2A
-THE CAROLINA TOTES SATVUDAY t JULY 12, 1967
Humility Needed in the Present Crisis
All of the good people aS Durham
along with the members of its City
Council, have a date with destiny
that must be kept and that very soon
if this city is to continue as a peace
ful habitation for our mothers, our
wives, our children and ourselves.
The public hearing held at the Dur
ham City Hall Monday night re
vealed beyond any doubt that the
situation has reached the critical
stage here and must be dealt with
intelligently and positively if a catas
trophe is to be avoided in this city.
We think the time has arrived
when it is befitting to remind all of
those concerned or involved, in the
present crisis now facing Durham,
that threats, accusations and dis
paraging remarks, as exhibited at the
City Council meeting Monday night,
are truly earmarks of the weak rath
er than of the strong. We are hoping,
therefore, that, in spite of the grav
ity of the situation there will emerge
within the City Council and the
opposing faction that spark of humil
ity, which is an attribute of all noble
men, and which is so necessary if
common sense is to prevail in such
trying moments, rather than rash
and stupid action.
Will it be an evidence of weakness
The Memorial to Mary McLeod Bethune
If the announcement made last
week by the National Council of Ne
gro Women to the effect that it plans
to raise $400,000 to complete instal
lation in Lincoln Memorial Park, in
Washington, D. C., of a memorial
to Mary McLeod Bethune, causes a
tingling sensation to run up and
down your spine, don't be alarmed.
If there is any virtue whatsoever in
the belief by many that the dead
know what the living are doing,
Mary McLeod Bethune may be send
ing the sensation signals up and
down your spine in search of aid
in putting a stop to the efforts of
the NCNW.
Those who had the good fortune
to meet and know anything about
Mrs. Bethune, personally, will tell
you that she was one of the greatest
women of her time irrespective of
'race, creed or color. If she could
speak, in the flesh, to the present
leaders of the NCNW, it is our hon
est belief she would do what she
did when she lived among them by
admonishing them to raise the $400,-
000, and more if possible, but put
it in some project that will result
in some jobs, education or a higher
economic level for her people.
The $400,000 Lincoln Park memo
rial project to Mary McLeod Be
thune is typical of too many of our
so-called Negro leaders who feel that
an only Negro on the committee,
only Negro seated on the platform
at a public gathering, only Negro in
vited to dine with the governor, only
Negro in the conference at the White
House, only Negro invited to the
governor's office, and other personal
empty honors, is a passport to heav
en.
Such Negro, or so called Negro
South's Anti-Interracial Marriage Laws
Elsewhere in this issue of the
Carolina Times is the photo of two
persons, a Negro man and a white
woman, who were refused a license
to marry in Tennessee because the
law in that state, as it does in a
majority if not all of the southern
states, prohibits the marriage of Ne
gro and white persons. This ungodly
determination on the part of the state
of Tennessee, and other southern
states, to deny two human beings the
sacred right of matrimony, because
of racial differences, appears to us
to be entirely out of date. We, there
fore, call upon all decent and respect
able citizens to wage an eternal and
relentless war against such a vicious
and ungodly law.
As we have already stated in the
case of the white and Negro couple
who were denied the right to live
in the state of Virginia, until the
United States Supreme Court ruled
that such a state law is unconstitu
tional, we hold that marriage is a
highly personal right, so personal
that not even parents have the right
to attempt to prohibit such.
The Tennessee law denying the
right jot two persons to marry, what
ever their difference in race, is one
of the basic causes underlying the
rash of riots now going on in this
country. Resentment of the younger
element of Negroes to such laws, in
- ... wu**-
or strength for the City Council of
Durham to admit, officially that the
Negro community has not always
been treated fair in matters of equal
or equitable representation in city
government, matters of public hous
ing, employment and othegvareas so
necessary if one is to be accorded hu
man dignity in our present social
order?
Will it be an evidence of weakness
or strength for leaders of the anti
poverty workers to admit that they
have not always acted with calm
ness and regards for the rights of
others in lodging their protests
against the injustices Negroes suffer
in our present social order?
We think once opposing factors are
willing to confess their shortcomings
in the present crisis they will have
opened the door to its solution. For
so powerful is confession that the
Almighty is moved on His throne to
the salvation of mankind. With this
in mind, we appeal to the Mayor,
members of the City Council and
leaders of the anti-poverty workers
to rise to the point of nobility and
provide Durham with the kind of
leadership it so badly needs in this
hour of woe.
leaders, need to read again and again
the biblical story of Daniel's ap
pearance at Belshazzar's feast to
read the handwriting on the wall,
and his blanket refusal to accept the
personal honors offered him by the
king which included: to be clothed
with scarlet, have a chain of gold
placed about his neck and accorded
the position of third ruler in the
kingdom. Replied Daniel in refus
ing the offer of the king: "Let thy
gifts be to thyself, and give they re
wards to another; yet I will read
the writing unto the king and make
known to him the interpretation."
Somewhere along the line North
Carolina and other states need to
discover a Negro leader or leaders
who will refuse to become excited or
intrigued at being singled out as
the "only Negro." It might be re
freshing to hear one of them cry
out: "Let thy gifts be to thyself,
and give thy reward to another."
Leaders of the NCNW will, there
fore, need to look beyond the $400,-
000 they will raise to have Mrs. Be
thune's memorial as the first and the
only memorial to be erected to an
American Negro on public land in
the nation's capital. They wilt need
to look thoughtfully at the hun
dreds of thousands of Negroes in the
ghettoes of American cities and in the
hinterlands of the deep South, who
often through no fault of their own,
have not yet seen the light of day
or been moved from starvation and
ignorance. It apptfrs to us that an
investment in some kind of project
to help provide economic indepen
dence for Negroes would be a far
more befitting memorial to Mary Mc-
Leod Bethune than $400,000 worth
of sculptured stone and mortar.
the face of the freedom exercised
too often by the white male in fath
ering offsprings by Negro women,
only to hide behind the laws he him
self has enacted prohibiting inter
marriage of whites and Negroes, has
reached the breaking point.
We think the time has arrived for
every state that has one iota of jus
tice and fairplay left to abolish any
and all laws prohibiting interracial
marriages. Certainly it is stupid to
continue such laws on the books
when all two people of different
races have to do to marry is to cross
over into a state that does not pro
hibit such and return South to live,
where the highest court in the nation
has ruled they have a right to do.
Picking Up the Pieces
There is a feeling among some
Negro leaders that the pieces of this
political debacle can still be picked
up and put back together in time for
the next major election next. sum
mer, when Norfolk voters will select
three of the seven members of City
Council.
Let us hope that the traumatic ex
perience the Negro community has
just come through will help it to
learn its lesson, and help it eventu
ally to become a winner, rather than
the perpetual loser it has been all
of this century.
Don't Let Them Down On The Home Front!
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SPIRITUAL INSIGHT B " REV harold ROLAND
Kpt Man Spiritually Sick Unto Death
■HI Needs Christ's Healing Power
"Many limb* and or®*n», dif
ferent function*, united with
Chriaf, form on* body."
Rom. 12:4-5
There is an inescapable to
getherness or interdependence
making for elemental oneness
among men. There are slight
variations of a cultural nature
that may cause us to differ
superficially. But deep down
we are one biologically. We
may be conditioned or even en
slaved by some cultural varia
tions. But finally and physi
cally we are all flesh and
blood. Biologically we are cut
from the " s4ifi6 psttfirri. "Be
neath the variations of' half
texture and skin color, then,
we are one. The New Testa
ment, to its eternal glory, rec
ognized in the fundamental
teachings of Jesus the achieve
ment of spiritual oneness in
Jesus. It is expressed in the
concept or doctrine that "We
Are One Body in Christ." The
New Testament declares here
"Humanity's Togetherness."
The great message is that
basically we have more to
unite us than to divide us. Way
down beneath the surface we
discover our kinship and one
ness. The book published some
-Conyers
Continued from front page
is simply not true. Riots are
caused by the problems that
have arisen from generations of
slum life—from slum housing,
unemployment, poor education,
inadequate training programs,
and all the rest of the depri
vations which are character
istic of the Negro ghetto."
Noting tne broad ambiguities
in the bill, the Congressman
warned "it amounts to an open
invitation to arrest those who
seek to encourage voting and
free exercise of civil rights. At
best, it offers no workable
limits to wholesale harassment
and denial of the fntedom to
speak and to travel." Mr. Con
yers questioned if it was wise
to pay such a high price for "a
measure which might afford
some people the psychic satis
faction of seeing a few color
ful figures arrested but which
most certainly would have no
effect upon the occurrence of
riots."
"It is unseemly for this Con
gress to hurriedly fasten to a
mythical scapegoat merely be
cause the road to effective solu
tion appears long and diffi
cult," charged Conyers, the
only Negro member of the Ju
diciary Committee which sent
the bill to the House Floor.
The Detroit Congressman, who
opposed the bill in Committee,
pointed out that evidence from
the President's Commission on
Law Enforcement shows that
riots result from the problems
of slum life. "It would be a
happy situation if the problem
were as simple as the propon
ents of the Mil believe it to
be. Unfortunately it is not.
Urgency is indeed required in
dealing with urban slums and
all their problems, but we can
not let this urgency lead us
to precipitious action which
twenty years ago puts it aptly
and precisely when it said "We
were brothers under the skin."
The church must never lose
sight of this great truth. This
truth of humanity's together
ness must be preached in these
times. The world undergoing
change and revolution needs
this strategic message of the
New Testament. The world
awaits this message from the
Church and ministers the rep
resentatives of the Christ, the
world's Redeemer. We are
members one of another. We
are our brother's keeper. Christ
' alone can make real "Human
* Ity's togetherness."
'Many fherfibfcrt must consti
tute the one glorious body in
Christ Jesus. The great masses
at the grass roots of humanity
are awaiting this message of
humanity's oneness in Christ.
In the past this great ideal
has been marred by greed,
pride and oppression. Thus
there has been a block of the
message of "Humanity's To
gethernee." Men yearn for this
message. Men among all races,
climes and nationalities cry
out plaintively for this message
of Christ. Men fed up on ra
cism, oppression and injustice
will, in the end, retard the pro
gress of civil rights."
-Breakthrough
Continued from front page
100 persons at a total cost of
$443,480, of which $398,280 will
be Federal funds.
Charlotte Area Fund, Inc.
will sponsor a project to train
62 persons, total cost $307,500,
Federal portion $258,670.
A project to be conducted
by Operation Breakthrough,
Inc., Durham, will train 100
persons, total cost $465,060,
Federal portion $403,580.
Wake County Opportunities,
Inc., Raleigh, will sponsor
training for 100, total cost
$501,630, Federal portion $400,-
970.
William T. Davies is region
al director of the Bureau of
Work Programs here. Inquiries
concerning the program can be
addressed to him at 1111 20th
Street, N.W. Vanguard Build
ing, Room 702, Washington,
D. C. 20036.
-Lee
Continued from front page
ciate professor of religion and
assistant chaplain at Hampton
(Va.) Institute; and as profes
sor of religion at Virginia
Union University in Richmond.
As director of program plan
ning for the NCC division, Dr.
Lee was responsible for coor
dination and administration in
such areas as race relations,
economic life, international af
fairs and church renewal.
His other NCC positions were
associate executive director of
the Commisssion on Religion
and Race, 1963-65; and execu
tive director of the Department
of Racial and Cultural Rela
tions 1051-65.
want true spiritual oneness in
God and Christ. If the Church
fails man will be misled by
the Pied Pipers of false ideo
logies. Each Church or com
munity of the redeemed must
be a symbol of "Humanity's To
getherness." We must cease
acts of strife and envy and live
in love.
Man sick unto death spirit
ually needs healing and one
ness. This is the expressed
mission of Jesus. A world sick
and framentized needs the lov
ing, healing touch of Jesus. And
Jesus stands amid the revolu
tionary stirrings, bloodshed
and violence' of these times
calling us upward to the high
er or more excellent way. The
way of love, healing and re
demption. Man is sick. And
Christ has given the healing
prescription. It is man turning
to God through Christ by way
of conversion and regeneration.
Christ is the answer for He
alone has the remedy for man's
sin-sick soul. Jesus removes
the sin and makes possible
"Humanity's Togetherness."
Out of Christ we are broken
and fragmentized by sin; in
Christ we are healed and be
come one body.
-Senator
Continued from front page
$15,000 would qualify for pur
chase and except when the
lower income purchaser has an
exceptionally large family of
five or more children. In the
case of large families, the cost
restriction could be increased
as much as $2,500 depending
on the number of children.
The home purchase program
is aimed at families who are
renters, however lower income
homeowners who are living in
substandard or overcrowded
houses would also be eligible.
Some 7 million families with
incomes roughly between $4,-
000 and $7,000 a year would be
eligible for the program, Mon
dale said. The minimum and
maximum income limits would
vary depending on region of
the country and size of the
family. Under the proposed ap
propriation of S3O million the
first year and S2O million the
second year, the program could
help abont 170,000 lower in
come families purchase homes
during the first two years of
operation. An additional $lO
million would be appropriated
to cover expenses and risks of
the program.
-Laymen
Continued from front page
more City, Maryland, will be
the principal banquet speaker,
in the grand ball room of the
Crescent City's Jung Hotel.
All A.M.E. eyes are turned
toward New Orleans—all high
ways lead to the Mardi Gras
city—all calanders are marked
for August 1-9.
Ow«ai^a®awff
Pub lithe d every Saturday at Durham, H C.
by United Publisher*, Inc.
L. E. AUSTIN, Publisher
SAMUEL L. BRKSGS Managing Editor
3. ELWOOD CARTER Advertising Manager
Second Class Pottage Paid at Durham, N. C. 27702
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
$5.00 per year plus (15c tax in N. C.) anywhere
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PIIXCIFAL Omci LOCATSD AT 436 E. Piracnw Sraaor,
DURHAM, Norm CAROLINA 27702
To Be Equal
By WHITNEX M. IOUNG JB.
Marshall To High Court
NEXT FALL, WHEN the Supreme Court reconvenes, history will
be made. Joining the other judge* on the highest court in the
land will be Thurgood Marshall, the first Negro Supreme
Court Justice in our history.
This is an event of tremendous significance for Negro citizens.
It is an example of the new heights which are open to kids in the
ghetto. There w?s a time when Negro youth could aspire only to
becoming boxing champs or singers. The doors to positions of power
and influence were tightly shut
But how W sefe Negroes in the Congress, in the cabinet, in high
administrative pbsitioni, and now, with Mr. Marshall's appointment,
I in the most important spot in the judicial
- system. His appointment is proof that, what
'• • ever the obstacles, Negroes can fight their
way to the top.
Thurgood Marshall wasn't born with a
silver spoon in his mouth—his dad was a
Pullman car steward, and his family was so
poor that his mother sold her engagement ring
to help pay his college expenses. This is the
kind of success story all Negroes are familiar
with the hard work and painful sacrifices
so many families have made to help their
MR. YOUNG children escape poverty.
Won His Place In History
Thurgood Marshall graduated from Howard Law School at
the head of his class during the Depression in the thirties. Since
then, he has won his place in history, arguing civil rights cases be
fore the nation's courts. It was he who argued the historic 1954
case which resulted in the Supreme Court's ruling aaginst segrega
tion in the public schools.
He won 29 of 32 cases before the Supreme Court—a fantastic
record of success which is primarily responsible for the end of the
legal basis for segregation. Since then he has been a federal judge
and solicitor general of the Justice Department.
He has had a great caieer. President Johnson summed it up
best, when he said in his announcement of the appointment: "I
have no doubt that his future contributions will add even mora
prominence to his already well-established place in American his
tory."
The thing to remember about Mr. Marshall's appointment is
that he is regarded as the best man for the job. In the past that
often meant that the job went to the second best man who was
white. But times are changing, and the Negro who it the best man
can and often does get the job.
It is a great appointment great for those who, like myself,
have known and respected Mr. Marshall for years, great for all
Negroes, and great for all Americans. It is too important to have any
but the best men at the helm, and it is good to see that race is no
longer the barrier it once was.
1 !
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Do's And
1 '• 4 ' ■' -
Let Jlitiror Enjoy Himself But
\ ' > it |Not At Expense Of Others
± BORROW YOUR NEW
WONT WANT TO OETYOUR NEW DRESS
Continental Features, ——— —.