Black, White and Monroe Gray
By now you’ve probably figured out that I am probably not the biggest fan of the current President of the Indianapolis City-County Council, Monroe Gray. To be frank it’s nothing personal. I did have an issue with the way he became President, which was after Council Democrats threw former President Steve Talley under a bus after he carried more water for them than Gunga Din (police consolidation and the human rights ordinance).
But I figured those are internal party politics and I’d give Mr. Gray the benefit of the doubt.
But lately there’s been a pattern I’ve found disturbing. This past summer Gray played politics with public safety by blocking a proposal by the Republican County Prosecutor for jail bed space at a time when crime was soaring through the roof. And when called on the carpet by the press, he said “what’s the point of having the ‘juice’ if you don’t use it?”
Fast forward a few months later, it’s revealed that Gray’s wife Teresa has a financial interest in 300 East (the bar in the government building at Fall Creek). Please note this is revealed after Gray tells a columnist he had no opinion nor interest in the bar. Another little bit of irony is that Gray takes pride in a January 9 Council news release that he kept alcohol out of city parks.
Now the latest controversy to stem from the Monroe doctrine is a quote concerning the bar in September 15 edition of the Indianapolis Recorder. To summarize the article, the investors (who are predominately Black) take the argument that there would not be as much opposition to the project if they were White. Gray says “We need something that we can call our own, a place where Black people can go and meet and greet in an upscale facility where we can feel comfortable and also a place where we can go and do business.” Take a second to reread that. Now take out the word “Black” and put in “White”.
If a politician said white people need a place where they can meet and do business, there would be blood in the streets. If a Phil Borst or Scott Schneider had made those comments they would be run out of town on a rail. Republican Jim Bradford has been called racist for opposing a hip-hop club in Broadripple. I wonder if the same will apply here?
As Council President Monroe Gray has a duty to see that the interests of all citizens of Marion County are addressed in a fair and thoughtful manner. It is not an easy job. However, Gray has a responsibility to not isolate segments and raise the tone of the political discourse in this town. And his comments to the Indianapolis Recorder don’t do that. If Gray cannot maintain a higher standard of political decorum as Council President then perhaps someone else should.
