TGR: An Interview with noted journalist Charles Robinson: Youth and the Tragedy of Black Political Life
By Doni Glover, www.bmorenews.com
(BALTIMORE – November 26, 2009) – Maryland Public Television’s Charles Robinson has been reporting the news for decades. He is no stranger to asking the tough question. Nor is he afraid to speak truth to power. Relentless in his professionalism, he has covered everything from the crime and education in Baltimore to the last Democratic National Convention to the inauguration of the nation’s first black president.
Lately, Robinson has been covering the trial of Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon.
When asked his thoughts, he replied, “I’m disgusted with the trial.”
He said, “I think a politician’s gotta do better because the youth of the city are watching. They are taking their cues from the adults and to kind of air your dirty laundry in a public forum is sad.”
When asked to elaborate, he stated, “Basically, women are running the city. I’m not suggesting there’s some kid out there watching, listening and saying, I can do this … but without the role modeling, the challenge of being a politician is greater. At the end of the day, you either emulate someone or you blaze a new path. You decide that I can’t be like this man. And isn’t that tragic. The first African American woman mayor is under suspicion. You have to hold yourself to a higher standard. I go back to the Parren Mitchell’s of the world. He knew he had to set a different standard and a higher standard. To understand PJ’s mindset, know that he looked to his brother, Clarence, Sr. He was considered the 101st US Senator because of his lobbying efforts.”
Robinson insists that adults in Baltimore have to do a better job. Even more, political leadership is slipping.
Robinson continued, “Elijah [Cummings] understands the importance of black political power. And that comes from not just emulating people, but finding people of like minds. Cummings came of age during the turbulent 60’s where black power was the new mantra and there was a new political paradigm. He is also in the hotbed of where black political power is being lived and debated: Howard University. He’s there when Stokely Carmichael is there. And those folks who came of age in that era made a conscious decision to not just go along to get along, but to stand up for African Americans without being afraid.”
So, I asked Robinson, do we have that kind of black political leadership today?
He answered, “I think in some sectors, but I don’t know about in the majority of the black community. I think there is a narcissistic mindset that has been pervasive in the black community since the 80s: ‘I’m gonna get mine. You gotta get yours.’ I’m not mad at the entrepreneurs, but the sense of community is thin within the black community today. And there is no such thing as self-sacrifice. That term has gone out of vogue.”
I then asked Robinson what the children think of adults today.
Robinson said, “What message are we sending to the next generation? We look back on the crack epidemic and saw what it did to our communities. Yes, we survived. But, we were forever damaged. And I would suggest to you this repeated incidence of black politicians being convicted for personal indiscretions is not lost on this generation. They know that if you mention Kwame Kilpatrick, they’ll say that’s the guy who was sex texting all the time. If you say William Jefferson from out of Louisiana, they’ll say that’s the guy who kept 90 grand in his freezer, and, unfortunately, we are no longer surprised when we hear these stories. And that is a tragedy.”
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2 comment(s) on this page. Add your own comment below.
There was a time, as Mr. Robinson points out, when African American politicians marched to a different drummer; they sought ways to improve our plight as a people and not just angle for political power to bring forth a personal agenda. The Mitchells can be counted in that number. Now we have "Me Generation" people running for office; and when they get in office they are no longer servants of the people; instead, they look to be catered to, looked up to and treated like celebrities. Too often their deals are made to advance their careers. Public service becomes self service. Someone once said (I believe it might have been Mark Twain)that a nation that has to pay its politician should beware.
Thanks guys. What a well written article. We have it bad here in NC and can't get anyone's attention. Not one black in statewide office (except for Court of Appeals and Supreme Court). One black on the Raleigh City Council. And the few in the General Assembly or local offices can be seen but never heard.
I've been running for office for 22 years and never won, because raising the money to compete is difficult. When did senior black elected officials become so complacent?
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