children to play and an evening gathering place for senior citizens. But by the early I990s, it had become a place of drug dealing, death, and despair. There were even execution-style slayings on the playground equipment.

But the Shaw Crime Task Force, which I am proud to co-chair with Norma Davis, and the Friends of Kennedy Playground led by Peter Easley helped turn this playground around. And today, the potential of this neighborhood, and indeed of Washington itself, is represented by the vibrant network of homes, churches, and businesses that ring this park.

Neighbors have joined together to make this park safer for our children, and that effort is symbolic of what we can achieve for our city.

Shaw is a neighborhood — like many neighborhoods in Washington — where families live and parents hope that their children will do better than they have done. And it is to these hard working people that we owe our best efforts. Because surrounding this park, we can also see how much work still needs to be done.

We have crowded schools where children are crammed into classrooms and teachers are frustrated by a lack of discipline and no system of accountability.

We have abandoned stores, boarded-up homes, and dark streets at night — places where neighbors are afraid to walk and visitors never visit.

Today in Washington, despite recent progress, crime is still way too high, our police have too many unsolved homicides, and we have over one thousand officers who should be out in our neighborhoods, but aren't.

It's in these unlit corners of our city ... away from the monuments ... that you can see the true condition of our capital city. A city with schools that don't teach enough, city services that don't service enough, and police that aren't policing enough.

And let me tell you, the people of Washington, all of Washington, deserve better.

Let me also say this — our problems are not white problems or black problems. They're all of our problems. And the time for making excuses, pointing fingers, and placing blame has got to end. So let it end here.

I am not blind to what some call the biggest challenge of this campaign, and that is the color of my skin. But to those people I say this — close your eyes and listen to my ideas. If you find them wanting, vote for someone else. But if you find them compelling, open your eyes and join the conversation, because we can all learn from each other.

This is what I know: improving our schools is not a white problem or a black problem. It's all of our problem.

Getting more of our police out on foot patrols is not a white problem or a black problem. It's all of our problem.

Or filling potholes — there's no white way or black way to fill a pothole. There's only the correct way. And it shouldn't take six months to get it done.

The people of Washington deserve leaders willing to move beyond the divisive rhetoric and begin offering real solutions to tough problems. And that's why I'm here today.

Beginning this afternoon and over the course of this campaign, I intend to tell the people of this city exactly what I'll do as Mayor and how I'll do it.

No excuses. No rationalizations. No placing blame. Just solutions.

Let's start with our schools — and I'm going to spend a little time on this issue — because there's no quick fix for such a troubled situation.

Our children deserve a thoughtful approach to such an important problem. The best way to attract good jobs to Washington is to invest in our schools and our children and prepare our workforce for the needs of potential employers.

I'll begin with the money we're spending — today, nearly forty percent of our school operating budget never reaches the children in the classroom. Instead, those dollars are being wasted on a massive bureaucracy of over 900 administrators.

What's even more amazing is this — nobody seems to know how many children are even in our public schools. The estimates range from 67,000 to 77,000.

As Mayor, the first thing I'll do is count the students, classify the administrators, and then fight to cap administrative expenses at ten percent of the total school budget.

Ninety percent of our school dollars should be going directly into the classroom to hire more teachers and invest in textbooks, computers, and other modern equipment. We should spend the money where it's needed — in the classroom.

Also, before we approve any increase in school spending, we must mandate that the number of administrators be cut by one-third next year. Just as our new Police Chief Ramsey has stated, he will not ask for additional money until he reduces inefficiencies and cuts costs. So must our schools be held to the same standard.

Beyond the budget issues, there is a larger problem with our education system, and that is simply this — there is little accountability in our schools and that has got to change.

First, I want to be held accountable as Mayor, and to do that, I'll seek the power to hire and fire the School Superintendent and to veto wasteful line-items in the school budget.

Second, I will hold the principals accountable by implementing school-based budgeting and management. Principals should have the power to run their own schools with accountability tied to student performance. If a principal isn't getting' the job done, they should no longer be a principal.

Third, I want to hold the teachers accountable for class performance by rewarding them with bonuses for improved test scores and by instituting peer reviews to monitor the performance of fellow teachers. For those teachers in need of improvement, we will give them every opportunity through continuing education. If they don't comply, they will be removed from the classroom.

Our children deserve the best talent we can find. All of our children deserve that.

Fourth, I want to hold the students accountable to standards of conduct. A disruptive student who continuously interrupts the learning of other students should not necessarily be suspended or expelled, but should be placed in an alternative education setting.

I will not give up on these children. That happens too often already. But we must ensure they are not slowing down the learning of those children around them.

Like the mural says in this playground, "Earn your respect by learning to respect." Children who want to learn without distractions should have that right, and teaching self-respect is the first step in the right direction.

Lastly, I believe our parents should be accountable as well. Every year, parents should sign a Contract for Learning with their child, their child's teacher, and the school principal that lays out the performance requirements and mutual expectations of parents, children, and schools.

To help parents know how schools are doing, we will issue "school report cards" that tell how a school ranks on test scores, attendance, drop-out rates, and advancement to college. And we will send School Improvement Teams into the poorest performing schools to develop reform plans that hold the teaching staff accountable.

Too many of our families have moved out the District in search of better schools. But a lot more families can't afford to move. Those are the families I'm most concerned about.

Washington's schools used to be the pride of this country. They must be and will be again.

Our police department also used to be a source of pride and national respect. But times have changed. Here's what I believe we have to do with regard to crime and public safety. First, this city has forty-seven known open-air drug markets that have been in operation for over twenty years. I will shut them down for good by permanently assigning police officers to specific drug markets in specific neighborhoods. And those officers will stay in those neighborhoods day in and day out.

We're going to shut those drug markets down, and they're not going to open up the next day or the next week two blocks down the street.

Second, we're going to do something about all the abandoned houses that are used for the drug trade. We will offer them- to families for one dollar with their commitment to fix up and live in that house for at least five years. We already have this program in Washington, but citizens just don't know about it.

And for those houses nobody wants, we'll tear them down. No Washington family in any neighborhood should have to live next door to a drug house. That is unacceptable.

Third, we're going to put more police on the street. Here is a troubling fact: Washington has 3,600 police officers, but only 1,400 are actually out on patrol. It's unbelievable and inexcusable.

Before I became Chairman of the Judiciary Committee last year, we actually had only 650 out on the street. It's no wonder every time I visit a community organization, people raise their hands and say, "we never see any police." It's because most of them aren't out there, and let me tell you something, that's going to change.

We will start by immediately reassigning an additional 1000 officers to patrol duty — that includes replacing officers on administrative duty with a civilian workforce. Currently, Washington's police department has more officers doing civilian jobs than any major city in the country. We are going to change that.

We will put new computer technology in our police cars. That will save time and keep officers on the street.

We need neighborhood police substations and more officers out there getting to know the neighbors — walking foot patrols and riding bicycles.

We will also be offering officers low-interest loans to purchase homes in the neighborhoods they patrol. All of that helps prevent crime before it happens.

It's also time to begin holding police officers responsible for their own behavior by giving bonuses for good performance and penalizing misconduct.

Lastly, we have to hold police leadership accountable for setting and enforcing standards of conduct for police officers, and for reducing crime in their districts. No more misconduct and no more excuses for not getting police out on the street or closing cases. We're not going to tolerate that any more.

Finally, I will be a Mayor who will bring fiscal accountability back to city government and back to city services, and a Mayor who will work effectively with Congress. Because that's the only way we're ever going to put the Control Board out of business.

That means, first, continuing to pass balanced budgets to meet the congressional criteria for shutting down the Control Board.

Second, we must use a portion of the budget surpluses to eliminate the city debt. We must get out from under our debt service payments so we can adequately fund the programs we need in Washington.

Third, on city services, we will create efficient One-Stop Shops for licenses, permits, and other city services — and end the long lines that we have, unfortunately, come to expect.

Fourth, we will institute an Innovation Bank to which offices or agencies could apply for funds to modernize or pursue reforms, and use the savings to pay off the loan.

Fifth, we will offer bonus incentives for good performance from city workers and impose strict time limits for completing city repairs.

And finally, I will require all managers, including myself as Mayor, to work in the field at least one full day a month. For two of the last four years, I have served as Chairman of Metro. As Chairman, I learned that some of the best ideas often come from people out in the field. We are going to ensure that city managers are out there getting that kind of experience and knowledge. Sweat equity is a great investment.

We can rebuild our city. But it all comes down to performance and demanding accountability.

No more excuses. Just get the job done.

These ideas are just the beginning. Over the course of this campaign, I will continue to offer solutions to the people of this city. Because, more than anything else, I believe the voters deserve to know exactly what I will do as Mayor. That's the kind of leadership this city needs in order to get rid of the Control Board, to build a new relationship with Congress, and to regain true home rule.

Let me tell you why all of this matters so much to me. As many of you know, a year and a half ago, my wife Noel and I became parents of triplets. We suddenly had a big family in a big hurry. And I wouldn't trade that for the world.

I also wouldn't trade raising them in this city. I want Washington to be a place where all of our children have the best chance at a bright future. And it shouldn't matter what side of the park, or what side of what river you live on. It should only matter how hard you're willing to work and how dedicated you are to learning.

As Robert Kennedy said in South Africa, a short time after dedicating this playground ...

"Few will have the greatness to bend history itself. But each of us can work to change a small portion of events ... and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation."

This is our time to change our city. But it will only happen by working together. We can be a great city again. We just have to believe in ourselves and believe in each other.

Thank you very much and God bless you.