By Joel Thurtell
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A minister?
A lobbyist?
Wait a minute — this is the same person?
Can somebody out there tell me what the hell a minister was doing trying to persuade members of the Detroit City Council to approve a SLUDGE contract?
This is the Rev. Wendell Anthony, a well-known pastor in Detroit. He’s head of Detroit’s NAACP branch and a former minister at Fellowship Chapel and Broadstreet Presbyterian Church, both in Detroit.
You’d think a minister and NAACP official would refrain from taking political sides, other than, say, being a strong advocate for civil liberties.
Why would a guy like this take to writing letters on behalf of a sludge contractor like Houston-based Synagro Technologies, now being investigated by the feds for possibly bribing city officials, including council members, to approve its $47 million contract to process sludge from Detroit’s smelly waste treatment plant?
Because, it turns out, Rayford Jackson, one of the Synagro officials being investigated, is a member of the board of the Freedom Institute for Economic, Social Justice and Political Empowerment, a nonprofit headed by the reverend. On its website, the Freedom Institute describes itself as “an urban think tank that focuses on public policy issues that affect the quality of life for African Americans in particular and other minorities in general.”
Now, I wonder, what did a $47 million sludge contract for a rich out-of-state company have to do with “quality of life” in Detroit?
For that matter, what was in it for this Detroit think tank?Anthony wrote a letter to the council on Institute stationery extolling the merits of the contract.
Or was he — between the lines — extolling his friendship with the now-besieged Jackson?
In today’s Detroit Free Press, Anthony calls for the city to rescind the contract if Synagro got it illegally.
He’s also lobbied council members to support another besieged pal, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
How can he be an effective minister or advocate of civil rights if he’s playing the very high-powered and partisan game of politics in Detroit?
Be a reverend, reverend. Quit trying to tilt the political playing field.
Be a minister, not a huckster.
Contact me at joelthurtell(at)gmail.com
