Sandy McCall

1. Do you support legal recognition of marriages between persons of the same sex?

I believe the GLAA has articulated well the limitations of domestic partnership laws to provide true equal treatment with respect to many civil matters. I believe that current partnership laws need to be supported and expanded. I would support legislation that recognizes same-sex marriages. But to be quite frank, I will take my lead from the gay community on how aggressive the Council should be in supporting this type of legislation because it appears that this issue is be used by some purely for the purpose of gay bashing. In the interim, I would fully support legislative efforts, such as the Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992, that begin to chip away at the Great Wall of Gender Discrimination.

2. Will you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to stop the District of Columbia from recognizing same-sex marriages performed in Hawaii or other places?

I would oppose efforts by Congress of other parties to stop the District of Columbia from recognizing same-sex marriages. But, our ability to do so legislatively is very limited because we agreed to a very bad Home Rule deal. I think the most viable strategy is to build a coalition of Congressional and Administrative officials, who are recognized friends of the gay and lesbian community as well as elected officials from states that are likely to legalize same-sex marriages, to lobby on behalf of the District. But, we can't stop there. The City Council must do a better job at developing a broad-based coalition of non-DC residents that truly understand the degree to which Congress can and does meddle in our local issues. We must use this coalition to bring pressure on their elected Congressional officials to keep out of our local issues.

3. Do you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to outlaw or restrict adoptions by unmarried couples in the District of Columbia?

The children of this city are in desperate need for safe and loving homes, period. The number of children languishing in foster care in D.C. is a disgrace; a disgrace only to be outdone by the suggestion from some that these children are better off in a foster care setting than in an adoptive home with an unmarried couple, or a couple of a different race, or a motivated single person. My personal experience has shown me that what is in the best interest of a child is not always on the minds of those we entrust with decision making authority. The rule of reason seems to be well hidden, especially in the DC foster care system. Shortly after our two children were placed with me and my wife by the Massachusetts Department of Social Services in an emergency situation, the District's foster care system wrote a letter to Massachusetts demanding that they be removed immediately due to inadequate housing. At the time, we were living in a 2 bedroom, $250,000 house on Capitol Hill. The problem: one was a boy and the other a girl and both were 6 years of age or older. The rule: separate bedrooms are required in the District. It didn't matter that they had no bedroom before. It didn't matter that they were in a nurturing environment. It didn't matter that our son at the age of 6 and 1/2 had finally started school. They couldn't or wouldn't provide us with any regulations or any specifications as to what constituted a bedroom, so that we could remodel our second bedroom. It was only after threatening the Department with publicity, writing scores of letters and begging Congressional and District friends to intercede on our behalf, were the children allowed to stay with us. But, we were given three months to move to a 3 bedroom house, or else.

When it came time for a decision to made about permanent placement, the issue of race was raised. Massachusetts and the District have same race preference standards for adoption. We opted the route of legal guardianship where there are no stated preferences. Yes, the issue of different race parents does present a challenge to our children at times. But, on balance, I know they prefer different race parents to no parents. A home to homelessness. Nurturing to nothing. I have focused upon the issue of public safety in this race because I belive very strongly that we must restore a sense of security to the residents of the District. But, I recognize that we must also address the underlying causes of crime. Many of the teens that join gangs and roam the streets breaking into cars, robbing people, and burglarizing our houses don't have homes. If we are truly going to solve the problem of crime, we have to ask every resident of the District, regardless of race, sexual orientation, religion, or neighborhood to open up their houses and hearts and give the neglected children of this city a home.

4. If Congress ever repeals the D.C. Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992 that established the registration of domestic partnerships, will you vote to reenact the same law?

Yes, I would vote to reenact the D.C. Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992. As I said earlier, I believe that current partnership laws need to be supported and expanded. But, we shouldn't have to fight the same battles over and over again. We have to renegotiate Home Rule so that Congress does not have absolute power over each and every piece of District legislation.

5. As a member of the Committee on Government Operations, you would have oversight responsibilities for enforcement of the D.C. Human Rights Law of 1977. Do you support the reestablishment of the Office of Human Rights as an independent, adequately-staffed, Cabinet-level agency whose Director has direct access to the Mayor?

I believe all investigative offices in the District should be independently functioning offices and should have direct access to the Mayor, the City Council, and the Financial Control Board. I don't see to logic of placing an agency investigating human rights violations with one that is to promote minority business opportunities in the District. I would support reestablishment of a separate Office of Human Rights, but we need to ensure that we are using our precious financial resources wisely and well. I believe one of the fundamental roles of government is to ensure that basic human rights are not violated. We cannot let past financial mismanagement of the District be used as an excuse for not funding programs that are critical to the conduct of good government and to ensure the health, safety and rights of our residents.

6. Do you agree that the Boy Scouts of America is violating the D.C. Human Rights Law's ban on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation by excluding gays from participating either as scouts or as leaders?

I agree with the opinion of the Corporation Counsel that the Boy Scouts is not a 'distinctly private club,' and as such should be subject to the D.C. Human Rights Law's ban on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. I would have no objection to my son having a gay or lesbian Boy Scout leader.

7. Will you vote to repeal the Armstrong Amendment, which allows religiously-affiliated private educational institutions in the District to discriminate against student clubs that promote equal rights for lesbians and gay men?

Quite frankly, I am undecided on this issue. Right now I lean against your position because of a natural reticence against state interference in religious matters. I want to listen to more arguments, though, and I'm sure, if elected, I will hear them.

8. Will you oppose efforts by Congress or other parties to abolish or restrict the right of our public school students to form clubs that promote greater understanding between gays and others?

Yes, I can't see myself supporting efforts that limit the rights of anyone to form clubs. The state of emergency situation in D.C.'s public safety notwithstanding, I'm a civil libertarian at heart. I will oppose all efforts by Congress and other parties to limit who has the right to form a club or limit the purposes of clubs. We, just as ordinary citizens, have an enormous ability to moderate the behavior of dissident groups through peer and societal pressures. I don't think we need to regulate who meets where and for what purposes.

9. Do you agree that our own elected officials, past and present, bear much of the responsibility for the District's current financial plight because of their reluctance to make tough budgetary decisions, to establish priorities, and to demand maximum efficiency and productivity (rather than political loyalty) from all District government gencies and workers?

We are paying the price for twenty years of financial and personnel mismanagement at virtually every level of District government. The City Council has allowed the Mayors of this City to use their office to enrich their own lives and to build a political base for reelections by awarding jobs and contracts for political loyalty. It's time for a dramatic change. It can't be business as usual any longer. We have to elect a City Councilor who will be dogged about holding city employees, including the Mayor, accountable for their actions. We have a Financial Control Board because the City Council failed to do it's [sic] job honestly and properly. If the Control Board fails, the next stop is a Receiver who, by definition, will be far more Draconian and distant than what we have now in the Control Board. We must stop rewarding failure, fire those who do not perform and promote those that do.

10. As a member of the Committee on Human Services, you would have oversight responsibilities in the public health struggles against AIDS and breast cancer. It has recently been revealed that the District failed to spend $1 million of its own appropriated funds to combat AIDS in the last fiscal year, jeopardizing our city's federal funding from the Ryan White Act and contributing to the District's failure to award a contract for an effective needle exchange program. What will you do to safeguard against such bureaucratic bumbling by our health agencies?

First, I will see that incompetent managers are fired. That will send a strong message to those that remain that satisfactory job performance is critical to retaining a job in the District government. However, I don't believe in scorched-earth policies. We must establish standards of performance for all employees and hold them accountable to the standards. Mid- and upper-level managers in the District's government have a fiduciary responsibility to the residents of this City, which they are not fulfilling. Fiscal responsibility will be at the top of the list of performance standards. Second, I will work to identify all programs that require "maintenance of effort" funding or matching funds by the District and work endlessly to ensure that they are adequately funded so that we do not lose one federal dollar. And, third, if I find the Department of Human Services as broken as it appears, I would consider asking the Congress to directly fund our public health programs from our federal payment. This arrangement seems to be working well for the Housing Department. David Gilmore seems to have the money he needs to repair broken boilers and begin rebuilding yet another disastrous part of the DC government.

11. Do you support the legalization of the medical use of marijuana when a patient's doctor recommends it as a means to combat the effects of AIDS, cancer, and other diseases when more conventional treatments for alleviating symptoms fail?

I support the medical use of marijuana, but would not limit its use to cases only where more conventional treatments for alleviating symptoms have failed. Based upon conversations I've had with a number of doctors and nurses, marijuana really seems to work quite well suppressing nausea and stimulating an appetite in patients receiving chemotherapy for cancer. I believe that marijuana should be treated like any other drug. It should go through the FDA approval process. And, if granted approval for usage, then so be it. Let the production begin.

12. Do you support the condom availability programs that have been established in the District's public schools and prisons?

Of course. This is a public safety issue. We must support and fully fund programs that will reduce the spread of the AIDS virus. It's cost-effective and compassionate.

13. In 1995, the Council summarily abolished the Civilian Complaint Review Board, thereby allowing the Metropolitan Police Depoartment to handle all public complaints about excessive use of force or abusive language by the police. Last year the Council failed to enact the Police Conduct Review Board Act of 1995, to establish an improved system for civilian review of such complaints against the police; the Council claimed there were no funds for establishing the new board. Will you vote to establish and fund the Police Conduct Review Board for FY 1998?

I believe this a Police Conduct Review Board should be an integral part of any systematic reorganization of the Metropolitan Police Department. At this point, we do not have a professional police department. And, when you don't have a professional police department, then you will not have professional behavior. When you don't have professional behavior, then you will have officers who are insensitive and abusive. My 12-step plan includes provisions for firing officers and commanders that do not perform. I promise you that public complaints will be one of the most important performance measures against which officers and commanders will be judged. We cannot rebuild this city, if the community will not trust or work with the police. I have also proposed direct funding of the MPD from the federal payment. This will ensure adequate funding for all aspects of my 12-step plan, including a Police Conduct Review Board. I have also proposed a 3-person Commission to provide oversight and direction of the MPD. It seems logical and reasonable that this Commission appoint the members of the Police Conduct Review Board, a Board that I believe should be autonomous from the Commission and the MPD.

14. Do you support sensitivity and community relations training for all elements of our public safety system (police, fire department, etc.) that includes strong recognition of gay and lesbian community concerns, so that the District will never again tolerate the kind of insensitivity and incompetence reflected in the Fire Department's handling of the Tyra Hunter case and similar incidents?

We need to restore a sense of professionalism to virtually all departments within the District government, not only the public safety system. All District employees should be provided with sensitivity and community relations training. And, then all District employees should be held accountable for their behavior. But, we can't stop there. We must take these issues to the heart of the District, it's residents. We have to launch a public relations campaign that promotes diversity and tolerance and begins the process of breaking down barriers that lead to discrimination. I see our elected leaders far too often using politics of division for their advancement. I don't tell a different story to different audiences based upon race, sexual orientation, religion, or neighborhood. If my message can't be delivered to all people, then it's not a message that I will deliver to any people. I have been told that I should change my public safety message when I leave Capitol Hill and cross the Anacostia River. There's an implication that taking a tough stand on crime is racist. It's not. Anacostia is losing more children and young men to violence than Capitol Hill. Violence is the number one health problem in many areas of our city. I am not afraid of standing up and saying that. And I'm not afraid to criticize insensitivity and incompetence and, if need be, call for the firing of people who are chronically guilty of those faults.

15. Will you support legislation to authorize and regulate the issuance of liquor licenses to establishments (in designated nonresidential commercial districts) that want to offer nude dancing as entertainment?

Yes, with this provision. The rights of the neighborhood come first, and included in those rights are loss-of-license guarantees that illegal activity such as drug dealing, disturbance of the peace, or under-age drinking is strictly prohibited. That said, I'm not a bluenose. Nude dancing has been around since the caves and a lot of adults enjoy it. They have the right to enjoy it without interference.

[Signed]

Sandy McCall