Blacks Get Screwed On Banks Deal

Nobody wants to talk about this. I understand. But it needs to be said: Black people got screwed on the Banks deal.

From "The Banks is a done deal":

With glowing remarks, handshakes all around and even a little humor, Hamilton County and Cincinnati's elected leaders Thursday approved the Banks project.

"This marks moving from a vision and dream to a reality," Councilwoman Laketa Cole said. "We can finally say we did it."

If I was white and didn't care about Black people getting their fair share of the Billion Dollars that will be spent on the Banks, I'd be shaking hands, patting backs, and giving the deal glowing remarks.

I guess I'd be doing the same thing if I was a dumb Negro who didn't understand that I was selling out my people so that I could look good and get re-elected to Council, or I was a devious Negro who didn't care about the masses of Black people benefitting from the deal as long as I got myself and my friends paid, or I was a so-called civil rights leader and I wanted to look like I fought hard and won a victory for Black people when I'd really co-signed onto a deal that does nothing for them.

Councilwoman Cole said she still has concerns about certain parts of the project such as the construction of decks over Fort Washington Way, which is not yet funded, and making sure minorities continue to have fair representation in the project and financing. But she expects those concerns to be worked out.

Hold the phone! Laketa Cole still has concerns about making sure minorities continue to have fair representation in the project!? How can we continue to have something that we've never had to begin with!?! What fair representation?

From "Minority participation: Goal is 30%":

The prospects for minority-owned companies to get work developing The Banks are better than they've ever been for a Hamilton County construction program - but not as good as they were with the city of Cincinnati's expansion of the convention center in 2004.

That's because the county has never had a minority inclusion policy as ambitious as the one approved by city and county leaders Thursday for the Banks - certainly not on Great American Ball Park, where 11 percent of the work went to minority firms, or Paul Brown Stadium, where that share was eight percent.

The goal for The Banks project: 30 percent to small and minority-owned firms.

This is terrible!

You, my faithful readers, are intelligent. The goal for small AND minority-owned firms is 30%. That means small businesses owned by white men will share in 30% of the project with businesses owned by white women, Asians, Latinos, and Blacks. Those businesses MIGHT share 30% of the project. That will only happen if the County reaches it's goal -- which it didn't reach when the Jeff Berding/Todd Portune-backed Bengals football stadium was built.

Assuming the County reaches it's 30% goal, what percent of the contracts and work do you think will go to Black businesses and people? I'm not talking about minorities, I'm talking about to Black people? Why isn't this question being asked every single day on Black talk radio? Why isn't Jim Clingman giving his usual speech about the difference between Blacks and minorities?

I'll tell you why they aren't asking this question. Because they already know the answer and it isn't good. They don't want the masses to know the truth. But I believe in telling the truth and shaming the devil. I believe in telling the truth no matter who it hurts. I believe that truth crushed to Earth will rise again. And I believe that the only way we will every unite Cincinnati is under the banner of truth. If Black people are getting screwed, just say it.

I've had numerous sources tell me that that Steve Love and Robert Richardson, Sr. -- the two Negroes on the Banks working group -- came out months ago and told the NAACP and the AMOS Project that Blacks would probably get less than 5% of the jobs and contracts. LESS THAN 5%!

Why do you think I wrote what I wrote in "Richardson, Portune, Jail Tax, NAACP, Conflicts" and "Smitherman: Uncle Cecil Thomas Should Shut Up"? Let me refresh your memories:

Second, the two appointed Negroes -- Robert Richardson, Sr. and Steven R. Love -- both have disgraceful records when it comes to Blacks included on public projects. Check the record and you'll find that Richardson and Love were both on the wrong side of the stadium issue. Love was part of the group that supported the deal and helped his family's business partner, Lovie Ross, get a fat painting contract while the rest of the Black community got shut out of the deal. Richardson was part of the group that pretended they were going to get Blacks admitted into the trade unions and get high-paying, living wage jobs. Those things never happened. Richardson and Love both fought against the economic boycott of Cincinnati. There are many more issues where Love and Richardson have sold the Black community out. Their appointments to the Banks group won't result in Blacks getting included in the deals. If anything, it will give the white community a place to point and say, "we had two Blacks in the group, what more could You People have asked for?"

Not only can the white community point to Steve Love and Robert Richardson, Sr., they can point to the Negro politicians (just look at the picture above) and to the so-called civil rights leadership and say, "hey, they all said this was a good deal."

On his weekly radio show last Sunday, Cincinnati NAACP president Christopher Smitherman claimed that the NAACP had negotiated a deal that resulted in Black people getting 50% of the Banks project. I knew he was lying when he said it and I suspect so did a lot of his listeners. (And to think I had just come out of Church!) I turned to my friend and asked, "did you hear what he just said?" She answered: "Yeah. Loud and clear. He said Black people are going to get 50% of the Banks project due to the NAACP's involvement. Is that true?" Of course not!

When the Baptist Ministers Conference of Cincinnati came out in favor of The Jail Tax claiming that they had done so because it would benefit the Black community, they were rightfully called onto the carpet and chastised. Passage of the Jail Tax won't be good for Black people and we were right to stand up and say so. And no matter who comes out and pretends that the Banks deal is good for Black people they should be given the same treatment.

If it is true that LESS THAN 5% OF THE BILLION DOLLARS WILL GO TO BLACKS and our so-called leaders know this but are staying silent and deliberately allowing people to be confused and think we are getting 30% or 50% of the deal, well, those people need to be dealt with. Harshly.