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Mak-ch 31, 1989 Page 3 Freshman Gripe Fantasizin’ By La’Tonya R. Rease, Staff Writer I think I speak for the majority of black freshmen when I say that my ex pectation of UNC were much more positive before I got here and actually started classes. I thought that through the Black Student Movement black students at UNC were a unified group and looked out for one another. This myth started with Pre-Orientation. “Pre-O,” our introduction too the university, was, I thought, a welcoming committee by our fellow black peers who were interested and concerned about our welfare. We had private “raps” with our Pre-O counselors who told us about which classes to take, and those to avoid. They informed us about the subtle and overt racism on campus and simply told us “how it really was” at UNC. Most importantly, when most of us left the program, I think we all felt a little motivated and inspired because we were told that no matter what, we would make it at Carolina. But after it was all over and all of the other upperclassmen returned for the semester, the comaraderie and sense of belonging that we had developed had dissolved. All of a sudden the very same people who urged you to attend class every day barely noticed you at the Pit and rarely, if ever, spoke to you. The Black Student Movement suddenly became every man for himself, and we were left alone with the Black Freshman Movement. What happened to all of the support and encouragement? Where are our counselors now, when we need someone to talk to about a failed test of a personal problem? How else are we expected to “make it” in a predominately white in stitution without the help, advice and friendship of our more experienced col leagues? Perhaps there should be an “After-O,” or a Black Buddy system where upperclassmen adopt a freshman for the whole school year and teach him/her the ropes. Black Buddies could attend on-campus activities together and meet with other buddies in the program. This would remedy the noticeable absence of freshman faces at BCC- or BSM-sp>onsored activities and would perhaps better integrate them into the UNC system. Freshmen would actually feel as though they were a part of the university, due to a support system, and in the meantime would make important friendships with the upperclassmen. We just want to feel as if we are in the system, not just of it. All we really want is they unity and encouragement that was promished us from the beginning. 1988-1989 Martin Luther King, Jr. Xfemorial Lecture “The Mountain and the Man Who Was Not God” JUNE JORDAN Poet and Professor of English Stattf University of New York at Stony Brook 8 p.m., April 6, 1989 Room 100, Hamilton Hall University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Sponsored h\- Chancellor Paul Hardin and tlie Committee on Established Lectures Free and Open to the Public Lecture will be interpreted tor the hearing impaired Parking will be a\-ailal'ile after 5 p.m. In any ot the lots on North Campus except dormitory lots For more injormation, contact: Office of Public Information Room 02, South Building Uniivrut\ of North Carolina at C/uipc/ Hill (Ojg) 062-0045 i think it would be so cool if i could sing... if i could sing, i would hum smooth medleys and sing vicious songs that make your hair stand on end and send shivers down your arm. It would be so great if people would stop and listen evertime i sang in the shower or crooned with my buddies on the front stoop, i would want a voice with presence, i would be like Aretha. Then again, it would be pretty neat if i could produce movies or even just act a little bit like Mr. Sidney Poitier. i would maybe hook up with Spike Lee and together we would make a blockbuster of a movie and attend the Academy Awards together... But i also wish i could write mind-blowing poems like my girl, Nikki Giovanni, i think it’s the greatest thing to see your name in print, even if it is just in a 12th grade English textbook... Yet, i still wouldn’t mind being a political activist or an Alvin Ailey dancer or a prosperous businessperson...but the more i think about it,' the more i realize, that the hardest thing i could possibly be, is me. La’Tonya R. Rease Black Diaspora Love By Theresa Jefferson “Black Diaspora Love” was an emotional and thought-provoking student perfor mance presented in the Student Union Theatre, February 28. Diaspora is defined as the settling of scattered colonies of Jews outside Palestine after the Babylonian exile. But that night as the lights dimmed and flickered brightly back on, revealing the ex traordinary performances of the all-black ensemble, diaspora referred to the disper sion of blacks outside of Africa in a continual search for “the promised land.” Director Patrick Johnson, a senior speech communications major from Hickory and the first recipient of the Wallace Ray Peppers Award for the Performance of African and African-American Literature, is to be congratulated for his insightful leadership, direction and skillful acting. Sharing the stage with him were five of UNC’s most talented black students. Cedric Brown, a senior public policy analysis major from Winston-Salem, evoked a multitude of emotions; laughter, sadness, pride and shock with his distinctive perform ing style. Regina Carter, a senior speech communications major from Greenville turned in a spirited, sassy performance that was phenomenal. Nevaina Graves, a sophomore from Asheville, epitomized the true essence of black nobility in her modern dance and regal deportment. Lesley Renwrick, a senior journalism major from Thomasville, presented the hterature with an inner strength that immediately appealed to the audience. Gregg Redmon, a sophomore speech communications major from Statesville, en tranced the audience with his easy wit and dramatic skills. The multi-talented cast enamored and enlightened the audience by incorporating contemporary ballads, blues and traditional spirituals with its excellent dramatic endeavor. “Black Diaspora Love,” a performance of poems affirming black love, epitomized the reality of black pride and relations. Some of the distinguished authors represented included: Sonia Sanchez, Sam Greenlee, Mari Evans, Claude McKay, Don L. Lee, Pearl C. Lomax, Langston Hughes and Linda Cousins.
Black Ink (Black Student Movement, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
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March 31, 1989, edition 1
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