Think local, buy local

We were disappointed recently when a flyer announcing a Democratic Party rally came into our newsroom. It promised free barbecue to all who attended.

Now we don’t have anything against free food — get it while it’s hot, as far as we’re concerned. What made us shake our heads in disbelief is that our local Democrats had their event catered by a Little Rock restaurant.

To us, that’s like buying salsa made in New York City. It just won’t do.

The flier included the names of some very prominent local politicians, as well as a political newcomer. Jefferson County Judge-elect Hank Wilkins IV, Rep. Vivian Flowers and Dorothy Hall, a candidate for the District 10 Arkansas House seat, were the promised event headliners, the flier said.

While we know that all of these individuals are fine people, we have to wonder why they didn’t see to it that their event was catered by a local business. Local businesses are the backbone of our community. See, we don’t have many of those fancy chains like they do in the big cities. Small businesses work hard to attract customers, and this event could have been a great opportunity for one of our local restaurants to make a good chunk of cash.

That cash would have then gone toward local taxes. It would have made its way to local banks, to local stores, gas stations and into the pockets of other hardworking local people.

Taking your money to Little Rock doesn’t do anyone any good in Pine Bluff and Jefferson County. We would like the organizers of this Democratic event to think long and hard about this in hopes that next time they will put Pine Bluff first.

This isn’t the only example of big events snubbing our city, either.

A few weeks ago, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff opted to host one of their most prestigious events in Little Rock.

The annual Legends and Legacies event, which raises money for scholarships, is something we wholeheartedly support.

However, we believe that holding a premier event for UAPB in Little Rock is wrong.

We can’t help but question UAPB leaders about why they decided not to hold this gala event in their home city. It looks bad to us, especially at a time when everyone is trying to build up Pine Bluff and promote it to the world as a place where good things are happening.

We are certain that Bob Purvis and the fine folks at the Pine Bluff Convention Center could have done a bang-up job hosting this event. Not to mention it would have brought hundreds of people to our community, along with tax dollars at places such as gas stations.

We were told by UAPB officials that a decision was made to host the gala in Little Rock after the Clinton Presidential Center offered the university a premier space inside the facility. That, coupled with the fact that UAPB played Jackson State at War Memorial Stadium that weekend in Little Rock, made for a great tie-in, UAPB officials told us.

We get it.

The Clinton Center has a certain bling appeal that, quite frankly, can’t be found down in our neck of the woods. And with UAPB hoping to raise multiple thousands of dollars for scholarships, perhaps donors’ wallets may become a bit more loose in the confines of a presidential palace. But we doubt it.

So here is our suggestion to all local entities, politicians and any other public figures who may be thinking about hosting an event. Keep it in Pine Bluff. Buy from our restaurants and stores. Perception matters. Most of all, though, our local businesses matter. Please support them.