formulate black agenda black leaders say it’s time to

2/4/2020 Black leaders say it's time to formulate black agenda - Indianapolis Business Journal

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Black leaders say it’s time toformulate black agendaOctober 4, 2019 | Lindsey Erdody

KEYWORDS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT / ELECTIONS /GOVERNMENT / MAYOR / SOCIAL ISSUES

Black leaders in Indianapolis arefrustrated.

The number of black residentsliving in poverty—more than onein four—has risen, not dropped,this decade. And it’s more thandouble the rate of whites.

Median household income—at$32,000—is slightly higher than

in 2010, but the gap between the income level for blackhouseholds and those of white households has grown.

The unemployment rate for black individuals has alsoimproved, but at 14% it’s about four times the statewide rateand more than double the rate for whites in Marion County.

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Mayor Joe Hogsett, seen here at the Sept. 28 CircleCity Classic Parade, says he isn’t crafting a blackagenda, but his agenda is “for all of Indianapolis.” (IBJphoto/Lesley Weidenbener)

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And while education attainment in the city is up for blacks age25 and older, the rate for whites is double what it is for blacks.

“The numbers are abysmal,” said Tony Alexander, assistantpastor at Purpose of Life Ministries. “For us to be a great city,that has to be addressed. We can’t continue to have a blindeye to that.”

That’s why a broad coalition of faith-based groups, blackelected officials and civic leaders are turning to this year’smayoral race as an avenue for bold discussions about theseproblems.

They don’t blame Democratic incumbent Mayor Joe Hogsettfor the situation—many of these problems existed long beforehe became mayor after the 2015 election. But some blackleaders ask why they haven’t seen more progress duringHogsett’s first term in office and question whether a secondterm would be any more productive.

And they say they were surprised and disappointed whenHogsett said he would not be proposing a “black agenda”—aterm coined within the African American community—thatwould outline specific policy ideas and goals to improve thelives of black Marion County residents.

Hogsett and his Republican challenger, state Sen. Jim Merritt,were asked in late August after an IBJ/Indy Chamber debatewhether their campaigns would create a black agenda. WhileHogsett said no, Merritt said yes.

“I think it’s very, very important that we address this,” Merrittsaid at that time. “The achievement gap between the twostudents—the black student and the white student—is an



incredible worry of mine. The disparity and poverty isfrightening.”

Merritt has yet to release a black agenda but has continued tosay he’s working on one and that it will be announced soon.

Hogsett said his overall agenda is inclusive and beneficial forminorities, so he doesn’t need a specific black agenda.

“My agenda is an African American agenda, but it’s an agendafor all of Indianapolis, as well,” Hogsett said. “That’s myphilosophy, and if that’s unacceptable to people, then I’msorry for that.”

The Concerned Clergy of Indianapolis—one of several groupsleading the push for a black agenda—met with Merritt andHogsett in early September to present data on the disparitiesbetween white and black city residents and suggested thecandidates use that information to build their own blackagendas.

Merritt is returning to present his ideas to the group on Oct.15.

When asked by IBJ on Sept. 27, Hogsett said he had notschduled a meeting with the group and suggested it was up tothe organization to invite him back. In the days that followed,Hogsett confirmed with the Concerned Clery of Indianapolisthat he would meet with the organization Oct. 21.

That could help his relationship with black leaders, who havenot been pleased so far.

“He’s definitely at risk for losing support,” said David Greene,pastor at Purpose of Life Ministries and president of the



Concerned Clergy of Indianapolis. “People are frustrated withthe same old, same old.

“I believe it will definitely impact his political career.”

But will it impact this race? That might be unlikely, eventhough some estimate that black voters make up about half ofthe Democratic base in Marion County.

In an August poll for Indy Politics by Mason Strategies,Hogsett was leading Merritt 55% to 27%. Libertarian DougMcNaughton had 4%, with about 15% undecided.

Third-largest city

Black residents account for only 28% of Indianapolis’population. But that portion still equals 244,000 residents—agroup larger than the entire population of every other Indianacity except Fort Wayne.

“Black Indianapolis, if you were to look at us as a population,we would be the third-largest city in the state,” said MarshawnWolley, director of community engagement and strategicinitiatives at the Indiana University Paul H. O’Neill School ofPublic and Environmental Affairs. “This is a pretty big grouphaving a lot of economic challenges.”

That’s part of the reason black leaders say an agenda specificto their community is necessary. But it’s also because theyknow certain problems disproportionately affect blackresidents.

For example, 28% of blacks in Marion County are living inpoverty, compared to 13% of whites and 20% of the countyoverall.



Wolley

“We have peopleliving in Third Worldconditions in thecity of Indianapolis,”said DemocratVernon Brown, whois Warren Townshiptrustee and vicepresident of the Marion CountyBlack Elected OfficialsAssociation. “There’s those thathave and those that don’t have inIndianapolis.”

And without a targeted approach,black leaders say they worry noprogress will be made.

“If you’re going to address theproblem, somebody has to beintentional,” Greene said. “Weunderstand things are not goingto get better if there’s no focuson the area. We can’t wish ourproblems away.”

Plus, black leaders argue that, ifcity officials made a concentratedeffort to improve the lives ofblack residents, the move wouldactually benefit the entire city.

For example, if the crime rategoes down, that’s a win foreveryone. Or if more black



Greene

students receive a qualityeducation, that leads to morequalified job candidates, whichsome businesses struggle toattract.

“It’s an opportunity to not only impact the blackcommunity, but it also has implications for thelarger community,” Wolley said.

‘Our community is vast’

But even among those who say Indianapolisshould have a black agenda, opinions differ onwhat it should include and who should createsuch a proposal.

Some of the common issues listed by black leaders includeeducation, crime, housing and unemployment. Others haveexpressed concerns about food deserts, lack of access tohealth care and infant mortality rates.

Greene said his version of a black agenda starts witheconomics: Grow the number of minority-owned businesses,which often hire minorities as employees.

He said that can lead to blacks having access to better healthcare and earning a livable wage, which means they can affordto buy healthy food and are less motivated to commit crimes.

“We won’t address the public safety issue if we don’t addressthe economic issue and ultimately the education issue,”Greene said. “When one domino falls, all dominoes fall.”

Wolley has specifically advocated for re-establishing theIndianapolis Commission on African American Males, which



Black

existed under prior administrations, to draw more attention tothese issues and provide city oversight.

Abdul-Hakim Shabazz, a Republican political commentator,recently published his own black agenda that suggestedimplementing harsher penalties for crimes committed in low-income areas, requiring education as part of probationsentences and increasing opportunities for school choice andpost-secondary education.

His agenda also addressed infrastructure, attainable housingand entrepreneurial development, and he said he’d welcomethe campaigns to use any of his ideas.

“If you see an idea that you think will work for the city, goahead and take it,” Shabazz said.

Dana Black, deputy chairwoman for engagement for theIndiana Democratic Party, said Indianapolis should have ablack agenda but it should originate from black leadership.

“I’m not interested in hearing two white guys tellme what we need to do in the black community,”Black said. “Our community is vast.”

She said at this point, there isn’t enough timebefore next month’s municipal election to createa comprehensive agenda, but it’s somethingblack community groups should keepdiscussing.

“Coming up with a black agenda doesn’t happen overnight,”Black said.

But others say that if crafting an agenda is left up tocommunity organizations, city government might not take as



Shackleford

much action, and it could be hard to get the various parties toagree.

Wolley said each mayoral candidate could take thecomponents of different groups’ agendas and decide what fitshis vision.

“There’s going to be multiple agendas,” he said. “The blackcommunity is not monolithic.”

State Rep. Robin Shackleford, D-Indianapolis, said anyworkable agenda would need to come from the mayor and theCity-County Council, because those are the officials withpower to create change.

“I know a lot of the African American elected officials feel thereshould be an agenda specifically to address these issuesbecause there are such disparities,” Shackleford said. “Theultimate power lies within the policy structure and theadministrative structure of the city.”

Nothing new

The idea of a black agenda is not new tometropolitan cities.

Multiple cities—including Cincinnati, Chicagoand Kansas City, Missouri—have groups createdto establish and promote black agendas. In othercities, an existing organization has taken on thatresponsibility, like the Grassroots Coalition hasdone in Birmingham, Alabama.

In Indianapolis, the idea has been discussed for years amongblack elected officials and community groups. Some versionsof a black agenda have existed, but not under that name.



The Indiana Black Legislative Caucus, for example, releasesits own agenda every year at the Statehouse. During the lastlegislative session, the agenda included passing a hate crimeslaw, increasing teacher pay, and studying violent crime andtraffic amnesty.

“There’s so many things that we regulate at the state level thatthere should be a separate agenda for African Americans,because they’re so heavily affected,” said Shackleford, whochairs the caucus.

The concept has also made it into the 2020 presidential race.South Bend Mayor and Democratic presidential candidatePete Buttigieg, who has struggled to win support from blackvoters, released his version of a black agenda in July.

Known as the Douglass Plan, his proposal calls for creatingHealth Equity Zones, increasing federal resources for Title Ischools, adding $25 billion in support for historically blackcolleges, eliminating mandatory sentences for criminals andproviding more support for minority-owned businesses, toname some specifics.

“Pete Buttigieg has a black agenda, so why can’t JoeHogsett?” said Brown, the Warren Township trustee, whodescribes Hogsett as a friend.

Hogsett in hot water?

Hogsett has earned little praise from black leaders so far foraddressing problems facing the black community.

“I don’t see where we’ve made any progress,” said Alexander,from Purpose of Life Ministries. “We’re not seeing anyimprovements. We’re really not.”



Shabazz

Republican mayoral candidate and state Sen. Jim Merritt has said he’sdeveloping a black agenda because, “I think it’s very, very important that weaddress this.” (IBJ photo/Lindsey Erdody)

Shabazz said Hogsett has a mixed record, mentioning theIndy Achieves Promise Scholarship, which provides financialaid to low-income students from Marion County who attendIUPUI or Ivy Tech Community College, as oneaccomplishment. But he said the mayor has lacked success inreducing black violence.

“I have yet to see anything that really moved the needle,”Shabazz said.

SomeblackleaderssayHogsetthas hadother

accomplishments,including a summerjobs program known asProject Indy, which hashelped connect

thousands of young people with employers.

“The mayor has done some things,” Brown said. “Do I believehe could do more? I believe he could do more.”

Even Hogsett agrees more work needs to be done, but saidhe’s made progress.

In addition to the summer jobs program and Indy Achieves,Hogsett touted the return to community-based beat policingso officers can establish relationships with the neighborhoodsthey are working in, his plan to spend $580,000 on programs



to combat food insecurity and a recently announced inclusive-growth strategy that requires companies to pay at least $18per hour to receive city incentives.

“I’ve been pursuing an African American agenda for fouryears,” Hogsett said. “I guess I’m willing to stand on myrecord of accomplishment.”

But Hogsett didn’t—at least initially—agree to participate in anOct. 3 debate that would have been hosted by the AfricanAmerican Coalition of Indianapolis. Coalition leaders sayMerritt’s campaign had agreed to it, but they struggled to getHogsett’s campaign to respond. As the date drew closerwithout an agreement from Hogsett, the coalition switchedgears.

When asked about it on Sept. 30, Hogsett’s campaign officialstold IBJ they were still discussing the idea with the coalitionand “currently working to confirm a date for that event.”

By the next day, the coalition said Hogsett and Merritt hadboth agreed to an Oct. 21 event, though the exact details werestill being worked out.

Merritt has tried to capitalize on the ongoing tension, courtingblack voters by criticizing the administration for not doingenough work with minority- and women-owned businessesand failing on crime and safety measures.

“Simply put, the current administration’s support of minority-and women-owned businesses is abysmal,” Merritt said at aSeptember press conference.

Even though black voters historically back Democrats, thatsupport does not seem guaranteed for Hogsett this year.



“We don’t want anyone thinking, ‘Keep doing what you’redoing and you’re going to maintain our support,’” Alexandersaid. “That’s really a slap in the face.”

Black leaders say Hogsett’s record might not necessarily pushvoters to choose Merritt on Election Day, but the mayor’suninspiring work on black issues could drag turnout levelsdown, which might hurt Hogsett.

“We think the black vote is definitely going to be important inthis election,” Alexander said. “We want both candidates tohear that.”

Black said it’s possible Hogsett will lose some support, butshe’ll continue to support him.

“No candidate is perfect,” she said. “I’ll take my chances.”

Hogsett said it’s “disingenuous” for anyone to suggest hehasn’t been talking to leaders in the black community for yearsto listen to their concerns and try to find ways to solve thoseproblems.

“If they want to assert that this administration has not beenfully engaged and doing an enormous amount of work on theissues that they shared with me and that I have listened tothem, they just may not be as aware as they need to be[about] the multiplicity of different things that thisadministration has initiated—not continued—but that thisadministration has started,” Hogsett said.•Editor's note: IBJ is now using a new comment system. Your Disqus account will no longer work on theIBJ site. Instead, you can leave a comment on stories by signing in to your IBJ account. If you have notregistered, please sign up for a free account now. Past comments are not currently showing up on stories,but they will be added in the coming weeks. Please note our updated comment policy that will govern howcomments are moderated.


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