Dillon, Bernero both have had contacts with alleged black separatist

Last week the Virg Bernero campaign for governor released — and then retracted — an announcement that the Lansing mayor had been endorsed by Minister Malik Shabazz, the alleged black separatist leader of the New Black Panther Nation/Marcus Garvey Movement in Detroit.

Since then, the issue of which campaign had more involvement with Shabazz has become a flashpoint between the two campaigns. Even before the endorsement was retracted as inaccurate, while the Dillon campaign was slamming Bernero for having been endorsed by the controversial and militant leader, Bernero spokesman Jamaine Dickens told the Michigan Messenger that Shabazz had met with the leaders of both campaigns.

Shabazz confirmed that in a phone interview with the Messenger’s Ed Brayton, saying, “We were invited to a planning meeting, a steering meeting of the campaign at the building on Woodward and West Grand Boulevard. That’s where [Dillon's] steering committee meets. I’ve met with Andy Dillon, I’ve met with Mayor Bernero.”

Andy Dillon’s spokesman T.J. Bucholz originally issued a blanket denial Monday night about anyone on the Dillon team meeting with Shabazz.

“We’ve never sat down with anyone named Malik Shabazz,” said Bucholz in a phone interview. “What Jamaine Dickens is saying is an outright lie.”

But Shabazz provided the names of four Dillon campaign team members who were present at the meeting with Shabazz, and Michigan Messenger asked Bucholz about this.

Bucholz got back to Messenger Thursday, and confirmed that campaign staff had met with Shabazz, but disagreed with how the meeting was being characterized.

“[Shabazz] did meet with about 40 or 50 people at a community meeting in Detroit,” Bucholz said Thursday. “But it is important to remember there is a big difference between meeting people, and announcing their endorsements, which the Bernero campaign has done.”

But Shabazz says that this meeting was with Dillon himself and his steering committee and said, “Dillon came over to me after the meeting and shook my hand and told me he agreed with 80% of what I had to say. I told him 80% was good.”

Bucholz said he would confer with Dillon and find out if that was accurate and get back to us. As of Sunday night, there was no follow up.

When asked how Shabazz’ name had shown up on a list of endorsements, Dickens said, even after the controversy had been sparked over the issue, “We wanted his endorsement.” He said he ended up on the list because Shabazz “wasn’t clear” that he would not be endorsing anyone during a conversation with Dickens.

We leave it to the readers to decide for themselves who is more credible in this tangle of evolving denials, non-denials and retractions.

Malik Shabazz did not deny being a black separatist, but he did explain his views in some detail in that phone conversation.