EDITORIAL
Steve Banks For City Council

Met Council has endorsed Steven Banks, director of the Legal Aid Society's homeless-families' rights project, in the Democratic primary for City Council from the 39th District in Brooklyn. The district includes Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Bay Ridge and Borough Park.

Banks' letter seeking our endorsement promised to continue working on "such issues as reform of how the City Council itself operates, tenants' rights, code enforcement, housing preservation and development, a living wage, job preservation and creation, workfare, education, health care and funding for city services including legal services to prevent eviction."

Steve Banks has been a community lawyer at the Legal Aid Society for 20 years. Currently, he is the deputy attorney in charge of the society's Civil Division. In that capacity, he is responsible for the provision of civil legal services for senior citizens, survivors of domestic violence, tenants, working families, unemployed workers, disabled children and adults, immigrants fleeing oppression, persons living with AIDS, and homeless New Yorkers. He has spent his entire professional life fighting to improve government services for New Yorkers.

Banks has also been endorsed by region 9A of the United Auto Workers (which represents Legal Aid and other legal-services attorneys), District Council 37 municipal-employee locals 371 and 983, and Local 101 of the Transport Workers Union.

Through a grass-roots campaign including over 81,000 contributors, Banks has already qualified for the maximum 4-1 matching funds under the recent campaign-finance reforms enacted by the Council (and which Rudy Giuliani is trying to barter for term-limits repeal).

Despite his overwhelming qualifications and his strong relationship with the popular incumbent, Steve DiBrienza, Banks' election is not certain. It will depend on the energy and efforts of his supporters, because several other well connected candidates have entered the race.

To work with Met Council's political action committee, call Dave Powell at (212) 693-0553, ext. 6. Steve Banks' campaign can be reached by e-mail at sbcoalition@aol.com.