LGBT rights activist Erin Moore runs for Dallas City council
Erin Moore, an LGBT rights activist, is taking the fight to City Hall by running for the Dallas City Council Place 9 this year.
Moore, who has a long history in serving the LGBT community, will be targeting the seat vacated by two-termer Councilman Mark Clayton on May 4.
Erin Moore’s activities serving the community
Moore has been the president of the Dallas Gay and Lesbian Alliance (DGLA), as well as the president of the Stonewall Democrats of Dallas.
At DGLA, she got protections based on gender identity included in city ordinances. As a member of the Mayor’s LGBT Task Force, she did the same for ordinances that needed updating to become LGBT-inclusive.
She has also served on the Stonewall Democrats national board, and was a member of the Democratic National Committee’s platform committee pushing to include marriage equality on the platform.
For the last four years, she worked as Dallas County Commissioner Theresa Daniel’s chief of staff helping all residents of Place 9, which covers White Rock Lake.
Erin Moore’s stand on community issues
“I’ve been working on the day-to-day issues that affect everybody,” Moore said. She cited gentrification, transportation, and preserving White Rock Lake as the top three issues in the district.
She said that while she supports revitalization of neighborhoods, gentrification has raised the value of homes in the area. This leads to increased taxes.
“Keeping people in their homes is a problem,” she said. She wants to push for an escrow account for those who’ve paid off their mortgages to help them pay their taxes and insurance in monthly installments.
She also wants to handle traffic problems due to Dallas’ rapid growth. She’s done work as Daniel’s chief of staff on rebuilding I-635 and the 3G (Garland, Grand, and Gaston) intersection projects, and improving bike trails.
She further wants to take out road funds from bond packages and into the general fund. This would make street maintenance an ongoing concern rather than an emergency operation.
Erin Moore’s passion and activism
Moore has also been active on environmental issues, volunteering within District 9 to help the organization Love of the Lake, which helps keep the White Rock Lake shoreline clean.
She also wants to designate the Great Trinity Forest and the Trinity River as an historic landmark to preserve it against development.
Another issue that Moore wants to address is homelessness, and she wants to push services for the homeless in other areas of the city instead of just the downtown area.
She said she will push for rescinding the council’s recent curfew order as these unfairly target the homeless, in particular the LGBT and disadvantaged youth.
In her Facebook post announcing her candidacy, she said: “What we need now is a fighter and advocate for every neighborhood and every neighbor.”
“I have fought for underrepresented and ignored populations for most of my life, and I want to continue this necessary work on the Dallas City Council,” she declared.
Erin Moore is the future of Dallas
Moore is married to Patti Fink, who is the DGLA president and Lambda Weekly Co-Host, for almost 20 years. The two had gotten legally married in April 2016.
She has been a resident of East Dallas for 27 years. She had worked for many years as a graphic designer and formerly employed at the Dallas Voice.
When she first arrived in East Dallas, she said: “Right away I knew I would never live anywhere else. My street was home to original homeowners, brand-new families, mixed ethnic groups and mixed families.”
“In short, a diverse community and what Dallas’ District 9 has represented for a long time,” she added.
If elected, she wants to push for more transparency in government: “The future of our district requires more oversight of our hard-earned tax dollars.”
“Like Patti and I, many neighbors are proud of District 9 but are getting frustrated by a lack of accountability and progress for all,” she said.
“It’s time to come together and demand more,” she said.