Time to Step Up: An Agenda for the Next Mayor

By Robert Amir

The Philadelphia mayoral race is just about in full swing and wouldn’t you know it, the democratic body politic is determined to show why it is one of the more backward and regressive in the western world. Issues are not being discussed substantively, blacks cannot agree on one representative and thus risk having their vote split – and while a State Senator is being indicted for only a tidbit of his corrupt activities – the Democratic ward followers endorsed the least qualified of the candidates because he wants “to fight”. Fight who, for what? A more fitting, inane comment could not have been uttered in this city of celluloid boxing heroes and high school drop-out police commissioner/mayoral icons.

All’s not lost though. There are a few very talented and astute people in the contest. And they need to hear from us now – on the issues. Some things are so obvious it’s almost embarrassing to think they need to be discussed. Other things are simply common sense. The people must weigh in not just on election day, but now as in a manner that hasn’t been done heretofore – by creating a people’s agenda.

Let’s start by declaring that the idea of more police as an effective response to the murder problem is a non-starter. We know that is not the case, there’s no evidence that it is, so let’s stop with this delusional and costly diatribe.

Among other issues or agenda items that need consideration are (in no particular order):

• Let’s impose a ban on Ritulin and other drugs being used on young children.

• Programs and mechanisms to stimulate small black business development have been a failure. Small business loan programs are a farce. New models need to be created that are not credit or collateral sensitive (and please don’t give me the micro-enterprise b.s. We’re not in India). Small business grants of a reasonable size need to be tried.

• There needs to be a major training program initiative in Philadelphia, with state of the art facilities in underserved communities. Ask yourself where do young adults of color go to learn how to drive tractors, become plumbers, electricians? Do the “bad” public high schools have counselors who can help direct young people to decent trade and vocational opportunities? These are situations that have never been addressed. It’s no wonder that so few blacks are involved in the building or more technical trades.

• A very important situation: the human service industry. This really requires a major opus but let’s begin by saying that a commission made up of some professionals but also community activists and middle managers of service providers must be convened to examine how, why and who receives human service (youth, job-training, anti-violence prevention, etc.) funding in this city. Part of the reason that we seem to make so little progress in ameliorating some of the social problems in the city is rooted in the way the human service industry operates. In 2006, a federal grant was awarded to a consortium of Philadelphia universities (University of Penn, Children’s Hospital, Temple University, Drexel) for a violence prevention program. The size of the grant was approximately 5 million dollars. Typically, for federal grants such as these, the city administration must sign off or sanction the applications. They should not.

None of the universities participating in the violence prevention program has any history of preventing youth violence. They are not in that business. Just as importantly, most colleges have an approved overhead administrative rate of between 30-40%. For every $10,000 of grant money that could be applied towards tutors, counselors and supplies needed to create effective programs for children, at least $3,000 will go to paying for the salary of Dr. Joe Blow at the university to help underwrite the cost of some Center for the Study of Urban Death.

Recently, an article appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer by Robert Moran claiming that the city administration “spurned” the use of proven anti-violence programs. Given the state of gun violence in Philadelphia, this politically charged statement and article was bound to raise eyebrows. The article claimed that out of eleven “blueprint” evidence based programs, the city was using five of them, but that the five were routinely under-funded. These alleged blueprint programs were so anointed by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence in Colorado, an institution originally funded by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. One might ask why this Pennsylvania agency would fund one in Colorado to study crime prevention programs, considering the state’s and particularly Philadelphia’s tumultuous and legendary experiences with youth gang violence in the late 60s and early 70s. But that’s a discussion for another day.

The article suggests that Philadelphia officials and youth agencies are negligent for not using the blueprint programs and therefore not accessing more of the $6 million in violence prevention grants awarded by the Pennsylvania Commission (Philadelphia only received 5% of the money or $300,000). No one however, dares ask how a state agency that, according to its own literature “utilizes federal and state monies to assist units of government and private organizations to prevent and reduce crime” can virtually ignore the state’s largest city with the highest and most pernicious rate of youth violence. Rather than criticizing the city, it appears the leadership of the Commission is incompetent.

These are but two examples of the inherent problems with the way social service programs are funded and administered. Much more can be said about the many facets of the systems, whether youth development, social services, even education, but what must happen is that the new leaders in Philadelphia should help set a different agenda for funders and service providers – one that emphasizes a strategic effort that genuinely helps people and solves problems – not competitive proposal writing contests that fatten the coffers of already bloated universities.

• There are three levels of criminal justice in the city: that of the city, the state and the federal government. Obviously, the city has significant sway over its own system and it can move the discussion and funds for the prison-industrial complex in a new, progressive direction if it wants to. The problem of re-entry of former inmates back into communities is one of the great challenges the next administration will face. A genuine and sincere effort towards rehabilitation must be undertaken. Again, a commission of grassroots leaders and reform activists must be convened to design and offer real alternatives for this broken, sick enterprise.

• Anyone vying for our votes must develop an aggressive and progressive policy aimed at enhancing and expanding alternative media, cultural and artistic outlets. The consolidation of media companies over the past decade has had a riveting effect at “dumbing” down the masses and promulgating a regressive, radical right wing agenda. Moreover, the “values deficit” existing in too many black communities must be countermanded with programming and advertising that espouses fundamental moral and cultural standards. We, particularly young folks, must see and hear more about the intrinsic strengths of our ancestors that allowed us to survive against overwhelming odds. This can be done but there must be a long-term commitment and funding stream attached to such efforts. In fact, I think any crime prevention strategy that does not have a very serious, media component to it is doomed to fail.

• The reparations for African-Americans effort is just heating up in major cities with large black populations. The next mayor should support the Slavery Disclosure Act currently in effect in Philadelphia, but take it a step further and investigate the recent injuries perpetrated by financial institutions during the 20th century. These would include redlining and discrimination in loan policies. These issues have, in some cases been litigated and the banks found guilty. However, unless I’m mistaken, the victims of the discrimination were never compensated for their injuries. There are several other cases of this nature where institutional racism was brought before the courts, found to illegal, but restitution never paid to the victims or their heirs. Coupled with the legacy of slavery, this approach, because it involves more recent decisions and victims, should result in palpable, meaningful outcomes.

• Governments today are dominated by big money, corporate interests that have made the notion of democracy a fraudulent claim. I would love to see the next mayor help establish a Poor People’s Think Tank, so that progressive professionals, activists and concerned citizens could have a permanent institution that researched, communicated and advocated on behalf of the least of these in the city. It may not be called what I have suggested. But, something of this nature could be done with the genuine efforts of a mayor, helping to raise money for such an institution. It might involve coordinating and combining the efforts of organizations dedicated to particular aspects of the overall concept, but it could happen.

In short, we need progressive, results oriented, long term Afro-centric thinking more than ever in this campaign. The conventional, big-city, neo-liberal, let the private sector make it work model is a wrap.

Music for your thoughts:

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http://www.zshare.net/audio/03-time-has-come-today-mp3.html

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