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That trait or traits involves their apparent morbid
fear of engaging themselves as a collective political or
economic force for change in the black community in Toledo.
In spite of the fact that Toledo City Council has five
minority members, the city has a black mayor and the black
churches in Toledo have an approximate collective financial
intake of over $40,000 per week via tithes and offerings,
nothing of substance seems to be happening between those two
ostensible powerhouses – city and church!
Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Zero. For the political class of
black elective officials, be they Democrat or Republican,
there appears to be a shameful reluctance to meet and
organize themselves into a political fist that can stand up
to power and demand and deliver much-needed financial change
for black Toledoans.
For the pastors, it appears to be a problem that
although they may like each other, they do not "love" each
other enough so that they are willing to sit down and
collectively share their weekly wealth for the specific
purpose of economic empowerment or development in the black
community.
That is the same community whence they derive their
sustenance including the grand yearly fetes in which many
are celebrated at fancy dinners and are showered with
financial plums that can reach into the several thousands of
dollars!
But yet, when you examine even on a cursory level the
systematic involvement of the black church and the black
politicos in economic development using their
political muscle, in the opinion of this writer, both groups
get a D minus or on a scale of one to 10 with 10 being a
Martin Luther King Jr., award for community involvement and
risk taking, those two groups share a skimpy three!
When challenged, both groups display the polished
expertise of ducking and hiding and basically saying, "No
comment!"
My bosses in Meridian were not happy with those types
of responses and their unhappiness is spilling over to me in
that they believe that I am not pressing these important
community issues; and especially so in the upcoming
draconian days of a Trump presidency.
So, in order to save my neck and also to show my bosses
that these two targeted groups still display a "progressive"
(joke) mindset of the early 50's, I decided to show my
bosses that I would distribute the following pledge cards to
the black pastors and black politicos and see what happens.
It is my belief that the pledge cards will not be signed
and returned and thus I can shut down the opinion of my
bosses that the minority community is underserved by people
who want to do better but simply do not have the requisite
skill set to do better.
So, here are the pledge cards that my bosses have Ok'd
for me to send out to all of the black politicos and the
black pastors.
And as for the membership of the fabled male fraternity
Alpha Phi Boule (Note: as is my custom, whenever I mention
the name of Boule, I pause and bow my head for a moment or
two of humble reverence regarding their uncanny ability to
simply, "Meet, Eat and Greet" at various times of the year
and then go home and take a nap....pause taken).
I would daresay think that the mighty men of Boule would
self appoint themselves to this Herculean task of community
mobilization but alas, my hopes are always dashed when I
scan the holiday society pages and note with alarm and
sadness that
for Boule, oftentimes, it is just another ho-hum, "Meet, Eat
and Greet!" photo op.
But, I digress.
PLEDGE CARDS TO THE PASTORS:
I, _____________________________ of (church name) do with
shaking knees and a trembling heart do affirm to attempt the
following with my fellow clergy brothers and sisters:
THAT, I will, with great reluctance, regularly meet with my
fellow clergy to plot and plan and implement stratagems that
will uplift the very community from which I glean my
financial well-being.
THAT, in spite of my history of not regularly sharing any of
my church's collective financial resources, I will make at
least a feeble attempt to "tithe" (10 percent) off of the
weekly collection plate income and dedicate those funds to a
community fund dedicated to financial progress for my
community.
THAT, I promise that I will not be spooked or shaken if and
when we are challenged by the media as to why we are banning
together to enrich the lives of our parishioners; and to
jumpstart small businesses and to be a blessing to the black
family including curbing gun violence, teen age pregnancies
and domestic violence in our communities.
THAT, I promise that I will not be a dupe and be a "leak" or
a "sellout" and tell others about our inner workings and I
will not be a stumbling block to progressive advancement of
people of color.
Signed:
______________________________________
PLEDGE CARD TO THE BLACK POLITICOS:
I, _________________________________ (name of city council
member or mayor) with much trepidation and worry, do affirm
to attempt the following with my fellow black members of
Toledo City Council:
THAT, I will, in spite of my political affiliation, will
humbly work with each other for the good of the black
community both in word and deed.
THAT, I will meet in a private caucus format for the
specific intents of passing legislation that will mitigate
any current laws that adversely impact the black community
and will sponsor legislation that is geared towards our
depressed community.
THAT I will be willing to determine if we can use set asides
for minority business development including my being vocal
on the lack of minority participation in the work force of
both public and private contractors.
THAT, I will not panic if we are called on the carpet for
our collective acts since we as a minority body of five
black members must use our collective political muscle now
or we may never have a such chance in the future to
accomplish these laudable goals.
Signed:
_______________________________________
Well, readers...there you have it. I will let you know if I
get any of these pledge cards returned. But in the meantime,
we will continue to bumble along like a nation lost in an
economic desert until a Moses or a Miriam comes forth and
says, "Enough Is Enough!"
Contact Lafe Tolliver at lafe5x@gmail.com
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