Pandora’s Box Has Been Opened 

 

 

Over the last week, the world has been, again, discussing Chicago’s perceived violence problem. This same excitement and attention around my city’s’ hyped-up wild-wild west weekend, where the body count of shooting victims took center stage, happened last year and the year before, as well. 

And just like the two years prior to this year’s so-called disturbing weekend, the mayor and the police chief also held stunt conferences to denounce violence and blame the community for not doing law enforcement’s job. Even then, just like this week, Rahm chastised deprived families, and Eddie asked for dysfunctional residents to do what he can’t get his strike force to do, and that’s to snitch on their peers in blue. 

These two men, in general, along with the lost, confused and mentally ill (shooters) are collectively enemies of Chicago. The (shooters) have failed at being good citizens. The mayor has failed terribly and he has NO clue of how to right his wrong. And the superintendent is like a puppet, marching to the master’s beat. In the meantime, portions of Black Chicago are exactly as described, like war zones! 

This problem of war-torn neighborhoods goes so far back that I don’t completely blame the current mayor. The former longstanding mayor, Richard M. Daley, also seem to have ignored certain black communities, in desperate need of revitalization. But the difference between Daley and Emanuel is that Richie actually allocated hundreds of millions of dollars to the Black community during his over 20 years in office. 

Yep, he did! But he designated Negro leaders to divert the cash to their select crews. Heck, let’s call it what it was, they stole from their own people to enrich themselves. And Rahm has never given any real capital development dollars to this new generation of home-owners, small businesses and aspiring hustlers who wanna make a difference in the communities where they live, work and play. 

The worse part is that Emanuel is still doing minimal business with the same old heads who stole from Black folks for decades. He keeps them on his “grant” payroll in order to utilize their self-imposed leverage over the Black community. They have a few select responsibilities like rallying the seniors during elections and other spirited moments. Their main duties are to stand zombie-style behind the mayor during crisis management stunt conferences. The mayor also has new puppets in my peer group who benefit slightly from their loyalty as his trusted surrogates. 

But here’s what’s incredibly real: regardless what they do in terms of more police on the streets, the Pandora Box has been opened far too long and generations of evil spirits have been unleashed. The investment in select Black communities should have been made decades ago. This could’ve provided these now (shooters) children and grandchildren of the career unemployed, uneducated and uncontrollable men and women with possible opportunities to dream. 

The evil spirits lurking are the results of generational poverty which has ascended over this city like a steaming blanket. The Pandora Box will not be closed until real efforts are made to change the direction of poverty and illiteracy. Is there a lack of morals and respect for people, places, and things? Yes, that’s absolutely correct! But the current mayor did nothing to prepare select Black and Brown communities for long-term pain and suffering from years of starvation and poor education, which prevents certain people from developing critical thinking skills because they’re raised in life-long despair and dysfunction. 

It’s also clear that Chicago’s Black aldermen are clueless. They wanna maintain their status as elected officials at all cost. And they don’t wanna let Black people’s interests interfere with their interests. Because from what I’ve seen and heard, most aldermen think incredibly small. They have absolutely no business acumen on how to build wealth, power or real influence! 

Now, to make matters worse, the city council, the mayor and the police chief have authorized Bait trucks to sit idled in poor communities. This is a blatant attempt to find another way to entrap and abuse disenfranchised individuals. How wicked and unscrupulous is that? These people have NO concern for humanity. Black folks in city council and law enforcement hate their own people! Then you have residents on the South and West sides who’re fighting City Hall over an influx of industries polluting the air in their communities! 

The Pandora Box has been blasted wide open and now all of us must pray, be careful, and hope that none of our families, as well as ourselves, become a casualty of the war that has been waged not only in Chicago but across the globe. Racist and uncaring leaders and even Black fraudulent people who’ve turned their back on their community are mainly at fault! 

I only hope that the hidden hands of power soon admit their failures and attempt to make good. That’s the only way to put the padlock back on the Pandora Box. Locking Negroes up will not stop these demons! 

 

Carl D. West

Carl D. West is the CEO/Publisher of TBTNews and founder of the TRUTH 4 Literacy Foundation, Leadership Luncheon, Legend and Pioneer Awards, all powered by Midwest Gap Enterprise. 

 

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