Page A4-The Chronicle, Thursday, February 16. 1984
Wiqston-Salem Cfit^oqicle
Founded 1974
ERNEST H. PITT , PutHuPtr
NDUBIS1 EGEMONYE ALLEN JOHNSON
Co Founde' Executi** Editor
ELAINE L. PITT JOHN SLADE
Of fat Manager Assistant Editor
Still enduring
The NAACP turned a ripe old 75 last Sunday.
And though it may be a little gray, wrinkled and battleweary
from fighting racism decade in and decade out since
its birth in 1909, the organization is as viable and vibrant as
ever, and perhaps more crucial to the well-being of
America's black population than ever before.
Racial prejudice may, to a large extent, have exchanged
white robes and bibbed overalls for three-piece suits and intellectual
babbling about quotas, forced busing and an
animal called "reverse discrimination," but it's still there,
and so is the NAACP.
There have been storms, to be sure, including the wellpublicized
internal struggle between Executive Director Beniamin
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board, Margaret Bush Wilson, as well as a legal tussle with
an entity that once called itself the NAACP Legal Defense
Fund. But the NAACP is still there.
llYes, itVrough and there are huge roadblocks," said
newly elected NAACP President Enolia McMillian at an anniversary
celebration in Harlem, "but you don't have to take
those other roads. We can still knock some of those
roadblocks away."
Locally, things aren't much different. The NAACP endures,
yet it struggles.
*Much is expected of the local chapter, but little usually is
given in return by a constituency composed of too many individuals
who flock to the NAACP when they are in trouble,
and snub it when they do well.
Former NAACP President Pat Hairston likes to tell a
story about some local blacks who apparently consider it
taboo among their white friends to be known members of the
NAACP, so they slip him their membership dues on the sly
and ask him to ke p it under his hat.
Still, the local chapter, like its national counterpart, continues
to struggle, not only in litigation, but as a major force
in negotiating "Fair Share" agreements with businesses that
reap much of their profits from black consumers, but do little
in return for the black community, and in getting black
people to register to vote.
Hooks says the NAACP has the "best record of any
organization in America ? black or white ~ in registering
voters." ~?~?. r ? .
The numbers back him up.
The organization's branches, which 'tftittrtfer rtiore than
* 1800, have registered 1.5 million new voters since 1980. Five
hundred thousand of them were registered last year.
What's ahead for the NAACP? More triumphs -- and
more struggles. There will be battles and there will be battle
scars.
The NAACP "may have lost its glamour," Hooks says,
"but if we keep on doing the work, we'll be like the old ugly
cow that keeps giving the milk."
Happy birthday, NAACP, and, for all of our sakes, may
you have hundreds more.
Crosswinds
Lawrence Joel
By Lou Beall, U.S. Army.
The echo of the U.S. Army Old Guard's 21-gun salute and
the willowy, somber notes of "Taps" by the bugler marked
America's final tribute to one of its heroes Monday afternoon
at Arlington National Cemetery.
On Feb. 4, Spec. 6 Lawrence Joel died here in his
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will be most remembered.
In the sweaty, humid Vietnamese jungles 19 years ago,
Joel became an American liero. He was a medic assigned to
the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion
(Airborne), 503rd Infantry, 173rd Airborne Brigade, in Vietnam.
For acts of courage and bravery, Joel received his
country's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor.
On Nov. 8, 1965, the Viet Cong lauched a vicious attack
against Joel's company, wounding or killing nearly every
man in the lead squad. Joel treated those men and continued
moving forward to aid others who were injured. While giving
aid and moving man to man, he was struck by machine
gun fire. Despite the painful wound, he continued to aid his
fellow soldiers.
Finally, Joel bandaged his wound and exposed himself to
intense fire again. As bullets dug up the dirt around him,
Joel aided another soldier. This time he was hit in the thigh,
but ignored the new wound and dragged himself over the
battlefield, successfully treating 13 more men before his
medical supplies ran out.
Before the 24-hour batle came to a close, Joel got new
medical supplies and again exposed himself to intense gunfire.
He shouted words of encouragement as he crawled to
treat newly wounded men. Joel continued to comfort and
treat the wounded until his own evacuation was ordered.
Joel was one of 54 black Americans who have received
their country's highest decoration for heroism and bravery.
Since colonial days, blacks have defended and continue to
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Reagan: Re
By JOHN JACOB
Syndicated Columnist
The Justice Department has a new
partner in its campaign to reverse important
civil rights gains, and that
partner is none other than the agency
created by Congress to be the nation's
watchdog over civil rights progress -the
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
The compromise that extended the
life of the commission also loaded its
membership with supporters of the
administration's anti-busing, antiaffirmative
action line.
The newly reconstituted commission
began its new lease on life by issuing
a denunciation of "quotas" as
if that was today's biggest civil rights
worry. By doing so, the commission
further muddied the waters,
perpetuating public confusion over
quotas and numerical goals and
timetables.
Quotas are one small tool in the affirmative
action arsenal. They are not
mandated by any law and are onfy^
ordered by courts as a remedy for
gross violations of equal opportunities,
and, occasionally, by private
voluntary agreements, again, to correct
gross discrepancies in opportunities.
The commission also killed some
planned studies about the effect of
budget cuts on the minority poor,
demonstrating its lack of concern for
the disproportionate impact such cuts
The church'
By REV. CARLTON EVERSLEY
Guest Columnist \
The black church in America has
been in formal existence since the
1780s. Ever since its beginning it has
been criticized, along wVh its
ministerial leadership, for being too
divided politically, acquiescent, Uncle
Tommish, socially useless, overly
emotional, too other worldly and
economically unhelpful. Although
local NAACP president Walter Marshall's
recent critique of the national
and local black church, "What is the
role of the church?"(Feb.9), in the
Chronicle may have been many
things, it certainly wasn't original.
In a way, Marshall pays the black church
a huge left-handed compliment,
for apparently he thinks it can
solve all the massive socioeconomic,
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of black folk almost all by itself, if
only it wanted to. This view, implied
in the tenor of Marshall's tone, is
o v ^ 1 y idealistic. The best
characterization of the black religious
experience I've ever encountered in 10
years of intense study is found in Dr.
Gayrand S. Wilmore's "Black
Religion and Black Radicalism."
Wilmore states that the black church
contains all the very best and very
worst aspects of the black heritage in
America. In other words, one could
add further critiques of the black
chuTch: sexist, autocratic, antirteee!;
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versing civil
^
have had on minorities. This is a very
legitimate civil rights issue the commission
should be concerned about.
Such concerns are at the core of the
commission's responsibility to investigate
government policies and to
assess their impact on equal opportunities.
By abdicating its legal responsibility
to serve as a protector of civil
rights and as an advocate of equal opportunity,
the commission, in effect,
joins in an unhoiy alliance with the
Justice Department, which has
similarly shirked its responsibilities.
"By abdicating its legal respons
civil rights and as an advocate <
mission, in effect, joins in an u
Department, W/7/C/7 /ws similarI
In fact, the Justice Department has
become one of the most visible foes
of actions designed to enhance civil
rights.
While the commission was sounding
off against "quotas," the
Supreme Court was handing the
Justice Department a slap in the face
by throwing out its pleas for a review
of an affirmative action plan adopted
by Detroit.
Detroit's police force used to be a
paradise of discrimination ? few
blacks were allowed entry to the force
and fewer still could hope for promotions
to the rank of lieutenant be
s role: A mi
intellectual, etc. Yet the critical
distinction oetween wiimore ana
Marshall is that Wiimore is keenly
aware that virtually anything and
everything jxrSitive blacks have done
in America has either been led by or
substantially supported by black
church folk.
This not only includes Nat Turner's
slave revolt, which Marshall cited,
but the Gabriel Prosser and Denmark
Vesey revolt plots, the establishnent
of the black press, black insurance
companies, black schools and colleges
and black human rights
organizations such as UNIA,
? I ??
*7/ seems to me that most bh
most black people, are doini
resources availablelo them."
iviuw ivi, LUKt, iLLt, iiNtt ana,
yes, even the NAACP.
A more indepth analysis of "the
black church in America" would
reveal there are in fact three different
strains of black religion that have existed
since slavery, which sometimes
overlap, but which still exist today in
Winston-Salem and throughout the
nation.
The first strain I call the Phyllis
Wheatley strain, which buys the white
slave master theology that God
created blacks to be slaves to whites
(Genesis 9:20-27, Ephesians 6:5-9)
and is grateful to be a slave because
slavery includes Christianity. The seTi&wevj
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made on the basis of on<T black appointee
for every white until such
time as the police force better
reflected the racial composition of the
people it was supposed to serve.
No one was promoted who was not
qualified -- but the administration
decided to use this as a test case of socalled
quotas. In fact, as lower courts
pointed out, the Detroit system was
constitutional. It did seek to remedy
past discrimination; it did not
stigmatize whites; and it did serve an
important, overriding purpose ? all
standards by which the Supreme
ibility to serve as a protector of
of equal opportunity, the comnholy
alliance with the Justice
'y shirked its responsibilities.
Court has deemed such affirmative
action agreements constitutional.
By seeking' to reverse this, the
Justice Department was trying, in the
words of Detroit's mayor, Coleman
Young, "to destory the progress this
country has made in recent years in
providing basic constitutional
guarantees to all American citizens."
The Supreme Court's rebuff probably
won't keep the Justice Department
from pressing its aggressive
assault on affirmative action, nor is it
likely to discourage-the Commission
on Civil Rights from doing its part in
Please see page A5
nister's view
cond strain has always been tfie most
prevalent and it's the "don't-botherme-I'm-trying-to-cope,"
which
places emphasis on going to heaven
because life on earth is hell.
The final, revolutionary and smallest
but most important strain I call the
Nat Turner strain. It says, "Because
I'm a child of God, I must not be a
slave to any man." If we're concerned
about the socio-political,
economic and spiritual liberation of
the black community, we should support
the last strain and urge the middle
strain to this position.
It seems to me that most black
ick churches and pastors, like
y the best they can with the
churches and pastors, like most black
people, are doing the best they can
with the resources available to them.
Adoration and worship of pastors is
heretical, but vindictive and
vituperative labeling is unhelpful. We
need critical but loving support and
common courtesy with basic respect
like everyone else. Nobody criticized
black churches when they provided
the NAACP with over $4,000 for the
recent voter registration drive.
Marshall's critique also ignores the
biblical definition of the purpose of
the universal Christian church, which
is to evangelize the world abo^Pa savPlease
see page A6
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FRIENDS OF THE . jv
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Chronicle Letters
Earned honors
To The Editor:
1 extend to you and your very
fine staff my heartiest congratula
nuns. riacing iiim in gcnciai cacellence,
first in appearance and
design and first in the use of
photos in the recent North
Carolina Press Association's journalism
awards is confirmation that
the Winston-Salem Chronicle is an
outstanding newspaper.
It is. a vital part of our community,
and these awards are welldeserved.
Congratulations, also, to
Mr. James Parker for placing second
in sports photos.
I know I speak for all of our
citizens when 1 say we are extremely
proud of you, your staff and the
work you are doing to keep our
citizens informed.
Larry W. Womble
Alderman
My Sincere Thanks
To The Editor:
fThis letter was addressed to
On behalf of my entire famijy, I
wish to express my profound appreciation
for your well-written
and flattering profile of me in the
Jan. 24 edition of the Chronicle.
(The editorial was great, too!)
Moreover, I want to thank the
Chronicle Advisory Board and the
citizens of Winston-Salem for
voting me Chronicle 44Man of the
Year."
As was stated by one far greater
than I, 4'There is no greater honor
than to be honored by your own
for doing what you ought to be doing
anyhow."
I am truly humbled and proud
of this recognition and am inspired
to keep on keeping on, knowing
that there are those who appreciate
the sacrifices made and efforts
undertaken in the ongoing struggle
to empower politically and
economically blacks, poor whites
and other people of color in this
iana -- inaeea, in tnis woria.
I tharlk you all for this honor,
and pray that God wiU.grajit me
the courage, strength *and" wtsdom
to continue to wage war against injustice,
ignorance and insensitivity.
Right on to the black press.
Clifton E. Graves Jr.
Winston-Salem
Jesse's Wagon
To The Editor:
I am really appalled that otherwise
intelligent black leaders in our
city have jumped on the bandwagon
to campaign for Jesse
Jackson. Their minds are obviously
on one track ? that Jackson
brought Lt. Robert Goodman
home. For the first time, I wonder
about the caliber of our beloved
i i
icaucia.
In the first place, mere common
sense has me to question whether
Jackson committed this feat in only
a one 90-minute chat with President
Asaad.lt is beyond my imagination
that he did, or any m^n
could do so with any kind of leader
anywhere.
Other matters I question: (1)
?Rev.-Jackson did not make the
journey for political reasons, as
some claim, if he had no idea
whether he would succeed or fail.
(2) If he made the journey for
political of any kind of reason, he
was with some knowledge from
somebody that he was with at least
a 70-30 chance of succeeding. (3)
How could he afford to make the
journey, taking two sons, enjoying
the most superior of travel and
housing accommodations when he
is without one cent to warrant matching
government funds to run his
campaign for president? (4) Is he a
serious contender for the office of
president ? abandoning his campaign
without any funds - to make
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