Welcome to our next installment of focused conversations with community personalities as we approach the third decade of the 21st century. Here, we speak with lifelong Annapolitan, businessman, and philanthropist Carroll Hynson, Jr.
As a lifetime resident of this city, what has changed most profoundly in Annapolis?
Annapolis has changed from a town where everyone knew everyone to a town where no one knows anyone. It’s now a town of newcomers, of people with different ideals and ideologies, who weren’t around when we were younger.
It’s is now like a bedroom community for Baltimore and Washington. People come here because they think it’s an easy-living area. I also think it tends to be more upscale than it was back in the day. Consequently, and unfortunately, I would call it a city of haves and have nots. There’s a very small middle class here, especially in the African American community.
What is sad now is that if you simply have a high school diploma or a basic bachelor’s degree, you’re going to have problems finding employment here, especially if you’re African American. I’m not saying this because of race relations. Fortunately, there is a very quiet group of successful African Americans who do live here, and I think that will grow.
How will that growth happen?
My hope is, in 2020, that Annapolis will be more inclusive, more engaging, when it comes to welcoming people of all races and diversities here. I do radio in Washington, and I’ve heard people say, “What do we do when we get there? We don’t feel comfortable.” I say, “Why?” I just don’t think enough people from outside of Annapolis know enough about it.
The changes that have come about here seem to have been gradual, not sudden. Is it going better now that we have a new mayor [Gavin Buckley] and a new county executive [Steuart Pittman] in place?
Yes. I believe in both of those gentlemen and their administrations. I think they’re going to make some positive movement insofar as race relations and the image of this city are concerned. Will it change to being more receptive to outside cultures and incomes? I hope so. A good example [of this working] is Richmond, Virginia, which runs ads as “The Harlem of the South,” basically an invitation for people of African American heritage to come there. We could do the same thing.
How would you rate race relations within the city?
I’m not talking about visitors. What about the people who actually live here? The best way I can answer that is, it’s okay. I have friends from all cultures and backgrounds. I can’t say I have more white friends than black friends and vice-versa. It’s pretty much equally dispersed, because I roll like that. As far as the city is concerned, I think there’s still a mild degree of discrimination here, but not radical.
What kinds of things are you talking about?
If you are an African American, I just don’t know if you’re going to get waited on as quickly as a Caucasian person who walks into the same restaurant. At one time in this city, all of the servers were African American. Now, when you go into restaurants and eateries in Annapolis, you don’t see any black servers. I think a lot of that is a cultural change—maybe a statement about not wanting to wait on folks anymore.
One especially good thing is that the schools are now fully integrated. Certain schools still have a predominantly white population, and some schools have predominantly black populations, but kids now are different. Interracial dating and interracial friendships are accepted among the young people. You don’t see as many older people being friends and hanging out together with people of other races.
If I were an outsider, having come here for the first time, I’m not sure I would feel welcome. I’ve had people who moved here and sought me out, saying they don’t feel welcome here. I hope that will change. Of course, I’m not a savior or anything of the sort. But if I could take a magic wand and say, “Annapolis will be engaging for any race, any culture, any person from any background, from the bottom to the top,” That would make me happy.
What does really excite you about what’s going on here? What do you personally tell people to convince them to come?
I tell them to come here and breathe the air, and don’t feel that you are being rejected just because no one says, “Hello.” Having said that, I’ve found that the farther south I go, I feel more engaged with the population than I do here. People speak to everyone down there. “Hello, sir. How are you doing this morning?” With a southern drawl. When there are funeral processions in North Carolina, people on both sides of the road pull over and turn off their lights and their radios in their cars until that funeral procession has passed. There’s a respectful energy in the south, which you wouldn’t think, because the south was supposedly where slavery began, right? And they hate black people down there, don’t they?
Even in the deep south, you get that respectful energy, no matter what color you are, in restaurants and seemingly every place else. I’d like to see that culture, that, “Good morning, sir.”
What can average citizens do to make the city more appealing?
I’ve stood outside my office as people walk by who I know are strangers, and say, “Good morning. Welcome to Annapolis.” And I talk to them about all the great things that they can do, from the top of West Street all the way down to the bottom of Main Street. I invite people to actually come to my office and say, “If you get some time, drive by. I’ll talk to you some more.” I’ve actually had people who stayed at the hotel across the street come back and say, “Well, you said you want to talk.” I enjoy being a self-inflicted spokesperson for the goodness of this city. I emotionally feel very strongly about what good we can do here, to welcome more people here.
How big of a threat is white supremacism? Is it just a few misguided people, as some seem to think?
I happen to be in an industry that is pretty much dominated by non-African Americans. I have not encountered a lot of what you’re talking about, but I always remembered what my mother and my father used to tell me: “If you are African American, you’ve got to be a little better than your counterpart.” So, I strive to do that. I think it’s subtle, but “anti-other” culture is getting stronger.
I know it sounds strange, but I have Caucasian friends who have told me they just don’t like black people. But they like me. And I find that confusing. I say, “Is it because I’m nice?” They say, “No, I’m just not receptive to other people of your race.” I never, ever heard that until maybe two or three years ago. I’ve actually asked them to talk to me about it. They go into why we think we [African Americans] should get certain privileges. To that, I say, “Well, because we believe we should get certain privileges, doesn’t mean we have to have special privileges. But we should have privileges that are equal to yours.” Once again, this brings us to 2020. Unfortunately, I see the white nationalist movement getting more aggressive.
Are you referring to the incidents in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017?
Yes. I don’t see any evidence of it happening here in Annapolis proper. And I use that term very, very definitively—Annapolis proper.
Is Annapolis getting better?
Overall, yes. Racially, no. And I inwardly cry for that. I want to see everybody happy here. I want to see everybody doing their thing and enjoying life. I want to see the folks who are at the lower end of the totem pole be able to enjoy some of the things equally as the people at the top. Will that happen in 2020? I doubt it, but I’d like to see it.
What did you think about Police Chief [Scott] Baker being fired?
I think if the powers that be decide to get rid of a leader, not only in the police force, but any other faction of our operation, I think they have every right to do it. They must have had a good reason. My only thought now is whether whoever replaces him will be a great improvement over what we had. Insofar as what he did and how he did his job, I’m sure they had cause. I worked for many years under Governors Harry Hughes, Parris Glendening, and William Donald Schaefer. And it was called an at-will position, which meant if I wore the wrong necktie to work one day, I could be dismissed without cause, but for a cause. And I liked it, because I knew that if I wasn’t doing a good job, I would be let go. But I survived. I can see why any type of public official who does not basically do his or her job would be terminated. I don’t know if that answers your question.
Let’s talk about housing in the city. What do you think about all the development of apartment complexes and condos in Annapolis and the infrastructure they require?
I think development has probably outpaced the population. We’re getting better with development, but I don’t know if the population increase and economic growth of the population is able to keep up with it.
Are some planners counting on the old adage, “If we build it, they will come?
”That’s a hell of a wager. You can’t predict that. Once again, that’s why it’s important for us to become more engaged and to become more attractive in 2020, to get more people to come here. People are leaving cities like crazy. They’re going to the suburbs. What’s wrong with coming to the Annapolis metropolitan area? It’s a great place to live.