Ahead of the June primary election, the Southern California News Group compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates who wish to represent you. You can find the full questionnaire below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar, length and, in some instances, to remove hate speech and offensive language.
Name: Jordan Rivers
Current job title: Chief Liaison of the Global Residents Initiative
Age: N/A
Incumbent: No
Other political positions held: None
City where you reside: San Pedro
Campaign website or social media: riversdeliversforla.com
What are the top issues facing your district, and what would be your top priorities if elected/reelected? (Please answer in 200 words or less.)
Social Mobility, redevelopment and food security.
How would you approach addressing homelessness and housing affordability in Los Angeles? (Please answer in 200 words or less.)
I would implement a proposal for mandatory quotas for the existing housing agencies and organizations, such as LAHSA and Hopkins. We need to have a gradual construction of facilities to house people one at a time, to monitor and determine any discrepancies before more funds are added for transitional housing arrangements.
I would replace the signs for “Special Enforcement Zones” with “Safe Shelter Zones” instead. The language surrounding “Special Enforcement Zones” is dehumanizing toward the issue of homelessness. Signs stating where homelessness can be moved instead of solved don’t address the issue of homelessness.
I would invest in 311 to create a robust relief recovery, response and rescue effort for residents to dial in place of 911 so that individuals facing neglect who are disadvantaged and are exposed to volatility are getting the immediate long-term care and housing accommodations needed to ensure that they’re not a threat or danger to themselves or others.
What steps would you take to improve transparency and accountability at City Hall? (Please answer in 200 words or less.)
Routine engagements with neighborhood councils and a media network connecting local stations to local issues.
What role should neighborhood councils and other community groups play in shaping local policy decisions, and how would you work with them if elected? (Please answer in 200 words or less.)
I would mandate staffers assigned to certain areas of the district to attend the neighborhood councils that correspond with the communities elected officials are meant to represent. Neighborhood councils have a vital role, and encouraging new leadership and hearing on the ground what our local policy priorities should be.
Neighborhood councils could also host community events and can be centers for town halls and local fairs for residents to interact more with the communities they are part of and the opportunities nearby.
Public safety remains a major concern for many residents. What policies would you support to improve safety while addressing community needs such as mental health and prevention services? (Please limit your answer to 200 words or less.)
I would instead look at the issue through the lens of public health, not public safety, when it comes to mental health. Many people facing neglect are facing dire circumstances beyond their immediate means of support and need additional assistance, as they have either nowhere else to go or no means to sustain themselves.
We need long-term social care and quality assistance to improve humane treatment and access to transitional housing accommodations, and these accommodations and resident arrangements need to be 24/7 as the reason many deprived people are not staying in shelters is because these services do not operate for a full day. That needs to change, and we need to create incentives for more public health workers and social workers to be employed by making attractive job offers. I would invest more in public health and human services so that these resources will be more accessible for everyone.