The Architect’s Great-Niece
(BALTIMORE – July 2026) — Where I come from, we didn’t make excuses.
We took the hand we were dealt.
We learned gratitude for what we had.
We studied.
We worked.
We saved.
We prayed.
We respected our elders.
We were taught to say “Yes, ma’am.”
“No, sir.”
“Excuse me.”
“Thank you.”
And we were taught something else that seems to get lost today.
Leadership is responsibility.
Responsibility carries consequences.
And no community survives very long unless its people understand one simple truth:
Your neighbor is your natural ally.
You don’t have to agree on everything.
You don’t even have to like each other every day.
But when it comes to protecting your community, building institutions, and advancing your people, unity matters.
That lesson built Black Baltimore.
It also explains why I believe the 2026 election cycle represented more than another political contest.
It marked the passing of one generation—and the emergence of another.
Two Giants Leave the Stage
During this election cycle, Baltimore lost two remarkable men.
Herb Brown.
Pat Scott.
Each represented a different chapter in the story of Black political power.
Herb Brown was a World War II veteran, entrepreneur, founder of the Mondawmin Travel Agency, and one of the co-founders of the Vanguard Organization, which helped elect pioneering Black leaders, including the late State Senator Verda Welcome. His influence reached far beyond business. For decades, he quietly helped shape the civic and political landscape of Northwest Baltimore.
Pat Scott belonged to a later generation of respected political strategists associated with what many in Baltimore came to call the original Goon Squad—an informal network of organizers, clergy, educators, campaign operatives, and political thinkers who understood that winning elections was only part of the mission. Building institutions was the larger goal.
With their passing, Baltimore didn’t simply lose two respected elders.
We lost two links to an era that helped build modern Black political power.
But history has a way of producing new builders.
The Architect’s Great-Niece
Long before Malcolm Ruff defeated incumbent State Senator Dalya Attar, I attended his campaign announcement in Leakin Park.
It was a strong gathering.
Former Delegate Curt Anderson.
Former Senator Jill P. Carter.
Community elders.
Young professionals.
Future leaders.
One of those future leaders was Chezia Cager.
Most people knew her as a first-time candidate for delegate.
I saw something else.
I saw Herb Brown’s great-niece.
I saw someone who had inherited more than a family name.
She had inherited a tradition of service.
While running her own campaign, Chezia became one of the driving forces behind Malcolm Ruff’s historic Senate campaign.
Around the campaign, she became what many affectionately called Malcolm’s “work wife.”
She helped organize.
She helped raise money.
She coordinated.
She solved problems.
She kept things moving.
Campaigns don’t win themselves.
The public sees the candidate.
Those of us who’ve been around politics long enough know there’s always a team behind the victory.
Dreaming the Impossible
I’ll admit something.
When Malcolm Ruff first discussed challenging Senator Dalya Attar, I encouraged him to run for delegate instead.
It seemed like the practical choice.
After all, here was a newly appointed delegate preparing to challenge an incumbent senator.
That was before news of Attar’s federal indictment became public.
On paper, it looked like a long shot.
Malcolm Ruff believed.
Chezia Cager believed.
Their team believed.
And together they produced one of Baltimore’s most significant political victories in recent memory, as Ruff defeated Attar with nearly 60 percent of the vote.
Watching it unfold reminded me of another watershed moment.
In 2002, after court-ordered redistricting transformed the 41st Legislative District into a majority-Black district, Lisa Gladden defeated one of Annapolis’s most powerful legislators, Senate Budget and Taxation Chair Barbara Hoffman.
Some elections don’t simply change officeholders.
They change political eras.
The New Goon Squad
As I watched this campaign unfold, I couldn’t help but think about Herb Brown.
Then I thought about Pat Scott.
One represented the Vanguard generation.
The other represented the generation many Baltimoreans knew as the Goon Squad.
Both understood something that every successful political movement eventually learns:
Real power is built long before Election Day.
It’s built through relationships.
Organization.
Discipline.
Fundraising.
Message.
Strategy.
And institutions.
That’s why, in my view, Chezia Cager is part of what I call Baltimore’s new Goon Squad.
Not because there’s an official organization.
There isn’t.
Not because anyone appointed her.
They didn’t.
But because she represents a new generation of Black political strategists who understand that campaigns are about far more than yard signs and election returns.
They are about building leaders.
Building trust.
Building institutions.
And ensuring that political victories translate into stronger neighborhoods, stronger businesses, and greater opportunity.
Carrying the Legacy Forward
A year ago, more than one hundred people as Ashburton dedicated Herb Brown Way in honor of a man whose fingerprints remain all over Black Baltimore.
Chezia stood there, too.
She reminded everyone that we should celebrate our elders while they’re still here to hear the applause.
None of us knew then how soon that lesson would become even more meaningful.
Today, Herb Brown is gone.
Pat Scott is gone.
But their work continues.
It continues every time a young leader chooses service over self-interest.
Every time someone organizes instead of complains.
Every time someone helps build an institution instead of simply seeking a title.
Why We Honor Chezia Cager
The Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards have never been about popularity.
They have always been about builders.
People who strengthen communities.
People who open doors for others.
People who understand that success is measured not only by what you accomplish, but by what you leave behind.
Chezia Cager has already demonstrated those qualities.
She possesses the intellect.
The discipline.
The work ethic.
And the political instincts to help shape Baltimore’s next chapter.
For her leadership, her commitment to community, and her role in one of the most consequential political campaigns in Baltimore in recent years, BMORENews is proud to recognize Chezia Cager as a Joe Manns Black Wall Street Award honoree at the Black Wall Street Summit: National Black Business Month Edition on August 5, 2026. RSVP to RSVP to https://blackwallstreetsummit26.eventbrite.com. To learn more about Chezia Cager’s work in public service and community leadership, visit www.ccager.com or follow @CagerFor41 on Instagram. and Elect Cager For 41 on Facebook.
The torch has been passed.
The next generation has arrived.
And I have every reason to believe Herb Brown would be proud.
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