INTERVIEW BY JULIA PRICE
Photographed by Kris Saradpon
MONICA MONTGOMERY STEPPE, SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCILMEMBER, DISTRICT 2
On her place of special meaning – There are quite a few reasons why I chose [San Diego Encanto Trolley Station]. We have the backdrop of a beautiful mural of community artists. We also have a reminder of what a lot of our constituents, how they commute, how they get around every single day. And I chose this spot partly because I had an encounter here myself, where a staff member and I were going to get on the trolley and go to a Padres game, and we walked right into an encounter between security and two community members. And so we found ourselves in a situation where we had to de-escalate, where there was a young man who was being handcuffed because he had an open container on the platform, which I thought was not a reasonable thing to handcuff someone for. And [we were] able to get the handcuffs off of him and have him sit there and take the ticket. But it was unreasonable. And it took away some of his dignity. And that was that experience for me. It's not my first experience, but we walked right into it. And being in a position where I am in those boardrooms, doing the work to make the change on the ground, it was just a reminder to me that my work is never done–that people are being treated like this every single day, and that every single person deserves dignity and respect in our region and on this trolley line.
On her first political act – I always wanted everything to be fair; that was my thing. If you are going to give Person A a benefit, then you have to give Person B that benefit. That was always something that was at the core of me, growing up. In high school, my high school administrators had instituted a ban on bandanas. But they didn't institute a ban on some of the other types of clothing that maybe weren't worn by black students that maybe could be offensive to people. And so I met with my vice principal and I demanded that if they were going to ban certain types of apparel, then they should be fair across the board, you know, about that ban. And so that was one of the first things that I did, and it just really goes to like the broader what we're dealing with, with the broader perspective of equity, of fairness. And so it was a small act. But I remember being very, very passionate about that. That I didn't want people's voices to be silenced, if that was the way they expressed themselves, by wearing bandanas. Because other types of apparel, other types of expressions were not banned.
“There was something inside of me that said that I can do this.”
In 2016, former District 4 councilmember Myrtle Cole made comments defending police racial profiling of black residents. Monica Montgomery Steppe, then a staffer for Myrtle Cole, resigned the following day.
On her core values – There are many things that staffers sacrifice. But core values shouldn't be one of those things. I always knew that I wanted to work for someone that I may not agree on every single issue, but that we were rowing in the right direction, in the same direction. And when that time came that I made that decision, I knew that I had to leave the office because I couldn't...I couldn't defend that. And it goes back to what I experienced right here, where we're sitting. A situation that I had to de-escalate, knowing that this is the treatment that people of color, and black people in particular, receive from law enforcement. I couldn't stay. And there are parts of me that wanted to stay. But I knew that I couldn't. And I had, I think, just bought a condo and I had bills to pay. It was a very, very tough decision. But I did feel that relief when I made the decision, and I walked out. And I'm also a woman of faith. And so I knew that if I prayed about it, and did the right thing, that I would be okay, that God would take care of me. And so that's really what prompted me leaving.
In 2018, Monica Montgomery Steppe ran against Myrtle Cole for the District 4 council seat, and won.