OCTOBER 5, 1992
COVER STORY 11
tnmaker Spike Lee
|l but the black schools couldn ’ t
the financial aid that the
i schools could. I never thought
jducation was inferior at black
piions.
i
j I sit true that Michael Jordan
\upposed to accompany you to
'^ly?
I ipress conference
No. I talked to Michael yes-
f. He was unable to come, but
id that he is in full support of
[dents also. He wanted to clear
^t he would make a financial
\bution to the building but he
1 stated that he would finance
tiiding totally by himself He
|said that.
I
Could you respond to the
0 the editor in the DTH that
that your coming here to-
^ just a waste of studentfunds?
■ My visit is not coming out of
dy’s pocket. I’m just here be-
I’m concerned. So they don’t
b worry about funds being
1
\
I How do you feel about the
'Awareness Council and what
fe doing on campus?
LEE: I think it’s great and I think
it should spread all across the coun
try. This being the election year, I
don’t think any of us can afford to
just sit back and just watch stuff go
by. I think everybody has to be
come politicized. 1 think we’re go
ing to see a throwback to the radical
days of the students across the coun
try during the 1960’s when the stu
dents were at the forefront of
change. They were out in the
streets battling with cops ev-
eryday-battling cops and tear
gas. Students were at the fore
front to stop the war in Viet
nam. Without the students, that
movement would have never
been as powerful.
INK: What are your views on
a multicultural center?
LEE: You need a black stu
dent center. They want to build
a multicultural center, let them
do that afterwards, after we
get ours. They’re just locked
in this ignorant thinking that if
you have a black cultural cen
ter, it ’ s going to promote sepa
ratism. I think it would be great
if the white college student at
UNC stands up and says this is not
going to be the case because then
the administration would have no
outs. It would be great if we had the
white student population’s support
too. It won’t make it a black and
white issue anymore which is the
way that they want it to be.
INK: What do you think you will
have contributed to the students af
ter speaking tonight?
LEE: The biggest thing I could
contribute coming here is to try to
get some more national fwess here.
I mean, I didn’t hear about it until I
read the article last week. This has
to become a naUonal story. Once it
becomes a national story young
black people will see us and they
are going to apply what you’re do
ing here to their own particular si tu-
ations wherever they go to school,
and this is going to start a move
ment across the country. That’s
why I’m here—to get the press here.
This story is not confined within the
small-town landscape of Chapel
Hill. This is a national issue; this
has effects far beyond UNC-Chapel
Hill. You know that this is not the
only school in America that is hav
ing the same problem, and if all of
the black students see that connec
tion, they may say they could use
your tactics at their school. Particu
larly, black college athletes have to
find out about this. Let’s say, for
instance that Tim and the guys sit
out and say ‘We’re not going to
play!’ The coach says fine. Then
the black athletes at the schools that
are the opponents of UNC say,
‘We’re not going to play. We’re not
sitting out the whole season, but
we’re notgoing to play againstNorth
Carolina in support of the black
students there.’ That shit has rami
fications like a mug!
INK: Do you believe that there is a
big difference between the South
andtheNorth, whichiswhereyou re
from?
LEE: Down South they let you
know from the get-go while up
North they’ll be more slick about it;
but in the longrun, you’re still a
nigger. Basically it comes down to
that.
INK: W'/wi are some points that you
would like to emphasize to students
tonight at the rally?
LEE: Well tonight I hope that
people don’t expect me to talk an
hour because I’m really down here
to learn. 1 want to really hear what
the students have to say, especially
with the mic in the audience. I’m
going to say a couple of words, but
I’m here to show my support. I’m
not down here as far as any leader
ship because your leaders here got it
started already and you got it under
control. I just hope that when things
get tight, people can face being ex
pelled. You got to be strong. You
got to keep it up.
Lee quietly observes goings on at the rally
Fists in air, rally attendants display Black Powder