The battle for alderman in the 35th Ward is what Chicago city politics is made of—challenges, accusations, hopes for significant endorsements and lots of hand shaking with registered voters. And it's a serious rematch between Ald. Vilma Colom and challenger Rey Colon in a largely Puerto Rican ward whose hub is the Logan Square neighborhood on the city's Northwest Side. Unlike many of the city's other wards, where candidates face incumbents without seriously 'upsetting the apple cart,' Colon says he has learned a lot from his first effort, when Colom emerged victoriously. But he does face the fact that he has never held an elected office before.
'My background is in social services—something I've done for the last 24 years,' he said. 'I know the Logan Square area very well because my family and I have been here since 1967. And even though I have never been elected to a public office before, I sure learned what's needed as an alderman, particularly in this ward, in the last election.' One of the difficulties many challengers face is getting their names on the official election ballot—240 certified signatures are needed before the Board of Elections will place any individual's name on the ballot. Colon says he's proven that many voters are seeking a change in his ward.
'We collected 4,877 signatures but submitted less than that because of bad signatures or some that may have been questionable,' he said. 'But we still wound up with 4,500 signatures—500 more than the current alderman submitted. We view our challenge as one stemming from a grassroots volunteers effort. Only my campaign manager is being paid.'
Both candidates have Puerto Rican roots. And because of the similarity in their names, Ald. Colom has used an uppercase 'M' to mark the distinction between herself and her challenger. She says when she was first elected in 1995, she knew that her first act would be to convince residents that the Logan Square neighborhood was still a safe one.
'Some people wondered if this growing Hispanic ward was a place where they could live in safety and raise their families,' she said. 'Some debated whether they wanted to remain or move. I believed that if people got to know one another, in spite of their ethnic backgrounds, they would see how similar we all are. My promise then to the voters remains the same—I work to represent my entire constituency—whether they speak Spanish or not.'
In an interesting quirk, Colom says she actually feels more comfortable speaking English now than Spanish, because her father often required his five children to speak English so they would be better prepared for living and working in the U.S. But she still can reach out to the community in their native tongue.
Background of the candidates
Ald. Colom says she sees herself as a public servant—not so much as a politician.
'I think I'm unique in this way because many people aren't used to such honesty in terms of self-assessment,' she said. 'Sometimes candidates get elected by making a lot of promises. But there is only so much an alderman can do. We don't have unlimited power. But in the history of Chicago politics, people have expected to make their requests and hear affirmative responses. The reality is while we want to make some changes, we often have to work within the limits of the system. And sometimes one has to be honest enough to say 'I can't do anything about that problem.'' Colom is a single parent mother with a 25-year-old son and a grandchild. She was raised in Chicago and has a bachelor's degree in secondary education with an emphasis in history. And she attributes her interest in politics to her father.
'For most of my adult life, I worked at Allstate Insurance Company,' she said. 'But when we were growing up my dad made us volunteer—I think to keep us busy and out of trouble on the streets. We did things like work for the Salvation Army, and I was even a candy striper. ... With all of the volunteer work we did, I learned early on how important it is to become involved in the political process.'
Colom recalls one of her first encounters in political action—joining the Puerto Rican community as they expressed their discontent following the Humboldt Park riots.
'The Puerto Rican community was growing rapidly and some citizens felt very uncomfortable,' she said. 'Our demand was that we receive the kind of representation that was fair and equitable, particularly given our rising numbers. I learned a lot about how people often don't trust one another and even dislike one another—all because they don't know each other. That's why since I became alderman I have emphasized nurturing our neighborhood and finding ways to share and celebrate the cultural differences of our residents.'
Colon has worked in the public service arena for most of his career. In his positions with the Boys and Girls Club, the YMCA and the Chicago Park district, his responsibilities have primarily focused on youth work, and have included supervising 45 parks on the Northwest Side, developing recreation and street intervention projects. But he says in order to make areas safer, he has been involved in organizing park rangers—civilians who patrolled the parks on roller blades and bikes.
'I've always focused on youth and the kinds of quality activities needed to keep them in school and out of trouble,' he said. He has received high praise for overseeing the construction of the Y's new branch in Logan Square, but he has some bad memories as well because of his sudden firing from the Y last year. He attributes his dismissal to dirty politics.
And unfortunately, residents from the community have a love or hate relationship with the two candidates. Past events, like a proposal to convert the Unity play lot at Drummond and Kimball, into a basketball court forced residents to choose sides. Colom said no to the park claiming that she was representing a silent majority. But her defiance caused a split in the Logan Square neighborhood—one that remains and which makes this election such an interesting one.
A look at the issues
Colon has come out against car booting by private companies—something that is banned in 46 of the 50 wards, but not in the 35th Ward. Colom changed the Municipal Code, according to Colon, in 2001, permitting private booting in the ward. His press conference regarding this issue sought to link campaign contributions to two private booting companies who do business in the ward. But there has been no proof of any unethical behavior by the alderman in this regard.
Most of our readers pay more attention to issues like hate crimes and guarantees for living spaces for those from the LGBT community. Colom says she knows there are more gays and lesbians living in her ward who are also Hispanic, but many aren't out because of cultural mores. But she says has stood firm in her commitment to the LGBT community.
'After first becoming elected I realized that several people with whom I was very close were gay or lesbian—I just never knew it,' she said. 'I'm not a lesbian but I support their rights as citizens. And as a public servant I have to be willing to help all of the people. However, given my strong religious background, I believe we may disagree with the lifestyle of gays and lesbians, but we are not allowed to hate them or discriminate against them.'
Colom has been trying to build bridges, she says, between those who are gay and straight in her ward, including participating in the annual parade on Halsted.
'We're still working on getting more people involved, but it's difficult because in the Puerto Rican community, sexual orientation is an issue that isn't talked much about,' she said. 'I think a lot of people repress their feelings, especially men because of the whole macho Hispanic thing that really permeates our culture.
'I have worked with CALOR and am hoping we can get them to bring their expertise to developing off-site resource centers in our community. We know that there are fewer dollars for HIV/AIDS, but given the impact on the Hispanic and Black communities, and with such high numbers of both populations in our community, we need to find more dollars. Right now we're still missing the boat.'
Colon agrees that more dollars need to go to services for those effected by HIV/AIDS.
'In a recent questionnaire I said yes when the AIDS Foundation of Chicago asked if the city should contribute an additional million dollars of funding to serve the needs of African Americans and Hispanics,' Colon said. 'In my previous jobs at both the Boys and Girls Club and the UMCA, I included awareness and prevention programs. And we invited speakers to come out to talk to our young people and their parents.'
Who will emerge victorious—the voters will decide
Both Colom and Colon continue to rack up endorsements from various political leaders and community organizations. But the real question is whether the community needs a change in leadership, or if residents are happy with the current administration.
Many of the groups that have held community forums, including the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, the Triangle Community Association and The League of Women Voters, remain reluctant to give their support. They seek to provide opportunities for the community's residents to ask questions.
One committed gay couple however, John Pennycuff ( who works at WCT ) and Robert Castillo, were willing to share their views about the two candidates.
'We believe that Rey Colon represents a chance for a more inclusive form of local government,' they said. 'We both supported him last time when he ran in 1999 and are proud to so do again. We see Vilma Colom as the way things are and Rey Colon as the way things can be.
'She may have a record that seems to be 'pro gay,' but we believe that Rey will be better on issues impacting Logan Square LGBT's and will be more accessible than the current alderman. Many times, we've encountered a hostile alderman at community meetings. We just feel that she's too arrogant and has too cozy relationships with some of the land developers. We'd like to see a change in leadership.'
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4th, 27th, 37th Wards
During the past few weeks, Windy city Times has interviewed candidates for various races. Those interviews are available online.
We extended interview opportunities for several other key races and the candidates declined.
We did have conversations with those in the 4th, 27th and 37th Wards—currently represented by Toni Preckwinkle, Walter Burnett Jr. and Emma Mitts.
In the 4th Ward, Preckwinkle has a strong commitment to the LGBT community.
In the 27th Ward, Walter Burnett also has backed gay and AIDS issues, even though he voted against gender-identity rights in the City Council last fall.
And way out west in the Austin community, 11 original candidates have been paired down to five, including Emma Mitts. Her toughest challenge will come from LaFollette Park President Arlene Jones, who knows the community well. She is also facing a second-time challenger—Minerva Orozco.
