King/Garvey...It's all about the choices we make

I interviewed five members of the Martin Luther King/Marcus Garvey Co-op. I felt saddened at the prospect of their housing co-op's future. There are 7 or 8 members of the board. Given the naturally occurring conflict (over this type of a decision) on how to proceed under the circumstances, it is not clear to me which one of two of the 8 board members are legally entitled to serve.

They are engaged in a game of real estate with some of the biggest pro's in the industry and based on past practices, they are entering into a high risk scenario that could cost them in future benefits. I think the board members will enter into a binding agreement with terms that will not be met in the future, resulting in the loss of ownership of their real estate. They may (in the future) own their co-op as a business but not their property. The following is the basis for my thoughts:

The board members are not housing or construction experts and although they do have two attorneys working with them, their corporate partners have attorneys, facility experts and a vast network of resources and "colleagues" to work for them. Metaphorically speaking, The King/Garvey Board members appear as minnows, while their partners appear as whales. I wonder if in nature, whales ever negotiate with minnows on any terms. I am also reminded of the children's animated film, (American Tail) in which a little mouse discovers a cat who has been in disguise (as a mouse) and the cat looks back at him and asks, "Who are you going to believe me or your own eyes?" The mouse is silent. In nature cats are natural predators to mice.

Human nature is at work here. Cultural norms are at work here. Some people have set up a system that always results in loss of ownership when certain people enter into system agreements. Everyone wants to be successful and make the right choices. Everyone wants to be perceived as someone who wants the best for their community. The problem is that when all of the facts and actuals are not presented, making the best decision becomes very, very difficult.

Is there some deception going on? More than likely, because the nature of business is often deceptive. For example. Why does roofing cost so much more today than it did yesterday? Are the materials used today so vastly different? Just what exactly has raised the cost of construction? There are a lot of complex factors that no one wants to bring to light because of the culture of making money. People don't often admit that the "dot.com" went bust because the sales projections were fictional accounts! They were ideas (stories) sold to buyers that did not produce anything! In our culture of making a fast million, there are always some losers.

The board members will have to close out the tendency to worry about external perceptions and each one will have to ask themselves is the information on the table accurate or is it an attempt to make money at their expense? Is someone selling them a wolf ticket and what is the price of the that ticket if they buy it?

Another unfortunate scenario for them is that they are being forced in the direction of entering into a high-risk agreement by their business partner. They really have been threatened. Sign!...or else!

On another note, I've observed some practices that seem to be a matter of habit. Certain people behave certain ways because it is "expected" of them. I see that at work here. Some people take on the role as "saviors" or "poverty pimps" (you choose which title applies) and they come to the "rescue" of other people and exact their payment out of an apparent third party (usually some government agency) and then take care of the poor, disadvantaged, at risk people. Other people take on the "receipient" or "I don't deserve more than I have" attitude and allow themselves to be "beneficiaries" or "taken advantage of" (again, you decide which title applies) It's hard to face the harshness of attitudes and practices, but if you take a cold hard look at behaviors in the past it's not something to shrink back from. In fact now is the time to face the challenges because economically the future doesn't look too good. Real estate in the future will be the difference between having a place to live and homelessness. It is because of the idea of real estate ownership, that there is so much homelessness.


There are some experts (community leaders) who should be advocating for them, but for reasons which just might be political remain silent. The silence is reminiscent of the kind where negative and rather nasty experiences prohibit would be leaders or advocates from saying anything. The reality is that we must all get along in order to survive, because when those in a weaker position speak up, those in the stronger position, wipe them out. The stronger will wipe out them out economically, politically/socially and then physically. That's been the politics so far.