The Bull City Together Platform is a joint effort of Committee to Elect Jillian Johnson, Charlie Reece for Durham, and Javiera Caballero para Durham.
We have written this joint platform as our unified vision for the future of the City of Durham. During the course of our campaign, we’ll release concrete policy proposals that will help us achieve our vision of a Durham that works for all of us.
The three of us have spent years working together to improve the lives of the people of this city we love, and we’ve made concrete progressive policy changes as colleagues on the city council. Like Durham, we’re stronger together.
DEMOCRATIC COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
We believe in an inclusive and equitable government that trusts residents to be the experts on their own experiences. Social, economic and political elites have an outsized voice in our politics, resulting in inequitable outcomes. Robust community engagement creates space for communities to advocate for themselves and to ensure that government is responsive to their concerns. When all voices are heard, public policy benefits everyone.
INCLUSIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
We believe in an economic prosperity that is broadly and equitably shared across our community. Historically, economic growth in Durham has not benefited everyone, resulting in widening economic inequality. Inclusive economic development seeks to lift up communities that have suffered from generations of disinvestment and racist public policy. A more just economy allows everyone to benefit from our city’s growth.
HOUSING ACCESS & AFFORDABILITY
We believe that everyone deserves a safe, stable and affordable home. A rising tide of real estate speculation, gentrification and displacement is destroying Durham’s unique character as a mixed income, multiracial and multicultural city. These disastrous trends are merely the modern manifestations of a history of discriminatory housing policy in this city. Public investment in the creation and preservation of affordable homes can mitigate the most destructive consequences we are experiencing in Durham. Together, we can build a Durham where anyone can afford to live regardless of race or income.
COMMUNITY SAFETY
We believe that everyone deserves to be safe and secure in our community. Despite recent progress here in Durham, far too many of our neighbors are still at risk of experiencing harm from community violence, racially disparate policing, and destructive federal immigration enforcement policies. To further reduce harm in our community, we must strengthen our work to address the root causes of violence while continuing to focus law enforcement resources on violent crime in our city. We envision a city where residents are able to live in neighborhoods free from the damaging impacts of violence in all its forms.
SUSTAINABILITY
We believe that everyone deserves to live in a healthy community. Durham faces many threats to our city’s health and sustainability, including global climate change, inequitable access to outdoor spaces and green infrastructure, and overwhelmingly car-centric development patterns. Aggressive investments in equitable green infrastructure (including protected bike lanes and greenways), public transportation, conservation, and renewable energy are no longer optional. With these investments, we can improve the health and well-being of our residents and contribute to the global effort to combat climate change.
WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER
We’re building a Durham worthy of all of Durham’s kids — yours and ours.