A Message From The Publisher
By Bobby R. Henry, Sr.
I continue to process what occurred on Tuesday with Broward’s Blind Nine and Superintendent Cartwright. Considering the fact that the building is named after the late and great Kathleen C. Wright, it is a disgrace that the behavior of the ten supposed leaders on that dais represent nothing of what she emulated: Justice, Truth, Transparency and Fairness.
Just as plain as the nose on your face, it is now evident that the Board anticipated the power of the Black community. The Board chair obviously concocted a plan to ensure an unbalanced representation of voices from “the’ community.
It appeared as crooked as a barrel of fishhooks. By imposing a one minute limit on the first 30 people who signed up to speak as if they were coached for the repetitiveness of co-signing the Super’s wish list set the tone for further embarrassment. How this is even legal is beyond my understanding.
Is it legal to change the rules on a whim? That is something that was challenged eloquently by Raymond Adderly, the 18-year old who is running in hopes of unseating Donna Korn for the at-large seat for District 8.
It was clearly anticipated due to the significant presence of security officials, some of whom were signing people up. BTU and select others seemed to know to show up early to participate in this strategy. Is this the modus operandi of how the BTU knew to arrive early and sign up on a list for public speakers for a particular board item when this is not the normal practice. Sounds like a conspiracy to me. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it must be the Duck Dynasty, the duck of all ducks.
the Duck Dynasty, the duck of all ducks.
Speaking of security, Broward security was in full force at KC Wright on Tuesday for the Board meeting. There is always this perception that Black folk are going to show their natural derrières when we have been wronged. Unpleasant as it may be, facts are facts. Check the record. Black people are the least likely to create mass destruction. If this was so this country would have imploded some time ago considering how much we have been wronged. I do not recall this level of security on the premises when the Mothers of Liberty and others who opposed mask wearing showed up to the building. And I certainly do not recall their time to speak being limited to a set number of speakers and a decrease from the normal three minutes per person.
These decisions and actions are microaggressions that need to be called out. Please DO NOT associate this with whining! It is not; it’s educating. They need to be educated and so do we. Sometimes Black people themselves cannot identify microaggressions as they are happening to them because they happen so frequently that they become normalized.
Big Mama always emphasized that what comes around goes around and it builds momentum as it circles back. The karma for this Motley Crew came faster than I anticipated but not fast enough. The long awaited anticipation of recommendations from the Grand Jury Report is fast approaching. A teaser dropped the day after last Tuesday’s Board meeting hinting at criminal charges and recommendations that multiple board members should be removed by Governor Desantis. How ironic that their actions of overreach have led to multiple board members being recommended for removal, while they sit around the table and refuse to act with any level of integrity as Cartwright makes a mockery of the district. “Be careful what you ask for”, rings as loudly as “I’m not a racist” no matter how deafening they both come from misrepresenting truths.
The chickens are coming home to roost. And while to the hunter when game is plenty, “it ain’t no fun when the rabbit has the gun. Some are sitting comfortably in their recliner waiting for the show to begin.
Unfortunately, some of these women (Foganholi was not there during the Grand Jury Investigation) have learned absolutely nothing from the yearlong inquiry as their shenanigans have not slowed down one bit. The Grand Jury is on to something about Broward, but their recommendation falls short, in my opinion. Even if money dictates their actions, the Blind Nine for their inactions to right a Cartwright wrong needs to Go and start fresh. Don’t leave any seeds behind that may produce blindness if eaten. Something is embedded in the culture because Cartwright has fallen right in with the very corrupt mindset of changing the rules to suit your personal agenda, slaying the enemies of your friends and rewarding those who play in the dirt box with you. The Board and Superintendent point the proverbial finger of blame to staff, but it is really their ineptness that gets exposed in these sorts of investigations, reports and recommendations.
I have not had the pleasure of reading the entire report as it has not been released to the public, but like you, I wait for it in great anticipation. From what has been revealed thus far, I disagree slightly with the Grand Jury. Grandmama use to say, “a fish rots from the head down.” You have to throw the whole damn fish away and catch some more.
We have to always get back to what is really at stake, the future of our children. With all that has happened, the clear losers are Black, Brown and poor kids. We all have a responsibility to keep up the fight.
The Westside Gazette continues to watch and report.
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