A Dedication To A Fallen Hero

Normally, I use this space to wax philosophic about politics, or to poke fun at something political or in pop culture. But it's been a long time since I posted here, and I'm going to dedicate this post to a great man, Police Officer Michael Bailey.


My pastor called me this morning with the tragic, awful news. One of our instructors, and a good friend of mine, was killed this morning. His name is Michael Bailey, and he was a member of the Chicago Police Department. One of the many news articles can be found here: Chicago Police Officer Shot And Killed.

This story is tragic on so many levels.

He was only weeks away from retiring from the Chicago Police Department. He was killed because some punk thugs wanted his 2010 Buick, a gift he bought himself for his upcoming retirement. He was killed on his very own block.

As a Tai Chi instructor, Mr. Bailey had very few peers. He taught theories and applications on Tai Chi that made everyone comfortable, from the most seasoned martial arts professional to senior citizens. I had the honor of assisting him with instruction on several occasion, and even filling in for him a few times. He was a humble man, and he always kept his spirits up. He was a man who knew God, and was led by faith. He always taught about the love that one can express through Tai Chi and the Internal Arts, a love that could overcome any foe or opposing force. He taught that if you smile while doing your Tai Chi forms, the joy that is on your face would make its way to the inside and then resonate out. He taught about the peace that could be achieved through Tai Chi, prayer, and meditation.

He has given me rides home from class on numerous occasions, and he was always willing to share his knowledge. His legacy in the self-defense classes is irrefutable, and he made a definite impact on the lives that he touched. I'm a better student, a better instructor, and a better person for having him in my life for the brief time that God allowed.

Am I angry? Absolutely. My first instinct is to demand vengeance for our fallen brother. But this is one of the times where our Biblical instruction becomes more than just catch-phrases to make us feel better. The scripture that comes to my mind right now is the one that instructs us to lean not on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). There's no earthly way to understand why a police officer, just weeks from retiring from one of the most dangerous jobs there is [especially these days] was taken away by gunfire. There's no earthly reasons as to why some young punks would prey upon someone because that someone has what they don't, and these thugs feel that they have a right to it by use of force. When we lean on our own understanding of this tragic death, all we come up with is answers that involve vengeance, hatred and wrath. But when we go to God and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us and strengthen us, He gives us the peace that transcends all understanding.

This is a time where we go to our weapons of spiritual warfare, as outlined in Ephesians, Chapter 6. We must pray for the Bailey family and for the Chicago Police Department. And we must even pray for the assailants in this case. I believe that one of the best ways to continue Michael Bailey's legacy is to love one another, and teach one another. Continue to pray for each other, and continue to share the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. Michael's work on this side of the river (as my pastor says) is done, but our work continues. We honor God and the legacy Mr. Bailey left behind by continuing to strive for peace, and continuing to make our communities better, one block at a time, one neighborhood at a time.

We must ask God to continue to strengthen us. We may cry and shed a tear as we reminisce on the good times we shared with Mr. Bailey, because his impact was just that great. But even as we mourn, we remember the scripture in Psalm 30:5 (KJV): (W)eeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

We will miss you, Michael Bailey.

"Well done, good and faithful servant... Come and share in your Master's happiness"
-- Matthew 25:21 (NIV)

More Todd Stroger Shenanigans -- Wallace "Gator" Bradley, You're Not Helping!

Race and Chicago politics. Two great things that go great together, like oil and water, and fire and gasoline. It came up during the election and administration of Chicago's Mayor Harold Washington. It has always been a part of Chicago politics, and some of it was elevated to the national scale during the election of President Obama.

But this isn't about national politics. This is about down-home local politics, and people looking to fan the flames of racism for their preferred candidate.

Todd Stroger, the incumbent Cook County Board President, is up for re-election this year (side note: Early voting has begun... vote early, and vote often... it's the Chicago way!). Two of his primary candidates are Black. They are 4th Ward Alderman Toni Preckwinkle and Cook County's Clerk of the Circuit Court, Dorthy Brown. The other Democratic Party candidate is the President of the Chicago Water Reclamation District, Terrence O'Brien. He's the sole white guy in the Democratic Primary.

Now, why am I bringing up the fact that two of Todd's Stroger's opponents in the Democratic Party primary are Black? It's because shenanigans are afoot.

This Sun-Times article talked about an inflammatory poster that's making the rounds locally. The poster accuses Preckwinkle and Brown of being pawns in the election game. The creator of the poster, Wallace "Gator" Bradley (a former Gangster Disciple who fashions himself as an "urban translator", and once [ridiculously, I might add] went on some sort of mission to tell people that GD no longer stood for "Gangster Disciple", but for "Growth and Development), states that Preckwinkle and Brown are only in the race as pawns, to split the Black vote and usher in Terrence O'Brien, who himself is a pawn for powerful Illinois (and Chicago) Irish politicians. My words can't do the poster justice. View for yourself.



This poster (and the mindset behind it) would be hilarious if it weren't so tragically awful, ignorant, and narrow-minded. The inflammatory language of this poster does NOTHING to state why Stroger should be re-elected, it just states that we can't trust Stroger's opposition, because they're tools of Da Man.

Now, splitting the vote is a very real political strategy, but it doesn't apply here. Todd Stroger hasn't proven himself to be a candidate that's even WORTHY of trying to siphon off votes from him. He's not worth the effort to put up straw-man candidates for the sake of splitting the Black vote. He's such a weak candidate that if ONLY Black people could vote for Todd Stroger, he'd STILL LOSE. Stroger (aka The Toddler) is being propped up as some sort of "consensus" candidate. This gives the impression that as Black people, we all vote in a monolithic fashion, and we'll support ANY candidate, as long as he's Black. And it also assumes that we'll SUPPORT any Black person in a position of power, so long as he stays Black. God help us if we actually ask the person to be GOOD at the job we elected them for.

Ask Alan Keyes how the Black Monolith vote worked for him.

There is additional proof that these "Soldiers 4 Stroger" (as they call themselves) are looking to prop Stroger up as some sort of "consensus" candidate. Take a look at THIS poster:


At this point, allow me to quote Ed Lover and say "C'mon, Son!!!" Tying Martin Luther King's birthday to the support of a barely capable administrator? This is ridiculous, insulting, and extremely patronizing. It's attempting to pit Black voters against the "powerful Irish infrastructure", and it's attempting to make Stroger out to be some sort of hero because he handles as big a budget as the white guys. The sad thing is that I can't recall this sort of patronizing, cloying, manipulative stuff when John Stroger ran for the Board Presidency (maybe it did happen, but I didn't pay attention... heh...).

As a Black man, I can state with a little bit of confidence that the person that I give my vote to gets it because they EARNED it. Not because they were entitled to it by virtue of skin color or last name (isn't that right, Todd STROGER?). I'll be willing to bet a nickel that some of the same people behind this terrible strategy were looking the other way and whistling when Stroger's handlers orchestrated the Todd-For-John switcheroo.

In The Toddler's defense, though, he HAS stated that he has nothing to do with these posters or the "Soldiers 4 Stroger" group. But I don't think that this will help him much.