Racism is dealt a blow

There may have been a dash of cynicism on the part of some Augusta commissioners who voted Tuesday to scrap the "gentlemen's agreement" that called for electing a mayor pro tem of the opposite race of the mayor. Even so, the commission should be applauded for doing the right thing.

The agreement had been in effect since the city and county consolidated in 1996. It was a bad idea then, and got no better in the intervening years. Augustans are well rid of it.

Whether it's the people electing a mayor or commissioners electing a mayor pro tem, the same principle should apply: Vote for the best leader. Leadership coupled, of course, with good character, not skin color, always should be the determining factor.

We understand that this is an imperfect world, and that race may never be entirely purged from politics. Nonetheless, it is still an ideal well worth striving for. That ideal is not advanced when the No. 1 factor in selecting a leader is skin pigmentation, not political or governing skills.

With the commission's vote, our community - whose progress has often been stifled by racial divisions - has taken a necessary step to ameliorate those divisions.

No commissioners voted against striking down the agreement, though Marion Williams and Bobby Hankerson abstained. As a result of the vote, Williams, who is black, apparently will be able to serve out his term as mayor pro tem even though the recently named interim mayor, Willie Mays, also is black.

The central role in bringing about the vote was white Commissioner Andy Cheek. Cheek seems eager to be the next mayor pro tem - he's lobbying hard for the post.

But with a good chance that Mays or some other African-American will be elected mayor in November, Cheek may have been motivated in part to strike down the agreement because he wouldn't want the record to suggest he was named the city's No. 2 man simply because he's white.

Yet, if Cheek doesn't want his race to get him the job, then he's counting on his leadership ability. That could be a mistake. Lobbying and self-aggrandizement do not equate to good leadership.

Also of interest is Commissioner Betty Beard, who seconded Cheek's motion. A firm believer in the agreement since consolidation, she now says it's no longer necessary. We hope it's because she believes the community is past the point of having the races "take turns" at leadership - and that merit will now be the measuring stick.

Wasn't that Martin Luther King's dream back in 1963?