Early this year, Charlotte Richie, a high profile black woman who has been considered as a potential challenger in the next mayoral election, joined Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s team as the head of the Housing Department. Her nomination has restored the image of the Mayor in the black community, as a tactic to ease the opposition that he may have to confront in the black community, should one of the high profile Boston politicians decide to challenge him in next year’s democratic primary.

The democratic candidates are: Marie Lafleur, a brilliant, well-spoken young woman but who is absolutely unknown to this community; Barry Lawton, a dedicated school teacher, and popular political activist who is under fire for his alleged conspiracy against his former boss, the community’s beloved State Senator Dianne Wilkerson; and Althea Garrison, a proven leader who has successfully represented the 5^th district in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in the past. She is a patriot, a friend, a tireless defender of the children, and she has the guts to perform her duty with respect of our needs but not to please the ‘establishment."

Unfortunately, in Boston’s political culture, elections are not about character, it is not about community administrative and political background, and it is not about commitment and dedication. It is more about whom you are connected with, and how much money the ‘establishment’ is willing to invest in your electoral campaign. As a result, the less fortunate are condemned to remain as followers and their efforts in this community left disregarded until they find a union, an influential political organization, or a big politician or businessman to bail them out. At this point this politician will become the slave of his or her sponsor. This is the way that the old ‘establishment’ keeps control of our community. Our fellow African Americans, West Indian/ Caribbean and Haitians have become very reluctant to participate in the electoral process. This community is being managed politically according to the rules of the jungle, the biggest animal makes the decisions regardless of the smaller one’s rights.

No matter what the results are of this election, in the end this community will be the only loser. The arrogant attitude of the downtown ‘big shots’ is generating a sentiment of exclusion that may have a negative impact on the process of peace, unity and solidarity that is necessary to empower this community. This combination of conservative, racist liberal and black nationalist behind a low profile black candidate in a local community primary election, stinks and is inspiring a great deal of discomfort among the community leaders. It is very unusual in Boston to see the high profile personalities of the state’s Democratic Party so heavily involved in a local primary election. Former Attorney General Scott Harshbarger, Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, House Speaker Tom Finneran, and Boston’s City Council President Jim Kelly, those are the prime sponsors of Marie Lafleur, a native of Haiti. Even The Boston Globe supports Lafleur’s candidacy. "Tell me who your friends are, I will tell you who you are." Does the community deserve any explanation at all?

The new attempt of Downtown to impose one of their domestics as candidate in every election raises uncertainty in our expected role as citizens of this community. Many are left with the impression that they have been treated like invisible men, like political tokens that can be used by any politician to get a ride to an elected office. It is truly sad that our most respected and beloved religious and political leaders including Senator Wilkerson and Minister Don Muhammad engaged themselves in the political campaign of a woman who has disregarded her own community.

Boston is a small place and the community of Roxbury, Dorchester and Mattapan is in a great need of attention. While Marie Lafleur was flirting with the rulers of this biased justice system, kissing up to the racist America, thousands of innocent young black and Spanish children were thrown in jail without a fair judgement because of lack of legal representation. Mary Lafleur, former assistant to the state’s attorney general Scott Harshbarger did not hear the voice of her people when they were crying for justice. She was not there for Cliff Little when he was thrown into Bridgewater State Prison on charges that he was playing loud music in Hyde Park, MA. Of course, Senator Dianne Wilkerson heard the voice of his family and helped them to find a good lawyer and the boy was freed. He is expected to attend Northeastern University in September. He sang and performed for our 3^rd Annual Community Recognition Awards this year.

Marie Lafleur was not there when Marcel and Moses Enrico of Columbia Rd., Dorchester, two brothers native to the Dominican Republic, were arrested and thrown into jail for trespassing in an empty lot in South Boston. Lafleur was not there for the Haitian families when three of their teen boys were killed in Mattapan last year. On the same street corner, Senator Dianne Wilkerson was there at the funeral sharing the grief with the parents and the community. Marie Lafleur, who claims to be Haitian, did not know about these sad and outrageous events because she is not connected to this community, she does not deal with our community newspapers and the people whom she is dealing with, do not read such newspapers.

She was not there when Althea Garrison, along with Dianne Wilkerson, Gloria Fox, Joe Kennedy and others were fighting on behalf of the Haitian refugees. She was not there when members of the Haitian community of Somerville were being harassed because of the color of their skin or their country of origin.

I believe that it is astounding, almost unbelievable, and I could not imagine that our leaders and elected officials are showing so much disrespect to the community when they throw themselves blindly into this electoral campaign on behalf of Marie Lafleur. A nation with a short memory cannot write its history. Certainly this will not be the case of our fellow African Americans, Caribbeans and Hispanics. We must write our history if we want to create a freedom path for our future generation. In order to write that history, WE, as Africans, must take our responsibility. We must look for a rational answer to our constant dilemma, we can’t always agree with our political leaders, unless they are reasonable and fair. Let’s be honest, the politicians certainly aren’t. I will always show respect, solidarity and loyalty to our elected officials but also to every fellow comrades who is working hard to empower this community politically, socially as well as economically.

Only a prostitute would let down her man to take a stranger to her bedroom. The voters of the 5^th district are not going to prostitute their souls, they are going to vote for Althea Garrison. Every time The Boston Globe and Boston’s ‘establishment’ pops up with one of their domestics to run for office within our community, we will stand up and defeat that candidate until they realize that we own this community. We have our community organizations and newspapers, we know our friends and our leaders.

Eternal vigilance is the price of respect, liberty and social equality and unless we are willing to pay the price, unless we are willing to direct our hostilities not so much toward anyone who compromises our dream of freedom, liberty, political and social equality. Unless we are constantly vigilant we will not be able to change our condition. About four decades have past since the civil rights movement and the social condition of the black man is so bad it cannot get any worse. We are being harassed constantly, discriminated everywhere in schools, at work, in public services, hospitals, in court, etc. We don’t know where or when we will be treated as an object of curiosity and as a symbol of aggression. Our leaders are focused on fighting for a seat that legitimately belongs to the black community. The community looks ugly when a candidate puts up a big show of white supporters to kick off a campaign with the purpose of intimidating the black folks, it is absolutely wrong.

State Senator Dianne Wilkerson kicked off her campaign on Tremont St., surrounded by African American, West Indian, Caribbean and Haitian community leaders and activists. She went on to win the election with 80 percent of the vote while The Boston Globe and Boston’s ‘establishment’ were behind the scene supporting Caleb Desrosiers. Besides Minister Don Muhammad and Senator Dianne Wilkerson, these white leaders have no roots in this community.

They did not understand last year’s message, because we speak and write funny English, they don’t read our papers and they don’t listen to our radio stations or they simply deny the facts. We are going to do it again. We are going to add another episode to our history when we elect Althea Garrison. I hope that Minister Don Muhammad and State Senator Dianne Wilkerson can be proud of us to realize that we have not forgotten where we come from and remain stuck to our slave roots.

When you get to the polls, if you have difficulty deciding how to cast your vote, think of Malcom X, Dr. Martin Luther King, and Toussaint Louverture, and why not Dianne Wilkerson. Vote for your respect, dignity and self-determination, vote Althea Garrison.

May God bless our tough-minded African soul. ¨ Back  to main