After over six years of publishing Texas’ widest circulated newspaper with a Black perspective, I’ve learned not to waste too much time trying to convince narrow-minded adversaries that my motives are pure, when I persistently analyze the Houston Chronicle’s articles critically. Nevertheless, in a one-daily newspaper city, it’s the only game in town, therefore I’m not left with too many options. I actually search the Internet, TV stations and even listen to several radio talk shows in a desperate attempt to find news and issues to analyze, other than the city’s “major source of information.”

What’s more, I was rather pleased that the Chronicle had enough insight to choose James Campbell, a Black Houstonian and former HABJ president, to head their newly created “Reader Representative” department. Campbell, who was moved from the editorial department, is an ideal choice to enhance America’s fourth largest city’s only daily’s “coverage, standards and accuracy.” I know the man can really write. In fact, I’m sure he’s equal to the task of analyzing news and issues from an objective… if not totally Black grassroots perspective. I also think it’s a good idea, because that’s exactly why we came up with the Publisher’s News Analysis a couple of years ago.

Naturally, since African- American News&Issues doesn’t exist in our local media’s dimension, we won’t have to worry about the Chronicle analyzing our articles for accuracy. On the other hand, we just couldn’t ignore Lori Rodriquez’s (“HISD food fight”) that appeared in the Chronicle’s June 10, 2002 edition. The article revealed, that Hispanics are greatly distressed because African-Americans are getting the bulk of the 25 percent MWBE set aside, that Aramark (an outside firm from Philadelphia) is required to provide for local entrepreneurs.

Truthfully, as founder and CEO of the 100 percent Black-owned and operated Malonson Company, Inc., I don’t have the slightest problem with a Black firm (headed by Darryl “Chicken” King, who made an unsuccessful bid for the City Council’s District D) is getting the bulk of Aramark’s HISD food service sub contracts. However, I have a big problem with HISD board President Laurie Bricker’s statement, “Before HISD contracted with Aramark, $2.9 million was lost on food service the year before privatization. In the 2000-01 fiscal year, the district made a profit of $1.8 million.” How did Rodriquez let Bricker get away with that misconception?

As you well know, AAN&I has fought privatization of public jobs from day one. The only thing we hate worse than out sourcing or contracting public services to private industry—is for politicians to insult our intelligence, as if privatization is about saving tax dollars. Come on Lauri, we’ve been analyzing news and issues far too long to allow an elected official to run a game on us. We have our own files that date back to 1995, when Dr. Rod Paige promised the late Elizabeth “Liz” Spates that he had no intentions of ever privatizing HISD’s food services. The article was written in the now defunct Houston Post.

History will reflect that Paige lied. Furthermore, the Houston Chronicle reported that Aramark hadn’t lived up to its contract and was costing HISD money less than two years ago.
Check your own newspaper’s files Lori, insofar as your staff members have such short memories. Meanwhile, Aramark has become somewhat of a contracting monster. Once they got their foot in HISD’s door, they systematically terrorized rival bidders from even thinking about going up against them for food vending contracts that include our new stadiums and arenas. Houston’s media let the taxpayers down.

Don’t take our word for it. Check with Orell Fitzsimmons, who represents the Service Employees International Union that fought so desperately to keep HISD’s 2,500 food services employee’s jobs. You recall that Dr. Paige, who vowed he would not privatize HISD’s food service, twisted HISD trustees’ collective arms to award Aramark a five-year, $2.9 million dollar (with cost of living options and hidden fees) contract? Incidentally, the five-year contract ended this year, but has already been renewed. Two Hispanic HISD Trustees dissented. Hey, but it’s all about saving tax dollars. Right?

Not according to Fitzsimmons, who laments: “There is an ever-present injustice in the kitchens and hall of our public schools. The injustice is called outsourcing and Aramark and ServiceMaster are two of its most heinous purveyors. Although Rod Paige also contracted ServiceMaster, the Chronicle article only mentioned Aramark; therefore we’ll deal with them exclusively. We’ll discuss how ServiceMaster lost a total of $2.8 million and gutted the custodial and maintenance departments (according to the SEIU), in a future article. HISD board President Bricker, however, credits Aramark with making HISD a $1.8 profit in the fiscal year of 2000-01.
Surely, a good political writer like Rodriguez must have asked Bricker how well Aramark fared between 1997 (when they signed the contract), until it was almost time to renegotiate in 2002? Thus, as always, AAN&I will ask the hard question: Why hasn’t Aramark shown a profit until it was time to renew its contract? That’s a good question and Fitzsimmon’s is glad somebody asked it. “Aramark cost HISD $4.5 million over the past two school years. To show a profit, Aramark has severely cut our kitchen staff all over HISD and substitute kitchen staff has been eliminated completely. When one of the food service attendants is sick, the rest of the employees are forced to make up the work, without getting extra pay,”

The SEIU report also reminds taxpayers: “Both Aramark and ServiceMaster’s contracts were begun with Houston ISD under the administration of Dr. Rod Paige.” The SEIU feels that HISD’s kids are being shortchanged, and swears one only has to check the school’s garbage cans after lunch is served and they’ll agree: “He has since left his position as HISD Superintendent to serve as the Secretary of Education under President George W. Bush, and we feel that his legacy of inequality should leave as well.” Wouldn’t it be interesting to learn where HISD’s Board of Trustees “Do lunch?”