Bill targets N.C.
schools with
Indian mascots
SPEC1A1 TO THE CHRONICLE
A North Carolina legisla
tor has introduced a bill in the
House of Representatives to
establish a panel to study the
impact of American Indian
mascots in public schools.
Rep. Charles Graham, a
business owner, retired edu
cots ai)d logos at the public
schools and review current
policies and procedures on
their use." The bill sets a May
1, 2012 deadline for the com
mittee to file its final report.
Greg Richardson, the
executive director of the state
Commission of Indian
Affairs, told the Charlotte
caior ana u Lumoee
Indian. co-spon
sored the hill with
Rep. Garland E.
Pierce and Rep.
Marcus Brandon.
H.B. 681 was
introduced to the
House on April 5,
passed a first read
ing and was
referred to the
Rep. Graham
Observer that several
years ago his com
mission passed a res
olution and forward
ed it to the state
Board of Education
encouraging local
school systems to
eliminate American
Indian mascots.
"The Indian commu
nity obviously feels
committee on Kuies,
Calendar and Operations on
April 7. The bill, which is
called Study of American
Indian Mascots at Schools,
would create a 12-member
committee with appointees
from the House, the Senate,
the State Board of Education,
the Commission on Indian
Affairs, tribal members, and
the CEO of the North
Carolina Economic
Development Initiative. The
committee will have support
from professional staff at the
Legislative Services Office.
The committee's charge is
to "study the impact of
American Indian sports mas
offended by the use of mas
cots that do not accurately
represent their culture," he
said. "On this particular pro
posal, I am representing the
interest of American Indians
who are among my con
stituents."
Richardson said that
about half of the 60-plus
schools in the state that had
Indian mascots when the res
olution was submitted several
years ago have now eliminat
ed them. Many American
Indians are offended by the
way they are represented as
cartoon characters, jokes on
T-shirts, and in advertise
ments, he said.
Dickenson
from pane A1
Jamaica-native. "I just kind of cele
brated in my house; I was really excit
ed."
Entrants in the contests were chal
lenged to submit videos of their own
"Warrior Workouts" as inspired by
"Spartacus," a STARZ Network series
set in Ancient Rome about a rugged
band of gladiators.
The contestant whose "Warrior
Workout" receives the most online
votes by May 31 will win a walk-on
Sloyer
role on the show,
a five-day trip for
two to the major
city nearest the
filming location,
$500 in spending
money, a one-year
supply of MET
Rx and a MET-Rx
gym bag.
Creating a
"Warrior
Workout" was a
snap for Dickenson, a certified person
al trainer, former body builder and fit
ness model.
"1 just felt like I had the skills, and
I love putting together video clips," he
related. "I was like, this is a great
opportunity to shoot some stuff and
show what I can do."
Dickenson's video includes compo
nents of his latest fitness loves: parkour
and freerunning, two urban acrobatic
disciplines that are gaining popularity
in America.
"All my life, I've always been the
type of person that would attempt to do
the stuff that 1 saw in movies, Jackie
Chan movies to be exact," related
Dickenson. "When I found out that
what he was doing was actually a disci
pline, I fell in love with it."
About a year ago, Dickenson began
training on his own, mastering the
J acq ui Shooter Causey Photo
Dickenson, standing, with other mem
bers of Vanish Freerun.
moves by watching tutorials on You
Tube. He has since connected with
others in the Parkour and Freerunning
communities who have helped him per
fect some of his signature moves.
"It's just freedom and it's some
thing that really clears your mind," he
said of the discipline. "There's so
many things about it that just captured
me. You get to be so creative and
everybody interprets it differently."
Nineteen year-old Bryan Sloyer was
also practicing Parkour on his own
until he saw Dickenson featured on a
local news broadcast last fall. He con
tacted Dickenson, and together with
four others, the two formed the Vanish
Freerun team. The group gathers
weekly to practice new stunts and
cheer one another on.
"We sort of just meet up," Sloyer
said. "We all come together and sort of
collaborate and just grow as a team."
Sloyer says he and his teammates
look up to Dickenson.
"When he teaches, he's very direct
but he's not harsh," related the high
school senior. "He's fun to work with
because he brings a certain perspective
to Parkour."
Earlier this month, Vanish Freerun
created a video of themselves in action,
and took home the prize for the Best
30-Second Action Flick at the Action
Fest Film Festival. Sloyer and
Dickenson traveled to Asheville to
accept the honor.
It was Dickenson's second accolade
in recent weeks, but the phone call he
received last week proved to be the
biggest step in his Parkour career to
date. He was offered a fulltime posi
tion as an entertainer with "Pirates
Voyage," an ongoing dinner theater
show in Myrtle Beach, S.C. that will
open in June. Though Dickerson, who
is also an actor, had landed several
roles in local theatrical productions and
independent films, "Pirates Voyage" is
his first full time gig as an entertainer.
"I wasn't planning on making it a
career, but I really love it with a mas
sive amount of passion," he said of
Parkour. "It's mind blowing actually
that I'm doing this for a living. It's a
blessing. I'm glad to have it." ?
Someday, Dickenson hopes to blend
his love of fitness and Parkour into a
career as a movie stunt man or a
spokesperson for a major sporting
company. Sloyer believes Dickenson
has what it takes to make those dreams
come true.
"Especially with the drive and the
passion he has for his craft," S4oyer
said, "once he gets his foot in the door,
it's only a matter of time."
To view and/or vote for Dickenson's
Warrior Workout video, visit Met-Rx's
Face Book page.
www.facebook.com/officialmetrx. For
footage of Dickenson in action, visit
www.youtube.com/rrdickenson.
Legacy
from /x/vc 4/
and the degree to which we
can sustain our economic
future."
Ten years ago. all nine
jurisdictions countywide
adopted Ihe Legacy
Development Guide, which
set forth a vision and guide
lines for development and
growth. Now. planners say
it's time to update Legacy to
reflect the present condi
tions in the county and pre
pare for the future,
"We figured it was time,"
said Judy Hum. principal
planner for the City-County
Planning department. "We
have new data from the
Census, and a lot of the
actions from the (previous)
plan we've already accom
plished. so we were looking
for more guidance in all of
our work."
During the kickoff pro
grams. which were held at 2
p.m. and 7 p.m.. members of
the City-County Planning
staff and Board educated
residents on the purpose,
vision and scope of the
Legacy Update.
The Legacy Update plan
is divided into 15 chapters,
which address various com
ponents of growth and
development in the area.
Like its predecessors, which
date hack to the 1990s, the
Legacy Update will rely
heavily on the input of com
munity members. Hunt said.
"(Last time) we had more
than 100 people come
together and put together a
vision for the county," she
stated. We re
going to keep the
community's vision,
but move forward
with new action
items, new strate
gies."
Changes in local
and national trends
have shifted the
focus from suburban
sprawl to concen
trated, pedestrian
friendly urban centers with
mixed use buildings and a
wide variety of services and
Hunt
goods available. In addition,
Forsyth County is quickly
running out ot
undeveloped
land, and won't
have the means
to support the
significantly
larger popula
tion unless it
takes a different
approach to
planning and
development,
explained Citv
County Planning Director
Paul Norby.
"Our rate of land con
sumption is actually exceed
ing our rate of population
growth," Norby said.
"...The Triad area is the sec
ond most sprawling region
in the nation."
The Legacy Update will
be introduced to the commu
nity in stages, with opportu
nities for citizen input and
direction as the plan is
developed. Officials expect
it to be complete and ready
to be adopted by county
townships in 2012.
Michael Suggs, chair of
the Downtown Winston
Salem Partnership, said
most of the citizens he's
spoken with are pleased to
learn the county is expected
to grow significantly. He
urged all those who have a
stake in the county, and
especially those in the
African American communi
ty, to get involved and give
their input to the Legacy
Update.
"This whole planning
process is going to deter
mine where commerce hap
pens, and if we don't have
that in our community, it's
i
not going to be an inviting
situation for businesses that
are coming to the area," said
Suggs, who also chairs the
Goler CDC board. "I invite
people to come out, it's an
open invitation and, believe
it or not, people really want
to hear what you have to
say."
For more information
about the Legacy 2030
Update, visit
www.legacy2030.com.
1
7th annua)
Diabetes Expo
Get Heart Fit!
VI
TUesday, May 3rd
10 a.m. ? 1 p.m.
Marketplace Mall
2101 Peteri Creek Parkway
f*t? fipScrecnings include: Cholesterol, Blood Pressure and
Blood Sugar provided by Forsyth Medical Center
"Limited to the first 75 participants
trtgggx Over 25 Exhibitors
n(L^ For more Information call 703-32 19 or
? Online at www.fonyth.cc
Sponsored by:
fW fawtti C ijunn
lyrnirnititfhmhmm
ftimmSiifi MMifeti. im^rarmfi i ?*?*
?
1 1 ? if".
, fomtk ?*wb
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Photo by Lay la Farmer
City-County Planning Director Paul Norby conducts a demonstration to illustrate the
importance of using available land wisely.
Have a
Story
Idea?
Letus
Know -
m?
mkofikkm
This Mother's Day, give a woman a chance.
I he Women's Council ol Forsyth Medical
Cento Foundation! inv ites vou to honot
youf morti - or another someone
special - with the priceless gilt ol
a mammogram for a woman
uho cannot afford one.
Mammograms save lives.
1 hanks to earlv defection,
thousands of women are living
happy, health\ and productive
lives, cancel -free
On behalf ol the woman you
honor and the women whose
lives these gilts mav save,
we want to thank you.
i
I want to donate a mammogram
n in Honor of fH in Remembrance of
And I'd like to send notification of the contribution along with a Mother's Day card to:
Special ( )ne
Address
City State Zip
My Nianic
Address
City State Zip
Phone
The cost lor one mammogram is $100. ('lease make your check payable to:
Women's Council ol Forsyth Medical Center Foundation.
Enclosed is my check for: /
? $100 ?$50 D$25 ?$ Other
Please mail to: y- . .
Women's Council Forsyth Medical ( '.enter Foundation | "(
Mammograms for Mother's Day v J ?'
3333 Silas Creek Parkway, Winston-Salem, N.C. 27103 , /
To donate using a credit card, please call 336-718-7000. To donate online, please go to
www.fbrsythmedicakenter.org/pinkformom and type "Mother's Day Mammogram Gift*
in the comments sec tion. Your contribution is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.