Whitmire's Narrow Conception Of Public Safety Excludes Traffic Safety & Democracy

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Houston Mayor John Whitmire has a narrow and inadequate concept of public safety. 

The Houston Chronicle reported recently that fatal road crashes in Houston are the at highest level ever. 

From The Chronicle

"Asked amid a flurry of design changes and shifts in street policy whether he was abandoning Houston’s goal of eliminating vehicle deaths by 2030, Mayor John Whitmire in February 2024 said a goal for the future wasn’t what the city needed ...“My commitment to ending the loss of lives starts right now,” the mayor said at the time. “Not years from now.....Less than a year later, 2024 ended as the deadliest year for drivers, passengers and pedestrians in the city’s history. At least 344 people were killed on Houston area streets last year, a record high after two years of declines. ...More than one-third of Houston road deaths, 118, were pedestrians, with more than half of those fatalities occurring on roads with a speed limit of 45 mph or higher. ...“These aren’t the results you might expect from a mayor who is supposedly focused on public safety,” said Joe Cutrufo, executive director of BikeHouston. “But when you consider how Mayor Whitmire spent his first year in office, killing projects designed to save lives and slamming the previous administration’s efforts toward eliminating traffic deaths, this isn’t surprising at all."...After Whitmire's office initially agreed to an interview, his spokesperson canceled, citing his busy schedule. "

​Mayor Whitmire's view of public safety doesn't appear to involve traffic safety. This despite the fact many people are dying on Houston streets. Anybody who drives in Houston knows it is awful on the roads with aggression and stupidity. This might seem outside of the democracy issues I focus on. But how we use public space and the quality of public space is a matter of democracy. This is why I've spoken at Council and made an impact on the debate on issues such as the right to protest on sidewalks & Houston's Sidewalk Ordinance. 

It seems also Mayor Whitmire does not see our basic freedoms as a matter of public safety. There is no public safety without democracy. 

We know democracy is at stake. It has been for some time. Mayor Whitmire has been silent on these threats and was missing from the 2024 campaign trail. He has nearly 10 million dollars in the campaign bank. He could have been of great help in 2024. ​

While Mayor Whitmire sat out the 2024 election, he does have time to praise Dan Patrick as seen above. He should meet with statewide officials as part of being Mayor--Even far-right officials such as Lt. Gov. Patrick. 

But relationships with Republicans taking our basic rights can't compromise Mayor Whitmire's needed advocacy for democracy. When meeting with Lt. Gov. Patrick, did the Mayor ask Mr. Patrick to step away from his anti-democratic course?

Crime and firefighting are critical public concerns and core purposes of municipal governance. Public safety though has many other aspects. Those other aspects are front and center right now in Houston. Mayor Whitmire and all of Houston City Council should recognize this fact and act with urgency.  

(Public comment time at Houston City Council is each Tuesday at 2 PM. Here is how you can speak at Council and here is how to contact your councilmember.  The earlier before the session you sign up, the higher up on the speaker's list you'll be. The agenda session to conduct Council business is each Wednesday at 9 AM. The agenda is posted in advance. Council can be watched on HTV Houston Television and our simulcast on the HTV feed on Facebook.)

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

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