Episode 76: Visiting with Mayor Rita Ali of Peoria, IL and her story, “Everything I Needed to Know I Learned in High School.”

                                    SSPP ep. 76 MAYOR RITA ALI

This special episode features Peoria Mayor, Rita Ali, who appeared on stage in the inaugural That's What She Said in Peoria, IL. Reflecting on her story, "Everything I Needed to Know I Learned in High School," Jenette and Kerry learn more about the successes and failures that got Mayor Ali to where she is today. 


ANNOUNCER 00:00 Raising women's voices. One story at a time.
Welcome to The She Said Project Podcast.

[Music: The She Said Project Podcast Theme]

JENETTE JURCZYK  00:33
It is definitely time to get the party started on another episode of The She Said Project Podcast. Everyone, welcome. Thanks for joining us. We're here to share stories by and for women of our communities and joining us are women who have appeared on stage and That's What She Said. And we want to know more because the stories that they share are amazing, but they always leave me wanting a little bit more. So this is Jenette Jurczyk, National Director of The She Said Project and your co host for today:
 
KERRY ROSSOW  01:00  Kerry Rossow, co founder, co host, and you know when you were saying that it made me feel like like an episode out of the movie Grease. Our group is getting bigger. I feel like we need like matching silk satin jackets. And then like we all just stand around like [snaps fingers] clapping. [laughing] We got a big sisterhood!
 
JENETTE  01:14  Do you think silk jackets with our little logo on the back?
 
JENETTE  01:17  I am but I'm getting a whole Rizzo vibe from you over here. [Kerry laughs] Kerry, you're definitely the bad girl.
 
KERRY  01:17  Yeah, we can all be like chewing gum like really loudly and snapping our fingers...you are from Jersey!
 
KERRY  01:24  I'm a baddie.
 
JENETTE  01:29  You know, I was always obsessed with Frenchie. She was my favorite. And I played her once. Once, a long time ago, she was my favorite character. I think she was the most relatable, you know, that that ne'er do well, that girl who couldn't get it right, wasn't sure what direction she was going in. It took me a long time to find the direction I wanted to go in. And I say it all the time but I'll say it again, meeting you and Jill and Casey, who created That's What She Said, literally set me on fire. I'm fired up on all cylinders. And you gave me direction. You gave me a purpose. And I'm so grateful that I get to spend my days working with women to help them develop their story for their own performance in a That's What She Said show. So again, thank you.
 
KERRY   02:11  Oh my goodness. Well, we are the ones that should be thanking you. I told Jenette the other day, It's like the story of us -- like this beautiful thing. You know, when I met Jenette, I was momming really hard. And now my kids are grown and now you are right in the position...
 
JENETTE  02:2  Not only am I momming but who had to come to the studio with us today? My daughter is here, waiting out in the waiting area, because I was having one of those days where daughter's in tow and that's how we roll sometimes. And I love it when we work with women who sometimes they have a baby on their hip and they're coming to She Said rehearsal and that's okay. And so by giving me the gift of letting me direct and explore my own skills and passions with That's What She Said, I got to... I got to go big. You started here in Champaign Urbana. I was nervous and excited, but I knew that we needed to explore other communities and see if That's What She Said would still work. And we started in Bloomington back in 2019. But I always loved asking this question, 'Will it play in Peoria?' [Kerry laughs]
 
JENETTE  02:27  Which is fabulous because everybody in the theater world laughs and then, you know, sporty gals like me are like what is she talking about? Well, what's what's in Peoria?
 
KERRY 03:2  No, I remember I told you,’ just say the joke, Kerry. No, people will get it. I promise you’.
 
KERRY   03:24 And people got it. And I so I threw it out there and people laughed. But I was like, ah ha we are laughing. My sportiness had kept me from knowing that joke.
 
JENETTE    03:3So in 2022, I had the great honor of directing the very first That's What She Said in Peoria, co-produced by Nikki Romain, who we've had on the podcast here before but that cast was so incredible and so special, and is still very dear in my heart. But our guest today, Kerry, I literally have goosebumps. Our guest today is one of the speakers from That's What She Said in Peoria. And not only that, but she is a remarkable woman and a very accomplished woman. Welcome to the podcast. Mayor Rita Ali. How are you sweetheart?
 
MAYOR RITA ALI  04:03  I am doing great. I've just been enjoying listening to the two of you talk I mean, I'm getting goosebumps and teary eyes. And yes, That's What She Said played very well in Peoria!
 
JENETTE  04:16  Ah-ha! I told you! I told you so! No, it's true because Kerry and I we get to Yuk it up
 
KERRY  04:24  Yuk. There you go.
 
MAYOR ALI  04:25  Oh my god. It was all over the place and the room was standing room only. I mean, people were so excited and we were so excited and so honored to be a part of it, but we really didn't expect what happened that night. You know, we started bonding with the meetings. I thought, I don't have time for this. Even though I was asked to be a part of it, I thought, you know, I got this full time, 24 hour job as mayor of Peoria, and I'm gonna say yes to Nikki, because she asked, but then I thought, I don't have time to do this. But you know what? I didn't have time not to do that, [Jenette gasps] because it gave me so much strength. And the bonding was so supportive that it actually enhanced my ability to do my job. [Kerry gasps]
 
JENETTE 04:25  I always get that one wrong. We get to yuk it up here in Champaign and on the podcast, but the more we expand into other cities, and the more I get to do this work with more women, I'm trying to tell Kerry like no you don't understand these women are incredible. This community showed up they are ready. They want this. Rita, the night that we didvThat's What She Said in Peoria. Did you feel the electricity in the air that night?
 
MAYOR ALI  04:45  Oh my gosh!
 
JENETTE  05:32  I am just blown away right now. You are such a perfect representative of what it means to be, you know, a sister in the sisterhood sharing stories and that bond, but that just gives me so much joy to hear. Not only did that experience, of course, enhance your life, but enhance your career and your choices. And, you know, your connection with community. I know you say it in your story, but I really do need to point out for our listeners that Mayor Ali, she is the first woman, first person of color to sit in the position of mayor of Peoria. What an amazing large city here in central Illinois. It is such an accomplishment and we have been in awe of you ever since, watching you in action...
 
MAYOR ALI  06:13  Oh, thank you! It was breaking the glass ceiling after 185 [Kerry interjects Woohoo!] years of all white men mayors so I'm honored to have broken that glass ceiling with the help of a lot of people and a lot of women, my campaign team was all women. So... [laughs]
 
KERRY  06:32    bSee what I'm saying? See?  It's just... it is a bad I'm sorry for saying a bad word, mom, but it's a badass group of women. Getting stuff done.
 
JENETTE  06:39  Getting stuff done, for sure. And you know, we learned a little something about Mayor Ali's history and her story and where she learned how to run a good campaign. It actually goes back to her high school days.
 
KERRY  06:51  I love this story!

JENETTE  06:51  And it's such a charming and fun story. So I'm so excited to share with our listeners. So Mayor Ali, we're going to take a moment we're going to listen to your actual performance from the stage and bring our listeners in on the joy ride because here we go. Please enjoy this performance by Mayor Rita Ali in the inaugural, the very first That's What She Said to take the stage in Peoria, Illinois back in 2022. Here's her story: Everything I Needed to Know I Learned in High School. 

###

 
MAYOR ALI  07:18  Exactly one year ago this month, I was elected mayor of Peoria. [loud applause]
 
07:32  Becoming the city's first woman and first African American mayor. Thank you. [applause]
 
 07:44,,Despite the enormous responsibility this job brings, I am walking and working in my purpose each and every day.
 
07:56  People often ask where did your interest in politics come from? And while I've never thought of my activities as politics per se, I've been able to identify some events in my background that may have sparked or cultivated this pathway.
 
08:14  I was a little girl that became inspired by Muhammad Ali, because he was a fighter on and off the boxing ring. My family would gather around the radio to listen to his fights and no matter who he was fighting, Frazier, or Foreman, or whoever, we were always for Ali. I loved that he was bold, and proud and independent. And as he would say, pretty. [laughter] All the things that I wanted to be, he was unapologetically black. Ultimately, he became one of the world's greatest humanitarians, an advocate for civil, human, and women's rights. That's the kind of person that I have always longed to be. I am so proud to share the same last name with The Greatest.
 
09:12  I was a teenage girl that wanted to be active in school leadership. So I ran for freshman class president at Manual High School. [https://www.peoriapublicschools.org/o/mhs]
 
09:24  I had lots of friends, so I thought I was electable. I put my name in for the job, not really understanding all the responsibilities that were required of running or serving in office. So I'm in the High School Auditorium, where all the candidates for office were to introduce themselves to the student body and to give their pitch. There were two of us running for freshman class president, a girl named Kim and myself. Kim was introduced to the audience first. I watched her as she went to the podium, notebook in hand, and she started reading her campaign speech. She was well dressed, organized, and her grammar was perfect. And she had solid ideas about how to make our school better for our classmates. Kim was the daughter of a highly acclaimed University speech instructor who remains unforgettable in the world of speech competition nationally. With every word she spoke, I began to sink lower and lower in my chair. I didn't realize that we were expected to have a speech. [laughter] I didn't write anything. [laughter] Yet, I knew I had to do something. So I started to think about my classmates, who they were and what they liked.
 
10:54  As Kim left the podium, I was called to speak, I jumped up out of my chair, I shaped up my afro a little bit. And I bounced onto the stage with my jeans and tennis shoes. I avoided the podium and I took the microphone to center stage. I first told the students that I was going to work to improve the meals that we ate for lunch, I was going to seek more time in between classes. And then I gave my pitch. I said, if we want to get up, we got to get down. [laughter and applause] That's when the crowd went crazy. So I said it again. [laughter] If we want to get we gotta get down. [laughter] And that was my speech. [laughter]
 
11:55  I was elected freshman class president. [laugher and applause]
 
12:06  Lesson learned: know your audience. [laugher] Kim and I remain the best of friends today and forevermore. [applause]
 
12:23  In my senior year, in signing up for classes for my last semester, I asked my counselor how many classes I needed to graduate. He examined my record and said, just one. I said, sign me up for one class. He said, Are you sure? I said yes. If that's all I need, that's all I'm taking.
 
12:49  Every day that last semester, I got up for school and attended my eight o'clock class, and then I went back home and went to sleep.
 
12:58  As graduation day approached, I ordered my cap and gown. I sent my invitations to my family and to my friends. My classmates and I were in the gymnasium practicing for the graduation march, a few days before a special day. When a student page entered the room and handed me a note from my counselor. He needed to see me right away.
 
13:22  My counselor did not greet me with his usual smile. He said he had some bad news -- that we had miscalculated my credits and I was half a credit short of graduating high school.
 
13:36  We? I said. [laughter]
 
13:37  You said I only needed one class. He said, 'I'm sorry but you cannot graduate until you have all the required credits. You cannot walk in the ceremony.'
 
13:50  I was crushed. I was angry. I was sad. And I was deeply hurt. I had to tell my friends and I had to tell my family.
 
14:02  Although I took a summer art class and received my diploma by mail that summer, I continued to be angry and I resented my counselor for several years. He cheated me out of graduation with my classmates, I thought, but one day I had a spiritual awakening.
 
14:21  The message came to me very clear. And it said, 'Rita, you must take responsibility for making the decision to take only one class that semester. You attempted to do just enough to get by and it wasn't enough. It's never enough.'
 
14:41  That was a major turning point in my life. After many years, I finally took responsibility for doing what I thought was the minimum. I forgave my counselor and I came to the powerful understanding that doing just enough to get by does not lead to success. Doing just enough to get by does not lead to academic success. Doing just enough to get by does not lead to career success. It does not lead to success in relationships. And it doesn't lead to success in life.
 
15:23  Doing just enough to get by is simply just not enough.
 
15:29  As a result of this lesson and experience, I became an over achiever. I over achieved academically earning a bachelor's degree, two master's degrees and a PhD. [applause]
 
15:49  Education has been my way out of poverty, the pathway to freedom and to more options. I became an over worker, giving more than what's expected on the job, serving on community boards, leading social causes and entering politics. But I want you to know that I am in ordinary person, and ordinary person that applies extraordinary effort to get things done.
 
16:24  High school truly impacted much of who I am today, both personally and professionally. I learned lessons that helped shape the woman and the leader that I am today. But the most important lesson that I learned, if you want to get up, you got to get down. [music playing: Jungle Boogie] [applause]

 ###
 
KERRY  16:49  Okay, I mean, stop it, right? It's just amazing. Okay, so I have to tell you, I was not able to come to see the show in person. And I watched it from my bed in my robe. And I literally was talking to the screen. I was so blown away. And right then, in the moment, I sent a Facebook message to Nikki saying, oh my gosh, it blew me away. And it was so special. Because it was a show. I was just watching and hearing for the first time. And it was amazing. The Sisterhood was so clear, it came through my computer screen. It was amazing. I'm a non crier, so I won't admit to tears. But that show. If a show was gonna bring me to tears, it was that one. I was so proud and amazed with all of you.
 
MAYOR ALI  17:32  Thank you. And we're still a sisterhood. I mean, we stil... we have a text chain. As Jenette knows, we're, you know, happy anniversary. You know, how's everybody doing? Just checking in on a pretty regular basis. So we have a bond that started with That's What She Said in Peoria?
 
JENETTE  17:50  Yes. In fact, even within the last 24 hours, there have been some invitations to attend events, some celebrations. You're absolutely right. It is a beautiful group of women. But let's talk about your high school political career for a moment please? Because I mean, obviously you didn't know then that you would one day run for mayor, but you certainly had the spark, the insight, the creativity. And I think what we all realized is you got to know your audience, right?
 
MAYOR ALI  18:19  Yes. Absolutely.
 
JENETTE  18:20  That was the message that came out loud and clear. From your campaign, for what was it, freshman class president?
 
MAYOR ALI  18:26  Yes.
 
JENETTE  18:27   And you won, you won the election.
 
MAYOR ALI  18:28  I did.
 
JENETTE  18:28  So how was that experience for you?
 
MAYOR ALI  18:30  It was exhilarating. It was pretty eye opening for me, because I didn't know what it took, really, to become president I didn't have a speech ready. As I indicated earlier, my opponent had a well thought out well prepared, well executed speech. But because I knew my audience, I began to speak their language and talk about, you know, if we want to get up, we got to get down. And that was language of the time, is, you know, [singing] get down, get down. And because of those relationships, because of that message, it was effective. And I you know, that's what I learned that carried on into my adult life. 
 
JENETTE  19:12  I am very curious how those lessons have played out in your career today. Do you ever take any of those nuggets with you or think about them,
 
MAYOR ALI  19:21  I'd take them all with me in terms of failure I talked about in my speech, you know, failing not graduating from high school on time, and taking the easy road, taking one class and that last semester instead of taking a full load of classes trying to, you know, just doing enough to get by, and I've learned that that does not lead to success. It does not lead to success personally or professionally, in relationships or otherwise. And I know that now, and it caused me to become an overachiever. And that overachiever in me has brought higher income, higher opportunities, opened many doors, that otherwise, would not have been here for a, at the time, a young, you know, became a young parent, unmarried, you know, raising a child pretty much by myself and those slip ups in my life, those hardships in my life, those failures in my life, helped me to fight harder, to work harder. And, you know, I went from being an under achiever to an overachiever, and it has really paid off in my life. So I tell people all the time, don't look at failing, you know, as something really bad because it can be a great learning experience. My first bid for city council, Peoria City Council, I lost that election, I lost by one vote. And a one vote loss is a loss.
 
JENETTE  20:53  Wow.
 
MAYOR ALI  20:53  It's very difficult. But if I was a good sport, people love a good sport. I handled it with class, people love class. And it paid off for me because I ran again, two years later, city wide, and I won by a landslide. And I wouldn't be Peoria's mayor today, had I not lost that election. So it truly was not a failure, it seemed like it was. But ultimately, how you handle defeat, I think is very important. And those are life lessons that really came to me from my high school experience.
 
JENETTE  21:29  Those are lessons that everyone can learn from absolutely. You know, failure can teach you a lot of things. I could sit here and celebrate you all day long. But I want to ask some harder questions, if I may,
 
MAYOR ALI  21:40  Yes.
 
JENETTE  21:40  You know, I know, because you shared with us that the mayor role on paper is not a full time job. Am I correct?
 
MAYOR ALI  21:48  In Peoria it's structured as a part time job.
 
JENETTE  21:51  Right, [Kerry laughs] I remember that. But you said not only were you going to commit to treating it like a full time job, you just, I'm quoting you from earlier today, it is a 24/7 commitment from you. Can you talk about how you approach that?
 
MAYOR ALI  22:06  Well, you approach it with humility, you approach it, I think, knowing that you have a great responsibility and a great commitment to the community and that people are counting on you. So at 5:30 or six o'clock every morning, I get a report from the police, and with all the police incidents that happened up until that point, and sometimes, you know, it's a relief that there's just a few and sometimes it's heartbreaking that somebody got killed, or you know, there was a number of shootings or somebody had an overdose, those things I read every day, it starts my morning, it carried through the day. And there are great things that happen too where I'm able to help someone or through the staff through the services of the city, we're able to help someone keep their home, upgrade their home, solve some community or health problem, medical problems, and neighborhood problem. So it comes with ups and downs. But by far, I will say the ups are much greater than the downs.
 
KERRY  23:10  Wow. Do you think it's harder because you're a woman? Or do you feel like you know what this is what women are doing all the things and juggling all the things and able to hear things and absorb them? And then like, Okay, here's what we're going to do? What are your thoughts on that?
 
MAYOR ALI  23:24  Well, in some ways, you could say it's harder, because I'm kind of in a man's world, most all the mayors, except for Champaign, you know, but in this region that I'm in, all the mayors are men, and all of them are white men, and I'm part of the club, I'm part of the part of Illinois mayor's Association and I attend the meetings and they respect me and appreciate me. But again, you know, you're you're the only one sometimes and that's sometimes difficult. Sometimes you're underestimated because you're a woman, because you're a person of color. And, you know, that used to tick me off. But I see it as the female advantage now, you know, underestimate me, because I'm gonna...
 
KERRY  24:08  Go ahead, see how that works.
 
MAYOR ALI  24:09  Otherwise, right, I'm gonna show you better than I can tell you. And that just drives me to do more and to fight harder, and to prove myself and to strive for excellence and to make the city the best city that it can possibly be under my leadership, those things that used to perturb me, because I'm a woman or people, you know, try to take advantage of you. They don't bother me so much anymore, because I use it as an advantage. If you underestimate me, oh, boy, you're probably going to be proven very wrong.
 
JENETTE  24:42  Watch out. Yes, it's true that you are the first the first woman the first person of color and you had to work hard to be the first but because you did, you won't be the last, and there's so much power in the ceiling that you broke through for  little girls in Peoria and everywhere who will see you not just performing your duties as mayor, but people who will see your story from the That's What She Said, stage, our friends who get to listen to the story on the podcast today. There's this spirit of, yes, I can go ahead and I'm going to show you, and you inspire others that anything is possible. And I think that I don't know if it was intended, but it is such a gift that you bring with you to this role showing girls and women everywhere. What's possible?
 
MAYOR ALI  25:32  Well, thank you, I really feel that way. And, you know, I'm just humbled and grateful to be in the row. But I that's what I said I was first, but I won't be the last I won't be the last woman, I won't be the last person of color, I won't be the last black person to hold this role. And let me tell you it's just something funny that happened. I had a group of individuals who were participating in our community leadership school, and it was about 40 of them. It was one of the larger classes. And this one lady spoke up because I was speaking to the group and I was doing a Q & A and she said that she has three daughters, and one son, and they followed my race. And when I won, they were so excited, you know, especially the girls, because the girls were like, This is my future. And so the son who was the youngest, turned around to his mother and said, 'Can boys be married too?'
 
KERRY  26:26  Ha ha ha, that's the best thing I've ever heard.
 
JENETTE  26:30  That is fantastic.
 
MAYOR ALI  26:32  I loved it.
 
JENETTE  26:34  And yes, we want that little boy to be the best he can be. But the fact that this is all he knows at this moment in his life, you know, that says something
 
KERRY  26:43  Well, and I have two boys and two girls. And so I've given a lot of lip service to how important it's been for me to do things like this for my girls. But it also, I hope, has had the same impact on my boys not in the same way like you can do anything. They get that message in a million different ways. But for them for it to shape their image of what's possible for women and their outlook because I want them to always be the person, the men, that like of course she can, of course she will, and encouraging and helping and supporting the women in their, their whatever their fields wind up being also,
 
MAYOR ALI  27:18  [laughing] yes. I have a granddaughter while she's actually my great granddaughter and I took her to the zoo. It was a school event. And one of my granddaughters is small enough to be in a buggy and the other is not. But anyway, she got tired and I was pushing her in the buggy. She was five years old. And I thought she was like asleep. And we were over by the animals. And there was this teacher that came by. He was a male, Caucasian male. And he spoke to me at I'm pretty sure he knew who I was because he was a stranger to me. My great granddaughter, Debbie, she popped her head up out of the stroller and said, 'She's the mayor!' [laughing] and I was was like and he said, I know. You know, I didn't even know that she was really conscious of that title given to me, but she she had a big smile on her face. And she just, you know, poked her head. She was just letting him know that her grandmother was the mayor and I just got it. I was so shocked. But I got a big kick out of it, too.
 
KERRY  28:24  That's great.
 
JENETTE  28:25  I mean, you've got to be proud, right? Like, yes, there's, there's a little girl right there who is gonna who's growing up right now, knowing that anything is possible.
 
MAYOR ALI  28:35  Right
 
JENETTE  28:35  And is so proud to share with the world.
 
MAYOR ALI  28:38  Yes.
 
JENETTE  28:40  I love it. Well, thank you for joining us today because now we get to share with the world how incredible you are. And I will forever remember the phrase you said early in our conversation. 'I really didn't have time to say yes. But looking back, I didn't have time not to be part of That's What She Said.' I have never heard it put in that way. And it just, it gave me chills. I appreciate that so much. Because it was a true, true honor to work with you. But you are so correct. This process absolutely humanizes us, you know, we are just women, women, supporting women, women sharing real life stories. And yet there's this elevation that happens for every woman for every woman on that stage. We all get to believe we could be mayor one day too
 
KERRY  29:27  The rising tide lifts all boats,
 
JENETTE  29:29  we do that
 
MAYOR ALI  29:29  That's right. It made me a better person. So I thank you. Thank you, Jenette, you know, for helping me even create my story, create the title and format my story. So I just I thank you for that.
 
JENETTE  29:41  Well, you had plenty of juicy bits to work with. We just needed to find the pieces that we wanted to share that night and I'm so glad we did. Because it was a perfect story. It was perfect for you to share you know in your first year on the job and to show the community that you're just a woman who's had varied experiences and that you too can learn lessons from failure and turn it around and make these incredible choices that make the world a better place. You're such a servant leader to your community and it is an honor to know you and to call you my friend. Thank you for taking even more time today to check in with us.
 
MAYOR ALI  30:14  A pleasure!
 
JENETTE  30:15  We appreciate you so much and thank you friends for listening and I hope that you could take away even just the tiniest bit of how amazing this woman is. We appreciate Mayor Rita Ali so much. Go check her out. Go check out the city of Peoria because yes, Kerry Rossow it played in Peoria and it was amazing.
 
MAYOR ALI  30:33  Thanks
 
JENETTE  30:34  That's all the time we have for today. Thank you for joining us here on The She Said Project Podcast
 
KERRY  30:39  Over and out 
 

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[Music: The She Said Project Podcast Theme]

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