Wellstone Democratic Club/Save KPFA Also Taking Aim at Kriss Worthington

Indeed, Paul Wellstone is turning over in his grave .....


The Battle of Berkeley Progressives
Progressive candidate Cecilia "Ces" Rosales is taking on progressive Councilman Kriss Worthington to represent the city's southside.


To most people, plowing through stacks of reports on lot lines, bus shelters, and garbage fees every couple of weeks isn't exactly revolutionary. But aspiring to be a Berkeley City Council member isn't such a great leap for Cecilia "Ces" Rosales, who stood up to the Marcos dictatorship in her native Philippines, and fled for her life to North America.

At 60, Rosales continues to fight for justice, supporting the rights of workers, immigrants, gays and lesbians, and women. She says a seat on the council will allow her to continue to support the disenfranchised, while working to better community life for all the city's residents.

But why would a progressive like Rosales choose to challenge District Seven's Kriss Worthington, one of Berkeley's most progressive council members? If there's a rally to support the Berkeley Bowl union, a march to fight student fee increases and UC Berkeley staff layoffs, a struggle for Emeryville hotel workers for a living wage, or an action to oppose the Iraq War, you'll find Worthington in the crowd or on the podium.

On the council, he's in the forefront fighting for humane policing, voting for detox services, demanding a voice for the public at council meetings, opposing city purchase of sweatshop-made goods, supporting struggles of people in Tibet and Haiti, defending a woman's right to choose, and advocating for a host of LGBT issues that impact him personally, as a gay man.

But Rosales says she's the one who can best accomplish the goals they share. "You can be progressive all you want, but at the end of the day, you have to figure out how to help the homeless, the drug addicts" and pay for services to help them, she said in an interview in the spacious kitchen her wife of 25 years had remodeled. Her home is one of several in the southside co-housing complex she helped create a decade ago. "Worthington has had 14 years," she said. "It's not a position for life."

But can Rosales do the job? She's never served on a city commission or worked on a city government issue. Take the issue of Telegraph Avenue: Rosales said the commercial strip has been deteriorating for a decade or more. "Every person I've talked to, when they hear 'Telegraph Avenue,' they say, 'Oh, God,'" she said, adding that people would rather shop in Emeryville or El Cerrito.

But when asked about solutions, Rosales' answers were a bit vague: "If I come in, there should be a lot of sitting down, talking to merchants: How can we make this work?" she said. "I would bring people to the table and have honest discussions of what can be done."

The candidate was similarly imprecise on questions concerning UC Berkeley. Relations with the venerable institution must be more congenial, she said. But pushed on specifics, Rosales said since she wasn't the councilmember, she hadn't faced the question of how to resolve issues. "If it's my job, I'll look into it and make it work," she said.

Despite her lack of experience, Rosales can't be ruled out of the running. She's served in a variety of leadership positions: she's an elected member of the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee, sits on the Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club executive committee, served six years on the board of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and chaired the East Bay No on Prop 8 Campaign.