The Unfinished Mayoralty

One of the biggest criticisms of David Dinkins is that he continues to associate with Al Sharpton. Asked about that, Dinkins loses his cool. "Some have attempted to attack Al Sharpton around Tawana Brawley and Crown Heights, and are upset with me for not denouncing him," the former mayor said. "My position has been that he has been my friend since he was a teenager. We have not always agreed, but I have said repeatedly and publicly many times that Al Sharpton has never counseled violence, but he gets blamed for a whole lot of that. There are times when I would have him do this instead of that—go right instead of left. We have a relationship that is very strong, and I don't think that folks can mess with it."

Peter Noel is a cohost of the WRKS program The Week in Review. Additional reporting by the Associated Press