Ginny
Chadwick’s fight to ban alcohol at Douglass Park has taken a new twist. She’s communicating a desire to ban alcohol
at all city parks while giving the impression doing so has been her intent from
the beginning.
Chadwick
confronted the controversy surrounding her plan to ban alcohol at Douglass Park
with a press release communicating a plan to ban alcohol at all city parks. Chadwick is also pushing to ban alcohol at
university parks.
The language
of the recent press release diverts attention from a policy perceived as
racially driven. Tyree Byndom confronted
Chadwick about banning alcohol at Douglass Park, and was told to prepare for a
battle (http://rev-elution.blogspot.com/2014/06/ginny-chadwick-wants-to-ban-alcohol-at.html)
Chadwick’s
recent position should be considered within the context of her previous position
on this issue. Records of her
input during the June 2 city council meeting reveal her plan to ban alcohol
exclusively at Douglass Park.
The details
of that meeting were recorded by The
Columbia Heart Beat. http://www.columbiaheartbeat.com/index.php/news/headlines/857-061214
"One
thing I did see that continues to be an issue is alcohol," The Columbia Heartbeat reported Chadwick
saying. "I would like to look into
an ordinance to make that park alcohol free."
The issue was
presented to the city council in February by Fred Schmidt, former 1st
Ward councilman. Schmidt was advocating
for the ban at only Douglass Park, a position supported by Chadwick.
"The use
of alcohol in that park is not like it is in other parks," Chadwick
said. "Do we have the drinking
issue in any other park like we do in Douglass Park? It's a perpetual thing that people are
drinking in that park."
The Columbia Heartbeat’s reporting
clearly reflects Chadwick’s desire to ban alcohol at just Douglass Park. Residents should press her to discuss why she flip-flopped
on the issue.
Chadwick’s
new position is easy to endorse, but her claim that this has always been her
goal is disingenuous. Tell us you have
reconsidered based on conversations with residents living near the park. Tell us you have listened to the criticism
and altered your position after accepting the racist undertones related to your
previous stance. Tell us you have done research
on alcohol usage at other parks, but don’t insult the intelligence of your
critics by presenting a press release that claims a different position.
That may
cover up the mistake you have made, but it fails to address the character of
one who just played a game when the heat in the kitchen got too hot to bear. Citizens are willing to accept an apology. They understand when a person brings a
perspective devoid of an understanding of how a certain group may respond. We all make mistakes, and there is always
space to grow.
But don’t
pretend you’ve always seen the bigger picture.
In the words of Samuel Dewitt Proctor, my former mentor and teacher at
Duke, that dog will hunt.
This hound
dog smells what you are doing.
No comments:
Post a Comment