By Larry Sykes
Guest Column
An evil man will burn down a kingdom just to rule over the ashes!
In 1982, the Democratic Party was looking for someone to run against then-Congressman Edward Weber who had beaten Congressman Ludlow Ashley for his congressional seat some years earlier.
The Party recruited a young woman named Marcy Kaptur, who at the time was working on her PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Kaptur agreed to come back to Toledo and run against Congressman Edward Weber. During the campaign I was asked by the party and our African American leaders to escort Marcy around and introduce her to our community.
It was my honor to do that, I also have had the pleasure of working with Congresswoman Kaptur numerous times on many projects and have found her always available to meet with her constituents anytime she was asked.
Recently an editorial appeared in a local newspaper about Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur of which I and many others I spoke with thought it to be very ugly with a lot of dubious misinformation based on what the writer wanted you to believe to be true.
There is an old saying that what a fool believes, he sees. Needless to say, this castigator went on to upbraid Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur about what she did or should have done based on his beliefs! Now mind you, the castigator has never been elected to or held a public office himself.
In his article he admits that Congresswoman Kaptur has brought millions of dollars from Washington D.C back to our community to help rebuild and sustain our community. It is a fact that most of those millions of dollars went to help and impacted the lives of African Americans and our community.
The writer goes on to say, that her recent decision to “SELL OUT” her political family by joining Republicans to censure U.S representative Al Green was a cruel and heart wrenching “BETRAYAL” that severed the long standing bond.
This is a nefarious statement because Congresswoman Kaptur did not side with the Republicans but with 10 other Democrats who all believed that the House floor is sacred ground and, as Democrats, members should not violate the oath they took by doing anything to disrespect the chamber or its members when in session.
The writer went on to say, this painful “BACKSTABBING” wasn’t just a break with Congressman AL Green who represent the 9th district of Texas and is African American, but she also didn’t stand with her own Democratic Party Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, another African American.
The writer went on to say that most of all, she didn’t stand with her own district either, whatever that foolishness means? Democrats protested in various ways, some walked out, others wore shirt with messages on them, and others held up signs that said various things.
Without justification, he accuses Congresswoman Kaptur of turning her back on loyalty and disrespecting the African American community!
The writer says, it was a “treasonous backhand slap” to people who kept her in office, and it’s time for the Lucas County, the Ohio Democratic Party and African American Leaders to recognize when one of their own has lost the trust of key voters!
This is a REAL exaggeration on his part, and to tell the local party, the State party and the local African American leaders what they should do is behind his pay grade!
What is REALLY interesting is that throughout this article, he referenced what was done to the African American community, but when it comes time to look at who would be potential replacements, he cites hungry politicians like Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz and State House Representative Michele Grim who he says have the financial capacity, political clout and position to succeed Congresswoman Kaptur?
Throughout his article he talks about what was done to the African American community and what does he do? Disrespect former Mayor and State Senator Paula Hicks Hudson and State Representative Elgin Rodgers both African Americans by not even mentioning their names as possible replacements!
In fact, when Mayor Hicks Hudson was running for re-election, the writer endorsed her opponent, a white male, over her. That’s called talking black and sleeping white!
First of all, the writer has NO idea how much money Wade or Michele have or can raise! Sherrod Brown and Bernie Merino spent over $404 million for that senate seat race and Tim Ryan and JD Vance spent over $100 million collectively for their race.
So his call for Congresswoman Kaptur to step down would hand her district which includes Defiance, Fulton, Williams, Ottawa, Lucas, Erie, Sandusky, and northern Wood counties over to the Republicans, leaving African Americans here with no representation!
REAL SMART!
The writer states that the African American community is attempting to heal from the trauma caused by her betrayal! Come on? This is one of the most hyperbolic statements he has made in his article of lies. Who, how and what did she do that betrayed the local African American community or her district?
One could say that he betrayed the African American community by his endorsement of her opponent over then Mayor Hick Hudson’s when she was running for re-election! And now you are going after Congresswoman Kaptur! The question one could ask is what do you have against women or women in power?
The writer (castigator) closed by stating that the uncomfortable truth is that Marcy’s relationship with African American community may be beyond repair. The question one should ask is who made this man the spokesperson for the African American community and when did he speak to the greater African American community to get their input?
The population of Toledo is 270,871, of those people 84.7 thousand are African American and 24 thousand are Hispanics, There are hundreds of churches in Toledo! That’s why we are called HOLY TOLEDO! So again, whom did he speak to?
If the writer and others had an issue with Congresswoman Kaptur, then why didn’t he put on his big boy pants and call her for a meeting? At least give her a chance to explain her reason for her vote, as opposed to ambushing her with his article filled with inaccuracies and personal lies!
Since Congress was in session and they were voting Congresswoman Kaptur couldn’t leave. So, she held a live phone call with thousands of constitutes three weeks ago to answer our questions!
I have had the pleasure of serving this community as an elected Toledo Public School board member for 15 years, Lucas County Children Services for 15 years, Toledo Metroparks board for 15 years, Mercy Hospital board for 10 years, Lucas Metropolitan Housing Board for eight years, Toledo Urban League for five years and Toledo City Council for eight years.
I have never called or considered myself or profess to be a spokesman for the African American community, but rather I was there to represent and serve my community.
Speaking of LMHA, when President Bill Clinton appointed Congresswoman Kaptur to the HUD board, the first thing she did was to call then Mayor John McHugh and the County Commissioners to tell them that she wanted LMHA to be overhauled because it was recognized as being one of the worse Housing Authorities in the country!
In 1990 the mayor appointed Norman Zemmelman, Al Segur, Dan Brennan and me as the new board members along with resident Maurine Simmons. I was appointed chairman of the board and in five years 1995 LMHA was recognized by President Bill Clinton as the number one housing authorizes in the country!
This was all because of Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur. Thanks to Congresswoman Kaptur, the Housing Authority was awarded $8,585,279 to fund special projects to allow the agency to provide more residents with more services and programs to improve their lives, this was a first.
One of the programs that added personal net wealth to families was the turnkey program which allowed individuals living in government home to purchase them for little or nothing which would improve their personal net worth by thousands of dollars. Again, it’s not so much of what was taken from us, but look at what was given to us!
The Congresswoman, OUR Congresswoman delivers!
Take a drive through Toledo and you won’t go a mile without something she has accomplished WITH our community. Rely on FACTS and consider a small sampling of the list of many organizations and agencies that impact the lives of the African American community whose missions got help from our Congresswoman (the whole list is on her website!).
The City of Toledo stayed afloat during COVID and police and fire stayed on the job because Marcy Kaptur delivered $180 Million in American Rescue Plan Act dollars. Her help made a NEW Wayman Palmer YMCA even possible. Kids will be safer because Toledo’s neighborhoods are getting lead pipes replaced and the Frederick Douglass Center and East Toledo Family Center received millions to modernize and improve facilities.
Union labor renovated and expanded the Glass City Convention Center with over $50 million dollars she delivered is now re-connecting the Uptown and Junction neighborhoods and East Toledo’s connection to downtown Toledo to support economic opportunity for our residents.
Swayne Field is coming back with Marcy Kaptur’s help to get more than $4million dollars to improve the site and neighborhood through economic development, workforce training, affordable housing and construction.
In North Toledo at Libbey Glass, Marcy steered $45 million dollars to help one of our oldest employers get state of the art equipment to keep the jobs HERE and another $20 Million so Vistula got a piece of the River Walk. And the Ohio Theater is finally getting an overhaul to turn on the lights again.
The Monroe Street corridor improvements in the center of Toledo, TPS’s new auto mechanic program at Toledo Technology Academy. HUD Senior Housing at Collingwood Green. National Park Service money to rebuild Harvey Savage Park. The Toledo Urban Federal Credit Union which she helped start is planning a Community Center and Consumer Financial Counseling Hub to increase access to financial education, products, and services.
Historic South will install a new solar energy field and install solar panels on the Toledo Seagate Food Bank. Maumee Valley Habitat for Humanity & Toledo Design Collective, Toledo Police, Neighborhood Health Association, Toledo Tomorrow’s Regional Educational Partnership to Advance Early Childhood Reading, Cherry Street Mission Ministries and Lucas Housing Services Corporation’s Toledo Home Ownership program…this is just a partial list and just in the last couple years.
The editorial writer also seems to forget all the jobs and people whose lives were protected when Marcy stepped in to help save UTMC from a takeover and certain closure. If you work there or get care there, you know.
And all of this says nothing of her votes day in and day out to protect our Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid WITH Congressman Al Green.
Come on!
There once was a farmer who had a goose that laid a golden egg daily. The farmer’s curiosity leads him to want to see how much gold was inside of the goose!
So he kills the goose and cut it open!
Let me see if I understand what the writer is asking the African American community to do? We should kill our GOOSE who lays golden eggs based on how HE’s feeling?
Sad is the man who never got what he wanted, but even sadder is the man who didn’t appreciate what he had!