Tom Phillips: A Mountain Of A Man at connecting*the*dots

May 27th, 2006

Tom Phillips: A Mountain Of A Man

I hearby declare you… a bunch of dead plants.

————

Ed Cone, News & Record, 10/9/05
Council members speak on Truth and Reconciliation hearings

[…]

Tom Phillips did not consider attending the hearings. “My attending would not matter,” he said. He will read the report. “If we as a council think it is worthwhile, we’ll consider it. If I disagree with the final conclusions, I’ll be called names. They say we’re racists — when are people going to ask black council members why they always vote together?” He said Nelson Johnson’s involvement compromised the project (a danger I pointed to as early as 2003); that he understood that the commission was independent of Johnson; and that he wanted to know where the money Johnson raised for the project had gone.

[…]

To be fair to Tom Phillips, these quotes were from last year, only a handful of months following the city council’s vote to not endorse the investigation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

I mean, who was the idiot that placed upstanding, community politicians in a position to stand up and be counted on such an important issue to the community?

Let me step back for a moment…

Who am I to argue with another person’s sense of duty to community? I mean, the 6 of 9 members that voted against endorsing the TRC must have been serving the perspective of their immediate neighbors, right?

You know, I’m betting that Phillips has taken the time since last October to communicate to his constituency the importance of this moment in Greensboro’s continued attempts to heal open wounds and move forward as one community. If not, well, I’m positive that time has provided him with a stronger, more personal perspective on the issues that face this community-at-large.

So let’s fast-forward from 7.5 months ago to yesterday, the day following the culmination of the 2 year-long TRC investigation. Tom Phillips was once again contacted by local media, this time with an opportunity to address the culmination of the commission’s investigation and their final report.

Frank Mickens, WFMY News 2, 5/26/06
City Council Members Respond To Truth And Reconciliation Commission Report

Greensboro, NC — An independent panel says the the city of Greensboro needs to make up for mistakes it made after the Klan-Nazi shootings.

The commission’s report says city police didn’t do its job to protect the five union protesters who were shot and killed by a group of klansmen and Nazis. And it says city eroded race relations and the public trust by establishing curfews in Morningside Homes and distancing itself from what happened.

The commission wants the city to apologize. But council members don’t agree that’s a good idea. Council member Tom Phillips appeared indifferent to the report. Reached by phone he said quote, ” I could care less what they report has to say. At some point I plant to take a look at it.”

[…]

Time can erode the profiled face of a mountain, but not the position of this man.

What a rock.

UPDATE: According to Tom, the context of Tom’s quote wasn’t provided by the WFMY reporter:

Frank Mickens didn’t quite tell the whole story. I was sitting on my balcony looking at the ocean when Frank called on my cell phone (I’m changing my number). I told him I was on vacation and I couldn’t care less…….. I taken my last call from Mr. Mickens

Brush clearing, vacationing politicians everywhere feel you, Tom.

UPDATE II: Fox News reports Toms reaction when asked about a city/GPD apology for not protecting permit holders on 11/3:

Council member Tom Phillips, who said he has read most of the executive summary, said he doesn’t support an apology.

“We’ve got more important things to do,” he said.

UPDATE III: Ed Cone reports that Tom Phillips won’t come to a city council discussion in July regarding the TRC report. Tom’s words:

Ed, I recommended that council members review the recommendations in the report and if they believed that any on them should be adopted, they should bring them up at a council meeting where they can be discussed and voted up or down. I know how this group discussion will turn out and I don’t have the time or desire for another lecture from Goldie Wells. Tom

The TRC report is the culmination of a two-year process, attempting to address the ongoing issues stemming from 11/3/79 — issues that effect this community, both as a whole and especially specific communities divided along lines of class and race. Find tthe time, Tom, and be a good representative of the entire Greensboro community and join the discussion.

UPDATE IV: Tom’s foot-in-mouth syndrome continues:

â€œIt occurs to me that we may not be going back far enough in this whole process of finding the root causes of what happened that day.â€?

â€œThe reason the CWP was able to establish itself was because they were trying to improve working conditions and pay at local mills. A lot of people were getting very rich off the labor of the poor and there were those who saw that as a real injustice. If those mills had been treating their employees right, then the CWP wouldnâ€™t have formed. Without the CWP, it is very likely that confrontation would never have happened. So if apologies are due, maybe the first ones should come from the mill owners and their descendents. If reparations are due, surely there are some trust funds around that could be tapped for that purpose.â€?

That last line is a killer of good faith and credibility.

Tom Phillips would never offer a serious analysis of the times — the stage of Greensboro’s labor situation and the workings of the CWP — as that would validate the CWP beyond a group of extremist rebel-rousers. Instead, he offers the analysis as a lede to dig a local, public figure (Ed Cone, related to the ownership of Cone Mills), alluding to Ed’s suggestion of an alterior route of apology to jumpstart the reconciliation process.

Congrats, Tom, you continue to do the city proud.

Tags: activism, arrogance, city council, community, Cone Mills, dumb, Ed Cone, Greensboro, Greensboro Massacre, GTRC, KKK, Nazi, politics, Tom Phillips.

20 Responses to “Tom Phillips: A Mountain Of A Man”

Feed for this Entry

1 Ben Holder May 27th, 2006 at 11:31 am

easy there home slice…phillips has done tons to fight racism…he has made a very very big difference in leveling the playing field in gso. I know u want the GTRC to be wonderful…but…don’t jump on folks just cuz it is easy…tom has done alot…what have u done? What has the GTRC done so far? I do not appreciate your bashing phillips post…you know not of what u speak….The GTRC is not the most important racial fighting machine i have ever seen…open your eyes….there is others doing more w less hype and costs….the gtrc made no effort to reconcile with those like virgil griffin after he spoke..he was not considered at all to be a report recipient…i made sure he was..the gtrc is a flawed bunch that needs much work…tom has a great record…the gtrc is all hype…no proof…do u know more about it than me? if so do tell.
2 Roch101 May 27th, 2006 at 11:38 am

Couldnâ€™t care less or could care less? WFMY reports one thing, Phillips says another.
3 Sean Coon May 27th, 2006 at 11:40 am

i’m sorry ben, but where did i say anything about race? 11/3/79 was more about class struggle than race anyhow.

so much for your humble, apologetic introduction to your public testimony at the commission hearing…

yeah. i was there.
4 Sean Coon May 27th, 2006 at 11:43 am

@ roch: semantics. they mean the same thing (and tom was precise in his correction of mickens). we missed you last night…
5 Roch101 May 27th, 2006 at 4:27 pm

“they mean the same thing”

Maybe in the minds of those who misuse the phrase, but they mean two different things: one meaning that someone has some level of concern (”I COULD care less), the other meaning that one’s level of concern couldn’t be any less, ie. no concern.

People, especially professional journalists, should know the difference and use the term properly, especially when quoting an elected official.
6 Roch101 May 27th, 2006 at 4:48 pm

Sorry about not making the screening. Our best bet was Thrusday, but the early show was out because of the length of the GTRC ceremony and the late show was out because of a 5:10 A.M. alarm for my school teacher girlfriend. We had prior plans for Friday. Any chance there may be another showing?
7 Sean Coon May 27th, 2006 at 5:54 pm

yeah, we’re shooting for the weekend of the 16th. we’ll make an announcement within a week or so.
8 Roch101 May 28th, 2006 at 11:14 am

Sean, Tom has always struck me as a reasonable man and in my dealings with him, very forthright. Let’s not be too quick to go on the attack. Tom’s on vacation. I’m stuck in town and I haven’t even read the report yet and as Tom explains, his quote was taken out of context.

If we want the findings and recommendations of the report to be thoughtfully considered, we will, all of us, have to be patient. An advisarial tone will just make things harder. Patience, grasshopper. Patience.
9 Sean Coon May 28th, 2006 at 12:20 pm

this community has waited long enough for the truth to be told about 11/3.

i personally feel that phillip’s attitude of indifference — from his vote to not endorse the TRC to his reaction last october to he response the other day — is pathetic. i don’t see any down side to the TRC; it’s apparent to me that he has and still does.

that’s not leadership, it’s politics.

you and i can agree to disagree, though i do think you’ll understand my perspective a bit more if you can make it to the next round of screenings…
10 Roch101 May 28th, 2006 at 12:35 pm

You are expecting people to change their minds because you demand it. That doesn’t usually work.
11 Sean Coon May 28th, 2006 at 12:47 pm

who am i demanding to change their mind?

if phillips continues his indifference, that’s his business… but he’s a public figure, so i’ll continue to frame his perspective.

have i erred in my portrayal?
12 Roch101 May 28th, 2006 at 2:06 pm

Erred? Well, a little perhaps, in that your original reaction was based on a quote out of context. But even if you are generally accurate–and even if I generally agree with your take–I don’t see how insulting Phillips is going to be productive. Especially since, as I noted, Phillips seems to me open to reasoned persuasion (just ask Cara Michelle).

Like it or not, Phillips is one ninth of Greensboro’s elected representative body. The GTRC recommends some actions that will require the sanction of city council. Do we advance the possibility of those happening by pigeon-holing city council representatives or is a civil discussion more likely to be productive?

Moving forward will require changed minds or a changed council. If you think that Phillips’ indifference towards this issue will motivate his Irving Park constituents to remove him from office and you are willing to wait a year and a half for the chance, then taking a confrontational stance matters not; and changing minds matters not.

I was as steamed as anybody about the councils’ vote to oppose the Greensboro Truth and Reconciliation “program.” (Which, by the way, was more egregious than what you described as a vote “not to endorse” (which, in fact, never happened). But the council is who they are for now. I’m simply suggesting that we give then a chance. Believe me, if irrational recalcitrant prevails, I’ll be right there with you in laying blame and working to replace those who will not be reasoned with. I just think that’s premature at this time.
13 Sean Coon May 28th, 2006 at 4:39 pm

i’m holding phillips accountable to his past actions/statements. it’s all public knowledge, and i’m adding my opinion as a greensboro resident to the mix. that’s it.

i’m not quite sure i understand what you’re suggesting. i’m not pigeon-holing him. if phillips wants to progress from his current stance, well, he’s completely free to do so, and i’ll be the first person to frame that perspective in a positive light.

as much as i respect the potential of a city council, the residents of greensboro are the ones with the power to make a difference. unless a budget of city funds are involved, we’re completely empowered to meet, organize and advance the common good of this community. and i mean the entire community.

you seem to believe that moving forward requires city council’s blessing. while it would be nice and help immensely, i don’t believe that for a moment.
14 Roch101 May 29th, 2006 at 12:09 am

As I said, the GTRC made several recommendations that will require the sanction of city council to come to fruition: police review board, racial sensitivity training for city employees and a formal apology from the city. Cooperation from the council on those issues would be more than “nice,” it would be vital.
15 Sean Coon May 29th, 2006 at 12:16 am

all true.

so i’ll keep on reporting how city council members are voting / responding to these suggestions… or is that pigeon-holing?
16 Ben Holder May 29th, 2006 at 10:50 am

hey sean…i sure am glad u expalined it to me….without your great knowledge of gso …i woulda walked arounbd forever thinking race and class were pretty much the same thing..i was walking around like i knew somthing about it…wow…u really opened my eyes
17 Sean Coon May 29th, 2006 at 10:53 am

no problem, home slice.