By Antonio D. French
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VIDEO: Mokwa and George: Different Treatment for Different Chiefs
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24 Comments:
Well, that four minutes of my life I won't get back!!
What is this, black blog!!
Way too bias for my taste, not worth the quarter.
9/25/2007 2:30 PM
Antonio,
It is a bit of a leap to say because one story is longer than the other there is an agnda.
Maybe, there was little news on the day the lost photo story ran.
9/25/2007 3:15 PM
I think what Antonio is saying is why isn't the theft of $40,000 by cops a bigger story. At least as big as the loss of some photos.
I agree.
9/25/2007 3:32 PM
The situation is different, therefore the treatment is different. Sherman George refused a direct order from a superior whereas Mokwa didn't. Racebaiting is irresponsible and you should be ashamed of yourself. If credibility is what you seek, you gain none.
Also, you wrongly claim to be non-partisan as posted in "About PubDef." If you care to be honest, please consider changing it to say you're partisan.
9/25/2007 3:35 PM
Unless both cases involve the very same issues, they cannot be compared. It is a disservice to always try to compare based on race rather than issues.
In this case, the appearance of racism is with Chief Sherman George because he won't promote white men who passed a test.
Where is the racism with Chief Mokway? Has he been fair in promoting black police officers?
St. Louis, unfortunately and truthfully, suffers more from black racism than from white racism.
9/25/2007 3:47 PM
You're wrong. That Francis Slay gave Chief George a direct order is an example of different treatment.
That Mayor Slay continues to voice unconditional support for Chief Mokwa even as his own officers are getting fed up is different treatment.
That the mayor continues to support Mokwa even after TWICE the chief has gotten caught not being forthcoming in facts: First when the Post-Dispatch reported the department regularly and systematically underreported the number of rapes in the city — mostly on the southside, mind you. And again when just last week the Post reported on the stolen $40,000, which Mokwa knew about earlier this summer and didn't say a peep about.
Both of those are scandals that are arguably worthy of being fired for, but definitely no reasons to have full faith and confidence in someone's leadership over.
Oh, and the city is still leading nearly every place else in crime. But I guess that's just the problem of those of us who live in crime-infested areas.
Should Chief George have handled this whole situation differently? Yes.
Should he sit down and explain his position to any reporter who asks — even from Channel 5? Yes.
But it is also clear that the mayor's office and the press are on George's ass like white on rice while Mokwa's house is on fire (both puns intended) and people barely even notice.
9/25/2007 3:56 PM
And for the record, I didn't cry racism. I just stated a fact as I see it: the current police chief is being treated much better than the current fire chief.
Both are in the middle of "scandals". But even though the police scandals are much more serious in my opinion (dirty cops, dead cops, fudging crime statistics), the heat is on the fire chief.
Maybe Mokwa is just a better politician. Maybe he's friends with the right people. Or maybe George is an easier target. Whatever it is, they are clearly being treated differently.
9/25/2007 4:19 PM
Why fire Mokwa? He keeps the neighborhoods of the power brokers safe. That being the whites.
And if I am wrong, if the Black Aldermen would say they are powerbrokers too, then why did they support a Police Chief that isn't doing a damn thing in their neighborhood? Either they really don't have power, or they are unable or unwilling to exercise it when it counts.
Perhaps instead of complaining about the Team Four Plan, and how Whites are keeping their section of the City down, maybe they should do something. Whites have underdeveloped Black St. Louis but the Black leadership needs to take action instead of simply complaining. Or in this case, as Bosley Sr. indicated, not even saying there is an issue!
Firing a corrupt Police Chief is a pretty damn clear way to effect some positive change.
9/25/2007 4:24 PM
Antonio, your analysis of the difference in treatment between the two Chiefs is so accurate!
9/25/2007 4:40 PM
Is it relevant to the discussion to note that the mayor can legally give an order to the fire chief who works for a city department, but can't give one to the police chief who works for a state department?
9/25/2007 5:09 PM
No, whether the mayor can direct Mokwa to do anything is irrelevant. Slay couldn't formally do anything with the schools for years, but he sure let it be known when he thought something was "a damn shame."
Slay continues to go out of his way to show support for Mokwa while also going out of his way to show his lack of support for George.
9/25/2007 5:26 PM
french,
i think you're the only one with the problem here.
why would the board of aldermen, INCLUDING the black caucus, do a resoultion supporting mokwa and not george unless they believed george didn't deserve it? mokwa has 5 bosses and george has 1... if mokwa ignored a diretive by his bosses i'm sure he would be in trouble as well.
as far as you're goofy assertions about the fd being squaky clean, i'm sure the investigation of fire dept. higher ups using cadets to do work on their homes and properties during work hours will come out very soon.
the black caucus understands the difference here....why cant you?
9/25/2007 6:55 PM
Both, in my opinion, are worthless and ineffective leaders and need to be replaced.
Mokwa seems to be oblivious to the reality of what his men are actually facing on the streets of this war zone. His coddling of killers has sent a loud message to his troops. He needs to step down.
George, my God, where do I start. His treatment of those men and women who have earned their promotions is criminal. He has successfully defeated the City's civil service process, which was put in place to avoid the influence of politics, which would have worked, EXCEPT HE'S IGNORING IT! Shame on the Mayor for pandering to the racial politics that plague this city, by not squshing Sherman's racist actions right away.
I live next to one of the men awaiting a promotion and what he has endured over the past 4 years is awful. Now Sherman is threatening, for the first time in FD history, to "skip" over some ff's on the list. The City gave a test, some passed, some didn't, that's life. But to allow this disfunctional, race pandering city hall to risk the safety of of it's citizens is sickening.
9/25/2007 10:00 PM
Full support by the Aldermanic Black Caucus is a clear indication of their inability to lead. How dare they fully support Mokwa but not have a dual resolution supporting George that they insist that all the white aldermen sign also? Surely not all of the black aldermen are happy with the police chief. They're weak and certainly not good politicans.
What legislation are they holding up to teach Slay and their white colleagues a lesson? Nothing, I'm sure. And where is McMillan and Reed on these issues? Hiding behind their mamas skirt tails I'm sure.
9/25/2007 11:36 PM
Antonio,
One problem our city faces is we always try to make problems about race. The two Chiefs have totally different problems that they are dealing with. The Police Chief discovered a problem within his ranks and is investigating the crime. He is not trying to protect anyone, someone will be held accountable, fired, and prosecuted.
The Fire Chief on the other hand is handling his situation differently. He is a founding member of F.I.R.E. and is showing his allegiance to that organization. He is the Chief of the entire department, not a protector for the African American Fire Fighters. Is it strange to anyone else that in the last two public demonstrations, at Bryson's home and at City Hall, very few African American Firefighters attended.
The Fire Chief has had over 8 years to try to solve the racial division on the department and has chosen not to. Yelling and screaming about aproblem does not solve it. One must bring to the table possible solutions.
I invite the public to visit the St. Louis Fire Department Headquarters located at 1421 North Jefferson and see what a diverse attmosphere our chief has made it. Other than one white Captain and two white firefighters in the Fire Marshalls office, every other appointment at Headquarters is African American.
One more question I haveto ask, when did the Fire Chief become an industrial psychologist. His claim that this test did not effectively test candidates for promotions. What basis does he make this claim. The consultant hired to conduct the last promotional exams is nationally known and is often employed by the Department of Justice to prepare tests in cities that have diversity problems.
9/26/2007 1:54 AM
I'm sick of people like French claiming racism everytime they dont get their own way.....this is getting very old!
9/26/2007 8:02 AM
mcmillian is great whenever you need a photo op..but when there are tough issues to address, he and lewis reed are AWOL...now thats what i call true leadership!!
9/26/2007 8:05 AM
I'm sending you a dollar. Keep up the great work! You're on point.
9/26/2007 8:24 AM
I agree with you Antonio that there appears to be a difference in treatment between the two.
I also agree with some of the other comments that the Black Leadership in St. Louis is rather weak and ineffective. They often are more interested in protecting their own personal interest than taking action to resolve some of the issues in the black community. If they take a stand at all it is often just in reaction to something else. It is time to come together, create a plan of their own that reflects what we want in St. Louis and our communities, and IMPLEMENT it. Their agenda should be more than just going along with the status quo.
9/26/2007 10:02 AM
Slay is a spinoff from Shame Mel. Go back to the Luther Boykins days and you'll find out why the BOA passed that resolution that isn't worth the paper it's written on.
9/26/2007 11:31 AM
I think it's time that Mr. Antonio French provide full disclosure about his activities on his blog. The Pub-Def blog claims to be non-partisan yet has been paid by the following clients:
Lewis Reed, Kacie Starr Triplett, Gregory F.X. Daly, Talibdin El-Amin, Jamilah Nasheed, Myrtle French, etc...
You simply can't be non-partisan and partisan at the same time. Your credibility is lost unless you take off the "non-partisan" bit from your blog.
9/26/2007 12:52 PM
Let's see: $40,000 in cash taken from a Police evidence lock-up versus misplacing of invaluable photos of widow's immortal beloved.
The photos have been found and returned to the grieving widow.
That police case-related $40 grand, however, is still mysteriously and inexplicably at large.
Dishonesty and incompetence, not skin color and hair texture, should compell the mayor call in the police chief.
9/26/2007 1:13 PM
how about fire department higher ups using cadets in training to do work on their private property during work hours.....
9/26/2007 4:46 PM
I think you miss the point; the issue is not cash taken vs. photos. It's former Chief Sherman George disobeying an order from a superior. The Police Chief disobeyed no such order and has the support of aldermen.
The cash issue is being investigated, if not it should. What we are all sick of are pundits like French turning this into a race issue. You can't claim he didn't, because he was the one that mentioned race. That's simply despicable and he should be ashamed of himself.
Do you not know the words of Martin Luther King? "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."
When are you going to start honoring Dr. Martin Luther King by not judging based on the color of people's skin? Maybe someday we can all be mature enough to talk about the real issues instead of pulling the race card? Please grow up.
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Let's see: $40,000 in cash taken from a Police evidence lock-up versus misplacing of invaluable photos of widow's immortal beloved.
The photos have been found and returned to the grieving widow.
9/27/2007 12:21 PM
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