A POWER CRISIS: HOW LEADERSHIP FAILS WHEN MORALS ERODE. By Javier Palenque

Power is intoxicating, but for minority leaders in America, it seems to present an even more treacherous slope. The recent criminal charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams represent yet another painful example of a disturbing pattern: when minorities attain power, rather than uplift their communities, they often succumb to the same moral failures that plague the privileged elite they sought to replace. This isn’t just a failure of one individual—it’s a sobering reflection of a broader truth: when minority leaders reach positions of influence, they often become entangled in corruption, destroying the hopes they were meant to embody.

The case of Mayor Adams, a man who was supposed to elevate New York City’s black

communities, is an embarrassment not only to the city but also to the people of his race and all minorities striving for representation. Instead of shining as a beacon of progress, his tenure has devolved into a lesson in squandered potential, a tragic reminder of how easily principles can be cast aside once one sits at the table of power.

But the failure of moral leadership isn’t confined to City Hall. It extends to institutions that operate under a veneer of integrity, like the United States Tennis Association (USTA). This so-called “non-profit” is run by an entrenched, privileged few who have hijacked the sport of tennis, using it to control the game and their welfare while pretending to serve the public good. If there is something they do not do, it is precisely to care for the sport, which is why they got the nonprofit status to begin with. A scam in a few words, a scam.

The USTA, cloaked in the illusion of charity, is no better than a cartel operating with impunity, protected by its wealth and influence while ignoring the very people it claims to support, our kids, youth, coaches, and worst of all our beloved sport, tennis.

And now, the responsibility to confront this widespread abuse of power lies with New York State Attorney General Letitia James, herself a minority leader with a history of taking on powerful adversaries. She has brought down Trump University, shuttered the Trump Foundation, and faced off against the NRA. But will she be able to do the same with the USTA? Or will she, too, fall victim to the temptations of power, seduced by luxury perks, tickets, and the allure of social circles that have brought down so many before her?

The USTA’s leadership is steeped in deception, with its board members implicated in covering way too many hidden sexual abuse cases, lawsuits, and financial revenue schemes that more resemble a Wall Street operation than a non-profit dedicated to youth and community development. ?The sexual abuse cases, not only made headlines for months, but even a 226-page petition had to be filed to get the leadership to act, read it here, it is disgusting.

Their power connection protects them, allowing them to evade scrutiny in a way that minority leaders like Adams can only dream of. Yet, despite their wealth and privilege, it is the minority leaders who are vilified, whose every mistake is magnified, while the old guard continues to operate with impunity in the same city, NYC.

This is the test before Letitia James: will she hold the USTA accountable, revoke its false non-profit status, and dismantle the decades-old network of Klan members who have hijacked a sport for their welfare? Or will she become yet another leader who, when faced with the true weight of power, loses her moral compass? The solution is simple and clear: purge the USTA’s leadership, enforce transparency, and restore integrity to an organization that has long forgotten its mission, to grow the game.

?But to do this, James must resist the allure of complicity, the very temptation that has already ensnared too many minority leaders who sought to do good but instead became part of the problem. Imagine what Mayor Adams did, sell a career for a first-class ticket and accept funds, thinking he would never be caught. These simple things you learn at home, a public servant is supposed to serve, not be served, this is not hard to comprehend, but apparently, it is very hard to comprehend for a few.

The harsh reality is that minority leaders, when handed the reins of power, often fail to meet the moral and ethical standards they once championed. Mayor Adams is only the latest in a series of tragic examples. Whether it’s New York City’s leadership or the USTA, the pattern is the same—those who rise on promises of change become indistinguishable from the corrupt systems they once decried.

America is fast approaching a dangerous precipice, where the few who hold power—whether Ol’ white elites or rising minority figures—are increasingly indistinguishable in their moral failures. Letitia James has the chance to break this cycle, to show that minority leadership does not have to fall into the same traps of corruption and influence. She wanted to run to become a governor, she may still do so, or even more if she does what is right. Let me help her with what is right, enforcing the not-for-profit laws in the books. But if she falters and allows the USTA to continue its charade, she will have joined the ranks of those who failed to handle power with the integrity it demands. This would be another generational failure, what will she do?

And the consequences will be devastating—not just for her, but for the future of minority leadership in this country. Every time a leader from an underrepresented group succumbs to the temptations of power, it reinforces the toxic stereotype that minorities are unfit to lead. This is not just an individual failure; it is a collective tragedy that harms the communities these leaders were meant to uplift. Here are more examples of moral poverty, Senator Bob Menendez, GA attorney Fanni Willis, Governor candidate in NC Mark Robinson, what a bunch!

The ball is now in Letitia James’ court. Will she rise to the challenge and restore integrity to all nonprofits in NY state, or will she, like so many before her, allow the Ol’ Boys system to continue their reign, at the expense of the sport? The answer will define not just her legacy but the future of black leadership in America. Power corrupts, but it doesn't have to. Yet if history is any indication, the odds are bleak.

Another minority leader has fallen. Will Letitia James be next? We will find out sooner or later, but if she does not intervene the USTA, she is giving “carte blanche” for the city to become one step closer to a Banana Republic.

Now that is amazing, a Grand Slam in the middle of a Banana Republic, what is next, the sport to be sold to a Kingdom that denies basic human rights to its people? remember the ATP and WTA finals are soon in a city called Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Ah!, one last thing, this November the election is the choice between the first Black woman in our 246-year-old history and a NYC Queens native, a lot is riding on your decisions Mrs. James, a lot. I hope you understand that doing right is the only choice a smart person would take. You want the right kind of headlines, not like the ones we are reading today.

I SAY NO TO INEPTITUDE AND YES TO GROWING THE GAME.

I can be reached at [email protected]