Prince Scores
With Batman
Jam
The New Civil Disobedience
Edltoiials/Page 6A/
Parbusters Golf Preview
8ports/Page 7B
Alliance
A Better
Habitat
CFiarlotte
Vol. 15, No. 12 Thursday, August 17,1989
THE AWARD-WINNING "VOICE OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY"
50 Cents
Mayoral Candidates' Paths To
Win Black Support Differ
By WIMFRBD CROSS
PMt Staff Writer
Democratic mayoral candi
dates Craig Madans and A1
Rousso both know that support
from the African-American
community can help them win
their party's nomination. But
they differ on their strategies to
get the support
RbusSo and Madans will face
each other In the Sept. 26 Demo
cratic primary.
"My strategy is to let as many
people meet me as possible," Ma
dans said In a telephone Inter
view this week. "1 want to let
them know tha^ I have the ener
gy and the ability to get things
done."
Madans opened a campaign
headquarters In the westslde at
University Park Shopping Cen
ter las( month. He said It Is "the
first functioning mayoral cam-
pagln office In the history of
Cl^lotte on the westslde.
"I'm bringing my office and
campaign to the westslde be
cause 1 think they have been
taken for granted," Madems said.
"1 think when you here the same
promises over and over again
and get no results, it's time to
change players."
Rousiso said Ji a telephone In
terview he will also be In the Af
rican-American commulty,
"meeting with any segment of
the poprUatlon that I can."
Rousso said he is In the process
of opening a campaign office In
the McDowell and Morehead
streets area. He said he chose
Sw
Vs"
Rousso
that area because It is centrally
located and has better parking.
Madans said he Is also spend
ing money In the westslde. He
said part of his television com
mercials are about the westslde
and he also uses a media firm lo
cated in the area. Madans said
he will also use billboards and
yard signs In the area.
Madans Said he Is doing this to
educate the community about
hlAiself and Rousso, whom he
said benefits from an unde
served perception.
"Whak you have with A1 Rousso
Is a professional victim. The
media elected him," Madans
said. "Al fought City Hall about
hit building and everyone
thought he would fight for them.
Instead Al made alot of money
and didn't fight for us at adl.
"Al's a nice guy, but you, caimot
let imagery affect how you vote,"
Madans
Madans said, "Al's been In for
four years and hasn't done any
thing. He's had the popularity
but hasn't done anything with It.
I'm trying to show people that."
Rousso disagrees.
"1 don't think that's true," he
said." 1 support all types of eco
nomic development for the west-
side of Charlotte. I think 1 have
been very supportive."
Bill Culp, supervisor of elec
tions for Charlotte-
Mecklenburg, said both candi
dates will have to have their
names In the community.
"The most loyal voting block
In the Democratic Party Is the
black communtly," Culp said.
"Because of that. It Is essential
for the two candidates, for the
Democratic Primary -- both of
which are white and both of
which are Jewish — to get name
recognition In the black corn-
munlty." ~
Rev. George Stalllnga sa3ra he wants to expose
racism in the Catholic Church, even if he has to
Photo/CALVIN FEROUSONy
offend its leaders; "We're just trying to get to thfi
land of milk and hongy a^ ei\Joy Canaan land;"
Reverend Rebel
Catholic Priest Pushes For Inclusion Of Black Culture
Fewer Blacks Are Signing Up To Vote
By A.C. TURNER
Post Staff Writer
The number of blacks regis
tered to vote In Mecklenburg
County as of June 30 Is below
the number of registered at the
end of the last non presidential
election year.
This year there were only 134
blacks that registered to vote for
the first time, far below the 1,401
newly registered blacks at the
end of 1987.
Bill Culp, Mecklenburg Board
of Elections supervisor, said
that a small black voter turnout
Is not surprising. "Registration
In black communities are gener
ally low because there Is little
effort by the politicians outside
of election time to motivate
p>eople to register," he said.
Board of elections statistics
show that during presidential
election years the total registra
tion for both blacks and whites
Increases, but the black turnout
at the poUs Is traditionally low.
'You can register at any li
brary or Mechanics and Fann
ers Bank. The libraries and
banks In predominantly black
neighborhoods do not have
much registration Interest,"
Culp said.
Members of the black com
munity are taking steps to reme
dy the problem to achieve
greater black representation.
There were only 134
new black voters regis
tered in Mecklenburg
CJounty as of June 30.
According to the Charlotte-
Mecklenburg branch of the
NAACP, Its Political Action
Committee wUl sponsor a voter
registration drive Saturday in
the Enderly Park neighborhood.
Sam Carr, a candidate for city
council, has organized a regis
tration drive for Monday , Tues
day and Wednesday.
Carr
The September elections will
prompt other groups and politi
cians to organize similar drives.
Culp said. Prospective voters
have opportunities to register
eveiy day before Aug. 28 for the
Charlotte city primaries at any
library or the elections office.
By LORA VANDERHAIX,
Post Staff Writer
Some call him the renegade
priest, a rebel or an egomaniac.
But others refer to him as a man
, \/lth vision and an Idea whose
time heis come.
Rev. George Stallings, the
Washington, D.C. priest who re
cently inaugurated his own "In
dependent African-American
Catholic Congregation, says
he's following the Instructions
of the Lord.
He says the Catholic church Is
not meeting the needs of Its Af
rican-American parishioners.
"We're not trying to be nation
alistic, segregationist or elitist,"
said Stallings. "We're Just trying
to get to the land of milk and
haney and enjoy Canaan land."
A native of New Bern, N.C.,
Stallings was baptized In the
Catholic church and also at
tended Baptist churches. He
has been a priest for the past 15
years.
Because of Stallings's recent
actions, more attention has
b^en brought to the problem of
racism In the Catholic church.
Despite efforts within the
church to reach out to blacks,
statistics show that African-
Americans remain predomi
nantly Protestant.
Only two million of America's
54 million lay Catholics and 300
of the nation's 19,000 priests
are black. Thirteen of 314 active
Catholic bishops In the United
States are black. In the Char
lotte diocese, only about 2,400
of 83,000 Catholics are black.
Most Catholics agree that ra
cism exists In the church but
disagree with the route Stall
ings has taken.
He has been In almost every
national publication and on na
tional television. He has ap
peared on the "Oprah Winfrey
Show" and he will be featured on
"The Reporters" later this
month.
On a recent trip to Charlotte to
tape "Assignment Sunday," a
public aifairs program on WJ2Y
(Channel 46), Stallings spoke
on the current establishment of
the Catholic church.
He Is controversial to the
point that other priests are re
luctant to align themselves with
him.
John Gordon, public affairs di
rector at WJZY, said he could
not get anyone to appear on the
progr^am with Stallings.
"I called the chancellor of the
Charlotte diocese, Mgsr. John
MeSweeney, and he said he did
not want to participate In the
program. 1 called Father Wilbur
Thomas, a black priest In Hick
ory, and he also said he did not
want to participate," SEild Gor
don.
"1 called Archbishop Eugene
Marino In Atlanta and I spoke
with one of his spokesmen. Fa
ther Peter Dora, and he said , 'it
Is the position of the Catholic
church to discuss the Issue In
private...It could Jeopardize his
future relationship with the
Catholic church,'" he added.
See REV. On Page 2A
Congressman Leland's Death Brings Condolences, Praise To Family
by ARNIE STAPLETON
Aseociated Press Writer
State leaders said the death of
U.S. Rep. Mickey Leland will be
felt most by the hungry, the poor
and others In need of a champi
on.
Across Texas, colleagues and
constituents of the six-term
Houston Democrat took time
from their grief to Implore oth
ers to adopt Leland's passion for
helping those who were hungry.
"Mickey would love that," Ho
ward Johnson of the Houston In
dependent School District told a
group of 500 people In the Phillis
Wheatley High School auditori
um, where Leland attended.
"Sometimes they fall for a pur
pose." he told the somber gather^
Ing Sunday.
At the Astrodome, afternoon
baseball crowd of about 27,000
observed a moment of silence be
fore the Houston Astros played
the Cincinnati Reds.
George Thomas "Mickey" Le
land, chairman of the House Se
lect Committee on Hunger, was
on his fifth visit to refugee
camps near the Sudanese border
when the plane carrying him
and his party crashed. He was
44.
The wreckage was found Sun
day, six days after the pleine va
nished after taking off in bad
weather from Addis Ababa, the
Ethiopian capital, and heading
for the Fugnldo refugee camp,
480 miles southwest.
Texas Agriculture Commis
sioner Jtm Hightower noted Le
land's helping hand spread
across the globe.
"Mickey certainly was a cham
pion of people who needed a
champion, whether It was In the
wards of Houston, In the back-
roads of rural America or In the
barrios of Los Angeles," High
tower said In Austin.
"Mickey was a friend of people
throughout the world that didn't
have any other friends In high
places," he said. "He didn't Just
espouse the high values of our
democracy: he tried to live them
and act them."
Former House Speaker Jim
Wright of Fort Worth said Le
land's heart was big enough to
accept all people as his brothers
and sisters. "The world needs his
message."
Hightower said Leland was a
true statesman. In tlie case of Af
rica, Ethiopia and the Sudan,
where Leland devoted his time
Hightower said; "He didn't go
over there for a Junket, or a pho
to opportunity, or even for a
fact-finding mission ... He went
again and again to do something
about what he saw."
Gov. Bill Clements hailed Le
land as "a man of action ...
whose work not only for his own
constituents but for all people
will live on as his legacy."
In Houston, friends and neigh
bors trekked to Leland's home
Sunday after hearing that the
scorched wreckage had been
found at last, ending six days of
anxious vigil.
Throughout the day and night.
a steady stream of cars and
trucks drove slowly by the Le
land residence, a gray, two-story
brick home Just southwest of
downtown.
The Rev. Vincent Dulock of St.
Anne's Catholic Church paid a
15-mlnute visit to Leland's wid
ow, Alison, pregnant with the
couple's second child.
A yellow ribbon decorated a
lamp post at the southwest side
home of Alice Rains, Leland's
mother, as friends and neigh
bors gathered.
Meanwhile, staff members at
Leland's downtown congression
al office wept and consoled each
other and a telegram arrived at
Leland's home from Anglican
Archbishop Desmond Tutu of
South Africa.
Two Stores
Banned In
Stamp Case
RALEIGH - Two Mecklenburg
County stores have been barred
from participating In the food
stamp program because of pro
gram violations, the U.S. Depart
ment of agriculture's Food and
Nutrition Service reports.
Mini General Food Store, 1700
S. Blvd., Charlotte, Owned by
United Friends Corporation, was
permanently disqualified based
on evidence showing that store
personnel, purchased food
stamps for cash.
Statesville Ave. Discount Store,
2214-A Statesville Ave., Char
lotte, owned by Lawrence Lo-
tharp, was permanently dis
qualified based on evidence
showing that store personnel,
purchased food stamps for
cash.
Gerald D. Holt of the Food and
Nutrition Service's Raleigh of
fice, said food stamps can be
used legally only to buy food or
seeds and plants to be used In
gardens to grow food. ,
South African Educators Visit Johnson C. Smith
Inside This Week
ByACTORNEX
Pbst Staff Writer
A group of South African edu
cators recently visited Johnson
C. Smith University to learn new
teaching methods and to ob
serve American culture.
The United States Information
Agency Is sponsoring the" Eng
lish Teaching Institute Follow
On" program.
USIA arranged for 25 black,
white, and Indian South Afri
cans to tour learning Institu
tions In Pittsburg, Washington,
Charlotte, and New York.
Some teachers said that
America was exactly what they
expected. "I took American his
tory classes before so I knew
what to expect. The Americans
are fantastic they are so open
and prepared to shEtfe. Ameri
can television doesn't give you a
good Idea of what life here Is
like," Wendl KUfoU said.
Msl Sllnga said he was sur
prised to see the condition of his
black brothers and sisters In
America was not much better
than blacks In South Africa. "I
did not expect to see so many
homeless people living In the
streets, they were mostly blacks.
I have not seen as much In this
town as In Washington and
Pittsburgh," he said.
Sllnga was Impressed v'lth the
facilities that black students
had access to.
In South Africa nothing Is
provided for our schools. People
Li the community have to build
See U.8. On Page 2A
Editorials
Pg. 6A
Obituaries
Pg. 4B
Entertainment
Pa, 8A
Pa. 7B
Lifestyles
Pa. 1B
Classifieds
Church News
Pg, 3B
Alliance
Pg. 11B
Subscribe To The Charlotte Post, Call 376-0496