The high point of the remarkable year 2008 was the biggest voter turnout in Indiana and Indianapolis history, making Indiana a blue state, fueled by a massive landslide in Indianapolis/Marion County for the first African-American elected president of the United States.
The low point was the new mayor of America’s 13th largest city ignoring for virtually the entire year, his city/county’s African-American community, now America’s 15th largest (up a notch in new Census estimates).
Mayor Greg Ballard set a new standard for inaccessibility.
The reasons are many; including not understanding Black media’s historic role speaking truth to power. Plus the mayor was ill-served by former press secretary Marcus Barlow, the most inept and incompetent press secretary in Indianapolis history.
Finally last Wednesday; Mayor Ballard finally consented to a prime time interview on WTLC-AM1310’s “Afternoons with Amos.”
In an uninterrupted thirty-two minute segment, Mayor Ballard was pressed to address some of the many issues African-Americans are concerned with.
The mayor defended his controversial $30,000 economic development trip to Japan and China. Asked how the trip specifically benefits the African-American community, Mayor Ballard insisted it’s important for Indianapolis to open itself up to China’s 1.3 billion person market, saying, “It brings jobs to the Indianapolis community that’s what I’m trying to do.”
Mayor Ballard was unsympathetic in understanding community anger over the city/county buying 85 Toyotas, breaking Indianapolis’ long standing policy of only buying American-owned company vehicles.
“What’s an American automobile manufacturer?” the Mayor complained. “I’m charged with doing the best I can for the taxpayers. In our opinion over the long haul the hybrid, the (Toyota) Camry was the better deal.”
The Mayor wouldn’t accept criticism of the deal, “My paradigm is different than yours. You can dispute the judgment but that was the decision that was made.” Adding, “It’s not that we bought a car that was made overseas, it was made in America.”
In his first public statement to the Black community on ending a nearly twenty-five year policy of affirmative action in Indianapolis police and fire promotions, Ballard delivered platitudes not real explanations.
“The city is in a tough position. It is getting sued from both sides and you have to come to some sort of an accommodate with that. I think we have. I think our office of Corporation Counsel listened to everybody and they’ve gone to the Justice Department and said this is what we think it should be.”
(Ballard’s statement wasn’t fully truthful. The Bush InJustice Department bullied Indianapolis into scuttling an existing federal consent decree that allowed affirmative action. A consent decree Obama’s Justice Department would support.)
Mayor Ballard opines that he’ll encourage racial and gender diversity in police and fire leadership with a performance evaluation system.
“What I want is a performance evaluation system so that we know who the best cops are and those are the only ones who should be able to go forward and attempt promotion. As opposed to anybody being able to do it.”
Mayor Ballard said he “Understands anger in the (Black) neighborhoods where (four anti-crime) cameras were (recently) removed.”
Defending their removal, Ballard said, “One of the problems with the cameras across the nation is that people come to believe that they own (them).” Ballard said the cameras “had essentially done their job” since crime had gone down in those neighborhoods.
On crime trends Ballard said flatly, “I’m a stat kind of guy. Homicides are a little bit up and other crimes, aggravated assaults are down.”
(The Mayor’s wrong about homicides. As of the interview’s date, December 17th, there were 113 homicides this year; the same as the same period in 2007.)
Now that he controls the police, Ballard gave them high praise, “Police have done a good job this year. Their morale is high, they are aggressive. Much more aggressive than they used to be. In the right way, which I appreciate, not in the wrong way.”
Ballard’s reaction to those angered by that white cop caught with an “Impeach Obama” sticker on a computer in his police car? “When we have somebody that would do something like that you discipline and then you move on.”
Mayor Ballard was downright Pollyannaish on the economy saying, “I’m hoping that the downturn won’t run past winter of 2009.”
When I said his own budget analysts reported a $50 million shortfall this year in tax revenues, Mayor Ballard said he’s “not yet” concerned about 2009 budget shortfalls. “Right now we’re not concerned (for 2009); I think we’re on solid ground.”
Ballard warns that the 2010 budget will be rough. “I’ve been upfront that 2010 will be much tougher than 2009 because the property tax caps hit.”
Mayor Ballard says he supports charter schools, “They have been good competition and really kind of energized a lot of the education in the county.”
Answering a listener’s question, Ballard said he’s against a moratorium on more charter schools, but said that “We’re not going to open any next year.” Which is a defacto moratorium.
There’s still many pressing issues where our Black community hasn’t heard the direct views of their mayor. Let’s hope Mayor Ballard doesn’t wait another 351 days before talking directly again to our African-American community.
What I’m Hearing in the Streets
For three decades, Jim Hester recorded the news as a WISH-TV/Channel 8 cameraman. Hester was Indianapolis’ longest serving African-American news photographer and among the most senior African-Americans in local media. Paired for years with Political Reporter Jim Shella, they formed a team reporting on Indianapolis and Indiana politics from the Statehouse to national conventions and interviewing every major political figures of the past quarter century.
Jim Hester’s retiring from Channel 8, but continuing to serve Indiana heading video services for Angie’s List.
Jim Hester is a broadcaster’s broadcaster and a photojournalist of the highest order. Our profession salutes him and says how much we’ll miss him.
Happy New Year. See ‘ya in 2009!
Amos Brown’s opinions are not necessarily those of the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. You can contact him at (317) 221-0915 or by e-mail at ACBROWN@AOL.COM.
