I was pleasantly surprised when my staff and I had an editorial board meeting with U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., earlier this week.
Going into the meeting, I didn’t quite know what to expect, particularly because Coats has had a relatively nonexistent relationship with the minority community. However, upon sitting down to chat, I was impressed with the senator’s ability to answer tough questions without being rattled or becoming overly defensive. That’s a characteristic that some of his Republican and Democratic political counterparts should certainly strive toward implementing on their own.
I commend the senator for owning up to things that he and his camp may not have done effectively in the past. When I reminded Coats that this specific meeting was the first time he had ever come before the minority community, he admitted that was an issue and that it won’t happen moving forward. It’s too early to tell if Coats’ promise is true, but the Recorder will hold him to his word until he proves otherwise.
Although Coats is not up for reelection this year, he has been busy meeting with Indiana residents in an effort to find what he calls, “common sense solutions” to some of the nation’s biggest problems.
As a result of these meetings, Coats has developed “The Indiana Way,” his 2014 roadmap that he thinks will help make Washington a more “efficient and fiscally-responsible federal government.” The 70-year-old senator is very knowledgeable about his initiatives and has a pretty strong track record of bipartisanship, but there are some holes in his approach.
For instance, most aspects of his 10-point plan are not immediately beneficial to everyday Americans who are struggling to make ends-meet financially or otherwise. Much of this can probably be attributed to the Hoosiers Coats spoke with during his information-gathering process. I am willing to bet the vast majority of those visits did not include the poor or minorities – Black or Hispanic. When I asked the senator for demographics of the individuals he met with, he said that data was not collected.
Coats and other politicians need to understand the importance of diversity, not just from an ethnic perspective, but also diversity of age and thought. Communicating with all types of people who represent vast backgrounds is an excellent and incredibly logical way to truly make a positive impact on the community in general. Politicians have to step outside their comfort zones, put their listening ears on and actually obtain data from a wide-range of people. Coats seems to be on the right track, but more has to be done.
If Coats’ meetings were a bit more inclusive, he probably would have realized, he doesn’t need to “protect Hoosiers from the burdens of Obamacare,” but rather help them obtain better access to health care through the program which is not only affordable, but also holds health care officials accountable.
While Coats impressed me overall, particularly with his ability to work on both sides of the aisle; there was something that rubbed me the wrong way. His people were insistent that my staff and I meet them at Kountry Kitchen. The standard for editorial board meetings is that the individuals going before an editorial board do so at that respective newspaper’s office. I explained this to his staff, in the event that they were unfamiliar with the process. By the way, such a standard is not just for minority newspapers, but all newspapers. But, in the event that they were unaware or had forgotten the normality, I informed them. Coats’ director of statewide initiatives who coordinated the meeting told me that because of the senator’s tight schedule, Kountry Kitchen would be the only location he was available to talk with our team. I could have stuck to my guns and said “no,” but I wanted to be inclusive, plus I was interested in what the senator had to say. Since our meeting was late afternoon, I assumed, Coats may have had a lunch appointment there and would meet with us afterwards, which made it all the more convenient for him that the Recorder team go there. Well, that wasn’t the case at all. As a matter of fact, my team and I were there before Coats arrived, which was confirmation of my initial thought: meeting at Kountry Kitchen was a bit of a publicity stunt. I am all for supporting Black businesses and I love Kountry Kitchen’s food, but it could be perceived as stereotypical and a bit insulting to meet with the state’s premier Black newspaper at a soul food restaurant. The ironic thing is Coats’ director of statewide initiatives is Danny Lopez, a Hispanic man. It seems that he of all people would have been mindful of the potentially negative impact of such planning. That’s like mandating that the Latino newspapers meet with Coats at La Hacienda. Sure, that newspaper staff may like Mexican food, but wouldn’t a coffeehouse, or better yet, a newspaper office be more appropriate?
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The Recorder has received an overwhelming amount of community support regarding my editorial last week that announced the end to the longstanding relationship between Indiana Black Expo and the Recorder. While I disagree with Expo severing the relationship, most important to me is maintaining the Recorder’s journalistic integrity. Such strong support from so many people in Indiana and throughout the United States has not only been incredibly humbling, but also helps to make such a disappointing rift in the Black community a bit more bearable. Thank you so much for understanding the Recorder’s true role in this community and for having our back. Be blessed!
You can email comments to Shannon Williams at shannonw@indyrecorder.com.
