Lissen...
I've been caping for the City by way of CAP for almost three years now, but I've been a change agent since I was a teenager. One thing I know about us as a whole; we are reactionary as hell towards preventable things.
We showed more interest and concern about the name change of Central to Ruben Daniels (which I was in favor of because Central is a location and Ruben Daniels was a pillar of the community whose legacy deserves all the best) than we did the for the closure of Saginaw High.
If we had come out in full force 9 years ago, we wouldn't be where we are today.
People are scrambling trying to figure out what to do and the doing has already been done. The doers did what they could.
ARPA monies came and we were told to get involved before they got here. We were told to get active before the monies were dispersed. There were meetings held to break things down in layman's terms. We were told to go to City Council Meetings. Told to go to any meetings where decisions would be made that affected us.
What did we do? Nothing, except ask about where the money went after it was already divvied up.
A pastor tried to get money for a splash pad for the COMMUNITY park that his church maintains. The park is a neighborhood bright spot that runs decently and in order. He's been rejected numerous times, but the City found money to paint on some old eyesores, and even then - the painters were outsourced which is crazy, considering the wealth of talent that is homegrown.
This has gotta be insane to more than just me and mine.
We get our heads pissed on and believe it's rain because they parade a "trusted" person in front of us to tell us so.
All skinfolk ain't kinfolk, and some of the people you'd believe are the most noble can be bought and paid for.
Too many things around here rest in the hands of the disinterested, the outdated, the archaic, the self-serving, and the selfish.
Are we going to sit back and let the community not serve it's lifeblood? We live, work, eat, sleep, play, go to school, shop, and do everything in Saginaw, but we're the last to be considered in the things that are OF Saginaw? For Saginaw?
Make it make sense.
🌹🌹🌹
Rosemary Dugan is the Hospitality Director for Saginaw CAP, as well as an Executive Board member & a lead contributor in literary pieces on building community power.