This November, Detroit will elect a new mayor and I have
mentioned before that this is the first time in a very long time where a white
man (Mike Duggan) is running for the office; he is running against Benny
Napoleon a black man.
Mike Duggan has actually garnered a lot of support from the
black community because he is seen as an experienced administrator with a
proven track record of fixing companies in financial trouble; in this case it
was the Detroit Medical Center. These supporters feel he can do the same for
the city.
Benny Napoleon, on the other hand, does not have a good
track record of administration but in fact has had many a problem in his long career
in city and county government.
An article in the Detroit News about the upcoming election
caught my eye. It was titled IN MAYOR’S RACE, LET PEOPLE – NOT PREACHERS –
DECIDE. It was written by the Reverend Jim Holley, a well-known local black
pastor who happens to be an ardent supporter of Mike Duggan.
I have written on many occasions how black Baptist preachers
in Detroit are the most vocal opponents of sacrificing black power in Detroit
even if that black power is totally corrupt and incompetent. In essence, they
only care about their own power in the city and damn the city and its people.
Traditionally, candidates for office in the city of Detroit,
make speeches at many of the local churches before the election takes place.
In this election, these churches are allowing the black
candidate to address their congregations but not the white candidate and that
has the Reverend Holly a little more than upset.
He argued that the elections have nothing to do with
religion but everything to do with politics. Those pastors denying Duggan a
pulpit spot are doing a disservice to their congregation by not letting them
hear both candidates and then make up their minds how to vote. Holley feels
that by denying Duggan a spot, they are trying to influence the election and
that is just undemocratic.
Holley made a great comparison using Obama’s election saying
if white folks did not allow Obama to deliver his message, we would not have a
black president today and that is exactly what Detroit pastors are doing to
Mike Duggan.
Letters to the editor about this issue mainly focused on the
fact that churches / religion should have no part in politics but here in
Detroit churches and especially very vocal black pastors inject themselves into
city politics as they always have and why? That has always been a good question
and I still have not found a suitable answer except to suggest that they (black
pastors) want a powerful role in the politics of the city; ego trip – black
power trip?
Another respected black journalist also added his voice to
the racism being injected into the mayoral campaign. He cannot believe that
even his close friends believe that a white man as mayor will mean a white
takeover of the city. He calls it preposterous but it is real.
The only hope the city of Detroit as well as its residence
have is to prevail over the old racist ways and elect a mayor that will
actually be successful in bringing the city back to health and not just the
black candidate because he is black.
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