Sal Albanese

“During my eleven years as a New York City public school teacher, I saw firsthand the impact that poverty has on the classroom. In low-income neighborhoods like Sunset Park, where I taught, students as young as five years old enter school affected by the stresses often created by poverty: domestic violence, drug abuse, gang activity.”

“If the City Council wants to hold the police accountable, it has the subpoena power and oversight responsibility to do so. They don't have the courage to do it.”

“At the end of the day, New Yorkers need a mayor who understands the problems they face, brings a smart plan and good people to the table, and, more than anything, has the independence, courage and conviction to do the right thing.”

“I can't solve the poverty problem, but there are things you can do to mitigate its effects on kids.”

“The world's greatest city - New York City - deserves a government that works for all New Yorkers. That starts with a mayor who is independent from party bosses and special interests, who isn't afraid to be honest with the people, and who is focused on the issues New Yorkers care about most.”

“I'm not interested in being Don Quixote. I'm interested in running the City of New York.”

“It's an intolerable abuse of power to have employees who are supposed to be advancing the public interest actually working on political campaigns.”

“Even the best parents have to spend so much time making ends meet that they cannot help their kids with homework or afford the extra tutoring that wealthier students enjoy. To address these unjust disparities, we need an early education revolution.”

“I'd love to have our trains, our subway cars and our taxis built right here in New York City. You can create 40,000 living wage jobs... the city's contracting power is huge.”

“You can bring people together around the issue of economic fairness. I don't want to be a mayor that goes into one neighborhood and gets jeered, and goes into another neighborhood and gets cheered.”

“The most divisive issue facing New Yorkers in 2013 is stop and frisk, a tactic used by law enforcement to stop, question, and frisk people suspected of a crime.”

“It always takes a scandal to bring about reform.”

“I travel to Chicago a lot. And I've followed Obama through his Senate race and beyond. I found him to be an exceptional candidate who was able to transcend ethnic and racial lines.”

“The whole point of bike-sharing is to give New Yorkers another way to commute. A lot of folks in Bay Ridge work in downtown Brooklyn or other parts of the borough. For them, it would make more sense to hop on a Citi Bike than to wait for a train or a bus.”

“By regulating marijuana, we can put black market drug dealers out of business and eliminate the rebellious allure that attracts young people.”

“I firmly believe that we can protect taxpayer dollars, bus drivers' jobs, and the safety of our students. We just need a mayor who actually cares about all three.”

“By four years of age, the average child in a family receiving public assistance has heard about 13 million words, compared to 45 million for a child from a wealthier family. The disadvantages developed during their first four years are usually still present in high school.”

“It's the story of New York. Storefronts change and languages change, but at the end of the day, people come here to find opportunity like my family did.”