Marion Barry's Wedge Issues: Class and Race
Whatever the issue, whatever the year, Marion Barry makes certain he is in the center ring of the circus. The former mayor-for-life has pet issues, seeks petty advantages and promotes grand ideals. He fights consistently to get summer jobs for the city's idle youth. He uses whatever muscle he has to steer city contracts toward black-owned businesses.
But however he is remembered--as the mayor who built K Street, or as the crack-puffing laughingstock of the nation, or as a political survivor who remained a hero to generations of black Washingtonians--Marion Barry has dominated this city's politics in good part because he knows how to use class and race both to bring people together and to divide them for his own purposes.
This week alone, we have two fine examples of how Barry does it.
First: In a letter to D.C. Council chairman Vincent Gray, the Ward 8 council member blasted Mayor Adrian Fenty and the council for shirking their responsibilities to the unemployed and those who struggle to find affordable housing. So far, so good--every government needs elected officials who will loudly remind us of the needs of the poor. But watch how Barry does it: He doesn't stop at spelling out the crying need for social spending. No, he dives into Fenty's proposed budget and picks out a handful of tiny items that illustrate the economic and social divide in the city.
"The mayor recommends $250,000 funding to the Tudor Place Historic House [in Georgetown, natch], $700,000 to Cultural Tourism, $5 million to support arts-based economic development activities, $1 million to the Washington Performing Arts Society, $500,000 to the Source Theater, and the biggest misdirection of priorities is $3.5 million to the Washington Ballet. Do not get me wrong, all of these are excellent programs, but if one has to choose between these programs and job training, all eleven of us ought to choose job training."
Barry announced he would move to ax most of that arts spending in order to "bring help and hope to the segment of our population, 90 percent of whom are African American, who live in despair, frustration and are getting angrier and angrier at this government...."
Barry doesn't care that Cultural Tourism D.C. devotes by far the largest part of its efforts to attracting visitors to sites in historically black sections of the city. He doesn't care that the District's support of the Performing Arts Society helps that group bring world-class artists into schools and senior centers in some of the city's neediest areas. He prefers not to mention that the city's support of the Source Theatre is designed to save a scruffy, grassroots arts venue in a quickly gentrifying part of town. Barry happily bashes the ballet because it conjures an image of pampered, rich white girls dancing away while people across town lead lives of struggle and dysfunction; he conveniently ignores the fact that in his own home ward, the Washington Ballet, along with a slew of other local arts groups, has invested heavily in an extraordinary arts center that is by leaps and bounds a superior facility to anything any of those groups provide for their affluent customers west of Rock Creek Park.
To divide the city and frighten his fellow elected officials into following Barry's lead, he presents false choices. The relative pittance that the District spends on arts programs is a meaningless figure compared to the vast sums the city spends on social programs and to the even greater needs that this unusually impoverished city confronts. The former mayor creates false hopes and expectations when he leads voters to believe that if only priorities could be shifted from fancy arts programs to essential services for those in need, all would be hunky-dory.
But Marion Barry's work is not yet done for the week. In addition to that display of divisive tactics, Barry was the only member of the council to lend his name to a protest by a small group of parents at Deal Junior High School in upper Northwest. A handful of parents accuse principal Melissa Kim, who is Asian-American, of being abusive and disrespectful toward black students and parents. Kim's supporters among Deal parents say the protesters have no evidence of any racial bias; they portray Kim as an effective and firm leader who treats all students equally. The protest group's lawyer and spokesman is E. Faye Williams, who until recently was Barry's chief of staff.
The parent group is demanding the removal of what they call the "racist bully principal" and a "review by an independent panel of Melissa Kim's suspension record, broken down by race, gender, grade and the nature and severity of the infraction versus the punishment." When the protesters brought their grievances to the District government building downtown this week, Barry--whose ward is as far as you can get from Deal's Ward 3 location--was the only member of the council cited as a supporter of the parents' complaints, and the only elected official to don one of the group's red hats.
The good news is that Barry no longer wins receptive ears for all of his antics. But he manages to make himself heard often enough. The shtick still sometimes works. That's how you know how far the District still must travel before it reaches anything that can be called political maturity.
By Marc Fisher |
May 17, 2007; 7:23 AM ET
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Posted by: Truth | May 17, 2007 7:52 AM
Barry needs to fade away. There's absolutely nothing wrong with funding cutural arts. These programs gives both youths and adults who want to make something better of themselves somewhere to learn and improve their talents. As far as "job training", well, you can't teach an old dog new tricks.
Posted by: Future | May 17, 2007 8:07 AM
Marion Barry has no appreciation for arts, culture, or anything that gives people inspiration. He would rather keep people supressed and try to convince them that old-school is the way they are supposed to live.
Posted by: Sunny | May 17, 2007 8:26 AM
To Sunny: You are absoutly correct. Marion Barry is artless, uncultured and uninspirational. He would rather focus his "arts, culture and inspiration" on drugs. He is always at the bottom of the barrel. He has no ambition. He talks the talk, but does not walk the walk. As an x-Mayor, he was a disgrace to the nation's capitol, as Ward 8 councilman he still is a disgrace. I don't believe he has helped his Ward 8 people. He is not an asset, but a liability. His speech is unimpeccable, more street-talk speech. He is classless and uncouth. He is zero.
Posted by: J | May 17, 2007 9:59 AM
Obviously Mayor Barely has a different dream than Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Posted by: SoMD | May 17, 2007 11:45 AM
"Mayor Barely does not have a dream. He has a nightmare.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 17, 2007 11:55 AM
"Mayor Barely" does not have a dream. He has nightmares.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 17, 2007 11:56 AM
Marc,
Off-topic comment:
Great article on Maryland Democrat U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin and his land-grab attempt to take the Oak Hill juvenile detention center away from DC. Guys like Cardin make me consider switching parties. Everybody needs to check this article out at:
Thanks again Marc.
Posted by: SoMD | May 17, 2007 12:03 PM
Marion Barry's dream is to have a crack pipe and a prostitute. I guess he has lived his dream.
Posted by: Morals | May 17, 2007 12:11 PM
Barry might have a point about funding literacy and social-improvement programs over ballet... except that when you give a few million to the Washington Ballet, you're pretty sure some actual dancing is going to happen.
Posted by: gitarre | May 17, 2007 12:33 PM
Pretty accurate analysis. And interesting you should be writing about the divisions of class and race in DC.
I was just reading the Post's Sports Bog, and saw something about a grasssroots effort to get Washington Nationals owner Ted Lerner to embrace an open proposal that's been posted at www.thiscouldbetheyear.net . The idea is to leverage the Nats losing season into something that might benefit the DC school system. According to the web site, several of your colleagues on the Post staff (Colbert King, Tony Kornheiser, and Michael Wilbon) received copies of the proposal, but I notice you didn't.
Seems like a pretty interesting idea. Maybe you could give it a nudge forward.
Posted by: Dave F. | May 17, 2007 12:35 PM
Just read the letter (anonymously signed, of course). It displays the usual total lack of knowledge of the problems with the DCPS, what causes them and the possible solutions.
As to Marion Berry. Please note that the latest target of the neighborhood militants in Ward 8 seem to be...Korean-Americans. Andy the principal at Deal JHS is...a Korean-American.
Let's see...that seems to be an easy extrapolation.
Posted by: mikes | May 17, 2007 1:37 PM
Hey now, that gasifier might have turned out to be something grand!
Posted by: Chaos | May 17, 2007 1:38 PM
What does it say about the political health of the National Capital-city that wants to be a state that repeatedly elects a crack smoking, hagged out, corrupt corrupt corrupt, race baiting hyena like Berry? I lived Calvert County Md for years until recently moving to Texas and it is a embarassment to see such people holding power year after year.
Make DC a state?...you must be daft!
Fort Worth
Posted by: Russ | May 17, 2007 2:45 PM
To mikes -
You said that the anonymous proposal at www.thiscouldbetheyear.net "displays the usual total lack of knowledge of the problems with the DCPS." Maybe. And yes, the problem with the DC schools is not simply lack of money. But an infusion of cash that might, say, repair the physical infrastructure of the buildings themselves -- well, that can't hurt. And it might send a message that people OUTSIDE the existing system actually give a hoot what happens in DC. No, "This Could Be The Year" doesn't offer a comprehensive fix. Truth is, NO ONE has a comprehensive fix. But this proposal offers a way to repair one part of a broken system. Why would that be a bad thing?
I still hope Marc Fisher or someone at the Post will try to give this proposal a little push.
Posted by: Dave F. | May 17, 2007 3:12 PM
If Barry really gave a damn about Ward 8 residents, he or someone from his staff would have taken at least one of my phone calls over the years. Drug dealing in parts of Ward 8 are rampant. I have repeatedly called Barry's office for some assistance. Not ONE phone call or email has been acknowledged.
Posted by: Ward 8 Landlord | May 17, 2007 4:09 PM
Ward 8 Landlord, unfortunately, you're wasting your time. Do you really think that Marion Barry is going to try to curtail drug dealing, given his history of drug use? He's not going to bite the hand that feeds him. He is not a role model for obeying the laws.
Posted by: I wish you luck | May 17, 2007 6:15 PM
Marc - don't forget his performance in the council meeting where he completely de-funded (with help from a bunch of inattentive council members) the Historical Society.
Posted by: Anonymous | May 17, 2007 10:21 PM
Cultural Tourism pumps hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars back into the city coffers; The Historical Society if vital to preserving the history and culture of our city, much of which is part of national African American heritage.
To zero out these programs shows a major lack of understanding of the benefits of this national phenomenon.
Similarly with the arts programs, it has been prven time and time again that not only do these cultural aspects benefit ALL members of the community/city, but they provide creative outlests for youth which otherwise wouldn't be there.
Posted by: DC native | May 20, 2007 1:43 PM
Years ago, when it suited him and before he became obviously addled, Marion was a champion of the arts in DC. It might help, Marc, if you could shake loose a copy of the soon to be released report on the economic impact of the arts on the District economy from Jenniffer Cover Payne at The Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington. Its release is scheduled for after the DC budget is finalized and while distributing it early might take a little fizz out of the planned formal unveiling, it might be of immense use in pointing out to the Council members that to make these kinds of cuts is allowing the District to shoot itsef in the economic foot. DC has become a destination city for those interested in arts and culture and that provides a tremendous boost to the local economy. If Ms. Payne refuses, she'll be making a serious mistake and will have deeply failed her constituency.
Posted by: artistdc | May 22, 2007 6:55 PM
Years ago, when it suited him and before he became obviously addled, Marion was a champion of the arts in DC. It might help, Marc, if you could shake loose a copy of the soon to be released report on the economic impact of the arts on the District economy from Jenniffer Cover Payne at The Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington. Its release is scheduled for after the DC budget is finalized and while distributing it early might take a little fizz out of the planned formal unveiling, it might be of immense use in pointing out to the Council members that to make these kinds of cuts is allowing the District to shoot itsef in the economic foot. DC has become a destination city for those interested in arts and culture and that provides a tremendous boost to the local economy. If Ms. Payne refuses, she'll be making a serious mistake and will have deeply failed her constituency.
Posted by: artistdc | May 22, 2007 6:55 PM
we need a play about Marion B
Posted by: DreamCity 4 Life | May 27, 2007 10:36 AM
The comments to this entry are closed.
Barry & cronies referring to an Asian-American as "racist"?
Kettle, meet Pot. Pot, kettle.
Now shake hands and go away, forever.