About Will

Will is a union organizer, small business owner, and proud democratic socialist. The son of Chinese and Jewish parents, he worked low-wage service jobs throughout his life before opening OX, a coffee shop off South Street, which he has run for more than ten years. A fixture in the Bella Vista community, Will stepped up to organize small businesses, ward organizations, and RCOs to defend Philadelphia’s Chinatown from a proposed corporate arena.

Today, Will works as a labor organizer with AFSCME DC 47, organizing cultural workers across Philadelphia and fighting alongside his coworkers to win strong contracts and build democratic unions. He comes from a proud union family: his father was a member of the Temple University faculty union, and his wife was an original organizer of the Philadelphia Museum of Art Union and serves as Vice President of AFSCME Local 397.

A longtime member of Philly DSA, Will has been inspired by campaigns to tax the rich, protect tenants, and empower working people. Now, he’s running for City Council to bring the power of organized working people to City Hall. 

The First District

Philadelphia’s First Council District stretches from South Philadelphia through Center City and Fishtown to Kensington and Port Richmond, neighborhoods shaped by both struggle and creativity. From the factories and shipyards that once powered Philadelphia’s economy to the developers and corporate interests reshaping our neighborhoods today, powerful interests have long sought to extract wealth from these communities at the expense of working people.

But this district is also home to deep roots, resilient neighborhoods, and extraordinary diversity. Immigrants, workers, small businesses, artists, and families have built communities here for generations and helped define the character and culture of Philadelphia. From the rowhouses of South Philly to the working class neighborhoods along the Delaware River, the First District is a place where people know how to look out for one another—and how to fight back when powerful interests threaten the places they call home.

This district has also been at the heart of Philadelphia’s progressive movement for years. From Nikil Saval and Elizabeth Fiedler to Chris Rabb, working people here have built a deep bench of leaders willing to challenge corporate power and fight for their communities. Their victories were built not by political insiders, but by organizers, tenants, workers, and neighbors coming together to demand a different kind of politics.