PUBLISHER'S PEACE

Self-Determination In Our Hands

Guest Correspondent: Delmarie Cobb

Although the sleeping giant is not as big or as powerful as it once was, it’s still mighty. Although the sleeping giant is groggy from being in hibernation, it’s still a force. The sleeping giant I’m referring to is the African-American vote. If you don’t believe the African-American vote is important, just look at every one of Rahm Emanuel commercials. The majority of the $30 million he’s raised is being spent to convince African-Americans that all of his tough choices were needed to improve our lives.

Unlike Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis, the mayor only has our best interests at heart. Unlike Rev. Jesse Jackson, the mayor only has our best interests at heart. Unlike U.S. Rep. Danny Davis, the mayor only has our best interests at heart. Unlike former Cook County Board President Bobbie Steele, the mayor only has our best interests at heart.

That’s why the mayor closed 50 schools in mostly black and brown communities. That’s why he closed six mental health clinics. That’s why he shortened the yellow light times from the recommended 3.5 seconds in 30 miles per hour zones to 3 seconds—amassing $8 million in revenue from tickets. That’s why the mayor is sitting on $500 million earmarked for the Chicago Housing Authority, while 280,000 low-income residents—mostly black and brown--sit on a waiting list.

That’s why the mayor wanted to build a $60 million North Side selective enrollment high school a few blocks from Walter Payton College Prep High School named after President Barack Obama. This after announcing a $13.5 million expansion of Payton in an effort to keep white families from leaving the city, while 200,000 African-Americans have left and continue to leave. That’s why between May and August of last year, 187,500 African-Americans were stopped and frisked by Chicago police. A rate four times higher than New York.

If African-Americans vote for Emanuel in the city’s first mayoral runoff, then we deserve what’s coming over the next four years. We have an opportunity to change Chicago for the better after appearing helpless to steer our city in a different direction for decades. We scoff and shake our heads in disbelief over the state of affairs in Ferguson, Missouri, but how are we any different. According to the recent report from the Dept. of Justice, city leaders in Ferguson “see some residents, especially those who live in Ferguson’s predominantly African-American neighborhoods, less as constituents to be protected than as potential offenders and sources of revenue.”

Selma, Alabama, the site of Bloody Sunday and the impetus behind President Lyndon Baines Johnson signing the nation’s Voting Rights Act of 1965, has never elected a black mayor. In 2010, Selma’s population was 21,000. Currently, it’s estimated at 20,000. Selma is 80 percent black and 18 percent white.

Former African-American Congressman Arthur Davis, who’s running for mayor in Selma, said in his announcement speech, "Yes, I know this city has made progress, but is it good enough," Davis said in a video. "Is it good enough that the majority of our schools are rated failing? Is it good enough that we are making headlines for being one of the fastest shrinking cities in America? Drive through west Montgomery and south Montgomery: is what you see good enough for the people who live there?" Sound familiar?

Even though Chicago has 15,000 more registered voters in 2015 than 2011, African-Americans find it hard to believe that we are the margin of victory. The election on April 7 is in our hands. We have the power to change the course of our city and our destiny. When a politician spends millions courting the black vote, when a politician spends millions on negative ads, when a politician spends millions lying on his opponent, you know the outcome is too close to call.

In Rev. Martin Luther King’s speech, Give Us The Ballot, the slain civil rights leader said, “In this juncture in our nation’s history, there is an urgent need for dedicated and courageous leadership. If we are to solve the problems ahead and make racial justice a reality….” I ask you to substitute nation’s history with the words, “Chicago’s history.”

It’s time for the sleeping giant to wake up, take a stand, be courageous and show the world what can happen when average everyday people decide they are sick and tired of being sick and tired.