[Mpls] 5th Ward Race

[Anne McC]

The best thing about this race is that the African American community has 
produced two viable and experienced candidates for this office.  How they 
got there, i.e. redistricting, is another subject and as far as I can see, 
not the fault of either.  The fact is they are running against each other, 
which ids their right, and both have the potential to be a good 
representative for this ward.

The saddest part of this race is that the only things they seem to argue 
about is who is more African American and who loves black people more.

This is a ward that is desperate for attention when it comes to development 
that will bring money into it, but nobody seems to give a darn.  This is a 
ward made up of many different races, not just African Americans, and nobody 
seems to care (check out the Star Tribune article about Hmong gang activity 
and the raping of young Hmong girls).  This is a ward which continually 
comes out on the losing side of the city planners time and effort, and 
nobody is discussing that.  While city inspectors have time to measure the 
height of grass in other parts of town, rental properties in my neighborhood 
are allowed to go to the dogs, sometimes literally.

 A friend of mine was a volunteer with the schools this fall and stood on a 
corner with the children the first week to get them onto the right busses. 
Fifteen different school buses came by that corner to pick kids up and take 
them to fifteen different schools.  And we wonder why we have no parental 
and community involvement with our kids.  Does this happen in the more 
well-to-do neighborhoods.  I think not.  But again, nobody seems to care.

More than anything else, this is a community which needs strong, African 
American leaders who put their community needs above their own.  The 
children in this community need to see leaders who take responsibility for 
their actions and stand on their own merits.  We do not need leaders who are 
so busy placing blame and complaining that they accomplish nothing.

These are just a fraction of the problems our community faces, and still, 
the discussions between the candidates sound like children tattling on each 
other. What's more, all of this garbage being slung makes the Northside look 
dysfunctional and reinforces the negative stereotypes the rest of the city 
uses to describe us.

While I wouldn't call Travis Lee's publication pornography, it is not going 
to win a Pulitzer any time soon.  That aside, he is not an innocent family 
member in this campaign but rather an active participant.  Don's reference 
to his ancestor's position on the plantation may have politically incorrect, 
but certainly doesn't mean he thinks he's better that most of his race or 
that  he doesn't care for his African American constituents.

I wish, but do not see it happening, that the mud would stop and these two 
candidates, and their supporters, would start having an honest, public 
discussion about the real problems facing our community and ways to fix 
them.  On November 9th, one of them will be on the City Council and one of 
them won't.  The community, however, will be left with the hard feelings and 
divisiveness that this campaign has caused.  Just what we need, more 
divisiveness in out community.  Like we haven't got enough already.

Anne McCandless
Jordan