Rodney Crim, Executive Director of the St. Louis Development Corporation
It's Like Spank and the Buckwheats: How 'Our Gang' Antics Keep St. Louis Stuck in the 1950's
By Terry Artis
President/Publisher
This letter and the letter to Rodney Crim (page 6) were delivered to Mr. Crim's office by me personally on Friday, November 20 at 12:30 PM. With holidays counted, a liberal 5 day deadline expired on Tuesday, December 1. At that time, Mr. Crim had failed to respond.
At the December 4 Board of Aldermen meeting, I saw Mr. Crim and he told me that he didn't have a letter from me, even though I delivered it to the St. Louis Development Corporation myself. My failure was in leaving it with his office staff and not delivering to him directly myself. Upon hearing his claim, I immediately emailed the letter to his office email - CrimR@stlouiscity.com. It was also copied to the emails of: Anthony Shahid (Tauheed Youth), License Collector Michael McMillan, President of the Board of Aldermen Lewis Reed, Alderman Terry Kennedy and the office of J. Williams Mechanical Contracting, Inc. Mr. Crim was given 5 business days to respond again. At press time, only he and the mayor had not responded.
Everyone wonders the same thing, "Do you think that Slay told Crim to 'handle you' or keep you out?" I reply each time that I didn't see Slay say or do anything to cause Crim to act. Yet I am reminded, like many others who read the letter, of Malcolm X's story of the "house negro" who takes it upon himself to protect his master. "He will defend the master better than the master could defend himself." The master doesn't need to instruct this simple-minded lackey to act. The "house negro" would do this on his own volition. The 'Prisoner of Love (a.k.a. Pris') on the Onion Horton show has said to me on numerous occasions, "There is nothing more dangerous to our community than a sick minded negro who loves his racist master like some of these characters do."
Does Mr. Crim's behavior and actions make him a 'sick minded negro' and his boss Francis Slay a 'racist master'? That's an analogy for the individual to determine. One thing that is clear is that Mr. Crim at least has a problem interpreting his role as Executive Director of the St. Louis Development Corporation and his boss obviously has no problem with this failure in Crim's understanding.
What did the Mayor do about, what in my opinion is his overzealous, misguided bootlicking subordinate? We have received nothing from Slay's office regarding the incident. No apology or promise to look into the matter. Nothing.
This has unfortunately come to be expected from an administration that Sylvester Brown, Jr., former Metro columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, labeled as 'thugs,' just before he was terminated by the paper for which the Mayor sits on the Community Advisory Board.
The funniest part of this story is that I was actually at the event to give some positive coverage of the mayor for recognizing a brother that I consider worthy of serious recognition. I'm a big enough man and run a strong enough publication to be critical of those things deserving of it and to give 'props' when they are do. I've had this idea twice now when it comes to this administration, (my first time and my last time).
I guess that the mayor will have to continue to pay for his positive press, disguised as editorials, in some of our struggling Black newspapers. At least it will keep them alive. I'm all for that. As for this publication, I will go to 1 edition a year before I would take a dime from Slay to keep this publication afloat. I have no intention of ever being on the list of those who "owe" these "pseudo thugs." Take that to the bank, brothers and sister.
Besides my news publication occupying the space in the West-End, my non-profit, Show-Me Sound Organization (Established in 1993), which has served hundreds of youth in St. Louis City and County, was to be located in the same building. That too, of course, is a nixed deal.
In spite of my clear outrage over this treatment and my decision not to locate in the city, I will still work to provide what I can for the good people of St. Louis. I love St. Louis and its people. The unwelcoming administration just makes me have to love it from a distance.
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Everyone wonders the same thing, "Do you think that Slay told Crim to 'handle you' or keep you out?" I reply each time that I didn't see Slay say or do anything to cause Crim to act. Yet I am reminded, like many others who read the letter, of Malcolm X's story of the "house negro" who takes it upon himself to protect his master. "He will defend the master better than the master could defend himself." The master doesn't need to instruct this simple-minded lackey to act. The "house negro" would do this on his own volition. The 'Prisoner of Love (a.k.a. Pris') on the Onion Horton show has said to me on numerous occasions, "There is nothing more dangerous to our community than a sick minded negro who loves his racist master like some of these characters do."
Does Mr. Crim's behavior and actions make him a 'sick minded negro' and his boss Francis Slay a 'racist master'? That's an analogy for the individual to determine. One thing that is clear is that Mr. Crim at least has a problem interpreting his role as Executive Director of the St. Louis Development Corporation and his boss obviously has no problem with this failure in Crim's understanding.
What did the Mayor do about, what in my opinion is his overzealous, misguided bootlicking subordinate? We have received nothing from Slay's office regarding the incident. No apology or promise to look into the matter. Nothing.
This has unfortunately come to be expected from an administration that Sylvester Brown, Jr., former Metro columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, labeled as 'thugs,' just before he was terminated by the paper for which the Mayor sits on the Community Advisory Board.
The funniest part of this story is that I was actually at the event to give some positive coverage of the mayor for recognizing a brother that I consider worthy of serious recognition. I'm a big enough man and run a strong enough publication to be critical of those things deserving of it and to give 'props' when they are do. I've had this idea twice now when it comes to this administration, (my first time and my last time).
I guess that the mayor will have to continue to pay for his positive press, disguised as editorials, in some of our struggling Black newspapers. At least it will keep them alive. I'm all for that. As for this publication, I will go to 1 edition a year before I would take a dime from Slay to keep this publication afloat. I have no intention of ever being on the list of those who "owe" these "pseudo thugs." Take that to the bank, brothers and sister.
Besides my news publication occupying the space in the West-End, my non-profit, Show-Me Sound Organization (Established in 1993), which has served hundreds of youth in St. Louis City and County, was to be located in the same building. That too, of course, is a nixed deal.
In spite of my clear outrage over this treatment and my decision not to locate in the city, I will still work to provide what I can for the good people of St. Louis. I love St. Louis and its people. The unwelcoming administration just makes me have to love it from a distance.
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