Attorney Alyx Pattison has worked with numerous causes and communities over the years ( even mentioning the LGBT community several times on her website ). Over the years, she has done everything from working with her local school council to being on Congressman Jan Schakowsky's team.
In a recent interview, the Northwestern University School of Law graduate talked about her platform, LGBT issues and a controversy involving her and a flyer.
Windy City Times: Tell me about your background.
Alyx Pattison: I was born and raised by a single mom in Utah, and moved here when I was 23 to work for Congresswoman Schakowsky. I wanted to work in politics here and/or on Capitol Hill, where I could make a difference in the lives of people. I didn't feel that I could do that in Utah, where a lot of people are Republican and very conservative. I landed here in Chicago and have been here ever since.
WCT: Give me three issues on your platform.
Alyx Pattison: [One of] my top issues is improving neighborhood schools. I think there's a lot of room to fix them. As a member of a local school council, I've been working on that, and there have been results.
The second issue is reducing crime, and there are two ways to do that. There's the City Hall way where you can keep an eye on the budget and hire as many cops as we possibly can—and which we can do a little better on. But there's also the alderman/neighborhood way, in which we strengthen connections between the police and neighborhoods. It's not just a CAPS meeting every six weeks.
The third thing—in my ward, in particular—is jobs. The ward has the potential to redevelop a whole manufacturing district. There's a manufacturing district with 115 acres, and at least 42 of them will be redeveloped and the next alderman will have a signficant say about what happens there. Also, making tourism and job creation is a big issue for the 2nd Ward because it has such a big impact on the city.
WCT: You previously mentioned schools. What do you think of the school board being appointed by the mayor, as opposed to being elected by the public?
Alyx Pattison: I support a hybrid model; there's one in Washington, D.C., and maybe one in L.A. I support a model where the majority of members are elected at-large by the public, and a minority appointed by the mayor. The reason for that is that I believe the public, particularly parents, should have a say in how their money is directed.
WCT: And you also mentioned crime—which lends itself to this controversial flyer involving a supposed police impersonator.
Alyx Pattison: Here's the thing: We were trying to abide by the law. I serve on a local school council with two beat cops, but they said they couldn't appear in political material, as it's against city ethics, among other things. I said okay—and, by the way, we were operating within the confines of the law.
That statute specifically says you can't impersonate a police officer if you're acting [under coercion] or as a source of funds—neither of which we were doing. And if you read [opponent Bita Buenrostro's] press release very carefully, she said we MAY have violated the law. It's nothing but a hatchet job for political gain. If any campaign is breaking the rules, it's hers. She using her husband, a Chicago police officer, in her ads—and that's a violation of rules.
WCT: On our questionnaire, you said you'd be in favor of an LGBT-focused school. Playing devil's advocate, what about the argument that it would segregate such students and keep them away from the real world?
Alyx Pattison: Well, I looked at Harvey Milk School and it doesn't seem to be all LGBTQ. If it's a good school and other people from the neighborhood want to attend, I think plenty of people would go there—especially in a progressive city like Chicago. But we have charter schools for girls, for example.
I know high school is hard and I think they'll get plenty from the real world after they graduate. I think a kid who's a minority of any type will have to deal with some unkindness.
WCT: Regarding your experience with LGBT issues, could you talk about your case in Wisconsin with transgender inmates?
Alyx Pattison: Yes—it was a class of transgender inmates, actually. I worked with the ACLU, and it was on appeal. Transgender inmates were being denied hormonal treatment for no other reason than the warden didn't feel it was appropriate. And these people needed medical treatment; if not, they tended to self-mutilate. We argued that they were entitled to medical treatment, and that gender-identity disorder was a legitimate diagnosis. We won, and people are now being treated with hormone therapy.
I also represented two different women—one from Saudi Arabia and one from Jordan—who were lesbians. One had actually been married off, and was in a marriage for 16 years and had three children. Both women feared being "honor-killed" by their fathers or brothers for their sexual orientation. We won asylum for them in both cases for them to come to the United States.
WCT: What's your biggest advantage and disadvantage in this race?
Alyx Pattison: My biggest advantage is living on the West Side but understanding the East Side. I went to law school there, and I understand a lot of the concerns because I've spent time in the corporate world. I have lived in large buildings but I live on the West Side now, where there are no large buildings.
My biggest disadvantage? I don't know. It's probably that I can't meet everyone. Seventy percent of the people in this ward live in high-rises, and I just can't shake all those hands. I can't just knock on their doors and say hi.
Going back, I think another advantage is having corporate experience and having worked on Capitol Hill. It gives me insight about people across the ward.
WCT: Any final words?
Alyx Pattison: I have a passion for serving people and I think I'd make a great alderman, as a result. I think I represent people with a variety of interests. I think I bring a true passion for public service and for helping people.
Visit www.alyxpattison.org .
See more election-related coverage at the link: www.windycitymediagroup.com/gaynewsarticles.php .
