Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said years ago “history will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people”. We are here today because we will neither be silent, nor passive, nor excepting of the current status quo.
Detroit is a great city. It sits on an international waterway. It has some of the best housing in the nation. It is the birthplace of the U.S. auto industry, of Motown, and has been the platform for the growth of the Black middle class. We are well aware of the current economic issues confronting our city. We are well aware of the national image that has been promulgated and carried by many in the media and others that have negatively characterized Detroit as a hopeless and helpless community.
Amidst all of this negativity must emerge people who love Detroit, who are committed to Detroit, who have a stake in Detroit, and who are compelled to serve Detroit. You cannot really lead Detroit without loving Detroit. Therefore, if one has demonstrated their love for Detroit, then he will certainly be relentless in the effort to serve Detroit. Our candidate for the office of mayor has a 40 year history in public service in the City of Detroit.
For many who suggest that voting in the next mayoral election is of no consequence due to the imposition of an Emergency Manager who seems to have all power, you are indeed wrong. The 2013 vote will be one of the most important votes that we can now cast. For in spite of the one man rule instituted by the Governor and the State Legislature over the will and consent of 2.3 million Michiganders who said NO to this seizing of democracy, we must still vote. In spite of the taking away temporarily the power of the City Council and the current Mayor, while disregarding our city charter, we must vote like our lives depend upon it. Quite frankly they do.
Our candidate is rooted in a family that taught him the values of integrity, dependability and responsibility. Coming up through the ranks as a member of the Detroit Police Department he rose to become ultimately the chief of police, the youngest in the history of Detroit. He was also the youngest of any major U.S. city. He has always emphasized the no tolerance policy for corruption, mismanagement, and even called on the FBI to investigate his own officers during the disappearance of drugs in the police evidence room. He is a lawyer, a professor, former Assistant Wayne County Executive, and has been an Executive Vice President of Business Development and Outreach in one of the largest African American owned real estate firms in America. He knows people and property.
He has appointed various community commissions to advise the Detroit Police Department on issues in the use of non-lethal violence. As a matter of fact, I chaired a special task force on the use and nonuse of non-lethal violence by the Detroit Police Department by virtue of his appointment. This grew out of the infamous Kel Light, formerly used by the some in Detroit Police Department as a weapon, which resulted in the serious injury and sometimes death of civilians. He has been Sherriff of Wayne County since 2009, retained in 2010 and reelected in 2012.
Our candidate has a plan, not just a philosophy. The plan is to increase public safety, neighborhood revitalization, core city services, and economic expansion. We are most impressed with the “One Square Mile” plan which puts a police officer in various neighborhoods to secure trust, to provide services, and to build relationships. This business man with a badge knows how to restructure and downsize but at the same time increase productivity and involvement of the people. Detroit needs more than just someone who can cut, slash and sell. Detroit needs someone who can add, increase and develop. Detroit needs our candidate.
Detroit needs a fighter. Detroit needs someone who will stand up and unhesitatingly declare to everyone that “I’m from Detroit, I represent the people of Detroit, and Detroit is much better than what the world has said about our City”. We are here to work with everyone but we shall not be taken advantage of by anyone. We believe when Detroit does better, Michigan does better. If Detroit does not do better, Michigan cannot do better. Therefore today in the spirit of Fannie Lou Hamer we are “sick and tired of being sick and tired” of the current status quo. We call upon the Detroit community and all registered voters to join us in supporting the Honorable Sherriff Benny Napoleon as the next mayor for the City of Detroit.
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