Sources: Helen Gym to run for City Council
Please note: This article is published as an archive copy from Philadelphia City Paper. My City Paper is not affiliated with Philadelphia City Paper. Philadelphia City Paper was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The last edition was published on October 8, 2015.
In a Democratic race for an at-large seat, she will be entering a crowded field.
Helen Gym in a 2012 file photo
Public education and Asian-American rights activist Helen Gym will run for a Democratic at-large seat on the Philadelphia City Council, according to two knowledgable sources.
Gym, a fiery former teacher, has been Philadelphia's most high-profile public schools' advocate during the recent years of budget crises, school closures and mass layoffs. A founder of Parents United for Public Education, she has loudly criticized state budget cuts and self-described school reformers who are pushing unregulated charter school expansion.
Gym did not respond to City Paper's repeated requests for comment. She will make a public announcement on Monday, sources say.
Check out Patrick Kerkstra's profile of Gym here.
Gym will no doubt attract support from Philadelphia progressives in general, and from teachers and public ed advocates in particular. Her prominent name will likely stick out in a crowded field. Holly Otterbein's recent overview of the Council at-large race — and how Councilman Jim Kenney's resignation to mount a mayoral run has upended it — is at Philly Mag's new blog, Citified.
