The Case of the Broken Candidates Circles

November 29, 2010

My name is Valerie F. Leonard, and I am a Candidate for Alderman of the 24th Ward. I am writing this letter in
response to the press release submitted to Early and Often by Operation 24, on November 29, 2010, “Operation 24
Community Improvement Association has invited all 23 Aldermanic Candidates in the 24th Ward to Participate in
„Candidates Circle‟, Facilitated by Restorative Justice Practitioners on Nov. 30, 2010”. The letter I received inviting me
to the Candidates Circle stated that the candidates would engage in a facilitated discussion regarding issues of restorative
justice and explore ways we could work together regardless of the outcome of the election. The letter explicitly stated that
the press would not be invited to the event, and there would be no audience. As you might imagine, I was very surprised
to see that Operation 24 submitted a press release to Early and Often announcing the event. I also understand that a
similar communication was sent to others who are not candidates for Alderman.

Upon closer examination of the press release, the story had nothing to do with the Candidates Circle of November
30, 2010, but details Ms. Williams‟ account of the outcome of an informal candidates forum that was held on November
17, 2010. Ms. Williams indicated that she asked members of the audience, as well as candidates to assist her in getting an
advisory referendum on the ballot for the upcoming election of February 22, 2011. Her presentation the night of the
forum indicated that she wanted to see the candidates come together in a room and figure out ways to work together (this
was before we received our letters). She also passed out petitions for the advisory referendum regarding how TIF funds
should be used. She gave us copies, shared copies with the audience, and asked us to meet her Saturday, November 20,
2010 to go canvassing for signatures.

To the best of my knowledge, Ms. Williams never approached any of the other candidates prior to the meeting to
enlist our assistance on this project, or to have a group meeting. The first we learned of her efforts was the day of the
forum, November 17, 2011, in front of a live audience of potential 24th Ward voters. It should be noted that you need
11% of the voter turnout from the last gubernatorial election in the Ward in order to get the referendum on the ballot.
That translates into approximately 1375 qualified signatures. A good rule of thumb is to get 4 times as many signatures as
are required to allow for any disqualified signatures. The time for circulating petitions for advisory referenda started
August 24th and lasted through November 22nd. Either Ms. Williams was circulating these petitions within her own
campaign and we didn‟t know, or she expected us to gather 5,500 signatures between November 17, 2010 and November
22, 2010. The press release didn‟t mention how many signatures were gathered, or whether Ms. Williams filed the
required number of signatures on November 22nd in hopes of getting the measure on the ballot.

Ms. Williams indicated that she wanted to enact legislation (City ordinances I presume) to ensure that TIF funds
would be used for 1) providing resources to businesses in the 24th Ward who hire residents from the Ward; (2) making
repairs to sewer lines and residential streets in the Ward while training and hiring residents to work on these projects; (3)
and creating/maintaining affordable housing, including providing assistance to homeowners in the Ward who are in
foreclosure. I agree wholeheartedly with the questions Ms. Williams has raised, and have raised them myself for years as
the co-founder of the Lawndale Alliance (http://lawndalealliance.blogspot.com). However, the issue is not so much
whether we need legislation to do what Ms. Williams suggests, as it is to enforce the legislation and policies that are
already on the books and ensure that there are mechanisms in place to maintain transparency and accountability.

In closing, I want to say that the idea of candidates and other community leaders coming together to create
leadership circles around a given issue is great. However, using the occasion to posture as a leader among leaders has the
potential of creating no-win situations that could have the effect of polarizing people who would normally work together.
I would hope that in the future that we can honestly create leadership circles rather than vicious cycles.

Valerie F. Leonard
Candidate for Alderman,24th Ward
valeriefleonard@msn.com