John — Seven years ago today I took an oath to serve Philadelphia as a City Councilmember and from my very first day in office, we began a journey for a better city — one that’s safer, more equitable, and more welcoming to all.

While a previous Mayor reneged on Sanctuary City protections for immigrant communities, I spent my very first day in Council with City leaders who restored Philly’s status as a Sanctuary City and made sure we would help this city grow. 

I am a daughter of immigrants who came to prominence fighting huge battles to preserve and grow communities too often left behind. That’s why I helped establish a legal defense fund for immigrants facing deportations and supported the end of the City’s voluntary information sharing agreement with federal ICE agents. I made sure to double the number of bilingual counselors in City schools, address safety and civil rights issues, and tore down Trump’s Muslim ban at the airport.

These fights come out of years of work with and for communities who wanted to call this city their home — and then went out and made sure it felt like one.

Many of my biggest victories on Council started on that very first day. 

➡️ Restoring nurses and counselors back to every public school.

➡️ Giving every student clean, lead free water and now I’m on a mission to modernize every public school.

➡️ Holding large corporate actors accountable for delivering on jobs when they received large tax breaks. 

I made a promise to you that I would do everything I could and everything that was possible to make this city work for the people. That’s how we secured emergency funding for school safety zones, mental health crisis response teams, and new intervention programs for high-risk youth. That’s how we spearheaded the most successful eviction prevention program in the nation and reignited a vibrant labor movement with new laws like our groundbreaking Fair Workweek law for stable schedules. 

I’m running for Mayor as a proven fighter who can deliver safety, quality schools, and opportunity to every Philadelphia neighborhood. If you’re ready for bold new leadership with a hopeful vision for the future, then please consider pitching in to my campaign today.

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Thank you for standing with me.

In solidarity,
Helen Gym