40 Years After the Newark, er, Stuff

by: Jeff Gardner

Thu Jul 12, 2007 at 02:23:52 PM EDT

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the start of Newark's ~~Rebellion~~ ~~Riots~~ ~~Disturbances~~ public relations nightmare.

Many of us either remember or have seen the images of disorder and law enforcement (over)reaction that occurred across six days in Newark in the summer of '67. By week's end, 26 local residents were killed, and New Jersey's largest city would never be the same.

I caught the new documentary on PBS, part of a series of events and resources marking the anniversary. (It was great.) One thing that really struck me was the discussion of Newark's long history of corruption, which was fascinating (and not merely thanks to the juxtaposition of commentary by Sharpe James woven throughout). It left me thinking: in many ways, Newark has been the same - and that's the problem.

I've spent the better part of the last 15 years coming to downtown Newark for school and/or work, and some of the images from 1967 look disturbingly familiar, even today. There are abandoned blocks in the city that look like they very well may have gone untouched in the last 40 years. And the number of people I see on any given day in obvious distress - whether homeless, or begging, or catatonic, or urinating in broad daylight - is stunning. And that's just in the cleaned-up downtown!

Commuting into a city by day is no substitute for living there. So, I don't know the half of what living in one of Newark's lamented tougher neighborhoods might have been like for the last few decades. It cannot have been easy. And, of course, I realize there is no single source of blame for any city's problems.

But, I believe corruption is, and has been, a huge part of the problem - syphoning public money and stifling private investment that ought to have been making a difference. And this, too, in broad daylight. There's a reason absolutely no one is surprised about the former mayor's looming indictment - the real question is why it took so long.

It got me thinking. By turning a blind eye toward corruption in Newark for so long, has New Jersey really been turning a blind eye toward Newark itself?

Jeff Gardner :: 40 Years After the Newark, er, Stuff

Tags: Sharpe James, corruption, Newark, (All Tags)

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40 Years After the Newark, er, Stuff | 1 comments

From LBJ to W & SCOTUS (0.00 / 0)

Indeed, corruption has strangled Newark from Carlin to James, maybe even Cory. And Hayden's perspective is of interest. After Hayden left Newark, I was still working in the city,near the riot center, as I had for many years. The real terror, the greater problems escalated for years after the riots were long over.
The hoods ruled the streets with impunity. The old boys network of cronyism among the police and fire departments felt free to act in a racist manner with no fear of discipline. Local, state and Federal policies were intended to solve the "black problem" by corraling "them" into undesirable areas safely away from whites.
But at least there was a glimmer of hope. LBJ acknowledged problems and made an attempt to address the results of racism with a Great Society program and Voting Rights law. The promise of the Bill of Rights and the Constitution were to be made available to all citizens.
Forty years later we have W and a conservative Supreme Court. By its latest decision, SCOTUS has deemed racism solved and justice and equal protection no longer a concern of the five boys in the majority.
NJ republicans blast Corzine about a Turnpike monetization plan that has not yet been formulated. Their plan to lower debt is to ignore the NJ supreme court and reduce funding to Abbott districts. Republican legislative leaders in NJ could qualify in some ways for the US Supreme Court. Same old boys network.

by: sosonj @ Fri Jul 13, 2007 at 02:33:50 AM UTC