The NAACP family is saddened by the passing of Margaret Bush Wilson, an activist and lawyer who was the first African American woman to chair the NAACP Board Of Directors. Wilson died on Aug. 1 1 . at the age of 90 The importance of the NAACP and its mission were ? ? +1 ii- j vi/: l i.. Margaret Rush Wilson insiiiicu in wiihot caiiy in life, as both of her par ents were active in the St. Louis Branch of the NAACP. of which she became a member as a youth. Following her graduation from Talladega College in 1940, she entered Lincoln University School of Law in Missouri, set up one year earlier after the Supreme Court ruled that black .students must be; admitted to the University of Missouri Law School or provide equal educational oppor tunities elsewhere. In 1953, following liar istage paid at Winston-Salem. N.C. Annual subscription price is $30.72. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Chronicle. P.O. Box 1636 Winston-Salem. NC 27102-1636 Group wants officers to give up Tasers THK ASSOCIATED PR1 sS AI.Bl QUKkQl K M embers of a Hispanic rights group are calling tor authorities to gi\e up their Ia>er guns. gun darts in the hip and head b> the Tucumcari Police Chief Bobbye Rose, who was later placed on administrative leave over the incident. It look 18 staples and six stitches to piece Martinez's head back together. A crowd from the League of United Latin American Citizens chanted Saturday, ""lasers are lethal, make them illegal at Albuquerque's City Hall The protesters claim the weapon is deadly, and authorities are using it target ethnic minorities more fre quently than whites. They want lawmakers to take the high-voltage weapons away .from law enforcement officers. "Our community and the African American community are getting tased and getting killed by these laser guns.'" New Mexico's LULAC district direc tor Ralph 'Afe:llanes said-. There have been 437 stun gun deaths nationwide since, the* weapon was introduced in 2(K)(). according to statistics compiled by LULAC. which is the nation s largest Hispanic civil rights ? . / ? . / organisation. >. y 19 29 In Raton. Jesse Saenz died in juu/ alter ne was shot with a Taser gun Three officers face charge* in connection with Saenz's death. "We don't want to come across (as) not supporting law enforce ment, but we want to hold those accountable who are using these types of tools and not using their good judgment" LULAC State Director Pablo Martinez said. A Taser shocks with 50,000 volts, temporarily dis abling its target. The Albuquerque Police Department declined to com ment on the protest, but said it has rnrt had problems with the use of Taser weapons. "The department feels it's a good tool, it keeps the officer safe, it keeps the citizens safi^and it saves lives," Albuquerque The protesters also pointed to eases in New Mexico in which they say Tasers" Were used inappropriately. In July. 14-year-old Kailee Martinez was shot with stun police spokeswoman Nadine Hamby said. Albuquerque police cadets get tasered during their train ing for the department, Hamby said. Highly Unlikely Allies Sharpton, Gingrich push Obarna s school reforms BY 1 1BBY Ql AIL) THE \SS(K I Mi l) I'RI SS WASHINGTON Education Secretary Arne Duncan is joining forces w ith two unlikely allies, the Rev. A! Sharpton and Republican for mer House Speaker Newt Gingrich, to push cities to fix failing schools. The trio will visit Philadelphia, New Orleans and Baltimore later this year. They plan to add more stops as their tour progresses. "These are cities that have real challenges but also tremendous hope and opportu nity." Duncan told reporters on a conference call last Thursday. Duncan and Gingrich were scheduled to be ^guests^n Sharpton "s radio show Friday afternoon. The reverend was recording his show in Atlanta during the National Action Network's annual conference. The idea came from a meeting they had with President Barack Obama in May at the White House, Education is high pn Obama's priority list. He is seeking to boost achievement, keep kids from dropping out of high school and pu^h every student to pursue some form of higher education. The president has vowed to make the United States the world leader in the number of people who graduate from col lege. He argues that students who do better in school will help themselves in a work force that increasingly depends on high-skilled jobs, and that the country will benefit as well. Obama discussed educa tion issues in an interview with Damon Weaver, an 1 1 - vear-old Florida student. "On Sept. 8. when young people across the country will have just started or are about to go back to school, I'm going to be making a big speech to young people all across the country about the importance of education, the importance of staying in school, how we want Sharpton to improve our education sys tem and why it's so important for the country." Obama said. Sharpton. the liberal Democrat and community activist, said teachers and administrators aren't the only ones responsible for improving schools. "The parents need to be challenged with the message of 'no excuses."" Sharpton said. Interviewed on NBC's "Today " show last Friday, Gingrich and Sharpton were asked how they had agreed to work together on education in view of the many differences they've had on other issues. ? "I think that he has it exact ly right, that education has to be the No. I civil right of the 21st century, and I've been passionate about reforming education." Gingrich said. "And we can't get it done as a partisan issue." Sharpton said the time has come to "change the conversa tion ... to say we need to put everybody's hands on the table." He said he believes thai "if Gingrich there's anything Americans should be mature enough about to have a decent conversation, it's the education of their chil dren." Gingrich applauded Obama for showing "real courage on the issue of charter schools." Obama wants to increase the number of charter schools, which have a contro versial history and are a divi sive issue for his party's base. Charters get public tax dol lars, but operate free from local school board control and usu ally from union contracts, making them a target of criti cism by many teachers' union members. "1 strongly believe that when you can find common ground, we should be able to put other differences aside to achieve a common goal," Gingrich said. Courses Open for Audit Fall 2009 Beginning Wednesday, August 26th A History of the Baptists Dr. Bill Leonard Black Religion, Culture & Society Dr. Alton Pollard, III New Testament Greek I Dr. James Powell Sexualities & the Church Brian Amnions Women & the Preaching Life Dr. Veronice Miles l Divinity School Choir Laura jane Kist divinity@wfu.edu 336.758.4157 WAKE FOREST IT I I V I I I I T 1 August 22 tiimn mil mm Hin-Hifi MELVA HOUSTON ?? rmff lllHIIIIIHliHlllllHWMOW August 28 ERIC ESSEX MBMEMIE www.dwsp.org The Chronicle, the Choice for African-American News, is located at 617 N. Libert) Street Winston-Salem. NC 27101 336-722-H624 Fax - 336-723-9173 news(? wschroniclt .com www.wschronick.com The Chronicle was established by Krnest Pitt and Nduhisi Egemonye in 1974. and is pub lished every Thursday by Winston Salem Chronicle Publishing Co.. Inc. The Chronicle is a proud member of : Sat tonal Newspapers Publishers Association ? North Carolina Press Association ? 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