Councilmember Kendra Brooks is the Minority Leader of Philadelphia City Council. When she took office in 2020, she was the first Working Families Party candidate to be elected to City Council in Philadelphia history. With the election of Nicolas O’Rourke to City Council in 2024, she became Minority Leader, a position previously held only by Republicans.
In 2023, she was elected to the board of Local Progress, a national network of local elected leaders advancing racial and economic justice. In addition to the accomplishments below, her office has helped over two thousand Philadelphians with constituent services, from locating affordable housing to navigating city agencies and services.
Opportunities for Young People
As a mother and grandmother, Leader Brooks knows that working families need opportunities for their children to learn, grow, and lead. When we provide modern schools and exciting programming for our young people, we lift up families and make Philadelphia a safer, more vibrant place to live.
Parks, Libraries, Rec Centers, and Programming for Youth
- Advocated for and won funding for libraries to be open six days a week
- Won funding to restore Parks and Recreation to pre-pandemic levels
- Co-sponsored the Youth-Powered Anti-Violence Agenda that calls on the City to provide trauma counseling, youth employment, and other resources to prevent violence
- Created and distributed a comprehensive Youth Opportunities Guide
Modern Public Schools
- Convened municipal leaders from across the state of Pennsylvania to advocate for increased funding for modern school buildings and stood up to billionaires Jeff Yass and Jay Z to defeat a plan to send $300 million in public money to private schools via private school vouchers
- Led campaign to increase funding for schools with PILOTS (contributions from wealthy universities and non-profits who don’t pay taxes), which resulted in the University of Pennsylvania pledging $100 million for school upgrades
- Wrote an op-ed with State Representative Elizabeth Fiedler calling for increased transparency and communication from the School District of Philadelphia
- Co-hosted the 2023 Parent Summit, a day of free programming for caregivers who support schools and young people
An Economy that Works for All of Us
Leader Brooks has championed initiatives to require wealthy corporations to pay what they owe and to raise wages and strengthen protections for Philadelphia workers:
Making Wealthy Corporations Pay What They Owe
- Introduced a bill to raise over $200M in annual City funding, earning the support of US Senator Elizabeth Warren and national recognition for leading locally on economic justice
- Held a People’s Hearing that brought together community testimony in support of investing in public libraries, rec centers, youth programming, neighborhood infrastructure improvements, and mental health services.
- Advocated for legislation to make wealthy corporations pay what they owe, including reinstating PILOTS for wealthy universities and mega-nonprofits, ending the tax abatement, and voting against regressive cuts to the BIRT tax and wage tax.
- Sponsored Resolutions:
- Calling on the federal government to cancel all student loan debt and begin the transition to education as a public good.
- Calling on the Federal Reserve Bank and other financial institutions to offer loans for public projects without charging any interests or fees
Fighting for Philly Workers
- Passed three laws to provide workers up to two weeks’ paid leave to care for themselves or family members during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Established a permanent Department of Labor dedicated to promoting and enforcing city labor laws like paid sick leave, wage theft, and Fair Workweek
- Won $800,000 for the Department to hire additional staff to protect workers rights
Stable Homes for Working Families
Stable homes are the foundation of thriving families and vibrant communities. Leader Brooks has fought for more affordable housing and stronger renter protections to support working families and stabilize neighborhoods.
- Co-sponsored the Emergency Housing Protections Act, which kept Philadelphians housed during the COVID-19 pandemic and established a nationally recognized Eviction Diversion Program.
- Passed legislation to make the Eviction Diversion Program permanent and prevent an estimated ten thousand evictions each year.
- Won historic investments in rental assistance ($100M over three years) to keep Philly families in their homes.
- Passed the Angel Davis Eviction Accountability Act, in order to regulate Philadelphia’s for-profit eviction system after a tenant, Angel Davis, was shot by a private contractor
- Passed the Renters’ Access Act, which prohibits discrimination in renter applications and supports fair access to housing by creating uniform screening criteria for applicants’ rental and credit history.
- Called for hearings on rent control and held a rally and public hearing calling for rent stabilization as a necessary remedy for Philadelphia’s housing crisis.
- Won increased funding for Right to Counsel ($1M) in targeted zip codes
- Held three hearings to investigate how the housing crisis impacts seniors in Philadelphia
- Won over $500,000 for the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project, which provides legal defense for immigrants faced with deportation and separation from their families
Safer, Greener Neighborhoods
Leader Brooks knows that the safest neighborhoods are the ones with the most resources. She has passed legislation to promote community ownership of green spaces and has championed initiatives to bring clean energy and sustainable infrastructure to high-poverty neighborhoods.
Protecting Community Gardens
- Protected dozens of community gardens that faced the threat of being auctioned off at sheriff sale by a private bank.
- Passed legislation to establish a priority bid for the Land Bank, allowing the City to award ownership of formerly vacant land to the communities who transformed it into beloved local gardens.
- Championed funding for the City’s first-ever Urban Agriculture Plan and held a hearing on the Plan in City Council’s Committee on the Environment.
Mobility and Transit Equity
- Advocated for affordable transit, including free Septa rides for children.
- Introduced & passed Indego Bike contract bill.
Cleaning and Greening Neighborhoods
- Hosts the annual Wingohocking Neighbors Day, a day to celebrate community, clean and green the neighborhood, and share resources with families.
- Won $5 million in new funding for the Philadelphia Energy Authority to expand their Built to Last initiative, which facilitates energy-saving home repairs in high-poverty neighborhoods.
Resources for Healthy Families
From paid sick leave to abortion rights and mental health resources, Leader Brooks has expanded access to healthcare for working families.
Standing up for Abortion Rights
- Won funding ($1M) for reproductive health services in Philadelphia, including Planned Parenthood.
- Passed comprehensive legislative package to defend abortion rights and protect patients, providers, and all people seeking reproductive care in Philadelphia.
- Marched and spoke at rallies from Philly to DC to protect reproductive freedom.
- Spoke out about personal experiences having an abortion.
- Working with advocates to establish a task force to coordinate, fund, and protect reproductive health services across the city.
Providing Citywide Emergency Mental Health Services
- Increased funding ($7.3M) for mobile crisis units, which provide non-police responses to mental health crises.
- Won an additional $3 million to expand mobile crisis units citywide.
Ensuring our Votes and our Voices Matter
- Hosts an annual New Voters Registration Party to inspire young people to engage in our democracy.
- Co-wrote op-ed on importance of protecting integrity of elections.
- Demonstrated with thousands of people at the Convention Center and uplifted a nationally televised Count the Vote rally to ensure a fair democratic process during the 2020 presidential election.
- Led City Council briefing on potential challenges to mid-term election results and how to deal with potential scenarios.
Civil Rights and Racial Justice
- Co-sponsored legislation to ban the Philadelphia Police Department’s use of tear gas and other less-lethal munitions towards demonstrators and bystanders.
- Wrote an essay published on Martin Luther King Jr Day, reflecting on the meaning of service and community.
- Partnered with Councilmember Jamie Gauthier to launch the Philadelphia Reparations Task Force, which will study and develop proposals for compensating descendants of enslaved people for the lasting harm of enslavement and institutional racism.
Fighting for People with Disabilities
- Held hearing to investigate and affirm the parental rights of people with disabilities.
- Sponsored charter change legislation to make permanent the Office for People with Disabilities.
- Passes annual resolutions to recognize Disability Pride in Philadelphia, co-sponsors Disability Pride on the Parkway each year, and co-hosts the annual Autism Play Date at Smith Memorial Playground.
LGBTQ+ Pride
Sponsored Resolutions:
- Recognizing Trans Day of Visibility in Philadelphia.
- Recognizing LGBTQ+ Pride Month in the City of Philadelphia.
Honoring community leaders
Leader Brooks uses her platform on City Council to honor and celebrate community leaders who have dedicated their lives to building a better world for all of us. By recognizing these leaders, many of whom are Black people and women of color, she is helping to redefine what leadership looks like for future generations. She has sponsored resolutions:
- Honoring remarkable Black women throughout Philadelphia history: Ona Judge, Ruth Wilson, Dr. Ethel Allen, Jacqueline Wiggins, Betty Beaufort, Evette Jones, Mama Maisha, Joann Bell, Paula Peebles, Karen Asper Jordan, Shakeda Gaines, Camae Ayewa and Rasheedah Phillips, Denise Ripley, Prudence Powell, and Rochelle Nichols-Solomon.
- Honoring exceptional Philadelphia women: Ellen Somekawa, Patty Eakin, Debbie Wei, Maria Adames, Bonnie Camarda, JoAnn Seaver, Mercedes Reyes, and Eva Gladstein.
- Honoring national and community leaders: Maurice Mitchell, Mike Hinson, Miya Benintende and Mark Macyk, Shawn W. Wilson, Bill Krebs, Ronald Whitehorne, Dorothy Bolden, and Leon A. Williams Esq.
- Honoring organizations that strengthen, support, and defend our communities: Philadelphia Home and School Council, the inaugural graduating class of the Women’s Way Change the Narrative Fellowship Program, Stadium Stompers, Hispanos Unidos para Niños Excepcionales (HUNE), the team behind Philadelphia’s annual Autism Play Date, Hep B United Philadelphia, and Hepatitis C Allies of Philadelphia.