Newspapers / The Carolina Times (Durham, … / Oct. 30, 1971, edition 1 / Page 2
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2A —THE CAROLINA TIMISS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1971 Che Chro EDITORIALS Merger Aid Bond Issee Progressive and positive thinking at titudes towards merger and bond pas sage by Durham citizens should reveal that a strong progressive system of public education is essential to the on going growth of any quality com munity. Good schools for all its citi zens are the cornerstone of a progres sive and good community if it is to grow, prosper and offer real oppor tunity to its citizens. However, a lack of honesty and mistrust of those at the policy-making levels seem to be a key factor in the unsuccessful passage of prior mergers as well as recent bond defeats. Durham appears as a divided com munity to newcomers and many old timers alike. Throughout the years, it would appear that there have been power struggles involving city vs coun ty. town folk vs college or university folk, poor whites vs affluent whites, poor blacks vs affluent blacks: black vs white: busing vs non-busing: city school allocations vs county school allocations; tax increases vs schools and one could go on and on. The lact of information on vital issues as raised by citizenry of Durham on the merger and bond passage seems to indicate that the Durham Com munity is tired ol 'being taken' and refuses to give those at policy-making levels a blank check so to speak any longer. Minority groups have a special in terest in all merger and bond pro posals. It would appear from past in equities in bond fund allocations that inner city schools do not receive their fair share and there are many histori cal inequities and backgrounding to support these allegations. Add to this, the continuing lack of job opportuni ties in the education field as well as the many displaced blacks from the Tribute To Mrs. Lyda M. Merrick As members of the Durham Com munity let us pause to pay tribute to Mrs. Lyda Moore Merrick who recent ly resigned after more than 50 years of service to the library community. Among the many contributions. Mrs. Merrick served as chairman of the Stanford L. Warren Library Board of Directors, created and published Braille Magazine for 1 7 years, and as she stated this week, "I have just been helping *put all along." Mrs. Merrick attended her final board meeting as chairman yesterday when members of the board including Dr. Charles Ray and John Wheeler along with George R. Linder, Durham Library Director and Dr. Benjamin Powell, chairman of the library board expressed gratitude to Mrs. Merrick. According to Dr. Powell, "We wouldn't be where we are without her." He continued, "It is difficult to measure the contributions of one who has served the public for more than half a century." Wheeler commented that, "she was always there and she alone is respon sible for the Braille Magazine." Mrs. Merrick's magazine offered reading to the blind in the tradition of her father. Dr. A. M. Moore, who sought to bring reading material to the common man of Durham. Dr. Moore organized the "Baraca Room" in White Rock Baptist Church in 1910 on the very spot were Mrs. Merrick was born. The major function of the special room was to provide reading activities and it was the first step to wards the establishment of the Stan ford L. Warren Library. As early as "Baraca Room" Mrs. Merrick has assumed duties by gather ing magazines to display for Sunday visitors to read. "I remember that soon afterwards schools will make groups much more conscious and aware ol these very in equities. liven the threat ol suit to make the school zones cotermious with the city zones does not appear to bring too many repercussions. Admittedly, the schools so affected could probably account lor the equal izing of some of the so called empty spaces at some schools located in the eily now. Delaying actions and much subter fuge in educational actions as well as many other areas vital to any com munity have built even more appre hension and mistrust by all segments of the population. Information work shops and speakers have been present ed. but answers are few and appear inadequate to many of those persons attending various merger and bond in formation panels. Of course, some questions cannot be answered. Many advantages for the merger have been given, but few. if any disadvantages have been given. One must never underestimate the capacity of people to see through this kind of action. There must be more mutual confi dence and honest appraisal of what will be the positive gains as well as the negative aspects in any type pro posals that may be presented to the citizenry. Time is getting short for all persons to be more informed as we move on toward November 2, 1971. Perhaps now is the time to say, let's stop fooling each other and really get on with the tasks really facing us that is providing for the best possi ble education of all children with all segments of the population in repre-" sentative positions. This is the best way to build and keep a prosperous community as we look forward to Durham's continued growth. the Durham Colored Library was con ceived," Mrs. Merrick said. In 1917 the Durham Colored Li brary moved to the corner of Petti grew and Fayetteville Sts., where, due to the petitioning of Dr. Moore re ceived city funds for expansion. At. this location Mrs. Merrick first served on the board and launched a career of service of profound unselfishness. Mrs. Merrick became chairman of the board in 1941 and eight years later organized a Library Corner for the Blind. "I realized that blind peo ple wanted a connection with the library so we made the Library Corner a major function in the library," Mrs. Merrick said. The Library Corner for the Blind served as a clearing house for all com munity activities for the blind in the city of Durham and Durham County. Services of reading, writing and recrea tional activities have been provided. Braille Magazine, which grew out of the service currently has a circulation of 400 expanding and international market. And according to Wheeler, "It is doing quite well." The creation of Braille Magazine and other contributions of Mrs. Mer rick, in the words of Dr. Ray, "de monstrates an inherent sense of re sponsibility from her father, as well as her mother. It has allowed her to be a light in the entire Durham com munity." . During the brief afternoon cere mony at the Stanford L. Warren Li brary, October 25, board members listed other talents of Mrs. Merrick including painting, writing and music. "Even right now she will occasion ally play the organ at St. Joseph AME Church. And she can play as well as the regular organists," Wheeler said. * As The Inequities B Resentment * THE NEGRO LIVING IN THE GHETTO IS MADE PAINFULLY AWARE OF H TELEVISION, AND MAGAZINES SHOW HIH HOW DIFFERENT THE WHITE MAN'S . . mr , JOE COVBLLO. It, iTr-*w BLACK STAR 1 ' ■ FROM BLACK Monday I went to Raleigh for a rally to protest the pro posed restructuring of higher education. As I sit here to write I'm still trying to figure out where I should file this day in my mind. Was this another old hat, or was it the dawn of a new day in Black struggle. We gathered on Shaw's cam pus where we milled around till about 1:00. Then ,we started on a march down Raleigh's Fayetteville Street to the capi tal building. Perhaps one of the jnost beautiful moments of the day was wjieri around , and for as far as I could see there were beautiful Black peo ple. There were shades of the old civil rights era except there was no hand in hand with white people this time. As we marched the beauty of singing together, clapping together , and just being in the midst of a lot of Black people in the sun was one of those things that one could hope to do for ever. Despite the hostile looking cops on every corner, and stu pid gazing white people who thought the circus had come to town, we marched, we sang, we chanted. At the capital build ing we gathered around the stature of some white on a horse and listened to a good old open air revival. Testi monies came from all of the state supported Black schools in Carolina and from some others. We heard people urge us to do everything from vote, to be willing to die for this cause. Perhaps the interesting thing is that this revival showed us how many different ideas and conceptions are floating around in our community. We heard pleas to strengthen the demo cratic party, we heard pleas to engage in independent politics, and we heard pleas to unite with Black people around the world to defeat white oppres sion and domination. Invectives and threats of retaliation were hurled at white people (very few were present) and praises were heaped upon the Black people who spoke and upon those who were just there. We listened to everybody from the local Super-militant, to the Cltt Carolina (Dme* jfjjy [L. E. AUSTIN Editor-Publisher, 1027-1971 Published every Saturday at Durham, N. C. * by United Publtahers. Inc. MRS. VIVIAN A. EDMONDS, Publisher CLARENCE BONNETTE Business Manager J. EL WOOD CARTER Advertising Manager Second Class Postage Paid at Durham, N. C. 27703 SUBSCRIPTION RATES United States and Canada 1 Vear $6.00 United States and Canada 2 Years $ll.OO Foreign Countries 1 Vear $7.50 Single Copy 20 Cents Principal Office Located at 436 East Pettigri w Street, Durham, North Carolina 27702 local Black-white pseudo-politi cian. You know something, we even sang a verse of "We shall overcome." None of the speak ers seemed bothered by the whites who were blowing their breath in their faces as they stood almost on the speakers with their cameras and their mikes. The one thing we learned from the civil rights era is to be nice when white people let you march in town. There were exhortations to be nice, .. not to upset the whites, re ftnain law abiding. So it went. The giant pep rally went well, and we marched back to cam pus and today's episode of the revolution was over. Even after going over all of this, reviewing what happened, I'm at a loss as to what to say, I could hope that when people got back to classes the next day it was not just business as usual, but I know better. I could say it was just another jive holiday, but I know that inside of some of those beauti ful Black people a little wheel keeps turning, a little fire keeps burning, a sister smiles, I know we're moving on. I know for some of the brothers, what they said was just rhetoric, but I also know that some of the people listening were feeling what was being said. And as I think about why it didn't rain Monday when it rained, and rained the days before. I get the good feeling that maybe somewhere beyond the sky a cool bad brother is sitting there picking his 'fro and waiting for his people to get right. I have often written that life at its best is a shame. Maybe it is. It could be a big joke that God is playing for his enter tainment. But moments like the above when we realize that we have been somewhere, and though we ar enot sure yet, we are on our way to some where else. We understand that our people do deserve all that we have to give, and that if life is but a dream, if it is but sand tossed upon the ocean, it can only mean anything to any of us, if it means something to all of us. Aleutians A-Blast ToProceedl WASHINGTON - The Nixon administration an nounced Wednesday plans to proceed with a huge under ground atomic blast in the Aleutian Islands, drawing ex pressions of dismay from the Canadian ambassador here. Although Sen. Mike Gravel, D-Alaska, told newsmen the blast, testing a 5-megaton anti missile warhead, is scheduled for Nov. 4, James R. Schles inger, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, told news men a test date has not yet been established. Schlesinger said, however, that preparations would be completed within a week, mak ing the test possible by the Nov. 4 date. Meanwhile, seven environ ment groups headed by the Committee for Nuclear Respon sibility, are seeking to halt the test through court action, con tending it might cause earth quakes, tidal waves, radiation leakage or other environmental damage. Alaska Gov. William Egan said President Nixon and the AEC "in making this decision have taken—and must as sume—full responsibility for the safety of the people who would suffer the consequences if an accident occurs." Congress had passed legisla tion last Sept. 22 barring the test before mid-1972 unless the President authorized it. Schlesinger told a news con fere nc e Wednesday, "The Atomic Energy Commission is now planning to proceed with the Cannikin test. We have now received the requisite authority to go ahead including detona tion." "We have presidential au thorization," he said in answer to a question. Canada and Japan have both opposed the test, in which a hydrogen warhead with a force equivalent to 5 million tons of TNT would be exploded some 6,000 feet underground in re mote Amchitka Island in the northern Pacific Ocean. * (To keep Black folks think ing)* What happened to U.0.C.1? Things You Should Know ;|w •' ® ORN AUGUSTIS,IB7S, IN ENGLAHQ ' SON OF AN ENGLISHWOMAN a A NEGRO PHYSICIAN FROM WEST AFRICA. HE AT TENDED COLLEGE FROM 1890T016975t HIS FIRST PUBLISHED PIECE WASIN THEE,O LORD INIB9I /IN 1903 HE BE CAME A PROFESSOR AT TRINITYCOLLEGE aTHAT FALLHECAME TO A; MERICA WHERE HE WON MUCH ACCLAIM. INTHESUMMER 0F1912 HE FELL ILL WITH PNEUMONIA 8 DIED ON SEPT.I. ATTHE AGE OF 37. As much as I hate to agree with anything Vice- President Agnew has ever said, I will have to admit that the press may be guilty of one of the Vice-President's vehement charges. That is, misquoting. Monday the 25 in Raleigh, Mayor of Chapel Hill, Howard Lee addressed 3,500 participants of a rally in protest of the restructuring of higher education. News men filled the crowd with note books and cameras. After the deadlines were met and finished stories filed the quotes of Lee did not sound exactly as he had stated in public. In The Raleigh News & Observer Lee was quoted as stating "if the restructuring plan passes ... black institu tions will see their death." Admittedly, Mayor Lee stated these two parts of a sentence. What the Raleigh paper failed to mention was the meaning of the three dots between the two parts of their quote. The missing part is simply, "without certain changes," these three words would not normally mean very much to a sen tence but in Mayor Lee's context, they meant every thing he was saying. The Durham Herald quoted him as, "without ques tion" if the proposed plan passes, "the system of black institutions will see its death." These two quotes are also true. Lee did say these two things, but, he stated them separately and with a sentence in between them. The way they are arranged, even with the individual quotation marks around them, means very little to the common reader. Mr. Reader usually reads the copy literally. Therefore, that statement would make Mayor Lee seem directly opposed to the restructuring of higher education, of which he is not. In fact, he is highly in favor of it; With certain changes which he listed in his address and the news media failed to mention in its stories. Although a newspaper can and has in history swayed an election, stopped a campaign, and ruined or exposed an individual, I do not think this is the case with Mayor Lee. I am not sure why the daily papers in these two cities have come upon the difficult task of correctly taking a quote. I have technically misquoted a speaker by using one word in exchange for the word he per sonally used. I have done this in instances when I was pressed for time and simply failed to get down every word the person said. I do, however, feel there is a distinct difference in changing a word and restructur ing a man's address. Maybe speed writing courses are the answer. The state could require every newsman to take a course either in speedwriting or short hand. Then there would be no misquoting in existence because being able to write as fast as these courses would teach would do away with omitting vital parts of a speaker's address. We would no longer have to leave out part of his quotes in order to save time. We would never again see dots between parts of a sentence meaning omission, because we did not have time to take down every word. Thinking about this proposal, admittedly, takes some of the fun out of taking notes. Just think. We would never get to smile as we deliberately misquoted some one. We would never be able to do a follow up on a story we had previously helped to destroy. We would be able to bring a story to the attention of someone who were the facts correct, had no interest in it, to begin with. ' ' How could we create all of our great news if we were restricted to the truth? How could we cover up certain stories because they might offend one of our larger ad vertisers? How could we look Mr. Joe Reader in the face, if he knew the truth about us. How can we now?
The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.)
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Oct. 30, 1971, edition 1
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