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99centstalepretzel t1_j9k7ioa wrote

Reply to comment by mexheavymetal in Mayoral candidate Helen Gym and ex-Mayor Michael Nutter clashed during a live event: ‘We are just in total disagreement’ by thefirststoryteller

I've followed Helen Gym's trajectory ever since she worked at Asian Americans United (when there was talk about casinos being built in Chinatown), and when the Asian students at South Philly High took their case to the DoJ. I'm disappointed and sad at what's she's become (maybe it's always been like that, without the gift of hindsight), but not surprised at all. The fact that some of those kids who took their case to the DoJ are now adults who work in public service/community organizing/nonprofit/advocacy and who are giving back to their communities is no coincidence to her impact.

We could have had it all...🎶

EDITED TO ADD: A few words.

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ConfiaEnElProceso t1_j9kln8w wrote

Excuse the ignorance but what do you mean? You seem to imply that you used to support Gym but are now disappointed by her. What changed in your opinion?

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internet_friends t1_j9l5df9 wrote

I'm not the person who wrote that comment but I do like Helen Gym and do not plan to vote for her for mayor. I agree with the previous commenter that I really liked her start into politics and my values align closely with hers; I also like the focus she puts on Philly's school system, which is a fucking trainwreck. With that said, I don't plan to vote for her because I haven't seen any substantial plans from her on how she'd tackle a variety of issues if she was mayor. I was also extremely put off about the whole Union League debacle and finding out about her husband/that pharma bill from 2019. I think the most off-putting thing about her to me is that much of her platform is built on accountability, which I find extremely important, but haven't seen her take much accountability herself.

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KFCConspiracy t1_j9or1h7 wrote

> I also like the focus she puts on Philly's school system

Well, for what it's worth, without fixing the state's school funding formula, that's probably not getting fixed either. There's been some progress on that front through the courts, but the mayor and city council don't have much power to fix that. Hell, we didn't even have a locally controlled schoolboard until very recently.

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internet_friends t1_j9orgo9 wrote

Oh, it's a mess. I'm with you - one person cannot solve Philly's education crisis. But I do love the focus Gym puts on the school district, and admire her for trying.

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KFCConspiracy t1_j9otj9m wrote

I think the more serious candidates talk about the funding crisis and tell those harder truths about it. I think the more in touch someone is with the reality of it the more likely the problem is to get solved.

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TheNightmareOfHair t1_j9ley5o wrote

This may not be what "accountability" looks like to you but FWIW she apologized swiftly & publicly for the Union League debacle.

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internet_friends t1_j9lg4rc wrote

I saw that apology. I wasn't a huge fan. She basically said "I attended, and I shouldn't have. I'm sorry. I have opposed the Union League for a long time. I'll continue to uphold my values that Philly has no place for hate." Which feels incredibly contradictory to me. If you shouldn't have gone and realized it that night, okay...but you've opposed the Union League for a long time yet still showed up? But you're going to continue to uphold your values? To me, her actions signaled to the Union League that this behavior is okay, even though it's against her values. I would have preferred to have seen her take accountability, admit that the Union League does contradict her own values, and commit to making sure that she will not make similar missteps in the future.

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kilometr t1_j9livqy wrote

I think the Union League debacle was shows the issues with her style of politics. She forgot about her past statement. So much politics nowadays is about opposing and boycotting every organization/corporation/person that holds views you don’t agree with. At a certain point it gets exhausting and I bet politicians can’t keep a mental list of what they need to avoid to not look like a hypocrite.

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