06/16/11: A necessary conversation

This op-ed appeared in The Virginian-Pilot on the date shown.

THERE SEEMS to be a misunderstanding about why race is a topic in redistricting. It is not because anyone is engaging in race-baiting. It is not because people vote only for those of their own race.

It is because it is the law.

Virginia is one of nine states subject to the preclearance rules of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. That federal law contains provisions that ensure voting rights for blacks, since the 15th Amendment wasn’t quite enough.

The preclearance rules in Section 5 of the Act require jurisdictions to submit to the Department of Justice any changes to “any voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure with respect to voting” in order to have it reviewed before it goes into effect.

Some jurisdictions within Virginia have successfully bailed out of the Section 5 rules by demonstrating nondiscriminatory behavior. None of those jurisdictions is in Hampton Roads.

All Hampton Roads cities are having the conversation about redistricting right now, but most of those conversations are taking place behind closed doors. Norfolk’s conversation is public, as it should be. The lines that are being drawn will affect us for the next 10 years. We can lay the groundwork for obtaining an exemption to Section 5 rules, or we can do all of this again in 2021.

Norfolk is unique in the region in having a court-mandated ward system. That system was first implemented in 1992 — less than 20 years ago — after a 10-year court battle.

In 1980, Norfolk had a population of 266,979, of whom 60.8 percent (162,300) were white and 35.2 percent (93,987) were black. The voting age population was 201,366, with 130,595 whites (64.85 percent) and 63,396 (31.48 percent) blacks.

Between 1918 and 1968, every member elected to the Norfolk City Council was white. In 1968, Joseph A. Jordan Jr. became the first black person since Reconstruction to be elected to the council. The election of a second black member occurred in 1984, only after the suit was filed to bring the ward system to Norfolk. With the implementation of the ward system, a third black member was elected.

That was not, however, the only benefit of the ward system. The east side of the city also gained representation on the council. When Norfolk was electing its council at large, most of the members came from the west side of the city, the result being city projects mostly concentrated in that area.

The 2010 census shows a Norfolk population of 242,803, of whom 47.1 percent (114,304) are white, 43.1 percent (104,672) are black, and 9.8 percent (23,827) are another race. The voting age population is 192,191, with 97,168 whites (50.6 percent), 77,714 blacks (40.4 percent) and 17,309 (9 percent) of another race.

In 30 years, Norfolk has become a more diverse city. Shouldn’t our wards reflect that diversity? Shouldn’t Norfolk be moving toward the day when we can escape the provisions of VRA and join the cities of Fairfax, Harrisonburg, Salem and Winchester and the counties of Augusta, Botetourt, Essex, Frederick, Greene, Middlesex, Pulaski, Roanoke, Rockingham, Shenandoah and Warren?

Sitting through the informal and formal sessions Tuesday night, I was struck by the reluctance of some members of the council — both black and white — to discuss this issue of race.

At the root of it is fear — the fear that beneath the surface lies this great racial divide that will spill over into an uncontrollable “circus,” as one council member suggested, if the topic is broached.

I don’t believe that. In the 33 years that I’ve called Norfolk home, I’ve come to believe most residents are as committed as I am to having the very best representatives on the council that we can get. Not the best black person or the best white person, but the best person.

I am convinced that the reason race remains such a hot-button issue is that we don’t talk about it. I am convinced that we can have that conversation now and not even need it in 2021.

The alternative is to do what we’ve always done: Put off the conversation until next time, and pretend to ignore the issue for the next 10 years.

That’s not moving Norfolk toward the day when every person is judged on the basis of the content of their character. That’s making sure that the color of their skin remains the determining factor.

And that’s not a Norfolk in which I want to live.