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Nr>/Hnber, 196&
High Schools Simmer Across North Carolina
biford Hit by Violence; Out-
ai. Blamed for School Clash;
School Disorder Causes Unclear;
School Body Makes Some Con
cessions.
These and other headlines
have filled the pages of North
Carolina’s newspapers for the
past few weeks. Why the dis
orders? Who is to blame?
What do black people want?
Rcbert Strother, reportedly a
Nortn Carolina human relations
specialist says, school disorders
at a.tnford and Rocky Mount
wert touched off by protesters
who have no clearly defined
objectives. If the students will
present their grievances, the
school boards are prepared to
sit down with them and consider
tht.m.”
This sounds pretty good in
times of crises. But what are the
student’s objectives. Listen to a
ola-t\ student’s account from
went to see what else could be
Asheville High School.
The black students have had a
hard time at A.H.S. (Asheville
High School). The Lee Edwards
sign (name of the formerly all-
white school) is still out front.
L.H.E. is still on the band uni
forms and no really concerned
black teachers (except Mrs.
Foiney) exist. The cosmetology
teacher was white and didn’t
pay attention to black needs.
So we got a list of demands
and planned a walkout Monday.
Helped by Victor Chalk, Preston
Dobbins, out of Raleigh, and
another cat from Durham, the
plans were made.
Leo Gaines was sent home for
wearing no socks. This was the
spark.
We went out around nine that
morning, sat on the steps and
started singing and asking Mr.
Pennell to hear us out on our
grievances. So others were
called to meet with Pennell (the
principal) and some students
done.
I 1 >
wk'"
MISS BLACK AMERICA
University Not An Island
' law is giving attention to
.h .ature character and we will
not be an island in the middle
. of Raleigh.”
T. ese were the words of Dr.
ts i.iji V. Cheek, Shaw Universi
ty president, while discussing
t'nal school’s charrette planning
i'onrept,
The purpose of the plan seeks
to i.iake the future and present
facilities of the University
• i ."'liable to the surrounding
: tpmunity. The physical plant
' iid :ntellectual climate would
isigned to complement the
n :d. of the black community.
‘C larette” is a French word
oripiaating with architectural
\ ■ itucif ats who devoted an intense
iQper^ to solving a problem be-
presenting the solution to
their profeshor.
■Jx Th f; so-called “p 1 a n - i n”
brings together diverse sectors
of the community for a con
centrated period, as long as one
or two weeks. Everybody uses
his individual creativity to work
on the community’s problems
and needs.
One example came from
Baltimore, Md. where a commu
nity held a charrette to de
vise uses for a high school
slated for demolition. In that
session, one of the school’s stu
dents emergd as the real leader,
claimed Dr. Charles Trotter,
education planner for the Office
of Education.
“He knew from experien^
what the school needed and
should be,” Trotter said. “Not
only did they find answers to
some questions they asked,” he
'■aid, “but they got questions
(Please turn to Page 4)
Then the man (Pennell) call
er the cops to get the kids off
the steps. The demonstration
was peaceful and would have
remained that way, but the cops
started in swinging and it was
students (white and black)
against them.
THE KIDS WERE FORCED
INTO A CORNER, THEN
SPREAD OUT AND STARTED
THROWING ROCKS IN SELF
DEFENSE. Then some started
thowing rocks at the vocational
building. After that they went
elsewhere, but nothing happen
ed.
That night the curfew held
things back. There were a lot of
meetings but the students had
four or five different leaders
and din’t get together.
The teachers and some stu
dents were again at the demon
strations. The black principals
issued a statement saying they
got equal treatment from City
Hall. The students were or
ganized for action. They just
just planned the walkout to
dramtize demands.
What has happened at Ashe
ville, Sanford and Rocky Mount
can be adequately explained by
those involved in the struggle.
‘THE KIDS WERE FORCED
INTO A CORNER.”
Damage ran high in the dis
order at Asheville. Black stu
dents were repulsed with tear
gas in Rocky Mount.
Sanford, on October 13, con
tinued to be hit by restlessness.
Police Chie Pete Thomas said
late Sunday night four white
boys were being held for ques
tioning and one white man was
arrested for allegedly firing a
gun when stopped on the boule
vard.
A clash between whites and
blacks were reportedly trigger
ed by white youths who began
riding in the black section of
town Sunday night. It was esti
mated that more than lOO
whites and blacks confroiV'riI
each other on Horner Boulevard
and threw bricks, stones
botles Sunday night.
With fires within the natitii, “
fire burns within the hearts a;id
minds of black students acrcrs
the nation. Once confined to t ie
college campus, unrest ha.:
spread to the high schools ana
junior high schools. The s=ixis
of racism know no limitat)')R>,
What began at Burling trii
where one black student v;:v
killed last year, at Greensbi,
where another black stu( "tii
was killed, at Orange I gl',
in Hillsboro and Chapel H:li
High is being felt across t;.-.;;
state.
Some concessions have
made to students at bl a ;ir
schools. Many have b
wrought with good intentii.>ijs,
but most are created to coc' a
flame too hot to smother Vi i ih
false promises and forked to' nfj
words.
REVIVAL cr G€/PCL
Cureton Johnson
"Oh Happy Day,” when I can
“Steal Away” to the place
where good gospel music runs
rampant. '
Today is a period of musical
revival. Glenn Campbell’s coun
try tunes have made their way
up on the popular charts and
now the black gospel sound is
doing the same.
Tlie new life bestowed upon
gospel can be attributed to
young people. The birth of the
sound rest with history and our
ancestors. The “soul” sound
iiiigs loflay iiice il dia, on the
southern plantation where the
work was hard and the days
long.
The burden of a dual society
still plagues the heart and soul
of the American Black man, and
this agony is reflected in his
music—the only music totally
American.
For the past decade or so, a
new generation of Blacks have
been reared in southern Black
churches, mostly Baptist, and
have been indoctrinated with
religious philosophy.
In the cities of the South,
where larger churches develop
and congregations are filled
with doctors, lawyers, teachers,
■ principals and other Negro pro
fessionals the Black church be
gan to lose its “soul”—=musical-
ly-
Negro churches could pur
chase the Christian Worship and
Baptist Hymnals, common in the
white churches. The songs began
to follow notes and scales in
stead of the instinctively guided
fingers of a pianist who couldn’t
read a note.
Many ministers got college
educations and in the process
lost a little of the fire and brim
stone” which previously dictat
ed their sermons. Now and then
a white liberal would visit a
black church for Sunday serv
ice and the Negro congregation
would act reserved. It was an
uncomfortable feeling.
As membership in black
churches grew intellectually,
their spirit wanned. Gospel was
placed il? the realm of entertain
ment ralher thr.n religious de
votion due to its rock .sound and
fast beat. ''';,ke away the words
and gosi;'ight be m.'- taken
for Aretbj '"'r >',klin’s lalcsi p^-p
hit.
This is : say s:ospei dis
appeared iroi.i the ' ij'-n! To
the contrt'iy, it na;- rievt.r .l:r;d
out. The fact is that it lost its
“holding power” as people toned
down religious services.
When the Shaw University
Choir gave its spring concert,
the show stoppers were gospel
songs. The Ligon Jubilee Sing
ers, the Men’s Ensemble of the
St. Marks A.M.E.Z. Church in
Durham, and the local Capitol
City Five stole the show. These
groups got more applause than
Handel or Bach could ever wish
for from an audience, young or
old.
Teenagers and young adults
have lost Interest in stagnant
church programs. Music is one
of the more universal interest of
the young.
There are probably as many
teenagers in Chapel Hill w;
the 45 rpm “Oh Happy Day’
the Temptations’ “Don’t L
The Jones’ Get You Down.
Trouble in the nation and i
college campuses is not only
headache for administrat( ,
but gets to the college studt r
Follow a black Carolina stuo .■
down to the Hollywood C,
(better known as the Soul I'
ace) in Chapel Hill, where !
food is soul and the music '
same, and often C-9 is punc
on the juke box — “Oh Ha-
Day.”
Fioiu "Jesus Lover of ’
Soul” to the rousing “Peace
Still,” the gospel sound has
roots in black history. Yo-
people are proud of that histi
i.h
t't
f';
Book Review
You hear the news over your
“soul” station, between James
Brown ‘ opening the door” and
“geting it for himself” and the
Impressions “choosing colors,”
fifty brothers and sisters were
arrested for something in De
troit.
You know if there were
charges at all, they were de
vised or twisted to do what this
country does best — keep the
Black man down.
As your blood simmers, you
must to yourself, just once, if
there were a force of Black men
who could act swiftly, protect
ing their own and developing
their own . . .
Well, The Black Commandos
is all about such a force of
Black men. • They don’t even
talk or write a lot (except
maybe a “Death to Bigots” note
on a job of crakerkilling well
done).
The Commandos don’t hold
press conferences. They drn’t
all have thick Afros or wear
Dashikis or look militant. Tl.ey
don’t have white girlfriends;
they don’t even worry about the
“Rainbow Revolution.”
Their moves are smooth for
any member to have to go into
exile. They dont’ have half-a-
!i.:’adqi:ari> rs issuing two
i o-'.’n different edicts and poli-
Cl'iS.
Vhat to the\ do? Wh^t do
the/ have? The answers to these
questi'in ■; is ? Black idealist’s
d; G I L: k Commandos
rrc 'ho -;^»est dudes ou’ !
Episod: after episodt un
folds w.‘;.h leader Denis Jack
son, “physician, phychiat?
engineer,” masterminding
asskicking after another f;
his island headquarters,
island has all of the latest
tific gadgets, manned by Bl
men of all talents. The abii
to kill is honed by special p
sical and psychological trair
of each Commando (most
whom used to be frustrt
Saturday night “little nig.
killing little niggers” in t>
own neighborhoods).
Many Commandos are me .
highly trained killers; others
master scientists, engineers, ) ■
chologists, etc. The list of s€'
black weapons developed
the island is endless — f r
black flying saucers to bio]-
cal weapons.
Each Commando is a cral
nightmare clothed from hea '
foot in black and trainee
move silently, and fast,
the intelligence unit has
F.B.I. and C.I.A. infiltrated
moon skinned brothers.
Who do the Comma
strike?Here is the flaw ir
tale Moreau weaves. The (
mandos attack “bigots,” ^
Mafia, kkk’ers, and the L
cops—so far so good. But
don’t hurt the vast numbei
‘‘innocent” white citizen
“our” country.
The masterminds of th(
ganization unfortunately
one important element—a ■
istic grasp of the political
economic elemnts of this .
try and its allies. “Preju
and a few bigots are the n:,
(Pleas'j turn to Page 4