BAPAC Attacks  
Jovanka, RPA, and Council Majority

The Black American Political Action Committee (BAPAC) has put out a Newsletter headlined
"Richmond a City Divided By Who and Why"  

The article attacks Councilmember Jovanka Beckles, the RPA, and a majority of the Council  and asserts that they are purposely dividing the city by supporting the sugary drink  tax and tries to link us to the Card Clubs.  Click here to see the article.

Jovanka's reply to these attacks is printed in full. Most Richmond residents will figure out for themselves who is trying to stir up race politics for this election.

The article is correct that the RPA stands for "One Richmond" and "A Better Richmond is Possible when we work together." The campaign to attract LBNL to Richmond is a great example. The RPA has fought for keeping the Richmond Public Schools open and providing quality education. We have fought for expanded athletic programs for our kids, and we have been active in programs to get at the causes of crime and violence and help those returning from prison. The sugar drink campaign is to give all of our kids a decent chance in life by discouraging unhealthy habits and raising money for sports,and health education for our kids.

The RPA has a clear record that we oppose corporate money in politics and do not accept any corporate contributions. This is what we said about the Card Club money in 2010: 

Gayle, Jovanka, and Eduardo accept no corporate contributions.  Even on a shoestring budget, they return any corporate contributions that are submitted.  

What about the Card Clubs and the Auburn Indian Tribe which are spending hundreds of thousands against the mega-casino at Pt Molate? The law unfortunately allows "Independent Expenditure Committees" to accept corporate contributions and spend unlimited amounts supporting and opposing candidates. Both Upstream, the Casino developer, and the Card Clubs are outside of Richmond and spending small fortunes in this battle.
 We oppose all corporate spending in this election including that of the Card Clubs. We think it is harmful to democracy and no matter what side it is on, it raises the price of participation so only the rich can play.      

Remember: the primary opposition to the mega-casino comes from the Richmond community, and is not reflected in the money spent, but in the volunteer work.Click here to see Corporations, Card Clubs, and Our Campaigns
--Mike Parker

Councilmember Jovanka Beckles  
responds to BAPAC misinformation.
   
The recently published BAPAC statement regarding the sweetened beverage tax does a great disservice to the African American Community.  This statement by a small clique of individuals blatantly disregards and disrespects the diversity of the African American Community and all those African American leaders who are not on their side of this issue. It questions the integrity and the commitment of individuals who have a track record of fighting for the AA community such as Whitney Dotson, Jeff Rutland, Nicole Valentino, Doria Robinson, Richard Boyd,  Rev Alvin Bernstine , Dr. Henry Clark, Charles Ramsey, Bobby Bowens, Shyaam Shabaka, Deborah Price, Millie Cleveland, Leonard McNeil, myself and many others.
 
To make their point, BAPAC spokesmen tell outright lies. If this was intentional, it is very sad that they feel a need to stoop to deception in an attempt to get what they want. The lies in the BAPAC newsletter are easy to disprove. If it is unintentional, they will appreciate me setting the record straight here. 

Far from being recently created , B-MOER (Blacks Mobilizing, Organizing,Educating Richmond) was formed in 2007.  In 2009, B-MOER marched in the Juneteenth parade and distributed leaflets encouraging us as Black people to bury the N-word.
      
B-MOER was formed to speak truths that some in the black community refuse to speak and promote healing through knowledge. We were established to bring to light the truth that there is a large Black progressive community in Richmond that has been silent for far too long, but is now ready to be heard. B-MOER is an organization that shares many of the fundamental values of social justice with the RPA, but it is an independent group.  
 
Any review of campaign records will clearly show that neither B-MOER nor the RPA, nor RPA candidates  ever took any money from the Card Clubs. That is preposterous nonsense of Big Soda (BS). In fact, it is the same consultant company - Whitehurst-Mosher,  that ran the Card Club campaign against the casino that is now running the campaign against the Soda Tax.

And of course suggesting that the Tea Party is part of the RPA or B-MOER  is a ludicrous smear.

BAPAC claims that we could have unified to work together as One Richmond. The only "unity" that BAPAC wants is unity with the power structures like Chevron and the Soda Companies that have been oppressing people of color for far too long.  It is leaders of BAPAC that supported giving millions of badly needed tax money back to Chevron. The Chevron refunds threaten to bring the city to the brink of bankruptcy and  would wipe out vital services to the Black community. The reason we don't have jobs is because the big banks and big corporations have been sucking our communities dry, sending work overseas and manipulating the financial system. 

The soda companies have been poisoning our communities because it is profitable. Plain and simple. And now BAPAC wants us to believe that an alliance with Big Soda is in the best interest of our community. This is outrageous!  An alliance with the soda industry that has consistently put profits before our health, is once again selling out to the highest bidder and it effectively keeps us as Black people enslaved.
 
Interestingly, the BAPAC argument against a tax that will benefit poor people the most, sounds frighteningly similar to those of the Tea party that is against any tax and are willing to vote them down even against their own best interest.     

The soda companies regularly raise prices to increase their profits.  Does BAPAC protest these increases?   
   
At least with the increases from the  proposed soda tax, the soda industry will not be the one reaping the benefits. A tax on soda will benefit our low-income community greatly as the proceeds will be spent on improved parks and community centers, reduced costs to join organized sports, support to our already established organized sports teams, athletic fields for our kids, health education programs, and the improved health of our children. A majority of our Council members have already pledged that money raised from the soda tax will go only for these purposes. The only Council members who refuse to take that pledge are those supported by BAPAC. There are no other proposals out there that address our need for valuable resources to make our community healthier.  We must take care of ourselves because no one else will.
 
To quote freedom fighter and social justice advocate, Frederick Douglass : "The world in which we live is very accommodating to all sorts of people. It will cooperate with them in any measure which they propose; it will help those who earnestly help themselves, and will hinder those who hinder themselves."  
   
Unity in the African American community has to be based on both our common needs and the celebration of our diversity.  We have a range of religious and political views and different preferences in arts and music.  We have different sexual orientations.  We carry the history of slavery, but it is filtered through different regions, and even different countries.  This diversity is our strength.

We also share the problems of joblessness, racism, poor healthcare, and poor education with Latinos and others in Richmond.  We need to unite to deal with these problems and not play the game of fighting over crumbs.
--Jovanka Beckles