Dan Totten has saved my life. Vote him No. 1
I have been surviving on the streets of Cambridge since last May. Dan Totten, a candidate for City Council, has saved my life by caring for me when others wouldn’t.
When the police were harassing me outside the library, Dan made sure they didn’t throw my belongings (including vital documents) in a garbage truck. On the first cold night this fall, Dan biked over with a sleeping bag so I wouldn’t freeze. He made sure I didn’t go hungry when I had a slow day of selling Spare Change newspapers. He introduced me to Bárbara and Amanda from Cambridge Heart, who have earned my trust. He has continued to support me even after leaving his job at City Hall to run for office.
Dan’s plans to expand case management and affordable housing would make a huge difference for someone who is homeless like me. Please join me in voting for Dan Totten No. 1 on Nov. 7. And you can support my struggle for survival on the street by going to strit.org/Billy.
Billy Meyer, homeless in Harvard Square
During the pandemic in 2020 Dan took care of so many people with difficulties too much for Cambridge mutual aid volunteers. He is quietly the most helpful person at city hall.
it is laudable that the candidate cared enough to find you a sleeping bag and other acts of kindness. The problem is, he doesn’t play nice with others. I want a councilor who is respectful, follows the rules of engagement, is not disruptive or dismissive of others. it is on full display in forum videos. Councilors represent ALL people, not just their voting constituents.
Dan is a fighter for sure and will get stuff done. It’s a feature not a bug and if you want a counselor who is polite and compromising then he is not your person but if you want someone who will give you his blanket and fight for you to have a place to call home when you’re desperate then vote Dan.
I could write a long list of the people I know who have helped others during a time of need, and kudos to little Danny Totten for the incident above, but the Cambridge City Council is at a crossroad and little Dan is NOT the answer.
Totten is often childish and angers far too easily for that position. A city councilor should be open to the opinions of its citizens even if they disagree -this is NOT something little Dan is capable of.
This upcoming election is very important and the voters of Cambridge can NOT allow little Dan a seat on “our” council.
Sorry “little Danny Totten” you sound pretty childish yourself. Luckily Cambridge has many kind people but Dan is the person who goes out in the middle of the night with a sleeping bag. Not that many people do that. Don’t like him don’t vote for him.
We have all witnessed far too many childish outbursts, conjecture, dangerous policy positions and falsehoods from Dan Totten to feel he is qualified to serve as a leader.
Disrespecting our public servants and being a member of the DSA disqualifies him for me.
He certainly seems well qualified to help residents access our city’s wonderful services for constituents such as this Op Ed writer, hopefully he continues to pursue that avenue.
Thank you to Cambridge Day for publishing this. Homeless people in our communities are our neighbors, and we have all failed them. Those who respond to this reality with compassion and support rather than demonization and abuse are worth emulation and praise until it becomes the norm as it should be.
Those attacking him here show themselves for who they really are.
I’m sure there are many avenues that little Danny Totten can pursue for his next career, -but Cambridge City Council is NOT one of them. Little Dan does not possess the character or maturity required to sit on a council seat. His violent attack on the Catholic Church, his stance on eliminating CPD jobs, and his complete failure to listen to another persons opinion must disqualify him from any consideration to sit on “our” council.
Is this the same Dan Totten that posted bigoted anti-Catholic vilification at https://twitter.com/DanForCambridge/status/1371449190174298112?
Or antisemitic “River to Sea” posts like https://twitter.com/DanForCambridge/status/1651736436650004480?
Seems a nice guy.
“Those who respond to this reality with compassion and support rather than demonization and abuse are worth emulation”.
Ironically, Mr. Totten does both- demonizing and being abusive… he is not a consensus-builder but yet another bully vying for our city government.