Learning is the only safe ground on which a republic can rest its future.

 Commonsense is the unwritten playbook of survival. It’s practical, instinctive reasoning you absorb just by existing in the world, requiring zero academic degrees but a high level of situational awareness. So many of us got active in politics in the 2016 election. It was a fight between socialism, capitalism and the establishment. We call it being street smart. Philadelphians will see my very slow journey from once leading the Equality Coalition, being the “Face of the Resistance”, leading the March on the DNC in the Summer of 2016 right alongside Bernie Sanders and leading the Equality March for Unity and Pride right here in Philly, to now championing classical liberal, moderate, and common-sense conservative values—moving away from the imperialistic thought of radicalism to becoming part of the rebellious thought of pragmatism. 

Penn’s Treaty with the Lenape can be viewed as an intellectual architect and possibly even an ancestor to the Civil Rights Movement. The same Quaker theology of equality that motivated Penn to negotiate fairly with Indigenous peoples later fueled the American Abolitionist movement. Through this religious lineage, the treaty helped plant the early ethical seeds for future struggles against racial injustice. The historic ring of our city was built on the sacred ground of Penn Treaty Park, and I’m here to revive that hallowed circle today to bring common-sense order to the absurd, ongoing chaos in Philly that disrupts our human psyche as a whole. This circle stands as a shared, enduring cultural anchor—a rock-solid foundation where we can look squarely at our faults and achievements of the human condition. We’ll restore our neighborhoods to a state of clear, stable, and balanced justice. Every time me and my little brother go to Trader Joe's Arch, we still stop by the North Apron of City Hall and repeat William Penn's prayer for the city. We gotta do two things to get outta this current mess that the career politicians put us in, who worry more about their donors than the people they serve. We have to repeat William Penn’s intentions daily and then act to fix it.

Quite frankly, the Mayor of Philadelphia shouldn’t care what religion you hold or if you hold none at all. While recent federal executive orders have rightfully focused on protecting Christian heritage and ending anti-Christian bias across the country, the beauty of the United States Constitution is that it secures that exact same protection for every single law-abiding citizen. We do recognize a Christian foundation that’s woven into America's history, but we also uphold the sacred constitutional right of every individual to practice freely what they believe in or don’t. Every temple, mosque, church, synagogue, grove, or secular center deserves the full protection of the law for those that seek peace, encourage virtuous living, instill morality, and celebrate the divine world or human reason which is our shared strength, courage, visionand wisdom. But let’s be real: when radical fanatics hijack faith to preach hatred, burn flags, chant against America, or storm into another group's place of worship to harass and intimidate them, that isn’t religion—that’s hostility, and it will be called out and shut down every single time. While free speech is protected, the moment a group or establishment actively encourages or uses its physical premises to plan criminal acts, organize terroristic threats, or harbor domestic or foreign threats against Philadelphians, my administration will deploy dedicated law enforcement task forces, enforce public nuisance laws, revoke their municipal operational status, and lock their doors for good.