I’ve long been a fan of the writing of Bomani Jones, and he recently published a lengthy, worthwhile post on his blog about the sins of Kwame Kilpatrick. Highly recommended.
One thing I’d like to respond to:
Now, I do find it a bit interesting that there are so many white critics of Kilpatrick who are mortified by what he’s done to Detroit, seeing how so few white people actually live in Detroit, white people typically do not participate in municipal politics in cities where they are the minority, and how disinterested white folks have been in the city of Detroit for most of the last half-century. I do see that and chuckle a bit.
As a white person living seven hundred miles from Kilpatrick’s corruption, it’s certainly easy but dangerous to criticize him. Easy in that he’s threatening to reach Joker-levels of you-can’t-stop-me lawlessness. Dangerous in that the politics of Detroit have zero tangible impact on my life. It’s easy to lob bombs from the distance when you’re not physically invested in the aftermath.
Also, there are white supremacists who stoke the dying embers of their racist, idea-less ideology by pointing to corrupt black politicians and arguing that therefore black people aren’t worthy of democratic society (I stumbled into some of this neo-Nazi bullshit when watching videos about Detroit recently on Youtube.) As if white people aren’t forever finding ways to abuse political power and subvert our political process.
But to defend myself as a white, non-Detroit resident, critic of Kilpatrick: I’ve always been interested in Detroit. I pledge solidarity with and for Detroit every day. I know that sounds corny, but Detroit is very important to me, as the place where my family tree took root and the place where my country showed its greatest promise (and failure.)
I think a lot people who care about Detroit’s present and future feel helpless in respect to the failing car industry and the systematic inequality that have plagued the city for more like centuries than decades. It’s a helplessness that sometimes manifests itself in the most regressive ways—you can find a lot of exceedingly racist people in the D’s suburbs. Which makes it that much harder to develop the consciousness that the struggle for a just society must involve and benefit everyone.
Ultimately, the future of Detroit (and Baltimore and every other former industrial center) depends on fresh ideas and collective action, not saintly politicians. I need to stop complaining about Kilpatrick’s failures and start learning how to make things better. Though that’d be easier if he wasn’t instigating a new scandal every week.
July 30, 2008 at 11:51 am |
no need to defend yourself, boss. kwame deserves to be ridiculed and everything else, and i’m not depriving anyone’s right to do so. it’s good to read you’re doing so without being disingenuous.
July 30, 2008 at 12:05 pm |
thanks, i think i just have to explain to myself from time to time why i care so much about the city. i always appreciate your insight.
July 30, 2008 at 12:06 pm |
is it any better that people in detroit tolerate these actions just because hes the same race as them?
July 30, 2008 at 12:09 pm |
i don’t think most people tolerate this at all.
July 30, 2008 at 12:12 pm |
i guess what i mean is theres so much outrage from non detroit residents, (metro detroit areas) but much less from actual detroit city limit residents. at least that how it appears when stories are ran.
July 30, 2008 at 4:29 pm |
Note: I started this post with the intention of addressing zach’s post about outrage and it spiraled out of control from there. I’m sorta passionate about Detroit and couldn’t stop.
I think there is plenty of outrage in Detroit. The Detroit City Council, which theoretically represents the wishes of the people in their part of the city is taking steps to remove him from office. A plethora of city leaders have said they are interested in running against him (in the event that he isn’t convicted or doesn’t resign, which thus far he has shown no sign he is interested in doing).
I think there is outrage in Detroit. But I do think it is also fair to point out that the residents of Detroit did re-elect him after his first term, which wasn’t exactly scandal free. The infamous Manoogian party, which has never been confirmed except in rumor happened in his first term. It was discovered that his wife’s personal car was a 35,000 Lincoln Navigator, paid for directly by the City. Obviously these pale in comparison to the current scandals, but there were signs that the mayor was pretty caught up in his own celebrity.
As to white people and non residents who are piling onto kwame now, I think Bomani’s criticism is legitimate for some of these people. There are people who truly don’t care about the city but see this as an opportunity to, like Jerry said further their insignificant and ignorant racial prejudices. I don’t think we need to address these people.
But there is another group of people who maybe aren’t so overtly prejudiced, or prejudiced at all for that matter who are simply so jaded about the state of Detroit that they would just as soon the city was no longer a part of the state. Try skimming through the readers’ responses on the Freep web site, the vitriol is rediculous. But these people are just as misguided as those who’s hate for the city is based in their racial prejudice. Well, not just as misguided, but wrong nonetheless.
The truth is, Michigan will never succeed as a State without a successful Detroit. And the City can’t succeed unless the state commits to finding meaningful ways to help the city. Both of their futures are completely intertwined, and until people throught Michigan recognize that it will be difficult to affect change.
But we all have a vested interest in Detroit thriving. Like Jerry, my family’s roots are in Detroit. I was actually talking with my dad recently. He had just gotten back from a grade school reunion that he helped to organize a while back, and they were talking about how difficult it was because they literally all scattered to different school districts starting in the late 60s, which contributed to the tragedy that is the state of the city now. It’s something that we, being from Traverse City, take for granted, when we go home every summer and reconnect with people we went to school with. Or can go to our parents houses. My dad talked about how frustrating it was not to have that place where they can reconnect. Instead they rent a knights of columbus hall in troy or something.
It’s going to take an incredible amount of leadership and thinking to turn Detroit around. And as charismatic as Kwame was, there is no way he is currently equipped to provide that kind of leadership. It is a travesty that he refuses to recognize this, and attempts to continue on with “business as usual” while Detroit’s name get dragged through the mud with every revelation or new incident that surrounds him.