As I write this, it’s only been one day since Philadelphia made history by becoming the first big city in America to levy a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. I’ve spent time over the last couple of months lobbying for the passage of this so-called "soda tax," twice presenting testimony during budget hearings encouraging City Council to support it. While I’m still reveling in the victory being celebrated by advocates for Pre-K, parks, community schools, rec centers and public health, it was some of the moments leading up to the final vote June 16 that were the most impactful.

On June 8, the final day City Council held budget hearings, I was joined at City Hall by four high school seniors we worked with this year at Weavers Way Community Programs — now Food Moxie. All of them, three students from Saul and one from Masterman, had prepared powerful personal testimony. Stories of the devastating effects diabetes has had on their families, of community recreation centers falling apart or becoming too unsafe to visit, of neighborhood libraries going dark. All of them had had the benefit of Pre-K, all of them attended public magnet high schools and all of them are bound for college in the fall.

Unfortunately, they did not get to testify publicly. Council members were largely in the proverbial “back room” negotiating the terms of a tax that would be palatable to all. The result — a 1.5 cent per ounce levy on sugar-sweetened beverages and diet sodas — was passed out of committee later that evening. When it became clear that the students would not be able to testify, we left council chambers and began knocking on the office doors of their elected council members. The students introduced themselves to staffers as constituents who were supportive of the soda tax. They asked for business cards so they could email their testimony. They made their voices heard and took part in the democratic process, here in the birthplace of America.

As luck would have it, one of the teens, Calla Bush St. George, would have a second chance to testify on the day the bill was called for a vote. Calla, who graduated from Masterman and is headed to Swarthmore College in the fall, interned in our office for her senior project this year. Her enthusiasm for being part of this process was unparalleled. On the eve of testifying, she emailed me, “I am so excited to have an impact on my local government. It’s all my AP Gov dreams come true!” Calla spoke passionately about how Pre-K gave her a head start, about how poverty and poor nutrition — including cheap sugary drinks — resulted in diabetes and heart disease among her family members, and about how her educational success should be the norm rather than the exception for Philadelphia children. While experts in their respective fields testified to all the reasons, ranging from education to health, that Council should vote for this tax, Calla made it personal in a profound way. Minutes later, Council voted 13-4 in support of a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. 

I’m proud of my fellow advocates and coalition partners who persevered in the face of a well-organized, multimillion-dollar campaign that manipulated the facts and misled the public. I’m proud of Philadelphia City Council, including our own district Councilwoman Cindy Bass and at-large Councilman Derek Green, a resident of Northwest Philadelphia, for their leadership. Most of all, I’m proud of the young people who took part in this process, who demonstrated courage in making their personal stories public, who made their voices heard and, in so doing, contributed to making history. Around here, we call that moxie.