V
PAGE TWO
THE CAMPUS ECHO
MONDAY, MARCH 31, 1958
NCC Keeps Up With The Trend
One thing is certain in this age of conformity — North
Carolina College students are in style. Like the rest of the
nation, particularly the student element, there is a great fond
ness for rock ’n roll music, for TV horse operas, and for the
comforts of ignorance in general.
Why bother the attitude se^ms to run, when it is far
more comfortable to let George do it. This seems to have
been the national mood when Russia, the so-called backward
nation of a few years ago, sent up the first man-made moon.
There were cries of outrage; attacks on progressive educa
tion generally; and much talk about the lost of American
status as the world’s leader in science and technology.
The significant thing — despite name calling and wildly
random gestures — was that the beast was at last astir.
Even on campus at NCC, there were heard a few mut
ter ings about “those Russians working night and day,”
an audible yawn, and the peaceful sounds of heavy sleep
more generally characteristic of “the leaders of tomor
row.”
Between the periods of apathy, there were suggestions of
suspending the Self-Direction philosophy and bringing back
to our campus the dictatorial rules of “thou shalt not.” Mass
probation, closing of all recreation rooms, removal of social
privileges, compulsory chapel and vesper attendance are
among some of the “random” suggestions brought forward as
cures for what ails the student body at NCC.
The beast, alas, was astir! .
Even as Sputnik I shook America to its foundation, the
satellite orbiting in space brought a few signs of life to our
campus. But almost as suddently, the return to TV westerns, to
rock ’n roll, to nothingness generally set in. , ». .
Not so in foreign countries. In the Union of South Africa,
students led the fight against increased se^egation, were
ridiculed, beaten, and some of them slain, but in the endj
succeeded in delaying the further extension of aparthied in
their homeland. The Hungarian revolt was started by univer
sity students who were campaigning for a democratic form of
government and were trying to get rid of communist rule. In
Argentina, students and faculty members led the fight which
resulted in the ouster of Jiminez. Students in Algiers, in
India, in Morrocco, and in other parts of the world are also
in the battle for human decency, are “on top of the issues
which confront their homelands. , . , 4.
Are there not issues of national import about which stu
dents at NCC might be concerned? What about the recession?
Racial segregation? Agriculture?
And closer home, is there nothing that can be done in me
way of helping the college adnunistration present its case for
needed improvements at the college — an expanded curri
culum a student union building, to name but two outstanding
items. Are administrators speaking for themselves alone when
they appear before the budget bureau, or do they also repr^
—sent us? As tax payers and voters, are we not also represented
in the legislature where these issues are decided? _
And'what about our Student Government and its pro
gram? Is it worth while? Does it need our ideas or sup
port?
But this is the age of conformity. There are always the
westerns, rock ’n roll, fun — and perhaps, never again, a satel
lite.
Our Choice
WILLIE ANALYZES
United States Foreign Policy
By CHARLES WILLIE (Guest Columnist)
Let's replace John Foster Dulles with a
capable man. Our foreign policy is collaps
ing, or do we have a foreign policy? Such
comments have been made in all parts of the
United States. Everyone should objectively
analyze the problems which confront the
United States’ State Department in policy
making before making a hasty criticism.
Do we have a foreign policy? Yes, we have
a very real foreign policy—not one but four
types of foreign policies. One concerns our
NATO and European alliances. The second
is centered around our diplomatic relation
ships with the Asiatic and African states.
This third policy is one we follow when there
is a state of unrest between a European pow
er and its colony or colonies. Perhaps our
most positive policy deals with our diplo
matic affairs with the Soviet Union. The
United States cannot successfully deal with
the entii'e world with one policy.
Our most difficult policy is the one con
cerning the Asiatic and African states. The
main reason for-the difficulties in this policy
is that in the past our nation has had no
diplomatic attitudes related directly to these
Eastern countries. From the Monroe Doctrine
to the Roosevelt Corollary, the United
States’ foreign policies have basically been
aimed at the European nations. It was not
until after World War II that the United
States began to realize the importance of
these Asiatic and African nations. Before
World War II, the African and Asiatic peo
ples were kept in check by European imper
ialism. After the war, a surge of nationalism
and race pride began to erupt in these coun
tries. This new nationalism enabled these
peoples to throw off the yoke of European
imperialism; therefore, many of these peo
ples became free and independent. Their in
dependence placed them in the position to
bargain for world power and status. A change
of status in these states and the threat of
communism forced the United States to
recognize the balance of power these peoples
possessed in the struggle for world peace and
power.
The United States’ foreign policy regard
ing its European friends is steeped in history
and heritage. The world wars have solidified
the allegiance of these European allies. The
recognition of a common enemy, commun
ism, the ties of religion, interests, and race
have helped shape the foreign policy be
tween the United States and its allies in
Europe.
The United States’ foreign policy with
Russia is quite different from the two policies
previously named. There is a definite stand
taken by the United States in relation to the
Soviet Union. The exercising of this policy
is done on a cold war basis with each power
seeking the advantage and the balance of
power.
The policy used when there is unrest be
tween a European power and its colonies is
a “middle of the road” policy. The peculiar
ity of this policy is that the Unit^ States
cannot openly support the European power
or the colonies. These colonies are mostly
located in Africa and Asia. By taking a stand
with allied European countries, the com
munists increase their chances of gaining the
balance of power. On the other hand, if the
United States were to make definite com
mittments to the European colonies in Africa
or Asia, its main line of defense would be
jeopardized. This line of defense is NATO.
In most instances, Mr. Dulles has been suc
cessful in having grievances between a coun
try and its colonies submitted to the United
Nations or in influencing the mother country
and the colonies to settle their disputes with
out violence. The middle of the road policy
depends upon the United Nations and the
conference table to settle disputes. In this
way, Mr. Dulles is neutral and makes no
committments.
This is only a bird’s eye view of the com
plications involved in international politics.
Mr. Dulles has to meet these problems one
by one and must keep in mind at all times
that peace must be preserved without total
war.
NCC LIBERIAN STUDENT SAYS:
Liberia Is Land Of Great Promise
From the reactions of the student body of NCC to the on
coming elections for major student officials for 1958-59, apathy
of the students here is on the rampage again. Three-fourths of
the student body is still willing to be governed by a minority
group. The average student on NCC’s campus is not concern
ed with politics; therefore, he will not put himself to the trou
ble of seeking out the better qualified candidates and casting
his vote for them. Instead, he sits idly by, watching the band
wagon roll until it hits a snag—then he finds a scapegoat to
blame. As one would say in gay Paris, “C’est ce College,”
Why can’t we rnake this year’s election an exception to
the generaljjolicy of this campus? Why can’t our student lead
ers be elected with at least 1000 votes (we do have an enroll
ment of more than 1400).
Examine your candidates—would you want ai) inexperi
enced person to be elected president of the Student Govern
ment’ Would you want a person with no experience in news
paper work to be elected editor of the Echo? Why not wake
up, little Eagles, and refuse (for once) to be governed by
, minority groups. Select your own candidate, the best candidate,
and support the candidate who you think will make our cam
pus a better one.
Comp^^^Echo m
Member
ASSOCIATED COLLEGIATE PRESS
PRESS
The CAMPUS ECHO, official student publication at North
Carolina College at Durham, is published monthly during the
regular school year. Subscription rates: $1.50 per school year.
Second class mail privileges authorized at Durham, N. C.
Sigredda Richardson Editor
Perry R. Leazer Managing Editor
William Anderson Business Manager
Theodore Gilliam - Literary Editor
Reatha Williams, Bettie Battle, Mattie Giles,
Jacqueline Foi^ville, Jewell Dimery Exchange Editors
Elnora Joyner, Richard Harris,
Edith Mangum Feature Editors
With the passage of time there
have been all too many regions
of the earth where people hays
been under-privileged and unde
veloped. For centuries people of
many tribes have inhabited the
continent of Africa which is di
vided into small and big king
doms scattered throughout the
vast continent, from north to
south and from east to west,
bringing about honest controv
ersy between foreign powers on
the capacity for government of
countries recently emerged, or
perhaps still in the process of
emerging from obcurity into
the light of liberty. Liberia and
her people have shown a re
markable record of action and
achievement which, in spite of
controversy, is more telling than
any academic thesis or flight of
enthusiasm.
The Republic of Liberia lies
halfway down the west coast of
of Africa, 310 miles north of the
Ekiuator. Beyond its western
boundary is the British Colony
of Sierra Leone; to the north
and east is French West Africa.
The first emigrants to Liberia
from the United States of Amer
ica were all newly freed Negro
slaves of African stock original
ly, with the urge to go back to
the land of their ancestors. This
was also the means to escape
from the economic slavery an^
unsatisfactory conditions in the
United States. For long general
tions, these emigrants had been
inhabitants of a temperate cli
mate, and they were just as
strange to the region to which
they went as any other emi
grant might have been. The first
By Leonard T. DeShield
Liberians had, therefore, to con
tend not only with unfriendly
natives of Africa, but also with
conditi9ns to which they wer0
unaccustomed. In short, they
were up against the troubles en
countered by all who have im-(
dertaken the sterner colonizing
adventures.
Liberia had a particularly
short period of tutelage. Those
who have studied the long per
iod of emancipation of colonial
territories opened up by non
governmental trading organiza
tions w^l note With interest
that in the case of Liberia the
beginnings lay with a different
kind of venture. The American
Colonization Society, with its
center in Washington, had as its
objective the setting up of “an
asylum for the repatriation of
the emancipated coloured slaves
in the United States of Amejri-
ca” The United States govern
ment helped b y supplying
money, arms, and ammunition.
A number of expeditions em
barked, arriving on the west
coast of Africa, and after 1 or 2
unsuccessful attempts, settled
in 1822 at the mouth of the
Mesurado River.
These first colonists arrived
on January 7, 1822. Then fol
lowed the gradual process of
settling and moving inwards,
not always without great diffi
culties and hazards.
Thus on July 26, 1847 , tha
colony declared its political
sovereignty by signing its Decla
ration of Independence, and to
day enjoys universal recogniticm
and respect. It formed a consti
tution closely modelled on that
of the United States, and pro-
claimed its commonwealth a
“free soverefign and indepen^
dent State, by the name and
style of the Republic of Liberia.”
From very modest beginnings
Liberia now is an organized,
well-ruled and administered
state of about two and a half
million people.
Liberians possess great moral
and physical vigor, and it is not
to be presumed that every com
paratively young and previously
obscure land can do as the peo
ple of this land have done with
in one hundred and eleven
years.
Liberia, a land of rich miner
al resources, is growing in ecoj
nomic importance. In June, 1951
the first shipments of iron ore
were sent from Liberia to A-
merican steel mills. This Liber
ian ore has ^n average iron con
tent of 68.825 per cent. Accord
ing to a United Nations report,
it is the purest iron ore being
mined in the world today. Also
found in Liberia are other treas-
ure;s — gold, diamonds, corim-
dum, manganese, copper, zinc,
and lead. Geologists, including
Liberians as well as foreign
mining companies under con
tract, are now busy tracking
down deposits.
Liberia has definitely shown
a way, and by no means has shei
had all the natural advantages
one might expect to be enjoyed
by an exemplar. Liberians ar«
proud of this land of promise,
with its colorful history, its)
great resources, and its bright
prospects for the future as 3
member of the freedom-lovingi
nations of the world.