It Isn’t About Race
Dear Prognosticators:
I’m so predictable. I could write about a hundred things to
introduce this issue of themail, but you know the one thing I have to
write about. The big political news today was The Washington Post’s
latest mayoral poll, which showed City Council Chairman Vincent Gray
well ahead of Mayor Adrian Fenty. The major article about the poll is at
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/28/AR2010082804178.html;
complete poll results are at http://tinyurl.com/23vqlq9;
columnist Robert McCartney gives his analysis at http://tinyurl.com/2vryun4;
and columnist Mike DeBonis gives his analysis at http://tinyurl.com/2efmkhs
and http://voices.washingtonpost.com/debonis/2010/08/gray_opens_commanding_lead_on.html#more.
The reason I have to write about this poll is that it confirms my
incredible political insight and wisdom, or, more accurately, it points
out one of those rare occasions on which my political prognostications
turn out to be correct. Early this year, when all the political pundits
said that Fenty was unbeatable, I said that he had alienated many more
people in this town than the pundits realized. When the pundits said
that Fenty’s campaign war chest, over four million dollars, made him a
sure winner, I said that no politician needed that much money to run a
citywide race in DC, that no politician could even use that much money
productively, and that a credible candidate could run a successful race
against Fenty on a much smaller budget. When the pundits said that
Vincent Gray was too old to challenge Fenty, I wrote that the age
difference between the two would turn out to be a minor and easily
dismissed issue, and that Gray could even benefit from it if Fenty
seemed to be disdainful of seniors. In other words, my instinct all
along was that Fenty was much more vulnerable than popular opinion
thought he was, and that there was good reason for him to be vulnerable.
So let me stretch my luck, and take one more stab at challenging the
consensus among pundits. The analysis by Post reporters
concentrates on race, and on the divide between blacks’ and whites’
opinions of Fenty, as though the difference of opinion was somehow
racially motivated. This analysis, I believe, is wrong. Of course,
reporters can always find people to quote who support their thesis — a
black voter who says he doesn’t support Fenty because Fenty’s
against blacks, or a white voter who says Fenty’s programs attract
whites like him to live in Washington. But I don’t buy it. I think
there are much more reasonable ways to slice the electorate into
segments, and not to fall back on a belief that white voters support one
black candidate, and black voters support another black candidate, for
some unfathomable and irrational racial reason. I like the comments that
“Kathy8” left on three of the Post articles cited above, and
I think she has a more solid understanding of what’s motivating voters
in this election than the Post writers and poll-takers. In
response to the front-page article, “Kathy8” writes: “The people
who put these polls together need to stop playing the race card and
start understanding that the results they cite [as] related to race have
much more to do with the racial makeup of the city than any race-related
issue. Just because somebody happens to be black or white doesn’t mean
that they don’t share the same American values, and many of those
values are related to how deep your roots are in your community, not
your skin color. More black folks have been in DC longer than the
majority of white folks. It has nothing to do with race.” In response
to the Robert McCartney article, “Kathy8” extended and clarified her
earlier comments: “Mr. McCartney writes: ‘The process
(gentrification) arouses powerful feelings for many African Americans,
in part because it threatens the District’s identity as a
predominantly black town.’ This analysis could have been easily
written without bringing up race (and the poll didn’t need to do so
either). Race is not the core issue here; the core issue is respect for
the past and for history. Why do polls show that blacks are more
negative toward Fenty than whites? Because the folks with deep roots in
DC are overwhelmingly black, not white. The issue isn’t race at all.
Fenty admits — astoundingly — that he’s a latecomer to realizing
that ‘you have to include people.’ That’s called respecting the
community, no matter what skin color you’re talking about. Well-run
communities throughout this country manage to make positive changes and
show progress without totally changing the historic character and values
of their community. That’s called respect — and working together to
build a community, rather than running roughshod over old-timers in
favor of the new. It’s called cooperation, and it works. And it has
nothing whatsoever to do with race.”
And she commented on the DeBonis blog, “It’s not about race,
Mike. It’s about respect for the overall community. It’s about
economic status. It’s about how deep your roots are in DC. Skin color
doesn’t matter here — the racial results just happen to be what they
are because DC has had a black-majority population for so long. You and
the rest of the folks at the Post are misinterpreting these polls
when you focus on race.”
That’s how I would analyze the poll recipients. If I were asking
the poll questions, I’d ask how long people have lived in DC and how
many contacts they have had with city government or Mayor Fenty himself.
The longer people have lived in the city, the more contacts they have
had with the city government or Fenty, the less likely they are to
support him. The newer people are to the city and the less personal
knowledge they have about the city government, the more likely they are
to support him. That division may correspond to a high degree with race,
but it isn’t racially motivated.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
###############
Lawyers, Lawyers Everywhere
Dorothy Brizill, dorothy@dcwatch.com
Last week the Fenty campaign unsuccessfully petitioned the DC Board
of Elections and Ethics (BOEE) to change the District’s election law
to allow independent voters to be able to vote in the District’s
Democratic primary. The petition and request for an emergency BOEE
meeting was filed by Marc Erik Elias of Perkins Coie, who serves as the
legal counsel to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and who
was lead counsel to Al Franken in the 2008 Minnesota Senate election
recount and contest (see http://www.perkinscoie.com/melias).
In addition to the August 20 petition, Elias also filed a detailed
four-page freedom of information request with the BOEE on August 23 on
behalf of the primary Fenty 2010 committee, http://www.dcwatch.com/election2010/100823.htm.
This FOIA request seeks information on virtually every aspect of the
primary election process, e.g., the list of all registered voters, the
names of all individuals who have requested and those who have returned
an absentee ballot to the Board, the names of all individuals who vote
at an early voting center between August 30 and September 13, the names
of all individuals who cast a special provisional ballot, the poll books
from each of the 143 polling preceincts, copies of all FOIA requests
filed by other mayoral campaigns, etc. In most instances, Elias asks the
BOEE to provide the information “as soon as possible, with updates
each weekday.”
Elias’ filing on behalf of the Fenty campaign suggests the
likelihood — if the election is at all close — of a contentious
post-election process, with challenges being decided by the Board of
Elections and, perhaps, the DC Court of Appeals. While DC Attorney
General Peter Nickles denies and objects to a high percentage of FOIA
requests as being overly burdensome on the government, it’s a sure bet
that he won’t have any objection to the Fenty 2010 Campaign Committee’s
request.
###############
George Parker, Holdover WTU President, Sues
AFT
Candi Peterson, saveourcounselors@gmail.com
George Parker, holdover president of the Washington Teachers’
Union, whose constitutional term ended June 30, filed a lawsuit on
August 16 against the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). The purpose
of Parker’s lawsuit is to seek an injunction to prohibit the AFT from
suspending the autonomy of the WTU. In one of Parker’s many robo calls
to union members, he reported that his rationale for filing this lawsuit
(which was funded by WTU members’ monies) was to protect teachers and
school personnel.
You may recall that AFT President, Randi Weingarten, declared a
limited administratorship takeover of the Washington Teachers’ Union
because Parker refused to comply with the terms of the AFT Executive
Council decision and order, dated August 4. This order indicated that
AFT would oversee union elections and set a new deadline date of
September 3 for union members to submit their petitions to run for
elected offices. The order also required Parker to reinstate Nathan
Saunders, WTU General VP’s salary forthwith and approve Saunders’
leave of absence from DCPS through the completion of the union election.
When Parker refused to comply, Weingarten instituted a ‘limited
administratorship,’ with future plans to hold a hearing before her
executive council on the matter at a later date. Parker and members of
his illegally constituted WTU Executive Board, including newly appointed
members, requested that Weingarten and the AFT Executive Council
reconsider its August 4 decision and order. In an August 16 letter to
WTU board members, President Randi Weingarten responded: “Dear Mr.
Parker: Upon due consideration, the August 4 determination which you
challenge is adhered to. Unless by noon on Tuesday, August 17, 2010, we
receive an unequivocal sworn undertaking from you and the Executive
Board of the WTU, local 6 to comply in all respects with and to fully
cooperate in all good faith with the processes previously articulated
thereunder, an Administratorship shall upon unanimous decision of the
President, Secretary-Treasurer and Executive Vice President of the AFT,
be established and an Administrator appointed effective forthwith and
without further notice to restore the rights of members in election
procedures or representation, to secure and safeguard vital records and
assets of the WTU from immediate threat, and to take such actions as are
necessary to protect the interests of the membership in accordance with
Article VI of the Constitution and bylaws of the AFT/AFL-CIO
particularly sections 14 and 15 and each of the subsections thereof, and
applicable provisions of law.”
Parker seems intent on having his way by delaying union elections by
any means necessary. An anonymous commenter on The Washington Teacher
blog described Parker’s actions this way: “George Parker’s
consistent denial of the facts in relinquishing his authority as WTU
president is quite troubling to me. His actions have become increasingly
irrational. I don’t know him personally but from a distance he appears
to be losing touch with reality and displaying signs of desperation.”
Another commenter called Usereason summarizes what many union members
are feeling: “I hope that Parker will come to terms with reality and
peacefully acquiesce and resign. I acknowledge that Parker has given
lots of people plenty to be angry and depressed about. He is reaping
what he has sown. It’s hard to be concerned about him when people are
suffering so much due to his actions. But on behalf of those of us who
can still find some compassion for all people, I hope something can get
him to come around and leave without fighting to the death (I mean that
literally, because from the sound of his robo call, he is seriously
desperate and irrational).”
###############
Nine Necessary Mayoral Personality, Attitude,
and Character Traits
Alvin C. Frost, alvincfrost@msn.com
A good, or great, mayor must deal with all of the various
constituents of the government: residents, voters, visitors, businesses,
the federal and local governments, and special interests. In many ways,
a good, or great, mayor must perform a constant balancing act among
competing and oftentimes irreconcilable interests and desires. The glue
that holds together the issues, the constituencies, the competence of
the mayor and government, and the public is reduced to the Mayor’s
personality, attitude, and character traits. If the mayor is well
thought of and trusted, then the public will give him or her the benefit
of the doubt. But if the mayor is not well thought of and mistrusted,
then the public will not be inclined to forgive that mayor for any
faults, transgressions, both public and private, or actual mistakes, no
matter how minor. I have assembled nine necessary mayoral personality,
attitude, and character traits, or PACs.
1) Objectivity — objectivity works in two ways. First, it helps to
remove emotion, allowing people to think more rationally. The other use
of objectivity is that it provides neutral territory that allows an
equitable discussion to take place. When we say “be objective” we
typically mean a number of things: a) be unemotional, not getting
agitated or distressed in any way; b) see things as they really are, not
from a personally biased viewpoint; and c) be neutral, understanding
multiple points of view. An objective viewpoint is thus more realistic,
fairer and far more likely to result in an agreeable resolution to human
differences. 2) Responsibility — Responsibility encompasses two major
things: accountability and adaptability. Responsible people own up to
their role in any situation, and learn from their mistakes.
Irresponsible people shift the blame to someone or something else, and
make the same mistakes over and over again. Steps required to become a
more responsible person are: a) understand that responsibility is
earned; b) stop making excuses; c) view yourself as a creator, not a
victim, of circumstance; d) overcome your fear of failure; e)
acknowledge your role; and f) don’t bite off more than you can chew.
3) Honesty and Integrity — “To be honest is to be real, genuine,
authentic, and bona fide. To be dishonest is to be partly feigned,
forged, fake, or fictitious. Honesty expresses both self-respect and
respect for others. Dishonesty fully respects neither oneself nor
others. Honesty imbues lives with openness, reliability, and candor; it
expresses a disposition to live in the light. Dishonesty seeks shade,
cover, or concealment. It is a disposition to live partly in the dark.”
(William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues) 4) Rational Thinking
— Rational thinking refers to logic or reasoning being involved in the
thought process. It refers to providing the reasons or rational behind
thoughts or ideas. It adds an element of calculation and planning to a
stream of thoughts rather then basing them on emotional or personal
opinion. It is a kind of objective process of thinking and an analytic
approach to any problem. Rational thinking is based on reasons or facts
and is hence much more calculating and realistic. All people are capable
of thinking rationally, but some people will tend to cloud this ability
because of emotions or prejudices.
5) Conscientious — Conscientiousness is the trait of being
painstaking and careful, or the quality of acting according to the
dictates of one’s conscience. It includes such elements as
self-discipline, carefulness, thoroughness, organization, deliberation
(the tendency to think carefully before acting), and the need for
achievement. It is an aspect of what has traditionally been called
character. Conscientious individuals are generally hard working and
reliable. 6) Compassion — “Compassion is the keen awareness of the
interdependence of all things.” (Thomas Merton) “Compassion is the
ultimate and most meaningful embodiment of emotional maturity. It is
through compassion that a person achieves the highest peak and deepest
reach in his or her search for self-fulfillment.” (Arthur Jersild) “Compassion
is not sentiment but is making justice and doing works of mercy.
Compassion is not a moral commandment but a flow and overflow of the
fullest human and divine energies.” (Matthew Fox) “The whole purpose
of religion is to facilitate love and compassion, patience, tolerance,
humility, forgiveness.” (H.H. the Dalai Lama) Compassion is a) the
desire to ease others’ suffering; b) a sympathetic awareness of
another’s distress combined with a desire to alleviate it; c) kindness
and caring are shown; and d) service and generosity are ways that
compassion can be demonstrated. 7) Emotional Awareness — When you are
aware of, and in control of, your emotions, you can think clearly and
creatively; manage stress and challenges; communicate well with others;
and display trust, empathy, and confidence. But lose control of your
emotions, and you’ll descend into confusion, isolation, and doubt. By
learning to recognize, manage, and deal with your emotions, you’ll
enjoy greater happiness and health and better relationships. Without
emotions and an awareness and understanding of them, it’s impossible
to build or maintain strong, healthy relationships. The feelings of
others will escape you unless you’re familiar with your own emotions.
The more aware you are of your own emotions, the easier it will be for
you to pick up on what others are feeling and accurately read their
wants and needs. 8) Communicative — Good communication skills are
skills that facilitate people to communicate effectively with one
another. Effectual communication engages the choice of the best
communications method, the technical know-how to use the method, the
presentation of information to the target audience, and the skill to
understand responses received from others. Self development,
interpersonal skills, mutual understanding, mutual cooperation and trust
is also important to develop a complete methodology of the most
effective and winning communication skills. There are mainly three types
of communication skills: a) expressive skills; b) listening skills; and
c) skills for managing the overall process of communication. The basic
fundamental of all these types of communication is emotional skills. The
importance of communication skills can never be ignored or neglected.
These skills are the key to executing good management skills. 9)
Self-discipline — Self-discipline involves acting according to what
you think instead of how you feel in the moment. Often it involves
sacrificing the pleasure and thrill of the moment for what matters most
in life. The following are five important traits of self-discipline: a)
self-knowledge; b) conscious awareness; c) commitment to
self-discipline; d) courage; and e) internal coaching.
As I have been writing recently about factors that tend to indicate
what DC voters should be looking for, and requiring the next DC mayor to
have, I have been struck by the fact that many, if not most, of these
characteristics are indicative, and supportive of, other of these
traits, characteristics, and skills. As a result, you will see that many
of these factors are repeated again and again, in various ways, as they
are, of necessity, interrelated. If you have other personality,
attitude, or character traits that you think are as, or more, important,
then, please, use your matrix to better inform your decision of whom to
vote for for DC mayor.
###############
A Toss of the Coin or a New Direction
Leo Alexander, leo_alexander1@yahoo.com
Early voting begins Monday, August 30, in the District of Columbia.
However, a recent survey showed that as much as a third of most likely
voters are still undecided or open to changing their minds prior to
September 14. This basically means that District voters don’t like
either one of the two candidates The Washington Post has
been promoting. The voters are clearly demanding substance on the many
challenging issues facing our diverse community. Our media, on the other
hand, is covering this election cycle like it’s a race for homecoming
king and not mayor. Four years ago I wrote, when it was Fenty
versus Cropp. “The lesson learned in Election 2006 is that it is off
limits to attack a candidate’s record, because that’s negative
campaigning, and you can’t mention any perceived character flaws of
their associates, because then you’re mudslinging. So in the future,
why don’t we just dress up the candidates and call the race what it
has become — a beauty contest.”
Now, after four years of a Fenty-Gray tag team, we
have a grossly depleted treasury, Great Depression Era unemployment, and
more homeless families on our streets than ever before. But on the
ridiculous side, we have witnessed their love of baseball for months as
they argued over Nationals tickets. If you believe The Post,
these are our only two options. Both were equally responsible for three
budgets and spending that slashed savings of more than $1.5 billion
built during the Williams-Cropp era to less than half. And each
candidate has alleged issues with transparency, corruption, and ethics.
The media has well documented their “cronies” allegedly helping
themselves to a few million here and there on the parks and recreation
centers contract and the new lottery deal, while ignoring the commercial
real estate developers who practically back up an armored truck to the
Wilson Building and make off to the suburbs with hundreds of millions
annually. For example, over the last eight years alone $1.12 billion of
DC tax payer money has enriched developers through municipal leased
office space agreements. (For the record, I’m the only candidate who
has a plan to end this waste of District funds.)
This is the danger of living in a one paper town, because there are
actually five candidates running for mayor: Leo Alexander, Sulaimon
Brown, Adrian Fenty, Vincent Gray, and Ernest Johnson. In this media
market, coverage is largely determined by scouring its Metro section
every morning. The media knows that only a small percentage of the
District’s voting population actually attends debates, forums, or
straw polls, so if they only cover Fenty and Gray, voters will never
know the other candidates actually exist. Here’s a quick common sense
solution, the District’s Channel 16 should be used to broadcast all
the mayoral debates live. This could potentially generate additional
advertising revenue for the District from local businesses. And more
importantly, it would dramatically increase voter turnout, because then
issue-based platforms could finally be heard. This would determine who
wins or loses — not who has the most yard signs or special interest
money.
Over the next two weeks, the voters of DC should accept nothing less
than televised debates that include all of the mayoral candidates. Then
the impact of endorsements would be greatly marginalized, because all
candidates will be given a fair opportunity to articulate their
platforms and visions. Unfortunately, this won’t happen because the
more educated voters are, the more threatening they become to the status
quo. This is unfortunately why nothing ever changes in DC except the
names of the safely chosen establishment candidates.
Saturday, August 28, marked the 47th anniversary of Dr. King’s
historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. That demonstration
was a turning point in our history and led to the monumental signing of
the Civil Rights Bill and the Voting Rights Act. Now, nearly a half
century later within the shadows of the Lincoln memorial, 36 percent of
DC’s African Americans over the age of sixteen are functionally
illiterate, almost half of our children are born into poverty, 75
percent of the men in this racial demographic have criminal records, and
the unemployment rate in the African American community far exceeds the
25 percent level set during the Great Depression. How did this happen?
It happened because we have tolerated ignorance and violence in our
communities for far too long. It happened because we have allowed
patronizing politicians to pacify a large segment of our community with
psychologically crippling social programs and excuses for accepting
failure, instead of demanding personal responsibility, economic
opportunities, and educational reform. It happened because we have given
up on some in our community. We don’t need nor have time for another
commission of sociologists, economists, or criminologists to tell us
what happens if the District’s unskilled residents remain largely
illiterate and are forced to compete with an exploitable undocumented
workforce for employment — their already limited options are further
reduced to displacement, dependency or detention. Was this Dr. King’s
Dream?
It took Hurricane Katrina less than forty-eight hours to radically
gentrify another once great American city. That resulted from a
combination of Mother Nature and politicians ignoring its failing
infrastructure; but in the District of Columbia, it is The Washington
Post and their Manchurian candidates, Fenty and Gray, who are blind
to those most in need — and who are an election cycle closer to
executing a similar fate. The voters of DC have a choice — two
well-funded candidates who represent special interests or Leo Alexander
and the movement for change that benefits all Washingtonians. That
one-third of Washingtonians is right to be undecided because many voters
still thirst for information and refuse to allow this election cycle to
be reduced to a Mr. Congeniality contest. Over the next two weeks, we
can either flip a coin for two candidates with no distinguishable
differences or we can finally choose a new direction.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Community Candidate Forum, September 1
Robert Vinson Brannum, rbrannum@robertbrannum.com
Please join the DC League of Women Voters, the DC Federation of Civic
Associations, Inc., and other community organizations at a forum for DC
mayoral and council chair candidates. Wednesday, September 1, 6:30 p.m.
to 9:30 p.m., at the Washington Ethical Society, 7750 16th Street, NW
(at Kalmia Road).
From 6:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Mr. Rokey W. Suleman II, Executive
Director, DC Board of Elections and Ethics, will address the changes in
registration, voting, and post-election procedures. From 7:00 p.m. to
8:00 p.m., there will be brief presentations by each of the candidates
of one category, followed by questions from the moderator. From 8:00
p.m. to 9:00 p.m., groups not assigned the earlier hour will present
their statements and answer questions.
###############
National Building Museum Events, September 4,
7
Johanna Weber, jweber@nbm.org
September 4, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Construction Watch Tour: 2200
Pennsylvania Avenue. 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, located on the former
George Washington University Hospital site, is a mixed-use office,
housing, and retail project designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects.
Paul Quast, AIA, LEED AP, senior associate with Hickok Cole Architects,
executive architect for 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, leads a tour of this
pre-certified LEED Silver project. $25. Museum members only. Prepaid
registration required.
September 7, 10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Book of the Month: Underground
Train. Join us in the Building Zone for an interactive reading of
Mary Quattlebaum’s Underground Train, a book all about
Washington, DC, and the Metro. Readings at 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. Free
drop-in program. Recommended for ages three to five. At the National
Building Museum, 401 F Street, NW, Judiciary Square Metro station.
Register for events at http://www.nbm.org.
###############
themail@dcwatch is an E-mail discussion forum that is published every
Wednesday and Sunday. To change the E-mail address for your subscription
to themail, use the Update Profile/Email address link below in the
E-mail edition. To unsubscribe, use the Safe Unsubscribe link in the
E-mail edition. An archive of all past issues is available at http://www.dcwatch.com/themail.
All postings should be submitted to themail@dcwatch.com, and should
be about life, government, or politics in the District of Columbia in
one way or another. All postings must be signed in order to be printed,
and messages should be reasonably short — one or two brief paragraphs
would be ideal — so that as many messages as possible can be put into
each mailing.
