McKinney's mayoral campaign focuses on remedying injustices

This is the fourth articles in a five-part series profiling mayoral candidates.

Activist Ralph McKinney, a frequent--if so far unsuccessful--candidate for offices, has again thrown his hat in the ring, this time for Durham mayor.

McKinney, who has run for such offices as county commissioner and U.S. Senator, is centering his campaign on remedying injustices--racial discrimination, sexual harassment and sexual abuse. His commitment to solving those problems comes from personal experience with them in the workplace, he said.

The 60-year-old salesperson, who first ran for office in 1972, said he remembers experiences when his employers told him to charge black customers twice as much as white ones for the same services and when managers would stir up racial tensions to encourage their workers to raise prices on customers of the opposite race. He also said he remembers occasions when women were sexually harassed.

"I worked in too many businesses in Durham that intentionally charged people extra because they were black... and it's created an environment of fear," he said. "Citizens should be able to have zero tolerance for businesses that require you to be a racist bigot to have a job." McKinney said that after he spoke up against racism, companies would deny him employment--even though he had won trophies for his skill as a salesperson.

McKinney blamed current city and county officials for allowing injustice to exist, or for doing nothing when he and other citizens lodge complaints. He said that if he were elected, he would not tolerate racist businesses, and would try to strip them of their licenses.

"All elected officials for the past 40 years have promoted, protected and profited off racism themselves," he said. "People who take oath of office take oath of office to protect their citizens. When they don't protect their citizens... they're cowardly traitors, and they commit acts of treason, and they should resign today."

Most elected officials dismissed McKinney's accusations of treason. "I think that perhaps is his perception, but I believe that perception is baseless," said City Council member Floyd McKissick.

As a result of his rambling style of conversation where many unassociated issues are all presented within a three-minute time frame, frequently you're lost at the end."

Sara Terry, co-president of the People's Alliance, a liberal citizens' group that chose not to endorse McKinney, agreed. "He sort of brings up the same handful of issues, and frankly, I find them to be really confusing every time he brings them up," she said. "I think he hasn't really brought anything new to the table that we haven't seen before."

Terry added that she is uncertain of the validity of many of the accusations McKinney brings against businesses.

"I guess I'd like to think that if they did have merit, then somebody would have figured those out," she said.

In addition to fighting discrimination, McKinney said he would end the city's habit of closing some of its meetings to the public.

He also condemned the current city administration's management of a series of federally funded loans distributed to small businesses. The repayment status of many of the loans, which totaled about $800,000, is now in doubt.

McKinney said he would also focus on helping the neediest members of society. "There's a saying, OFor the least of these,'" he said. "People don't mind paying taxes to help those who can't help themselves."

As an example, he said that for the past two weeks, he has been working to try to find government money to pay for home care for Helen Cojanis, a former schoolteacher who is disabled and confined to her bed.

Cojanis described McKinney as a "go-getter."

"I think he really wants justice in government, and he pointed out a lot of difficult things that have happened down in our city," she said. "I think he's really empathetic toward people."

But she said she had not yet decided whether she would vote for McKinney.