Buffalo Activist India Walton Announces She’s Running for Mayor
Buffalo activist India Walton has announced her plans to run for Mayor of Buffalo in the next mayoral race.
Credit: WIVB
India Walton, who is an activist here in Buffalo, has announced that she will be running for Mayor, according to WIVB. India is well-known for her work with the Fruit Belt Community Land Trust. As the Executive Director of the organization, she has worked to keep affordable housing in the neighborhood.
India shared her experience with renting housing in the Fruit Belt. The rent amount was unheard of,
“The residents of the Fruit Belt knew that at any moment, developers are going to come in and snap up everything they’ve known. We started to think, how can we make sure our community doesn’t get swept aside? How do we get more power?”
In addition to fighting for affordable housing in the Fruit Belt, India has been a leader in protests for racial justice in Buffalo. India spoke to Channel 4 about what is motivating her to run for mayor,
“It’s concerning to me that a lot of the reforms include continuing to add the police budget when were calling for re- allocations of those dollars to go back into the community. And you know my hope for my relationship with the current mayor is that no matter what we are able to work together and continue to have a productive dialogue that makes Buffalo a better place for all.”