I
Remembrance Of
alcolm X'
ityles/ Page IB
Murphy, Pryor Together, At Last
Entertainment/ Page 7A
Black Racers Join The Track
Sports/ Page 7B
Alliance
East Gaston "Adopted"
In New Program
Page 12B
Cjjarlotte
Vol. 14, No. 51 Thursday, May 18,1989
THE AWARD-WINNING "VOICE OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY"
50 Cents
Facts Twisted In Black
CMS Employees’ Issue
By JALYNE STRONG
Post Editor
Many discrepancies have been
found within the argument pre
sented to the Charlotte-
Mecklenburg School Board last
week, concerning an discrimi
nation Issue Involving ware
house employees.
Yet In a telephone Interview
this week. Chairman Ashley
Hogewood defended his decision
to deny the black warehouse em
ployees the light to appeal a dis
crimination Issue before the
Board of Education.
"It was a proper decision,"
Hogewood said.
He explained that his decision
was based on the fact that there
had been no results from the In
ternal Investigation Into the em
ployees’ concerns. Therefore he
says, 'There was nothing to ap
peal."
During the school board's
meeting May 9, Hogewood also
defended his position. At that
time, he denied the hearing
based on advice from school Su
perintendent Peter Relic and
School Board Attorney Hugh
Campbell.
Hogewood told the board mem
bers, "Counsel (Campbell) had
Informed me that these Individ
uals were pursuing remedies not
only through our process but
were In fact filing grievance with
EEOC. Therefore to subject the
board to a hearing would be In
appropriate for the process."
This week, Hogewood said he
had "no recollection" of men
tioning the EEOC statement.
'There was no talk about the
employees going to EEOC," he
said, referring to the May 9
board meeting. "Employees have
statutory rights to go outside the
Internal process to EEOC. If this
occurs simultaneously, the In
ternal Investigation will take
precedence."
Yet, Campbell, the attorney
Hogewood claims he consulted
with, had a different under
standing of the procedure. Con
trary to Hogewood, Campbell
continues to stick ly the Infor
mation he gave the board mem-
Workers
Deserve A
Hearing
Last week's Post incorrectly stated
the school board voted 7-2 to uphold
Ashley Hogewood's decision ruling
agaSrxst an cq}peaL The vote was 6-3.
By HERB WHITE
Post Staff Writer
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg
School Board should allow Afri
can-American warehouse work
ers to appeal their case con
cerning alleged racial
discrimination, said board
member Joe Martin.
But, he add^, the board's de
cision not to hear their case
isn't a sign of InsensltMty.
Billy Roddey, Terry Wallace
and Roosevelt Evans Jr. ad
dressed the board last week,
hoping to win an appeal to ad
dress alleged discrimination at
the Craig Avenue supply ware
house. Seven black workers
filed complaints with
the school system’s Equal Em
ployment Opportunity Office
last year, but no agreement was
reached with warehouse super-
vlsors.The board voted 6-3 to
uphold Chairman Ashley Hoge
wood's decision not to ^ve the
workers an appeal. Two black
board members, Arthur Griffin
and George Battle, voted with
Martin, the lone white to do so.
"That was a matter that could
have been heard by the school
board, and I agreed (with Giiflin
and Battle)," he said.
Hogewood maintained the
board could not resolve the
complaints because the work
ers have action pending with
the Equal Employment Oppor
tunity Commission (EEOC), a
federal agency.
See MARTIN On Page 2A.
beis.
Campbell said in a telephone
Interview Monday, "When the
employees went to the EEOC the
Internal Investigation stopped.
That's the way, as far as I under
stood, that It has always been
done."
Campbell admitted he had not
talked with the CMS Equal Op
portunity Officer Thelma John
son as to whether this procedure
had in fact always been followed
or not. Johnson has since said
Campbell's decision was not
consistent with how such cases
See BOARD On Page 2A.
Chronology of Events
Concerning Black Warehouse Workers
February 12, 1988 — Five African-American CMS ware
house employees file complaint with CMS EEO office alleging
discrimination In the workplace. Complainants Include Ter
ry Wallace, Billy Roddey, Roosevelt Evans, Theodore Wash
ington and WUUe Butler.
June 6, 1988 — CMS EEO office sends investigation findings
and recommendations to Hilton L'Orange, Finance Officer,
top level supervisor of CMS warehouse.
June 8, 1988 — Roddy and Evans file with EEOC
July 29, 1988 — Wallace files with EEOC.
October 10, 1988 — Employees send letter to CMS Equal Op
portunity Officer Thelma Johnson expreslng hope that com
plaints will be resolved.
November 3, 1988 — Five warehouse employees meet with
Superintendent Peter Relic and Johnson. Relic assures work
ers that something will be done. He says he wlU Immediately
put on calendar to arrange meeting with L'Orange and John
son.
Meeting with L'Orange never takes place.
December 28, 1988 — Employees write Ashley Hogewood,
chairman of Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board, asking
for appeal before board. This letter Is signed by 11 warehouse
employees.
February 7, 1989 — Hogewood responds to employees letter,
stating that they should pursue problems through
"appropriate administrative channels." He says It Is not ap
propriate for the board to hear their case.
Workers call Johnson to complain.
February 16. 1989 — Johnson sends letter explaining to em
ployees that they had followed correct EEO procedures.
Employees contact Arthur Griffin, African-American School
Board member.
March 1, 1989 — Griffin writes letter to Hogewood In re
sponse to Hogewood's decision to deny a hearing. He encloses
EEO procedures manual and requests that Hogewood grant
hearing or place employees' Issue on board's agenda at next
meeting.
May 9, 1989 — CMS School Board votes 6-3 to uphold Hoge
wood's decision to deny warehouse employees a hearing be
fore the board.
ONE ENTREPRENEUR TO ANOTHER
...Laurence Mavundla of South Africa visited
Charlotte seeking information on vendor
PhotonSALVIN FERGUSON
trade. He was happy to meet enterprising
John McDonald, owner of McDonald's Cafe
teria and Hotel.
South Africans Try Vending
By HERB WHITE
Post Staff Writer
Lawrence Mavundla, a native
South African, believes black
economic power can be har
nessed Into political force In his
counhy.
And to help It become reality,
he Is leading the organization of
Informal traders, which Is be
lieved to be as high as four mil
lion.
Mavundla Is president of the
African Council of Hawkers and
Informal Businesses, a group
formed three years ago to fight
the white minority government's
over-regulation of Informal
businesses. Mavundla visited
Charlotte earlier this week as
part of a fact-finding tour of
street vendors In the United
States. In visiting with officials
of WestFest and SprlngFest,
Charlotte festivals where hun
dreds of vendors trade, Mavund
la said he was looking to "share
Information on what they have
done."
The South African government
has harassed hawkers physi
cally and economically, Ma
vundla said. ACHlB's goal Is to
give vendors and other mem
bers of the Informal business
community easier access to the
economy.
"Black people have been either
customers or workers," he said.
'We've got to empower ourselves
economically."
ACHIB, founded three years
ago, has more than 14,000 li
censed hawkers and vendors as
members. It secures licenses,
provides free legal aid and nego
tiates with local municipalities
to build shelters for members.
With black unemployment
growing In South Africa, more
people are turning to Informal
businesses for survival. It
makes sense, Mavundla said, for
the government to ease trading
and licensing restrictions.
"What Is good--to have too
many street vendors or to have
^
African-Americans Migrating To South
The South recorded a net gain
of black movers between March
1986 and March 1987, while the
Northeast had a net loss, ac
cording to the Commerce De
partment's Census Bureau.
Blacks moving Into the South
outnumbered those moving out
by a margin of 148,000. In the
Northeast, 100,000 more blacks
moved out than moved In, the
report says. The Midwest and
West had about equal numbers
of blacks moving In and out.
Whites had a net gain of
170.000 migrants In the West, a
iwt loss of 241,000 migrants In
the Northeast, and no real
change because of migration In
the other two regions.
For the total population, there
migration gains of
In the South and
166.000 In the West; a loss of
334,000 In the Northeast; and
no significant change because
of migration In the Midwest.
Here are other highlights from
the report:
• Twenty percent of the na
tion's 28.4 million blacks moved
between March 1986 and March
1987, compared with 18 percent
of whites.
• Blacks had a local moving
rate of 14 percent, while the'
white rate was 11 percent.
Whites, however, had higher
rates of long-distance moves.
• Hispanics had higher overall
rates of moving, 24 percent,
than either non-Hlspanlc
whites or blacks; they also had
higher rates of local moving, at
18 percent.
Westside Anti-Drug Abuse Parade
Planned For Saturday Morning
with the plan to send a mes
sage to black youth, a march
against drugs Is planned for Sat
urday, May 20.
The march will assemble at 11
a.m. on the comer of LaSalle
and Beatties Ford Rd. It will be
gin at noon and proceed towards
WestTYadeSL
The march Is organized by
James Barnette and supporters.
"Those that sell and use dmgs
are doing us more harm than the
Ku Klux Klan and aU other hate
groups put together," said Bar
nette.
beggars like In America?" he
asked.
The South African economy Is
controlled by whites, although
they make up a minority of the
population. Citing statistics
that whites own 77 jjercent of
the economy compared to 17 for
Afrikaners and five percent for
blacks, Mavundla said econom
ic strength coupled With politi
cal clout Is the way to disman
tling apartheid.
'We've got to realize that free
dom only brings one thlng--lt
turns Injustice to justice," he
said. "It doesn't put food on the
table."
Beside giving black South Afri
cans a greater stake In the econ
omy, easing the restrictions on
vendors would open up the na
tional marketplace, Mavundla
said. But the white government
Is unlikely to do so, because the
laws are designed to help white
businesses.
'We believe if the law was not
protecting these folks, we could
beat them (In the marketplace),"
he said. "'What we’re saying is
that the businesses should eat
or be eaten. If you're not produc
tive, you should go out of bus!
ness. If you are, you shouldn't."
White businesses look down
on hawkers as "Illegal activity",
and local authorities have been
known to crack down on black
vendors who stray Into areas
designated for whites. Few mu
nicipalities allow hawkers com
plete freedom to sell their goods
for fear that white businesses
will suffer.
But Mavundla said blacks have
Bee SOUTH On Page 2A.
Minority Affairs Task
Force Issues Report
From Staff Reports
The Minority Affairs Task
Force submitted an Interim re
port to County
Commissioner
last week with
the request for
additional
time to study
the establish
ment of a new
mlnorlW af-.
fairs office In
Mecklenburg
County.
Jewett Walk- Walker
er, chairman of the task force,
said, 'We're asking the commis
sioners to reestablish a new of
fice that will be quite different
from the previous office."
Walker requested more time In
order for the task force to hold
meetings with other agencies.
The request was approved by
the commissioners.
The task force will now go on
with Investigations as to the fea
sibility of creating a new office.
"We'll be working with other
agencies In the community
about proposed operations," said
Walker.
The task force also requested
$40,000 from the commission to
cover research costs. "The mon
ey will be used to help with re
search and on-golng work. It
will be spent with the commis
sioner's approval," said Walker.
The commission has not ap
proved the $40,000 yet. The task
force plans,to continue meeting
for six to eight more weeks.
Danny Glover WiU
Address JCSU Grads
Actor Danny Glover ("The Color
Purple," "Lethal Weapon,' "Places In
The Heart") will deliver the com
mencement address for the 1989
Commencement exercises for John
son C. Smith University graduates
on Sunday, May 21,2 p.m. at Oven's
Auditorium.
The Baccalaureate Service is
scheduled for 10 a.m. in the Univer
sity Church. Dr. James H. Costen,
president of the Interdenomination
al Theological Center will speak.
Inside This Week
Editorials
. Pg. 4A
Obituaries...
. Pg. 4B
Entertainment.
. Pg. 7A
Sports
.. Pg. 7B
Lifestyles
. Pg. 1B
Classifieds..
.. Pg. 11B
Church News.
.. Pg. 3B
Alliance
., Pg. 12B
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