Read in the Alexandria Times: https://alextimes.com/2018/06/falkletter/
To the editor:
I knew she was exceptional when I got that first Facebook message asking me, a high school student, if I wanted to chat about how she could help with an activism project over coffee. I knew she was exceptional when I searched her campaign website and found a list of concrete priorities with schools right at the top. I knew she was exceptional when she told me about how she managed to make empowering women at Fruitcycle and Together We Bake a full-time job. Elizabeth Bennett-Parker is an exceptional city council candidate.
She has the astute and analytical mind, the service-minded values and the young progressive passion we need serving on our council.
When Bennett-Parker talks, citizens and council members alike listen.
Whether she is weighing in with remarkable nuance about the challenge of implementing sustainable building practice, or reflecting on how we can work on innovative ways to improve community policing, she always speaks with thoughtful purpose and never just to hear the sound of her own voice.
In a progressive city, a large majority of our city council is male, and few, if any, of our current council members could qualify as millenials.
Bennett-Parker will help us break this trend. We need a city council that does not just fight for the future of Alexandria, but also represents that future, and brings a mindset of long-term investment, technological integration and smart growth that is sorely needed in the citywide conversation.
It’s time for a new young progressive voice on our city council. Vote for Bennett-Parker in the June 12 Democratic primary.
-Jay Falk, Student Representative, Alexandria School Board, T.C. Williams Class of 2018