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AHE8ITO6ET0 BE PWUD Of . sWMU$T?WM CHILDREN ( 'A ASBwvfmwBme feg fiBLACH.THEGLOKYOPOUR NS Sf'wouRPitesm mum) ll W J THSUAYTOTHB POUMOF i vp N Aav,CUVT0NF0WEU" Spectacles: A Closer Look . r . " ' . . . . : ' Preparing Our Children By Ada M. Fisher It is written that a little child shall lead us. Today's children are tomorrow's leaders. We must prepare them for their roles and all of tis can help. . From infancy on, the more quality time we spend with our children, the more all of us will benefit . Reading, talking and in teracting with our children in other ways are simple steps which will help lb build a better world. Not every parent can finanr cially afford day care, but we can read to our children and help them to blossom. the primary grades (1-6) and junior high (7-9) form the building. blocks for all . that will follow. The three R's reading, writing and arithmetic"' are still basic skills needed if your chfl3 is to reach his potential. Other subjects which broaden your child's perspective are social studies, civics, and the sciences. Making sure that vour child has entertained these options will make his transition into high school smoother. ' ' ' Though children often like to think they have all of the time in the world to decide what they want' to do with their lives, by the tenth grade they should have decided whether, or not they will go to school beyond high school. That decision will determine much of the course of their high school education. North Carolina's new competency regulations mean that parents must get involved and stay involv ed with their children's lives if they wish to see them succeed. I For those who may or may not be bound for college, a high school core cur riculum is advisable. This core should in clude at least two years of English with writing, grammar, and composition as foundations; mathematics through algebra; a social science,' history (U.S. or. world); and a science (biology, physics or chemistry). Whether one aims for the moon or a role in masonry, these courses will hold -you in good sted, If a student desires a career in the professions of law, engineering,! medicine or other 'Sciences, additional courses in English, mathematics, and he sciences are prefer red. Without a core o'f courses in these categories, any child, black or white; has limited hisher options in this computeriz ed, technologically oriented world. Extracurricular; activities have their place, but not at the expense of a solid academic foundation. If our children arc to continue to make significant contribu tions to the world, then we must equip them to cope with the ever changing com plexities inherent in this society. They can make it if they try and if they have our support. To Be Equal Another War On Grime By Vernon E. Jordan, Jr. Coping Racism: You Should Fight Back By Dr. Charles W. Faulkner How can I fight racism? What can I do to oppose it? There are three impor tant principles that a person who feels that he or she is being confronted with racism should abide by: (1) Don't ever lose your cool. (2) Don't ever argue. (3) Don't ever allow racism to go unchallenged. Principle No. I Don't lose your cool You can and should accept the fact that racism exists whether you like it . or not. Having this knowledge at your disposal should nullify any surprise or shock on your part when you confront it. Being cool and emotionally under control is your best defense against racism. Often, the person who practices racism might do so for the sole purpose of playing with you by toying with vour emotions. . ; A racist individual might discriminate against you and, when you become iiinfetoj the other person will . Wm aftddyiaJth amuscnQt. Once you lose coatroib your emotions, you have also Idst control of the situation. Your next mOvcy irt this negative case, should be to leave as soon as possible. This is certainly no way to fight racism. Instead, it merely shows just how , easily you can be taken advantage of emotionally. So be calm. At least you will have a fighting chance against racism. , Principle fJo. 2 Don't argue Remember, if you engage in an argument that you did not initiate, you might be "suckered" into a trap that is set by the other (racist) individual. You cannot win an argument against a person who has held life-long antipathy toward blacks and who believes blacks to be inferior because of his or her emo tional need to believe it. . There are shrewd racists who enjoy a good argument to support their points-of-vicw. They often initiate the argument with the full knowledge that you cannot disprove their views, no matter how hard you try. There are volumes of books in every library on anthropology, psychology, medicine and sociology that dispute the claim of black inferiority. If these books have not dissuaded the racist from hisher point-of-vicw, you are not likely to do it in a fit of argumentative rage. Principle No. 3 Don't allow racism to go unchallenged The more often a racist is able to abuse blacks and get away with it, the more comfortable that person becomes with expressing such behavior because it provides a convenient outlet for pent-up emotions. After a while, such a per son develops a psychological need for such an outlet of emotionsThis is the primary reason that racism persists and is getting worse each day. What should you do? In a cool, calm voice, with feigned sympathetic understanding, say to the racist "It's alright, I understand your childish need to abuse someone." Then, cooly and calmly walk away. Do not respond to any comment that the person makes in response to you. If you arc physically abused, seek out a policeman and make an issue of it. It the physical abuse comes in the form of a racist deliberately bumping into you, use common sense and select the response that is most appropriate to the specific situation. If the situation warrants it, get the best of the bump by bruising the other person, slyly step on that person's foot or express a feigned. pathetic sympathy for the . person's childish need to abuse you. Remember, the point is to make racism uncomfortable for the racist . When you allow racist behavior to go unchallenged, you arc in effect strenthening and substantiating it. Be cool and, always, use common sense. TIIKUNKORTUNATK REALITY The reality of racism in America is difficult for blacks and whites to accept intellectually. The depth of racism is even ttprc devastating. Yet, a cure will never be found if the problem remains "under cover." Americans, blacks and whites, have a responsibility to hold their idealism in check and respond lo the distasteful reality of the society in which we live. In l8. the -report of The National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders was made public. The Commission, a body of American scholars, was ordained by President Johnson to investigate racial attitudes in fifteen American cities. Following is the first paragraph from the introduction which was written by Tom Wicker of the New York Tunes, "This report is a picture of one nation, divided. It is a picture thai derives its most devastating validity from the fact that it was drawn by representatives of the moderate and responsible' I'stablishment not by black radicals, militant youth or even academic leftists. From it rises not merely a cry of outrage; it is also an expres sion of shocked intelligence and violated faith." Government agencies and private organizations that are dedicated to the im provement of American society have documented, with hard fact, that the gap is wider now socially, in housing, economics, education, jobs and emotional stability than at any time in the history of this country. We cannot continue to ignore the facts, or we may one day wake up and find ourselves physically at each others' th roais. Following are excerpts from the summary of the report of The National Commission on Civil Disorders: "The alternative is not blind repression or capitulation lo lawlessness. It is the realization of common opportunities for all within a single society. This alternative will require a commitment to national action compas sionate, massive and sustained, backed by the resources of the most powerful and the richest nation on this earth. From every American it will require new attitudes, new understanding, and. above all, new will." It is difficult for a supposedly democratic society to accept the fact of its own repression of minorities. But, the facts undeniably substantiate the ex istence of the problem. Kind-hearted white Americans find the designation "Racist" emotionally and intellectually hard to accept and. often, vehemently deny the existence of racism' even thought the government itself documents its existence. ' Many black Americans, cmerscd in idealistic hope, often sympathize with their tormentors by saying: "Things aren't as bad as they seem.'.., . .they'll gel better someday." Yet, things get constantly worse. We can dream but we can not inarch against reality. The facts are clear. If we want "things to get better" it is we who must make it happen rather than expect that some transcendental force is operating in our behalf and merely waiting for the "The moment." If crime didn't exist, politicians would have to invent it, for there is nothing more rewarding politically than a fresh an nouncement of a "war on crime." A new war on crime seems about to get off the ground, with get-tough speeches by Chief Justice Warren Burger and President Reagan, end a Justice Depart ment report that recommends, among other things, weakening of constitutional protections and building more prisons. 1 Justice's Task Force on Violent Crime specifically suggested a $2 billion grant program to help the states construct new prisons. And several states plan to float bond issues for prison construction. Somehow a nation that claims to be unable to afford decent social service benefit levels js supposed to come up with the money to finance prisons. A nation whose inner-city housing stock is deteriorated and is being abandoned, is supposed to build prisons that cost about $70,000 per bed just for construction, with up to $20,000 per year in mj-, individttatiOAnd' tjtatrmcelsuOToesn't allow fofirifla tion. : . -'.;: ..-. Talk about misplaced national priorities! ; Buying more prisons won't -buy more security. If anything, our experience with prisons suggests they do not deter people from committing crimes. Indeed,' they serve to warehouse people in brutalizing conditions, leading to the increased likelihood that they will return to custody once released. That raises another point neglected by the 'get tough with crime advocates. You can arrest, convict and imprison people. But ultimately, they will serve their time and return to the community. : Unless they are helped to overcome the lack of skills, anti-social attitudes and limited opportunities that helped land them in trouble, they are likely to con tinue to swell the crime rate. Nor do the hard liners have much to say about keeping young people from the lure of criminal activities. Apparently they would rather build prisons at luxury-hotel construction rates than invest in the education and job opportunities that give economically deprived young people a stake in stable, crime-free communities. A lot of the old bromides are also being hauled out in this year's version of the war on crime. Preventive detention sounds like a good idea until you realize " that" t here i 'o way a judge wan i predict '' the likelihood of an accused person's tur ning up for trial. Without hard evidence that accurate predictions can be made and all studies indicate the contrary, especially when ap plied to blacks we shouldn't weaken the governing assumption of our legal system that an accused person is innocent until proven guilty. The same holds for the so-called exclu sionary rule, which the Task Force wants weakened. That rule prevents illegally ob tained evidence from being used in a criminal trial, and it is based on Fourth Amendment protections against illegal search and seizure. The exclusionary rule keeps law en forcement agents "honest," since they know they have to go by the book or lose their case in court. But it does more than that, too. It protects all citizens from ar bitrary police behavior, it increases respect for the law, and it removes incen tives for law enforcement officials to abuse their power. Weakening the exclusionary rule will fnot add to the conviction rate. Despite a handful of publicized, extreme cases few people have escaped a guilty verdict because of it. Again, this is an instance where a precious constitutional right should not be compromised to satisfy a purely rhetorical "get tough" stance. All the talk, about building more r in prisons and drilling Holes; in the const itun I Mtonat Safety net avoids the real issue of attacking the causes of crime. A society that has full employment, equal opportunities, decent education and housing for all, and eliminates discrimina tion will be a society that is relatively crime-free. The Haitian Dilemma By Bayard Rustin A. Philip Randolph Institute The ghastly sight of 33 drowned Hai tians washed ashore onto a Florida beach has once again focused attention on the plight of refugees from that beleagured land. Haiti is a dictatorship in which the government controlled militia has sup pressed all forms of free political expres sion, has restricted the fundamental freedoms of the press,, and assembly, and has engaged in murder, execution, im prisonment without trial, exile, and tor ture. In the midst of this brutal violation of human rights the vast majority of the Haitian people live in abject poverty. The line between those fleeing the country for political reasons as opposed to those flee ing for economic reasons is fine indeed. The mother of a pregnant Haitian girl who drowned in Florida has stated she "would prefer to be shot than let her daughter's body go back to Haiti". Her vehement contempt for Haiti's govern ment indicates that the Haitian refugees arc not fleeing solely for economic reasons. Moreover, can there be any, doubt that those who arc "willing to risk death at sea to reach refuge 'on our shores are fleeing a terrifying form of oppres sion? In part, the Haitian dilemma is com plicated by current; immigration rules. Under these rules, "political" refugees enjoy important advantages: Their ap plications for asylum arc quickly process ed and they can receive an immigration status under which they can become American citizens within five years. However, there is an important qualifica tion. Those who arc deemed "political" refugees must have fled from a Com munist nation such as Cuba, the USSR, Fast Cicrmany, or Vietnam. Haitians, who escape the Duvalier dictatorship which, though brutal, is not Communist are classified as "economic", refugees and thus subject to deportation. '. While it is easy to understand the special treatment accorded to those escap ing Communist tyranny, it is clear that similar protection must be extended to those fleeing other brutal dictatorships for political reasons. American immigra tion policy must rid itself of its double standard in dealing with refugees escaping oppression. A single standard must apply to all victims of dictatorship and tryanny . The Reagan Administration's efforts to deal with the influx of Haitians, to date, have been deplorable. The Administra tion has violated international law in set ting up its "kangaroo courts" at sea. Moreover, it has proposed a major revi sion of immigration law which would per mit detention of refugees in special camps exempt from most environmental codes. In addition, the Administration's plan seeks to severely limit the role of Federal courts in reviewing decisions made by the Immigration and Naturalization Service on deportations and the granting of political asylum. Such emergency measures are a clear affront to human dignity and a violation of due process. They betray an absence of compassion and one can only hope .the proposals will be drastically revamped before being enacted into law. Yet it is clear that the problem of an unending exodus of refugees from Haiti and other tyrannies will not disappear! What, then, can be done in order to . assure that those who are fleeing political repression are treated fairly? In my view the answer requires creating a board which would monitor and review applications for political asylum. Such a board could be created with the active participation of human rights and humanitarian organizations. The body could serve as a kind of appeals board, charged with the responsibility of review ing the often callous and legalist ically 1 here is no struggle, there is no progress. , Those who pro pose to favor freedom and yet depreciate agitation are men who want crops without plowing up the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean's ma jestic waves without the awful roar of its waters. Frederick Douglass minded decisions of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The functioning of such an independent entity and the broadening of the concept of a "political" refugee to include those who flee both right-wing and left-wing dictatorships would serve to make clear the basis of our nation's policies concern ing refugees. It would make clear to the people of Haiti and other dictatorships that if they can demonstrate convincingly that they are fleeing political oppression and not merely seeking to better their economic oi, then the United States remains a place pf .asylum, a sanctuary. In the absence of such a clear-cm policy, which realistically acknowledges that the United States cannot open its doors to everyone who seeks to escape Third World poverty, we will be unable to prevent other catastrophes which so dishonor the soil of a country founded by refugees and immigrants. (Bit &ana (Shots L.E.AUSTIN Editor-Publisher 1927-1971 (USPS 091-380) Published varv Thursday (dated Saturday) at Durham. MX , by United Publishers. IncorpoVa ed 27702-3823. 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The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.)
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Nov. 14, 1981, edition 1
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