BAY AREA RAPPER SARA MESTAS (‘MO WILEY’)
SWITCHES BEATS AND PREPARES TO ANNOUNCE
HER CANDIDACY FOR MAYOR OF SAN LEANDRO, CALIFORNIA

 The unstoppable rap artist, political activist and mother of three, Sara Mestas (known to her music fans as Mo Wiley) prepares to conquer her next challenge: campaigning for Mayor of her hometown, San Leandro, California.

 A press conference will be held on Tuesday, May 25 at 10 a.m. in front of San Leandro City Hall (835 East 14th St.), where she will officially announce her candidacy for Mayor of San Leandro, California.

 In the upcoming November 9 election, she will be running against incumbent Tony Santos, longtime city council member Joyce Starosciak and longtime school board member Steve Cassidy.

 An agile political activist who has been a tenant’s member on the city’s Rent Review Board since last December, and on Alameda County’s Community Action Board, Mestas recently formed the campaign committee, Community & Parents for Democracy, Sara Mestas for Mayor.

 Mestas continues to prove she’s ready for some ‘Major League Ballin’ (also the title of her debut album on First Kut Records) and is fashioning herself as the unconventional, break the mold “Robin Hood” candidate, the working class champion of the average taxpayer daring to take on the long entrenched “good old boy” administration that’s in place by exercising her right to run for office. Relating to regular Americans in her community who have, like her, struggled to survive in the current down economy, she aims to give people hope that one’s past does not disqualify them from their future.

 “What prompted me to run for mayor,” she says, “I got resistance from the San Leandro Police Department and City Manager when I tried to start a San Leandro Police Activities League. They were uncomfortable with me being the face of the organization because the video for my single ‘You Can’t Touch It’ they say is provocative and they also said my music promotes gangsterism and sex. The whole point of launching my music career with an album about the streets is to tell people about the hard places I came from in my youth that listeners could relate to—and then show them with later recordings just how I have matured and evolved since then. There would be a huge disconnect if I did that first without showing the sequence of events that brought me to where I am now.

 “I also think the way the current administration runs San Leandro leaves a lot to be desired,” Mestas adds. “The City Manager recommended that we cut crossing guards out of budget this year. I also was one of the main persons responsible for getting the crossing guards back in San Leandro last year, and plan to do it again before school is back in session this fall.

 And while we’re making all these cuts to other vital services like transportation, schools and crucial youth services, the city manager has taken 50 percent pay raise and is now making over $200,000 a year. These kinds of skewed priorities are not conducive to the mission of San Leandro or the quality of life for San Leandrans. They want to raise taxes but I say we offer incentives to attract quality businesses to the area or promote employment for our residents. And when people who think of moving to San Leandro and see the attrition rate in our schools, they’re going to run. The city needs someone like me who has been affected by these concerns and is not afraid to get involved and take action for the common good. I am willing to get out there and do the necessary work, I am not an incumbent, so I feel I will not be persuaded by special interest.” 

 The following are highlights of Mestas’ platform:

 Education – “A major overhaul on the current education system – it is a City issue and it is vital to the overall quality of life in our city. We need to instill a Zero Tolerance policy on drugs, and violence in our school; 55 percent of the city’s children are not proficient in Math and English, 21 percent of children in San Leandro end up dropping out and 35 percent before the 10^th grade, and 10 percent of the children dropping out go on to commit juvenile crimes.”

 Public Safety – Department of Justice Community Oriented Policing Strategies will be mandatory for the San Leandro Police Department. “We will put our Resource Officers back in our schools. I say NO to cutting crossing guards. It is only .006 percent of our General Budget.  I am committed to the safety of seniors and young people alike in their homes, at school and on the streets.”

Business Incentives – “Offer incentives for quality new businesses and residents to move to San Leandro. Concentrate on employment for everyone, youth, as well as the experienced worker by working with the State, Alameda County, Port of Oakland and others to achieve this goal. Also offer incentives for City employees to live in San Leandro.”

Environment – “Save the View, Save the Bay, – it’s time that San Leandro’s Marina flourished again, with activities for the young and old alike. It’s time for us to be innovative, and green. We have to be an example for others cities, changing our vehicles to Eco-Friendly vehicles, and spreading awareness to the community regarding the importance of sustainability practices.” 

Mestas is also focused on improving transportation and efforts for a more eco-friendly San Leandro. She also says NO to the State of California mishandling the city’s money to close its budget gap, which is also one of the reasons she opposes tax hikes.

Since becoming involved in San Leandro politics, she has made a great impact in many areas of community life. Mestas was recently hired by California PAL as the Mentoring Program Coordinator for a $26,842 grant from the Department of Justice to develop a mentoring program for San Leandro Youth. She is also responsible for bringing the San Leandro Junior Giants Baseball League to San Leandro, which allows kids to play for free; she secured the sponsorship from the San Francisco Giants major league team.  She has also secured sponsorship for the program from Round Table Pizza, Litvinchuck Realty, Wal-Mart and The Northface.  

On May 12, 2010, Mestas began to incorporate Forever Leading Youth, or FLY as the youth named it.  It is a company that will employ young people from 14-24 first. This is a program that will allow young people something to do when they get out of school, and put money in their pocket. Since she had the desire to put the sports component in the PAL program, she hopes that she will be able to keep this going in San Leandro next year as well, and stresses this program will engage the youth in community service as well as, the community as a whole.

Despite any speculation that Mestas’ campaign for Mayor is to ultimately gain album sales, she states that “90 percent of her net earnings will be put back into the community, whether I win the Mayor election or not.”

PRESS CONFERENCE DETAILS:

Tuesday, May 25

San Leandro City Hall

835 East 14th St.

San Leandro, CA 94577

10 a.m.