Schenectady County needs to work on affirmative action
Claims by NAACP member Fred Clark that Democrats discriminate against minorities illustrate the need to possibly adopt a more transparent selection process by the party, and to hold a public dialogue regarding Schenectady County’s affirmative action policies. Schenectady County enacted such a policy in 2005. Given our growing population of immigrants, minorities, and presence of others who have previously been overlooked because of their gender, religion, race, sexual orientation and physical ability, a hearing or meeting by our leaders on this issue would be helpful. My experiences with Schenectady Democratic leaders Brian Quail, Mayor Brian Stratton and County Legislature Chairwoman Susan Savage have been positive and nurturing. Their ongoing call for party diversity has enacted a process by which I and other local people of color — including Fred Clark — are recruited for appointment to Schenectady City and county positions, commissions and boards. Democrats not only encourage candidates of color like myself and NAACP member and County Legislator Philip Fields to seek office, they also provided resources and support. The Schenectady NAACP should return to its tradition of having regular meetings, discussing the facts, and working with all groups to find common ground in achieving inclusion, equity and justice.”
NAACP’s Clark wrong to claim Democrats discriminate vs. blacks
Re Dec. 27 article, “NAACP: Democrats discriminate”: [NAACP First Vice President] Fred Clark seems not to have noticed all the positive changes that Schenectady County Democrats have made since 2003. Democrats have made significant changes and appointed numerous qualified African-Americans to key appointed positions. In 2004, they appointed the first African-American, Philip Fields, to the county Legislature. That year, the fi rst African-American was appointed to the Schenectady County Community College Board of Trustees. The Democratic majority created the first affirmative action office in the county’s history and, through an open process, selected two African-American women to lead this effort. Democrats appointed the first African-American minister as a county chaplain. Members of the African-American community have also been appointed to positions on important community boards, such as the library board of trustees and the Schenectady County Industrial Development Agency. Last year, Paul Webster ran for a seat on the county Legislature with the full endorsement of the Democratic Party. Most notably, the SCCC Board, with a majority of its members having been appointed by the Democratic-led county Legislature, recently appointed an African-American president, Quintin Bullock. Dr. Bullock will take the helm in July. Also, Schenectady Mayor Brian Stratton recently selected Mark Chaires to be the city’s first African-American police chief. The Democratic Party, a party of full inclusion by tradition and in practice, is committed to ensuring fair and open hiring and recruitment that provides fairness to all. Criticisms to the contrary are factually unfounded.
BRIAN QUAIL Schenectady The writer is chairman of the Schenectady County Democratic Committee.
FIRST.....This issue of Kosiur's job being a created patronage job, paid for by the taxpayers, a political badge for his failed attempt to win the assembly position to Amedore, has had the county residents up in arms. The Gazette knew it. They 'obviously' read these forums, right? Yet they blatantly refused to print it. God forbid that they should expose the democratic beast for what it really is. So only now, when one of the democratic machine's own party member screams discrimination, the Gazette decides to give it some coverage. And that is only cause the TU broke the story first! And yet the gazette can't understand why they are sinking.
SECOND.......Quail has yet to address the 'real' issue at hand. Ed Kosiur's patronage job that is costing the taxpayers $80,000 + in salary and life long benefits costing the already tax burden people even higher taxes. Discrimination???? Well the way many people see it, the democratic machine is guilty of discrimination not only in race, but in political affiliations, family affiliations, friends affiliations, business affiliations and the list goes on.
Enjoy the gravy train while you can, cause even party members, that have a thread of decency are seeing how the county residents are wising up to the machine and see that the corruptness is now starting to overflow out of their house. IMHO
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Mr Ed Koshier is a good man and cares about the kids and the things he has to deal with like frivilous law suits and that are outragious if there was ever a description. He will show that his work with the kids is more important than the politics you people play and the repubs play against him and the party
Mr Ed Koshier is a good man and cares about the kids
And, he can snake a mean toilet, too.
Mr. Wright fails to understand that what uniquely qualified Kosiur for the high paying county job is his considerable experience in the plumbing trade. Wright likely doesn't know his bidet from a bibcock.
"While Foreign Terrorists were plotting to murder and maim using homemade bombs in Boston, Democrap officials in Washington DC, Albany and here were busy watching ME and other law abiding American Citizens who are gun owners and taxpayers, in an effort to blame the nation's lack of security on US so that they could have a political scapegoat."
SCHENECTADY COUNTY NAACP chapter at crossroad, some say BY MICHAEL LAMENDOLA Gazette Reporter
Once a strong voice in the community, the Schenectady County NAACP chapter has grown mute over the years and lost its credibility as an organization of social justice, according to current and former NAACP members and community leaders. Now, many hope a proposed reorganization of the local chapter will re-establish its voice and reputation. The state NAACP Conference revoked the local chapter’s charter Dec. 1 and forced out the leadership, which included Olivia Adams as president, Fred Clark as first vice president and Joe Allen as third vice president. New chapter officers are to be elected no later than the end of February. “The reorganization is necessary. Many people have sacrificed a lot for the NAACP to be even in existence. It is needed in every community,” said Marion Porterfield, site coordinator for the Weed and Seed Program. Weed and Seed is a federal program in the city designed to “weed” out crime and “seed” neighborhood social programs. 50-YEAR HISTORY The Schenectady NAACP chapter, formed about 50 years ago, lost its charter due to inactivity, said Hazel N. Dukes, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People New York State Conference. Dukes said the Schenectady chapter has not sent members to regional, state and national events, has not filed monthly activity reports and has not held a Freedom Fund dinner in years. The dinner is supposed to be held annually. She took action following a meeting Dec. 1 at which only three out of about 50 members attended. The chapter’s former leaders oppose the state conference’s action. Clark said last week members attended all mandatory meetings and Duke’s records are inaccurate. The former leaders did not return phone calls this week for comment. In addition, current members of the local chapter have been told by the regional office not to comment publicly about the reorganization, said Paul Webster, a dues-paying member of the local chapter. “The leadership of the organization asks that responsible members make no comments until the reorganization has been completed,” Webster said. Webster wrote several letters to The Daily Gazette challenging positions taken by some former leaders of the local chapter. He said they made comments on behalf of the NAACP without getting consent from the membership and that some of these positions were at odds with those of the membership. Clark was still speaking on behalf of the NAACP nearly a month after he lost his leadership post, most recently criticizing the local Democratic Party for not doing enough to hire and promote minorities into county and city jobs. Former and current NAACP members said the local chapter and its ability to help people were in disarray for a while. “The backyard talk is there isn’t a lot of respect for it, and if you are looking for help on an issue the NAACP would work on, you would not necessarily go to them,” said Miki Conn, executive director of the Hamilton Hill Arts Center. Conn is not been active with the NAACP and called the chapter an organizational mess. “When you mention the NAACP, people ask whether there is one? When does it meet? How can I get involved?” she said. Her answer: “I don’t steer them to the NAACP.” Conn said getting information out of the organization is difficult. She said the local chapter should have a Web site that displays information about programs and its officers; it does not. “It is not as transparent as it should be,” she said. Like others interviewed for this story, Conn said a reorganized chapter with new leadership would be highly effective in Schenectady. “A reorganization would put new energy into the organization and put it back in touch with the national organization. There are a number of national programs that can be brought to our area,” she said. Marsha Mortimore, a former vice president of the local chapter, said the reorganization offers a great opportunity for Schenectady. “There is so much we need to do, we need to look at education for our children, affordable housing and serving community. People want to do it and they want to be involved in the NAACP,” she said. ALBANY EXAMPLE The nearby Albany NAACP chapter, for example, runs several programs, said President Deborah Brown Johnson. Schenectady has no programs or committees beyond the legal representation committee, which Clark chaired. The Albany chapter has weekly mentoring programs for students in elementary schools and a supplemental education service to assist students attending low-performing schools. It also conducts candidate forums, voter registration drives and helps transport people to the polls on Election Day, Johnson said. On top of these services, the Albany chapter is active in handling discrimination complaints and helping people find employment. It operates an office, and is trying to hire a staff person for it. In the meantime, an answering machine takes calls and an Albany NAACP member will make a follow-up call, Brown said. The Schenectady NAACP offi ce at 955 State St. is shuttered and its phone number does not work. The Albany branch has 75 members and it runs outreach programs to train youths and young adults into leaders in the community and NAACP, she said. Over the decades, the Schenectady NAACP chapter led the fi ght for change on many fronts, Mortimore said. “We were responsible for integrating public housing the helping integrate the work force in Schenectady in the 1950s,” Mortimore said. In the late 1980s and the 1990s, the local chapter was involved in a federal investigation of corruption in the city Police Department, held frequent membership drives and landed significant state grants. Up until about two years ago, the local chapter worked closely with the Albany chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said Executive Director Melanie Trimble. “They had a representative coming to our Committee on Social Justice, but the person but stopped coming a year and half ago,” Trimble said. “They had a legal committee and we were always in discussion with what has been happening in Schenectady.” Trimble said when an organization like the NAACP becomes inactive, “it can be very harmful. People trust NAACP and look to the NAACP for support and in navigating discrimination. When we have strong chapter, it is a powerful presence in community.” Porterfield said the NAACP was not involved in the Weed & Seed program, even though its members benefit from the anti-crime program. “We had no real relationship with them. They have not had input. It would be helpful, but it is up to organizations to participate,” she said. Porterfield did not renew her membership with the local chapter when it expired last year. “There was not a lot being done,” she said. The Schenectady chapter is one of four in the state undergoing reorganization. The others are in New Rochelle, Utica and in New York City. George Sim, a longtime member of the Utica NAACP, said the state came in after the local chapter failed to hold elections. “We had to get new officers, contact members and go through the steps to get a charter, just like we were a new chapter,” he said. The Utica chapter is more than 50 years old. Sim said the Utica chapter is stronger for the reorganization. It operates at least six committees and handles a variety of complaints. “The NAACP is the voice of community. You keep in ...........http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....amp;EntityId=Ar00902
yes. a crisis in that NO ONE EVER should dare speak against the democratic party.
"While Foreign Terrorists were plotting to murder and maim using homemade bombs in Boston, Democrap officials in Washington DC, Albany and here were busy watching ME and other law abiding American Citizens who are gun owners and taxpayers, in an effort to blame the nation's lack of security on US so that they could have a political scapegoat."
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