Responding to Reverend Patterson
Submitted by Allen Gwinn on Wed, 08/31/2005 - 07:54.
On Tuesday this article appeared in the Dallas Morning News under Viewpoints written by Reverend Sheron Patterson of Highland Hills United Methodist Church. I felt moved to respond:
Rev. Patterson,
I wanted to point out an oversight in your article. You accidentally overlooked that the purported kingpins in this investigation are all white guys! I'm a bit concerned that everyone is labeling the FBI's work as "racist" and ignoring the possibility that a political "street gang" may well be "in cahoots" (as you put it).
As one Methodist to another, I would hope you'd be interested in the truth. As a native Dallas resident (continuing to live here by choice because this is my city, too), I have watched the Southern sector deteriorate at the hands of a small number of "leaders" whose self interest has overshadowed the needs of those they represent. People's lives are not better under the current leadership. In fact, lives are worse.
Dallas, as a city, needs to get committed to South Dallas. The "ordinary folks" in South Dallas deserve a good life, and good opportunity. They have a right to good schools. They have a right to live their lives in non-crime-ridden areas. They have a right to a decent city infrastructure. They have a right to not have their tax money wasted. They further have a right to demand that all of us (North, South, East and West) work together to solve problems instead of confining ourselves to our District "X" cocoons.
My view of the outcome is more optimistic. I believe the good neighbors in South Dallas will respond to this by becoming more wary and involved in the politics that affect us all. There's a new crop of leaders among the South Dallas young. They are honest, ethical and passionate about solving all Dallas' problems.
I hope you'll give them a chance.
Justice is color-blind and so is the law
First off, it doesn't matter what color you are. If you took money from a company right before you vote on one of their proposals, you at least LOOK suspicious. You SHOULD be investigated. If you do "consulting work" for a company that has proposals you have to vote on, you need to recuse yourself from the voting. Anything else is unethical if not illegal. The color of your skin has nothing to do with it.
Let's put this to the litmus test here. If the people involed in these same activites were white instead of black, would the good reverend still have a problem with the FBI investigation? Or would this just be another example of the "the man" keeping them down?
2 cents,
RecentCoin
Another Letter Responding to the Rev
Re: Viewpoint: August 30, 2005 -- "Sheron Patterson: First concern, now alarm over FBI investigation."
By Sheron Patterson's line of reasoning, the Mafia should never have been investigated because all the "players" were Italian-Americans, and no identifiable racial or ethnic group should be singled out for investigation and prosecution.
Contrary to Reverend Patterson's conclusion that this unfolding drama could result in greater voter apathy, I believe it could and should stir people up so they participate more intensely in the democratic process, and begin to elect representatives of integrity and character.
At any rate, these revelations indicate a growing focus on redevelopment across the Southern Sector, and that is a positive, if shady deals and bribes can be avoided in the future.
Respectfully submitted,
Joe Sturgill