PAGE TWO
THE BENNETT BANNER
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1980
Review of ’80 and hopes for ’81
Since this is the last issue of the Bennett Banner to be published in 1980, it
seems only fitting that I should give an overview of highlights in the news that
affected the black population. Probably the most recent and startling news was
the Nazi-KIan trial verdict. All six men were found not guilty of murder and felo
nious rioting and were acquitted. This decision provoked mass confusion on col
lege campuses everywhere. Students were justifiably upset about the decision
of the all white jury. In Greensboro, the college students staged a march in
protest of the decision.
Lots of things made the impact of the verdict so strong. I mean, the least
the jurors could have done was to find one of the men guilty—^to make it look
good. And the time was just rotten. The nation was just getting over the pres
idential election. We all knew what a Reagan presidency would mean in terms
of black people. Now, among those things such as a cutback on government
spending in higher education, the end of busing and the deterioration of black
colleges, we can add the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan. And let us not forget
those whites who are organizing their own party so that they can take over both
North and South Carolina to form their own little world: NO BLACKS AL
LOWED. Are we really going to let the country go back to that? Maybe we
won’t be able to stop it. Let’s face it, before Alex Haley’s Roots, many of us
thought our ancestors liked slavery.
It wasn’t too long ago that an assassination attempt was made on Vernon
Jordan. He was critically injured, but he survived. The clues surrounding the
shooting were almost nonexistent. Then there are the mass murders in Atlanta.
Some maniac is going around killing black children, but the authorities don’t
know who. I think it’s amazing. All this violence and the authorities can’t find
anyone to blame. Of course, I guess that’s better than what goes on in Greens
boro. Here they have the violence and the people responsible, but the authorities
prefer to close their eyes to it.
On a lighter note, Richard Pryor recovered from serious burns. Randy Jack
son was injured in a car accident but he recovered. This may all seem a bit
trivial now, but I promise that in the year ahead, we’ll need somebody to make
us laugh and somebody to sing to us.
Then there was the news that didn’t affect us so directly. The Shah of Iran
died; the American hostages in Iran have been held for over a year; inflation
and unemployment reached record-breaking heights. The future looks very dim
for us, as students and as blacks. Who was it that said, “When winter comes,
can spring be far behind?” Let’s hope it is.
Belle states purpose of marcli
The “Silent March” that took place Thursday, Nov. 20, was
one that had little preparation and much anticipation. Since the
“not guilty” verdict was handed down Monday evening, the stu
dents of the city had little time to think of what could be done
next. The most important issue at that point was for the city
of Greensboro to hear our opposition to this verdict.
The verdict of “not guilty” is something that cannot be
changed. The persons charged are now free, in Greensboro, N. C.
Our concern was how many more incidents will go on and result
in a verdict such as this one. How much longer can the people
of our nation stand for such injustice? Not long, was our deci
sion. Student leaders from Bennett, North Carolina A&T State
University, Guilford College, and the University of North Car
olina at Greensboro all saw the need for a coalition to show our
opposition.
We walked in silence down towards the Governmental Plaza,
where leaders from our school and the community spoke to the
crowd of marchers. Rev. White, a minister from Raleigh, N. C.,
told the press, “don’t try to turn this around into a racial issue.
This is not a racial issue; it is a march for justice.” Obviously
justice doesn’t come in colors, or does it?
For those of you who did march, I am sure that you felt a
sense of commitment to the cause for justice. For those of you
who did not participate, I wonder just what influenced your
decision. After all, classes were cancelled on our campus for you
to participate if you wanted to. Why wouldn’t you want to?
Justice is justice, and you are either for justice, or against jus
tice, or you simply don’t care how the judicial system operates.
If you cannot feel the commitment as an individual, or if
you cannot see where an injustice has been done to “anyone,”
you need to re-examine your own growth. If nothing else gets you
to look into this matter, take into account that one of those in
dividuals who lost her life fighting for her cause was a former
Bennett student and a former SGA president of Bennett College.
Ladies, we marched out of anger, frustration and disillusion
ment. We are ashamed to be citizens of Greensboro, where other
cries for justice have been heard in the past. This was not re
flective of the community. Why wouldn’t the jury decide against
“individuals” as it is supposed to do? Instead they reacted
bitterly against Communism. But, as long as America, and Black
America too, has thinking rational people, we can never go back.
With this in our hearts, we marched.
Lisa Harris
I remember who said it now, but what good will that do me when I can t af
ford to go to college and there are no jobs to be found. Sure, I wish I could t«ll
you about a bright future and name some good things ahead. But I think we re
all a little old for fairy tales. To be totally honest, the only good thing I can
imagine to say about the coming year is that at least we 11 know who shot J. R.
That isn’t much comfort, so here’s something else. Remember when your fnends
back home told you that you might go to college for four years and not find a
job when you get out? Well, now you can tell them how wrong they were
because there won’t be a college to go to.
Seriously, in all likelihood, the hostages will be released. I know you ve heard
that a hundred times before. I understand from a very reliable source that unem
ployment won’t be so high because Reagan has a colonization plan for blacks
to go to Africa. Those who can’t go there can go to war. At least we’ll have a
choice.
I don’t know exactly what to expect from 1981. Pm not the kind of person
to prejudge either, that’s why I can take the situation so lightly. It wont do
any good to guess at what’s ahead because we’re not in any position to change
the future.
All I can offer you is wishes for a merry Christmas. Say a silent prayer for
prosperity and justice in the coming year. May we all have a happy, happy,
new year. t i r.
Myra Jewel George
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Letters to tke editor
Additional class desired
Bennett
Co-Editor
1980-81
Myra George
Co-Editor
Advisor
Martha Brown
Circulation Manager
Karen Heck
Business Manager
Wanda Dick
Cartoonists
Venus McDowell
Photographer
Norman Barbee
Shelly Coston
Leslie Barr
Reporters
Monica Motley
Karen Heci
Pam Pate
Katherine Winston
Andrea Burch
Yolanda DuRant
Jeanette Hatch
Denise Wilder
Wanda Edwards
Tina Johnson
Yvette Barbour
Terri Ford
Veronica McKinney
Shelly Coston
To the Editor:
My dearest Editor, I am cur
rently enrolled in Art 330, Pho
tography I. It is an exciting class
and our instructor is top-notch! ! !
He is Mr. Leander Canady.
Mr. “C” has shown us how to
take pictures, develop them, and
make contact sheets; he has also
shown us how to make prints. All
of these procedures involved other
procedures and Mr. “C” taught
us them too! ! !
Gee, I enjoy photography and
I know my classmates do too; but
we have a problem—and the sad
thing is that it can be easily taken
care of if the administration
would recognize it—OUR CLASS
IS TOO LARGE! ! !
Sure Mr. “C” has taught us a
lot and has done well in teaching
it to us; but there are so many of
us that it prevents him from
teaching us a lot more. You see,
taking pictures, developing nega
tives, putting negatives on a con
tact sheet, and printing them are
not all the things a good photog
rapher needs to know. She needs
to know other things like how a
subject relates to the background;
whether the background is dis
tracting or tells us more about
the subject; how a background can
be eliminated; or what effect
camera angles have on the photo
graph. These unique points and
more make a good photographer'—
and I want to be a good photog
rapher so that I will be ready for
my competition from UNC-G,
A&T, and other institutions who
have prepared their students to
take a good picture.
As I said, Mr. “C” is top-notch
and he could teach our class these
techniques if it wasn’t so LARGE.
If we could only have two classes
it wouldn’t be such a problem
(Oh, if I didn’t mention it we only
have one Art 330 class and just
for information sake, I heard it
through the grapevine that it is
the most popular Art class on
campus).
One day I asked Mr. “C” why
our class couldn’t be broken down
into two classes; after all it
wouldn’t take any more supplies
than those allotted for the class
now. It seem to me that two pho
tography classes that are no more
expensive than one large class is
very logical. Then maybe Mr. “C”
could teach us some more tips on
how to take a picture and maybe
we would be ready for our com
petition. That doesn’t sound like
a bad idea to me at all so why
haven’t two photography classes
been scheduled? It is pitiful when
a student spends a semester tak
ing photography in a crowded
class and all she knows is how
to take a halfway decent picture,
develop the negative, and make a
print of it; but in her typing class,
which is the size of a normal typ
ing class, she learns the alphabetic
keyboard, fundamentals for typ
ing, skills reqxiired for correspon
dence, basic forms of correspon
dence, manuscripts and related
features and all of the necessary
skills that are learned with these.
The student is ready for her typ
ing competition but her interest
is PHOTOGRAPHY and she can’t
come close to producing any pic
tures like her competition.
I pray that someday two classes
of Photography I will be offered
at Bennett as opposed to one over
crowded class, which will enable
the instructor, whomever he or
she may be, to increase his/her
student’s knowledge about pho
tography! ! ! After all that’s what
it’s all about—learning as much
as you can while you can.
Denise Wilder
^000