Nearly every week at Tampa City Council, Michael Randolph’s voice comes over the speaker during public comment as he updates the dais and community at large on the goings on in and around West Tampa.

The Baltimore transplant who’s been on the ground locally since 2021 has worked tirelessly to give voice to those without one and for this online forum he turns his eye to Black Tampa residents who’ve seen their presence in West Tampa drop by 50%.

Residents, neighborhood associations, leaders and, yes, candidates in the crowded Tampa City Council special election for District 5, are all invited to join in. “This shift raises urgent questions about displacement, cultural erasure, and equitable development,” Randolph, 69, wrote.“This will be a street-level, bottom-up dialogue—focused on real voices, real stories, and real strategies to protect and uplift our community.”

There’s no cover for “The Black Agenda—A Conversation With West Tampa” an online discussion happening Wednesday, Aug. 27.

Readers are invited to submit their own events to Creative Loafing Tampa Bay’s things to do calendar.

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This article appears in Aug 21-27, 2025.