In 1989, Bedford Stuyvesant arrived on the world stage.
Spike Lee filmed Do The Right Thing on Stuyvesant Avenue between Quincy St and Lexington Ave, right in the heart of Bed Stuy. The filmed portrayed a neighborhood and it’s residents struggle with social issues that threatened to alter the world they knew that was their BLOCK.
To this day it’s characters are memorable. Let’s see, there was Da Mayor, Mother Sister, Mookie, Radio Raheem, Buggin Out, Coconut Sid, ML and last but not least, Sweet Dick Willie.
To the movie goer, the actors portrayal of these characters made for great entertainment. For those who grew up in Bedford Stuyvesant, it was like going back home and visiting the block. These people really existed then and still do to this day.
Inside this film are the reasons why Al Vann will continue as the Council Member representing the neighborhood and why Mark Winston Griffith lost the election.
The Electorate
According to Urbanology.org, the majority of Bedford Stuyvesant’s residents
- Earn less than $25,000 (49% of the population or 27,290 Working Adults)
- Rent where they live (71% of available units, or 34,567 properties are Renter Occupied)
- Born and raised in Brooklyn (61% of the population, or 73,210 people)
- Receive public assistance (32.7% of the population, or 47,074 people)
With the above statistics, it could be implied that
- The majority of school aged children attend NYC Public Schools
- Are victims of the Stop & Frisk policy of the NYC Police Department
- Shop for goods and services outside of Bedford Stuyvesant
- Live in Public and/or Subsidized Housing
Thus, your potential voters in Bedford Stuyvsant are Mookie, ML, Coconut Sid, Buggin Out, Radio Raheem, Mother Sister, Da Mayor and Sweet Dick Willie. These characters are the population represented in the above statistics.
And yes, I hear what your thinking, the very population that will not vote on election day. Or so I thought.
On November 3rd 2009, I was at the corner of Stockton St. and Tompkins Ave near PS 33 in Bedford Stuyvesant handing out campaign literature on behalf of the candidate seeking to unseat Al Vann. It was there that I met Doctor, Versey and Penny.
Doctor was a Poll worker for the Board of Elections at PS 33. Penny was a campaign volunteer for Bill Thompson and Versey, a volunteer for Al Vann. Versey’s mother is the President of the Tenant’s Association at Tompkins Houses in North Bedford Stuyvesant.
The People
While handing out literature, Pennny and I had a chance to chat. I asked what motivated her to support Bill Thompson’s campaign. She said she was paid to hand out literature. She’s been a paid volunteer for a number of candidates over the years, including Al Vann. Penny’s been a resident of Tompkins Houses for nearly 3o years and knew everyone in her building.
When asked would she have volunteered if there was no compensation involved. Penny didn’t hesitate in her response. NO!
Versey and her family have lived in Tompkin’s Houses for 33 years. She relocated to South Carolina 10 years ago but returns to Brooklyn during election season when her mother arranges lucrative paid volunteer positions in Al Vann’s campaigns. I posed the same question to her about volunteering for free and she answered no as well.
Doctor, a retired transit worker, grew up in Tompkins Houses. He lives in Queens but always requests his poll working assignment near the place of his upbringing. A staunch advocate of voting, he mourned the fact that so few people in vote in local elections.
When I asked why did he think so few people come out to vote where he grew up, his answer was simple and clear.
No one here feels there’s anything in it for them to vote because no one comes around here until they want your vote.
Politicians show up and campaign to get your support. After they’re elected, no one sees them until the next election cycle.
You can talk until your blue in the face about the sacrifice made to have the right to vote and it won’t matter. Today isn’t yesterday and all these people are trying to do is get an opportunity for them, for their kids.
The Issues
So what was important to these people? Each of them confirmed they voted that day and each knew that their family, friends and neighbors were voting as well.
Here is what they said was important to the people in their world:
- Job Training – nothing was more important to them than seeing young adults getting up and going to work daily instead of hugging the block, building and corners in the neighborhood.
- Recreation Center – a place where young people can go and be safe while exerting their energy in sports, the arts, counseling and support.
- After School Programs – Skills development in computer based applications, financial literacy, college prepatory, nutrition and sexual health.
- Lower Transit Fares – Residents find that a significant portion of their incomes go to commuting on public transportation.
- Better Police Relations – Tired of seeing their men and boys being stopped by the police and frisked without probable cause.
While they indicated more issues, they all seemed to fall under Employment, Neighborhood Youth and NYPD. Most of the issues stated received some of the Candidates attention in their remarks but did not dominate the campaign.
What’s also interesting is that the above issues were also prominent amongst the residents who lived at the Southern end of Bedford Stuyvesant (near Fulton Street).
With more than half the neighborhood’s residents fitting a specific demographic, could there have been a way to effectively win the hearts, minds and votes of this constituency in a political campaign?
The Strategy
The short answer is yes but the kind of campaign waged by a challenger would not fit the traditional definition of a candidacy for public office.
An individual interested in representing this community will have to start a grass roots movement dedicated to serving this core constituency, just as Jumaane Williams did in his candidacy to represent the residents of the 45th NYC Council District. His work in Tenants Rights over the years made him prominent among an affected group in the district that acknowledged his efforts on their behalf.
Unfortunately, Mark Winston Griffith and other hopefuls during the Democratic Primary sought to offer the public a Barack Obama campaign of Hope and Change. It seemed to be a safe strategy given the success it had at the national level.
However, campaign slogans used during elections for national, state wide and city wide offices work best because it allows for a broad base of support to form, inviting people from different walks of life to join in one accord to elect their candidate to office.
In elections for local office, phrases and slogans, like Hope, Change, Parental Involvement, Green Jobs and Affordable Housing only serve to remind the public of the empty promises and absentee representation they’ve experienced for a very long time.
And is often the root for the apathy demonstrated in the lack of interest in politics by a majority of the neighborhood’s residents.
If Mark or any of the other candidates from the democratic primary are interested in running against Al Vann in 2011, they’ll have to begin campaigning January 15th 2010 (no joke).
To be effective against an entrenched incumbent you must galvanize support where they are weak and divide support in their base. It will take the entire 1st year in the upcoming term to impact core constituencies.
Where did Mark Winston Griffith go wrong?
No doubt, a question for the ages.
In hindsight, the residents in the Northern part of the neighborhood were probably not familiar with Mark’s work at the Drum Major Institute, Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project and Brooklyn Federal Credit Union.
As for the residents in the Southern part of the neighborhood, Mark’s work was known and explains why he was a close second behind the incumbent in the primary elections. However, the Southern end of the neighborhood is a stronghold of the incumbent, who has received strong institutional support from Bridge Street Development Corporation, Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, Council for the Improvement of Bedford Stuyvesant and countless others including popular local, state and national political office holders.
Where Mark received criticism by those intrigued by his campaign was the discomfort and suspicion felt about the many white folks involved in the campaign that did not appear to come from the community.
Said best by Penny,
I didn’t know he was black for a long time because of how many white people was working in his campaign
In a community contending with gentrification, the dislocation of long time residents by individuals with greater economic resources is a real fear amongst the residents in both the North and South end of the neighborhood.
Any appearance of gentrification, even in campaigns, strikes suspicion in the hearts of the everyday, inexperienced unsophisticated resident. However, it was not a major factor that proved to be a disadvantage to Mark.
Instead, Mark’s platform with the issues he raised ultimately did not resonate with the majority stakeholders in the community. Most of what was conveyed in the campaign literature did not translate well or define “what’s in it for me” for voters.
And neither did Al Vann’s literature or campaign web site. Instead, Vann focused on getting his people to turn out and nearly 11,000 voters did so just for him. (click here to see Election Results)
Congratulations to the Mark Winston Griffith team for running a hard fought campaign in the general elections for the 36th NYC Council District.
In addition, we at MyBrooklynReport.com would like to congratulate Al Vann on running a succesful campaign to continue representing the voters in the 36th CCD as their Council Member.
We wish both gentleman well in their endeavors and look forward to their continued success.
Conclusion
To the individual who seeks to run for the City Council of New York to represent the voters of the 36th NYC Council District, or any council district for the matter, and you’re challenging an incumbent with at least 8 years in office, remember the following:
You’ll have to start your campaign early, be aggressive, develop your base and build your machine. Brooklyn politics isn’t for the faint of heart. The voters support a candidate who can walk the talk, and them some.
(and you’ve got to get Mother Sister, Da Mayor, Mookie, Buggin Out, Radio Raheem, Coconut Sid, ML and Sweet Dick Willie to the polls)
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