A Special Weekend View From A Pew Editorial: After the Caucasian Conversation, A Candid Word to My Brothers and Sisters

 After putting the “Caucasian Conversation” to rest, it has become clear that I must now have a candid conversation with some of my own brothers and sisters.

There are still too many among us who—despite Marvin Gaye’s timeless plea—believe everything they see and everything they hear.

Take, for example, recent reactions in the mainstream press to former City Manager Isaiah Hugley’s decision to file a discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). One resident said:

“There are still things that aren’t accounted for, like the $45.1 million that was lost. That is something he should really consider, and I think he should just move on.”

Another added:

“There is a lot of baggage with Mr. Hugley. It’s kind of hard to get the support of a community when you are turning around and suing the same organization you want to run.”

Let’s set the record straight. At no time was there ever $45.1 million unaccounted for. That falsehood has been disproved by at least two independent audits. Yet city councilors and others continue to let the lie live by refusing to confront it publicly.

And let’s be clear on another point: Hugley followed the proper process—a process protected under the Civil Rights Act. The EEOC exists for precisely this reason: to investigate claims of discrimination, whether based on race, gender, or other protected categories. The filing of a claim is not scandalous; it is a constitutional right. Exercising that right is not baggage—it is courage.

Here is where my concern deepens: My Black brothers and sisters, when you don’t read for yourselves, when you don’t attend City Council meetings, when you rely solely on mainstream media—your knowledge is limited to what you are fed. And that is a dangerous problem.

The late Reverend Tony Thompson would often say: “Eat the meat and throw the bones away.” In other words—use discernment. Everything you hear is not truth. Everything you see is not the whole story.

Stop regurgitating what someone else told you. Do your own research. Read the reports. Listen closely to the meetings. Learn to read between the lines. Without that discipline, we risk sounding uninformed—and worse, we hand away our power to those who are counting on our silence and our ignorance.

Facts should never be optional. When we allow lies to stand unchallenged, the damage ripples—not only to the individuals at the center of them, but to the integrity of our entire community.

And so I leave you with this: To my Black and Brown brothers and sisters—stop leaning on what you “heard” and start standing on what you have researched for yourself. When you know better, you do better. When you are informed, you are empowered.

That is why The Courier Eco Latino newspaper, the Black press exist. We are here to educate, inform, and empower our community with facts—not the whispers of Facebook posts or the bias of mainstream media. We are beholden only to you: our people, our community, our truth.

Read us. Support us. Share us. Because a people armed with knowledge cannot be misled, silenced, or dismissed.

Stay awake. Stay aware. Stay empowered.