Open Thread: Racial Politics
by Latoya Peterson
I’ve learned quite a bit from this thread, but now, I have a question.
Some people seem to be very angry with Barack Obama for not publicly advocating for black interests.
(For this discussion, we will lay aside the concept of a black agenda for politics and assume that we are talking specifically about policy issues that deal with something that disproportionately affects the black community.)
When people claim they want a politician who looks out for their community, what are they asking for? Who would be a good example of this?
Now readers, someone quickly comes to my mind, but I do not think that is what you meant. Because when I think of a black politician who looked out for his constituency, I think of…
Marion Barry.
A film about Barry, called Mayor for Life, neatly sums up the situation in two paragraphs:
Many people remember Marion Barry as the philandering drug-addled mayor of the nation’s capital, the one who famously uttered the phrase “bitch set me up” during his arrest in a 1990 FBI sting operation. He’s the poster boy for corruption, a pariah. Yet to others, Marion Barry is a folk hero. Hailed as a civil rights champion and defender of the poor, his soaring achievements, catastrophic failures and phoenix-like rebirths have made him a symbol of mythic indestructibility.
From the cotton fields to the corridors of power, Barry has weathered drug and alcohol addiction, cancer, 4 marriages, jail time and international humiliation to dominate Washington D.C. city politics for over 40 years. Today, to the disgust of some and the delight of others, Barry is once again in the political limelight. Who is Marion Barry, really? A hero? A scoundrel? Why is he such a polarizing force? And why do people still vote for him? For the first time, Mayor for Life reveals the complete unforgettable story.
Which is true. As a Marylander, Barry was not my mayor. And I remember all the “bitch set me up!” jokes that went around during the 90s.
However, a lot of people were loath to say anything bad about Marion Barry, even after the drug bust. People in my family, DC elders, older cousins of friends - they all knew a different Marion Barry.
Marion Barry who helped connect people with good jobs, often in government, to provide them with financial stability.
Marion Barry was often among the people and provided assistance to senior citizens and other people in need.
Marion Barry was generally very accessible to his constituency, to the point where you could orchestrate a formal or an informal meeting with Barry with relative ease. (Unless he didn’t want to see you.)
People were also loyal to Barry because of what he did for DC. According to a CNN report:
During his 12-year tenure, Barry helped to rejuvenate the city’s downtown area, sparking a construction boom. His administration also balanced the city’s budget. One of Barry’s distinctive initiatives was his District Youths Employment Act of 1979. The legislation guaranteed a summer job to all city youths who wanted one, regardless of their economic status.
Marion Barry did many things. But there’s a reason he kept winning the majority of the vote in DC and why - even with the benefit of hindsight - people still love Marion Barry.
But Barry is a very charged example and not at all representative of black politicians in America. He’s just the one I remember as inspiring a lot of loyalty in the people he served.
So I open the floor - readers, what black officials currently working in politics do a wonderful job advocating for the needs of their constituents? Nominations of people are great, but I am really interested to hear from people in close proximity to a district or were directly served by the elected official. Who has been able to be politically successful while advocating for the needs of the black community? (Or, any other marginalized community, for those of you who can think of other examples?)
—
As an aside: Albert Wynn also had a similar dynamic going. That was one of the reasons that I watched the Donna Edwards challenge unfold with interest. A lot of the support for Donna Edwards came from outside of Maryland. Why? Because politics is largely based on favors. And Wynn did a lot of favors. Not as many as Barry, mind you, or else he would still be in office. But sometimes, all it takes to get a vote is hosting a job fair. Or helping someone get a congressional internship. Or sponsoring a program to take high school kids to Congress. (Something I attended twice. I still have the signed certificates from Wynn and his happy “I care about YOU!” pamphlet somewhere.)
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of 
Chris Franco wrote:
Cynthia McKinney. I first was exposed to the Congresswoman when I attended a premiere of the documentary American Blackout in which she was featured.
Check her out if you aren’t familiar.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 1:40 pm ¶
Latoya Peterson wrote:
@ Chris -
Oops, need to be more specific.
I am aware of many other African Americans around the country, but I was more interested in hearing from people who actually live in close enough proximity to their district to really get to know them. So, on this post, more first hand experience.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 1:48 pm ¶
sylvie wrote:
i only lived in dc for a year, but i remember volunteering at an event sponsored by eleanor holmes norton. i think she’s most known for fighting for fair dc representation in congress. the event she had an organized was to gather women and kids from local shelters for a nice lunch, to give the kids xmas presents, and to present resources and info for the families. it was a small shindig, but i don’t remember it being a media stunt either. it seemed sincere and kind of grassroots which i appreciated.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:05 pm ¶
jed wrote:
“When people claim they want a politician who looks out for their community, what are they asking for?”
Comparing Barry and Obama in this regard is a bit rocky since Barry campaigned for the DC community (localized) while Obama is campaigning for the US community (anything but localized).
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:09 pm ¶
curlyscales wrote:
I have two – Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and Councilman Charles Barron.
Marty:
In my neighborhood of Flatbush (aka Lefferts Gardens) Marty occupied an office right on Flatbush Avenue when he was a New York Senator. I worked with him as a youth and as an adult on many different projects. He seemed sincere, always approachable and the tireless. In fact, we used to think that there were two of him, we saw him that often.
Charles:
Not afraid to take on hot topics and not afraid to be the “bad guy” but how he is presented in the media gives people the wrong idea about him. In person he is just as confrontational as he seems on TV but there is much more to the man. His constituents have full access to him and, more than that, he knows how to procure the necessary resources in order to get things done in his neighborhood.
On a side note: Because many of the constituents in certain areas lack political experience, there is still a “hush-mouth” technique used when addressing many of our representatives. More often than not, representatives, especially those that make being available for everyone a priority, find themselves faced with secret whispers about possible drug dealers, troubled children or a neighbor from hell, and/or how to get free stuff. One of the great things I’ve seen by two new comers in my area, Senator Eric Adams and Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, is that their office has changed enough as to accommodate these constituents while at the same time teaching better ways to have their voices heard.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:17 pm ¶
atlasien wrote:
I’m not black but I live in a majority black district — Cynthia McKinney’s old district, the Fifth. I used to be on her side, and have voted for her in the past, but I’m not a huge fan. She lost her last election because her constituents wanted someone else. She could have held on to it, but the feeling was that she took us for granted.
Her replacement, Hank Johnson, has been doing a good job. I email him on a regular basis, complaining about all kinds of stuff, and I get a response about half the time.
It’s kind of hard to separate his work for the black community from his work for the constituency in general, due to the nature of the district. He does put on regular summits or events dealing with issues such as protecting your home from foreclosure, and one of his ones from earlier this year was called “Making Education a Priority Again Among Black Males”.
Vernon Jones, our Dekalb County CEO, is now running for Senate. I can’t stand him and most other locals think the same. He’s a misogynist backbiting warmongering slimeball. He used to have a reputation as an a**hole who got things done, now he just has a reputation as an a**hole. The only consolation is that now we can get a new CEO in. There are some promising candidates.
Shirley Franklin, the mayor of Atlanta, is someone I had high hopes for but I’ve been disappointed in her recently.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:17 pm ¶
curlyscales wrote:
BTW - I know Marty is not AA but he deserved a shout.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:18 pm ¶
e wrote:
When I think of a black politician who looked out for his constituency, I think of Mayor Harold Washington. I was very young during his days of mayorship in the city of Chicago, but even then he made a mark on my psyche. He made amazing inroads for the rights of the working class in Chicago.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:49 pm ¶
Black Canseco wrote:
Historically there has been a need for a “black agenda” and “black issues” because despite America’s talk about equal access for all, Black Americans have been getting the short end.
Every white male and white female politician campaigns on safe streets.
But too often when Black voters ask the questions of “why do ’safe streets’ mean locking up blacks in disproportionate numbers despite data proving that crimes are committed pretty evenly across all ethnic groups?” they’re given the run-around.
Every white (male and female) politician is in favor of quality schools. But when Black Voters say, “how come inner-city schools get less funding, worse teachers and inferior equipment?” the response is “just demand more out of your teachers and principals” as if black parents are somehow to blame for the caliber of the schools their kids attend.
Every White (male/female) politician runs on being a global citizen and having a just foreign policy.
But when Black voters say, “why the double standards on African countries versus European countries?” and “why do we ship Haitian immigrants back but welcome Cubans and why don’t we treat illegal Irish and polish immigrants the way we treat illegal Mexican immigrants?” we’re written off as complainers and whiners.
A Black agenda is still at least as necessary as an NRA agenda or an AARP agenda or “Women’s Agenda”. because left up to their own devices leaders have proven that they will ignore Black voters whether we vote for them or not.
If you’re not willing to look out for yourself, can you really be mad at those who’ve proven that they don’t respect you anyway to look out for you?
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 2:59 pm ¶
Black Canseco wrote:
E.,
Glad you brought up Harold Washington. I’m from Chi and he passed away when i was a teen… Numerous White people actually cheered his death. I mean cheered it on camera on various news outlets during coverage. People were not happy to have a black mayor.
One of the nuances of black politics and black politicians is the frequent barrier of speaking a truth or championing causes that will benefit everyone and being challenged simply because you’re black politician and therefore perceived as lesser.
Washington wasn’t perfect, but health, education and jobs for all were his mantra, yet you had poor and working class whites taking anti-Washington stances even though he was basically on their side.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 4:16 pm ¶
jed wrote:
“the feeling was that she took us for granted.”
This is the first time I have read that bromide applied to McKinney, yet it summarizes the overall situation perfectly. I was astonished that some of her former backers (in the Chamblee and Avondale Estates areas anyway) turned on her with such loathing. She was a monster on national issues, but an amateur at bringing home the pork. If it weren’t for her temper tantrums (very much her father’s daughter there), I think she would have been given another chance.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 4:57 pm ¶
atlasien wrote:
Actually, I disagree… I think the same people that hated her in the last election hated her just as much as in previous elections.
She lost the election because her base just didn’t support her with the same fervor. It was more a feeling of tiredness that did her in. I thought she was great on national issues and an especially brave voice at supporting Palestinians.
I think the feeling was that she just wasn’t an effective politician anymore, and whether that was her fault or not, it ultimately didn’t matter. Compared to John Lewis next door, who has so much more clout in Congress and the CBC, the contrast was clear.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 5:20 pm ¶
Black Canseco wrote:
Speaking of Black Politics,
Only black politician would get hooked into paying off the campaign debts of the rich white woman that he beat! Check this one out:
http://knockthehustleblog.typepad.com/hustleknockin/2008/06/hillary-to-bara.html#more
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 6:45 pm ¶
bianca wrote:
I don’t have much share at this time as, but I do have a question for Latoya or anybody else living in the DC area (where I grew up, but since have been living in NYC for 4 years), so I recall the same Mayor Barry history.
Question: What are folks thoughts about the current DC Mayor Adrian Fenty?
I haven’t heard much from friends in DC about him as they are preoccupied with the gentrification in the city.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 7:08 pm ¶
dt wrote:
Fenty has used his position to appoint his business pals to various important positions, take over the public school system, continue the giveaways of public property, and otherwise continue the subsidizing of gentrification here in DC, in my opinion. His administration has shut down schools in a way that almost exclusively affected Black students. And almost always Barry is right there with him.
Barry likes to talk the talk but in my opinion he is easily bought off by developers. Ward 8- which he represents- is among the poorest wards and is consistently ignored and neglected, but Barry is gung ho about building stadiums for people from the suburbs… I think he’s a tad divorced from reality these days. He said he was opposed to the school closings but reversed his position after a couple were taken off the list.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 7:48 pm ¶
Ratrace wrote:
Not even joking, as a former Washingtonian who was there watching this all unfold, he did get set up. He turned that pipe down like five times. Blame it on the “bitch”, blame it onthe “man”, blame it on Barry, the fact is it didn’t have to go down like that and it wouldn’t have if he had been … well, you know.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 9:30 pm ¶
Cranky_Old_Batt wrote:
First off, well written post!
To answer your question: Barbara Lee.
I have to add the caveat that I feel she is fighting equally for all her constituents, not just the black ones. That said, in my opinion, she has never left me with the impression that she discounts them or her own racial identity either (as Obama is being accused of doing). She knows that it is crucial to pick your battles with the long term, bigger picture in mind, so yes she is trying to balance a very, very uneven playing field.
In the interest of fair disclosure, I have spoken to her; she was genuinely kind, and well spoken. She made a strong positive impression on me and even though I do not live in her district, I watch what she is doing and respect her views.
On the Barry note: Walter Washington was the mayor when I lived in DC (I was born there - actually before there was a mayor - but I digress and age myself). I was too young to vote, drive, or have a political opinion at the time. Well, the cops in riot gear scared me.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 10:01 pm ¶
carmen wrote:
I actually live on Charles Rangel’s congressional disctrict, and have next to nothing to say about him that is positive. Every event I’ve seem him in has been held in his honor, he seems to spend his time fluffing up his own mythical image, frequently wins elections with like 80% of the vote and always runs virtually unopposed, and has done very little for Harlem that did not result in aggressive gentrification and the displacement of long-time residents. Good lord, he even funded some sort of university research center in his honor. I mean, they couldn’t wait until his death to start naming things after him? I am shocked that 125th Street isn’t Congressman Charles Rangel Boulevard. And empowerment zones are such a joke.
Posted 26 Jun 2008 at 10:41 pm ¶