Meet Melat Kiros!

Housing is the foundation every person needs to live with dignity and stability, yet too many Americans are being pushed out, priced out, or left out entirely. We can’t fix this crisis with the same failed approaches. We need a bold, housing-first strategy that treats homelessness as a public health issue, not a criminal one. That means investing in wraparound services for mental illness and addiction, building long-term housing for all, and federally subsidizing 30% of all new housing developments to ensure affordable, dignified housing is truly accessible.

Healthcare isn’t just about surviving illness, it’s about having the freedom to live a full and healthy life without the fear of going bankrupt because you got sick. Medicare for All is long overdue. Not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because it’s the most effective, efficient, and economical proposal we have. We spend nearly twice as much as other wealthy countries on healthcare for worse outcomes and still leave 27 million uninsured. With Medicare for All, every American could save thousands per year while getting better, more reliable care.

We talk about opportunity in this country, but without reliable childcare, opportunity is out of reach for too many working families. Today, parents are forced into impossible choices: pay a second mortgage for childcare, cut back on work, or rely on a patchwork of favors and luck. I grew up surrounded by a community that stepped in when my parents were stretched thin, but families shouldn’t have to depend on chance to make it through the week. Right now, the message to parents is: contribute to the economy, but don’t expect any support raising the next generation. Universal childcare flips that script by treating caregiving as essential infrastructure so every child has a safe place to learn and grow, and every parent has the freedom to work, plan, and thrive.

We can’t call ourselves a democracy when wealth speaks louder than the people, which is why we have to take back the power of influence by passing term limits, creating a national donor-matching program, banning members of Congress from becoming lobbyists, and outlawing stock trading while in office. Leaders who remain in Washington for decades often leave us with stale ideas and policymaking that puts special interests ahead of everyday people, and term limits would bring in new energy, restore accountability, and refocus government on those it serves. Likewise, too many lawmakers leave office only to cash in as lobbyists for the same industries they once oversaw, so a five-year ban on any lobbying work would help ensure public service is about serving the public, not securing a lucrative payday. And because elected officials should work for the people rather than profit from insider information, banning them from owning or trading individual stocks would eliminate a clear conflict of interest and help ensure decisions are made for the public good instead of personal gain.

True leadership means working for peace, not preparing for endless war. The United States has spent over $8 trillion on war since 2001, often with little accountability and devastating consequences. We've also failed to recognize and prevent the devastation of genocidal wars claiming the lives of millions from Palestine and Sudan to the Congo and Tigray. It's time to reimagine our global role: not as a militarized empire, but as a champion of diplomacy, human rights, and peacebuilding. We need to end the blank checks for endless war and reallocate that funding towards diplomacy abroad and housing, education, and healthcare here at home. 

In the wealthiest country in the world, over 44 million people struggle with hunger, and our food system is increasingly controlled by monopolistic corporations that prioritize profits over public health. Agencies like the FDA and USDA have been systematically underfunded and undermined by industry influence. We need to reinvest in these institutions, free them from corporate capture, and enforce stronger regulations on labeling, food safety, and marketing, especially to children. A just food system focuses on feeding the people, not turning a profit.

Education is the bedrock of a thriving democracy and a just society. From preschool through college, every child deserves free, high-quality public education regardless of their zip code. Decades of disinvestment, privatization, and over-testing have hollowed out our schools and burnt out our teachers. We need to invest in public schools, pay teachers a living wage, and fully fund early childhood education and public colleges. We were once the world leader in public education because we believed that it was about the pursuit of knowledge and progress, not profit. By reinvesting in education and meeting our basic needs, we can give every child the chance to follow their curiosity, grow their skills, and help build a future defined by creativity and innovation.

No generation has faced an existential crisis as urgent and all-encompassing as climate change. The science is undeniable: we are out of time. Wildfires, floods, and extreme heat are already devastating communities across the country. We need to act now not only to mitigate future damage but to build resilience where disaster has already struck. That means fully funding renewable energy development, transitioning to a zero-emissions energy grid, modernizing our public transit systems, and investing in climate-resilient infrastructure. It also means holding polluters accountable and ending fossil fuel subsidies. It's time we take meaningful action on protecting the only planet we'll ever call home.

A truly free market is one where every person has the freedom to choose their own path including where they live, how they work, and how they thrive, without being held hostage by poverty, illness, or corporate monopolies. That freedom begins with meeting people’s basic needs and then defending the integrity of competition and innovation by breaking up monopolies and ensuring small businesses and entrepreneurs have a level playing field. When we center people and ensure everyone has a fair shot, we unlock the full potential of a market powered by our best and our brightest.

Artificial Intelligence has already begun to revolutionize every aspect of our lives, just like electricity did a century ago. We can't afford to let the development of this technology continue without the input of everyday Americans. AI already touches healthcare, education, jobs, and even justice. If we democratize it and ensure its development is transparent, equitable, and publicly accountable, we can unlock its potential to solve massive problems. That means open access research, worker protections against automation, and strong oversight to prevent discrimination, exploitation, and surveillance. AI is built on generations of human knowledge and creativity. It’s only right that it should be developed to serve the public good.

Immigration is a cornerstone of our national identity. The men and women who leave everything behind to seek a better life here in America embody the spirit of courage and resilience that our founders once had. But instead of honoring that, politicians have used them as pawns and scapegoats to distract from their policies that have failed everyday people. Masked agents kidnapping innocent people off the streets and disappearing them into ICE facilities does not make us safer or protect American jobs. We need to hold the politicians who peddle these lies accountable and put an end to these ICE raids. It’s time we build an immigration system grounded in dignity and justice by creating accessible pathways to citizenship, ending inhumane detention practices, and rejecting cruel political stunts that dehumanize families. We are greater because of immigrants, not in spite of them.

Reproductive rights are fundamental human rights and they’ve been under attack for decades, and now those attacks are turning into bans. It’s not enough to talk about protecting choice, we need to guarantee it. That means codifying the right to abortion in federal law and protecting access to the full spectrum of reproductive care: from contraception to maternal health to gender-affirming services. No one should have their body, their future, or their freedom controlled by politicians. It’s time we make reproductive freedom a constitutional right.

Everyone deserves the freedom to love who they love and live as their authentic selves. The fight for LGBTQIA+ rights is far from over, especially as state legislatures across the country continue to target trans youth and roll back protections. These attacks aren't about protecting children or preserving fairness, they are about control, fear, and distraction from the failures of politicians in addressing working-class people's needs. We need to pass the Equality Act to protect LGBTQIA+ individuals from discrimination in schools, workplaces, and public life. Equality under the law is not negotiable, and dignity is not up for debate.

Public safety isn’t just the absence of crime, it’s the presence of opportunity, stability, and community. We cannot arrest our way out of poverty or criminalize mental illness. A holistic approach to public safety needs includes access to housing, mental healthcare, good jobs, and strong schools. This also includes investing in violence prevention, community-based emergency response teams, and restorative justice programs. The data has shown over, and over, and over again, that safety grows in well-resourced communities, not over-policed ones. When we protect people’s basic needs and uphold their dignity, everyone is safer.