Supporting One Another

One of the most difficult concepts to accurately articulate and execute, is the idea of an overwhelming majority of the voters in the 6th Ward coming together as a unified voice, to Elect the absolute best candidate to the office of Alderman.
      How does one gauge the effectiveness of the (approximate) $400,000.00 we've paid to 6th Ward Alderman Rod Sawyer, in terms of evaluating whether or not to expend another precious vote in 2015, in return for more of what we've received thus far?
     I'll start by looking at what's occurred within my realm of experience since the last election. My (then) 14 year old had to be rushed back into his school one day, due to a sudden surge of gang activity near his school during football practice. A masked robber was shot by Chicago Police near the Shell station and Maxwell Street restaurant at 74th and State Street. There are several more vacant lots on 75th Street, where a bowling alley once stood, and where businesses caught fire under undetermined circumstances on January 17th, and March 3rd of this year. On June 10th of this year, two people were shot less than 100 yards from my home, apparently for no good reason whatsoever. It probably involved someone either having insulted, or financially taken advantage of someone else, who felt that their only recourse was to shoot someone to make their point.
     In an overall sense, the two biggest groups of persons in the 6th Ward involved in things that are counter productive to our collective well being and prosperity are: 1. Those who have something to gain by taking advantage of us for financial reasons, and 2. Those who have nothing to lose when they embark on ultra violent shooting binges for reasons of street credibility, or their financial interests from illegal activities. When business owners, (who are usually not members of our community), can no longer profit financially from us, they've often turned to arson for a quick cash payout, and we're usually left with a pile of rubble, and then vacant lots, which tend to multiply like the cells of a virus, until vested groups with substantial cash move in to rebuild the area, once enough of us have given up and moved elsewhere.
    To counteract these types of behaviors, as Alderman, I'm strongly considering a long term coordinated effort to ask the community as a whole to stringently avoid pouring our dollars into the businesses of persons who have no vested interest in the long-term prosperity of the 6th Ward. When non-ward residents who own businesses get the message that we're no longer just a revenue source to be taken advantage of, they will of necessity re-think their strategy, and either leave this ward, or change the way they do business here. A 6th ward business that makes a financial commitment to either a 6th ward school, or a 6th ward student, will have my support. As to the recent Whole Foods movement, to try to bring this retailer into our community, I personally find it unnecessary. We as a people, don't really need Whole Foods to set up shop here. All we need is to put aside our perceived differences from one another, and open our own market as a co-op. Hire our own residents so that we can feed and employ ourselves, and stop looking elsewhere for  solutions to our problems.
    Semi-organized groups who engage in an endless cycle of illegal activity and wanton violence have no place in my 6th ward. Somehow, this activity must cease, permanently. The solution to this problem lies in first attaining a comprehensive understanding of who's making these decisions to send out, or motivate others, to grab weapons and shoot someone every time something occurs that they don't like. Secondly, the goal is to consistently make it impossible for the perpetrators of this self-genocide to maintain this type of activity. It will most likely take a fully coordinated effort by residents, educators, the Clergy, and Law Enforcement at the City, County, and Federal levels, to comprehensively coordinate a long term action plan to stop this killing once and for all.
     As a financial anchor for the 6th ward, I'd love to spearhead the establishment of a Community Credit Union. In the 1980's, I met a group of persons who were involved in doing just that, but  the regulatory agency that approved certification of this credit union kept changing the petition requirements, until the group gave up on trying. This kind of organized targeting of African American financial institutions can also be overcome, but it requires commitment, planning, and efficient execution.
     One thing that people will come to realize about me over time, is that I'm a very determined individual. When I commit myself to an ideal, I stay the course until I succeed. For me, failure is not an option. Allow me to serve as your Alderman, and I will make an effort to somehow, some way, make a positive difference in the life of at least one Ward Resident, every day, for four years.