Miguel del Valle:A Candidate That Cares About the Issues in the Right Way

EducationScoop#4:SPECIALEDITION

By:Luis Gabriel Aguilera

CHICAGO – January 17, 2011: THE FACT IS I am not affiliated with theMiguel del VallemayoralcampaignexcepttobeaFacebook“friend.”Andfrommyunderstanding,evenifIwere, Iwouldn’t be hearingmuch CA‐CHING! for the information I’m about to pass on—which is good to some extent, as it’s clear that Chicago, with Miguel del Valle, has anindependentmayoralcandidatenot tiedtobigmoney interestsandcronyismpolitics thatlocksoutthemanyforthebenefitofafew.

Thatsaid,whatI’mabouttopassonispartlyoutofasenseofpersonalcareforeducationoverall—notjustchildren—butsoundeducationreforminthevariousshapesandformsitcan take in a variety of arenas, not these cookie‐cutter or misguided approaches thatnationaleducation“experts”likeMichelleRheewiththeirdivisive,authoritarian,andnon‐transparentways(seeattachments“RheeA”and“RheeB”forexamples)andthecorporatecarpetbaggersof todaysellpeopledownthedrainwith,butholisticeducationmodels forchildren,teensandadultsthataddresstheindividual’sphysical,intellectual,emotionalandspiritualmakeup.Ibelieveintheseholisticmodelsbecausetheytrulyhelpindevelopingaself‐actualizedandself‐deterministicbeing,notmeredronesorslavesintoday’sworkforce.

My close friends know my desire to see Chicago’s citizens, be it in the Chicago PublicSchools, the City Colleges of Chicago, adult education programs, art programs, tradeprograms, etc., receive what many of them have not gotten over the years: a soundeducationbecauseofonehoodwinkafteranother.SoI’mbackingacandidatewhoseemstogetthevalueofeducation.MigueldelVallehasservedasChairmanoftheSenateEducationCommittee,memberoftheSenateExecutive,LaborandHigherEducationcommittees,andCo‐ChairmanoftheSenateSelectCommitteeonEducationFundingReformasaSenatorinIllinois,obtainingskills thataddresswhat thePEOPLEneed,not justa few.Buteducationisn’tsimplywhatMigueldelValle isabout,sobelowarefivegoodreasonstoelectMigueldelValleformayor.IhopeYOUsharethisinformationwithyourfamily,friendsorboth,andmaybe evenbecome a “friend” toMiguel del Valle on Facebook if youhave an account—suchencouragingactsgoalongway.Becreative.IFthelinksbelowdon’tworkatthetimeofthismailing,noproblem,I’vefiledPDFsintheattachedzipfile.

Chicago is undergoing a tremendous transformation, perhaps in the healthiest manner.Corruptofficials arebeing forcedout, truth continues to come to light asmoreandmorelegitimate complaints are being filed via the proper agencies like the City of ChicagoCommissiononHumanRelations, theDepartmentofLaborandthe IllinoisDepartmentofHumanRightsandvariousmediaoutletsreceiveconcrete information,andthecrooksare“scrambling”asadearfriendofminetoldmefromtheinside.Andwhilenoonepersoncanbring about total and positive change (each of us as well‐informed individuals are alsoobligatedtoplayapart ifwewishtohaveaworkingdemocracy inplay),goodpoliticiansarepartoftheprocess.Themomentumisthere.Agoodroadisbeforeus.Liveit.Enjoyit.

LuisGabrielAguilera

“5”GoodReasonstoVoteforMigueldelValle(inreversechronologicalorder)

1)FamilyValues&StrongWorkEthic

“MigueldelValleisbattlingoddsagain”By:RummanaHussain,January16,2011http://www.suntimes.com/3281743‐417/del‐valle‐guy‐miguel‐chicago.html

LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: Hussain reveals a refreshingly down-to-earth, scandal-free (No joke!), dedicated civil servant who is, by the way, family-oriented. In a world that has become so corporatized and career-oriented that quality family and friendship time is being constantly disrupted and becoming less and less existent, we have a candidate in Miguel del Valle who has balanced both his service to government (i.e., the people) and family. This is not only a glimpse of Miguel’s family values and strong work ethics, but let’s us know that loved ones matter more to this dude than flashy pin-stripe suits. Can a guy like Rahm say the same?

FAVORITE QUOTES: “‘These folks here have made tremendous sacrifice,’ said del Valle, pointing to his family…“We did without a lot.’ ‘But we did a lot of things together,’ son Miguel III piped in.’”

2)Clear­sighted,Fair­minded&Pragmatic“DelValledefendsteachers’righttostrike,backsstatetaxincrease”By:AbdonM.Pallasch,January12,2011 http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/3259049‐418/teachers‐del‐valle‐strike‐tax.html LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: The scapegoating of teachers, let’s face it, is a smokescreen that provides cover for corruption and overall dysfunction at the Chicago Public Schools’ local school and central office levels. As a DJ, I enjoy original remixes but not broken records! Haven’t we had enough of this song and dance? Well, when you have Chicago Board of Education President, Michael Scott, found dead near the Chicago River following media revelations of his real estate dealings and investigations into dubious expenses he and his staff charged at the board’s (= our) expense; when former CEO of the Chicago Public Schools, the current U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, signs off on keeping a VIP list for facilitating entry into the city’s top schools for the privileged; when $40 million dollars in pension fund contributions go unreported for few years to the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund by CPS even though two Chicago Board of Education members, Peggy A. Davis and Alberto A. Carrero Jr., sit as board members for the pension fund AND school board; and when schools are being run down by administrators with bullying behaviors, false attendance numbers, grade-fixing, etc., who in some cases have network ties that beg for R.I.C.O involvement, it’s clear how chaos in the classroom with large classroom sizes, assessment paperwork overload on teachers, etc. help keep the corruption and dysfunction flowing. Civil servants like policemen and teachers are facing daily life squeezes by these artful dodgers. Do we want more of the same? Let’s not continue to get hoodwinked. Miguel del Valle seems to offer a clear-sighted, fair-minded and pragmatic perspective. And I’m going to stop here before I really get into a rant on CPS. FAVORITE QUOTES: “‘Let’s stop attacking teachers,” del Valle said... “Trying to take away teachers’ right to strike is a direct hit on the teachers. Let’s not try to punish the Chicago Teachers Union by saying “We are

going to take away your right to strike” when they haven’t had a strike in 23 years. I think it’s a slap in the face of teachers. I want to stop the teacher-bashing.’” “‘Teachers are the first to want a good evaluation system that gives them ongoing feedback about their performance,’ del Valle said. ‘Teachers also want an evaluation system that allows incompetent teachers to be weeded out of the system.’” 3)TacklingHealthIssues“SouthwestSideCoalPlants:CleanThemUporShutThemDown”By:MigueldelValleJanuary10,2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miguel‐del‐valle/southwest‐side‐coal‐plant_b_807106.html

LINK PERSPECTIVE by LGA: Speaking of smokescreens, the mere mention of these Southwest Side coal plants has me going for the lozenges. I live within a few miles from both plants and watch them unload their toxic waste in the winter months in innocent fashion: in continuous white billows. The fact that this health, environmental and economic issue is on the table also raises questions of our own personal consumption, production rates as a hypercapitalist society, and causes one to wonder what exactly is the green option now that we do have the technology to make it happen, though not necessarily the political will. Cheers to Miguel del Valle for dropping this on the table! I’m going to make myself some nice tea and drop a lemon in there like mom tells me to do instead of give in to the easy fix that doesn’t last for long. FAVORITE QUOTES: “According to a 2010 report by Chicago's Environmental Law and Policy Center, the health- and environmental-related damages from these coal plants cost the public in excess of $127 million (in 2010 dollars) per year. These costs stem primarily from harm to people's health in and around Chicago, up to 200 miles from the plants.”

Miguel del Valle 4)CleaningUpPastMesses“AsMayorofChicago,IWillTakeBackOurStreets”By:MigueldelValle,January3,2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miguel‐del‐valle/as‐mayor‐of‐chicago‐i‐wil_b_803840.html

LINKPERSPECTIVEbyLGA:Thisgetsthefatcatsshakingintheirboots.Youmeancorrectingpastwrongsofthismagnitude?It’sunheardof.ButEVERYONE,includingiceclimbersinOuray,Colorado,knowsthatALLChicagoansgotarawdealonthisone.Youdon’tevenhavetocheckthelinktoknowwhatI’mtalkingabout.ThisoneeventopsthespacejunkthatlandedintoSoldierFieldafewyearsago.Still,takealookatthepiece.MigueldelVallestatesclearlywhatneedstobedonetogetthiscorrected.Andthere’sevenadirectlinktothesuitfiled.I’msuretheunderdoghasotherideasofwhatneedstobedonewithotherpastmesses.MaybethenextM.I.B.canbefilmednearthelakefront.Geesh!

FAVORITE QUOTES:

“As mayor, I will instruct the city's lawyers to not fight an existing lawsuit to invalidate the meter contract, and will an bring additional suit against Chicago Parking Meters, LLC, the Morgan Stanley-owned private company that bought the meters. Independent Voters of Illinois Independent Precinct Organization (IVI-IPO) and Aviva Pratt filed the original suit.”

“Mayor Daley argued that the deal would stave off a growing city deficit and pushed it through the City Council. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that, after less than two years of the 75-year lease, only $180 million remained for the city. Chicago Parking Meters, LLC, however, will continue to earn money from the deal. In 2010, the company took in more than $73 million, according to Standard & Poor's. Before the contract, the city earned roughly $20 million from its meters.”

Miguel del Valle

5)TIFs,Issue­OrientedCampaigning,TacklingCandidateFunding

“MigueldelValleQ&A”By:EdwardMcClelland,October6,2010http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Miguel-del-Valle-QA-104417718.html#ixzz1BLb2eaXG

LINKPERSPECTIVEbyLGA:Ialmostdidn’thaveenoughenergyforthisone,giventheemotionaldrainofthelastone,butheregoes…HominginontheTIFsscandalisn’tjustsomethingBenJoravskyof“TheChicagoReader”covers.LookslikeMigueldelValleunderstandsthatthatmoneyisn’tbeingspentproperlyinthisinterview.Besidesthis,here’saninterviewthatcangetyoutounderstandwhatsortofpoliticianMigueldelValleis.

FavoriteQuotations

Interviewer: “What about TIFs? Some people are critical of TIFs because they say Mayor Daley has raked off the money into a slush fund.” Miguel del Valle: “We have to go back to the original intent of TIFs, which is to help blighted areas. There are too many TIFs right now, and some of the TIFs we have are not in the right places. The concept is one I support, but I also feel that TIF dollars should be used to construct schools, to relieve overcrowding. TIFs should not be used just to help a business, or businesses. I think that TIFs should be limited to areas in need of economic development. I think there is a need to look at all these TIFs and see when they’re going to expire, and where are there areas on the South Side and the West Side that need additional help.”

LuisGabrielAguileraisauthorof“Gabriel'sFire:AMemoir,”awriter,educator,DJandelectronicmusiccomposer.HeisalsovigorouslypursuingtwodiscriminationcomplaintsagainsttheChicagoPublicSchools.SomeofhismusicalworkscanbefoundforFREEfollowingthelinksbelow.Hisbookisavailableonline.Whennotatwork,Luisspendstimewithfamilyandfriends.http://luisgabrielaguilera.bandcamp.com http://angelalanis.bandcamp.com/album/freedom-series-vol-4-d-e-m-f http://planerecordings.com/lga http://lga.podomatic.com