Civic Leadership
My Public Diary (October 2023)
Fu*k Cancer, Revisiting Plans, Major Projects
“They could have been any one of us. And, we could have been any one of them.”
— U.S. Supreme Court Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson at 60th Commemoration of 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing
The past few months have been heavy.
I have engaged my family more in the past three months than I have in the past three years.
My little sister was diagnosed with an aggressive breast cancer in late July.
By mid-August, we were at her bedside following a fast and significant double mastectomy. I spent three weeks in Milwaukee, talking and tending to her and my 16-year-old nephew, Jalanai, who just started the school year and football season.
Honestly, I was uncertain about my ability to truly take care of them at that time. I have no experience with medical caretaking. I have always viewed people who care take of others as natural advocates who know what questions to ask, when to ask them, and how to press the medical system to respond to the needs of their loved ones.
Where I lacked knowledge, I let my natural protective nature lead the way.
Fortunately, I wasn’t the only one.
I connected with childhood friends and saw Yvette and Jalanai’s Wings of Glory track team family, her work family at the Milwaukee County Courthouse, and sorority sisters rally around her. They contributed cash, delivered food, and fervent prayers lifted to the Master.
The community around Yvette has been a buoy in a sea of physical and emotional pain.
Fu*k that cancer.
Be encouraged to pitch in here.
Yvette’s meal train is not the only thing moving fast.
My mother has agreed to move to Birmingham for a change of pace, some family support, and to enjoy Birmingham — a city she fell in love with years ago.
My mother and I have not lived in the same city since I left Milwaukee for Alabama in 1995. My 4-year-old son, August, gets some golden years with his grandmother. And, she gets a more constant dose of his energy, curiosity about everything, and love.
Ironically, Yvette’s final round of chemo and Mom’s move-out date are the same — November 20, 2023.
Wish us well.
Ed’s Work Projects
Our city’s 60th commemoration of the Birmingham Movement for Civil and Human Rights saw its apex with the remembrance of four little girls murdered in a domestic terrorist attack at 16th Street Baptist Church. Dignitaries from the U.S. Supreme Court and the country of Wales shared stirring messages on behalf of our nation and international partners.
Birmingham, the world is watching.
Alabama got its fair share of recent news with the U.S. Supreme Court-mandated adoption of a Congressional map for the revised 6th Congressional District.
By the way, fu*ck that cancer.
The final selection and announcement of the map is already having a major impact on Birmingham politics as a half dozen credible candidates have emerged as contenders for the seat.
Our city was also featured in this recent piece in Forbes, highlighting Birmingham’s approach to public-private partnerships (P3s) through Prosper Birmingham.
I have explained what I do in this blog many times, but I have been told that I can’t ever say it too much.
When the Woodfin administration began nearly six years ago I spent most of my time building stuff.
Building teams, building plans, and building systems that might withstand the weight of the opportunities to come.
Today, two things are true:
- We are doing less launching and more sustaining, pruning, and scaling. Those are different mindsets and different skills.
- COVID-19 changed everything and everyone we know — some opportunities emerged and some threats manifested. There isn’t a single organization in the world that did not have to revisit its strategic plan. It’s time we do the same.
So, we formed an inter-departmental project team with a mandate to review and update the Mayor’s five-year-old strategic plan as well as his Vision 2025 which was borne out of his re-election in 2021.
The team isn’t just revising the plan. We will be revising our entire approach to managing, tracking, and sharing strategic planning — a better living will of the people, so to speak. More on that next month.
Also, fu*k that cancer.
Our 2nd Annual Randall L. Woodfin Charity Golf Tournament is scheduled for Monday, October 23. We just achieved sell-out status for this tournament!
The tournament is significant because it is a rare connection point for the Mayor to reach a large, diverse network of corporate and entrepreneurial leaders outside of city business.
Many leaders want to support our agenda outside of the usual cycle of political contributions. They want to impact progress and this tournament allows them to do it directly and ethically.
The tournament is professionally produced by SisterGolf in partnership with our fiscal agent, The Penny Foundation. We align this tournament with volunteer civic leaders who serve as co-chairs. Last year, we presented $20,000 to support education initiatives such as Miles College and the Birmingham Promise.
We held our first two fundraising events for our film, The South Got Something To Say. Learn more about the project here.
Beyond all of this, I am serving in a variety of roles across a dozen strategic initiatives in partnership with internal and external leaders.
Here are a few of them:
- City of Birmingham One Voice Communications Strategy
- Birmingham Poet Laureate w/Create Birmingham
- National League of Cities Southern Cities for Economic Inclusion
- Blight Elimination & Neighborhood Revitalization Task Force w/UAB
- Communities of Hope Collaborative w/Casey Family Programs
- Magic City Spotlight Radio Show (winter season production planning)
- Culverhouse College of Business African American Alumni Network (chairman) at The University of Alabama
The article below features a great roundup of major grant-funded strategic initiatives.
Conclusion
These transformative initiatives are as challenging as they are exhilarating. I am confident in our talent team’s ability to get it all done.
But, nothing is guaranteed. Experience has taught me to count on effort and team synergy — not talent — as the best predictors of success for all things large and small.
All that said, no initiative is more important than our team’s effort to support Yvette in her fight to beat cancer.
Fu*k that cancer, for real.
Honestly,
Ed.
P.S. I am receiving national recognition from INROADS this month. Click here to learn more.
I am a poet, essayist, and civic strategist celebrating 60 years of civic revolution and 50 years of Hip Hop in Birmingham, Alabama.
