March
/nam page A1
The Rev. William
Barber 0, the head of the
North Carolina Branch of
the NAACP and co
founder of the Moral
Mondays Movement, said
that the deliberate, race
based voter suppression
law passed by the North
Carolina state legislature
election in North Carolina.
As the nation mourns
the mass murder of the nine
members of Emanuel
African Methodist
Episcopal Church in
Charleston S.C., Barber
said that Americans are in
"the middle of a serious
season about race" and that
it's not just about symbols
like the Confederate flag,
it's also about the sub
that dozens of states ham
passed similar legislation
after Shelby v. Holder deci
sion. "The solvency of the
Voting Rights Act to stop
these discriminatory voting
practices hangs in the bal
ance and that battle will be
waged in Winston-Salem
starting July 13."
In June, less than a
month before the trial.
North Carolina legislators j
(
"The outcome of this trial will have Jt
national implications for voting rights."
i
and signed by North
Carolina's Gov. Pat
McCrory is a sin.
"[House Bill 589] vio
lates our deepest constitu
tional values and our deep
est moral and religious val
ues, which demand equal
protection under the law
and the establishment of
justice," Barber said.
The Advancement
Project, a multiracial civil
rights group, called H.B.
589 a "monster" bill that
shortens the early voting
period by a full week, elim
inates same-day registra
tion, requires strict forms
of voter ID, resources that
disproportionately affect
minority and low-income
voters.
The bill also blocks out
out-of-precinct voting and
expands the ability to chal
lenge voters at the polls,
and ends a pre-registration
program for 16- and 17
year olds, according to the
advocacy group.
"The number of voters
silenced because of the
new law likely exceeds
30,000 and could reach
50,000 or more," according
to analysis by Democracy
North Carolina, a watch
dog group that monitors
elections.
The report said that the
repeal of same-day regis
tration, out-of-precinct vot
ing, and straight party vot
ing "which created back
logs inside the voting
enclosure and longer lines
outside as voters took
longer to mark each contest
on their bal^pt," created the
most problems for1 voters
daring the 2014 general
stance of public policy and
the racially disparate
impact of the public policy.
"The fact that the
extreme agenda around
voter suppression has been
so racialized and framed by
the suppressors as some
how saving the country and
saving the democracy is the
reason that, not only must
flags come down, but the
opposition to voting rights
and these suppressive laws
must come down," said
Barber. "Racialized rheto
ric and policy rooted in
untruth creates a climate in
which we can say, 'the per
petrator of race-based ter
ror has been arrested, but
the killer, racism and race
driven policies and rheto
ric, is still at large.'"
Donita Judge, a senior
attorney for Advancement
Project, said that group will
also show that the North
Carolina general assembly
knew that the law would
discriminate against
African-American voters,
making it harder for them
to participate in the elec
toral process, but passed it
anyway.
Judge said that the
lawyers representing the
North Carolina Branch of
NAACP in the lawsuit
against Gov. McCrory plan
to use Section 2 of the
Voting Rights Act that pro
hibits voting laws that
result in the denial or
abridgement of voting on
the basis of race to chal
lenge H.B. 589.
"The outcome of this
trial will have national
implications for voting
rights," said Judge, adding
I
eased restrictions on the
photo ID requirements in
the state's contentious vot
ing law. The changes, if
approved by Gov.
McCrory, would allow vot- I
ers to sign an affidavit
acknowledging hardships
that they encountered in 1
obtaining a photo ID.
Voters could then present
other forms of identifica
tion.
Barber noted that the
last ditch effort by state
lawmakers to soften the
blow of the photo ID
statute, only addressed one
part of the 2013 law, leav
ing the cuts to early voting
days, same day registration
and pre-registration for
some teenagers intact.
The same day that the
trial is set to begin, the
Moral Mondays movement
will also host a march and
rally for voting rights in
Winston-Salem.N.C.,
Barber said, to show the
world that North Carolina
residents plan to fight for
their right to vote.
"This is our Selma, and
we implore all who care
about voting rights to join
us," said Barber. "Selma is
not just something that
happened SO years ago.
Selma is not just a movie
that you can go see to be
nostalgic about the fight
that was. Our Selma is the
fight that is. The fight
against voter suppression
right now, right here,
today."
Chronicle Managing
Editor Donna Rogefs con
tributed to this report.
Upcoming Events
linked to Moral Monday, July 13
? * i'nim>? iliMfcMMBifc
'Ferguson Video Showing
Thursday, July 9, 6 p.m.
WSSU Student Activity Center, 601 S. MLK Jr. Drive
'Southwest Ward
Thursday, July 9, 6 p.m.
Miller Park Recreation Center, 400 Leisure Lane
*Winston-Salem NAACP Welcoming Reception
Saturday, July 11,6 p.m.
NAACP Enrichment Center, 4130 Oak Ridge Dr.
'Forward Together Ecumenical Service
Sunday, July 12, 6 p.m.
Union Baptist Church, 1200 Trade St.
Teach-ins
Monday, July 13, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Goler Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church, 630 N. Patterson Ave.
'March and rally
Monday, July 13 at 5 p.m.
beginning at Corpening Plaza, 231 W. 1st St.
Testing
from page Af
information prior to that he
is unaware of.
"The landfill we have
records of was a permitted
facility," said Smith. "What
was considered waste back
then [1950s] has changed.
Back then, we would just
take waste and household
waste and just dump it. I
think that is what happened
in the '50s and '60s."
The testing last month
was part of an exchange
between the city and
Winston-Salem State
University, owner of the
Bowman Gray property.
WSSU spent $100,000 in
matching funds to pay for
initial testing of the site.
Jillian Allen. of
Winston-Salem and presi
dent of Action Now,
believes if it weren't for
WSSU, the people in the
neighborhoods surround
ing the stadium would've
never known about the gas
that could be seeping
through their homes every
day.
"If it weren't for the
selling of the stadium, the
people of this community
would've never known of
the dangers they could be
facing," Allen said.
"I would like the city to
fully explain what is going
on. Things change all the
time, so I think the individ
uals need to really under
stand what is going on and
how they will fix this issue
in the future, because it
could be getting worse."
In the 14 homes tested
during the initial testing, no
methane gas was found.
Assistant City Manager
Greg Turner said testing
will continue until the city
has a full understanding of
the area and how to man
age it.
"The last thing we want
is methane in someone's
home," Turner said. "We
will continue to test the soil
in the neighborhoods, but
we need permission to test
inside your homes."
Results from the second
round of testing will be
back in late August.
Keith Huff, director of
stormwater and erosion
control for Winston-Salem,
can be reached at kei
thhl@cityofws.org. The
city's website is www.city
ofws.org.
Tracy Glaatz/The Stale via AP
?? uiJii/a cla/)U)iM0 vunnnrt
r homas Wiggins, oj to turnout, waves On /imCMlUM I H*5 rrrtttv ?.?vrr?..a ??rr?. .
o take the Confederate flag off the South Carolina Statehouse grounds in
Columbia, S.C., Tuesday, July 7,2015. The push to remove the Confederate
lag from the grounds of the South Carolina Statehouse cleared another hurdle
ii the view of a long-held symbol shifts across the South in the wake of last
month's shooting.
lJNC's 'Silent Sam' Confederate statue vandalized
IKE ASSOCIATED PRESS j
<
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. ]
? Someone has spray j
painted "murderer" and
"black lives matter" on the ]
statue honoring i
Confederate veterans nick- i
named "Silent Sam" at the j
University of North (
Carolina-Chapel Hill. i
Authorities say they are i
investigating the vandal- ]
sm, which was discovered
Sunday morning, July 5.
Vo suspects have been
dentified or arrests made.
University spokesman
Hick White says the school
will continue to discuss
whether statues and the
names of buildings on
:ampus respect people of
all races, but damaging
statues is not the way to
have that discussion.
. "Silent Sam" was
placed on campus in 1913
to honor 321 UNC students
who died fighting for the
South in the Civil War. He
is called "silent" because
he carries a gun but no bul
lets.
The statue has been the
focal point for several cam
pus demonstrations ovei
race relations.
Dr. King and others spent their lives fighting
for the right to vote.
We have a responsibility to those who came before us
to continue fighting attempts to deny our right to
TMtbevrSdmk.
NWTMGMIOU**
?NAACP
Visit www.naacphc.orf for details
Carter G. Woodson School
K-12 | Enroll Today for 2015-2016!
437 Goldfloss Street | 336-723-6838
www.cartergwoodsonschool.org
Dual enrollment in High School/Forsyth Technical College
A Staff Committed to Virtual High School
Academic Excellence Available
; ?
Small Class Sizes Community Library
An Active Board of Directors Student Clubs
??? ? ?
A Graduation Coach Model Study Abroad Program
for Grades k-12
An Active Marching Band AP & Honors Courses
An Enhanced Strings Technology Usage for
Orchestra Students, Grades k-12
I ? , , ? , *M i ? f?
Strong Music Program Educational Parent Skills
Workshops Available
Sports Program Tuition Free
> * f