The mayor’s call for racism to be considered a city health emergency is ludicrous given his absolute disregard for inte- grating the city’s entire workforce for the past 12 years.
The mayor has steadfastly stood against the integration of the city’s workforce and the make-up of every department in this city during the past decade. A simple count of the numbers of minority people working for the city reveals the mayor’s ap- palling disinterest, with breathtaking honesty and simplicity, in hiring minorities to position with the city.
It is typical of the mayor’s transparent smoke and mirror public announcements to complain righteously about racism while overseeing a city of minorities where the minorities are under- represented across the board when it comes to who the mayor hires.
The mayor’s hypocrisy is so naked and raw that his attempt to be considered a man for all seasons by the city’s minorities is made to appear ridiculous.
There are so few men and women of color and ethnicity employed by the city that it stands as a daily reminder, and as a depressing embarrassment, to all of us who care about integration that it hasn’t yet happened in Everett.
The mayor’s employment policy for the city, which is the second largest employer in the city after Encore Boston Harbor, would do well to emulate the high standards set by Encore in putting together a fully integrated, racially mixed work force of about 4500 men and women of all ages, races, colors and racial identities.
To do something meaningful to advance their place in this city is another.
The mayor sees by color and ethnicity. He thinks by color and ethnicity. He does not hire ethnics as a rule. It is done as an exception so he can say: “Look, there’s two black people working inside city hall. This proves I love black people.”
But it does not.
He hires by color – and it is not black or brown. It is white mostly and always since he was elected mayor.
Everyone here who knows the mayor understands this.
He tells one story. The numbers tell another.
It does not make for a pretty sight given what’s going on withthe discussion about racism all over the nation at this time. The mayor has deemed racism a health emergency.
The emergency locally and largely, is his unwillingness to integrate the city workforce. The numbers don’t lie.