Name of Council Candidate: Mark Otto Name and Title of Person Completing Questionnaire: Mark Otto, Candidate Campaign

Website: www.markotto2013.com

2013 CITY COUNCIL HUMAN RIGHTS QUESTIONNAIRE

1. Many in the United States think of international affairs when they think of human rights. Our work emphasizes the applicability of the human rights framework here in the United States. Please share your thoughts on the domestic applicability of human rights, and discuss why human rights are important to you in the context of New York City and the City Council. As an Assistant Principal at the Facing History School, I see my students fighting against blatant human rights violations every day. Specifically, I counsel young black and Latino men who are stopped and frisked for carrying book bags to and from school. Since most of my students are from Harlem, Washington Heights, and the Bronx, I am forced to confront the racial overtones surrounding poverty in New York. As a gay man, I have to help my LGBT students navigate a cold and discriminating city that does not offer enough resources or support. I advocate for the health care and shelter many of them desperately need and often see that there is little recourse when members of the LGBT community are victimized by hate crimes. The City Council can address all these issues- legislating an end to stop and frisk, supporting LGBT youth and creating harsher punishments for hate crimes, and creating good jobs and affordable housing in the citys poorest neighborhoods. I will fight tirelessly as a member of the City Council to address these clear inequities I deal with every day. 2. How have you used current or previous professional positions to advance human rights? The curriculum of the Facing History School, which I helped create, stresses the importance of confronting and understanding the oppressive forces in American History. I teach my students to fight intolerance and hatred in our communities by helping them understand the roles oppression, prejudice, and tolerance has played in our society. As an Assistant Principal, part of my day-to-day duties include helping students and their families obtain necessary social services and seek out legal, governmental, and health care resources when appropriate. On a more macrolevel, I see my role as an educator as providing youth with the adequate skills and resources to have a better life and pride myself on the social justice principles my school includes in everything it does. 3. What will your top 3 legislative priorities be in your first term as Council Member? 1. Making early childhood education universal in New York City by 2018. 2. Creating specified shelters for homeless LGBT youth in Upper Manhattan including trained counselors and full access to the citys social services.

3. Creating and improving affordable housing units for low and lower-middle income New Yorkers. 4. What will your top 3 budget priorities be in your first term as Council Member? 1. I have repeatedly said that education should be this citys primary budgetary responsibility before any other program. It is shameful that our politicians speak about the education crisis but then fund education last or next to last every budget cycle. 2. The citys contracting process appears to be efficient because of the use of lowest bidders but I have seen from personal experience how building in this city is fraught with waste. My schools lowest bidder air conditioning system has cost the city $100 million dollars over the past three years because of the countless repairs and unforeseen expenses. We must revise the current system by both looking at quality and reliability as well as cost and we must stop paying contractors 80% up front which often does not lead to effective job completion. 3. The citys formula for determining eligibility for affordable housing neglects the reality that many working poor are barely ineligible for any subsidies. I want to investigate the viability of a sliding scale model for affordable housing that helps low and lower middle income New Yorkers afford living in their communities. 5. Do you plan to use participatory budgeting to allocate your discretionary funds? Why or why not? Participatory budgeting is a brilliant model that creates community buy-in in the budget process. Participatory budgeting is a transparent and democratic way to distribute discretionary funds. Furthermore, it is an easy way to ensure that the peoples most important needs are met. I am an advocate for participatory budgeting and am excited to see it implemented in the 7th Council District. 6. Please provide examples of recent legislation in Council that you believe promotes human rights. I feel that one of the biggest pieces of human rights legislation implemented this session is paid sick leave. Health is a basic human right and allowing workers and their families to seek medical attention without economic coercion is a great step forward. 7. Legislation is only one of many ways in which Council Members can work to advance human rights. What ways other than through legislation will you advance the human rights of New Yorkers as a City Council Member? The citys budgetary power to fund or defund programs should be used to advance socially responsible causes. If forces prevent us from legislating an end to stop and frisk, the City Council must be prepared to increase funding to support community policing that can help re-build trust between our police officers and our residents. Members of the City Council also have a responsibility to organize their communities and promote organizations working to advance positive change in their districts. This is what Ive done as an educator and I will continue to bring people and resources together as a Member of the City Council.

8. Some advocates contend that the position of the Council Speaker has too much power over the progression of legislation. Please use this space to respond to that critique. The City Council is structured in a way that often gives the Speaker seemingly unilateral control over the progress of legislation. While consensus on its face is a symbol of good government it is actually a disturbing sign of complacency among our legislators. I support giving more power to committee chairs who are often better informed on specific issue areas which in turn will allow for more debate in the legislative process.