Be who you are, do what you do and let us get on with discussing the real issues of this country.

Many of us are guilty of having allowed Tom Bradley to do whatever he has done without really challenging him, without making sense out of what was going on in City Hall. And so now we are confronted with a situation where we have two candidates and we don't know who they are really and what they care about.

He changed the way African Americans are viewed in this country

I saw the real difference between politicians who supported programs like Head Start and those who didn't. I started getting really excited about politics.

I want to be the kind of elected official who not only pays attention but who acts on behalf of people - just average people. Fancy lobbyists get to tell their story, but the average person doesn't.

I don't have them down here asking me what my urban agenda is. I don't find them really doing in-depth stories on community-based organizations that have been struggling for a long time and who are out trying to get funds. They aren't interested in those stories.