MANSFIELD: Time for Mayor Jackson to Take the Gloves Off

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At a recent City Hall press conference Mayor Jackson was more animated than anyone has seen him in a long time as he discussed the lawsuit the City of Cleveland has filed against the State of Ohio over the passage of HB 180, which bans city governments from enacting local hiring laws, such as Cleveland’s Fannie M. Lewis Cleveland Resident Employment Law.

The law was enacted 12 years ago as a means of reducing poverty by ensuring that city residents participate in the city’s economic redevelopment by requiring contractors on public, city-funded projects to hire local workers.

Getting minorities work of these types of projects has been an ongoing battle dating back to at least the late ’60s when the first formal programs were put in place to bring blacks into the building trades. And while some gains have been made, all one has to do is drive by virtually any construction site in the city to see how far we still have to go in terms of insuring racial parity in this industry.

It seems that every time we blacks make the smallest of gains in terms of creating workplace fairness — due to the nature of institutionalized racism that constantly morphs and changes to fit the occasion — a new law suddenly emerges that negates those gains. The goal of the Ohio legislature (which is dominated by white Republicans) by now is crystal clear: Keep blacks in penury by keeping them off the good-paying construction jobs. And then, after devising methods to keep minorities unemployed, turn around and call them shiftless, lazy and unwilling to work. Only in America.

The mayor, however, did make a statement at the presser that, if applied to this situation, could have a salubrious effect. He has asked council to hold off on passing any additional legislation regarding funding or land for the Opportunity Corridor until the state makes it clear how the community will benefit from the project. In plain language, he is playing hardball with the project.

In Atlanta in the ’70s Mayor Maynard Jackson was wrestling with white contractors who refused to hire blacks on projects. He used the power of the pen to bring about fair play; he refused to sign any additional building permits, and quietly said to the developers, “Until we all can make some money, won’t nobody make any money.” Fair is fair.

At the press conference the visibly agitated mayor said, “We have facilitated billions — billions — of dollars in development and wealth in this city. And all we ask is that a small portion of that comes to the benefit of the people we represent. Whether they are in the building trades or contractors or the constituents who live in our neighborhoods, so we can begin to deal with the disparity in the quality of life.” Again, fair is fair.

Cavs owner Dan Gilbert proved how easy it is to do a large-scale development project in Cleveland while hiring in a fair manner when he built the casino. He blew all of the lies told by developers — that they can’t find “qualified” black workers and contractors — completely out of the water. They no longer have any excuses, if they ever had any.

It’s past time for the mayor of Cleveland to do what the mayor of Atlanta did almost 50 years ago: Quit signing building permits unless developers agree to hire in a fair manner… and financially punish those who try to renege on their word.

One more time: fair is fair.

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From Cool Cleveland correspondent Mansfield B. Frazier mansfieldfATgmail.com. Frazier’s From Behind The Wall: Commentary on Crime, Punishment, Race and the Underclass by a Prison Inmate is available again in hardback. Snag your copy and have it signed by the author by visiting http://NeighborhoodSolutionsInc.com


Photo by Vasquez 8689

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One Response to “MANSFIELD: Time for Mayor Jackson to Take the Gloves Off”

  1. Harry M.

    I Hope That The Mayor Has Success Getting Contractors To Hire The Disenfranchised In Cleveland. For Many, It May Be Their First Job That Pays A Living Wage.

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