Will Gross: Committed to Helping Progressive Causes

In Philadelphia, the most consistent activist fight over the last year has been to mobilize people around the city to strongly voice their denunciation of the 76ers building a new arena on East Market Street, which would potentially displace members of the Chinatown community. They currently share the Wells Fargo Center with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers and lease it from Comcast Spectacor.

Anti-arena protestors are right to be concerned given that they have seen how construction like the Vine Street Expressway have split the neighborhood and this is not the first time a sports franchise has tried this. The Phillies tried to build a ballpark in Chinatown in 2000 and that had the support of former Mayor John Street. The community did not fall then because they made sure to voice their opinions in city council sessions, organized marches, and businesses closed to protest the idea.

I learned more about the current battle between the 76ers and Philadelphia’s Chinatown community through Will Gross, whom I met at an anti-arena meeting on South Street. He is a long-time organizer who is a revered progressive figure in Philadelphia, given his close run for PA’s 182nd legislative district and recently becoming the leader of the city’s 2nd Ward.

Photo of Will Gross courtesy of Second Ward Democrats.

He walked through how he went from committeeperson to ward leader in five years, and how he opened the ward. For context, a closed ward, which the 2nd used to be, is one where the committee members do not have a direct say over endorsements and this decision is made almost unilaterally by the leader.

“A group of open-minded people were able to win seats in the ward in 2018 and we were looking to fight to do away with this system, which can lead to corruption over time. When we had a majority of seats, we were able to draft our own bylaws. This allows you to create your own rules and have things be as transparent as the committee people want them to be.”

This allowed committees to be formed which members could join depending on their strengths and it made it a better environment to work in and express your beliefs. This is especially important given that committee people are essentially elected volunteers, so they should work with more liberties and have a voice when advocating for their divisions.

The ward leader that this progressive-aligned group behind in 2018 was Nikil Saval. He was elected PA state senator for the first district in 2020 after defeating an establishment Democrat Larry Farnese. This put the 2nd ward on more people’s radar and raised their political mobilizing credentials.

As ward leader, Will faces more heat since he is in contrast with Philadelphia Democratic Party Chairman Bob Brady because of his ward’s support of Working Families Party candidates in the fall’s city council election. The city has seven at-large council members, and 10 district members. Two of the seven at-large seats are reserved for the non-majority party, which in Philadelphia means non-Democrat given that about 80% of registered voters here are a member of this party. The two other seats have usually always gone to Republicans but Will argues that this should not be an automatic step and that a progressive has the right to win those seats.

“We have different disagreements between party leadership and different wards across the city. And that's okay. It's all part of the process. But we've certainly gone out there, not always on a limb by ourselves. There's usually a handful of awards that are leaning in the direction of a more progressive candidate.”

Chairman Brady made it clear that he wanted local party members to withhold support for Working Families Party candidates in the recent municipal election and threatened to purge committee members from their seats if refused to fall in line.

We still have to see how this affects Will’s ward and how he protects his committee members, but one thing is for certain, this is not his first tough fight.

In 2022 he ran for PA’s 182nd legislative district and lost in the primary to Ben Waxman, former communications director to Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner. He recounts what his motives for running were and his reflections on it a year later.

“I felt a certain level of responsibility to get involved and help better things for folks that were not seen as a priority. I saw the state seat as a way to elevate topics like having healthcare and housing as a human right,” Will said. “I will have to ask my wife first before I think about running again but I am happy to be anywhere I can make real change.”

A more personal fight to him is standing against the proposed 76ers arena on East Market Street.

His mother moved to Philadelphia from Taiwan in 1973 and was a Sunday school principal in Chinatown. Will understands the fear that these small businesses in this historic neighborhood have given that his father owned a furniture store on Main Street in Manayunk and he remembers going there with his parents on the weekend for grocery shopping.

When running for state representative, he was endorsed by the Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance (API PA) and after the campaign, he dove into their canvassing efforts against the stadium.

“This made me think of my family, who don't speak English very well. The idea of them having to travel 40 minutes to go get groceries is a heartbreaking thing,” he said. “Win or lose, this is a powerful movement that I am proud to be a part of. This is personal to me and this is why my spirit is not going anywhere.”

Will’s involvement has helped build a larger and more diverse front that condemns the greed that the 76ers are taking out on innocent Chinatown residents. Since he joined the movement wards 1, 2, and 39A have publicized statements against the arena and they have been joined by various registered community organizations.

The NBA franchise will continue to lobby for its own stadium by stating that it will not take city tax dollars and bring union jobs, but Will knows what the impact on the group will be and hopes to prevent their incursion on a community that means so much to him.