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photo by Talia Hodge
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photo by Talia Hodge
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photo by Talia Hodge
On a hot July night in 2022, just before their campaign for an Akron City Council at-large seat was to launch, Fran Wilson fought for breath. Tear-gassed several times while protesting the fatal shooting of Jayland Walker by Akron police, Wilson watched as law enforcement vehicles filled Akron’s streets.
“It was thick in the air that night,” says the 28-year-old, strolling their West Hill Akron neighborhood. “Seeing quasi-tanks, paid with my taxpayer dollars … roll downtown — that really shook me.”
Wilson’s nascent campaign was the result of years of activism. A fourth-generation Akronite, they were born into a large Catholic family. Growing up queer in a conservative environment wasn’t easy.
“There was always a power dynamic in my life that I was criticizing and investigating,” Wilson says. “That has played a part in me becoming more interested in government and decisions that are made for us without us.”
After attending Western Kentucky University for a degree in digital storytelling, they found themselves back where they’d started — Akron.
“I remember being on an air mattress in my dad’s workroom, crying because I don’t know if I belong here,” Wilson recalls. “I tore a lot of this place out of myself because of what it did to me. Now I find myself back here relying on it.”
They began getting involved with the West Hill neighborhood organization and canvassing for local candidates. In 2019, they began to virtually attend weekly Akron City Council sessions and, later, committee meetings and budget hearings. They found the proceedings unclear — so, around 2021, they began to report key information in an approachable way on Facebook and Instagram. The posts — and eventually a newsletter — clarified and condensed hours of jargon.
“A core reason why I do everything I do is because of how inaccessible local government is,” Wilson says. “The more we know, the better we can take action and advocate.”
By 2022, they were considering an Akron City Council campaign — albeit uncertainly. Wilson knew joining the political mainstream might contradict their values. Still, if they wanted to enact change — from housing to policing — they needed access.
“If we are to create change, then we need people on the inside,” Wilson says. They ran their campaign as a team effort, holding listening sessions, neighborhood tours and a budget town hall.
Wilson became the only person under 40 to run for the at-large seat — as well as the first out nonbinary Akron City Council candidate. Sporting a floral tattoo sleeve and pastel nails, Wilson brings a fresh approach to local politics.
“We see a lot of candidates that we cannot connect with. The way Fran ran their campaign made it very accessible, very community oriented,” says Aleena Starks, political director for the Ohio Working Families Party, one of Wilson’s endorsements.
The campaign wasn’t without challenges. Wilson and their team received threats due to Wilson’s queerness. (They often responded with educational materials.) Out of a field of nine candidates, Wilson placed fifth. Still, they don’t see themselves as a politician.
“We set two goals at the beginning of the campaign,” Wilson says. “The first one was to spread civic education about what was going on in Akron, and the second was to win.” They laugh. “We achieved our first one … but didn’t end up winning. That’s OK. Because there’s a lot of work to do here.”
Now, between serving for a local restaurant and working in international public relations, Wilson is focusing on organizing. They continue to report on Akron politics, knock on doors and work for their neighborhood organization — as well as run discussion groups about queerness and faith within their childhood parish and more. Though Wilson hasn’t ruled out another campaign, working in their community, they say, is more important than a title.
“It’s this desire to make this place something,” Wilson says.
