Page Two
THE CAMPUS ECHO
Friday, November 1, 1963
CamP‘^5®Echo
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Member
ASSOnTATED COLLEGIATE PRESS PRESS
HAROLD FOSTER EVERETT ADAMS
Editor Business Manager
JEAN NORRIS
Advisor
OFFICE EXTENSION 325
The CAMPUS ECHO is the oTJicial student publication of North
Carolina College At Durham. It is published bi-weekly during the
regular school year, except during college holidays, at Service
Printing Company, Durham, N. C.
Subscription rates. $1.35 per semester, $2.50 per school year.
Second class mail privilege at Durham, N. C.
Laments Homecoming Committee
North Carolina College’s Student Government Associa
tion and Alumni are to be congratulated for the splendid
program they afforded this college community for the 1963
homecoming week. The job, as we found out recently, is a
very involved one which many of us are unfamiliar with
and perhaps would not dare tackle.
The homecoming committee for this year spent many
long hours preparing what many of us have written off as
a most “enjoyable” homecoming week. Though we agree
that long hours must be put into anything that is to be good,
we cannot just pass over the hours spent by this committee
as being ordinary, for they were indeed hours of sweat, toil,
and frustration. First there was the herculian task of de
sign a week of activities that would be pleasing to a college
community that in the past has not been very easy to ap
pease. Anent this there was the problem of supplying the
program with a replacement that would be as spectacular as
the traditional homecoming parade, as that was cancelled
for very dubious reasons.
We, at this time, are not able to get all the facts to
gether concerning the SGA’s inability to obtain a permit for
a parade through the downtown area of Durham. However,
James Ferguson, SGA president, has informed us that the
committee responsible for obtaining the permit was denied
it on the grounds that the city does not allow parades to be
staged in this area on Saturdays, as of this year anyway.
There is also unsubstantiated speculation that the parade per
mit was not grarited because of the civil rights demonstra
tions staged this past spring by NCC students. Therefore,
we await the outcome of those who will seek permission to
stage a Christmas parade through the city’s downtown area
on a Saturday.
Needless to say, the homecoming committee overcame
these obstacles and present us with a week of pep rallys, a
mock funeral, a Sadie Hawkins dance, live music for two
occasions, and had the visiting high school bands perform a
very worthwhile tribute to the homecoming queen and her
attendants gathered in the triangle in front of the college
library.
Mr. Ferguson, Mr. George Nixon, and all those working
with them deserve a hat tip from all of us for their efforts.
And while we are at it; we would remind those students
wondering around looking for some extracurricular activity
to participate in that the SGA will be presenting more
activities for NCC students; your ability is needed!
The Harvey Cafe Incident
A Duke University male student has charged the man
ager of Harvey’s Cafeteria with assault for harassing him
and his Negro date when they went there for dinner Hallo
ween Eve.
According to Andy Moursund, 20-year old Duke sopho
more from Washington, D. C., Joseph Pendergraft, 50-year
old manager of Harvey’s began assaulting him when he en
tered the downtown cafeteria with Cassandra Smith, 18-year
old Duke freshman from Winston-Salem, and one of the five
Negro students admitted to the Duke undergraduate school.
Moursund told the Campus Echo, as well as arresting
officers, that Pendergraft first called him and Miss Smith
“. . . some of McKissick’s niggers” (referring to Durham At
torney Floyd McKissick who is National Chairman of the
Congress of Racial Equality) The manager is said to have
then ordered them to sit in the upstairs part of the cafeteria
which they adhered after discovering the downstairs area
crowded.
Moursund stated further that the manager came upstairs
right before they finished their meal and started calling
him insulting names and making allegations on his parents
and family ties. As he and his date were leaving the cafe
teria, Moursund said, the manager then pushed him around
and kicked him as he started down the steps. Moursund
said he and his date then went straight to the police station
with the cafeteria manager chasing them for a block or so.
Whether the cafeteria manager is guilty of the charges
we are not certain; only the courts can decide that. But we
are not uncertain that such an act could occur in Harvey’s
Cafeteria. Lest we forget that it was at this same cafeteria
this past spring that civil rights demonstrators were threaten
ed to be shot with a rifle by one of the personnel of Harvey’s
if they dared to enter this establishment and ask for service.
As the case now appears, nothing will perhaps be done
with the manager; it is very hard to substantiate charges of
this nature. However, when the person delivering Har
vey Sandwiches to Duke and NCC find that those sand
wiches he left in the canteens untouched (and we mean for
days and days) he will then know that the students at these
institutions do not tolerate having charges of the Morsund
nature larged against them. This, alas, is what we must
do if we are to protect our interests as students and citizens
On Apathy, Race, U. S. Policy
Student Apathy
Dear Editor;
Upon frequenting the student
government office, I was stun
ned to witness the same catas
trophe which has been preva
lent here for the past four years.
The catastrophe I refer to here
is the hard work of the presi
dent of the student government
association, a few of his cabi
net members and even fewer
members of the student body.
The hard work these few are
doing is to carry out the pro
posals that were stated by Presi
dent James Ferguson in his
inaugural address.
As you know, a number of
things were proposed by the
S. G. A. president that illumi
nated the eyes of a vast major
ity of NCC students. Every one
of us, no doubt, feel that these
proposals will be quite benefi
cial to the student body, but
very few of us go by his office
to ask, “How are things going?
May I do something to help?”
After all, many things taken
into consideration, the student
government is directed by and
for the student body.
It is appalling to observe the
majority of the student body
loafing and possessing political
apathy. The proposals made by
the president are for them, and
it is their, or our, duty to see to
it that they are carried out.
This unco-operativeness has
gripped this campus like an
Eagle does his prey. A few
weeks ago, a student congress
meeting was scheduled and in
orc^er for it to meet, a few mem
bers of the congress had to go
to the dormitories and get
enough members to gain a quo
rum. Another example is the
low participation that was giv
en the program sponsored by
the commission on student af
fairs; out of over two thousand
students, approximately 10 0
students showed up for the I.
Q. program.
If NCC is to be the type of
college where students may ex
ercise autonomy, then it is ne
cessary for us to get behind the
student government and help
them get over their worthwhile
programs.
Except for the loyality of the
few cabinet members, the stu
dent government is without
help. These few people keep the
apparatus rolling and if they
didn’t it would wreck.
NCC students need to be shak
en from their political apathy.
We hope something will come
by to make them realize that
the work of the SGA involves
the cooperation of the whole
student body.
Robert L. Parker
White Looks At Black
Dear Editor:
NEWSWEEK MAGAZINE,
October 21, 1963, featured a
questionnaire of white attitudes
toward the Negro. Although the
questions ranged from general
subjects to specific ones as jobs,
schools, housing, and personal
contact with Negroes, the one
area where 90 per cent of the
whites (North, South, East, and
West) drew the lines was when
asked “Would you mind your
teen-age daughter dating a Ne
gro?”
In case the reader is not fa
miliar with the above article, I
would like to include this ex
cerpt in this letter.
“Why this almost universal
anxiety over intermarriage?
Some of the fear undoubtedly
stems from a genuine concern
about the social consequences
for the parents and children of
mixed marriages. Some whites
earnestly believe in the mainte
nance of racial purity. But as
many Negroes and quite a few
white psychiatrists have point
ed out, white prejudice against
intermarriage may be rooted in
personal fears of sexual inade
quacies. This, in turn, may help
to account for the durability of
the stereotype of the “Negro as
“oversexed.”
If this absurd idea of Negroes
being “oversexed” is true; why
wouldn’t the white man focus
my attention on familiar Negro
females? Why would he espe
cially seek out white females to
marry? Do white bigots subcon
sciously think that white fe
males are “oversexed” also?
Would the oversexed Negro
male find sexual compatability
with the “oversexed” white fe
male? What then, about the Ne
gro female and the white male,
both now “undersexed”?
A friend of mind now attend
ing Harvard University told of
an interesting incident that oc
curred the first week of classes
during his freshman year at that
Ivy-league school. One day upon
entering gym class, he along
with his white classmates (he
being the only Negro in that
class) were instructed to report
to the athletic field where they
were to select teams for a game
of football. To his surprise the
game would not get underway
because both team captains
wanted him. It seems that each
side felt that the one with the
Negro halfback would eventual
ly win. This was embarrassing
to him because while in high
school he was a “bookworm”—
having never participated in
any varsity sports and very lit
tle sandlot activities, but con
centrating on his studies. He
didn’t even know how to hold
a football! Yet these young
white Harvard freshmen had
been seeing Jimmy Brown and
a host of other Negro NFL foot
ball players on television. Also,
the sports pages were filled with
the exploits of Ernie Davis,
Willie Mays, Wilt Chamberlain,
and Floyd Patterson. It is pos
sible that some “brainwashing”
might have occurred as to the
Negro possessing physical prow
ess.
Now if one associates muscle
and brain with sexual potency,
we can see how this misconcep
tion might have occurred. If I
had a son contemplating mar
riage to a Caucasian and she
seemed only interested in him
physically, then, I too would
have some reservation about
him marrying her.
Charles McNeil
Birmingham Or S. V.?
It seems to me that the Unit
ed States is far too unconcern
ed with its domestic problems,
especially where the gigantic
20th century problem of race is
concerned.
After viewing many of our
nation’s leading newspapers, I
am prompted to ask, “Is South
Viet Nam more or less impor
tant to the United States than
Birmingham, Alabama?” Cer
tainly one has the choice of
saying either, but according to
my observations and facts
of Durham. A college community becomes a frightening
place when students do not know when to expect the ossified
and unbiquitous hand of racial hate and segregation to raise
and smite them.
gathered from the American
Newspapers, it seems as though
Viet Nam is of paramount sig
nificance to the United States,
and considered more of a trou
ble spot than Birmingham.
The United States has not act
ed on its domestic race problem
as a country responsible to all
its citizens should have. This
neglect, and especially in Bir
mingham, has resulted in the
death of many innocent, hum
ble, and loved Afro-American
little children: not to mention
the adults.
The Buddist demonstrators re
ceive more financial aid from
the U.S. than the U.S.’s civil
rights demonstrators. As I see
it, this is the U.S.’s own little
silly way of preserving or in
stituting a so-called form of
democratic government in the
political institution of South
Viet-Nam.
There are those who say that
the U.S. is very concerned about
Negro demontrations, because
after all didn’t Mr. Kennedy
send troops down there (Bir
mingham) to get students in
school, and didn’t he send two
mediators or trouble shooters
down there to settle problems.
Certainly Mr. Kennedy did! But
compare this with the 16,000
men he sent to Viet Nam, and
then compare the millions of
dollars spent everyday in the
form of financial and military
aid for the Viet Namese to that
of zero for U.S. civil rights
demonstrators.
The close ties of the United
States and the Diem regime that
has now broken up, proves that
the time and effort spent on
Viet Nam has been wasted.
This wasted time and energy
could 'have been used in Bir
mingham or some other scenes
of ill-democracy by the inhu
mane whites.
Sure some time and finance
should be spent on U.S. foreign
policy, but not in the sense to
forsake 20 million people who
are an integral part of this
country, and who are definite
ly for and believe in democracy.
This year has marked the ze
nith of the black man’s patience
and perserverance with slav^
ery, injustice and nullification
of his dignity; therefore he has
taken on a new image—one of
the Black Revolter. And this is
a just image: While 20 million
blacks are asking for redress of
grievances and in many cases
have been denied this right to
even ask for redress of grie
vances, the U.S. government
has the audacity to neglect these
many Afro-Americans and in
vert its energy and support to
a hope-to-be democratic country
that may ultimately turn pro-
Communist.
The efforts and support in
Viet Nam are perhaps signifi
cant to some people, but we feel
that the U.S. should take care
of its domestic problems before
going abroad. It’s a shame that
the U.S.’s Birmingham problem
is still pending in the “status
quo, ante bellum.”
William Cheeks
Campus Echo Staff
STAFF
NEWS EDITOR
Charles Clinton
SPORTS EDITOR
John McKnight
STAFF WRITERS
Thomas Hardin, Marie Harris, Doris
Hodge, Ronald Jacobs, Frances Neely,
BiUy Watts
TYPISTS
Louise Freeman, Phyllis Hawkins,
Everlee Hariston, Joyce Hill
CIRCULATION
Clifton Johnson, Gerald Roper
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Ronald Jones