>>> coming up next on "arizona horizon" -- phoenix mayor greg stanton talks about property taxes and city budgets and we'll hear about life as a parents of a child with down syndrome. that's next on "arizona horizon." >>> "arizona horizon" is made
possible by contributions from the friends of arizona pbs, members of your pbs station. thank you. >>> good evening. welcome to "arizona horizon." i'm ted simons. arizona joins several other states in suing the obama
administration over a directive allowing students to use school bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity. state attorney general mark brnovich says the order is a federal over reach and unconstitutional adding
president obama has no business setting bathroom and locker room policies for our schools. the decision of how best to protect boys and girls' privacy while balancing these complicated issues is best made locally, not by some knee jerk decree from washington.
>>> the city of phoenix is closing it on a new budget but the spending plan depends on the city council approving property tax increase, and that could prove problematic. here now is phoenix mayor greg stanton, who joins us each month to discuss city issues.
i want to get to the budget and the property tax thing in a second. first the state filing suit on the transgender bathroom issue. your response. >> our attorney general is on the wrong side of the law. and the wrong side of history by
challenging this very important civil rights issue, civil rights decision by the add my station. look. i saw the screen as it was put up there with the words the attorney general virtually the same words used by many after the civil rights act of 1964 was
passed. many of the same arguments were made at the supreme court issued its order marriage between gay couples will be legal. this is the next step in civil rights protections in this case for lgbt or transgender students.
every student has a right to get an education free of intimidation, free of bullying in the most comfortable environment possible. i demand that for kids whom happen to be transgender. that's what the administration is trying to say is every
student has that right. our attorney general i think is on the wrong side. >> the governor would be as well, the state superintendent of public instruction. arizona for -- they say we need to talk common sense and protection in school bath rooms
and locker rooms. >> if you study history, and i know you have, they had no civil rights at one time, the act was not very popular. if you were to put it to a public vote it probably wouldn't have passed. it doesn't mean it was the right
thing to do to enforce what our constitution demands, equal treatment under the law. protecting citizens of phoenix in-housing, employment and public accommodation. some people have been very critical of that. that ordinance has been great.
not just for the beneficiaries that have their civil rights protected but to send a message we welcome everyone. that's another important ethic of the united states of next. we bring everyone to the table including and especially those who are in minority status.
including our gay, lesbian and transgender students and residents. they deserve full protection. this is an important act and if you're having it conversation a decade ago you won't find many people who will admit they weren't on the side of
transgender equality. i think the attorney general is on the wrong side legally and on the wrong side of history. >> we'll have the attorney general in studio tomorrow to talk about this and other issues. let's talk about your spending
plan, budget. 1.2 some odd billion dollars here. thoughts. >> our public budget, the budget that was just voted on by a majority are the constituent council, is great for public safety.
during the worst of the economic times we had to asked our police officers and firefighters to sacrifice. they took significant compensation reductions. their job wasn't any less safe. they sacrifice because they love the city, they love the people
of the city. now is the time to restore that compensation. police officers and firefighters are going to get back the compensation they gave up during the worst economic times. firefighters will now have improved electronic equipment to
do medical records so we spend less time on paperwork and more time helping people in need. police officers are going to get body cameras. every single patrol officer will get one. it was hotly debated. >> some say it's better spent
for more officers. >> look, if you want to juxtapose anything in that $1.2 billion budget against police officers you could do so. senior centers, libraries, youth centers. if you want to play that game you can.
as mayor you have to make sure all of the interests of the citizens of phoenix are protected including seniors and youth. our parks department. to make sure our police officers as they do the job can do it as safely as possible.
body cameras make our officers safer, and it's my obligation as mayor to stand up and do the right thing. it's not inexpensive but it's the right thing to do for the public and the police officers. >> budget assumes a property tax increase, correct?
>> well, it assumes that we float the rate and so during times when property values are down it does involve a slight increase. during the best of the economic times we can have a decrease so it does go up and down. >> i'm hearing $51 more per year
for the average homeowner. >> that vote will be on july 1. if we move forward with floating the tax rate like maricopa county does, like almost every other city in the valley does, it will bring stability to our budget, improve our credit rating.
it will be credit positive for the city. these are not easy decisions. substantively, politically or both. as mayor of the city i need to do what i consider the right thing, making sure our police officers and firefighters get
that workers' compensation back is the right thing to do. body cams are the right thing to do. stabilizing our budget is the right thing to do. >> can you do the right thing and not raise property taxes. $60 million surplus.
the city is flush with money, highest revenues in city history. this floating increase is not needed. >> it's a complicated issue. our best shot in this format, that is during the best of the economic times when property
values were high we banked a lot of resources. as the budget times got worse, as the economy has gotten worse we did not increase property taxes at all. in fact they went down almost 50% to city of phoenix homeowners.
people took a significant tax reduction. if we were to pass it would only be a slight increase, not nearly what it was when property values were at their height. but the balance has gotten to a point where we can't rely on subsidizing if you will lower
property taxes with the existing balance. it's a long explanation but the city is a fiscally well run city. we have the highest credit rating of the top six cities in america. as mayor i'm going to keep that
up. i have to do what's important for the city. >> councilman wearing says it's a water in the, sales tax increase, property tax increase in the span of one year. >> i respect his opinion but look you have a city of phoenix
which is considered around the country one of the best fiscally run cities in the united states of america. it was important our police that compensation back. everyone in washington the least we could do is make sure their compensation gets restored that
they sacrificed. i think people watching understand how important it is our officers get body cameras. so if you want to do local government on the cheap, not be willing to make tough decisions we would have to cut almost $40 million out of our budget.
i would challenge the councilor to come up with $40 million in cuts. i have yet to see it >> the vice mayor gallegos says there might be other avenues. >> i'm keeping an open heart and open mind. i work closely with city
management in terms of what we should do to best stabilize our budget, give restoration to police officers and firefighters. what we can do to best pay for the body cameras for our police officers and firefighters. vice mayor gallegos is an
incredibly smart leader. i'm willing to listen to any ideas she has. we'll vote on this july 1. when i come back we'll probably have a resolution. we can discuss it further. but as mayor, i'm going to make sure that we have appropriately
compensated public safety officers. they have the equipment that they need. we'll be strong on public safety and occasionally make tough budget decisions. but what we would be doing in floating that rate is what
maricopa county does, what virtually every city in the valley does. they do it because it best stabilizes their budget, gives them the highest credit rating. phoenix would be smart to at least look at that. >> would using the tourism sales
tax fund be an option with the idea you're actively pursuing hockey teams, basketball teams, the whole nine yards their. >> not good budgeting practice. if you have created a sports arena fund, funded by revenues from hotel tax and car rental tax, to then divert that to
another purpose. if one of your goals is to be one. highest credit rated cities in the entire country which represents how fiscally well managed you are, if you start taking funds for one put and diverting them to another the credit rating agency says that's
not smart fiscal management. i'm not in favor of diverting funds created for a certain pup and switching it to a different purpose. >> before we go, tomorrow is the funeral for the officer, fallen officer. quickly, i see you got the badge
there. difficult situation. >> it's a very sad time for the city and the family that is phoenix law enforcement officer had an outstanding record. officer glasser was well respected in the community. he was on a net team at the time
of the shooting. i talked about chief yanner. he said after speaking to his commander and his colleagues, he's just one of the most well respected officers on our force. today they had a car wash yesterday, phoenix law enforcement association that
raised incredible amounts of money because the community came together. he just love police officers and law enforcement. tomorrow will be a very important day. if you have an opportunity you're invited.
it's an open funeral, to see the wall of blue. officers from phoenix, all the jurisdictions around the county, state and the country come to pay honor to officers glasser, what he did for the citizens of phoenix. it's an awe inspiring thing for
me to see as mayor. phoenix police and law enforcement association will wrap their arms around his kin, his wife, his young children, and they will never leave them. i have seen it time and time again, when you're part of the phoenix law enforcement family
they will always be well taken care of, something i'm incredibly proud of. >> mayor, thanks for joining us. >> thank you. >>> introducing classical arizona pbs, your classical music connection on tv listen to classical arizona pbs on digital
channel 8 upon 4. on the go download the free app to stream performances. watch exclusive video. download the free classical arizona pbs app then follow classical arizona pbs on facebook and switer. your classical music connection.
>>> amy silverman is a long time journalist who happens to be sophie's mom. sophie is silverman's charismatic daughter, an active, curious kid with down syndrome. her book, my heart can't even believe it, which describes raising a down syndrome child.
good to see you. >> good to see you too. >> this is a wonderful read. the kid is captivating, your story is captivating. who is sophie? >> she just turned 13 on saturday. she's officially a teenager.
she is on the fourth day of summer vacation and really feeling it. very happy to be out of the dress code and all that entails. >> who are you before sophie and who are you once you had sophie? >> i can't use expletives, right?
>> no, you can't. >> i was a lot of things but mostly a journalist at new times. an alternative newsweekly, where i guess the polite way would be to say we take no prisoners. for a long time i did political reporting.
i had a button on my bulletin board at work that said if at first you don't succeed you'll be a loser and a burden on for the rest of your life. >> and with sophie? >> i keep it there to remind myself to not be such a jerk. not overnight but she did
change. >> from the book it sounds like she changed you quite a bit. >> i think so. yeah. she really helped me see life in the world a little differently. >> we have a shot of sophie with her sister when she was still
having young. you have an older sister to sophie. there they are. and annabelle. does sophie even -- obviously she had no idea of her impact on you. do you think she knows how she
has impacted you? >> i think think she has an idea. one thing i talked about in the book was coming to terms with a having a child with down syndrome. there are things she will never be able to do.
around the time i came to grips with it she started saying she didn't want to have down on some cosmic level she relates. >> this is a gorgeous shot. this is, was, will probably always be a happy person. >> not always.
not always. no. >> for the most part. >> she has a pureness of joy and heart that you don't see in a lot of people. >> yeah. >> it's weird because it's probably chromosomally related. >> in the book you write when
you first had sophie it was difficult. you didn't feel like she was yours -- i think you used the phrase foreign creature. this was a difficult adjust for >> it was a difficult adjustment and a lot of people don't talk about it or will say the first
day, the day my child was born and had a birth defect or some issue was a horrible day. the next day i woke up and i was just so happy and we all lived happily ever after. i don't think that's true for a lot of people and i wanted people to realize that that's
okay. you have to be able to work through it. yeah, it was a difficult adjustment for me to really get to know sophie as a person. i'm not a baby person anyhow. so until we can have like a real comfortable i'm uncomfortable.
also keeping babies alive stressed me out. she had heart surgery early on. not to make light of it, but it took longer for sophie and me to bond in that way. >> took quite a while for you to research down syndrome, to know about -- just the fact that they
just love to hug, they hug everything and everyone. stuff like that you had to learn. >> i did not know that people with down syndrome have a tendency to be loving and to hug. i did not know that.
that's not everyone with down syndrome or all the time. >> this kid is happy. that's your kid. it's not the tall one, it's the short one. >> she was mad that piglet wasn't at disneyland. >> you mention medical -- i
think one of your quotes was a heart defect is a medical crisis but down syndrome is existential. explain that, please. >> when sophie was born i really had trouble explaining to friends and family my child has down syndrome.
what do you say? i call you, say, hey, we have news, sophie was born, she has do you say i'm sorry, oh, that's awesome. most people would say i'm sorry, we would cry and i realized that wasn't appropriate. i would say sophie has down
syndrome and she needs heart surgery then we could cry it's not a death sentence, down syndrome isn't. i didn't know much about it. it's easier to hold on to a physical medical crisis i think for a lot of us. to know how to respond as a
friend or family member. >> and it was a difficult path for you to know how to raise this child, what her limits might be, what she might enjoy doing. sounds like she's a bit of a performer. she likes singing.
>> the stage beckons. >> you're a stage mom whether you knew it or not. where did you find out about down syndrome? who did you turn to? >> sophie mostly. my husband ray is a journalist. he did a lot of homework even
before i could leave the hospital bed hoe was in the library doing research. then he would come back and look at me and i could tell he was thinking you can't handle this. it was years before i started reading about it. i really learned about it from
her and the different journeys she went through medically, through therapy, education, mainstreaming her in school was a real lesson but it was all kind of on the job training. >> i think we have a shot of her as one of the actresses on glee. talk about this particular
photograph. this was when she -- you and she, everyone was getting used to sophie and where she fit in school, in society. where she fit. >> a lot of times she's mainstreamed in school, she doesn't want to talk about down
syndrome much. that's been an issue with the book that she really relates to a character on the show glee played by the actress lauren potter, who happens to have down syndrome and as sophie would tell you very, very sassy. for her wax museum at school she
wanted to dress up like lauren potter. we actually found a connection, the lauren potter center. signed autograph, which is probably all she really wanted. >> as far as she ages. in the book you take us from being born flew the education
process. finding a spot for her sounded like it was just an ab suit ordeal. >> it was hard. finding her an elementary school wasn't easy. when it came time to find a junior high, that was hard.
her sister already attended an arts charter school. sophie loves the arts so i thought that might be an option. that was not an option. without a big battle. i quickly realized that just because you can get your kid into a situation doesn't mean
you want to because when you put them in a school and walk away for the day, it just wasn't right. i learned a lot about the charter school system. >> and what did you learn? >> i learned that it is not all things for all kids.
that in arizona, in particular, it pushes out kids with special needs. you as a charter school operator can't say, i'm sorry but your daughter cannot attend your school. what you can do is a lot of, oh, well, i don't know, it might be
okay but she might be better off somewhere else. >> heard that a lot? >> i did from some interesting people. >> i know there are some interesting people named in the book. as she ages, we have shots of
her with a book, playing cards, sophie is gone from a child to a little girl to a tweener and all these things. i notice in the book you really start to worry about her as an adult. down syndrome, little kids are cute as a button but teenagers
and adults not so much. >> not always. not always so easy to accept into society. because for all the bad things we can say about the school system for sophie what the experience we have had when we have gotten her into schools has
been phenomenal. until you're 22 you have a full life. then what? bottom falls out. so i do worry about that. >> how is she doing? >> she's awesome. she's doing really well.
she has texted me about ten times in the last five minutes wanting to know about a sleepover with a friend tonight. she's practicing how to walk in her new wedges. >> good for her. a sleepover with a friends. in the book you worry about her
being lonely as she ages. there are fewer friends. when you're a kid you're a kid. when you're an adult there are fewer friends. >> the impact is pretty clear already. she doesn't always want to hang out with people with down
sometimes there are issues of hanging out with typical people. she's caught in the middle but i think a lot of us are in a way. in the book, it's so all encompassing. your life must have just been absolutely surrounded by this child and dealing with this.
did you ever worry about losing yourself in sophie? >> wow, that's a really good question. no one has asked me that. i think she and i both have strong enough personalities there wasn't a chance. >> probably right now it's hard
to imagine life without sophie. >> it's impossible to imagine life without sophie or annabelle or my husband in particular >> you bring up annabelle and your husband. they are very peripheral. >> very peripheral. >> peripheral players in here.
talk to us about that decision. basically it's you and sophie in this book. ray and annabelle make a lot of cameos but i feel they have their own stories to tell. ray is a journalist in town. that's really for him to tell his side and his view of it.
annabelle is almost 15, and she's been saying for a while she doesn't really want to be written about. she has so the drawings in the she did the song that goes with the book trailer. now when you write a book you need a book trailer.
she's present in a lot of ways. >> last question. in the book you write one of the reasons you wrote this was we could all meet someone like sophie because you really hadn't met someone like sophie. we all can through the book. >> that's my hope.
that's my hope. >> do you think you succeed? >> oh, my gosh, i'm way too close to it to know. i have gotten amazing response. they say it takes a village to raise a child, i think it takes a village to raise a mom and to raise a book and i have been
incredibly lucky. >> congratulations on the book. good luck to you and sophie and the rest of your family. thanks for joining us. >>> thursday on "arizona horizon," hear about a campaign to renovate the historic grand canyon watch tower and we'll
learn about efforts to help american indian students graduate from college. that's on the next "arizona that's it for now. you have a great evening. >>> something mysterious is moving through north america. it's a new kinds of predator.
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