A charge of racism is an accusation that cannot be taken lightly. But steps also should be taken to verify such claims and give the accused a chance to respond.
Former Lansing official Genice Rhodes-Reed stood at a public meeting this week to accuse Mayor David Hollister’s administration of subtle racism.
Rhodes-Reed says she was forced to resign in May from her post as director of the city’s Human Relations and Community Services Department.
But Rhodes-Reed, who is black, needs to take her claims a step further if there was actual wrongdoing by the mayor’s office.
To avoid looking like she’s playing the race card, Rhodes-Reed should file an official civil rights complaint with the appropriate agencies - and the community should support her if she does so.
At the same time, we should give Hollister’s administration a chance to give its side of the story. An accusal of racism is a serious accusation indeed, and both sides deserve an opportunity to thoroughly clarify exactly what they witnessed and the decisions that were made in both the resignation of the job and the accusation of racism.
City officials have so far denied Rhodes-Reed’s charges, citing poor job performance and lack of improvement as the reasons for her resignation.
These reasons also should be explored as the community begins to examine the circumstances surrounding this case.
This is not a simple case. Hollister has appointed numerous racial minorities to important positions within his government, and he has a record of giving attention to minority concerns.
It is important to note Rhodes-Reed’s successor, as well as three predecessors, are black.
At the same time, charges of racism should not be taken lightly and even supporters of minority causes can turn out to have taken racist actions.
But until an official charge is filed against the administration, claims of racism look like mudslinging - regardless of whether they hold truth. Supporters of Rhodes-Reed will not accomplish change with these methods.
Rhodes-Reed, or any other officials or former employees of Hollister’s administration who have information to offer, should bring examples of any racism within city government to light.
If racism exists within the Hollister administration, we’ll need that information to work through the appropriate channels to make changes sweeping enough to prevent future instances.
Such behavior should not be tolerated from city leaders and should not be accepted in our society.
The proper channels exist because, although flawed in their own ways, the need for change is understood and analysis of any racial situation is not an easy task to accomplish.
But the real attention in this case needs to be drawn away from finger-pointing and put toward taking positive steps to shape the future of Lansing’s city government, as well as the entire community.
