Note
- This candidate has been removed from the ballot by the Chicago Board of Elections, but has filed for judicial review. Their name will still appear on the ballot until the court’s decision.
About the Candidate
Name: Marcia Brown-Williams
DOB: April 12, 1961
Family: Son, Timothy Alan Williams, Jr. is 30 years old. He will graduate from medical school this April, 2019. He plans to practice Family Practice/Internal Medicine after graduating. My father, who just turned 85 on January 14th, was a teacher and an administrator for 34 years with the Chicago Public Schools. I have a sister who, like myself, is a graduate of Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. She graduated from Meharry Dental school in Nashville, Tennessee with a degree in dentistry. She is a practicing dentist here in Illinois. My mother, who is deceased, graduated from college, Clafin College in Orangeburg, S.C. where she met my dad and graduated #1 in her class with a biology/chemistry degree with a minor in math. After my mom and dad traveled from Florida to Chicago in 1963 to find work and housing for their young family which included me and my brother, they both became teachers with Chicago Public Schools. My mother taught junior high science for 22 years until her death in 1986. My dad was a teacher and then an administrator for 34 years when he retired in 1994. I also had a brother, Dr. Mark B. Brown, M.D. He was a graduated from Morehouse College. Together, we both graduated from college the same month and year. After college, my brother attended medical school. He received a full medical school scholarship from both the University of Pennsylvania and from the University of Illinois, Chicago campus. He decided to come back to Chicago and to attend the University of Illinois. He graduated #2 in his class and practice for 26 years as a family practice/internal medicine physician until his death in 2012 from stomach cancer. Our mentoring organization for junior and high school CPS students, established a scholarship in my brother’s name 5 years ago with the purpose to continue helping young men who need additional funding to help the cost of their education. My brother, while he was alive, and a few years after he finished his residency and working a couple of years later, he would donated $10,000 to Morehouse each year in ordered to help 2 to 3 young men with meeting their expenses while in school. We decided to keep his legacy going by establishing a scholarship 5 years ago in his name at Morehouse College and awarding financial assistance for the same reason to help young men meet some of the cost for their education.
Occupation: Junior High School teacher; Language Arts.
Political Experience: I’ve worked many political campaigns. I worked on Mayor Maynard Jacksons’s mayoral race in Atlanta when I attended Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. Later, I was a volunteer for 18 months on then Governor Bill Clinton’s 1st presidential campaign. I worked as a volunteer for several months for Forrest Claypool’s campaign when he ran for Cook County Board President. In 2004, I worked on then, Illinois State Senator, Barack Obama’s U.S. 2004 Senate campaign. I again volunteered for Barack Obama on another campaign when he ran for the 2008 presidential campaign. I worked on this campaign beginning in February, 2007 for 20 months. I was a volunteer at first then I was made Field Organizer which meant I traveled throughout the midwest as well as a few other states outside of the midwest to organized canvassing operations and to organized Voters’ Registration Drives in Illinois and several other states. I most recently volunteered on my Spelman sister, Stacey Abrams governor’s campaign in Atlanta by making phone calls. I even flew to Atlanta twice to help with canvassing and to assist with voters’ registration. I was a lobbyist for 2 years for the Chicago Teachers Union under the leadership of President Jacqueline Vaughn.
Website: marcia2019-9thward.net
Candidate Statement
Hello, my name is Marcia Brown‐Williams and I am a candidate for the 9th ward.
As a long time Chicagoan, I am totally invested in the quality of life for the people of Chicago and especially for the people of the 9th ward. I have lived in the 9th ward for 16 years. I have been invested in the education of our young people for I was an educator with CPS for over 25 years.
As the next alderman for the people of the 9th ward I have 3 goals to help improve the quality of life for everyone which includes, Altgeld Gardens, Pullman, Roseland and the Rosemoor communities. I want to rebuild our business district back to the economic hot spot it once was bringing to our community small businesses that will flourish not only from the people of the 9th ward but by others that will love being a part of our wonderful community.
I want to bring about more affordable housing especially, for young people and their young families. It is also important to bring homeownership agencies into the 9th ward that will help homeowners keep their homes when they are experiencing financial difficulties.
Another way I want to help rebuild our community is to curb the influx of gun violence and other types of crime in our community by establishing programs that can help our young people. This will include job training and placement, mental help assistance and aiding young people who wish to continue their education after completing high school. I also want the people of the 9th ward and the officers that patrol our streets to build a trusting and better relationship.
I am a strong believer of helping those who need a helping help hand. My mother said, “Your purpose in life is to be of service to others.” I will be your true public servant. I hope that the great people of the 9th ward will vote for someone who cares about them. I am that person; Marcia Brown‐ Williams, candidate for the people of the 9th ward.
Candidate Q&A
What is your vision for this office?
Within the 9th ward, there are many great places and people. I want to be a true advocate for the residents of the 9th ward. Giving flowery platitudes and false hopes just to get a vote is not acceptable. I want to do the hard work and bring about a variety of changes such as rebuilding our economy fabric by bringing in new businesses to our ward’s business district which is from 111th and Michigan to 115th. Right now, many sections of our ward’s business district looks like a ghost town where more than half of the store fronts are closed and abandoned. I also want to make sure that we not only have affordable housing for our seniors but, affordable housing for other families, which may include families with only 2 members or large families. This also will include single people who are starting their career or a new job and wish to move into the 9th ward. It may also include a middle age person who wants to downsize or has decided to move so that they too will be able live is a comfortable and inviting community. The 9th ward can be that place with the necessary changes that will be put in place by our team once elected into office. Right now, there are not enough affordable housing in the ward for this segment of the population. This can be done. With help from the city, state and the federal government by providing housing vouchers or lower housing pricings, that will make renting or buying housing available and accessible. Another thing I would will work to do is to make sure that the people in our communities and the police establish a better relationship with one another. By working together, each group will see each other as allies and not adversaries. Maybe this way, we won’t have to worry about another Laquan tragedy to occur that will continue to sickened and bring about more broken hearts of an entire community.
What is the most pressing issue facing constituents, and how can you help address it?
The most pressing issue facing the people in the 9th ward is job creation and safety in every neighborhood. We have a jobless rate that is higher than many parts of the city. Also, many people feel that more needs to be done by having more police patrolling neighborhoods, especially areas where there seems to be a higher crime rate than other parts of the 9th ward. We also need to make sure that the street lights in many of our ward is not working is fixed and amble lighting is restored. Even though many people of the ward are constantly calling the current alderman’s office and asking that the light on our street poles be replace or maybe, repaired, have many times fallen on deaf ears. This has left many neighborhoods in the 9th ward in the dark far too long or, in some cases, permanently. This cannot continue and this will change when I take the mantle to be the People’s Servant of the 9th ward. The role of the alderman or any elected official is to do what’s right for the people that represent, which is doing what is right for the people who “hire” us and who ask for help.
