Inevitable Process

The commentary expressed by Al Ducheny and Robert Tambuzi, “Who Can Best Lead The Disenfranchised?” (July 23) is highly illustrative of the dilemmas faced by any individual or group of individuals who seek any type of change in marginalized communities.

Yet I don’t think the authors were fair with the black and Chicano leadership in San Diego. These leaders know that if they fail to dance according to the system’s tune, they will lose funds their communities need in order to keep from sinking into even further deterioration.

I agree with the authors that “we cannot defer political leadership to providers of services, who by nature must be in good graces with the standing administration in order to be funded,” but as long as our people continue to be trapped in the vicious cycle of broken and unloving homes, deficient and overcrowded schools, high dropout levels among our culturally confused and alienated youth, unemployment, unwed motherhood, welfare and crime, what other viable alternatives exist?

Bureaucratization and subsequent exclusion are not only the province of governmental intrusion; these features are also found in community planning groups run by business and religious organizations. It seems to be an inevitable process of human interaction.

In an imperfect world, in which effective leadership is seldom accompanied by sainthood, members of underrepresented ethnic groups must learn to live with both the limitations and advantages of seeking leadership and, if possible, try to speak with our own individual voices for the defense of our own interests.

RAMON OCEGUERA

San Diego