Shady Politics:

Within the span of one year, the mayors of three major U.S. cities have either been arrested, indicted, or convicted and sentenced based on felonious criminal acts, ranging from perjury to fraud. One week prior to the inauguration of the first African-American president of the United States, it hurts my heart that all three of those mayors are black. Mayors Kwame Kilpatrick of Detroit, Larry Langford of Birmingham, and most recently Sheila Dixon of Baltimore, have been accused of committing more crimes in their respective cities than they've been praised for preventing.

It's really irritating to see prominent black politicians illegally take advantage of finances and opportunities in cities where both are slim and uneasy to come by. Being born in Birmingham and raised in Detroit, I couldn't be more upset with the mishaps made by Kilpatrick and Langford. And ironically, in a city like Baltimore where the crime rate is steadily rising, Sheila Dixon is accused of theft and misappropriated funds/gifts that were to be distributed to less fortunate citizens of Baltimore.

Black politicians have just reached the point where they are valued and respected among all of their peers, but its this kind of irresponsibility that ruins the credibility of their fellow black peers and successors. African-American politicians in predominately black cities, usually base their campaigns on being able to identify with the local citizens. I'm sure none of them would have been appointed if they had mentioned that they would identify with the local criminals as well.

-Ant

ant@theantandmikeshow.com