The City Club of Cleveland Podcast

Earlier this year, U.S. Representative Marcia Fudge -- the Warrensville Heights Democrat who represented Ohio\'s 11th District since 2008 -- was confirmed as the 18th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The vacancy allows voters to choose a new representative in special elections slated for August 3 and November 2.\r\n\r\nDistrict 11 is one of two majority-minority Ohio districts protected under the Voting Rights Act of 1965. It encompasses much of Cleveland, its eastern suburbs, a western portion of Akron, and about 30 cities.\r\n\r\nThe City Club Debate Committee has established criteria for participation in the District 11 debates. Of the fourteen candidates who will appear on the ballot when early voting begins, eight Democrats and one Republican met those criteria. On June 22nd, the City Club hosted the District 11 Democratic Primary Debate.\r\n\r\nNow, join us for a 30-minute virtual forum with Laverne Gore, Republican candidate for District 11.

Public transit plays an essential role in ensuring all residents have the freedom to get where they need to go, like their jobs, medical appointments, grocery stores, and school. Public transit is also a solution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in highly congested urban areas. Yet, less than 2% of our state budget\'s transportation dollars are dedicated to public transit, which many experts believe simply is not enough. An absence of multi-modal options that rely on safe pedestrian routes and protected bike lanes also add to the challenges faced by public transit.\r\n\r\nLast month, Greater Cleveland RTA launched \"Next Gen RTA,\" which introduced changes to many routes, including an increased frequency of bus service, reduced wait times, and an increased number of \"one seat\" rides--reducing the need for bus transfers.\r\n\r\nJoin the City Club in Public Square as we talk with India L. Birdsong, General Manager and CEO of Greater Cleveland RTA on this next chapter of public transit in Cleveland.

This is a pivotal moment for Greater Cleveland. With an open election in the Cleveland mayor\'s office for the first time in 16 years, an open congressional seat in the 11th district, a 2022 county executive race already heating up, and contested city council races in 16 of 17 Cleveland wards. All of this is happening amidst the pressing issues of entrenched poverty and racial inequities, a push for policing reform and criminal justice reform, rising homicide rates, and deep needs for community and economic development. So, what kind of leadership does this moment call for? With all the challenges of the last year, and the aspirations of our community, what kind of leadership qualities are required for our collective success?\r\nProduction and distribution of City Club forums in partnership with ideastream is generously provided by PNC and the United Black Fund.

In March 2020, employees across the country packed up their offices, and \"Zoom calls\" and \"you\'re on mute\" entered our daily lexicon. Yet, millions of low-wage workers were deemed essential and reported to their jobs. Workers like farm laborers, meat packers, grocery clerks, retail associates, fast food workers, and janitors. They all risked exposure to COVID-19, and often faced hostile work environments due to enforcing public health mandates.\r\n\r\nAs Ohio begins to reopen, unfilled job postings in these sectors have made national news, especially in seasonal tourism, hospitality, and retail. Low wages, unreliable schedules, lack of childcare, supply-chain disruptions, and even an over-reliance on Pandemic Unemployment Compensation have all been cited as possible causes. Others point to data from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, which shows six months of stalled job growth, questioning claims of a job glut at all. Still, employers are trying to find new ways to attract workers, and questions have resurfaced about job quality and what constitutes a living wage.\r\n\r\nJoin the City Club in Public Square as we discuss the future of essential work in today\'s economy.

As it happens every two years, the 2022-23 state budget was passed in late June after months of debate in both the Ohio House and Senate. The state budget ultimately determines how public resources will be spent on many things our communities need: K-12 public schools, health and human services, local governments, public transit, libraries, economic development, and more.\r\n\r\nThis particular budget comes on the heels of the state's reopening after public health precautions were put in place due to COVID-19; making it one of the most vital tools to help address some of the alarming disparities and challenges Ohioans faced during the course of the pandemic. Behind all the numbers, mandates, and packages - what does it mean for everyday Ohioans and our communities?\r\n\r\nJoin us for our virtual Friday Forum as we decode the state budget with Hannah Halbert, Executive Director at Policy Matters Ohio; Greg Lawson, Research Fellow at the Buckeye Institute; and Andy Chow, Journalist/Producer with the Statehouse News Bureau.

In 2021, Cleveland faces a mayoral election. Leading up to the primary, the City Club will be speaking with candidates seeking the city\'s highest office.\r\n\r\nDennis Kucinich was elected to Cleveland City Council in 1969 and served as the 53rd mayor of Cleveland from 1977 to 1979. As mayor, Kucinich is well known for his battle against selling Municipal Light to the privately owned competitor, Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company. Kucinich also served the 23rd district in the Ohio State Senate from 1995-96.\r\n\r\nIn 1996, Kucinich was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Ohio's 10th Congressional District, where he served for 16 years. Kucinich served on the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Kucinich ran for President of the United States in 2004 and 2008.\r\n\r\nDue to redistricting after the 2010 census, the new map put Kucinich\'s home into the controversial "Snake on the Lake" - forcing a run for the 9th district, which he lost to incumbent Rep. Marcy Kaptur. After his time in Congress, Kucinich served as a regular contributor to Fox News Channel. He left in 2018 to run for Ohio governor.\r\n\r\nKucinich formally announced his candidacy for Mayor of Cleveland on June 14. As mayor, he plans to push public safety and criminal justice reform by instituting reforms and additives to the Cleveland Division of Police, creating a cabinet-level Civic Peace Department, and decriminalizing non-violet drug offenses.

If you had 15 minutes to walk from your front door, where could you walk to? And would you? The 15-minute city is an urban planning concept where any resident should be able to get to their job, visit the doctor, grab groceries, or even a cup of coffee with just a short walk or bike ride. Andre Brumfield of Gensler, Jason A. Segedy, Director of Planning and Urban Development for the City of Akron and Khrys Shefton, Director of Real Estate Development explain.\r\n \r\nSupport for City Club Virtual Forums is provided by Bank of America, KeyBank, PNC and the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District. Production and distribution of City Club forums in partnership with ideastream is generously provided by PNC and the United Black Fund.

In the fall of 2017, the #MeToo movement became a national force, outing men who for sexual abuse, assault, and harassment. At the time, artist and film producer Tanya Selvaratnam was dating one of the movement's most vocal and effective male allies-New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, known for filing charges against Hollywood's Harvey Weinstein. And at the time, Schniederman was also regularly abusing and assaulting Selvaratnam.\r\n\r\nIn 2018, in the pages of The New Yorker, Selvaratnam went public with the abuse and assaults she had suffered at Schneiderman's hands. The disclosure was especially challenging, given Schneiderman's role as a public advocate and as New York's top law enforcement official.\r\n\r\nHers was a high profile case, but it is not unique. Intimate partner violence is one of the biggest threats American women face today. According to a 2017 Center for Disease Control report, roughly one in three women has experienced stalking or physical, sexual, financial, and/or emotional violence by an intimate partner in her lifetime. That number is far higher for women of color, and incidences of intimate partner violence surged during the COVID-19 pandemic due to increased stress and trauma, economic hardship, imposed isolation, and decreased access to community and faith-based support. And, because abuse within the context of a consensual heterosexual relationship is often shrouded in secrecy and hidden behind closed doors, experts believe there many more instances that go unreported. Selvaratnam tells her story in her new memoir Assume Nothing: A Story of Intimate Violence.\r\n\r\nJoin Selvaratnam and Melissa Graves, CEO of the Journey for Safety and Healing, for a conversation about the book and the deep, often hidden issues many women face.

Earlier this year, U.S. Representative Marcia Fudge

After spending more than 44 years working to support and advocate for people returning to community from incarceration, Charles R. See retired from Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry (LMM) in 2017. A native Clevelander, See is known for his leadership in addressing the needs of people involved in the justice system. In the 1960's when civil unrest in Cleveland was at its peak, he was drawn to a career in public service, accepting a job at a local community center. In 1973, See began at LMM where he spent most of his career leading and expanding Community Re-entry, Inc., a program of LMM. His work included the innovative and nationally-recognized Care Teams program which trained returning citizens for positions assisting older adults living in public housing.\r\n\r\nIn his honor, LMM is pleased to present the inaugural Charles R. See Forum on Re-Entry featuring DeAnna Hoskins, President of JustLeadershipUSA (JLUSA). Dedicated to cutting the U.S. correctional population in half by 2030, JLUSA empowers people most affected by incarceration to drive policy reform. An Ohio native and nationally recognized leader, Hoskins has been committed to the movement for justice, working alongside people impacted by incarceration for nearly two decades. She has experienced the reentry system from all perspectives-she is herself a previously incarcerated individual who has successfully transitioned back into the community, ultimately receiving a pardon from Governor Ted Strickland.\r\n\r\nJoin us for a conversation with Hoskins about how to achieve criminal justice reform through collective leadership, advocacy for justice reinvestment, and bold systems change.