Sheila Dixon cleared out her desk Thursday, packed up her belongings and walked out of City Hall, her last day as mayor of Baltimore.

Good riddance. A criminal has no place in city government – or shouldn’t.

Dixon, an African-American and Baltimore's first female mayor, left City Hall in shame after being indicted on 12 counts, including perjury, embezzlement and misconduct charges. She received probation under a plea deal that required her to leave office Thursday. Circuit Court Judge Dennis M. Sweeney said Dixon vacated City Hall "in total disgrace" with “overwhelming” evidence against her.

Dixon is a liar who essentially stole from the disenfranchised, many of whom were African-American - people Dixon swore to help during her 22 years at City Hall in predominantly black Baltimore. She pleaded guilty in January for lying about receiving illegal gifts during her three-year stint as mayor and seven years as City Council president, including travel, fur coats and $500 worth of gift cards intended for the poor that she allegedly used instead for a holiday shopping spree. Some of the illegal gifts – thousands of dollars worth - came from a developer she was dating.

In the end, she didn't support black single mothers struggling to raise children, black seniors who are making hard decisions about whether to pay for food or medicine, and young black girls who might have held Dixon up as a black female role model.  

She left office as arrogant as ever, with no remorse for her wrongdoing, and has yet to apologize for her thieving behavior. She spent Thursday at a party in her honor acting as if nothing had happened, where her City Hall worshippers were jockeying for position to get a word with the former mayor as if she was a rock star.

When do African-Americans begin to publicly hold our elected leaders accountable and stop showing up for happy hour to celebrate representatives who steal from our own people? Why is it fashionable for black people to toast a black elected official who has been indicted and sentenced for using city money to satisfy her own needs?

Dixon said she’s busy working on a series of speaking engagements, but before she gives one single speech, she should apologize to the residents of Baltimore. Or perhaps nobody really cares.

Where is the public outrage? 

Unfortunately, we’ve been down this road before. Black voters supported former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick knowing he was a poor leader. They voted for former Detroit councilwoman Monica Conyers, despite her hysterical outbursts at City Hall, and since then, she’s admitted to taking $6,000 in bribes. Black Louisiana residents supported former Rep. William “Dollar Bill” Jefferson right up until he was carted off to jail - and voted for Jefferson even after federal investigators found $90,000 in cold cash in his freezer. And D.C. Councilman Marion Barry – the former mayor who spent six months in jail on a drug charge – still gets high-fives from black parents because he gave their sons a summer job back in the day. 

Black folks should spend more collective time holding our black elected officials accountable; too many times we give them a pass because they’re black instead of speaking out against them if they’re corrupt.

Bankole Thompson, senior editor of The Michigan Chronicle, plans to devote more news print to examine the behavior of Detroit’s black elected leaders, and he is encouraging other black newspapers to step up their scrutiny of black mayors, city council members, state representatives and congressional members - elected leaders who represent black people.    

Dixon left office with blacks suffering: The black unemployment rate in Baltimore is 6.2 percent – twice .....

Please Login or Register to post comments on this article

Close Comment  |   Read More Comments Hide More Comments

Comments * :

Please do not enter the HTML tags(Maximum 600 characters).

The reason black politicians aren't held accountable? SHOW ME WHERE MOST POLITICIANS ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR ANYTHING THEY DO--including white ones. Black polilticians didn't write the book nor patent for corruption in politics in this country nor the world. But my problem with a lot of people, black and white, when the facts do come out about the people they're supporting--they still want to prop them up. Perfect example--SARAH PALIN. Yes Dixon is a disgrace and yes she is not showing remorse. YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY? As "ousted" politicians go--she knows she's in GOOD company--LOL!

by   
Lovelyhoney
February 8, 2010, 7:56 am
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I cannot believe that for the rest of this woman's life she will be receiving $83,000 a year! It is completely unfair. I agree we should hold our black politicians more accountable!

by   
Serena_love
February 7, 2010, 3:48 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You are one of the DUMBEST klansmen & You’re ALL DUMB. Klansmen don’t get to (in your case MIS-quote) Dr. King. MLK NEVER said “(do judge by the color of skin,but the content of haracter. WTF does that even mean? You are the same racist pig who tries under so many usernames to pretend to be a Black uncletom, but you thought Al & Jessie were leaders of the NAACP. Dr. King would be ashamed of any ACTUAL “negros” attempting to cast aspersions on President Obama, but he would not be at all surprised at klansmen attempting to pose as Blacks to try to convince Black people to turn against him.

by   
Sevennotrump
February 5, 2010, 3:01 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

i truly feel sorry for Sevennotrump.he/she bases everything in life on color and not whats right or wrong.this person and their attitude has been allowed to fester in our communities with unreliable statements and ignorant dribble.remember dr. king saying(do judge by the color of skin,but the content of haracter.i think dr king would be embarrassed of a person such as this Sevennotrump and their views

by   
Hoodtechie2
February 5, 2010, 2:35 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

…support a Black Person as long as they’ve taken actions in their lives to SUPPORT YOU. Mayor Berry, Kwame, Mrs. Jackson all have long resumes of contributions to the Black community. One pothole or even a few potholes cannot outweigh those resumes. The klansman who appears on this site using 12 (OR MORE) usernames & the few actual uncletoms who would bury their achivements because of their failures, CERTAINLY aren’t going to take the BLACK ball & run across the goal line in their place. They’re going to tell us why we should have elected Palin.

by   
Sevennotrump
February 5, 2010, 12:53 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hoodtechie, aka, uncletom, aka, MacBen, aka, whatIThink, aka, MrKnowItAll, aka, etc, etc, is the kind of klansman who rejoices in the stumbling of ANY Black person, particularly an elected official, so he can say, I told you so, those people aren’t qualified, now “We as Black people should get rid of this Obama guy”. This klansman is as white as the hood he wears. He wouldn’t need to wear the sheet were he & ALL Klansmen not COWARDS! No, you don’t support a corrupt politician as long as he’s Black, you support…

by   
Sevennotrump
February 5, 2010, 12:50 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Our choice is to either find competent Black People,
or replace them with others, who will stand up for
Us!

by   
BMUHAMAD
February 5, 2010, 12:24 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ignore Sevennotrump who has as much intelligence as garbage can lid.Sevennotrump is the type of twisted thinker that it's o.k. to support a crooked politician as long as they are black.these are the type of people that should be prohibited fron voting

by   
Hoodtechie2
February 5, 2010, 12:18 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you think this was about gift cards think again, I am sure she will be either talking or writing about this in the near future...the head of corruption will be popped!!!

by   
DOMINE
February 5, 2010, 12:11 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

…wonder why Blacks still backed these LEADERS. A better question is, why YOU are focused on 500.00 worth of gift cards rather than on the millions of dollars that corrupt white officials funnel to their relatives & in-laws through no-bid contracts, when the mandated bidding process would have sent these contracts to Blacks. Why does a SUPPOSED Black writer have the time to criticize Black people, when racism flourishes and white repugs who initially introduce legislation, suddenly oppose it when it appears a Black President supports it?

by   
Sevennotrump
February 5, 2010, 12:00 pm
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cottman, you may CAN this article and bury it in the Sahara. “When will Blacks start holding our leaders accountable” is a STUPID question and plays into the hands of racist pigs. MAYBE if Blacks didn’t have to be so pleased we could even HOPE to HAVE an elected official we’d have time to be more discriminating. Mayor Berry did more for the Black people of DC than had any combined 5 mayors before him. KK tore down all the vacant houses, which were dens for crime, he towed all the junk cars around the city that had Detroit looking like a junk yard , etc, etc, yet you…

by   
Sevennotrump
February 5, 2010, 11:57 am
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are a couple of reasons why the State of Maryland "went after" Sheila Dixon Do you remember the controversy O'Malley and his wife were in the midst of while he was mayor? The thing that kept the prosecutor from going after them is that O'Malley's wife is a judge. Now the reasons: 1. Sheila Dixon forgot an important rule: Keep your friends close; keep your enemies closer. And 2 . . . Sheila Dixon outlived her usefulness to Governor Martin O'Malley, particularly with the slots bill. We haven't begun to see corruption in the Maryland! Gift cards! hmph! Give me a break!

by   
Det2makit
February 5, 2010, 10:15 am
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

People who DO NOT know their history ~~~~are bound to FAIL. All of the mentioned "POLITICIANS" lack the understanding of the GREATNESS of the AFRIKAN DIASPORA~~~akwaaba

by   
Nubia4ever
February 5, 2010, 8:38 am
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

President Obama presented an image that is not what he really is. I was impressed with his 2004 DNC speech and wondered then~~~~who he is/was. I now know. Nonetheless, with the possibilities of candidates in 2008, I would have either a) NOT VOTED~~as I had done for 30 consecutive years or ~~~~~AMERIKA continues to have "blood" on its hands ( A.Y.I.T.I. [HAITI] and the recent CHINA earthquake).
hotep/as-salaam-alekum

by   
Nubia4ever
February 5, 2010, 8:36 am
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cottman: you are right on on this one, but you forgot one big one: Barack Hussein Obama. If McCain had won last years election, you would NOT have this passive tone by most black "leaders" or electorate. To prove my point before this day is over, you will posters on this blog with undying love for President Obama even though his administration is failing gravely.

by   
Uncletom
February 5, 2010, 6:27 am
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------