Orange County Democrats Face A Moral Crisis

“The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.” – Dante Alighieri

We have our fair share of moral crisis in this nation. There is the problem with lack of movement on immigration reform, a stubbornly high black unemployment rate, rising inner city crime, and so on and so forth.

Democrats have tried, or at least some have, to deal with these problems on a higher level. Since Mr. Obama is taking the “rising tides lift all boats” approach on many of them, those on the local and state level are left to deal with the boats that do not float.

So, let’s deal with the morality of what’s happening on the local level and those boats that have holes in them.

Last month, many Democrats celebrated the re-election of President Barack Obama, as well as the election of many diverse faces to the Florida House and Senate. Orange County was turned solid blue, giving Dems a potential numbers advantage that could last for a very long time.

But while some celebrated, many turned their noses up to a foul smell of what’s currently happening in Orange County.

If you don’t follow West Orlando News or the happenings of the local Democratic Party, many have criticized this journalistic outfit of misogyny, bigotry, pushing a Republican agenda, and just being an overall awful rag full of sorry words and ghastly criticism of so-called “good” Democrats.

Nothing could be farther from the truth.

As we deal with the emergency of black unemployment, unfair economic treatment of minorities by this city’s most “elite” politician, and just bad political decisions that advance the divide between how some minorities feel to how some political leaders actually treat them, we have the prospective explosion of a powder keg.

The West Orlando News has been on the forefront of many of Orlando’s most critical events. Despite the thoughts and criticism of some, WONO is the only true progressive editorial voice for the city of Orlando.

If a politician, activist, or any person of consequence does something to hurt the economically downtrodden, WONO is the first to call them on it.

Now, we may be on the precipice of another moral crisis: The direction of the local Democratic Party.

As of this past Saturday, many of the same faces we’ve seen for the past decade in Orlando were elected to positions of importance within the DEC. Not all are bad and not all are good, truly depends on your slant.

But for many, the re-election of Mr. Randolph for party chair was met with loud groans and slanted eyes. Growls of “voter suppression” were levied toward Randolph as those who voted in last weekend’s election were forced to sign their full names on their ballots. The issue of the location for the event and its time frame has also been raised. While I remain tepid and darn right apathetic toward Randolph, I do recognize where he has brought the local party.

Fundraising numbers are up, enthusiasm is high, and maybe most of all, potential for the things the local party can do has awakened. Randolph is a firebrand to some, bringing a lot of supporters and a very deep partisan well filled with a history steeped in fights against Republicans for his wife’s uterus to the soul of the middle class.

Yet, he’s not a collaborator. While the party has a sense of growth, there are far too many who have been turned off by Randolph’s perceived pursuant persistence of personal goals instead of party purpose.

As Democrats anxiously awaited the victory speech of President Obama, Randolph almost quietly took the post of Orange County Tax Collector. His marriage of two positions has turned some off to what he can potentially do for the party.

Should Randolph have let the Tax Collector seat go to another democrat instead of hunting the seat himself? Will his duties as Orange “taxman” take away from his obligation as chair of the local party?

There is also the issue of missing diversity and a failure to reach his hand toward many communities of color. Some lay blame on Randolph for failing to get involved in any minority races. Also, there is the accusation that the “Randolph slate” is filled with diverse faces only to be used by Randolph to advance his own agenda.

Whether that is true remains to be seen, however, any good leader recognizes his potential weaknesses. Will Randolph extend his hand toward those who have criticized him the most or continue to ignore those just chucking stones at the throne?

For many, the desire for Randolph to use his voice on issues of true importance is paramount. If African-Americans are again shut out of economic opportunity locally, there is a need to hear Randolph speak up on their behalf. If there is an issue of consequence that afflicts the poor and disenfranchised, there should be an expectation that the individual who leads the party, who supposedly speaks for those individuals, needs to speak up.

Not that he’s asking for it or wants it; my advice to Randolph is to take on the role of bridge builder. He knows best that you cannot please all of the people all of the time. Those knocks on the glass door will only grow louder if the ones that he ignores grow further in their disdain for him.

Take those phone calls from the candidates who may not win, respond to the e-mails from the person who is running the campaign of the individual who has raised $200, and maybe most of all, take away the cloak of inaccessibility.

Despite my personal lethargy toward Randolph, I truly believe that he has the right potential and leadership to guide the party for the moment. All of the gains made by Dems in 2012 can be doubled in 2014 under Randolph’s management if he handles it right.

Famously, author and activist Cornel West said that “You can’t lead the people if you don’t love the people. You can’t save the people if you don’t serve the people.”

Does Mr. Randolph truly love the people enough to steer them away from the potential darkness that may engulf the local party?

Lastly, one of my favorite political commentators always says that we need to find a “love language” when dealing with those we may criticize or disagree with. Take this as my language.

-JH