WAS RISHAWN WRONG?
I’m starting out this piece by saying former Indianapolis Star columnist Rishawn Biddle and I have been friends for three years and we still are, nothing has changed. Biddle was fired from his job writing for the Star last week because of comments he made describing the antics and behavior of certain Black politicians in Indianapolis. Following his comments, the “community leadership” came out and went after him , as my grandmother would say, like “mad dogs after a raw piece of meat”. His bosses acted and let him go. That’s old news. What hasn’t been focused on in this entire controversy was the point Rishawn was trying to make, which I argue was lost in the posturing by the “community.”
The point Rishawn was trying to make was that the behavior of Black politicians as of late in Indianapolis has been quite embarrassing. The list is quite extensive, whether it was the mishandling of 300 East, the bar/restaurant in the Carson Center, City-Council President Monroe Gray whose name is synonymous with “pea shake”, State Representative Bill Crawford and his perpetual attacks on charter schools while defending a public education system in Indianapolis that is broken. City-County Council Member Ron Gibson who was charged with disorderly conduct, although the charges were dismissed. And City-Council attorney Aaron Haith, who now finds himself before the Indiana Supreme Court facing potential disbarment for alleged conflicts of interest. Need I say more?
Some Black politicians never ceased to amaze me. They engage in bad behavior and then have the audacity to hide behind the cloak of racism when they get caught, either with their pants down or with their hands in a cookie jar. If you don’t believe me, check out this week’s edition of the Indianapolis Recorder and you’ll see exactly what I mean. I would be more willing to buy this load of you-know-what if there weren’t dozens of other elected and appointed officials who for some reason unbeknownst to me manage to stay out of the pea shakes and pool halls and out of the papers as well. Despite my philosophical differences with Sheriff Frank Anderson, Deputy Mayor Steve Campbell, City-Councilors Paul Bateman, Sherron Franklin, County Auditor Billie Breaux or State Representative Carolene Mays these folks are all Democrats and somehow have managed to demonstrate to the public that they have some kind of home training.
When you are in the public light you need to conduct yourself accordingly. Behavior that might be acceptable in the hood is not acceptable where the only hoods people know are on the back of their jackets from Lands End. These elected officials have a duty to behave themselves and also engage in self-policing. When you don’t, expect the criticism.
I covered an anti-violence march at 35th and Illinois three weeks ago as neighbors protested the killings of three young black men within the past month. Gray had promised to be there but was nowhere to be found. Somehow I gather he is more punctual with his reported pea shake visits. But it is symbolic of the behavior that is wrong with a segment of Black leadership in this town. Look at the neighborhoods with the worst crime, abandoned homes and poverty and look at the leadership that is in charge. That should be more telling than anything else. If the Black community is going to elect leadership that looks to them on the theory that it will be more responsive to its needs, then the Black community needs to hold this leadership to a higher standard of behavior.
When I hear the sanctimonious, self-righteous and self-serving speeches from certain segments of Black leadership in this town, all I can think of is the “Balderman Davis” character from the old “Good Times” television show. It’s time for Black citizens of Indianapolis to say enough is enough. It’s time to elect people of character, not people who are characters.
