Jim:
Without a doubt, you probably invest heavily of yourself on community-related issues. I am sure you have reached both a level of awareness and reality of how much your involvement can, and will impact your community.
Sometimes, in order to first find-out what the "truth" is, it's appropriate to establish a "benchmark" that allows you to reasonably obtain the objectives/goals that have been established. In the case of community activism or improvement, it may not be realistic to expect a significant percentage of minorities (if that is truly an intended goal) to participate by simply publicizing the meetings.
Many within the minority population grew-up in households that did not teach, or subscribe to the theory that their input was either needed, or wanted. Indeed, many others are not in a position to afford the cost associated with hiring baby-sitter so that they may attend these meetings.
All that I ask is this - if you truly believe that it's important that one of NRP's objectives be that every effort possible be made to include minorities in the decision-making process, that maybe we should honestly ask ourselves why more minorities do not get involved. It may very well be simply a matter of inconveniences such as the one listed above. I for one, firmly believe that for my community life to measurably improve, it's incumbent upon me (in my neighborhood at least) to not only allow what we continue to call the "minority" voice to become a "majority", but that I must do everything I can to allow that to happen.
Dennis Plante
Jordan
>From: "Jim Mork" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subject: [Mpls] NRP >Date: Thu, 16 Jan 2003 16:47:39 -0600 > >I've watched this discussion and struggled in vain to see the point of the arguments. The VIRTUE of a project cannot be measured by who is active in it. Is there ANY proof of any attempt to keep minorities inactive? Are they holding secret meetings? In my neighborhood, everything is out in the open. The failure of minorities to participate has to be result of their failure to read the community newspapers, the community council newsletter, and the failure to come to community meetings. Those are the channels of communication, and failure to use them will keep someone ignorant. And I seriously don't believe the community activists are morally required to hunt down the minorities who hide from community participation. > >The guidelines for handing out help are slanted towards people of more modest means. If anything, that is discriminatory against caucasians, but the caucasians who run the program don't complain. They just want the neighborhood rehabilitated, however that can best be done. > >I'd like to see the complainers produce some actual evidence, not just anecdotes about "participation". I have a feeling they are falling back on that rather than doing any hard work before they start throwing their darts at a worthy program. > > >-------------- >Jim Mork--Cooper > >"War is cruelty, and you cannot refine it; and those who brought war into our Country deserve all the curses and maledictions a people can pour out." Gen. William T. Sherman (1864) Letter to the Mayor of Atlanta. > >Get your free Web-based E-mail at http://www.startribune.com/stribmail >_______________________________________ > >Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy >Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
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