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The memorial table sits near the stage during the HARRY Memorial Day Commemoration. ^ Photo, by Todd tuck Brian Wood, assistant director of the Veterans Affairs regional office, gives out commemorative pins to Vietnam veterans. Harry . "? ' ,| from page A1 service, nor any honor truly befitting their sacrifice, let us remember that it is never too late to pay tribute to the men and women who answered the call of duty with courage and valor," read the 2012 proclamation, which began a 13 year program to commemorate the war from May 28, 2012, to November 11,2025. Vietnam veterans in attendance were given commem orative pins and a copy of the proclamation. HARRY founder Ciat Shabazz said most of the people the organization helps are Vietnam veterans. Her late brother Harry Smith, who died of colon cancer that was undiagnosed and untreated by the VA, was a Vietnam War era veteran. She said veterans of that era came home to a public that didn't welcome them. "They were sent to stand in harm's way for us and they were held accountable for something that was no fault of theirs," she said. Vietnam veteran Milton Wright was drafted into the war. He was in the 101st Airborne and served in the war for a year. He then served as a drill sergeant at Fort Dix for two years after that. He said he was thankful to have survived the war, since he knew others who didn't. Wright was glad to come home after the war, but knew he was unwelcome by the public. He changed into civilian clothes at the airport so no one would know he was a sol dier and still rarely talks about the war except with other Vietnam veterans. "I try to put it out of mind, out of sight," he said. He said while he appreciates the 50th anniversary hon ors of recent years, he wishes they'd been done years ago. He said he continues to have health complications from a knee injury in the war and exposure to Agent Orange. He's had cancer twice, but currendy it's in remission. He said he's covered by the VA, but it took two tries to get his claim accepted. Wright said, however, that overall his service was a good experience, as he got to travel and see the world dur ing R&R. His son is an Air Force veteran who currendy works overseas as a military contractor. Wright SB 873 from page AI the Legislature tasked with evaluating an institution's diversity standards. Opponents point to lan guage in SB 873 calling for "a study of the impact of each university's name on the institution's academic strength, enrollment and diversity." The bill would effec tively legislate a name change for most of the UNC system's HCBUs unless they can attract a more racially mixed stu dent body," charged Blue NC, a progressive website. "GOP members of the leg islature aren't looking to improve academics or diversity in the UNC sys tem, nor are they interested in making college more affordable for students. They view the HCBUs as a political threat - they are institutions that have his torically played a large part in civil rights actions, such as the lunch counter sit-ins of the sixties, and where awareness of minority issues is a key part of their contribution today." If not closed, opponents of SB 873 see at least the three small black schools being turned into commu nity colleges. Many UNC System HBCU supporters say there's no way any of the HBCUs will be able to grow or sustain with a severely reduced tuition base. Without revenue from other reliable sources, like research grants, those schools will find them selves on the constant brink of closing. Robinson expects the state to make up the short fall. "We believe it is essen tial for the state to provide the affected universities with funding to offset the lost revenue from tuition - as well as funding to sup port the anticipated enroll ment growth - to ensure that instruction and student services are not dimin ished." But a letter from the UNC Faculty Assembly to UNC System President Margaret Spellings and several state lawmakers. says: "This legislation would essentially convert the minority campuses into inexpensive magnet schools for privileged and racial majority populations, with the net effect of dis placing African-American and Native American stu dents, thereby fundamen tally altering the traditional mission of the four named minority schools." "We need to make sure we write, we call and we email," Patti Sanders Smith, president of the HBCU Coalition of Pitt County, was quoted by The Daily Reflector, telling those attending a recent meeting last week. "We don't know when this bill is going to pass," the WSSU alumna added. You know how [state law makers] are; they like to pass stuff in the middle of the night." So it was no surprise that opposing groups oiganized quickly, holding a press conference at the state Legislature and rally ing at the Halifax Mall in Raleigh on Wednesday to denounce the measure. "This bill is classic underdevelopment. Once again the extremists use a false label to cover up the truth. This bill is not about making college more affordable," said Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, NC NAACP president. "Instead it is an attack on HBCUs and minority uni versities that will drain mil lions of dollars from them with no replacement rev enue. Like the extremists' voucher and voter suppres sion schemes, this is just another scheme to further the extremist agenda." Last week, the Senate Legislative Education and Appropriations committees signed off on the proposed bill, but not before ceitain changes were made, like the removal of the diversity provision that could change an institution's name. Apodaca reportedly "promised" during the edu cation committee hearing that the UNC System budg et would see an extra $70 million-$80 million to make up for the expected tuition shortfall. He also stated that, "We have no desire to close any of our universities in our system." Robinson said in his statement: "There is no doubt that Senate Bill 873 will have a tremendous impact on our campus. In many ways, this bill is exciting because it opens the door to a college educa tion for many deserving students." Saying that he was get ting a lot of concerned calls about the measure. State Sen. Paul Lowe Jr., D Winston-Salem, proposed that the $500 tuition feature of Apodaca's bill be tried out as a pilot program first, but the Hendersonville Republican refused. "I have a lot of appre hension about this bill," Lowe replied. "It has a lot of moving parts that make me uneasy at this point." .The overall bill, if passed, would guarantee no tuition hike for any student attending a UNC System school if they finish in four years. It would also lower tuition to $2,500 for all out of-state students at the five designated schools. Chronicle staff con tributed to this report. Pastor Curtis Friday talks about the importance of creating an action plan during the roundtable dis cussion held at City Hall on Tuesday, May 31. Friday is pastor of The Love Church. - en Torian Little makes a point during the roundtable held at City Hall on Tuesday, May 31. Little said that in order to make a change, the entire city must come together. FtMm by Crai| T Greenlee MorseUis Purvis provid ed reliable inside scoring and defense for QEA this past season. Keith Stagg is a gifted long-distance shooter who excels as a perime ter defender. Correction The Chronicle apologizes for an error made in The Chronicle on May 26. The article, on page Bl, has the headline "QEA basketball seniors headed to the next level." With the article, the captions for two of the players were incorrect. The correct photos and captions are above. The Chronicle regrets any misunderstanding that may have resulted from this error. The Editor e * Shootings from page Al dance that a team of com munity leaders would col lect all ideas presented dur ing the roundtabl^ and that an action plan would fol low in the coming weeks. "Together we will decide how to move for ward in this community," said Taylor. "We believe that ideas for our action plan should be given to us by die actual community. "That's what it's all about. To build an action plan to decrease violence in our community." As dozens of concerned residents took center stage in the council chamber, one point that was mentioned time and time again was the need for more econom ic development in low poverty areas. Reginald McCaskill said, "If the young people and adults had more to do in their communities, they would not have time to commit senseless crimes. "As a community we need to build infrastruc ture," he said. Lakita Crawford echoed McCas kill's state ments when she took the mic. "We have to travel everywhere to make our money. We have to travel everywhere to spend our money," said Crawford. That is not a coincidence." Other ideas that were mentioned a number of times included more youth programs designed specifi cally for young men of color, educational pro grams for adults and an improved job market. While all are good ideas, longtime city native Tori an Little said, "The only way we're going to change anything in this city is if we come together as ? one. "I am adamant about making a change and everyone in this city should be, too," he said. "We as a whole don't support each other. We have to put all our efforts together." Little also noted that members of the Winston Salem Police Department should try to build a better relationship with those in the community. He said police shouldn't just be in the community when something bad happens. Police Chief Barry Rountree, who is a member of the team that will create the action plan, said that in order to make a difference, the WSPD has to have cooperation and informa tion from the community. Rountree went on to say if nobody is willing to speak up or say anything, the police will continue to get the same results. "People need to start speaking up," he contin ued. "It's easy to place the blame on me." Although a time and date has not been announced, another round table discussion is expect ed to be held to present the action plan to the commu nity. The Chronicle (USPS 067-910) was established by Ernest H. Pitt and Ndubisi Egemonye in 1974 and is published every Thursday by Winston-Salem Chronicle Publishing Co. Inc., 617 N. Liberty Street, Winston-Salem, N.C. 27101. Periodicals postage 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 j > * Photo* by Tevin Stinson Concerned residents listen intensely during a roundtable discussion held at City Hall on Tuesday designed to help plan steps to decrease violence in the area. CouncWMember James Taylor hosted the roundtable.
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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