Newspapers / The Carolina Times (Durham, … / Feb. 8, 1958, edition 1 / Page 2
Part of The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
PA9B TP9 * TPC CAJUMJNA TIMGS • SATURDAY, FEVRVAJtT 8, IfSS II mm mw |> , m «. |i ■■■ ■ »mimnt piim«MW MMOTINC NEGRO POLICEMBI IN WNSTON-SALI Becausc W|iMta»>lalG«n ii among the ciUes In North CaroMna that are way out front in the matter of Interracial goodwill, we ap proach the quoatMNK oi promotion of Negro policemen of tht city with a hit of restraint. We believe the lack of promotions among this partipdar segment of the Winston-Salem police force is due more to an error of the head than the heart. Far more than IS years, Negro policemen have aorved the citiaens of Winston-Salem with a d^rea of efficiency worthy of com- m^K^tion from all .tlMa* who are aware of tft^nfRcutty which iiMMwUy encountered in thanitlaM taik of being a police ottccr. Than «|^ now about twenty Negroes on the Winston-Salem {X^ce force. The fact that not • single one of them has ever been pr^iiAstad ovar th» |>^-fifteen years appears SQO^what out of hue with the tradition of iwrthai respect whi^ has been built up among leadm of both races in the Twin City. We think this apparent oversight needs on ly to be called to the lAtttotion of the heads of the police department, the Clly Mana^r and other city trials to have it remedied. We believe that oi^e^or two promotions among Negro policemen of Winston-Salem are long past due, certainly in consideration of the faithful service they have rendered the city over the years. We believe further that Twin Citians are generally willing to see their policemen rewarded with a rank at least higher thai^ that of patrolman. In the area of crime detection, it is our opinion that Negro detectives, by the very nature of their circumstance, could add con siderably to the eiHciency of the police force by helping to apprehend Negro criminals as well as criminals of other groups. The pre sent almost weekly killing and near-killings among Negroes in Winston-Salem is prima facie evidence that something needs to be done to make life more miserable for crim inals and would-be criminals of the city. To that end, we would like to suggest to city officials of Winston-Salem the promotion of two or more of the Negro policemen. GOVBINOR COLLINS' WISHFUL THINKING TJte core of QoiNmior Collins’ message to No^ Carolina Democrats at the Jefferson- Jackson Day dinner Iwt weekend was in it self an iffeconeil^^ contradiction. South erners must rid themselves of prejudice and bias because the inevitable tide of human progress moves against racial discrimination, the Florida chi^ executive was quoted at one |K)int in his spe&h: At another point, no4 far removed In ^e same message, he ur^ed the federal government to allow. the Sou^ to resolve its ow» sins of racial dis crimination by “our own efforts and in our own time.” . The Governor thus wants progress toward elimination of racial discrimination in the South, but he wants it on the South’s own terms! Going by the record, almost anyone can see that, the meaning of the word pro gress in this context would b^ reduced to a vague semanti^ symbol undei; the condi tions which CQllijM prescribes for it. “On our own tips” means aaaay things-to the several stateyr To VirgU^m''^Mississippi and South ineans never. To spm& it may aygy^^^j^ndr^ years. To oth- en, tine^'|^^t|ging from a century oadfliRPl»f»ncat>a«r; ..... ^ It ,is aaHwi^pt to pofait out ;that progress tow{^ eMii^ohtien of racial discrimination in public educatio^i. Was never started in a singly one of the. southern st|ites until the NAAPP b«g»n a sustained assault on state diaoilRiiaatioB tows. In Durham, lor- ex- ampl;, discrimination in education €s;(isted in a fla||Wt Ixu^nl:^T.lffit|l an eqqalization suit was instituted btek^^n pre-desegregation days, i^hoot ibe ptt^re of that suit and the added weight 6i the Supreme Court de segregation order, Durliigq;! would have prob ably continue to hdl^on' to its two Negro wooden school buildings. Similar situations obtaia in thousaada “Purh^ms” all over the South. - ' Apparently ^verpor Collins’ wish that flie wuth be lalt alone to* find its own way out of the racial mess stems from his belief thait the region is not ready to own up to its mistake in this matter. And if the sectiop does not admit its mistake, how is it going to find the motivation to correct a situation in which it has yet found no wrong? If the Soiith were really ready to confm ii sin, it would be necessary for the Courts! simply to enunciate the principle of no dis crimination and the South would do the rest of the work on its own. It would not require subsequent lower court orders to set schedule for desegregation of various school units. If it were willing to repent, the South wouldn’t s^ red at each mention of the Supreme Court or at every lower court order; for it would not matter how many others were against discrimination if it too were really a^inst it. So, in a sense. Governor Collins is lihe the long line of others who chanted, “the time ain’t ripe.” If his suggestions to the North Carolina Democrats last Saturday were followed, fifty years from now, another man will probably come along and say, “the time ■ ain’t ripe.” This could go on and on. Situa tions are forever changing and growing ever more complex. A few years longer, and the South will not only have its current crop of unsolved problems but a batch at new ones grafted on the old. Qther crises will arise to claim the country’s attention. And in the meantime, there would always be new and better excuses for never getting down to the “brass tacks” of the. race prob lem. The world moves too fast to wait upon the South to make up a mind which has had nearly a- hundred years to get made. Even now, the urgency of banishing racial dis crimination is becoming less and les^ im portant as a good thing in principle and more and more a practical necessity. it can hardly be doubted that CJovemor Collins’ way is the ideal way. It would be fine if the South would take upon itself the job of eliminating racial discrimination, but, at the risk of appearing pessimistic, it is al most too much to hope for an overnight con- vez^on. Such thinking is at the moment wishful if idyllic.. Of CoUips’ speech, me can only conclude that he was insensitive to the implications of what he advocated or merer ly straddling the “political” fence. In either case, his message is of doubtful validity. THAHKS TO THE INDIANS Govoraar Hodgw is to be commended on hi* late but Bevertheless necessary criticism of the Ku Khix Klan which 1^ been foment ing violaoea and general i^rder within the twvdan of North Carolina, and other south- erm wMm, Um ktig. Althou^ we are op posed to violaMM as a general practice, per- hafa the la^Mi attack on the Klan at Max- toa a law 4»yn •go was in the final analysis a go«d tbivg. At leMtt it dramatized the ob- vi«m tiWMtiidty mod dangerously subversive natmw «f tlM orguuaation, and by so doing, cattai tha attention fi ^limrth Carolinians. an4 paqpla ia fWMrali to the very menace vhMi tt pcaea to order And democracy. It Oi ^ ^'*3259e?i5!2i i-» Wtmm 9 i|Wi atw** Mat 0(M* •! I. UTS. •Mlf » IMM mutm •* tte i nrtv flis Act of March s. atm. mmmrnr meaonem. mu, ■Avaa: $gjot vaa tkab broke a silence which had hung like a pel) over the govemtMr’s mansion for all these years on the KKK activity. The fact that the Klan, a self-'a|^aointed preserver of “the American way” sought to discipline one of the earliest Americans for their “un-Amerjcan” activiti^ — mixing with white people — is a typical Klan absurdr ity. But more than just absurd, a characteris tic which in itself can be haitnless if ridicul ous, the fact that the manner in whidi the Klan went about to attain its objectives poses a real threat to order and democracy. The Klan has traditionally usurped the powers of our elected governors and acted as judge, jury, prosecutor and, sometimes, execution er, in carrying out its objectives. Govern' ment by force and violence has been the Klan’s way. As bad as the organization is, Jt has become unfasliionable among respec%blc~^ these days. Now, only the near lunatic pa rade around in Klan regalia. And as ^ potent organization, it has declined ebasiderahly. But what is worse, it is kept alive not by its own volition, but by the encouragement it finds in its environment. A state of mind haa been created in this c^try, etyeriaHy in tha South, which caters to the kind of mmtality (Please turn to page Fjtve) Life Is Like That THIS MATTER OF LUCK By H. AimKRT SMITH In ipite ot the topic that hyds around a rabbit’s loot—aU this brings good luek. I HAVE A NOTION I shall not iorget ever the embarrassment of a nan who was one of a mixed class I took out on a hike several years ago. He and a few other fellows en gaged In a foot race. A rabbit’s foot “jumped’* c«t of one of his pockets. I^V'»ybody in the aiza- ble group saw what hatH^ened and laughed heartily. What’s more, it was quite some time be fore his classmates gave him a ,chance to forget the occasion, even if he could have. How such superstitious beliefs and practices can influence per sonal fortune for either good or evil is beyond me. As the saying goes, I don’t get it. I have the strange notion that a person makes his luck, either good oir bad, by what he is and does. It is my belief that if a man is “down on his luck”, or wants good luck, he had better resort to there are some things that hapi /l'*®®® ideals rather than 'rabbit feet, horse shoes and this article, I am not so ecrtsin that there Is any such thing as luck, a lucky i>erson, or an un- luck person. There are two reasons that acqount for this un certainty. The first is the de^ni- tion given by Mr. Webster. He defines “luck” as “that which happens to one se«ningly; by chance.” That is to say, luc^^ a matter of accident, and stA^ without any connection with character, intelligence, plan, purpose, or the lack thereof. The second cause for my ii^j certainty stems from self-ai|p a lysis, the study I have aot;^. what casually given to cases' ^ volving persons styled as lui^; or unlucky, and a certain tura! skepticism which is mme, although I have at times t>^en, guilty of attritMUing to luck ^e fortune which has befallen ^r^ tain (tersoiis. 1- Covers Our IgaMraace I am forced to admit pe« to people, or do not hapi^, when-from our point of vifw, they should not happen, lucky charms. I have the, pecuU- should happen. For instancy,.p.,sound common sense, man and his friend walked awjy work, patience, with only a few minor cuts af- j thrift, cooperation with others ter the automobile he was driy-1 sacrifice. THE DIFFERBNCI The man who believes in luck is a dreamer, a wishful thinker, unable or unwilling to adjust to fact, too lazy to meet the de mands of life. He is forever looking for a miracle to happen that will bring him wealth, po sition, favor, good fortune. He dreams of acquiring the Midas touch and of the day when his ship will come in. Aside from dreaming and wishing, he does nothing that might enable him to make the h)€st of the opportuni ties that come his way. He has never launched a ship, but he is still watching the horizon for signs of a returning ship that exists only in a twisted imagina tion. 1 watched two men at work on a wall one day.. One was making two dollars plus an hour. The other seventy-five cents hour. At the end of ten hours, one had earned a little in excess of twenty-five dollars; the other seven dollars and fifty cents. The one handling a trow«| and one at a time^ The bther was pushing wheel barrow loads of brick and sand and mixing mortar. The difference here was not a matter of }uok. Two words explained tiuit dif ference—skilled and unskilled MY SUGGESTION To the man who bemoans his luck after gambling-table invest ments of his Mmings have fail ed to produce dividends, I’d sug' gest a type of investment not dependent on a flip of a card I could not see, or did not have. A week’s wages in the bank will never bring one hundred per cent dividends. But, on the other hand, it is not apt to rii.u»pppar into thin air, or leave me empty- handed, and that in a matter of moments. If a man wants to keep a horse shoe for ornamental purposes, or even to tote around a rabbit’s hind foot for any reason—al though any reason tq me Is the height of absurdity—that is his business. But I think It is Rill^ty poor business, if he hopes there by to Influence life to look with favor upon him and bless with success personality deficieocics and idle "hands. Renoember this: Your ludi is somehow tied in with industri ousness, intelligence, knowledge, honesty, reliability, truthfulness, cooperativeness; in a word character, character in its broad est sense. And it would be wise to accept, too, the premise that good luck is also tied in with good religion. ing jumped a curb, sheared Bi po^er pole, rolled over fo times and landed upright minus 11 four wheels. He comment lat luck was with him. Most of us know, or think we know, that a man is supposed "to be carried away from an acci dent of that nature, either dead or nearly dead. But, because that particular man was able'/to walk away, his explanation that luek was with him is good enough for us. li Now, I have no argument to make here with the man who sees luck in incidents such. as that above. In general however, J feel that we use the term ib cover our ignorance of the la^ and conditions that govern thfe fate and fortunes of individi^ls. and natural occurances tha^ af fect us for good or evil. If we knew those laws and conditions, it' is probable the word “luck” would never have originated,, pr else would have for us a mean ing far different fi'om the sens^ in which we conmionly use it. Commoa Gonception tu But there is a conception of luck held in connection vyith certain superstitious beliefs thM seems to be, and is, contrary to intelligence and common sense. These beliefs have an important bearing on our lives. They tie in with our conception of destiny and thus influence our behavior. That is revealed in the fact that some people become very much disturbed if a black cat crosses their path^ To offset it, they will either change their course, or walk backwards at the line of crossing. For such people, breaking a looking glass means seven year^ bad luck. Spilling salt, beginning a journey on Friday, entering a house through one door and leaving through another, eating peanuts in the house, being the thirt^nth person in a party-all this means bad luck. I am told that some hotels have no room numbered thirteen. Too many people would refuse to occupy it. With some, it means bad luck if a rooster crews during the ni^t—bef(H-e midnight. If a hen should crow at any time—day or night—that spells certain cala mity. And should a bird fly into the house, that is a bad omen. On the positive side of this Superstitions belief in luck, there are some things that bring good luck. A rusty horse shoe hsmging over tlif,4oor, a lucky charm worn about the neck, a dime—some women wear them just bdow the xnee, or carrying LETTER TO THE EDITOR ■nie Editor The Carolina Times Durham, N. C. Dear Sir: In my recent book, “Slavery ^d Catholicism”, I mentioned t at I understood that the CathdJic Church was telling Negroes tHa^ there had been some Nearq[ pcHpes, and challenged such- ^ statement. The December issue of ny” carried an article “Tha CathoUc Church and Negro” which, on the successfully replied to this cHSil lenge by citing three of thq popes of the first five centune^ of the Christian era as follows (I) Saint Victor, elected Mi AJD.; (2) Melchiades (or MU tiade«)| elected 311, A.D.; im (3) Oelasius, elected 482 A.A who, it is alleged, watf bf»m Rome "of African parents*’. Of the first two, the Catholic encyclopedia states that they were “natives of Africa”, hut this term merely implies that they were born in Africa. If President Eisenhower had been born in Africa he would be a na tive of Africa, but this would not make him a Negro. And even if the parents of these popes were Africans, that would not neces sarily mean that they were Ne groes, since there arc many peo ples in Africa not of Negro stock. The Egyptians, Cathageni- aas, Moroccans, Libyans, Algeri ans, Tunisians, etc., were Afri cans, but not Negroes. In these early centuries. North Africa was more civilised than was most of Europe. , Of Gelasius, the Catholic En cyclopedia sajrs that it is imcer- tain Mfhether he was hem a Ro- (continued ea ]pafe 9) m By ROBERT.^PIVACK Watch on the Potomac SPIVACK THE BATTLE OF DETROIT Sen. Dirksen of Illinois has now joined Sen. Gold water of Arizona in making “Reuther- ism” a major political issue for the Republican Party in 1958. Before long, I suspect, The White House too will be joining the campaign against the United Auto Workers chief. Actually some of the President’s aides have long considered some sort of verbal assault on Reuther, but have traia^'themsflves in pub- Talter Reuther is an enigma for the Republicans—and maybe for others, too. They don’t quite know what to do about him. Some businessmen »cm to almost regard him as ■the single most dangerous man in America since FDR. No one suggests that Reuther Wndles the same sort of popu- lar enthusiasm for himself that Roosevelt managed to evoke in millk)ns of Ameri cans. Reuther fnoves in the realm of ideas rather than trying to win friends via the personality pitch. But when you are part of an Administra tion that regards “don’t rock the boat” as a code to live by, a man like R«juther can seem downright/j^^)ersive. Goldwater ahd Dirksen ap parently are determined to make the name Reuther as feared and hated in some cir cles as the Old Guard Republi cans once managed to make the words “New Deal”. There are many Republicans, though, who don’t like the way the Dirksen-Goldwater team operates. Some are afraid that the more they at tack Reuther, the more popu lar he will become. And worst than that, his profit-sharing plan will win wide acceptance. When I watch Goldwater and Dirksen in action I’m remind; ed of a story I heard ;in New VorU during the AsiaB, flu epi demic. Two girls were riding in the subway when one let out a powerful sneeze. “Say,” said the second, “you want to watch out with those germs.” “Oh, don’t worry about that,” answered the sneezer. “I’m so full Of miracle drugs' I figure every time I sneeze Lcure. at least five peej^g,!! Goldwater and Dirksen like wise seem to be deluding themselves. IS PROFIT-SHARING GOOD? There is a Great Debate go ing on in Wall St. over Reu- ther’s proposal to share profits with the auto industry’s Big Three. A similar debate is go ing on in union circles. Not every union leader is enthused about the idea. Reuther’s plan, as explained to the Senate Anti-Trust sub committee is essentially this: the union is willing to defer its “equity” in company opera tions until the year-end fiscal accounting shows whether or not there has been a profit. If there has been a solid gain, the .jjnion wants part of it, with provisions that consum ers gef'a"cut a* Well as com pany ej^ecutives and stock holders. ^1" Reuther himself notes that General Motors managed to make a profit in the midst of the depression, when there were nearly 14,00(1,000 job less, when the hanks were closing down and when far mers had to protect their land with shotguns against foreclo sure. If, he argues, GM could make a pro^t in those days then the UAW will take its chances on cutting up the GM melon in 1958. The argument creates a_ dl- lema for the auto industry and for the Administration. The Republicans can’t very well campaign this year on a con tinuing prosperity theme, if they insist that Big Business can’t afford the Reuther Plan or something like it. The auto industry can’t keep jacking up the cost of cars and then com plain that their market is shrinking. But they are up against somej^ing else, too. Reuther is determined to “educate” the (continued on page 7) Spiritual Insight “RELIGION IN THE HOME” By REVEREND HAROLD ROLAISD PastfH', Mount Gilead Baptist Church “And daily in every house... they ceased not to teach and preach Christ...” Acts 5:42. Spiritual resources are essen tial for worthwhile home life. Christ and his teachings are basic essentials for a happy, joyous home life. We are here reminded that the religion of Jesus should be in the home of every redeemed believer. The early church had a daily em phasis on the blessed teachings of Jesus Christ in the hckne. We need Christ in our sinful souls. We also need him and his charmipg spirit In our re lations with all persons in the home—wife, husband and chil dren. The spirit of the Christ is vry much needed in the vi tal, decisive in-law relations. Your home will have a strong foundation. If built on Christ, the solid rock. The teachingl of Jesus interwoven into the fobric of your home will give it strength and durability. Thus the early believers in Christ realized the wisdom of building their lives and their homes on Christ and his teach- infi...“Daily...they ceased not to teach and preach Christ...’’ How can you really build a home without Clirist’s teach ing of forgiveness? Yes, this teaching of the Christ is very much needed in building your home life. We say things un- thoughtfuUy for which we need the spirit of forgiveness. We in our unguarded moments can say biting, hurtful things that will disrupt the sweet bond of fellowship in the home. And such things hurt or mar the unity and harmony of the family. We do things that weaken the family bonds. The things we say and do build up fear, resentment and anger. Thus to save the fanuly from the explosive, destructive ef fects of things we say and do we need the spiritual truth of , forgiveness. In Christ we can and shouM forgive one another as he has forgiven us. The for-, giveness of the master will guard against breaches. The forgiving spirit will heal wounds and hurts. It is a means of strengthening toe ties of fellowship in the h6me. The teachings «f Jesus will keep us from a prideful, dic tatorial spirit in the home. The home is no place for the arrogant, domineering dicta tor. In the home you are com panions, partners. In the home at its best you are democratic equals—standing together on a common base of mutual re spect and esteem. The teach ings- of the Christ give equal dignity to all human beings, Christians should live in a spirit of give and take. If each of us will keep upper most in mind the welfare of the other then both husband and wife will find the hairi ness each has a right to ex pect. Then let’s apply the mas ter’s Golden Rule and make our home a heayen on earth. The home thus built on Christ, the rock of spiritual truth, will be able to stand the storms of life when they strike. Let the family worship and pray together at least once a week. At the alter you will find strength to keep your home SAFE DURING TRIALS AND TESTINGS OF LIFE.
The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 8, 1958, edition 1
2
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75