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PMZ 2. T? CAROLINA IHPHtl VDICg-WW^V -TULV 2fe. 1990
WHAT NEXT???
A lew words about Paul Burch'S "research" project. Burch's
research is flawed and the conclusions are valid only to the group of
students he talked with and even then, the conclusions reached are
highly questionable.
First, the sample of students was a proportional sample which
sought to weigh groups, according only to race, based on the popula
tion at PSU. There arc several inherent dangers in using this method
especially if you wish to draw any broad conclusions or generaliza
tions.
Secondly, Paul uses "race" and "whether one goes to town" as the
total explanation for the expressed feelings of the students. This is an
extremely narrow minded view of what composes and influences the
development of one's personal opinion. For example: If you live in
Charlotte, NC and then enroll at PSU, what opinion would you have
of the town of Pembroke. Look at the experiences a person might
have in Charlotte and if that person was looking for similar ex
periences in Pembroke, wouldn't one might come to the conclusion
thai Pembroke was somehow inferior (we believe the favorite college
phrase is, "it sucks"). Or what if you were 18 years old, away from
home for the First time in an unfamiliar town, perhaps you would feel
uncomfortable too and blame the town rather than your own feelings
of inadequacy. There are so many things that could have led students
to express the opinions they did (ex. age, sex, years at PSU, participa
tion or lack of participation in extracurricular activities, size of town
the student was fronts.) and because the research was limited only to
"race" and "travel to town" the research fails to truly support any
general conclusion.
But enough of that. You should be able to see that more "theories"
are available to explain the answers Paul received than race and
whether one went to town or not. Paul's research t herefore is extreme
ly limited and of little practical use other than to help us begin to ex
amine ourselves and ask questions. What attitudes do we have about
college students? What preconceived ideas have perhaps led us to be
suspicious of th .se students? Do we feel invaded by outsiders or do we
appreciate the influx of these young men and women?
lake another look at Paul's research. Of the 70 whites surveyed,
only 17 students found Pembroke unfriendly. And that is really all
Paul can state. He does not know why they felt this way. He cannot
truly offer a educated guess because too many other factors might
have played a significant role in the formation of a student's opinion.
Look at it this way, there are 1377 white students at PSU and 17
represents only .OI2*/o of those students. Now do we really wish to
brand every white student as a racist or malcontent for the comments
of 17 students?
In our view, the animosity between the college and town grew under
the direction of the previous chancellor. There was a great deal of
misunderstanding and a feeling of isolation. We labeled it "the
bunker mentality" and Dr. Givens played the role very well. He was
practically a recluse who rarely traveled in Pembroke. He seemed
more comfortable in the confines of a country club and his perceived i
isolation further divided the college and town. Many people did not <
even know what his wife looked like until Givens retired. There was a i
definite air of elitism^ Paul seemed to be uncomfortable with our peo- I
pic and perhaps !\is case is sadder than the current attitude of several
students. After all, Givens was a well educated man with a wide varie- <
ty of life experiences. He had the maturity bestowed naturally by age
and yet his social development seemed to have been arrested. Perhaps i
he just did not know what to do and his lack of leadership did nothing
to further communication between the town and the university.
PSU has problems. Some were prior to Givens' arrival-many were
inflamed and complicated by him. Pembroke too has problems. But
under the capable leadership of Dr. Joseph Oxendine a turn around is
being seen-solutions are being found every day. It will take time?
after all wc have to make up for 10 years of neglect. So take Paul
.. Burch's. .'.'research"* with a grain of* salt?let's not blame the
messenger for the problems which Paul Giv'eifs failed to-'acknowledge
or address.
4
James Meredith became a hero of the civil rights liovement When
he decided to return to Mississippi and to enroll in Ole Miss in the
1960s. As a result of Meredith's desire for an equal education, 16,000
troops had to be called out as rioting broke out, but Meredith attend
ed college. Later in 1966 he was shot while on a solo march supporting
black voter registration in Mississippi. And now, Meredith has joined
Sen. Jesse Helms' staff and seems to be right at home.
Meredith caused quite a stir last week with his charge that the
membership of the NAACP was widely involved in drugs and other
criminal activity. He also stated that an elite group of white liberals
actually controlled the black leaders across the country and that in his
opinion, blacks were worse off now than in times of slavery. This
sounds like vintage Helms?but with a Black man making such ac
cusations, many believe these attacks will be even more effective than
those of Jesse Helms.
And what of James Meredith...will he actually become a serious
policy maker for Helms or will he merely be the token Jesse so
desperately needs.
Do you know how things work in Robeson County? Take this brief
test and see!
Two deputies with the Robeson County Sheriff's Department arc
charged with driving and drinking and as far as we know, neither has
yet made a court appearance. One deputy was caught while off-duty
and in his own car and the other was on-duty when he wrecked and
totaled an unmarked county car.
Now which individual do you think Sheriff Hubert Stone tired?
Thai's right...the deputy who was driving his own car!
C7o ^utjiciiljE. da.[[:
(9 1 9)52 1-2826
EDITORIAL
vu- have received many comments about our recent publication of
Paul (lurch's, "The Railroad Track Theory: A Social Schism in Pem
broke?" (see our response in What Next???). Unfortunately, in our
opinion, too many people are taking offense at this "research" pro
ject and are using it to jump to unfounded conclusions.
But llrst, we would like to make it dear that the masthead of the
CIV actually is our working philosophy, We are dedicated to
"building communicative bridges in a in-racial setting" and the
publication of "research" articles, columns, letters to the editor, com
mentary, etc. are a part of our responsibility in attempting to achieve
this objective. Knowledge is power and one must often look far and
near in the search for this illusive commodity since no one person or
group has a monopoly. And so exposure to various ideas and opinions
is not only necessary, but essential in a search for truth, to grow, and
gain understanding. If we are open-minded and try. we all can learn
something new almost everyday of our lives.
So we make no apologies about publishing Mr. Burch's project and
we thank him for this effort. We welcome input from everyone and
especially appreciate the interest and input of Pembroke State Univer
sity students in our community. Even though most are only here for
lour years and the vast majority will move on to other areas to earn
I heir living, they are an important part of our community for the short
while they are here. Hopefully many will return, at least for a visit,
having gained a more mature, healthy respect for the community and
all that has been accomplished since PSU was first founded. PSU
students, for the most part, cannot appreciate the historical
significance of the institution they are attending. In four short years it
is hard for many to understand the challenges and struggles of Indian
people, so do not evaluate one's character or worth because of a lack
of understanding.
Education will help fight ignorance. In the final analysis, our
university turns out many fine people who go out into the "big world"
and often make significant contributions. This brings a great deal of
pride to all of us, including the people of Pembroke. After all, where
would some of these kids be if not for Pembroke State University and
the foresight of Indian people. Remember, these students may one day
become our leaders and we have an obligation not only to educate
them academically, but culturally, socially, and politically as well.
Because we often lack the financial resources to meet these respon
sibilities, dialogue must be the key.
Too often resources do not exist to meet the multifaceted needs of
such a diverse group of individuals as students, so we must talk with
each other if we ever hope to understand the problems facing us. This
dialogue can lead to conflict and this can often be healthy as we each
seek to better understand another's point of view and as we push for
ward to resolve misunderstandings and misconceptions. We believe
everyone is united in wanting a better tomorrow.
The CIV stands for and believes in open communication, whether
the opinion expressed is similar to ours or not. We are not censors and
we will not publish a newspaper devoid of commentary and thought
just because it might be controversial or perhaps contrived. However,
we will not shirk our responsibility in critiquing materials we receive
and we promise not to suffer fools kindly. In the final analysis, we
trust our readers and leave it to the reading public to weigh the
evidence, to use common sense, to evaluate the ideas in the context of
their experience, to challenge weak, shoddy thinking with clear, ra
tional comments and to separate fact from swill. We even accept that
anger might also be an appropriate response, but only if it excites a
creative energy in the person to do something constructive which will
help find some positive way to solve a problem, clear up a
misunderstanding, provide another point of view or present additional
facts or arguments. To live together, we must talk with and not at each
other.
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In 1737, John Brickell recorded the following interesting story I
labout Native American medical practices in the treatment of I
?Europeans: "There was a Planter in North Carolina who had al
?grievous Ulcer in his leg for many years, which was deemed in-1
?curable by all those who had beheld it. Many attempts werel
? made by the best Christian artists in that country to perfect thel
? cure, but all to no purpose, for his leg still grew worse andH
?worse. At last he was prevailed upon to apply himself to one ofl
?those Indian Doctors, who performed the cure in a very short I
Itimc for the value of three Shillings Sterling, though it had cost ?
?him above one hundred Pound before, to little or no purpose !
? The Indian Doctor...made a strong Decoction of the Bark of the!
? Root of Sassafras, in which he bathed the patient's leg very well. ?
?Then he took the rotten Grains of the Maiz, or Indian Corn, well I
?dried and beaten to Powder, and the soft Down that grows on I
? the Turkey's Rump; with this he quickly dried up the filthy!
? Ulcer, and made a perfect cure of what was thought incurable,!
? to the great joy and satisfaction of the Planter, who had so long ?
? labored under it."
This is only one of a great many examples of how effective!
? traditional Native American medical practices were. At a time!
? when European medicine was still very poorly developed, and!
? quite incapable of dealing with many of the ailments which!
I bothered the settlers in the Americas, Indian medicine often!
? became the solution. And though Indian medicine was not able!
? to stop the epidemics of smallpox and measles, it was clearly the!
I best treatment for many other ills.
When Carrier was exploring the St. Lawrence River, his ships!
? got stuck in the frozen river during the winter of 1535. By the!
? time Spring came, a quarter of his men had died from scurvy!
? (vitamin C deficiency), and most of the others were so weakened!
? and ill from scurvy that they were all expected to die. Enter In-1
Idian medicine. A local Indian named Domagaia, described by!
? Carrier as a "chief," caused the women of his village to preparel
la poltice from the bark and leaves of "a certain Tree" which!
? quickly cured the remaining Frenchmen who "marveled at thel
? curative skills of the natives."
I Hundreds of years before digitalis was "discovered" by Euro-I
Ipean medicine as a heart stimulant, it was being used for thel
? same purpose by Native Americans, only in its natural form, thel
? plant foxglove.
I Today most mothers of infants know about ipecac, which is I
used to induce vomiting in case of accidental poisoning. But howl
many of them know that ipecac was originally used by Nativel
Americans for a similar purpose? It was traditionally called,I
among other names, ipecacuanha (in the Tupi language).
Many of the more common disinfectant and antibacterial I
solutions used today contain pine oil or pine tar. But how many I
people know that some Native Americans used pine for similar I
purposes long ago? Colden reported in 1744 that Indians soaked I
the inner bark of pine in water until it was very soft, and then I
applied it to skin wounds. Used in this way, pine helped keep I
wounds and other skin sores fresh and disinfected until they I
could heal.
And the list of plant remedies used in traditional Nativel
American medicine goes on and on. In fact, more than 200 tradi-l
tional plant remedies used by one or more Indian tribes or na-l
lions have been officially listed in the "Pharmacopeia of thel
United States of America" or the "National Formulary." There I
are also several hundred more which have been widely used by I
physicians even though they have not been "officially" ac-l
cepted.
Native American medicine before Columbus also included usel
of some mineral substances. One of these, iron sulfate, was col-1
lectcd by Indians frotn the cliffrocks along some streams where I
it was naturally deposited. It was used to get rid of intestinal I
parasites.
In addition to the many remedies, traditional medicine also I
relied heavily on faith in ceremonies, which often included music I
and dancing. And although the ceremonies differed widely from I
one tribe or nation to the next, the effectiveness of thel
treatments was reported to be very consistent.
In the next segment of Aloag the Robeson Trail, find outH
about the myths and legends of traditional Native American!
cultures (Hint: Did you know that in the long-ago-time, plantsl
and animals could talk?). For more details, call or visit thel
Native American Resource Center in Old Main Building, on thel
campus of Pembroke State University.
[H. Mitchell
Baker, III, P.A.
ATTORNEY AT LAW
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