Mark Wassberg hopes to win a council seat and work to reduce crime
Best known for delivering searing two-minute critiques of Richmond leaders, Mark Wassberg is running for City Council and hoping voters will help him snag the District 1 seat in November.
Two years ago, Wassberg ran unsuccessfully for mayor in Richmond, landing in fourth place in a heated race that began with 11 candidates — most of whom dropped out long before election day.
Wassberg has lived in and around Richmond for most of his life. He graduated from Richmond High School, attended Contra Costa College, and experienced homelessness on the streets of Richmond. He focuses most of his time on documentary filmmaking, which he says he learned to do after being laid off from Chevron several years ago.
Wassberg says he was never really interested in politics but became involved back in the early 2000s when Richmond started having problems with violent crime, much of which he watched through his camera lens.
“I used to park my car at 4th and Macdonald by Nevin Park and wait for the sound of gunshots or the flash of the gun, and then I’d drive to find where it was happening, and I'd film it, “Wassberg said. “It was a mess, people on the ground with their brains hanging out, blood everywhere, all gang-related.”
Through his documentation of crime, Wassberg says he started examining the local political scene and began questioning what he was seeing.
“Back in 2005, when the RPA took over, they wanted to get rid of the police,” Wassberg said. “But in 2004, Richmond was named the most dangerous city in the state, and it didn’t make any sense to get rid of the police. That’s when I started to get involved, talk to people, and film what was happening.”
Wassberg says he’s often at odds with decisions made by Richmond’s current leadership. He feels they deviate from the constitution and frequently takes them to task as a speaker during the city council's public forum. His use of colorful language, which many find offensive, sometimes results in his ejection.
Soren Hemmila
“They have thrown me out so many times, but you have to stand for what’s right, and that’s what I am doing. The council is a bunch of anarchists. I go and speak to show people right from wrong and to tell them not to vote for the RPA,” Wassberg said.
In particular, Wassberg says he disagrees with numerous council decisions over the years, from defunding the police to the council’s resolution to support Palestine earlier this year and, more recently, what he refers to as the “blackmailing of Chevron.” But he says he won’t have difficulty working with the other council members if elected.
Soren Hemmila
“I don’t have any problem with any of them as long as they stay within the constitution,” Wassberg said.
Wassberg says he initially didn’t intend to run for office this year, nor does he have the finances to back a campaign, but people asked him to run, so he is obliging.
“People kept calling me up and asking if I was going to run, so finally I said ok,” Wassberg said.
Wassberg says one of the first things he will do if elected is to erect a police substation at 4th and Macdonald, an attempt to quell the crime that he says still permeates the area. “Nevin Park. That’s where all the gangs hang out; we need more police right there,” Wassberg said.
When asked what he’d like people to know about him, Wassberg said with a chuckle, “that I’m really a nice, easy-going guy."
As for his post-election plans, Wassberg said he will likely return to work on a documentary he has been making about Richmond.
“I plan to go to full speed to try and get the documentary ready for the film festivals by December,” Wassberg said.
The Wassberg campaign does not currently have a website.
This is the last in a series of candidate interviews conducted by Grandview to profile all Richmond candidates running for office. These profiles aim to provide information to Richmond voters and are not endorsements or promotions.
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