UNC race relation
a many-sided issue
By JONATHAN RICH
When the first black students arrived at the
UNC Law School in 1956, they were entering
an institution with a centuries-old legacy of
racial discrimination and segregation. In the
subsequent decades, the University has made
considerable progress in the recruitment and
enrollment of blacks into an integrated
institution. The freshman class of 1931 is 14
percent black, and university adrninistrators
like to point out the beneficial effects of
increased recruiting and retention policies.
Yet beneath the optimistic aura of official
statistics remain deep-seated and persistent
problems. In many repects, the goal of racial
harmony and integration still remains a far- '
fetched dream. The campus is segregated on
most levels, from the division between North .
and South campuses to the membership of
most fraternities and sororities. And while
there are few cases of blatant discrirnination,
. a more subtle racism and tension often
pervades black-white relations.
Why does such segregation exist? Is it' '
necessarily bad? What are the responsibilities;
of both students and the administration to ,;
improve racial interaction? The issues
involved are all complex there are no.
simple solutions or answers. While it is easier .
for all concerned to rest on past achievements
or accept the status quo, these questions must
be continually addressed, especially if the
University is to succeed in its vaunted goal of
attracting and retaining an increasing number
of qualified black students.
At the root of any racial problem are the
inescapable legacies of history and tradition.
"Sometimes we forget that racism is an
American problem that pervades our whole
country," said Harold Wallace, assistant vice
chancellor of Student Affairs. "The young
people here are part of a culture that has had
to deal with racism for years - it's
inevitable.'
Wallace said that the major challenge to
attracting and integrating black students was
to Overcome the University's past history as a
white,, segregationist institution. "For a long
time, Chapel Hill was unthinkable for the
state's black communities. Jhere is sti'.l a; low
ox sxepuasm in duck commuxnues -Mve
must prove we are serious about attracting
and retaining them. We want the
unthinkable to become not only thinkable but
desirable."
Cultural, racial and social factors
The whole question of integration depends
on a combination of racial, cultural and
social factors, said Darnell Hawkins, a UNC .
professor of sociology. "A certain amount of
segregation as chosen is natural, and is not
necessarily bad.' People who are racially and '
culturally similar have always tended to
isolate themselves. It's not due to hostility,
but to shared beliefs, values and history."
But much of the segregation on campus is
definitely racial and not cultural, Hawkins
said. "In many ways. North Carolina whites
and blacks are very similar culturally. But on
campus, as well as other parts of the country,
there is still a lot of blatant racism. There are
still a lot of anti-black attitudes; the feeling
that blacks are inferior and are given .
preferential treatment."
In addition to race and culture, social
pressures and patterns have developed on
campus that impede closer race relations.
Even if a student wishes to mingle, he risks
being ostracized from his own group. "Social
groups must be willing to integrate,'
Hawkins said. "Social functions tend to
revolve around segregated organizations, such
as fraternities and sororities. As long as they,
are segregated, we will have a continued
pattern of segregation.
"The question is why can't organizations
schedule more events that appeal to both
blacks and whites," Hawkins said. "We need
more events to encourage black and white
students to interact." But while many
students and faculty agree on the need for
greater interaction and integrated activity,
there is little consensus on what form these
should take.
Housing controversy
As the most visible sign of segregation.
University housing has been a controversial
target of integration efforts. The distinction
between predominantly-white North Campus
and the more black-oriented S- '" Campus is '
a historical problem. When black students first
came to UNC in large numbers, housing on
South Campus was not at a high premium for
white students who prefered the traditional
North Campus dorms.
Blacks receiving financial aid have
traditionally been informed of this too late to
enter North Campus dorms, while
recruitment programs centered in Hihton
James have contributed to black students
preference for South Campus. Although
minority recruitment programs are now also
field on North Campus, bla$k students have
developed their own community and
. traditions on South Campus.
Some administrators and professors
advocate a new housing policy as the best
means of encouraging greater integration and
race relations. "With such a small percentage
of black students, not many whites are going
to have contact with blacks; there is not
much opportunity for interpersonal
' relationships," said UNC History Professor
James Leutze. "The housing situation is the
best way for people to get to know one
another;"
Opposed to mandatory housing
assignments, Leutze favors a system of
holding North Campus dorms open to blacks
up to a certain dates, allowing them greater
opportunity to Jive there.
'. . ' jr. -
Wl tfe t0 i
Increased minority enrollment
The major objection to integrated housing
' is that while they remain such a small
minority, black students should not and could
not be expected to disperse themselves so
thinly throughout campus. Administrators
and student leaders unanimously agree that
an essential element to improved race
relations is a greater minority presence.
"My contention is really one of numbers,"
Black Student Movement Chairperson Mark
Canady said. "We are only 8 percent (of the
student body) now. Naturally we fear a loss
of identity. There is a need, for minorities to
gain security. If the percentage of blacks was
14 percent, you'd be surprised at the
difference." " : . ' "
Hawkins agreed that greater black
enrollment would significantly alter
segregation patterns. "A larger black . ;
population would create a more diverse -population
with more chance to interact with
whites," he said. "With a greater diversity of
blacks, there would not longer be the cultural
reasons for segregation."
While the desegregation consent decree
signed between UNC and the Federal
government requires UNC to increase
minority Enrollment to 10.6 percent by 1986,
the document is not legally binding. Although
Wallace and other administration officials are
confident that the University will achieve at
least that percentage, many black students
and administrators are concerned over the
Decree's flexibility.
Equality, not integration the issue
For many blacks, the issue is not so much
. integration as an equality of educational
rights. "1 am more concerned about an equal
opportunity, an ability to reach one's goals
without being hindered by an artificial
force," said Joyce Clayton, assistant dean in
the General College. 'The whole idea is to
create a better academic and social
environment here for minority students and
to remove any obstacles that stand in the way
of the learning process.
"I think the terms integration and
segregation are overused terms that need
redefinition," Clayton said. "To me,
integration means fairness, waiting someone
to appreciate you, accept you for what your
are ... not according to some mythology."
This is the most crucial aspect of improved
race relations. The University can and should
improve its recruiting and retention programs,
its enrollment of black students and faculty,
its support of black assistance programs and
integrated activites. But there is only so much
the external programs of the University and
Fa-Mom
campus organizations can achieve. As long as
ignorance and prejudice remain, as long as
there is a lack of awareness or willingness to
confront the issue, segregation and racial
strains will remain.
Greater awareness
"A lot of people get hung up on
recruitment, on statistics," said Beverly
Shepard, a black senior from Jacksonville. "I
wish there was more awareness ... you need to
develop an atmosphere conducive to '
recruitment and retention. Many white
people have never, thought of what it's like to
be alone, a minority, ironically to be in a
situation but still looking in from without."
; Although both the Carolina Union and
w Student Oocjnmg nit fcayejiddjarioss blck
v white discussion groups and exchanges, the
enthusiasm and the numbers involved have
been limited. Satisfied that official integration
at least exists, it is easy for many whites to
avoid.the issue of racial interaction and
improved relations. They are not aware of the
continuing pressure and personal discomfort
blacks often experience in a predominantly
white campus.
Blacks as well as whites are reluctant to go
out on a limb and interact. "This reluctance
is understandable when you're in such a
hostile environment and are looking for
security," said Larry Ellis, president of the
Student Union. Current tensions can also be
explained by a historical pattern of one-sided
race-relations. Historically, blacks have
always been the primary motivators of change
as they demanded greater integration and
rights from whites. Tired of being placed in
this position, many blacks are waiting for
more positive action from the other side.
"It is up to us whites to reach out hand
out, and make the gesture," said William
Graves, chairman of the University's Black
White Dialogue Group. "Black students by
and large are dissatisfied by the status quo ...
it's easy for us (whites) to take the
.comfortable attitude and not interact.' The
burden is on us to make them welcome and
comfortable. We must become aware of how
black students feel and go beyond the
formality of integration to making it work."
Ellis agreed: "A lot of whites are saying
the (racial) problem doesn't affect them. They
are wrong from a humane as well as
pragmatic aspect. How you look at others
reflects how you look at yourself. If there's
such tension in our culture here, it is
counterproductive to everybody's
development." ' uir,.
Improving campus race relations is a
challenging task with no simple solutions, it
demands positive action on the part of the
University and students to demonstrate that
both are serious about making the campus a
comfortable environment for black as well as
and white students. It requires personal
interaction and education, and the gradual
modification of long-standing prejudices and
.' - stereotypes. :.V . .
The University cannot expect to transform
students'" culture and psychology within four
years. Segregation and racism are firmly
ingrained in American society. But the
University as ah educational institution
committed to greater learning and
( understanding must set an example for the r
rest of society. It is here, if anywhere, that
people are able to interact with others from
various racial and cultural backgrounds and
learn to live together in mutual respect. '
Jonathan Rich, a junior history and political
science major from Quogue, N.Y., is associate
editor for The Daily Tar Heel.
Thursday, October 1, 1931Tha Daily Tar Heel3
oviet Union topes
for wofH domination
By MARK LANGSTON
It constantly amazes me how many
people still believe that the Soviet
Union is no threat to the peace,
. security and liberty of the world.
' ii i u.. .
vuuuucss tugumcnia nave uctu
made attempting to show how the
Soviets intend nothing less than even
tual world domination, yet people
still refuse to believe what others
consider extremely obvious. Rather
than waste time arguing over mean
ingless points of pure opinion,
however,. I shall present the cold,
hard facts of the situation and ask
the reader to keep ah open mind:
First, the Soviet Union has broken
almost every treaty ever signed, in
cluding the all-important SALT I.
Second, since its conception in
1917, Soviet Russia has been respon
sible for the deaths of some 50
million people, most of whom were
dissidents living in Russia or in one
of its satellites.
Third, since 1964, the Soviet
Union has increased its strategic
forces by roughly 500 percent. If now
spends 50 percent more on defense
armaments than the United States
does, and the gap is growing. Much
of this growth has occurred after
ratification of SALT I. The Soviets
now possess a 2-1 advantage in
strategic offensive weapons, a 2-1 ad
vantage in naval strength, a 4-1 ad
vantage in armor and artillery
. ground forces and a shocking 45-1
advantage in strategic defensive
weapons.
. The following are recent quotes
from the Soviets themselves: "The
purpose " of the Soviet state is the
complete and final victory of com
munism on a world scale," Pravda
said.
"There has not been, there is not,
and there cannot be, class peace bet
ween socialism and capitalism, or
peaceful co-existence between the
communist and bourgeois
ideologies," Col. I Sidel said in
Peaceful Co-existance and the
Security of the People.
"The Soviet Government ... and
their armed forces must be ready
primarily for a world war," Marshall
Y.O.: Sokolorskiy said in Soviet
MuitaryStrateg'(tth?
of the Soviet Union and the other
socialist countries must be prepared
above all to wage war under the con
ditions of the mass use of nuclear
weapons by both belligerent
parties.... The preparation and wag
ing of just such a war much be
regarded as . the main task of the
theory of military strategy and
strategic leadership," he said,
j "By 1985, as a consequence of
detente we will have achieved most of
our objectives in Western Europe,"
In praise of
By WILLIAM M DROZE
The day has come for a celebra
tory thank you to Jean Theson. The
sidewalks of Chapel Hill would never
have been the same without .him. For
those unfamiliar with this grand
personage, be is not one of the famed
boxed-chicken and bourbon alumni,
nor immortalized in Memorial Hal
amidst the distinct and forgotten. He
is, in fact, the creator of that unique
mode of transportation the
bicycle.
It would appear that this boon to
mankind was specifically designed
for the pleasure of the college cam
pus. Look around, and just see what
a wonderful addition to our culture it
is. Oh, the laud and laughter at some
poor fool whose solitary fron,t tire
remains securely padlocked to that
wondrous tool, the bike rack. A
freshman, no doubt. And ; what
student has not been assailed by the
phantom "click-click-click" of that
assassin of pedestrians who thought
sidewalks were meant to be bike
paths. It is always fascinating to sec
the frenzy as students butrace even
the squirrels to the trees.
But the saga of Billy Bike-Rider
does not end here. For there are so
many people chained to the craze,
that a myriad of personalities can be
found in our bike-riding community.
Take boarding, for example. Texas
Tom is always a favorite type. That's
the-r guy, who : races alongside his
trusty steed, thrusts one foot in the
stirrup fi &nd ; hurls himself into the
saddle for a long ride on the lone
prairie. He's also the one with the
voice two octaves above normal.
Then, there's Paula Primp, who
just can't seem to get comfortable on
the seat. It's akin to the syndrome
that diners at the Pine Room
experience, but less pronounced, of
course.
Finally we come to Sam Safety.
Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev w,as
quoted by British intelligence as say
ing in 1973. "A decisive shift in the
correlation of forces is such that,
come 1985, we will be able to extend
our will wherever we need to.J
"You once had military superiority
and felt secure. You no longer have
that, superiority, and you will never
have it again. And now you will
know what it means to feel threaten
ed!" Soviet Deputy Defense Minister
Nikolai Ogarkov said to visiting U.S.
Rep. John Breckenridge in March
1978.
"Recently, several generals, and
even responsible government figures
in the U.S.A., very thoughtlessly and
imprudently extolled the military
might of the U.S.A. However, the
real state of affairs is such that our
superiority in the latest kinds of
military equipment has become a
reality," Col. V.M. Bondarenko said
in Methodological Problems of
Military Theory and Practice.
"There has never been on this en
tire planet and in all of history a
regime more cruel, more bloody and
at the same time more diabolically
clever.... Only fprce can soften or
make yield the Soviet system. The
entire regime rests on brutal force
and thus it recognizes only brutal
force," Soviet dissident Aleksandr
Solzhenitsyn said.
Does this sound like a nation seek
ing world peace? One that has
murdered millions of its own
citizens, violated almost every treaty
signed, built its military forces up
500 percent in a mere 17 years and
still holds captive over a dozen na
tions, mpst recently invading
Afghanistan and soon possibly
Poland? While the United States has
been trying desperately to achieve
arms control, even to the point of
unilaterally reducing its number of
sophisticated weapons, the Soviet
Union has balked every attempt for
peace, building up its military and
refusing any agreement that did not
heavily favor them. The Soviet
Union has every intention of making
good on Nikita Khrushchev'spledge to
bury us. They have simply realized
that the task will be easier if the
United States can be fooled into
disarmament.
; And although (the ..Soviet Readers
do hdt wanf wart there' Irairi be ho
doubt that they are willing to risk,
even atomic war. In Problems" of
Contemporary War, Soviet Gen. Ma
jor A.D. Milovidov said clearly,
"There is profound error and harm
in the disorienting claims ... that
there will be no victor in ther
monuclear war...." ;
Mark Langston is a freshman
political science major from
Greensboro.
the bicycle
He's the guy who looks like he has
the equipment to play middle line
backer, and the coordination to play
for ECU. Sam is also the one who
looks like a Chinese interpreter for
the deaf at every intersection. All are
wonderful examples of the culture
which Jean. Theson has brought to
'us. ... x '
Perhaps this portrayal has been a
bit critical of our biking friends.
They do have their problems too: for
example, the awesome luck to find a
flat tire when, one's already 20
minutes late for a drama class. But
then, look at all the practice one gets
in acting out fits of rage. The natural
surroundings also . offer wonderful
experiences. After all, we do live in
Chapel Hill, and God knows there
are enough of them. But it never fails
that there's a monstrous canine at the
bottom, who once had his tail
clipped by a negligent cyclist, and
helps you through those trying
inclines.
Above all, one must not overlook
the hazards of bike riding. Did you
ever notice the plight of the poor
fellow who turns for a brief glimpse
at a gorgeous , gal only to find his
handlebars embracing a nearby tree?
And, of course, the vengeful
motorist who had to wait through
the red light on Franklin Street so, a
biker could clear the. intersection -is
always a pleasant sort. In fact, one of
those motorists ' could be teaching
that drama class. ' ' -
All in all, however, biking is a
splendid way to spend . countless
hours pedaling one's self into obli
vion. Once ready to brave the ha
zards, it's a great way to meet people
especially by accident. So," for all
you frantic pedestrians out there,
climb aboard and give it a whirl. After
all, it's something. you never forget
how to do.
William M. Droze is a sophomore
jourpalism major from Denton, Tex.