TEXAS’ Widest Circulated and Read Newspaper with a Black Perspective

“Our country must abandon all of the habits of racism, because we cannot carry the message of freedom and the baggage of bigotry at the same time.” President George W. Bush

Surely, it was somewhat reassuring when Mayor Bill White and County Judge Bob Eckels appeared on TV together, insofar as it’s essential that Harris County and Houston, Texas’ chief executives be on one accord to serve the best interest of the citizens whom they’ve sworn to represent. Nevertheless, their power is significantly limited in a Democratic municipality, inasmuch as they don’t call the shots when it comes to making plans that impact the general public that depends on a bureaucratic maze of other public servants to bring them through the storms and rains bedeviling the Greater Harris County/Houston areas. Thus, when there is a failure to communicate, the best plans often become part of the problem, rather than a solution.
We Must Understand, first and foremost, citizens must accept the inevitable fact that any plan that’s formulated by politicians will have some degree of politics, or special interest involved. This, in itself, becomes a problem. It’s a safe bet that those who play the political game best, are the ones who’ll sit at the planning table. Thus, we can only hope that our elected officials and/or community leaders representing disenfranchised citizens (indigenous to underserved neighborhoods) are truly more concerned about the citizens whom elected—or selected—them, rather than their own personal agendas. On the other hand, even if the savvy public servants are as sharp as our two Congress members Sheila Jackson Lee and Al Green, who truly have the best interest of their constituency at heart, they would be first to admit that they have never walked in the poorest of poor folk’s shoes.
Cutting to the chase, the fact that Black faces in high places, or any other representatives of truly poor people that have ideally “pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps” (with a little help from benevolent foundations that extend a hand to help them negotiate the slippery slope of self empowerment), suggests that they were on a higher level of consciousness than most have nots. Where’re we coming from? That’s a good question, and African-AmericanNews& Issues is glad you asked. What we’re saying is, it appears most contingency plans to address disasters unwittingly fail to grasp the concept of “It’s hell being poor!” We say unwittingly, because it’s a safe bet that the planners are the best and brightest public officials and community leaders, therefore they simply don’t think like citizens wont to fall through the cracks.
We Must Understand, the fact that many of our grassroots Black leaders were able to set goals and then strive to attain them, alienates them in the very neighborhoods that nurtured them. Consequently, even when they return to their roots, so that they can proclaim on their political resumes: “I grew up in a poor neighborhood,” or “I came from an impoverished situation and have never forgotten my roots.” Yet, they seldom can identify the problems, therefore can’t possibly offer solutions. For this reason, in wake of a couple of life threatening acts of providence (Katrina and Rita), it became all too clear that our leadership—on every level—lacks the mindsets and/or sensitivity to help the truly needy citizens (struggling to survive), in this bountiful land of opportunity. On the other hand, we certainly applaud our elected official’s efforts.
Especially, Green, a New Orleans native, who elbowed his way into position to “cut” for Black organizations that help needy people 24-7-365 with meager resources. Lest

we forget, Green was embraced by mainstream Houston when he was making the Houston NAACP Branch’s “dry bones” live again. He also made a better than average run for mayor. Dare we mention that he’s also tolerated by the mostly ineffective Black political caucus that was empowered by the late Congressman George “Mickey” Leland. Sadly, they snub Jackson-Lee, because she upset an incumbent Craig Washington who had inherited Leland’s 18th Congressional District. However, we must address that situation very seriously in the near future, if we hope to ever get our act together so that we can lead our people out of the political wilderness.
We Must Understand, Black politicians, and/or media anointed community leaders (that many poor, disenfranchised people have only seen on TV, or in their churches seeking votes) are much like Americanized Iraqi natives that came to the U.S. for an education and stayed. As a result, when those native Iraqi returned to their homeland roots (as part of a peace keeping mission after their families and friends were devastated by Pres. George W. Bush’s history making preempted strike), they are received much like the Native Americans that served as scouts for the hated “White Eyes,” who were slaughtering their people.
What are we saying? We’re saying that, even when Black people who pulled up by their own bootstraps and also realize that all of their people don’t have boots, still fail to grasp the concept of one being unable to stand on his or her own feet. In essence, when plans include the haves and/or the have nots, the problem they still can’t be solved as long as we fail to acknowledge the left outs that fell through the cracks… to become society’s biggest problem.