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Shashi for Mayor! Why? Rochester’s decline is driven by a lack of leadership!
In 1950, Rochester was the 32nd largest US city. Now, Rochester ranks 116th. During Mayor Malik Evan’s term, we have dropped from the 3rd largest city in NY State, to 4th, behind Yonkers.
Two festering problems hasten our decline, crime and education. Despite Mayor Evans’ quote, “We are safer now,” city residents do not feel safe. Corn Hill, East near Alexander, Nineteenth Ward, Northeast Quadrant, Park Ave, Upper Monroe Ave—crime proliferates, residents feel more unsafe. Mayor Evans will not aggressively address root causes: defective state laws and some judges who let repeat offenders and dangerous felons out on their own recognizance. Mayor Evans has not mobilized our local state delegates to demand tightening state laws. A perpetrator released after being caught 10 times stealing a car boggles the mind. Yet Mayor Evans is quiet. Neighborhood Scout total crime index rates safety in cities from 100 (safest) to 1 (most unsafe.) Rochester rates 1.
Judge LaToya Lee released the prime suspect in a city security guard’s savage baseball bat beating. Mayor Evans appointed LaToya Lee as judge. Mayor Evans also appointed Van White, who released Jordan Figueroa-Olivo, a prime suspect in the killing of Delwin Aponte-Charbonier. Once again, general silence about judges’ indifference to community safety.
A Stanford study showed Rochester dead last in 3rd – 8th grade math and English academic growth among the nation’s largest 200 cities. This while spending 2½ times the national average per student.
Thousands of Rochester teenagers are not in school and cannot read, write, or do math. Many are quietly desperate, some steal cars, some rob. Mayor Malik’s stark silence about the massive changes the dysfunctional RCSD needs might be politically astute, but too many of our children’s futures are bleak.
It is time for change. Shashi Sinha has never been a politician and his courage in running and in speaking out is what is needed. Shashi is an engineer and a successful entrepreneur. Shashi will focus on crime, education, and housing. Shashi nails it, “Rochester is broken, and people in charge either don’t see it or don’t know how to fix it.” Shashi’s excellent common-sense plan to address our problems will reverse Rochester’s decline.
I give Shashi my strongest recommendation.
Joe Klein
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What is Shashi’s “excellent common sense plan”?
Mr Sinha makes some good points about Mr. Evans’ hit and run style of accountability. But he is also too insular for this position. I only heard of him this year.
Of the 3 parents running for Rochester Mayor, only Candidate Mary Lupien has a child in RCSD. This is truly what it means to have ‘skin in the game’ by learning what it looks like granularity and fighting shoulder to shoulder with other parents.
It is public service at its most intimate and I believe it’s why she has been elected by her district twice.
Mary Lupien listens. She is humble and understands the pain that often motivates behavior—perhaps that is because she is a social and psychological teacher—in RCSD.
She is pragmatic. And as a public servant she has made pains to educate herself in policies used by cities similarly situated to Rochester regarding human needs like housing, safety, and income.
Contrast this to the men holding news conferences with their allies (in the middle of the working day? Could any of us do that?) for craven political gain. Or beating their chests about a profession they have never practiced. Mr Sinba’s candidacy scared me at this juncture.
While he makes some very good points about the silence of Incumbent Mayor Evans, I hope people will join me in voting for Mary Lupien for Mayor.
Her wisdom in hiring local artist and anti BID activist Kel Cheatle is astute. Cheatle sounded the alarm about Evans’ support for a downtown BID. It would turn downtown Rochester into a playground for the very wealthy—replete with a private security team. I also support the re election of all DSA and peoples slate candidates. This includes Councilwoman Stanley Martin and ‘newcomer’ Kevin Stewart for council (his command of statistics and practice of similarly situated city councils is very impressive).
Mr. Sinha has money in the game. That’s just not enough at this point for me, given his scary lack of experience with the practices of self-governance.
He’s not a politician, he’s a businessman who will make Rochester Great again.
The tune sounds hauntingly familiar.