Desegregation used as red herring

Translated into real world language, this means they want your state government to engage in a social engineering experiment.

In her recent column, “Why are CT Republicans demonizing desegregation?” Alma Rutgers’ question serves as an example of how insidious the Left’s messaging really is. If one disagrees with a group named Desegregate CT, then one must be against desegregation and thereby for segregation.

We see this pattern throughout our state with other left-of-center groups with crafty names. How about “CT Voices for Children,” or “Greenwich Voices for Democracy.” God forbid one disagrees with them, or you will automatically be demonized as being against children and democracy!

Let’s examine Desegregate CT. This is an effort by state Democrats to centralize local planning and zoning authority in Hartford, thus removing it from local communities. There is a basis for goodwill in this effort. According to their platform, they want to create “more diverse housing in service of equity.”

Translated into real world language, this means they want your state government to engage in a social engineering experiment. Beyond this initial, somewhat altruistic aim, little or no planning has been done, other than giving our one-party state government, what historically has been a local government prerogative,

Our leaders should be focusing on how they can attract investment in our cities and use tax incentives to make our cities enticing for large and small businesses. Concurrent to that, the folks who live in our cities must have a stake in how their neighborhoods are developed. They must be empowered to be a part of the solution, not just be a bystander. That is the role effective government should take.

Imagine for a moment how the economics of affordable housing would develop if Connecticut actually began to show some successes in improving our urban centers and making them more attractive communities? Housing prices would rise, families would build equity in their homes, and what were once vibrant communities would begin to re-emerge. The uniquely American idea of renewal and recovery is to do the exact opposite of what Desegregate CT is proposing.

So, to circle back to Ms. Rutgers’ column, Republicans are not at all opposed to “desegregation.” This is a red herring designed by progressive Democrats to gain support for their well-intentioned, but very costly and ill-advised social engineering projects. Republicans support equal opportunity for all and a focus on policies that help rebuild and revitalize our cities and create jobs.

Republicans believe in the American comeback story. Our aim should be to lift up our struggling inner cities through intelligent, strategic policies that improve the quality of life for those who live there.

Taking P&Z authority from local government’s centralizes more economic control in Hartford. Is this what we want in our state?

Big government dictating what we should do? After more than a decade’s worth of failed economic policies in Hartford, our citizens deserve better.