If, as expected, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) runs for re-election in 2018, he will face an unlikely challenger for the Democratic nomination: Jon Svitavsky, a social worker and advocate for the homeless who has never run for office before.
Svitavsky, who calls himself “a bona fide, strong, left-wing Christian liberal,” says he shares many of Sanders’ political views — if anything, he adds, “I’m more liberal than Bernie” — but he is no fan of Sanders’ conduct, calling him “a vicious politician. So many good words, but so arrogant.”
Svitavsky says he was spurred to enter the political arena by the 2016 presidential campaign. “Bernie was very much responsible for Trump’s election,” he asserts. “I was amazed that Sanders wouldn’t do all that he could, once Hillary [Clinton] got the nomination, to elect Hillary over Trump, who would destroy all the things he supposedly believes in.”
The 60-year-old Bridport resident has a history with Sanders that goes back to the senator’s days as Burlington mayor. In 1982, the then 24-year-old Svitavsky was a young social worker who helped to found Burlington’s first overnight homeless shelter — and in the process, found his own calling. “Before that, they were the faceless homeless,” he recalls. “Then they became John and Mary and Tim.
“These people could be helped,” he continues. “They didn’t need to be so disrespected that they were thought not to be capable of helping themselves.”
Svitavsky directed the Burlington Emergency Shelter, which refused entry to anyone drunk or on drugs, and required them to seek help or find work. By his account, his shelter ran into opposition from then-Burlington mayor Sanders, who was — again, by Svitavsky’s account — opposed to the Emergency Shelter’s stance against drugs and alcohol. The Sanders’ administration eventually set up a shelter called the Waystation, which placed no conditions on entry and resulted, according to Svitavsky, in an abrupt increase in the city’s homeless population.
“I became very disillusioned with Sanders,” Svitavsky says.
He later went on to help establish shelters in Barre-Montpelier, St. Albans and Brattleboro, as well as one in Maine. An effort in Bennington fell afoul of town officials. In 2015 he began working on a new shelter in South Burlington, but plans were shelved when a fundraising drive fell short.
“I’m renewing my efforts there, and I believe I will be successful this time,” he says. “I’m going to do that concurrently while running. Probably the first person to be opening a homeless shelter while they run for U.S. Senate.”
Svitavsky admires Sanders for “standing for the little person, and not being afraid to stand against power and money. Wonderful, wonderful rhetoric, but he’s sponsored and passed three bills in his time in Congress, and two of them were renaming post offices.”
The first-time candidate knows full well he’s likely up against the man who won 86 percent of the vote in Vermont’s 2016 presidential primary, and remains incredibly popular with the state’s voters.
“I’m not intimidated,” he says. “He’s the Goliath and call me David, and I’m just collecting stones.”
When asked for comment, Sanders’ Senate office responded with a one-sentence statement: “The Senate office does not deal with campaign-related inquiries.”
This article appears in The Cartoon Issue • 2017.
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Leslie, you were banned for repeatedly being asked asked a question, and your deflection, vulgarity and refusal to acknowledge the answers you were given. You lied there, do you have to lie here as a well?
Doc, his “so called” qualifications are just that. Qualifications. People don’t need to be drunk or stoned around families with children. Baby, you never took Journalism 101, 01, or 00. Just sit down.
You’re not a Dr. either.
I am disappointed by the apparent lack of fact checking for this piece. Anyone with any knowledge of the nonprofit or social service sectors in Burlington over the past 30 years should know that the Waystation is the overnight shelter run by independent local nonprofit COTS, which was established in the early 80s by a group of community volunteers and leaders from the faith community.
What a crap piece of reporting! This jackass turned away the needy on the worst nights b/c they didn’t meet HIS so called qualifications. He’s a self centered, righteous jackass. Fortunately, Vermonters will see that and reject his candidacy. Shame on 7 Days and the author for ignoring the full story – trying doing your homework before printing this crap. You just flunked journalism 101 – perhaps writing for Breitbart would be more your speed. #smh
Jon Svitavsky seems to be an honest soul who is disgusted with the Sanders double-speak. Jon has been in the trenches doing the Lord’s work attempting to rescue souls from economic and social misfortune. On the other hand, Bernie is renowned for spouting concern for the down trodden while lining his pockets at the public trough.
Good luck to Mr. Svitavsky, he will need it as Bernie’s minions blindly follow him to the voting booth and sadly, reelect the U.S. Senator whose only measurable accomplishment has been naming a couple post offices! Bernie need to bee challenged and forced to defend his right to keep his Senate seat.
Wow I know this is BS but here is a report from a Vermonter who has been volunteering in shelters for the last 30 years with a totally different story. Walters is not the advocate that he wants everyone to think he is. Bernie will win but what will the neoliberal corporatists Dems throw at him next. https://www.facebook.com/rita.markley/posts/10214194194195057
This man is no advocate for the homeless, he is an advocate for his own agenda,an impoverished version of christian charity. This man is no comparison to Bernie’s unwavering advocacy for the marginalized. Seven Days, you do your readers a disservice.
I criticized Svitavsky’s anti-single payer doublespeak and negative campaigning, on his FB page. His response was to ban me. If you criticize Senator Sanders on his page, nobody is there to delete it. Not impressed, to say the very least, by Svitavsky’s stifling of sensible Senatorial discourse.
I was sure I had read this article before ! Two years ago 7Days wrote an article about a hopeless old leftie Peter Diamondstone . (July 29 2015) Are you sure these two ,Jon and Peter (both disciples ) aren’t brothers ? They are both true believers as opposed to that rotten sell out Bernie . I guess this is a perfect illustration of what it is to be a minor footnote of history .
“Citizen” wants one example of Trump lies. Here are hundreds: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/06/23/opi… AND http://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/t…
Lie: Obama wiretapped me. Truth: He didn’t. It’s been 4 months since The Liar made that accusation and he hasn’t come forward with one shred of evidence. No one has.
Lie: I fired Comey because the FBI was in disarray. Truth: “I fired Comey because of the Russia thing.”
Lie: Our intelligence agencies don’t agree that Russia meddled in the election. Nobody really knows what happened. Truth: The 4 agencies who’ve investigated all agree there was meddling, including agencies working under Trump appointees.
Lie: Podesta won’t turn over the DNC server to the FBI and CIA. Truth: Posesta doesn’t have the DNC server and the CIA isn’t investigating.
The guys lies every day.