Thinking about New York activist Charles Barron reminds me of the old E.F. Hutton commercials of yesteryear - except when Barron speaks, I don't listen.

It's not because the subjects he tackles aren't interesting or of grave concern to black America. They frequently are. Nor is it because Barron, a former Black Panther Party member, is completely off base or isn't passionate in his quest for solutions.

Barron is usually right in identifying issues that plague black America. And I have no doubt that he really cares.

My problem with Barron is that after identifying the ill, his diagnosis for the cure is so far off the mark, it's laughable.

The latest example comes with Barron's campaign to form a black-Latino political party in New York.

To my earlier point, Barron has correctly surmised that neither political party in the city is committed to the working class, which is mostly black and Latino.

Barron is right. As is the case with the national Democratic and Republican parties, the Democrats who own the minority vote, largely take black and brown votes for granted while Republicans generally ignore minority concerns.

Look at the all-white statewide ticket of candidates presented by likely future New York governor Democrat Andrew Cuomo. It is a slap in the face to blacks and Latinos in the city and state.

But forming a political party based on race is a non-starter. First of all, black and brown people aren't a monolith. The same skin color doesn't ensure even remotely similar political concerns.

Another problem is the basic idea of basing the party on race. Keep in mind that black folks make up about 12 percent of the population nationally. So basing almost anything solely on race makes me a little nervous.

The only credit I will give Barron for his idea is that the numbers seem to indicate that minorities in New York are a sleeping political giant that, if awakened, could change the nature of politics in the city.

Blacks make up about a quarter of NYC's population. Latinos (who could identify themselves as any race) make up roughly another quarter. Possessing half the population in the city gives black and brown people a great starting point if they ever decided to unify around a candidate or issue and flex some political muscle.

Ultimately, that is where Barron's idea may have some merit.

If he can somehow get party power brokers to fear a unified minority vote and begin to address the needs of everyday people, Barron will be a hero.