Written response from Marie Hurabiell

To the Board Members of Eastern Neighborhoods Democratic Club,

Thank you for the honor of earning your endorsement. As an organizer myself, I understand the value of the support of a club that does the critical work to bring our City together every day.

As you know, I made an uninformed and regrettable retweet in 2021 that was then followed by a news story this week.

Everyone in America deserves the same opportunities to succeed. And we should never be blind to history. Truth is something I value most highly. It is our duty to address past wrongs with the understanding that underrepresented and disenfranchised communities are operating in a system that is unfairly stacked against them. That means centering BIPOC voices and following their lead on what is best for their own communities.

As a candidate who has not garnered much press attention prior to this, I am learning that I must be unequivocally clear in my responses, lest a fragment or idea be taken out of context.

Allow me to be clear here:

I believe systemic racism is real and a problem in our country. It's a core challenge of our time and we must work to right past injustices.
I believe that Black Lives Matter.
I believe in the transformative power of education.
I believe that quality education must be available to ALL students.
I believe in fiscal responsibility.
I believe that without dramatic changes to the rampant mismanagement of CCSF, CCSF will fail.
I believe in putting students first, listening to and respecting all voices and taking responsibility for doing the right thing.

I am running for City College Board to ensure that CCSF remains solvent and accessible. CCSF is a powerful force to address educational inequities, but it cannot perform that vital function if it fails. CCSF is a tremendous positive force for growth, change and advancement. The repeated crises over the last decade have taken a huge toll on the institution and I cannot stress enough the precarious position of CCSF. Our Community College needs experience and perspective on the Board to push for stability. I bring decades of experience in educational governance to the table, as well as experience as a parent and mentor to students who struggle to make it through an educational system that is oftentimes not friendly to nuance and circumstance.

We're facing a serious financial crisis that threatens the very existence of City College (make no mistake that balancing the budget for one year by firing a bunch of teachers does not resolve the matter), and addressing these issues is the reason I am running to serve on the City College Board of Trustees.

Thank you again for the opportunity to engage in a constructive dialogue with all of you. I am deeply sorry for any harm caused by my past retweet, and am grateful to have been born and raised in a City that supports personal growth and believes in second chances.