drum major institute: 2002 annual report
DESCRIPTION
The 2002 Annual Report looks at what the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy has accomplished in less than a year in its latest incarnation. From rebuilding the organizational identity, launching a dynamic web site with original content, organizing several important conversations designed to provide a microphone to progressive thinkers who too often go without one, making an impact on our editorial pages and on the debate over school governance, initiating several important collaborations with top researchers to produce analysis that will serve as tools for legislators to make progressive policy, DMI has shown that it is capable of getting out in front.TRANSCRIPT
2002annual report
DR
UM
MA
JOR
INSTITUTE
FOR
PUBLIC
POLICY
1get ou
t in fron
t
Som
e wonder w
here the Drum
Major Institute, a progressive think tank
intended to offer competition in the m
arketplace of ideas and public policy form
ation, got its name.
When I w
orked in the trenches of the civil rights movem
ent with D
r. Martin
Luther K
ing, he would ask people to stand up and be “drum
majors.” T
hey didn’t need to lead the m
ovement, they needed to set the beat for it. In fact,
in his final sermon at the E
benezer Baptist C
hurch on February 4,1968, Martin
said that “If you want to say that I w
as a drum m
ajor, say that I was a drum
major for justice; say that I w
as a drum m
ajor for peace; say that I was a drum
major for righteousness. A
nd all of the other shallow things w
ill not matter…
I just w
ant to leave a comm
itted life behind.”
In some w
ays, the challenges then were clearer: w
hole comm
unities were disen-
franchised and unprotected against discrimination by the letter of the law
.R
acism w
as prevalent in the language of pro-segregationists,and fears w
ere exploited by politicians on a regular basis.T
hose concerned with social change took to the streets, and
to the courts, to fight for justice.
Today, the challenges are stronger than ever. More than
one in ten Am
ericans live in poverty, itself defined by anem
barrassingly outdated standard, and wealth is increasingly concentrated in
the hands of the very few. M
illions of Am
ericans remain disenfranchised at
the ballot box, our public schools are failing so many children w
ho come from
poor families w
ith no other options, and city leaders pass the homeless and
the working fam
ilies who can’t afford health insurance on their w
ay to pressconferences explaining w
hy taxes on our wealthiest citizens sim
ply cannot be raised.
Yet now
the battles for economic and social justice take place in a different
realm: on the editorial pages, in the reports that reach the desks of our legisla-
tors, in the realm of ideas. A
report by the National C
omm
ittee for Responsive
Philanthropy found that, from 1990
to 2000, the top 20conservative think
tanks in our country spent $1 billion to influence public opinion and thought.A
s Paul Krugm
an writes in a recent N
ew Y
ork Tim
esm
agazine story called“For R
icher”: “The point is that it is no accident that strongly conservative
views, view
s that militate against taxes on the rich, have spread even as
the rich get richer compared w
ith the rest of us: in addition to directly buyinginfluence, m
oney can be used to shape public perceptions.”
While m
any progressives are doing the work to keep the dream
alive for thosew
ho live on the margins—
from providing direct services to advocating for
Get O
ut in Front L
etter from the C
hairman, A
mbassador A
ndrew Y
oung
Our M
issionThe Drum
Major Institute for Public Policy is a non-partisan,non-profit
organization dedicated to challenging the orthodoxies thatimpede the
achievementof social and econom
ic justice.We operate in the spiritof
the civil rights movem
entwith the goal of fostering courageous leadership,
informed citizens,and sound public policy.Energized by the nationally
recognized leadership of Fernando Ferrer,the Institute’s new president,w
e are com
mitted to adding a rigorous progressive voice in the m
arketplace of ideas.
Originally called The Drum
Major Foundation,DM
I was founded by H
arryW
achtel,lawyer and advisor to Rev.Dr.M
artin Luther King,Jr.during the turbulentyears of the civil rights m
ovement.The nam
e comes from
a recurring them
e of Dr.King’s,bestillustrated in a sermon delivered atthe
Ebenezer BaptistChurch shortly before his assassination.
Like Dr.King himself,the Drum
Major Foundation soughtto setthe beat
for the movem
entfor civil rights.The goal of the foundation was to prom
oteour nation’s dem
ocratic values by eliminating the injustices rooted in
ignorance or repression of those values.Itprovided vital assistance to them
ovementthrough fundraising,strategy developm
ent,and legal support.The Foundation played a role in the passage of the Civil Rights Actof 1964and the Voting Rights Actof 1965.
DMI w
as relaunched in 1999 by New
York attorney Bill Wachtel,H
arry’s son,and M
artin Luther King III.The Institute organized several highly successfulforum
s with prom
inentAmericans on the m
ostimportantissues facing us
today:poverty,educational equity,and the digital divide.
Today,the Drum M
ajor Institute for Public Policy offers policymakers and the
media an alternative to the conservative think tanks and policy institutes
thatcurrently dominate the landscape.W
e create much-needed opportunities
for progressive thinkers to share their ideas for better policies.And we offer
our assistance to legislators who w
ish to implem
entthese ideas by providinginsightful research and facilitating expertconversations.O
ur ultimate goal
is to create meaningful social change through justpublic policy.
board of directorsAm
bassador Andrew Young
Chairman
Good W
orks International,llc
Martin Luther King,III
Co-FounderSouthern Christian LeadershipConference
William
B.Wachtel
Co-FounderW
achtel& Masyr,llp
John Catsimatidis
Red Apple Group
Sandra CuneoTrial Law
yers Care
Matthew
GoldsteinCity U
niversity of New
York
RobertF.Kennedy,Jr.W
aterkeeper Alliance
John McConnell
Wachtel& M
asyr,llp
Bernard Nussbaum
Wachtell,Lipton,Rosen & Katz
Dennis Rivera1199/SEIU
New
York
Andrew Young,III
Fernando FerrerPresident
Andrea Batista SchlesingerExecutive Director
From 1990 to 2000,the top 20
conservative think tanks in our country spent$1 billion to influencepublic opinion and thought.
“DM
I will offer a m
uch needed resource to N
ew Y
ork’s policymakers coping w
ith a profound fiscal crisis.” –C
arol O
’Cleireacain
Senio
r Fellow
,The B
roo
king
s Institu
tion
cover photo:Rev. D
r. Martin L
utherK
ing visiting the Fire Island home of
Harry W
achtel, Drum
Major Foundation
founder, in 1967.
dm
i 2002 Accom
plishments
A Unique Approach to Influencing Public Policy
• We partner w
ith top researchers, locally and nationally, to conduct high-quality research.
• We leverage our strategic connections and rich history
to engage policy and opinion makers in our w
ork.
• We offer platform
s to amplify the w
ork of progressive practitioners and thinkers.Im
pact:The Year in Review
Moved the issue of relationships
between com
munities and
schools from periphery to center
to improve schools
DM
I is in the midst of an intensive policy
study, “From G
overnance to Accountability,”
an effort to reframe the school governance
debate from the m
erits of top-down control
to how to restore the critical relationships
between schools and their com
munities. W
ebegan a panel discussion in June and w
ill continue through briefings w
ith legislators,advocates, and the private sector beforereleasing the paper w
ith the NY
U Institute for
Education and Social Policy in D
ecember.
3get ou
t in fron
t
“I’ve known Freddy Ferrer for years as a public
servant, and I’m thrilled that he’s continuing his
comm
itment to social justice by leading the
Drum
Major Institute.”—
Ru
th M
essing
er,Presiden
t,A
merican
Jewish
Wo
rld Service
UFT
President R
andi Weingarten and A
ssemblym
an Roger
Green at D
MI’s June forum
: “School Governance: From
theR
elationship Up.”
2dru
m m
ajor institu
te for public policy
individual pieces of legislation to accomplish goals like raising the m
inimum
wage—
we are losing larger battles in the court of public opinion. L
osing thosebattles m
eans that we are unable to com
municate our m
essage, and thereforecannot inspire the public w
ill that leads to change in the policymaking arena.
I talk to progressives from all over the country w
ho tell me that they are
always playing catch up, responding to the exclusive vision prom
oted by theright. W
e can’t afford to play catch up any longer. We’ve got to get out
in front.
When I w
as a young man w
orking with D
r. King, H
arry Wachtel and a group
of New
York law
yers got out in front of the movem
ent for civil rights byform
ing the Drum
Major Foundation. H
eeding Dr. K
ing’s call to be “drumm
ajors for justice,” it provided vital assistance to the movem
ent throughfundraising, strategy developm
ent, and legal supportfor the C
ivil Rights A
ct of 1964and the V
oting Rights
Act of 1965.
After M
artin’s death, the Institute fell into disrepairlike m
any of the organizations created during them
ovement. B
ut in 1999, the sons of Harry W
achteland R
ev. Dr. M
artin Luther K
ing relaunched it toinspire conversation around the critical questions
of equity and access. Fernando Ferrer, the new president of D
MI, has gotten
out in front by continuing the work that guided his nationally-recognized
career in public office. Mem
bers of our Advisory B
oard, including Bill B
radleyand B
ob Kerrey, and m
y fellow board m
embers, including D
ennis Rivera and
Bernard N
ussbaum, all recognized that w
e need to get out in front. There is
no more im
portant time to have a conversation w
ith alternative voices.
I’m proud of the w
ork that the organization, refocused as the Drum
Major
Institute for Public Policy, has accomplished in less than a year in its new
incarnation. From rebuilding the organizational identity, launching a dynam
icw
eb site with original content, organizing im
portant conversations designed to provide a platform
to progressive thinkers who too often go w
ithout one,m
aking an impact on our editorial pages and on the debate over school gover-
nance, initiating several important collaborations w
ith top researchers to produce analysis that w
ill serve as tools for legislators to make progressive
policy, DM
I has shown that it is capable of getting out in front.
As V
ictor Hugo said, “T
here is one thing stronger than all the armies in the
world, and this is an idea w
hose time has com
e.” The tim
e for the Institute,and its role as a progressive voice to counter the conservative voices thatcurrently dom
inate the landscape, has come.
I hope you will join us as w
e continue to get out in front.
Andrew
Young
I talk to progressives from all over the
country who tell m
e thatthey are always
playing catch up,responding to the exclusive vision prom
oted by the right.W
e can’tafford to play catch up any longer.W
e’ve gotto getoutin front.
5get ou
t in fron
t4
drum
major in
stitute for pu
blic policy
“The D
rum M
ajor Institute combines a
belief in the value of a long term progres-
sive vision with the practical experience
of its President, Fernando Ferrer. Its
unique perspective will m
ake it an indis-pensable partner in crafting the kind of new
policy agenda that the City and
the nation so desperately needs.” —
Miles R
apopo
rtPresid
ent,D
emo
s
Turned our web site into online netw
ork of ideas and argum
ent,and a national resourcefor journalists,activists and legislators
We com
pletely overhauled our web site to include
original content from progressive thinkers on issues
from voting rights to building affordable housing
as well as our ow
n regularly updated Drum
Major
Institute Injustice Index. Our content is publicized
with m
onthly email blasts to our national netw
ork.
drumm
ajorinstitute.org
Contributed to the debate about school governance on our city’s editorial pages
To provide counterpoint to the emphasis on the
structure of the school board, DM
I redirected atten-tion on the editorial pages to the questions m
issingfrom
the dialogue: How
will governance reform
address the prevailing disconnect between schools
and their comm
unities? How
can we engage the
private sector and comm
unities of faith in theeffort to provide m
uch needed resources for ourpublic schools? A
fter the legislation is passed, what
happens next?
He paid the ultim
ate price to win
our right to vote.
Are you going to give that right aw
ay?
Keeping the dream
alive
If you don’t vote,
you don’t count.
If you don’t vote,
you don’t count. D
RU
MM
AJO
RIN
STITUTEFO
RPU
BLICPO
LICY
Provided a platform to progressive
thinkers who have put
their values into practice
In September 2002, D
MI launched an innovative
breakfast discussion series designed to highlightthinkers w
ith solutions to the challenge that face us.T
he first speaker was Steven B
ingler, nationally recognized for his innovations in com
munity-based
planning and design of school buildings. This dis-
cussion is especially relevant as New
York C
ity andother urban centers confront the need for m
assivenew
school construction and better ways of m
axi-m
izing our existing resources.
Organized successful benefit
with president clinton
President William
Jefferson Clinton presented
Am
bassador Andrew
Young w
ith the Drum
Major
Institute’s Living L
egends Aw
ard for his lifelong com
mitm
ent to social and economic justice.
Accepting the aw
ard were M
artin Luther K
ing III,C
o-Founder of the Institute, and Andrew
Young
III. In his address, Clinton said: “T
he work of
the Drum
Major Institute needs to becom
e a more
urgent priority for our nation.”
Launched “if you don’t vote,you don’t count”national psa cam
paign
The A
d Council officially endorsed D
MI’s “If
you don’t vote, you don’t count” public servicecam
paign to increase voter turnout. The PSA
ran on 23
network affiliated television stations reach-
ing four million hom
es across the United States,
and contributed to record turn-out in New
ark,Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. A
print version alsoran on the side of 120
public telephone kiosksthroughout N
ew Y
ork City.
Impact:The Year in Review
continued
September 26 launch of D
MI Speaker Series w
ith StevenB
ingler and Manhattan B
orough President C
. Virginia Fields
President C
linton presenting Drum
Major to A
ndrew Y
oung,Jr., w
ith Martin L
uther King, III, D
MI C
o-Founder Bill
Wachtel, and Fernando Ferrer.
7get ou
t in fron
t6
drum
major in
stitute for pu
blic policy
Contributors
“I am proud to be a founding sponsor and B
oard m
ember of the D
rum M
ajor Institute. I know that
Freddy Ferrer and the Institute can bring progressivestogether around an agenda for econom
ic justice.”
—D
enn
is Rivera,Presid
ent
Lo
cal 1199 SEIU
New
Yo
rk
FOU
NDERS CIRCLE
[$50,000 and above]W
illiam W
achtelD
ennis Rivera,SEIU 1199
Health Insurance Plan of G
reater New
York
BENEFACTO
RS [$25,000 - $49,999]PennsylvaniaM
anufacturers’Association
United Federation ofTeachers
SPON
SORS
[$10,000 - $24,999]W
ilbur BreslinJohn Catsim
atidisInsignia/ESG
,Inc.John and N
ancy Mulheren
New
York National Bank
Burton P.ResnickSEIU
32B-32JJam
es Sprayregen
PATRON
S [$5,000 - $9,999]AFSCM
EPeter D
avorenD
elcal Enterprises,Inc.Daniel KeatingM
annkraft CorrugatedPackaging & D
isplaysLenard and Fern TesslerD
onald Trump
Vesper FoundationEdw
ard Wenger
PARTNERS
[$1,000 – $4,999]N
ancy AronsonAutom
ated Wagering
InternationalW
illiam Beslow
Carver Federal Savings BankCentral Parking SystemAbe and Barbara Chehebar
FoundationChernoff D
iamond & Co.,llc
John ClarkCom
mercial Envelope
Manufacturing Co.,Inc.
Comm
unications Workers
of America
Earl G.G
raves Ltd.Con EdisonStuart Edelm
anFisher BrothersFood W
orld,Ltd.Robert ForanLaw
rence and JacquelynKam
inKorstein Veisz W
exler & Pollard
Levy,Ratner & BehrooziLouis and Barbara LiebhaberLocal 372 AFSCM
EChris M
cNickle
New
Britain Baseball Club,Inc.
New
York State Dem
ocratic Com
mittee
One Step U
pAlbert PanicciaPom
erantz Haudek Block
Grossm
an & Gross
Martin Rosenm
anJam
es RyanW
illiam Schur
Randolph SilversteinRandi Sim
onSteven TerkAlvin TrenkVitelli FoodsW
intonclyff ProtectiveServices
Judith Zabar
FRIENDS
[up to $1,000]ADM
Group,Inc.
Advent Capital Managem
entAssociated Builders and
Ow
nersRae Alexander-M
interRobert BerendBruce Brickm
anThe Cam
br CharitableFoundation
J.Emilio Carrillo and
Yvette Ortiz
Comm
unity PreservationCorporation
William
ConlonH
enry and Robin Daas
David & Shirley Fromer
FoundationStephen D
eangelisD
istrict Council 37O
lga Dom
inguezSilvia Elm
owitz
Mark Epstein
Ricardo and Patricia Fernandez
Robert and Louann Frome
Arie Genger
Gentile & D
icklerM
ichael Gill
Peter Ginsberg
Gordon Brothers Retail
PartnersM
arc Ian Gross
Jack and Bernice Hoffinger
David Hoffm
anH
.Thomas H
ogan,Jr.IBEW
Local 3Robert Jackm
anBuddy JohnsonM
arina P.and Stephen E.Kaufm
anSusan KrauseSteven LevyRenan M
azorraM
azorra Business ServicesDavid M
eitus and AngelaW
estwater
Thomas K.M
interW
illiam M
odellM
orrison & Foerster
New
York State Naral
FoundationZeva O
elbaum and John
Reichman
Jim O
’ReillyO
lshan Grundm
an Frome
& Rosenzweig
Jefrey Pollock and D
eborah Brown
Samuel and D
iane Ramirez
Louis RiosM
ichael SchaedleSharp CapitalJonathan SilvanN
athaniel SingerSouthern N
ew York
AssociationArthur SteinbergRoy SteinbockSw
idler Berlin ShereffFriedm
an FoundationTransport W
orkers Union,
Local 100U
ncle Nick’s Restaurant
Wavecrest M
anagement
TeamJerom
e Waxenberg
Wilbur W
ederKathryn W
yldeLori ZabarJay and Idyth Zim
bler
DM
I Board M
ember D
ennisR
ivera with A
nthony Watson,
CE
O of H
IP.
“The challenges to overcom
ing poverty in this nation are great. W
e need a voice in policymaking concerned
with m
aking budget policy that is just and equitable.”
—Sen
ator B
ill Brad
ley
Looking A
head G
etting Out in Front: 2003
If the year 2002show
ed us anything, it was a vacuum
of progressive ideas.D
MI’s goal for 2003
is to fill that void with a clear agenda inform
ed by thew
ork of top-tier thinkers and supported by a constituency of private sector leaders, labor unions, academ
ics and practitioners.
Improve schools by restoring critical relationships betw
een schools and com
munities.
• With the N
ational Center for Schools and C
omm
unities, DM
I is working to
catalyze a national effort that re-engages comm
unities of faith, particularly inurban, low
-income com
munities, to provide leadership to transform
isolatedattem
pts at school reform into next phase of civil rights m
ovement.
• We are w
orking with policym
akers, comm
unity organizations and the private sector in N
ew Y
ork City to m
ake schools and districts accountable for building the relationships w
ith parents and comm
unities that are critical totheir success.
Lead conversation on those mostdeeply affected by econom
ic hard times.
• With the N
ew School, D
MI w
ill produce research and facilitate conversationsthat ask: To w
hat extent is a fair balance, between carrying the burden of
financing government and benefiting from
its spending, critical to our long-term
economic stability?
• We w
ill organize a Speakers Series highlighting elected officials who have
governed by progressive values in times of fiscal distress w
ith success.
• We have com
missioned a study on the role of N
ew Y
ork City new
spapers in shaping public perceptions of class conflict.
Facilitate the creation of a progressive agenda for New
York City.• D
MI convened focus groups on public education, crim
inal justice, poverty,and civil and hum
an rights that demonstrated the need to articulate a long-
term vision for a progressive N
ew Y
ork City. D
MI w
ill lead the effort to develop a progressive agenda by uniting progressives w
ith message and
strategy experts.
We w
ill continue to expand our web site w
ith original content, produce and circulate our Injustice Index, organize Speakers Series events to highlight progressive thinkers and contribute to the editorial pages on issues of econom
icand social justice.
Fernando Ferrer with R
osannaD
urruthy of Vivendi U
niversalat N
ovember gathering.
8dru
m m
ajor institu
te for public policy
The intransigence of social problem
s shows that
the old policies have not been universally effective. W
e need to gather data, create long-term agendas
and coherently and effectively comm
unicate a different vision.
The D
rum M
ajor Institute for Public Policy asks for leadership and support to:
• sustain our projects, which w
ill make m
uch-need-ed contributions to debates about issues of social and econom
ic justice while identifying a
constituencyfor our w
ork.
• turn our web site into a thriving online netw
ork of ideas and argum
ent, and a national resourcefor journalists, activists, and legislators.
• increase and expand the Institute’s series of publicevents, providing m
icrophones to progressivethinkers from
across the country.
I look forward to the opportunity to w
ork with
you, and to lead the Drum
Major Institute as w
eturn your valuable contributions into im
pact.
Like D
r. King’s m
etaphorical drum m
ajor for justice and peace, w
on’t you get out in front?
Fernando Ferrer
The work of the D
rum M
ajor Institute is to sponsorfrank dialogue aboutthe problem
s facing us—in
areas of education and social and economic justice—
and cultivate solutions.We w
ill offer policymakers
and the media an alternative to the conservative
think tanks and policy institutes thatcurrently domi-
nate the landscape.We w
ill create much-needed
opportunities for progressive thinkers to share theirideas for better governance.W
e will offer our assis-
tance to legislators who w
ish to implem
enttheseideas,w
ith the goal of creating meaningful social
change and justpublic policy.
I wantto supportthe w
ork of the Drum
Major Institute.
Here is m
y tax deductible contribution of$..........................
made payable to the D
rum M
ajor Institute.
�� ��Please send m
e information on upcom
ing events.
NA
ME
AD
DR
ESS
CIT
Y
STATE
ZIP
PH
ON
E
FAX
EMA
IL
keeping the dream alive
“The w
ork of the Drum
Major Institute needs
to become a m
ore urgent priority for ournation.”
—Presid
ent W
illiam Jefferso
n C
linto
n
It is an honor to serve as President of the D
rum M
ajor Institute for PublicPolicy. M
y comm
itment to protecting and extending the gains of the civil
rights movem
ent is deeply personal; I was able to attend college because
of a scholarship created in honor of Dr. K
ing’s mem
ory, after his assassination.
In more than tw
o decades of public service work, I have seen that the dream
sof equality, fairness and justice that inspired the civil rights m
ovement
have not been wholly achieved. T
he problems of poverty, racism
and disen-franchisem
ent are still with us.
People are hungry for new approaches to public policy that are based on princi-
plesof fairness, justice and equality. Y
et, inserting a progressive viewpoint
into public debate is increasingly difficult. Policy institutes and think tanks on the other side of the political spectrum
are well funded, highly organized,
and media-friendly. Y
ou see them represented on the editorial pages and the
Sunday morning talk show
s. But m
ost importantly, you see those opinions
reflected in the making of policy.
Recently, the D
rum M
ajor Institute sponsored a series of focus groups invit-ing people in the forefront of social change to discuss broader issues of policy
formation. O
ver and over, participants expressed a need to change the term
s of the public policy debate and insertprogressive values. O
ver and over they lamented that the
demands of providing direct services and organizing grass-
roots actions leave them unable to do anything but react to
the actions of the right.
Clearly, there is a need for leadership for a progressive
agenda—expressed in a thoughtful and constructive m
anner. It is possible tocreate successful public policy based on values other than sm
all government
and the expansion of free markets. For fourteen years I had the privilege of
serving as Borough President of the B
ronx. During that period the B
ronx was
home to the largest urban rebuilding effort in the country, later recognized
by the National C
ivic League w
ith the prestigious All-A
merica C
ity Aw
ard.
The policy voices at the other end of the political spectrum
have had theadvantage in public discourse for a num
ber of years. While it is unfortunate
that progressives have been absent from the debate for so long, there is
opportunity here as well.
Get O
ut in Front Fernando Ferrer Joins the D
rum M
ajor Institute
The intransigence of social problems
shows thatold policies have not
been universally effective.We need to
comm
unicate a differentvision.
DR
UM
MA
JOR
INSTITUTE
FOR
PUBLIC
POLICY
110 East59th Street28th Floor N
ew York N
Y10022
tel 212.909.9663 fax 212.909.9493 drum
majorinstitute.org
“If you w
ant to say that I was a drum
major,
say that I was a drum
major for justice
;
say that I was a drum
major for peace
;
say that I was a drum
major for
righteousness. A
nd all of the
other shallow things w
ill not matter.…
I just want to leave a com
mitted life behind.”
dr.m
artin lu
ther kin
g,jr.
ebenezer baptist ch
urch
february 4,1968