PUCCIA PASSES FIRST TEST

I told Philip Puccia, the Director of the State Control Board appointed by Governor Romney to run Springfield for the next three years, that I am always suspicious when a White politician labels another White person racist in response to behavior that has nothing to do with race. I was referring to certain city councilors who angrily labeled the Boston-area Puccia a racist in response to his appointment as Director by the Control Board, which is dominated by Boston-area appointees.

The race card was made conveniently available to the councilors by an article in The Republican revealing that Puccia had been named as one of several defendants in a race discrimination suit against a former employer. The councilors all but ignored the significant fact that the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination claim against Puccia was dismissed before the case was sent to trial. The dismissal is significant because, literally, thousands of individuals and businesses, including The Republican and some of its managers, have had such claims dismissed after a review by the MCAD revealed that the claims were without merit. It is silly and unfair to suggest that such claims are litmus tests for racism.

Black people know that labeling Puccia a racist is not motivated by the councilors’ concerns for Black Springfield, but, rather, by the fact of their new powerlessness, which is too embarrassing for public admission. Black folks understand that the councilors were actually responding to the fact that the Control Board was appointed in the first place, that it subsequently appointed a Director from Boston without consulting the council and by the fact that it seems to be sending a strong message that the council will have little to say about future financial decisions.

Before passing judgment on Puccia, the POV editorial board met with him at a meeting arranged by City Councilor Bud L. Williams, who was also suspect of the racist label. As a group we were impressed by Puccia’s candor and by his sincere desire to make decisions that served the best interest of Springfield, politics aside. He volunteered information about the discrimination complaint, which also named his boss as a defendant. His boss was the newly appointed Black Director of the MBTA. They were both committed to change the Boston institution that had a distasteful racial history, but were not able to avoid the discrimination complaint, which appeared to be the byproduct of years of accumulated problems.

Philip Puccia came across as a sensitive man who is obviously comfortable working with and around Black people. He appears to be an excellent choice for the Director’s job. We at POV intend to measure him by his future actions and judge him accordingly. We wish him well in his efforts to make Springfield healthy, offer our services and encourage everyone to consider what they can do to help him rather than hinder him with political innuendo.n