forwarded with permission of Keith Ellison
----- Original Message ----- From: "Keith Ellison" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, October 24, 2002 7:27 PM > > I am absolutely convinced that the way a candidate runs a campaign will > determine the quality of how that elected official serves. An ugly, nasty > campaign will inevitably lead to a divided, and weaker, community. North > Minneapolis and downtown can ill afford a leader who is driving us apart, > and attacking our honored institutions. > > This is why I urge Duane Reed to return to the high ground. Duane recently > found it necessary to attack two venerated institutions, Insight News and > Lucille's Forum, because he didn't receive the kind of press he was looking > for in a recent Insight article. Duane didn't stop there. He personally > attacked Batala McFarlane, Al McFarlane, and strangely, Clarence Hightower, > who was not present at the Lucille's forum and who makes no editorial > decisions at Insight News. Duane's rage is difficult to understand. He was > given a full and fair opportunity to express himself at the Lucille's forum. > > I read the article that angered Duane, and it appeared accurate to me. Many > others have told me that the article was balanced and informative. It > appears that Duane's true complaint is that the article did not flatter > him. But Duane has been applying double standards. Strangely enough, Duane > had no difficulty with an article in the landlords' newspaper, which, > according to him, was inaccurate. The Watchdog article, which inaccurately > quoted him making insulting remarks about me and one of my campaign > volunteers, did not inspire him to write a polemic against the landlords > and their newspaper. If Duane is really this stickler for accurate > reporting, then his landlord buddies at the Watchdog should be hearing from > him. Don't hold your breath. > > In my opinion our community owes the McFarlane Family a great debt. They > have helped to inform this community and to improve the quality of our > debate for decades. Al, Batala, and Clarence do not deserve to be insulted > by Duane K. Reed. Al, a man of Duane's age, has spent his life building > strong Black institutions. Clarence Hightower is leading the effort to > revitalize Plymouth Ave. He leads an organization that really serves the > Black community in areas of economic development, education, politics and > others. Insight, Lucilles's Forum and the Minneapolis Urban League are > vital organizations in House District 58B, and they deserve better from a > man who seeks to represent them and all of us. > > Finally Duane seems to believe that a conspiracy was afoot. He points out > that Al is listed as my campaign chair, that Batala is one of my campaign > managers, and that Clarence is listed as my deputy treasurer. Actually, the > list he is referring to is somewhat dated. Al and Clarence were on my > campaign team in 1998, when I sought the DFL endorsement. I have recently > submitted an amendment to the State updating the information. But I guess I > don't understand why Al, Clarence, and Batala are not allowed to support > me. These good people are private citizens. They have lived, worked, or > given to this community for a long time. They know me. > > Moreover, what on Earth does the last city council election have to do with > the race for 58B? It appears that Duane would rather run against Jackie > Cherryhomes than me. It is a shame that he gives Jackie so much power. > Jackie is trying to lead her life as a wife, mother, and small business > owner, and yet folks like Duane continue to try to turn her into some super > power broker. She is simply a private citizen supporting the candidate of > her choice. May she live in peace? > > With these final days of the campaign I hope we can return to the days when > we focused on real issues and our records. This election will be over soon, > and we'll need to come together. I urge everyone to keep the debate > competitive, but on a high plane. After November 5th, we're going to need > each other. We need healing, not division. Eva Eva Young Near North Minneapolis "You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone - not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion, etc., but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be." --Article II of the Bill of Non-Rights. _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:mpls@;mnforum.org Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
