An interview with Giona Picheco, running for the RI House District 14 seat

"I've been a long-term advocate here in Cranston and Providence. I'm going to be a new voice for this district and work hard to advocate for the residents here in the community.”

Giona Picheco is running for the District 14 seat in the Rhode Island House of Representatives against incumbent Charlene Lima. Given that there is no Republican in the race, the race will be essentially decided by the primary on September 10. Charlene Lima is a conservative, pro-gun, anti-abortion Democrat. Gioba Picheco aligns more with the national Democratic Party platform.

We spoke at Geo’s Restaurant on Atwood Avenue on August 8. The transcript has been edited for clarity.

Steve Ahlquist: This is your second shot at this seat. How are you feeling?

Giona Picheco: It's my second time. I ran two years ago and fell short by about 170 votes or so, plus or minus a few here or there. I think there's a path here. Those votes are getable. It was just that a lot of people who indicated their support didn't end up voting, so we had to work harder to turn them out and get a few new voters.

Steve Ahlquist: You need to get people to the polls even if it means driving them or pestering them.

Giona Picheco: Whatever we got to do. We need to put more effort into turnout and making sure people understand when the primary is, how to vote, where to vote, that sort of thing.

Steve Ahlquist: This is a primary election so the turnout is generally a little lower.

Giona Picheco: Exactly.

Steve Ahlquist: When you're meeting with voters - future constituents - what are you hearing from them? What are the concerns of people in this part of Cranston and Providence?

Giona Picheco: A lot of their concerns continue to be the same concerns I was hearing two years ago. A lot of people are struggling with finding adequate healthcare and maintaining secure housing, and are frustrated with the lack of investment that's been put into their schools. They want to see someone tackle bigger issues to better support their quality of life, rather than just show up for votes, cut paychecks, and come around only during election season.

Steve Ahlquist: You mentioned secure housing, which is a big deal throughout Providence, and I know the Speaker of the House, Joseph Shekarchi, has been working on housing. You'd be working directly with the Speaker if you were elected. What do people in your community need to stay in their homes? What kind of legislation would you like to see?

Giona Picheco: I would like to see legislation capping rent increases and making rent more stable. I'd like to see more protections for tenants so they can't be subjected to backlash when they try to speak up for themselves and try to get repairs done and enforce legislation to mandate that landlords have to maintain a quality home that tenants can feel safe at.

Steve Ahlquist: Are you seeing here the kind of rent increases we're seeing across the state where people are having trouble staying in their homes and the kind of evictions and homelessness we are seeing elsewhere?

Giona Picheco: There's an issue with homelessness in Cranston and Providence. A lot of people have had to switch homes frequently due to not being able to afford their previous place - or the quality of their homes has gone down and not been well maintained. A lot of the people I've talked to live in a different home now than they had two years ago, or they're newly moved into the district.

Steve Ahlquist: When we talk about education, one thing we don't talk about enough is the effect that constantly moving households has on children. Unstable housing can hurt their academic achievement. We talk about how public schools aren't serving these kids, but are we serving these kids if we're just chasing families from house to house, constantly looking for that lower rent? Housing is also an education issue.

Giona Picheco: Definitely. I remember when I was a kid. When I was very young, we had to suddenly move and I had to move into a completely new school district where I didn't know anybody. I struggled to meet new people and make friends. I didn't grow up with the students here. It was difficult to integrate and that affected my ability to do well in that school. I didn't want to stay there so my parents and I decided to transfer to a different school. It's just a lot of disruptions and I haven't had a stable schooling environment since then because I've constantly been transferring to different ones. It's hard for students to not have a stable environment to learn.

Steve Ahlquist: We want our kids to achieve, yet if they don't have things like food, healthcare, and housing, then they don't have a basis from which to succeed.

Giona Picheco: You mentioned adequate food. Providing breakfast and lunches for students in school is an issue we need to focus on. That's another issue that I have personal connections with. When I was going through school, I often couldn't afford lunch and went hungry. It's not enough to provide a process to apply for free lunches. We should just offer food across the board.

Steve Ahlquist: We've had years and years of reporting showing how embarrassing it could be for a kid to be denied a lunch or be given the subpar two slices of bread and a slice of cheese lunch instead of the more nutritious food on offer. The General Assembly has passed on doing anything about this legislation since at least 2017 when Representative Marcia Ranglin-Vassell introduced it, and maybe earlier than that. Yet here we have a Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Minnesota Governor Tim Walz - who among other achievements, signed into law free breakfast and lunch for all the students in that state- and did so to great acclaim - yet we can't do that here in Rhode Island, which is ostensibly a Democratic state.

Giona Picheco: It's inexcusable at this point. This has been put through the General Assembly year after year. There's more steam each time and something I would push for. I know Massachusetts has done this as well. We just have to commit to it and find a way to fund it,

Steve Ahlquist: If we can fund Citizens Bank's multimillion-dollar, 11th-hour bailout request, I think we can figure out how to feed kids. Sorry, I'm getting overly opinionated here. I might be in a mood.

You also mentioned healthcare in your opening, so talk to me about healthcare. What does that look like in Rhode Island?

Giona Picheco: We could always stand for improvements in healthcare. We have quality healthcare, but it's not open to everybody to the same extent. Making it more accessible to people who don't have the means to choose where they go for healthcare - specifically seniors and veterans are often constrained by where they can get their healthcare - I want to make it easier for them to access the care they need either by improving their transportation to healthcare appointments or by covering more of their healthcare concerns.

Steve Ahlquist: You mentioned veterans. I know that you're a Navy veteran, so those issues are also rather important to you. Can you talk a little bit about that and where we need improvement in the state?

Giona Picheco: We often struggle to understand where we can when seeking the services that we need. Sometimes certain services are not accessible or people don't know about them. We need to improve access to the services veterans need, whether it be housing assistance, employment, healthcare, or education.

Steve Ahlquist: How would you describe your district?

Giona Picheco: There are areas of lower income and others that are probably more working-class to middle-income.

Steve Ahlquist: What about the ethnic makeup? It used to be a solidly Italian, working-class neighborhood, but that's been changing over the years. So what does it look like to you now?

Giona Picheco: It's pretty diverse now. There are no specific neighborhoods where I can only expect to find one type of person. Even a neighborhood that's known for being specifically Italian has gone through many changes over the years and there are all sorts of people who live here now.

Steve Ahlquist: And when you talk to people, what are they telling you they need?

Giona Picheco: They want to see things that directly impact their neighborhoods. I hear a lot about the sidewalks and disrepair. They want to see something done about speeding. There are pockets of the district that have issues with flooding whenever it rains, so we want to see more effort to address those issues,

Steve Ahlquist: The General Assembly can't do a lot about climate change in writ large, but we can begin to mitigate the effects.

Giona Picheco: Definitely. That's something we need to focus a lot more on. We may not be able to stop climate change, but we need to do more to mitigate it. We can't stop it from raining, but we can do more to improve our drainage systems or improve our road conditions so we don't have areas that prevent cars from passing through and flood houses.

Steve Ahlquist: Quite often, even after what I would consider an average rainstorm, there are parts of Cranston I can't get through because the river flooded.

Giona Picheco: Right outside my house, right along Kansas Street, I can't get out of my street sometimes because of the flooding.

Steve Ahlquist: Is it routine?

Giona Picheco: It happens more than once a year, several times a year at this point. Anytime there's significant rain. Once it stops raining, it goes away fairly quickly. But while it's raining, I have to take a long detour or plow through it.

Steve Ahlquist: And pray for the best.

Giona Picheco: Yeah, hopefully your car can make it.

Steve Ahlquist: I've been going to school committee meetings everywhere and I've been tracking efforts to challenge the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE)'s transgender student policy. I know you identify as trans and I wanted to ask you about it. There's a lot of pushback from the right wing against the very identity and existence of trans people. Do you want to speak to that at all?

Giona Picheco: Absolutely. That one guy that's been going around across the state. He came to the Cranston School Committee a couple of weeks and a couple of local people and I showed up to speak against the lies and the agenda he's trying to push throughout the state. The reaction I got from the school committee is that they were very appreciative that we came to make our point that the committee should continue following the RIDE policy, and they intend to do that. They're going to follow the guidelines and regulations of the state and the federal government. It's unreasonable to expect them to do otherwise, but these are the kinds of issues we're facing here in Rhode Island. Rhode Island's fairly good on a lot of LGBTQ issues, but there are attempts to roll us back. It's on all of us to stand up against them and insist that we maintain a safe place for every resident of Rhode Island, no matter how they identify.

Steve Ahlquist: I cover this issue because I worry about high school students grappling with these issues who might see this and feel that the world is against them, increasing their feelings of hopelessness. I was in Foster-Gloucester the other night and I noticed high school students in the audience who were there to watch what was being said, maybe trying to figure out how safe they can be in their community. I do this because I want to show students that we can push back and do so in a way that is empowering and safe.

Giona Picheco: Absolutely. To your point about high school students, and young people in general, not seeing a friendly world for them if they choose to identify the way they feel - that's something very personal to me. It's exactly what held me back from openly identifying as trans at a young age because I always knew who I was. I always knew, but I did not see a friendly world where I could feel safe and successful. I tried to repress it and push against it. I joined the military but eventually, I realized it wasn't working for me anymore, so I chose to openly identify and advocate for other people's rights to do the same. A big motivation for me is being an example and showing that you can live a safe, comfortable life if you work at it or if you lean into it and be open about who you are. And if that is not an option for a lot of people we need to do better and allow them to feel safe and comfortable with who they are.

That's a small thing that anybody can do.

Steve Ahlquist: I appreciate that.

When you become a state representative, one of the first things you'll do is vote to give away a gigantic amount of your legislative power to the Speaker of the House. Technically, all representatives have one vote, but in reality, as a member of the Democrat Party voting for the Speaker of the House, you give away a lot of your power with that vote. What are your thoughts on how you do your job and navigate a challenging system?

Giona Picheco: As you said, I'm going to be one vote among 75, so I know I can't just do whatever I want to do and get it done, but I always take a collaborative approach and try to work with people as best as I can. Where I can find common ground with my colleagues in the House, that's what I intend to do. I have my priority issues that I want to pursue and I'm sure they do as well. Wherever we can find common ground and get something substantial done to benefit the people of the state, that's what I intend to do.

Steve Ahlquist: The Cranston City Council is taking up a bill to criminalize homelessness. What are your feelings on that bill and what are your thoughts on the Mayor asking for that kind of power?

Giona Picheco: There's no reason to criminalize people for being homeless. That is not a choice they made that they can stop doing. These are people who need help. We need to improve the systems that benefit them and help them find homes or get their lives back on track. Criminalizing them and hoping they go away is not an effective solution, that's just shifting the problem onto someone else. I don't see the point of that kind of bill. They should be doing more to help the residents of the city, whether they have homes or not is my take.

Steve Ahlquist: Rhode Island years ago passed the Homeless Bill of Rights, which is a series of rights that would theoretically, if enforced, prevent exactly this kind of thing. Yet this law is routinely ignored and has no enforcement mechanism. Would you be in favor of passing legislation that would give teeth to the Homeless Bill of Rights?

Giona Picheco: Absolutely. Laws are only followed if people see that there's going to be accountability if they aren't. There needs to be authority attached to them so people understand that this is a law, a guideline, that you must adhere to.

If legislation passed by the General Assembly is not effective, then we need to either figure out what we can do to strengthen it or pass something else.

Steve Ahlquist: That's interesting. Any piece of legislation passed by the General Assembly that isn't effective is just the General Assembly pretending to do their job...

Giona Picheco: Yeah.

Steve Ahlquist: How do you feel about payday loans?

Giona Picheco: I'm not a fan of them with their huge interest rates. Payday loans are predatory and take advantage of people who are seeking quick cash.

Steve Ahlquist: Every year there's a lot of stuff that we're told by the General Assembly we can't afford. We can't afford to expand the child tax credit, but then, in the 11th hour, we give a huge rebate to the Citizens Bank. How do we start moving our focus from big companies to families and what does it take to convince leadership that this is the better tactic?

Giona Picheco: It's hard to say what's going to sway someone's mind on a certain thing, but my take is that we need to elect more legislators who are going to push for this. We can do things like increasing taxes on the extremely wealthy and making the taxes they pay and the taxes that lower-income people pay more equitable.

Steve Ahlquist: As a percentage of income, low-income, people pay more taxes than the richest people in the state.

Giona Picheco: If the rich paid a little more, they would still be rich and the state would be able to fund a lot of these things that the General Assembly says we can't afford.

Steve Ahlquist: What committees would you like to be on, if elected?

Giona Picheco: As a veteran, I would like to be on the veterans’ committee. One of the bigger committees I would like to be on is education because education is one of my big issues. I am in the educational field myself. I am a graduate student at UMAS Boston and a teaching fellow there. I teach an Intro to Sociology class. I want to do what I can to improve education here in Rhode Island, whether it be in public schools or universities.

Steve Ahlquist: Are you in favor of passing a right to education?

Giona Picheco: I would like to see a right to education. I would like to see protections for teachers, investments in schools, and more support for bilingual students. And again, a big issue that I want to see passed is free meals for students, regardless of income.

Steve Ahlquist: Anything else I should ask about?

Giona Picheco: One of the things I want to emphasize is I'm running to be a new voice for this district. Someone who is going to be a hardworking advocate for their needs. I'm not trying to get elected to pick fights with anybody, enrich myself, or pursue whatever agenda people are telling me to pursue. I am in this for the people, not for my career. Most of my policies align with the Democratic Party as part of the Democratic Party platform, and that is who I am. I'm running as a Democrat for the Democratic nomination for the seat, and I'm running against someone who pushes right-wing conspiracies, collaborates with a lot of Republican elected officials around the city and state, and opposes improvements to any of these issues that people in the district need.

Steve Ahlquist: I know she's pro-gun and anti-reproductive rights, which puts her well outside the national Democratic Party but doesn't put her too far outside Rhode Island's Democratic Party.

Giona Picheco: She is also anti-LGBTQ rights, anti-vaccine, and anti-mask. She voted against the Act on Climate, against bills for voting rights, and opposes safe staffing for nursing homes,

That should be common sense.

I'm pro-union and pro-worker, and I'm going to be a voice for labor rights.

Steve Ahlquist: Do you have any interesting support or endorsements?

Giona Picheco: I've been getting a lot of support from the Rhode Island Working Families Party, the Young Democrats of Cranston, Planned Parenthood, the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence, and Clean Water Action in Rhode Island. Nationally I'm getting support from groups like the LGBTQ Victory Fund, Vote Vets, and Run for Something.

Steve Ahlquist: My last question: When you're going to a door and you have to introduce yourself to a prospective voter, what do you say?

Giona Picheco: I say, "My name is Giona. I'm a Navy veteran and a college teacher. I've been a long-term advocate here in Cranston and Providence. I'm going to be a new voice for this district and work hard to advocate for the residents here in the community.”

Steve Ahlquist: Oftentimes I see people who run for something and when they don't win I don't see them until they're running again. You, on the other hand, have been out there. I've seen you around. When I go to events I see you showing up and taking an active interest. I appreciate that because it shows that you've got a real interest in doing good for the community, even if you're not an elected official.

Giona Picheco: I'm not in this just to be an elected official or for whatever power comes with that. I mean to get things done for the community. So yeah, I didn't win my last election, but before then I was pretty active in various legislative priorities, and afterward, I continued to be. The things I promised to advocate for in my previous campaign I continued to pursue. I'm working alongside Rhode Island Now. We advocated for things like the Equality in Abortion Coverage Act, the Healthcare Provider Shield Bill, and Safe Storage for Firearms. Those are just some of the things that I voiced my support for and I continued to follow through on, even if I wasn't going to be one of the people voting for them.

Steve Ahlquist: Thank you.