N.C. NAACP threatens
civil unrest procedure
BY CASH MICHAELS
FOR THE CHRONICLE
If state lawmakers
insert themselves into
deciding North Carolina's
next governor, or changing
the state Supreme Court to
nullify Justice-elect Mike
Morgan's victory, there
will be mass demonstra
tions and civil disobedi
ence, promises N.C.
NAACP President Rev. Dr.
William Barber II.
"We believe either
attempting to stack the
Supreme Court or deciding
the governor's race in the
legislature is, and would
be, a major civil rights vio
lation of the right to vote
and equal protection under
the law," Barber told hun
dreds of demonstrators
during Monday night's
Moral Monday march and
rally at the state Capitol in
Raleigh. "We pledge to
fight with every legal and
moral tool we have, includ
ing, if necessary, mass civil
disobedience."
Barber joined the ranks
of those concern that the
Republican majority in the
N.C. General Assembly
would appoint two new
justices to the state's High
Court in order to offset the
4-3 Democratic majority
Morgan's Election Day
victory resulted in. Thus
far, GOP legislative leaders
claim that they haven't dis
cussed it with their caucus
es.
Barber's warning
comes as the State Board
of Elections posted new
unofficial number tallies in
the gubernatorial race
between Republican
incumbent Gov. Pat
McCrory, and his
Democratic challenger,
state Attorney. Gen. Roy
Cooper. With all but 13
counties reporting in,
Cooper leads McCrory by
9, 716 votes of 4.7 million
cast, what some observers
are saying is an insur
mountable lead for the
governor to overcome
despite his legal action
demanding a statewide
recount, and specifically a
recount of over 90,000 bal
lots in Durham County,
which were tabulated hours
after polls closed on Nov. 8
because of mechanical
problems.
McCrory wants those
Durham ballots recounted
by hand, but the Durham
Elections Board previously
rejected his campaign's
petition. At press time, the
state Board of Elections
was scheduled Wednesday
to decide whether to order
the Durham Board to pro
ceed with the recount.
Meanwhile, the conser
vative Civitas Institute has
filed a federal lawsuit,
which will be heard in
court Friday, seeking to
stop any certification of
early voting ballots from
same-day registrations,
claiming that the addresses
on those registrations were
not confirmed before the
ballots were cast.
During his remarks at
the Moral Monday demon
stration, Barber blasted
what he saw was a deliber
ate manipulation of the
election process by
Republicans to deny com
munities of color their vot
ing rights. He said N.C.
NAACP lawyers would be
in court Friday to challenge
the Civitas lawsuit.
Barber also demanded
that McCrory stop his
attorneys from interfering
with the post-election vote
canvassing process with
their many challenges and,
thus far, "bogus allega
tions" of voter fraud.
"Pledge that after
the canvass and recount,
you will not try to get the
legislature to take steps to
unconstitutionally decide
the governor's race,"
Barber added, noting that if
the final margin of victory
for Roy Cooper is below
10,000 votes, state law
allows the Republican-led
legislature to decide who
the next governor will be.
Barber also warned that
he expects the N.C.
General Assembly to fol
low the ruling of the U.S.
Fourth Circuit of Appeals
to redraw the congressional
and legislative voting lines
when it reconvenes in
January. A federal court on
Tuesday ordered North
Carolina lawmakers to
redraw the state's legisla
tive districts by March and
ruled that a special legisla
tive election must be held
in 201.7. The decision
comes after the federal
court ruled this summer
that lawmakers had uncon
stitutionally gerryman
dered 28 legislative dis
tricts along racial lines, but
allowed the already sched
uled 2016 legislative elec
tions to proceed under
those unconstitutional
maps.
Earlier this year, a sep
arate court case found that
lawmakers had unconstitu
tionally gerrymandered the
state's congressional maps
in 2011 and ordered them
to be re-drawn, necessitat
ing a special June 2016 pri
mary for North Carolina's
congressional races.
"We will be watching
to see if the legislature con
tinues to contemptuously
thumb its nose at the feder
al courts," Barber said.
"We will go back into court
with the first sign the legis
lature delays justice again,
because justice delayed is
justice denied."
"We believe either attempting to stack the Supreme
Court or deciding the governor's race in the legislature
is, and would be, a major civil rights violation of the
right to vote and equal protection under the law."
- ?' ? ? ;' ?>"? - I -J
-Rev. Dr. William Barber II. N.C. NAACP President
? ? ? : 1
NCCU
from page A1
Trustee Board until 2015,
served as vice chair of the
Search Committee, and
remembers how impressed
the panel was with her
commitment to educational
excellence.
"In the interview
process, we realized that
there was something there,
and we thought that [she]
would be a tremendous
asset for North Carolina
Central University. So she
quickly rose to the top of
our list as we looked at
potential candidates."
"It's a tremendous loss
for us," said Ruffin, a 1975
alumna and widow of a
UNC System Board presi
dent, the late Benjamin
Ruffin. "As a person, she
was a sweet spirit. I believe
that she had faith ... and
her caring for the students
of North Carolina Central
and that university, and all
that she did to pull us out of
some really tough times, is
an example of the great
ness of her leadership."
Mable Stevenson, pres
ident of the NCCU
Winston-Salem Alumni
Association, recalled how
Dr. Saunders-White always
walked the Durham cam
pus, meeting and encourag
ing students. And when she
was in her office, she
always made time to meet
with people who wanted to
speak with her.
"She was always very
warm, and she made you
feel that you were impor
tant," Stevenson, a 1963
alumnae, recalls. "I can see
her now, running up the
steps at football games. It's
a big loss. She accom
plished so much."
Winston-Salem State
University Chancellor
Elwood Robinson, like
many other leaders of
HBCUs throughout the
state and nation, mourned
the untimely death of his
friend and colleague.
"As an alumnus of
NCCU and a good friend
of Debra's, I moum along
side the NCCU community
and her family," Dr.
Robinson said in a state
ment. "Her commitment to
students and her passion
for education was evident
as she led my alma mater to
even greater distinction.
"The WSSU communi
ty offers its condolences to
Dr. Saunders-White's fami
ly, friends and the entire
North Carolina Central
University family."
A native of Hampton,
Virginia, Dr. Saunders
White earned her bache
lor's degree in history in
1979 from the University
of Virginia, and a master's
in business administration
from The College of
William and Mary in 1993.
In 2004, Saunders-White
earned a doctorate in high
er education administration
from George Washington
University.
In addition to her aca
demic credentials,
Saunders-White spent 15
years in the corporate sec
tor, working at IBM in
1979 as a systems engineer,
rising to marketing and
management before she
left. She later taught col
lege preparatory math in
Newport, R.I.
In 1999, Saunders
White became provost for
technology at Hampton
University, and in 2006 she
went to UNC-Wilmington
to become vice chancellor
of infoijpation technology
systems. While there,
Saunders-White improved
emergency communica
tions for campus safety and
cost effective classroom
technologies.
Saunders-White
accepted an appointment
by the Obama
Administration in May
2011 to serve as deputy
assistant secretary for
Higher Education
Programs (HEP), adminis
tering more than 60 pro
grams totaling nearly $3
billion annually.
In February 2015, she
was chosen to become the
first permanent female
chancellor in NCCU's his
tory, assuming the post in
June of that year.
"Chancellor Saunders
White wfls an effective
leader, steering . the
University toward innova
tive teaching with a
renewed focus on STEM
programs," says U.S. Rep.
G. K. Butterfield (D-NC
1). "She always encour
aged her students to strive
for 'Eagle
Excellence.' Her vision for
NCCU and passion for
uplifting all HBCUs left a
lasting mark on the future
of our students.
"Chancellor Saunders
White will be sorely
missed, but her legacy will
not be forgotten."
A memorial service
was held on the NCCU
campus Monday evening,
followed by a candlelight
vigil with students, faculty
and administrators.
In her honor, a
'Celebration of Life
Tribute' will be held on
Friday, Dec. 2 at 2 p.m. in
NCCU's McDougald
McLend&n Arena.
Saunders-White's funeral
is scheduled for Saturday,
Dec. 3 at 11 ajn. at St.
Joseph's Catholic Church
(414 # Buckroe Avenue,
Hampton, Virginia 23664)
in Virginia.
Chancellor Debra Saunders-White
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