OPINION
The
Chronicle
Ernest H. Pitt.
Elaine Pitt
Michael A. Pitt
T. Kevin Walker
Publisher/Co- Founder
Business Manager
Marketing
Managing Editor
Mori* Caroline
Press Assorwibon
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Photo by Jaeson Pitt
WSSU and city leaders stand in front of the school's newest
residence hall.
We continue to
take pride in WSSU
Size doesn't always mat:
ter.
Take for instance, the size
of our federal government and
the mounds of red tape that
comes with it. It's proof that
bigger is not always better.
Bigger and better can go
hand-in-hand, though.
Winston-Salem State
University is an example of
that. Folks who haven't visit
ed this town in a few years
probably won't recognize the
school's East Winston cam
pus.
There was a time when
only a smattering of classic
looking buildings made up the
campus. Back then, it was
impossible to get lost. Today,
a map is needed to navigate
the campus. Classroom build
ings, residence halls and the
like are seemingly popping up
every month, so much so that
a few years ago the school
started an on-campus shuttle
service.
WSSU is not just growing
for the sake of being bigger
and badder. Its success has
made growth necessary. For
several years, the school was
the fastest growing, in terms
of students, school in the
University of North Carolina
system. Young, eager minds
have flocked to the school as a
result of its growing academic
reputation and on-campus
amenities (such as its lush
"residence halls").
New programming has
also cropped up in recent
years. Formerly an exclusive
ly undergraduate institution,
WSSU now boasts 12 mas
ter's level degrees. Night and
weekend options have made
the school more convenient
for nontraditional student
populations, and enrollment
has swelled to nearly 6,000.
Though Winston-Salem
State has had its share of bad
press in recent years, it has
also seen its share of acco
lades. The school has ranked
in U.S. News & World
Report's top two public com
prehensive colleges in the
South for seven consecutive
years, and was named in the
top 20 HBCUs nationwide by
the magazine last year.
Prominent alums like
Stephen A. Smith, host of
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith
Show, also bring clout to the
institution, as they continue to
excel at their chosen profes
sions. And in this city, it is
hard to walk a block without
bumping to a WSSU grad;
most of them are at the very
top of their professions.
Chancellor Donald J.
Reaves is bringing his own
brand of excellence to the
table, resolving to tighten
enrollment requirements and
raise the bar of student per
formance campus wide.
Reaves is also a proponent of
empowering faculty members
to have a greater voice on
campus with regard to institu
tional decisions.
In an age where so many
people have become compla
cent about race relations and
the sacrifices of those who
founded institutions like
Winston-Salem State at their
own peril; we are happy to see
an HBCU really thrive, not
just by "black school" stan
dards, but by all school stan
dards.
Submit letters and columns to:
Chronicle Mailbag,
P.O. Box 1636,
Winston-Salem, NC 27/02
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Letters to the Editor
WSSU losing
folksy feel
To the Editor:
The community has been
observing the direction
Winston-Salem State University
is going under Chancellor
Donald Reaves. It appears that
the school is losing the "town
and gown" effect it once so
proudly bragged on. The new
chancellor seems to have no
interest in the community or he
doesn't have the time. If he
doesn't have the time he should
say so and let the community
know what is keeping him out of
touch with us.
Chancellor Reaves, if you
are overwhelmed with your job
and the community's expecta
tions of you, just let us know
how we can help. If you are
successful then the university
and the community will be
served and we all benefit.
Respectfully,
James Johnson
Thank you, citizens
To the Editor:
I want to thank everyone for
attending and supporting the
Protest Rally on March 18. All
of you came together for this
great cause, and as a result, we
now have an increase from four
sites to nine voting sites.
Special thanks and apprecia
tion are extended to all.
Because of your support and
awareness of the need for more
voting sites in Winston-Salem
Forsyth County and the Board
of Election Hearing, more vot
ing sites were approved. We
now have on the WSSU cam
pus, in Anderson Center, a very
important voting site. This
allows everyone who wants to
vote an accessible and conven
ient voting site location.
I am most gratefUl for your
continued support as we exer
cised our rights and embraced
another moment in the history of
Winston-Salem's phenomenal
citizens.
Congratulations to all on a
job well done!
Best Regards,
Larry Womble
Bush budget ignores AIDS problem
Dr. Scott
Rhodes
Guest
Columnist
President Bush proposed in
his FY 2009 budget request to
leave flat, and in some cases cut,
funding for domestic HIV/AIDS
programs. This proposal would
put undue pressure on the already
stressed domestic program for
HIV/AIDS prevention and the
care and treatment of HlV-posi
tive individuals. Congress must
increase funding for domestic
HIV/ Alps programs if it wishes
to stop the HIV/AIDS pendulum
from swinging back toward epi
demic proportions nationwide.
Sadly, Bush's budget propos
al is a sign of growing misper
ceptions concerning the state of
HIV/AIDS in the U.S. Recently,
the Associated Press reported
that HIV/AIDS peaked in the late
1990s, and some have been sug
gesting that HIV/AIDS funding
should be shifted to other public
health programs such as malnu
trition, malaria, and pneumonia.
Although the death rate for HFV
disease has declined since 1995,
the rate of decline has slowed
substantially from 33 percent per
year (1995-1998) to just over 3
percent per year (1998-2005).
Given this sharp slow-down in
the decline of the death rate, it is
entirely possible that we will
begin to see an increase in the
death rate again in the future. It is
important to note that a large part
of the reason for the declining
death rate was the introduction of
antiretroviral medications that
slow the progression of HIV to
AIDS. These medications slow
the progression to disease but do
not stop it. ?
Although the number of new
infections has been fairly stable
since 1992 reported at about
40,000 per year, the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) is releasing revised data
this fall that suggests that the
number of new infections per
year is as much as 50 percent
more than previously thought.
Up to 60,000 new infections may
be occurring each year in the
U.S. This increase is based both
on revised calculations and
increased infection rates. The
HTV/AIDS epidemic is not part
of our history; it is an ongoing
epidemic that has lost public and
governmental attention but con
tinues to affect all of us. Whether
we know it or not, we all have
friends, family members,
acquaintances, and colleagues
who are living with HIV/AIDS
and who h&ve died from AIDS.
HIV/AIDS continues to pro
foundly impact our community.
For, those who are diagnosed
with HIV/AIDS, it does not mat
ter what the national data say. An
HIV/ AIDS diagnosis can be dev
astating. In many cases individu
als are receiving late diagnoses,
which means they often do not
begin receiving care until they
have already experienced signifi
cant (and expensive) HTV-related
health problems. These health
problems likely could have been
avoided with an earlier diagnosis
and access to care and treatment.
In addition to the medical
problems facing those who are
HIV positive, they must deal
with the emotional stress that
accompanies an HIV-positive
diagnosis. Worries about their
health, their personal relation
ships, and stigma are just a few
of the burdens that weigh heavily
on their minds. How to get to
doctor appointments, provide for
their children, pay for housing,
and fund their care and treatment
are increasing concerns for those
living with HTV/AIDS.
Minority families are dispro
portionately affected by
HIV/AIDS, particularly in the
Southern U.S. Here in North
Carolina African-American
women are 17 times more likely
than White women to be infected
with HIV, and African- American
males are 7 times more likely to
be infected than white males.
The growing Latino population
is also at increased risk.
Currently HIV/AIDS is the third
leading cause of death for Latino
males in the U.S. between the
ages of 35-44 years.
The science behind HTV does
not indicate a biological pre-dis
position to HTV among ethnic
groups, so it appears that socioe
conomic factors play a role in the
disproportionate impact of
HIV/AIDS on minority popula
tions. In Northwest North
Carolina, for example, the region
served by local non-profit AIDS
Care Service in Winston-Salem,
over 80 percent of their clients
fall below federal poverty level.
In short, HIV/AIDS has become
a matter of social inequity. To
combat this social inequity we all
must step up to the plate and
make a commitment. More fund
ing is needed, not just interna
tionally but domestically, right
here in our own community.
The HIV/AIDS crisis is not
over. Much work is being done
but muc}} more work to prevent
infection and provide care and
treatment is needed; money ear
marked for the domestic
HIV/AIDS crisis is needed. This
need is particularly important for
North Carolina which is the in
to| 10 U.S. states in numbers of
HIV infections.
Dr. Scott D. Rhodes is a
member of the AIDS Care
Service Board of Trustees and a
medical researcher
Managing Ignorance
Dr. John
Mendez
Guest
Columnist
In recent days, the American
public has been bombarded by a
series of video clips, relentless
isolated sound bytes, and lots of
frenzied, misinformed over
charged rhetoric by the news
media, commentators, and right
wing bloggers, caricaturing and
demonizing my friend. Dr.
Jeremiah Wright and Trinity
Christian Church. Dr. Wright is
under attack for the use of lan
guage and sentiments uttered
while preaching a sermon that
criticized and condemned
American violence at home and
abroad. In my estimation, how
ever, the real reason Dr. Wright is
under attack is that he was the
pastor of Senator Barack Obama
and his family for over 20 years,
as UCC President John Thomas
pointed out. Those who sifted
through hours of sermons look
ing for a few lurid phrases and
those who aired them repeatedly
were only seeking to discredit
and harm Obama by associating
him with the historic prophetic
ministry and social gospel
preaching tradition of the Black
church, as if that is a bad thing;
and to divide the American peo
ple along racial and religious
lines by subtly playing the "race
card."
I have known Dr. Jeremiah
Wright for over 25 years. He is a
brilliant preacher and scholar.
He was recognized by Ebony
Magazine as one of the top 15
preachers in America. He has
preached in Winston-Salem sev
eral times to overflowing audi
ences. innuy
Church is located in
Southside Chicago
.where the conse
quences of racist
public policies are
manifested in a
crumbling infra
structure. a failing
school system, and a
lack of economic
development. For
uwvouta, tilling
Church has been hailed as a
model church for what Dr.
Martin Marty, a professor of reli
gion at the University of Chicago
Divinity School and frequent vis
itor to Trinity worship services,
describes as a place of "hope,
hope, hope."
In spite of Dr. Wright's awe
some ministry and achievements,
the media paints him as some
kind of "fanatic" based on a few
isolated sound bytes, which is
tantamount to doing "image
damage," which has historically
appealed to those who have con
tempt for Blacks. Dr. Wright,
like Adam Clayton Powell,
Martin Luther King, and
Malcolm X, before him, is really
under attack because he refuses
to emulate the king's "yes man"
and bless a racist and exploitive
status quo as so many prosperity
preachers do. Dr. Wright is
under attack because he chose
the prophetic over pseudo-patri
otism, the social gospel over
social accommodation, convic
tion over compromise, protest
over prosperity, and truth over
tranquility. Dr. Wright's words.
inougn muaiy orasn
were still nothing but
the truth about this
nation. What is ironic,
everybody knows he
spoke the truth, includ
ing the media. It is no
secret America assassi
nated democratically
elected presidents
around the world and
toppled governments
IU SC1VC U1CU llllCICMd,
from Allende in Chile to
Lumumba in the Congo, to a
failed assassination attempt on
the life of Caesar Chavez to the
use of deception and lies to
invade Iraq and kill its president.
Dr. Maitin Luther King said long
ago in his Beyond Vietnam
speech that America was the
"greatest purveyor of violence in
the world." The attack on Dr.
Wright is tantamount to engaging
in "selective ignorance."
James Baldwin, wrote in The
Fire Next Time, "This is the
crime of which I accuse my
country and for which neither I
nor time nor history will ever for
give ' them that they have
destroyed ... hundreds of thou
sands of lives and do not know it
and do not want to know it."
America is imprisoned by its
own myths. It engages in an
epistemology of willful igno
rance. White America does not
have to and does not want to
have knowledge of the injuries
and pain they have inflected
through slavery, terror, lynching,
and racism so manifested in the
everyday lives of people of color.
America has no desire to know
what it is about them and their
institutions that have wreaked
such havoc in the lives of Blacks,
people of color and the poor at
home and abroad. This is why
white America is not able to hear
or believe that Black America's
grievances are real. They cannot
seem to understand why we are
angry or why the world hates
America. It is not because of the
American way of life. America
cannot believe it because they
cannot face what this reality says
about themselves. White
America has immunized and
numbed itself from any kind of
criticism that might correct their
misunderstandings or expose
their self-imposed ignorance.
Worse still, neither does America
have the vision to imagine a dif
ferent world where justice,
peace, and equality are a way of
life. Such an attack upon Dr.
Wright is only another attempt
for the authors of devastation to
play innocent, and sadly, it is
playing the role of innocence that
constitutes die crime.
Dr. John Mendez is pastor of
Emmanuel Baptist Church and a
longtime cotnmunity activist.
Rev. Wright