On the evening of October 7th, over 350 people on Zoom and another 40 people safely distanced at Shiloh Baptist Church in Cleveland's Central neighborhood listened to moving testimonials from Cleveland residents about issues that keep them awake at night -- the state of their neighborhoods, gun violence and the criminalization of mental health and addiction disease. They turned and faced the Cleveland mayoral candidates Justin Bibb and Kevin Kelley and asked them whether they would act on those issues if elected mayor.

Candidates Bibb and Kelley were asked the following pointed questions:

• When you are elected, will you meet with Greater Cleveland Congregations by March 1st to negotiate and strategize with leaders on the specifics our constituents want to see in our five key Cleveland neighborhoods (Central, Fairfax, Lee-Harvard, Mt. Pleasant and Slavic Village)?

• When you are elected the next mayor of Cleveland, will you commit to make Cleveland the 6th city in Ohio -- along with Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, Toledo and Akron -- to join the Gun Safety Consortium?

• When you are elected mayor, will you make the new Mental Health & Addiction Crisis Diversion Center a true pre-booking center by eliminating the need for prosecutorial involvement before a Cleveland law enforcement officer takes someone to the Center? Will you enact this policy within 14 days of taking office? 

Candidate Bibb and candidate Kelley each responded yes to the three questions. Note: Whoever is elected mayor on November 2nd will be held accountable to his publicly made responses!
To watch a recording of the event, click here!