Miller Dawkins, despite his crimes, was an African-American hero

A A A Comments (12) By Luther Campbell Thursday, Aug 12 2010

Uncle Luke, the man whose booty-shaking madness once made the U.S. Supreme Court stand up for free speech, gets as nasty as he wants to be for Miami New Times. This week, Luke remembers Miami Commissioner Miller Dawkins, who died early this month.

C. Stiles

More About

One of Miller Dawkins's legacies is Charles Hadley Park in Liberty City, which was directly across the street from his house. I always found it interesting that he pushed to install an Olympic-size pool at Hadley when most of the people in the community wanted a recreation building and a football stadium. But Dawkins wanted kids to be versatile beyond popular sports like football and basketball. In addition to the pool, Dawkins made sure Hadley Park got some of the most beautiful tennis courts in Miami-Dade County. He believed tennis and swimming would broaden kids' horizons. He was always looking out for the children. It didn't matter if they were black, white, or Hispanic.

He made that pool so that everyone in the city of Miami could use it. He wanted whites and Hispanics to come to Hadley, which is happening to this day. You have people from all over Miami using that pool.

Anytime I went to Miami City Hall to meet with him about supporting the Liberty City Optimist Club, Dawkins came through for the program and the kids. He was there for the elderly too, ensuring that the senior center at Hadley was built. His wife still plays an instrumental role on the seniors' board at Hadley Park. She is leading the charge to keep his legacy going.

If it wasn't for Dawkins, Miami would not have had its first African-American police chief, its first African-American city attorney, its first African-American city clerk, and its first African-American city manager. But he had the respect of everyone. He was elected city commissioner at a time when there were no single-member districts.

Just like every other commissioner from Miami's District 5, he got into trouble. In 1997, he pleaded guilty to taking $30,000 in bribes and was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison. Yet the good Dawkins did for the community outweighs the bad.

Remember, there is only one black on the city commission, and there has never been a black mayor. In the black community, people saw Dawkins as the underdog fighting the establishment. When he got out of prison, you would never have known he had been gone and that he was no longer the commissioner. For the folks living in District 5, Miller Dawkins was a hero.

Follow Luke on Twitter: @unclelukereal1.

Check out this week's featured ad for News

SoBe Finest

View Ad View Website

More Ads >>

Email
to Friend

Write to
Editor

Print
Article

Enough Stealing 08/17/2010 6:42:00 PM

When people glorify elected officials who steal from their constituents you encourage more elected officials to steal from their constituents. Luther, You want more black elected officials to steal from black people? Call the criminals "African-American heros".
Gilberto Rodriguez 08/13/2010 7:59:00 PM

Right you are, on some points. Miller Dawkins for his lifetime of service to the community deserves a lot of credit, particularly as you very well point out, when there is only one black citizen in a city of so many. And further when the citizens on this part of the country expect commissioners to serve them on all their needs an wants 24 hours a day and seven days a week for free, no salary no pay. Would I be able to do it on that pay? Sure as daylight no, I am poor, so the only alternatives are let the rich rule and the thief still and sell out. Miller Dawkins, I grant you was a good man, but his family had to eat. Le me see one hand raised to agree to pay the commissioners for their work, or for that matter, volunteer to take his place for free. None to count. Now. On the other hand, I necer saw a gun pointed to Miller Dawkins head to force him to volunteer his services for fiv o six thousand a year. And he took many a oaths to serve and comply. He wanted it, he won it, and he did it. I can find no forgivenes in my heart for his deed. Sorry, good man. Maybe you were not when I voted for you. You betrayed me. All te good deeds are now suspect. Let me leave it there, Miller, rest in peace.
JIM DOUGHERTY 08/13/2010 1:11:00 AM

I SERVED TIME IN THE SAME FEDERAL PRISON AS MILLER.MILLER WAS A GREAT AFRICAN AMERICAN,A SHINING EXAMPLE TO THE BLACK MEN OF FLORIDA FOR COURAGE,COMPASSION AND FORGIVENESS.WHEN I HAD NO MONEY FOR COMMISSARY FOOD,MILLER EVERY WEEK HAD ICE CREAM,NACHO CHIPS ,AND PRIESTLY ADVICE.''JIM DONT WRECK WHATS LEFT OF YOUR LIFE IN RAGE OVER A CHICKEN S T CHARGE OF WIRE FRAUD THAT YOU DIDNT COMITT USE YOUR SKILLS TO HELP THE BALCK MEN OF THEIR APPEALS -HELP THEM CUT YOUR SENTENCE '' IDID AND WON 3 OUT OF 18- MILLER SPOKE UP WHEN THE WARDEN THREATENED TO CUT VISITATION BECAUSE THE VISTATION ROOM WAS FILTHY-''HOW CAN WE CLEAN IT WHEN YOU WONT GIVE US THE MATERIALS TO CLEAN THE GD ROOM WHEN THE GUARDS STEAL AND SELL THE CLEANING MATERIALS? MILLER ALONE CHALLANED THE WARDEN WHO DID NOT ANSWER HIM-NEXT DAY MILLER DAWKINS WAS PUT ON THE STEAM TABLE IN 100 DEGREE HEAT -STANDING ON BAD LEGS TO CLEAN REAL SLOP FROM TRAYS -I CAN SEE HIM SWEATING LOOKING AT ME AND SMILING ''JIM HOW DOES IT FEEL FOR AN IRISHMAN TO BE IN WITH AND TREATED LIKE A BLACK MAN''?NO MIAMI COMMISSIONERS EVER CAME TO VISITMILLER EXCEPT CONGRESSWOMAN CARRIE MEEKS NOT EVEN THE FORMER CITY ATTORNEY OF MIAMI-LUCIA DOUGHERTY- MILLER STORIES OF KINDNESS AND HUMOR STILL INSPIRE ME TODAY-SOME OF MY BEST MEMORIES OF A 78 MONTH SENTENCE FOR A CRIME I DID NOT COMMITT WERE TO SIT WITH MILLER AND FIVE BLACK MEN AT LUNCH AND LISTEN TO A GREAT AND HOLY GUY GIVE ALL OF US INSPIRATION AND EVERY WEDNESDAY AN EMBRACE FROM MILLER AFTER A N ICE CREAM AND BAG OF NACHOS- ON MY LAST DAY MILLER SAID''WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR FACE TODAY REMEMBER YOU DIDNT RAT FOR THE US ATTORNEYS -YOU WENT THROUGH A 2 MONTH TRIAL IN FRONT OF A GAY JUDGE CONVICTED AFTER THE US ATTORNEYS LET THE RAT VICENTE VALLS ESCAPE AFTER PLEADING GUILTY TO MONEY LAUNDERING THEY HID EXCULPATORY TAPE RECORDINGS ON YOU BUT USED TAPES AGAINST ME BUT THEY DIDNT BREAK YOUR SPIRIT ,,YOUR WORD OR YOUR BALLS,-I LOVE YOU JIM DOUGHERTY DONT FORGET TO DO GOOD NOW THAT YOU ARE A BLACK IRISH AMERICAN'' I MISS MILER DAWKINS I CRIED WHEN I HEARD THE NEWS - WOULD THAT MORE MILLER DAWKINS HELD OFFICE IN MIAMI=JIM DOUGHERTY REG NO 48392-OO4-I LOVE YOU MILLER
pumpsiegreen 08/12/2010 8:14:00 PM

At least he pled guilty and did some time ,unlike the coward Art Teele,who chose the easy way out,by blowing out his brains in the Miami Heralds lobby...
Dawkins was a crook 08/12/2010 8:05:00 PM

Miller Dawkins was a crook. Of course he plead guilty fast. There were dozens more charges. Arthur Teele, Dorrin Role, Spence-Jones, Barbara Carey-Schuler... Long line of crooks. Luther Campbell needs to do a google search before he writes.
Charles 08/12/2010 3:58:00 PM

Dawkins was a crook...period....don't put him in a shrine
Jerry 08/12/2010 6:03:00 AM

OHHHH Luther, you should have done your homework before you wrote this, or maybe it's your way of "satire" !!?? Miller only got convicted of a fraction of what he did. That case was the easiest one to bring to court, that's why the US Attorney did it, to get the slam dunk and remove him quickly. He got some things done, only and only because he had DIRT on the others. During his tenure and that of the others of that time period the amount of corruption in Miami was "unbelievable". The commission was on the take, the cops were on the take, the building dept was corrupt from top to bottom, that's why the Fire Dept. took it over in a public coup, it was the ONLY dept. that was not corrupt !!! BUT as soon as the Latin Builder's Assoc. got the payoffs to the right people the Building Dept was yanked away from the Fire Dept. You see the Fire Personnal would not take bribes and were doing "too good" of a job, hindering all the construction corruption. He-l, back then the entire South Florida was corrupted in some way. This guy is NO hero to anyone, definately NOT a role model. Next time Luther do your homework and speak the truth, rather than doing the very same as Black leaders are accustomed to doing, throwing out the race card.
JON 08/11/2010 9:34:00 PM

Here is the racist tea party bitching like babies at Luke becuaue they are jealous of him. Go jerk off to Hannity you freaking wimps. Always bitch to bitch, nothing nice to say at what he writes. You guys are a joke. I would love to meet you and laugh at you for being bitches on the computer.
954man 08/11/2010 8:22:00 PM

Ahh...just another example of how crooked black politicians get a pass just because they are black..Jesse Jackson, Marion Barry, Charles Rangel, Maxine Waters, Martin Luther King, etc. Black folks just love to play the race card. Sickening.
No more stealing 08/11/2010 6:21:00 PM

Luther Campbell should be ashamed. Miller Dawkins was another in a long line of black politicians who used their positions to steal from the public. How many times did Miller Dawkins steal and not get caught? Why did he plead guilty so fast? Were there other charges right around the corner? Isn't Luther Campbell just encouraging more black politicians to steal from their communities? Just imagine if Miller Dawkins and Dorrin Rolle and Spence-Jones Richard Dunn never stole from the public? Parks would have money to expand.
Publius 08/11/2010 7:40:00 AM

You know I frequently catch your articles and needless to say I am always appalled by your views and opinions. It pains me to know that the New Times would ever associate with such a pompous writer. Furthermore, your articles sometimes border on offensive and I know my comment will have little impact in your writing but I wish for you to be keenly aware that some of us feel you're full of hot air. To comment on the matters discussed in this article its a wonder crooked commissioners find themselves reelected in this city time and time again. So much emphasis on race that the values of the community get washed away in racial politics. Shame on you for promoting this behavior.
apolloc 08/10/2010 10:04:00 PM

They dont make them like they use to he will be missed by all what a great man and a hero to all. Rest in peace you were a good and faithful servant to GOD and people. Thanks :)