5A
OPINIONS/The Charlotte Post
January 9,1997
)i
There’s just one color in politics, and it is green
D.G. Martin
Money in politics.
Now that the election is over, is that all that we can
talk about?
And, is “money in politics” like the weather? Something
we can talk about, but not do an3diiing about?
We push these questions to the back of our minds as we
watch our top elected leaders, surrounded £is they are
these days by the ugly consequences of their Faustian
bargain with money.
Bill Clinton, for instance, gets not a single day to enjoy
his amazing victory before being called to answer accusa
tions that he bought his election with illegal foreign
money.
Newt Gingrich can’t enjoy the prospect of holding the
president accountable for his sins.?Why? Because he got
caught in the same kind of trap. He stumbled trying to
raise the resources to win political victories for his cause
and himself
Their sorry bargains with money brought them what
they wanted most.
Now they must deal with this rule. Money has its price.
While Clinton’s and Gingrich’s situations highlight the
campaign finance “problem,” they also conceal the real
horror story.
True, some of the foreign contributions that fimded the
presidential campaign may have been illegal. True, some
of the funds raised by the speaker for his college courses
may have been used improperly under the tax laws.
But the terrible story is not illegal contributions or
clumsy cover-up stories. Rather, it is the perfectly legal
political contributions. They are stealing the soul of
American representative government.
Almost every elected political leader these days has to
reach an accommodation with political money. If he
doesn’t, he can’t get elected. In contested U. S. Senate
and House races, candidates are spending millions and
millions of dollars. To raise just one million dollars in a
year, pohtician has to raise thousands of dollars every
day.
Raising that much money is a fiiU-time job - which is,
of course, the problem. To be in congress or other major
elective office, a politician has to be a full time fund rais
er. That is in adffition to the other job—^representing you
and me.
If you and I want our representatives to do a better job
working for us, we need to figure some way to get them
out of the full time fund raising business.
How are we going to do that?
Here eire a few humble observations and suggestions:
1. There are no complete solutions.
So, we can’t expect that tightening up the campaign
finance laws will magically take care of the problem. But
just because we can’t solve the problem with one stroke
of the pen doesn’t mean we should stop tiying.
Campaign finance reform should be an ongoing
process. The loopholes should be filled as soon as they
develop.
2. Full disclosure might be a big help—but not the “fuU
disclosure” you are thinking about.
Some folks who are skeptical about further campaign
finance reform think aU that should be done is to require
the politicians to disclose who gives them the money.
Well, we do that already. It hasn’t kept our representa
tives from spending too much time raising money and
spending too much time with those folks who provide the
money.
How about a difierent kind of disclosure? Ask our rep
resentatives to account for the time they spend raising
money and the time they spend with those who provide
them the money.
If our representatives have to put on paper what they
do to raise money, how much time it takes, and what
they do with the people w^io give them the money, I
think they might spend a lot less time on these activities.
The public would take an interest—and demand that
their representatives spend more time qn the pubhc busi
ness.
3. Even without having the public finance campaigns,
public resources can be marshaled to give candidates a
better chance to reach voters.
For instance, the government could mail to every regis
tered voter a packet of election information—^and give
each candidate for office the opportunity to include cam
paign material.
It could provide television time for candidates for major
office to give them a chance to appear alone and with
their opposition in formats similar to the presidential
debates.
Giving candidates practical ways to reach all citizens is
a proper role of government. The more avenues a candi
date has to reach the public with a positive presentation
of ideas and proposals, the less dependent he or she must
be on big-time jwlitical money.
4. Remember this. If we have a problem with our politi
cal representatives giving too much of themselves to fund
raising, it is our problem. It is our responsibility to fix it.
We can’t just blame it on the politicians and walk away.
D. G. MARTIN is vice president for public affairs for the
University of North Carolina. He can be reached via e-
mail at dgmajiin@ga.unc.edu.
Here’s wishing for activism in the new year
By Robert Hampton
SPECIAL TO THE POST
As we close out 1996 and
enter 1997, I have decided to
share with you what I’d love to
see occur in the black communi
ty in 1997.
• No, O.J. I do not even want
to hear orange juice referred to
as OJ. Just let O.J. move on
with his kids, and salvage what
remains of his life. I wonder
what Geraldo, Chris Darden,
Charles Grodin and the other
OJ experts will do after the civil
trial and custody trials are over.
There may need to be an O.J
detox center to handle the O.J.
withdrawal syndrome.
• I would love to see black
communities support black
films that show sensitivity,
humanity and thought (“Get On
the Bus” and “The Preacher’s
Wife”). Don’t you think we have
had enough movies depicting us
as bugged out, blunt smoking,
violent prone men and women.
Further, please, can we get a
black drama on television? I
mean, Thursday night on the U.
People Network is OK, but I do
not always wemt to laugh emd I
do not want to see violence for
the sake of a story line. I want
intelligent dialogue, strong act
ing, and well thought out plots.
Oh we can drop “Martin” - the
Pam jokes are sUly and tired.
• No more KEEP IT REAL.
As the philosopher Chris Rock
has pointed out, keeping it real
usually means keeping it real
stupid. Let’s flip the script.
Redefine “Keeping It Real” as
keeping real good grades, being
a good father or mother to your
children, keeping far away from
the prison system and being
real good neighbors in your com
munities.
• I would love to see the black
community go beyond celebrat
ing Kwanzaa, but to truly prac
tice the seven principles daily.
Just in case you do not know
them:
1. UMOJA - Unity
2. KUJICHAGULIA-determi-
nation
S.UJIMA-Collective work and
responsibility
4. U J AM AA-Co operative
Economics
5. NIA-Purpose
B.KUUMBA-Creativity
7.IMANI-Faith
• I would love to see our com
munity , particularly the black
church, demand that the
Clinton Administration develop
a true African and Caribbean
policy, and not continue the poli-
cy of economic exploitation. You
know it is real easy to wear
Kente or Mud Cloth as a fashion
statement, or book a trip to
Jamaica or Bermuda, but when
it comes down to putting on
pressure and lobbying for aid for
Africa and the Caribbean, we
are truly on vacation. Yo, we
better recognize.
• I would love to see pohtical
activism rear its beautiful head
on black college campuses. I
want to see Deltas^ AKAs, Ques,
Grooves, Zetas, Sigmas and
Alphas plan a campus protest
as they would plan a social. I
would love to see students,
black students, protest some
thing, anything with the same
excitement that is usually
exhibited during “FreEiknik.”
• Finally, in 1997, let’s
demand that our issues be
heard. Let’s continue to stand
up and speak up to ensure that
America practices what it
preaches. Remember, this is our
coimtiy.
ROBERT HAMPTON lives in
Charlotte.
Cultural power of black history
Manning
Marable
The greatest lie in the arsenal
of white supremacy is the asser
tion that black people can be
understood only as the “victims”
of history. Recent racist books
such as “The Bell Curve” argue
that people of African descent
suffer from a “civilization gap”
with Euro-Americans; that we
have been little more than
pawns in the power struggle
between white nations and
institutions.
While it is certainly true that
black Americans are survivors
of a destructive historical
process, fiom slavery, Jim Crow
segregation, and ghettoization,
we have never stood silently,
succumbing to the forces of
oppression. Any understanding
of black history illustrates that
we have medntained a set of cul
tural values, which have shaped
and continue to define our very
existence as a people. We have
always been the makers of our
own history.
What are the cultural reser
voirs which create the psycho
logical, emotional and cultural
foundation of the strength and
vision that the adventure of
blackness in American life has
produced? Even in the shadows
of slavery we foimd our humani
ty in the gift of song. Our music
tells us much about who we are,
how we have worked, how we
have loved, where we’ve been
and where we’re going. From
the blues of the Mississippi,
Delta, to the soaring sormds of
bebop in Harlem in the 1940s,
to the provocative rh3fthms of
hip-hop of the 1990s, black
music reflects the pulse and
sensibility of blackness.
Black history and culture
reveal the gift of grace, the fluid
ity of motion and beauty which
an oppressed people have
claimed as their own. It is con
stantly recreated in many ways:
fium the artistry of dance to the
spectacular athleticism of a
Michael Jordan. Grace is the
ability to redefine the bound
aries of possibihty. We as a peo
ple were not supposed to survive
the ordeal of oppression and Jim
Crow segregation, yet our very
existence speaks to the creative
power of collective imagination.
That power is reflected in our
language, the rhythms of gospel
and the power of the preacher
on Sunday morning in our
churches. That power is found
in the creative energy of our
poets and playwrights. The gift
of grace can be heard in the
writings of a Toni Morrison,
Jimmy Baldwin and Alice
Walker.
The experience of work has
always been a foundation of
black strength throughout histo
ry. Slavery was the only
moment in African American
history where we experienced
full employment: everybody
worked. If hard work was
rewarded commensurate with
financial gain, African
jimerican people would
imdoubtedly be the wealthiest
nation on earth. Yet despite our
economic marginalization,
despite the historic pattern of
receiving barely 60 cents for
every dollar of wages that com
parable white work demands,
we nevertheless have foimd real
meaning in the world of work.
Black labor, more than any
other, is responsible for estab
lishing the foimdations of pro
ductivity for the totality of
American society. Black work
ing class women and men today
are at the forefront of the trade
union movement and efforts to
redefine the character and con
ditions of work for all
Americans.
There is the historical
strength of family and commu
nity, kinship and neighbors. An
oppressed people cannot survive
unless there is close cooperation
and mutual support by and for
each other. The reservoir of
strength within the black family
has been anchored in oiu recog
nition that kinship is collective
not nuclear in structure. Our
households have always been
open, warm places, bringing
together folk who are biological
ly related, culturally and social
ly connected with each other.
Throughout black history, there
has been the strength of faith.
During slavery, a prayer was an
act of resistance. I^en we sang,
“Steal Away to Jesus,” our eyes
looked to the north star, to the
far away promised land of free
dom. Today that faith resounds
as the cultural center of black
community life in many cities
across the country. From the
courage of Martin Luther King,
Jr. to the contemporary
activism of Jesse Jackson, black
faith heis been most powerful as
a historical force when spiritual
ity reinforces fundamental
social change.
Finally, black history reveals
the strength of heritage and tra
dition. For any oppressed peo
ple, the greatest challenge is the
struggle for memory and identi
fy: what is the meaning of what
our people have experienced, in
the long sojourn from Africa
through the ordeal of institu
tional racism in this country?
MANNING MARABLE is
Professor of History at Columbia
University in New York City.
Fathers, you must
support, not desert,
your children
By April Smith Coley
SPECIAL TO THE POST
I wonder if Afiican American
men really understand the com
plexity of the oath they took
during the Million Man March
as it pertains to supporting the
family. I remember being a
child looking for love and guid
ance, but not being able to find
it in my father.
I wonder if a father could ever
really understand the pain a
child feels when they know that
their father is alive and well,
but has not made the effort to
provide the love and support
that child needs to grow. For me
it was hard. I imagine it being
equal to a child being abducted
and the parent hoping ffiat they
will be found alive. Until the
child is reported dead, the par
ent always has hope.
I always hoped my father
would mature, I hoped for a true
relationship filled with love.
When my mother died I hoped
that I could at least count on
him for monetary support but
eventually all hope was lost,
and a scar was placed on my
heart where that hope used to
live. I am 30 years old. My
mother died when I was 13 and
I spent most of my teen years
with my grandmother.
My father started participat
ing in my life when I turned
nine, and that participation
practically came to a grinding
halt by the time I was 11. I did
hear from him off and on over
the years but only for a few min
utes during calls when I was
hoping to get some type of finan
cial support during college, and
later when he was calling me
collect looking for the financial
support he could never provide.
Money is not the biggest issue
in fatherly support. Contraiy to
popular opinion, most children
just want to be able to use the
knowledge and feel the love a
parent has to offer. Surely peo
ple that were privileged with
both parents in the home can
not imagine my feelings of lone
liness, finstration, and need for
support while I was growing up.
While most African Americem
families have had their share of
hard times, the burden is even
harder on a single parent.
I was having hard times with
out a mother, I was looking for
support. I knew who my father
was, I knew where he was and I
knew I could call collect, but
once I made contact there was
no support. Once I made contact
I heard false promises of checks
in the mail that left me hanging
on a hmb until I finally stopped
running to the mail box. I heard
empty rhetoric about how he
was trying to get on his feet.
When I finished college and
started supporting myself the
only calls I received were to ask
if I could send a few dollars.
What these living-dead fathers
don’t understand is that love
would have kept them in touch,
but money made them run.
When children are old enough
to put the puzzle together, these
tsqie fathers would probably pay
thousands of dollars to erase the
empty picture their children
have drawn of them. Luckily my
father and I have been able to
restore our relationship.
I hope my story will enable
other fathers to consider what
can happen if they support their
children. Thus bringing,
“Deadbeat Dads” back to life!
APRIL SMITH COLEY lives
in Harrisburg.
No more free
cheese deals
By Sylvia Perry
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER
PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
AU around the nation, citi
zens are fighting conflicting
battles surrounding the fate ^
of affirmative action, welfare
and other programs. Those
who benefit say they’re a
must, those who have nothing
to gain fium them, caU them
reverse discrimination.
Nonetheless, their future is
dim and if we don’t wake up,
we’U have no other options,
but to take what is given.
Affirmative action saw its
way into our society during
the 1960s. The program was
a way to provide equal oppor
tunity for minorities and
women. It said that for a cer
tain amount of employees, a
percentage had to be com
prised of women and/or
minorities. This accounted for
everything from scholastic
admissions to state funded
schools and employment to
government contracts (set-
asides).
Now, as we enter 1997, aU
of the strides that were taken
to make these giant steps in
minority participation are
being struck down or shfdl we
say, “revised.” Why is that? Is
it because they are hurting
more than helping? Might it
be that the wrong toes are
being stepped on? Or per
haps, whites are tired of pay
ing for past wrongs?
My inclinations lead to a
third possibihty. After years
of set-asides, affirmative
action, quotas, etc., some
whites feel it’s time for black
Americans to stand our own
ground and achieve on merit
alone, regardless of the pre
conceived notions racial prej
udices bring. I’ve heard
whites say, “You aU have had
chances to prove yourselves
and your capabilities and to
show people what you can do
when given the opportunity,”
or “I believe blacks are just eis
capable as whites. However, I
am tired of having to turn
down qualified whites for an
African American or other
ethnic group simply because
of race. It’s not fair.” This was
said by two white gentlemen
at a race relations seminar I
attended. One was the per
sonnel director of a Fortime
500 company.
I agree. It’s not fair. But
had it not been for affirmative
action, would the African
American’s capabilities have
even had the chance of being
noticed? Most likely not.
Affirmative action, set-asides,
equal opportunity, district
gerrymandering quotas — in
short, the age of minority
compensation for past evils is
dead. Soon we will no longer
will be able to look at laws for
protection or for defense of
jobs, scholastic opportunities
or even political clout. AU we
will have is the ground we
stand upon.
If our resume doesn’t get us
in the door, neither wUI affir
mative action. If our tran
script and SAT scores don’t
get us into the coUege of our
choice, neither wiU quotas. If
our reputation and campaign
promises don’t get us elected,
neither wUl gerrymandering.
Despite the current racial cli
mate that often pervades our
daily lives, we will have to
invent new emd better ways
of being acknowledged for our
talents because government
legal assistance is becoming a
vehicle of the past.
We must stand together
and fight for what we believe
in economicaUy, intellectuaUy
and spirituaUy. The only that
really hits people where it
hurts, is to put your money
where your mouth is and to
put your vote where it make a
difference. Marching doesn’t
do much but make your feet
tired and preaching only ben
efits those who listen (most of
those who need to listen,
don’t even take the opportuni
ty to hear the message). The
time for action is now.
SYLVIA PERRY is manag-
ing editor arul co-publisher of
The Jacksonville Free Press.