THUMB AWARD This Price Isn’t Right

Thumbs down to Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price for his irresponsible conduct in defying a state judge’s order and his stooping to demagoguery in recent months. On the eve of last May’s state primary, state District Judge John M. Marshall ordered The Progressive Voters League-the city’s oldest black political organization-not to politick for thirty days because it foiled to register on time as a political action committee. After the ruling, Price, who heads the organization, promised to defy Marshall’s order, saying “we’re not going to let the white media or anybody else determine what’s going to happen in our community. I’m going to educate my people regardless of what anyone says.” Then, on election day. Price defied the order by passing out campaign literature at the polls, and Judge Marshall had Price jailed for contempt of court. No public official is above the law, which exists for whites and blacks alike. Price’s words and deeds can only turn the social clock backward and further divide Dallasites along racial lines. Maybe they should call it the Regressive Voters League.