After collecting nearly 500 hundred signatures at the recent MLK celebration where the city’s mayor was booed into silence, Citizens to Recall Francis G. Slay is marching on Super Tuesday.
“It’s a very important day for us because we expect a high turnout of voters, and we hope to seize that opportunity,” said Zaki Baruti, coordinator of Citizens to Recall Francis G. Slay.
The group is holding an organizing meeting at 11 a.m. on Saturday at
Lexington School, 5030 Lexington in North St. Louis, its weekly gathering base.
The organization plans to staff 19 polls on Super Tuesday (Feb. 5). In addition to the heated Democratic presidential primary pitting Barack Obama against Hillary Clinton, the recall workers expect the Slay-supported sales tax increase – Proposition S on city ballots – to drive voters to the polls.
There are many fronts of grass-roots opposition to Proposition S, from clergy, critics of Slay’s policy regarding corporate tax incentives and supporters of former Fire Chief Sherman George.
Baruti said the recall effort is encouraging city residents to vote against Proposition S as a means of opposing the mayor and economically boycotting his administration.
The recall effort is a hard, uphill battle requiring time, energy and commitment, but Baruti said it packs its own political punch.
On their weekly rounds, canvassers plan to complete the designated amount of signatures in the 4th Ward before moving on to the 5th Ward. Thus far they have gathered more than 7,000 signatures, according to Baruti.
The volunteers working to recall Slay are young, old, black, white, Jewish, German, male and female.
“These are very dedicated people, and they are true to the principles of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and others who have struggled to make our lives better,” Baruti said.
The Rev. Michael Vosler is a white 67-year-old semi-retired clergyman from South St. Louis, who recently underwent ankle replacement surgery. But that doesn’t stop him.
“I can only walk for two hours, but I push the limits,” Volser said.
“I’m extremely proud to be a part of (the recall effort) and the solidarity of those who resist the power plays of the mayor and honor racial parity.”
Volser is one of many jolted into action by Slay’s handling of Chief George. After working to undermine George’s authority, Slay promoted a black man (Charles Bryson) to demote the city’s first-ever black fire chief. George has filed suits against the City alleging racial discrimination and illegal job action.
“The mayor’s actions against the (former) fire chief play out against the racial history of St. Louis, which is a white power force and blacks being marginalized, even though they are a majority,” Volser said.
Volser views the recall effort as a cry for change, but said an economic boycott is what will influence the white-dominated power structure to listen to citizen concerns.
“I will walk the plank for the people,” said Latosha Brown, a black female. At 27, she is one of the youngest members of Citizens to Recall Francis G. Slay.
“We don’t have to sit back and take abuse,” said Brown, a part-time student who considers herself a full-time activist.
“We can change the laws of the land, because when you come together as a people you are fearless.”
Ken Hollenbeck, a 63-year-old German immigrant who retired from AT&T, said the Saturday meetings of the recall group give him a sense of love and togetherness, something that he was afforded by going to an integrated high school in the late 1950s and early ‘60s.
Hollenbeck attended O’Fallon Technical High with Sherman George.
“We had an advantage by going to O’Fallon because kids came from all over the city,” said Hollenbeck, who worked primarily in North St. Louis while employed at Southwestern Bell.
“Some many people wanted to get together, but City Hall kept us divided. We need to join together and go against City Hall.”
How the recall works
Should the Citizens to Recall Francis G. Slay collect enough signatures for a petition, the Board of Elections has 10 days to certify it, according to the board. During those 10 days, Slay could ask registered voters who signed the petition to withdraw their signature.
If the petition fails, the petitioner has another 20 days to collect enough signatures. The board then has 10 more days to certify those signatures while Slay again asks voters to withdraw their names.
If the petition were certified, the board would call Slay and ask him to resign. If he declines, the board would call for a special election to recall him 30 to 90 days from the certification date of the petition. That election would call for a “yes” or “no” vote to recall the mayor.
If the majority vote is “no,” he would keep in position. If the vote were “yes,” then another election would be held 30 to 90 days from certification of the election to the vacancy.
