The following is a personal statement from Russell Simmons issued
August 31, 2006.
Ending Poverty and Ignorance in America and
Throughout the World:
Significance of the Steele for U.S. Senate Campaign in Maryland
By Russell Simmons
Some of my liberal friends and associates are quite upset with me for
personally endorsing Maryland Lt. Governor Michael Steele for the
United States Senate. Steele is conservative and a Republican. I am
an Independent who has, in the past, supported numerous Democratic
candidates with the recent exception of my endorsement of the
re-election of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a moderate
Republican.
At a time when the ranks of the poor and impoverished across America
and throughout the world are on a steady increase, I am going to
support and endorse those political leaders who are bold enough to
commit publicly to playing an active leadership role in building an
effective legislative strategy to end poverty and ignorance. Real
leadership, however, should not be limited, solely defined or
circumscribed only by political party affiliation.
Hip-hop culture is global and universal. It not only transcends race,
ethnicity, class, gender, geography, religion and national boundaries,
hip-hop also transcends established political parties. Hip-hop is
inclusive, not exclusive, of all of the realities that impact the
quality of life of millions of people who daily cry out for a better
way of life.
I was pleased to witness Michael Steele as a statewide official
taking action in Maryland during the last four years to reform mandatory
minimum sentencing laws, initiate educational programs for incarcerated
youth, increase access to minority community economic development,
clean up the environment and develop alternative energy sources, as
well as support equal, high-quality education for all in the public
school system. My attention was focused on these accomplishments and
the fact that Steele kept the promises and commitments that he had made
to the voters.
Steele’s criticism of President Bush and the war in Iraq further
exemplifies that Steele is an independent thinker and leader who is not
chained or bridled by the neoconservatives of the Republican Party. Of
course, I know that no politician is perfect and there are many issues
that Steele and I do not agree on. What’s important to me is that I
believe, after reviewing his track record, Michael Steele will be a
leader in the U.S. Senate toward making ending poverty and ignorance a
clear priority.
Love is neither liberal nor conservative; it is what God gives to us
all. Love requires justice, fairness and openness for new ways of
making a difference in the quality of life for all people everywhere.
One of my mentors, Dr. Benjamin Chavis, encouraged me to directly
connect my daily private practice of Yoga to my public actions and
endorsements. Dr. Ben was with me when I made the trip to Baltimore to
announce my support of Lt. Gov. Steele. In one of the Yoga Sutras of
Patanjali, it is written, “The practice of concentration on a single
subject is the best way to prevent the obstacles and their
accompaniments.” In other words, a singular focus or concentration on
ending poverty is a necessary commitment by anyone who is serious about
this issue.
That night Steele announced, “I declare a new agenda for America; an
anti-poverty agenda – an economic empowerment agenda that I will take
with me to the United States Senate – because empowerment creates
opportunity that poverty will never let you see. To tell you the truth,
not enough people in either party are willing to even say the word
’poverty’ ….. much less do anything about it. To begin, unlike a lot of
Republicans, I believe we need to raise the minimum wage.”
Great movements for change always require taking risks and acting
outside the close-minded boxes of society. Building an effective
anti-poverty movement will need many elected officials like Steele and
many others from different constituencies from across the nation and
throughout the world. Let’s stay focused. Don’t get distracted by
party labels. Let us all work together and share responsibly in God’s
love for all. Let’s end poverty and ignorance!