Editor's Letter January 2010
Dear Mr./Ms. Mayor,
For the next four-year term, you will need to have tremendous empathy for the struggles of those whose obstacles have little in common with those you have encountered. You will need to possess unique skills that enable you to properly serve the scarred and persevering citizens of New Orleans. You will have to bring a basic human feeling and understanding of their individual struggles to your office everyday.
You cannot afford to be––or even appear to be––out of touch: not now, not at any time in the next four years or ever after. You must realize that there is a gross absence of opportunity for many New Orleanians, and most of them are at a breaking point. We can no longer contend that the reasons for this are their fault alone.
You must offer incentives for our college-educated youth to stay in NOLA to help in the recovery and sustainability efforts. You must provide a reason for every NOLA student to expect to go to college in a city where 40 percent of adults and teenagers are illiterate. Math skills are at a 3rd grade level and they can’t pass the LEAP.
Crime, obesity and post-traumatic stress disorder are on the rise in the wake of this city’s racial divide, and there is a greater division between rich and poor than is acceptable in a 21st century democracy.
Voters need to know that you will be surrounded by a competent staff that reflects the community, and not just the private sector.
NOLA needs better schools, more progressive response to crime, an accountable government that exemplifies and encourages honesty, and a public servant who is in touch with, and guided by, the will of the people.
We need a Mayor who wants to know each and every one of this city’s citizens personally.
In 1954 our country acknowledged that every child deserves a chance to be educated in a nurturing environment. In 2009, our country’s values are out of touch with our city’s vision. Of the 524,000 citizens in our work force, 83,000 work for the government, and 73,000 work in education and health services combined. I have to ask, what are all of the New Orleans politicians doing?
In city hall, we have to put politics and red tape aside in order to carry out the will of the majority––not the will of those with the majority of money. For the 7 percent of New Orleanians who were unemployed in September 2009, we need to create more jobs by approving small loans for small business. As far as recovery goes, we have thus far failed to embrace the needs of every neighborhood, and make home a safe place again. For the next four years, we need a leader who encompasses humanity, compassion, intelligence, and hope.
Best Regards,
Virginia Rubey & Terrence Sanders
