Image courtesy of Times Union
Followers of Saratoga politics understand the complex and often stunted nature of implementing policy change within the city. It’s been seen through the lack of leadership surrounding initiatives to support the city’s unhoused populations, minority communities, and a diverse economy – outside of mainly tourism – which often barricades valuable change in Saratoga. On top of these issues, the events of the city council meetings this spring, in terms of their passage of a controversial resolution in response to the Police Reform Task Force have only further exemplified the divisiveness between Saratoga Springs leadership and their residents.
This spring, we had the chance to sit down with Jason Golub, co-chair of the Saratoga Springs Police Reform Task Force and local human rights lawyer focused on creating meaningful political change in Saratoga. Before our interview, Golub considered running for Saratoga major but ultimately decided against campaigning due to the “element of entrenched politics” currently present in the city government. Nonetheless, Golub offered his insight on the challenges of instituting political change in Saratoga.
As Golub relayed to us, the current political environment in the city is especially tense right now due to the City Council’s lack of efficiency in engaging with all members of our community on the topic of police reform. His emphasis on accountability in community engagement extends to Skidmore students both on the terms of students holding elected officials accountable and students themselves becoming more involved with city issues.
Golub described Saratoga “as [a] community that has had success doing things a certain way, focusing on specific issues, but not a lot of experience dealing with issues like race relations, police reform, and even crisis management like managing the COVID pandemic. So instituting change in a largely homogeneous, wealthy community that doesn’t necessarily perceive the issues [as important], creates certain challenges.” When recounting his decision not to run for mayor, Golub cited the lack of attention by elected officials to critical issues such as public health, economic, and social problems across the city. In addition, Golub explained his fear that city officials centered on already-established institutions such as the Saratoga race track, will not rightfully address the current points of conflict within Saratoga.
Golub has found Saratoga politics “too transactional” where officials are more focused on holding their offices than the needs of their constituents. While working on the Task Force, he witnessed “lots of hostility, general bad behavior and a lack of a commitment to changing the way [the] city council operates,” and he felt that he “could make more change outside that system.”
Having grown up in New Haven, Connecticut, and lived in New York City, Golub has now been a resident in Saratoga Springs for the past seven years. His ideal vision for his involvement in local politics and the future of the Saratoga political climate involves the elimination of partisanship and the implementation of innovative thinking to address local issues. He calls for the upheaval of the long-term racist historical norms ingrained in Saratoga’s institutions and social hierarchy. He elaborated by stating, “I had a vision around impactful change, focused on innovation in our economy, social justice, which includes police reform but more broadly making everyone feel welcome and safe here especially marginalized groups like the Black and LGBTQ communities.” Golub also spoke about the need to focus on environmentalism in the city, specifically concerning environmental justice and land preservation, as these issues often intersect with social inequalities.
The integration of these crucial issues into city policy “combined with a commitment to transparency and accountability by our local government to all citizens, not just the ones with deep pockets or owning the most buildings on Broadway” is necessary, in Golub’s opinion, for a more equitable future for all in Saratoga.
A key aspect in Golub’s vision for implementing policies in Saratoga which support all residents involves finding common ground among the city leadership on opposing political sides. To achieve this goal, Golub emphasized the need for more open dialogue, especially among “people with different beliefs, from different sides of the aisle, with different backgrounds and of different races” to facilitate a productive discussion on how to mitigate the conflicts in Saratoga. In practice, a more open and transparent government allows leaders to come together and work alongside each other to find solutions. Golub explained that “The task force exemplified [this]. There were Democrats, Republicans, Blacks, whites, gays, straights, lawyers, artists, police, and activists. We didn’t agree on everything, but we found more common ground and worked together to achieve something for the entire community. That’s what political leadership and culture should look like in Saratoga Springs.”
Additionally, Golub mentioned the need for impactful discussions within Saratoga politics to involve all community members, including Skidmore students. The “Skidmore Brain Drain,” where students complete a strong liberal arts education in Saratoga Springs but immediately leave the city after graduation, was also identified by Golub as a disadvantage to the town. Golub urged city officials to create policies that would entice Skidmore alumni to live in Saratoga post-graduation. More consistent and meaningful engagement of the city council with Skidmore students would heighten students’ chances of becoming engaged with their local officials’ while simultaneously making living in Saratoga after graduation a more attractive option.
However, the responsibility of fostering a relationship between Skidmore and the city should not fall entirely on the city leadership. Golub also urged Skidmore students to step up and pay more attention to the ongoing happenings in Saratoga. He proclaimed, “Skidmore students can and should be a powerful voice for the changes they want to see in this community…[and] that voice of change and innovation cannot be a one-off or only heard on social media and the occasional protest. It needs to be part of the conversation of how we move forward as a community.”
With this, it is of utmost importance that Skidmore students remain alert to the other candidates and their campaigns ahead of this fall’s re-election. Earlier this year, current mayor Meg Kelly announced that she would not run for a third term. As of early April, Ron Kim, former Saratoga Springs Commissioner of Public Safety and local lawyer is running on the Democratic ticket, and Heidi Owen West, a local businesswoman, is running as an independent. Robin Dalton, the current Commissioner of Public Safety, is seeking re-election, but as an independent as she is no longer affiliated with the GOP in her campaign. Ultimately, all five city council positions are up for re-election in November of this year.
Despite his choice to focus on Saratoga politics outside of an elected office, Golub remains adamant in his belief that Skidmore students and the entire Saratoga Springs community must remain aware of town policy and work to engage in the local conversations.
Students looking to stay informed on local Saratoga Springs news should make sure to stay tuned to Skidmore News throughout the summer and into the fall on all of our platforms.