Native Clevelander Steve
Phillips helping to pioneer national political change
Notwithstanding its status as the
first American city to elect a black mayor, Cleveland remains a racial
backwater when it comes to adjusting to the new demographics shaping the
political and economic realities that are remaking much of the country and the
world. We failed to seize the moment offered by Carl Stokes’ 1967 election to
create a new polity for our community, and quickly fell back into old stylized
habits of fighting lose-lose battles over turf without recognizing how
nutrient-deficient the whole game had become.
Too often our best and brightest
have grown up and gone away to find greener pastures where the public and
private battles at least reflect the changes that have occurred in America and
beyond since World War II.
One of those best and brightest,
Steve Phillips, returns home to the City Club today, to talk about how "Brown is the
New White: America's Racial Transformation and the Future of U.S.
Politics".
A lawyer, philanthropist and political activist who splits his time
between San Francisco and Washington, DC, Phillips grew up in Cleveland
Heights, graduating from Hawken School in 1982. Considered a pioneer in
political innovation, Phillips created the country’s first Super PAC in 2007,
and he is the founder and chairman of PAC+, a social justice political network
that was the first national group to back Cory Booker’s successful US Senate
campaign and the Texas gubernatorial candidacy of Wendy Davis.
In a conversation earlier this week with The Real Deal, Phillips noted that as a matter of fact “this
country has been organized around the interests of white people”. How the
interests of a new majority find leverage in new public policies will say much
about the future of this country.
Greater Clevelanders of all hues would be wise to pay careful attention
and take notes on the insights of this native son.
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