'\k*m? THE CAROLINA INDIAN VOICE M^V]
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VOLUME 10 NUMBER 24 25c PEBCOPY^ ^ THURSDAY JUNE 17, 19GB}
SOLUTION TO LUMBERTON
SCHOOL MESS NEARS
A New* Analysis
by Brace Barton
In spite of vociferous and, sometimes,
unbelievable knee-jerk reactions from
many of the affected residents the N.C.
General Assembly is finishing op
legislation this week in the Senate that
will de-annex the Clyburn Pines-Coun
try Club area from the Lumberton City
School District and return it to the
Robeson County School District from
which it was unlawfully taken more than
a decade ago.
The legislation was endorsed by all of
the local legislators, and sponsored by
Rep. Horace Locklear, the Indian Repre
sentative, in an effort to resolve the
long-standing controversey concerning
the illegal annexation of areas outside
Lumberton proper which occurred in the
late '60s and early '70s. The renegade
annexations occurred at the height of the
desegregation pressure by federal au
thorities, and many believe that they
were engineered so as to allow die
predominately white residents to avoid
sending their children to the predomi
nately Indian county schools. ,
The illegal annexations were brought
to federal attention by Dexter Brooks
during the summer of 1974 while he was
a law student intern with the Civil Rights
Division of the United States Department
of Justice. V? U.S. Attorney Genecal
then formally objected to the annexations
under the provisions of the Voting Rights
Act of 196S in early 1975, though no
enforcement action was forthcoming by
the federal authorities.
The Carolina Indian Voice heralded
the news, of course, but the matter lay
dormant until 1981 when the issue was
revived by the North Robeson Concerned
Parents-the organization opposed the
annexations as they felt that students
were being bussed out of their area who
could be utilized to support a more
comprehensive school in the north. The
group contrasted curriculum poor Mag
nolia with Lumberton Senior High.
The organization solicited and receiv
ed the assistance of Lumbee River Legal
Services and the American Civil Liberties
Union in bringing litigation attacking the
annexations. Although a strange deci
sion was rendered by the local federal
court, consisting of a three- judge panel,
including Robeson native Earl Britt, the
plaintiffs prevailed in their direct appeal
to the United States Supreme Court
Thus, the residents of the annexed areas
may no longer serve on the Lumberton
School Board or vote in any election for
its members.' The North Carolina Attorn
ey General subsequently ruled that the
county may no longer levy the supple
mental school tax upon property within
the annexed areas, thus, putting a severe
financial strain on the city schools.
Lumberton first tried to resolve the
matter politically with the Federal
Attorney General utilizing the services of
W. Osborne Lee, Jr., a bombastic, local
attorney who ironically represented the
residents of these areas when they
petitioned for inclusion into the city
school district. Although Attorney Lee
struggled mightily and stalked the
corridors of power in the nation's capital
with various potiticans, such as Ed
Johnson and Tom Gibson, the federal
authorities declined the invitation offer
ed them by the local federal court to
rescind their earlier objection. From
what we have been able to gather, the
plaintiffs and their legal representatives
seemingly over-whelmed "Obbie"
Lee and his political allies with masses of
data and coquent argument.
Having paid Mr. Lee a small fortune to
save the day and seeing him seemingly
fail so miserably and ungraciously, the
Lumberton school authorities accepted
the suggestion of Senator Sam Noble and
others to sit down and talk about
resolving what had become a nightmare.
From what we have been able to gather,
a series of private meetings were held
involving, the plaintiffs and represen- _
tstives of the Lumberton and county
boards of education. The county schools
were represented by Supt. Purnell Swett,
Chairman David Green, and interest
ingly enough. Dexter Brooks, who was
responsible for first exposing the annex
ations and who now serves as attorney
for the county school board. The
Lumberton Schools were represented by
Supt. Gilbert Carroll, Chairman A1 Kahn
and regularly-retained counsel John
Wis hart Campbell. Noticeably absent
from the discussions was the apparently
now discredited "Obbie" Lee.
At first many suggested that Lumber
ton attempt to solve its problem by
annexing even more county territory.
Even Rep. David Parnell pledged his
support to such legislation; however.
Senator Sam Noble refused to go along
saying that the matter should be resolved
through negotiation among all concerned
parties.
The county school board also served
notice that it would strongly oppose any
further annexation of its territory. The
threat was given even greater substance
by the presence of Dexter Brooks whose
legal talent and knowledge of voting law
makes him a formidable adversary.
Interestingly enough. Brooks is also the
founding father and chairman of the
Board of Lumbee River Legal Services
and a member of the Civil Liberties
Union.
As we understand it, once the various
personalities understood the positions of
the other parties, an amicable solution
was reached. The plaintiffs agreed to not,
press any further litigation if the;
Clyborne Pines-Country Club area was
de-annexed from the Lumberton City
School District. The city board of
education agreed and, with the approval
of the county school board, the compro
mise was submitted to the local
legislators for the introduction of enabh
ing legislation.
We salute Senator Noble who had tire
courage not to be swayed initially by the
frenzied crowd and who insisted that the
parties try to resolve the problem
through negotiations rather than through
biased, one-sided legislation. A press
release from Senator Noble is printed iir
its entirety elsewhere in this issue. We
are proud that Indian people are
represented by such as Purnell Swett and'
Dexter Brooks who it seems can hold
their own with the best of any race
Although Brooks has his detractors, theyt
cannot validly criticize his abilities or the*?
results of his activities.
We are even proud of the Lumberton ft
JKiNOi authorities who apparently negoti- 1
ated the issue in good faith.
It seems that Robeson is a better place
for the experience. It demonstrates that
redskins and palefaces can sit down and
reason together. If we will now only
apply this method to other problems,
such as the building of North Robeson
High School and the elimination of these
smaller city school units, some real
progress will finally be realized for all of
us.
A NOTE ABOUT THOSE
WHO OPPOSE
The citizens residing in the affected
area have been in the public eye the last
few days as the matter has moved
through the halls of the general assembly
in Raleigh.
Serving as spokesman, mostly, has
been Eric Prevatte. Ironically, Prevatte
has a business- Prevatte's Auto Parts- in
Pembroke. Pembroke is considered by
many as the economic and spiritual
center of the Indian populace in Robeson
County, the dominate race in the county
schools.
The irony is, as one Indian political
wag put it, "It's o.k. to sell Indians
spark plugs, as long as one doesn't
have to go to school with them."
Angels of PSU's Performing Arts Center
Stew. are mm tt PAC. A^b I. . recent mte|.
. _ , . gfcy ' . ?
i nc rcnorming Arts Lfn*
ter Angelj met recently to
discus* And make plans for
THE SEASON 82-83 series.
The Angels of the Performing
Arts Center are a prestigious
volunteer group of ladle* who
support the cultural programs
presented at PSU. Those
ladies donate their time and
of pt^CA^OIlill
sell tickets, prepare food for
srtiSts' receptions, host visit
ing artists, aad they've help
ed publicize the various
attractions by distributing
posters and brochures to local
v r ;*' *
communities.
TUam CStiSPsl m Allr
seciw ?%iv icvciw new
projects discussed for THE
SEASON 82-83 program Mr.
Enoch Morris. Director of the
Performing Arts Center, we)
corned die group and gave an
update on the '81-82 budget
and attendance. Felicia W,
Turner. Cultural Events Co
L.. w ^
ordinator, discussed THE
SEASON '82-83 attractions
and The Red Balloon Chil
drens' Series. This year the
Center had added a Theatre
Series to its program, Mr.
Enoch Morris, who is also
coordinator of Dramatic Ac
tivities, discussed the plays in
this series.
The line up includes John
Bay as Groucho Marx in "An
Elephant in My Pajamas''
appearing Sept. 30; Susannah
McCorkle singing tunes from
"The Hollywood Blonds" on
November 9; the Washington
Ball on March 14. and on
April 21, 1983 the famous
actor Vincent Price.
The Red Balloon Children's
Series has proven to be very
successful this year. Thanks
to McDonald's of Lumberton
who have agreed to under
write this series again this
year. The 1982-83 Red Ballo
on Series is made up of four
professional attractions. The
ait,a "The Lrprnfl &W#nv
will entertain you with her
?elections from singers like
Ray Charles. Billy Hpiliday
and other popular jazz per
formers. The final attraction
in the series, "Gateway to
Atlantis." an underwater
monster puppet show will be
presented Saturday, March
26,1983. Call now for the new
exciting Performing Arts
Center brochure, "The Cur
tain's Going Up" at 521
OPSU (0778).
The Angels of the Perform -
t in| Arts Center agreed to host
a series of coffee parties
where representatives from
the Performing Arts Center
will come into their homes
with a presentation explaining
> the exciting attractions for the
coming year. The ooflbe par
ties will give others the
Locklear. Mn. Earlene Lock *
r.i I
for the
House
Frank "Bishop" McDuffle, Jr.
|
Continuing Mr tradition of allowhig
candidates for pnbttc office to make thek
own statementa of candidacy, we are
presenting Frank "Bishop" McDuffle,
Jr., a rawdMate for the N.C. House of
Representatives.
McDuffie. one of two Blacks vying for
one of three seats up for grabs, is a
citizen of Laurinburg (Scotland County)
and chairman* of the board and chief
administrative officer of World famous
Laurinburg Institute, one of the few
private schools for Blacks in the county.
Dr. Joy J. Johnson, the first Black from
Robeson County to serve in the General
Assembly and now a member-of the N.C.
Commission of Paroles, is a graduate of
Laurinburg Institute.
Most recently McDuffie has been
i involved in founding and developing the
J?zx Hafl of Fame and the "Dizzy*'
Gillespie Center.
MoDuffie lists the following as evi
dence of his community involvement:
Delegate to North Carolina Democratic
Convention; Member of Deacon Board at
Bright Hopewell Baptist Church, Laurin
burg, N.C.; Member of the Chamber of
Commerce, Laurinburg, N.C.; Member
of Laurinburg Jaycees, Laurinburg,
N.C.; Member of Board of Directors of
Light House Crisis Center, Laurinburg,
N.C.; Special Consultant of North
Carolina and Southeast Region for the
Special Olympics; Member of
N.A.A.C.P. and S.E.S.P.A. of Scotland
County.
McDuffie noted, while making his
announcement, "All the individuals that
make up the 21st District are my
concerns. Their needs, hopes, and
problems are my interest. The ten issues
that effect our district are: education,
small business opportunities, farming
incentives, employment and industrial
development, health care, recreational
and social opportunities, transportation,
utility costs, judicial reforms and crime
control.
There is no clear separation between
these issues: many overlap. Many of our
problems are shared concerns of other
areas in our state. As your representa
tive, I will bring not only an interest in
our district improvement, but state wide
capabilities and contracts. 1 intend to
bring direction and motivation to this
district elected office which has ready
access to legislative, executive, and
judicial branches of state government."
PRESS RELEASE FROM
SENATOR NOBLE .
CONCERNING LUMBERTON
SCHOOL SITUATION
The North Carolina General Assembly
is involved in legislation hopefully
putting to rest the longstanding contro
versy concerning annexations to the
Lumberton School Unit. The legislation
will de-annex the Gyborne Pines-Coun
try Gub area from the school district
while assuring the continued inclusion of
the Lakewood Estates and Barker Ten
Mile areas.
It is unfortunate that we were forced to
deal with the issue at all. A similar
annexation to the Fairmont city school
district was approved by the federal
authorities, h would seem that the blame'
for this mess must be laid at the
feet of the attorneys who represented the
residents of these areas when they
petitioned for annexation, who apparent
ly did not do all that was legally required
for them to become a part of the city
school unit, and the chairman of the city
school board. We were, thus, saddled
with the difficult task of solving a
problem not of our making.
As most people are aware, the United
States Attorney General, under the
provisions of the Voting Rights Act of
1965, objected to all the local legislation
annexing areas outside the city proper to
the Lumberton School District. As a
consequence, the United States Supreme
Court enjoined the wiMwU of these
annexed areas from serving on the city
board of education or voting in any
election of its members. The North
Carolina State Attorney General then
ruled that the county may no longer levy
the supplemental city school tax upon
property within the annexed areas.
Therefore, it appeared that the Lumber
ton city schools were in imminent danger
of losing all of the students from these
areas. In the heat of the moment, rash
statements were made that only served
to inflame the controversy; however, I
said then that reason should prevail, and
that the parties involved should try in
good faith to arrive at a negotiated
settlement.
It appears that such a settlement nas
been reached. The plaintiffs agreed not
to press any further with litigation if the
Lumberton board would agree to the de
annexation of the Clyborne Pines
Country Gub area. This the Lumberton
board unanimously agreed to do, and the
Robeson County Board of Education also
unanimously accepted the settlement.
i 1
This area was de-annexed because of
pressure from the federal authorities.
They are more inclined to approve the
other areas as they constitute suburbs of
the city proper, thereby affording a non
racial justification for the annexation,
while Clybome Pines is still largely rural.
The people of the Clyborne Pines area
are just as concerned about quality
education as any other parents in the
county, however, the two school boards
have agreed to minimize any interruption
of the educational process. All students
will continue to attend city schools for the
1982-83 school year. Next, the students
then in grades 10-12 will be given a
choice of finishing high school in
Lumberton or with the county.
While I realize this-settlement will not
satisfy everyone on either side of the
controversy, it was the unanimous
decision of the two involved boards of
education; therefore, 1 as well as the
other members of the local legislative
delegation, agreed to support the
necessary legislation to effectuate the
compromise. It demonstrates anew that
our problems can be resolved if the good
peole of our three races simply talk to
each other.
Again, I did not create the problem
and I did not make die decision on the
solution, but It is my duty as elected
official 4* wovk with other (lacUd .
officials.
Johnny
Dial
signs with
PSU
PEMBROKE-Johnny Dial,
a native of Pembroke, has
been signed and will play
baseball at Pembroke State
University during the 1983
season.
Announcement wajr made
Tuesday by PSU Head Base
ball Coach Harold Ellen.
"We are pleased to have
Johnny come to play baseball
at Pembroke State and com
plete his education," stated
the PSU head coach. "He has
some fine baseball tools whkh
could make him one of the
finest catchers in the state.
We are looking for good
things from him."
Dial, a 5-foot-11, 180 pound
catcher, comes as a transfer
from Southeastern Commun
ity College.
At Southeastern. Dial was
all-conference at third base in
Send Off
for
Miss Lumbee
Saturday
The Town of Pembroke end Lombee
Regional Development Association
request the honor of your presence at
Send Off for Miss Lombee, Jackie
Jacobs, to the Miss North Carolina State
Pageant to be held Saturday, June 19.
1982 at 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon. The*,
send off will be held at Shelf's Seafbo*
Restaurant. West 3rd Street, Pembroke*
NC J
I In last week's report OB the Town of I
B <W reaoning >>f* the property on Fourth?
I COktvtB
? jtr "
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