Councilmember At-Large Braxton Winston
What steps will you take (or have you taken) to ensure LGBTQ+ people who live in, work in, travel to Charlotte are protected against discrimination and included at all levels of decision-making?
The equal protections of rights of all people is the central thesis to why I have dedicated myself to public service and decided to run for office in the first place. While my entire life's experience has led me to this point, it was the leadership of young LGBTQ+ people in Charlotte that truly catalyzed me to transition from analysis to action. While I am, a Black man from a working class family, certainly from a subjugated demographic I am also cisgendered and heterosexual. The leadership in this city has taught me that in order to be an effective advocate for supportive policies and actions I need to be engaged, listen, and advocate with people who are directly proximate to the issues at hand. I have tried to do this in all aspects of public service and in elected office. I will continue to do so in my third term of Charlotte City Council At Large.
What will you do (or have you done) to address the affordable housing crisis that plagues Charlotte? What plans do you have to ensure Charlotte develops sustainably for future generations?
The two most important policy areas the City Council will take on to ensure this is to effectively implement the Comprehensive 2040 plan and to make our Transformative mobility Network a reality. America has built enough housing to meet the existing demand. One of the main reasons for this has been the exclusionary land use and planning policies that facilitates the segregated nature of many of our communities. Charlotte is a prime example of this.We will have to continue to get our neighborhoods smart about how to use the new tools that we are creating that will need to be used of the next several decades to repair hundreds of years of exclusion. However, housing is only as affordable as it is accessible. Part of the exclusionary nature of land use and municipal planning policy is to cut minorities and working class & poor people off from the most desirable and necessary amenities of a/our city. That means people who can afford less usually pay more for basic needs. We are working from behind on our transportation needs but we have to figure it out if Charlotte is to ever be affordable for most of us.
What actions do you support (or have you supported) to ensure people have equitable access (including transportation) to jobs that provide a living wage?
See above answer for some context. I am completely committed to building out our bike/ped, bus,& rail infrastructure. Our new approaches to how we build neighborhoods will also ensure that housing is built near jobs, schools, and services so people don't have to travel far for the jobs and goods they need. The way we build our neighborhoods in the future should also create small community based businesses that are able to maintain strong customer bases and lower overhead costs so they are able to provide those living wages.
With racism being declared a public health crisis, what steps do you support (or have you supported) to address the racial inequities that exist in Charlotte? These include but are not limited to environmental racism, overpolicing, and access to healthcare.
After years of agitation we have finally been able to get the Mayor and City Council to develop an equity policy that provides an equity lens for decisions City Council has to make. Racism is, by definition, a systemic issue. In order to solve for racism in municipal policy we have to have a systemic approach to how we make our decisions and analyze what we are trying to change. The process we are now in should provide us with tools to do that if we effectively follow through on our work.
Are there any additional comments or initiatives you'd like to share?
Go to votebraxton.com to learn more about my platform.