By Grace Hebron
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
Democrat Cathy Bevins is often reminded that she is the only woman on the Baltimore County Council.
Whether it’s from a constituent who doesn’t like to be told “no” by a strong female or a fellow council member who naturally looks at legislation from a male perspective, Bevins has had to approach government service with an unswerving will.
“It is interesting to be one of seven and be a female,” said Bevins, who has represented the county’s Sixth District since December 2010. “If this were my first term and I was the only woman [on the council], I’m not sure how much more difficult it would be.”
Throughout her three terms, Bevins has seen her gender play a pivotal role in the decision-making process of the council.
One of the biggest examples of this came in 2014, when she was the lead sponsor of legislation requiring background checks for volunteers for the Baltimore County Department of Recreation and Parks.
The measure, which was designed to protect minors engaged in park activities and programs, passed unanimously, but Bevins said she noticed that her male colleagues shared different perspectives prior to voting.
“It was one of the most difficult pieces of legislation that I ever introduced, sponsored and had to get passed,” said Bevins, who was then serving her first term. “They [her male colleagues] just didn’t understand the grooming process [of sexual predators] and what happens.
“I’m not saying that someone’s right or wrong in their thinking, but it’s just a different type of thinking sometimes that women have from men and it’s nice [with women] that I can just throw my thought process out there sometimes,” the Dundalk native added.
The 60-year-old Bevins was not always the only woman on the council. For two terms, Bevins served alongside fellow Democrat Vicki Almond, who lost her Second District seat in 2018 following an unsuccessful run for county executive.
Bevins said she and Almond did not always see eye to eye, but she said the two were often able to consult each other on how to approach issues from different sides of the coin.
“Not to say we were all warm and fuzzy about things because we actually disagreed on several pieces of legislation,” Bevins said, citing one bill that allowed deer hunting in county parks as an example. But Bevins said: “It was very comforting to have another woman on the council–not so much just to have a female ally but sometimes females just have a different perspective on things.”
Having grown up and raised her four now-grown children in Dundalk, Bevins understands the community’s residents better than many.
Bevins, who now lives in the Middle River community of Oliver Beach, started her first term in 2010 with nearly eight years of public service work under her belt.
Starting in 2004, she worked as Eastside’s constituent services coordinator under former county executive Jim Smith. Prior to that she spent decades serving her community through homeless outreach and as a PTA parent.
“Sometimes people can’t put themselves in other people’s shoes and I think that I am able to do that in this position and have always been able to do that and will continue to do that,” Bevins said.
Bevins has recently sponsored legislation updating Baltimore County’s Rental Registration Program and zoning regulations. She also co-sponsored bipartisan legislation in 2017 to promote transparency in county government, requiring that its employees undergo mandatory ethics training and that all work-sessions and council meetings be livestreamed.
Bevins is known for the empathy she has for others. But that does not mean that the brassy-by-nature councilwoman doesn’t face some opposition from a few constituents.
One reason for this is that Bevins is in “a very purple district–half red and half blue.”
The vast and deeply bifurcated political district, which includes communities such as Parkville and Loch Raven Village, has made reelection difficult for the councilwoman in the past.
“This is the only district that is really a fight every time I run–I mean a big fight,” Bevins said.
The fight continues beyond the election. Even while in office, Bevins says both her gender and political affiliation have often made her a target among male constituents.
“It’s usually an older man, you know, with that 60-, 70-, 80-[year-old] kind of thing to tell me, ‘Hey little sister,’ or ‘Why don’t you just have a seat?’ and I’m like, ‘Oh God, here we go,” she laughed. “They don’t like it when I say, ‘No, that’s actually not true. Facts matter and I have the facts.’”
Some of her colleagues on the council agree that Bevins can be tough.
“She is a very strong person in a sense that she believes in what she’s doing and she believes in her convictions and she stands by that,” said Democrat Julian E. Jones Jr. The Fourth District councilman calls Bevins “straightforward” and “honest,” but “not wishy-washy.”
“You never have to worry about where you stand with Councilwoman Bevins because she will let you know her position,” he said.
Dr. Sarah Oliver, an assistant professor of political science at Towson University, said female elected officials often face a backlash once in office.
“The easy answer is that gender norms do not disappear in elected office,” said Oliver, whose article “Tough Enough for the Job? How Masculinity Predicts Recruitment of City Council Members,” explores the effects of gendered-personality traits on the recruitment eligibility of political hopefuls.
Oliver said men are still the default in politics, which comes despite the results of the 2018 Midterm Elections wherein women accounted for 20 newly-elected governors and senators.
“The stereotypes about women’s behavior are still there, even when women’s behavior is more masculine,” Oliver said. “When women behave in overtly masculine ways, especially challenging men, it creates dissonance between the gender roles expected of women and the expected roles of political office.”
Councilman David Marks, a Republican who represents the Fifth District, said Bevins can hold her own on the council.
“She has gone head to toe with county executives and she often succeeds,” Marks said. “She’s tenacious, she’s hardworking and she’s very persistent.”
Bevins hopes to see more diversity in her district’s future and works to make that happen–whether recommending potential female department heads to County Executive Johnny Olszewski or recently joining her fellow councilmembers to confirm Jennifer Aubert-Utz as Baltimore County’s first female acting fire chief.
Bevins and her colleagues said they expect to see the same thing happen on the council as more women and people of color run for elected office in the near future.
“Julian Jones is the only African American and I’m the only woman, so certainly I would like to see that change,” Bevins said.
“I think it’s very important that we have people from all walks of life represent all the people of Baltimore County,” said Jones, who was also Baltimore County’s first African-American council chairman, during the previous term.
Marks agrees. “We will continue to evolve and we will continue to be more reflective of society,” he said.
For now, though, Bevins says she will continue pushing forward and will not let the reactions of others deter her from serving her district.
“You know what, I fought too hard to get here,” she said. “I am not letting a bunch of people tell me what to do and how to do it.”