Dear Michael:
Thanks for your kind letter and good advice. I spent the summer listening to many people and I want you to know I heard you loud and clear, too.
I’m not shy about telling people who I am. I speak often about my upbringing in Hong Kong, coming to Toronto and trying to fit in, my activism, getting elected, meeting Jack, my record in office, losing Jack and the road I’ve been on since.
I speak about growing up often. I think it’s important because what I experienced is experienced by people today-but for them it’s even harder because the services they need have been eroded over the last four years.
I’m not going to pretend this is a normal campaign. Rob Ford was in rehab for two months, came back mid-summer, and then withdrew after his sad diagnosis. I tried to engage him on the issues, but goodness knows issues haven’t been front and centre.
I began talking about buses, because they serve all neighbourhoods. They are how many people who most depend on the TTC get around. I get buses aren’t sexy, but the people who ride them deserve to ride without being packed in like sardines. Just as with 29 per cent child poverty, we’ve got to get good food to more kids.
The way I see it, as the progressive I have a responsibility to outline how we can actually make a difference. People want to do more than just end the circus, they want us to really be a city where everyone counts. That’s something I’ve acted on my whole career, and I know how to really get things done at City Hall.
The real me isn’t going to present a grand scheme, saying it will solve everything. What I will do is get things done to help people-no matter their income, background, or neighbourhood.
That’s the difference between me and John Tory.
I am not as smooth a talker. But when I talk, I outline ways to help our poorest kids and help people find more affordable housing. I think there’s a role for the city in creating jobs for young people. Mr. Tory is silent on social policy, and just like Mr. Ford before is a one-trick pony.
Let’s look at his trick.
I take the TTC. I also care about the people who can’t afford cabs or cars and rely on the TTC. So while I don’t have The One Big Thing, my transit plan starts right away, reverses Mr. Ford’s cuts, and immediately improves transit.
Mr. Tory disagrees. If his scheme ever works it only duplicates what the province will do anyway. He won’t listen to the TTC about buses or a subway relief line. He said nothing when Tim Hudak wanted to cancel LRT’s in Etobicoke and Scarborough.
I spoke out, just as I do for bike lanes. He disagrees with open streets so families can enjoy public space for free he opposes making Eglinton Avenue better for pedestrians and cyclists. I think in the wake of Mr. Ford’s toxic transport debate, these are a litmus tests of being a municipal progressive.
Mr. Tory will continue that toxic approach, not end it.
Like Mr. Ford, he isn’t honest about paying for transit. He thinks we can borrow $2.7 billion without paying interest. And thinks despite Metrolinx recommending against his risky scheme and many studies into its failure in the U.S. (one showed a failure rate of 89%), that it’s nit-picky to disagree.
It’s not and I’ve said so clearly. Because the choice we face is this: do we continue delaying what we can do today and cave in to taxphobia-or do we say enough with the failed Ford approach and invest in the city we love?
You know which side I’m on. And you know that I mean what I say, have read the reports (no, really, I have) and do my homework. That’s how I got things done as a trustee, city councillor and MP, and it’s how I will get things done as mayor.
That’s who I am, Michael, and what I stand for.
And I hope I can count on your support.
All the best,
Olivia
Don’t miss our Toronto Election Guide 2014 here.
