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CHICAGO
Mayoral candidate Chuy Garcia, who faces incumbent Rahm Emanuel in the April 7 run-off, held a noon rally here at Devon’s Patel Café March 21 to meet with Desi business owners and community leaders. Among the host organizations endorsing his bid were the Patel Brothers chain, Indo-American Democratic Organization (IADO), MoveOn Chicago Council and Green Party of Chicago. As Garcia arrived very late, Cook County Clerk David Orr had ample time to clarify issues at stake. Local ethnic leaders who seized the occasion to endorse Garcia publicly included Filipino, Arab, Palestinian and Assyrian communities. He received a hearty individual endorsements from respected officials such as Alderman (32nd Ward) Scott Waguespack, who vowed to personally campaign across neighboring wards.
Orr, a longtime Rogers Park neighbor and campaign co-chair, introduced Garcia to rousing applause. “Chuy is someone who will listen to people, someone who understands. He is the kind of person that can show people that there is trust and goodness and hope to make the city a better place for everybody,” he said. He praised Garcia for his record as a longtime reformer and honest public servant who has the skills and experience to put the city’s finances on the right track.
Community leader Susan Patel of Patel Brothers welcomed the crowd to her establishment and expressed strong support. “As a small-business owner in an immigrant community, I appreciate Garcia’s commitment to job creation and business development in the neighborhoods,” said Patel.
“As an organization, we are 100 percent behind Garcia’s vision for fiscal sustainability and transparent management of City of Chicago,” said IADO President Ram Villivalam. “Garcia’s plan for a smarter and more effective government can bring a new direction to Chicago and its residents.”
Garcia declared that as Mayor he would make Chicago more welcoming to immigrants, small-business owners, neighborhood residents and students. “I envision a city that works hard to make sure every resident feels included. Whether your family comes from Lahore, Pakistan or Leon, Mexico, you should have access to the same benefits and protections as every Chicago resident,” he said. “As an immigrant from a small town in Mexico, I know firsthand the sacrifices, challenges and aspirations faced by all newcomers.”
Aiming to put neighborhoods first and make Chicago “a city for the 100 percent, not the 1 percent,” Garcia has earned endorsements from many of Chicago’s Asian-American leaders and organizations.
The agenda he presented included helping immigrants navigate City Hall especially for permits, licenses and zoning, and to make it more “customer friendly” for small-business owners; revitalizing Chicago Commission on Human Relations ethnic advisory councils to strengthen Asian-American voices; putting 1,000 new police officers on the streets, improving community policing and designating a community resource officer from Chicago Police Department to serve as a liaison with the local communities; and fast tracking language access, minority contracts and minority hiring.
“My administration will reflect Chicago’s diversity,” Garcia said. “Unlike today’s City Hall – where millionaire insiders, machine cronies and Hollywood moguls call the shots – you won’t have to look far to find everyday people in a Garcia City Hall.”
Garcia said that the vitality of small businesses along Devon Avenue reminds him of his own neighborhood, Chicago’s Little Village. He has more than three decades in public service. Elected in 2010 as Commissioner of the Cook County Board, he serves as President Toni Preckwinkle’s trusted floor leader. He has been a longtime champion for quality schools, better housing, workers’ rights, environmental protections and social justice.
Garcia came to Chicago from Durango, Mexico, as a boy. He has a Masters in Urban Planning from University of Illinois at Chicago. He and his wife Evelyn raised three children. To learn more, visit www.chuyforchicago.com.