Ground Breaking Held For Low-Income Housing Project
****** * * * * ****'*★★★ ★**
Negro Construction Firm To Build Harlem Woolworth Store
Cite CamlSp Cinws
VOLUME 46 No. 10 DURHAM, N. C., SATURDAY, MARCH 8, 1969
Nat'l Urban League Calls For
Abolition Capital Pu
Three Catholic
Bishops to Meet
Black Clergy
WASHINGTON—Three Ca
tholic bishops will meet March
11 in Detroit with leaden of
the Black Catholic Clergy Cau
cus to discuss in depth propo
sals to make Catholicism rele
vant to Black Americans, and
to tecommend action to the
American hierarchy.
The bishops were appointed
by Archbishop John F. Dear
den of Detroit, president of
the National Conference of
Catholic Bishops (NCCB), to
find ways in which the Ameri
can bishops and Black Catho
lics can work together on their
common religious and social
problems.
They will present their re
commendations in April, at the
semi-annual meeting of the na
tion's Catholic hierarchy lti
Houston, Tex. (April 15-17).
Chairman of the committee
is Bishop Peter L. Gerety,
apostolic administrator of the
Portland, Maine, Diocese.
(See BISHOPS page 8A)
PRICE
First Negro Is
Admitted to
Local Realtors
R. C. Price of Durham,
founder, owner and operator
of the R. C. Price Realty Com
pany of Durham, has been
named an associate member of
the Durham Board of Realtors.
The status of associate mem
bership is the first step toward
becoming an active member of
the board which heretofore has
been an all-white organization.
Price applied for member
ship in the Board in October
1968. His company be
gan business about three years
ago on a part-time basis. Since
the beginning of 1968 his com
pany, located at 1220 Fayette
ville Street has operated on a
full time basis.
Price attended his first meet
ing of the Board last Thurs
day after being notified of his
acceptance. So far as it has
been determined, he is the
first Negro to be admitted to
membership.
W. S. Toten president of the
board, stated that Price will
be required to undergo certain
qualifications, such as educa
tional courses, before he can
become an active participant
of the board.
Price was bom and reared
(See REALTOR page 8A)
Dr. Leroy Swift Named Consultant To
U. S. Public Health Service Bureau .
Dr. Leßoy Russell Swift has
been appointed Consultant to
the U.S. Public Health Service
Bureau of Health Professions
Education and Manpower
Training, Department of
Health, Education and Welfare.
In assuming his new position
Dr. Swift becomes Consultant
to Dr. Frank McKee, M. D.
Director of Physician Man
power.
"I take great pleasure in
inviting you to serve as Special
Consultant to the Division,"
Dr. McKee said. "Although
there must be many demands
upon your time, I hope you
will find it possible to accept
invitation and give the Division
of Physician Manpower the
benefit of your competence
and experience. In doing so,
you would be rendering a ser
vice to a vitally important Na
tional Program."
{The Division of Physician
Manpower administers nume
rous grant and operatidnal pro-
Black Methodists Call For Boycott Of
Publishing House In n.
Saint Paul's
Founder's D
LAWRENCEVILLE, Va.
Preparations are in the final
stages for the annual observ
ance at Saint Paul's College
here of Founder's Weekend,
March 14-16 inclusive, Presi
dent Earl H. McClenney an
nounced. The institution is in
its eighty-first year.
One principal change and
one addition to the three-day
observance have been made.
The anniversary address will
be delivered by the grandson
of the founder, Dr. James
Solomon Russell. The former
is Dr. James Alvin Russell
Jr., professor and director,
Division of Engineering and
Technology, and chairman,
Department of Electronics
Engineering at Hampton (Va.)
Institute. He is the son of the
late Rev. Dr. Russell Sr., and I
Mrs. Nellie Pratt Russell, who 1
resides in Lawrenceville. His
father was the institution's
second president.
DR. RUSSELL will speak at
eleven o'clock Sunday, March
16, in the campus Memorial
$300,000 Damage Suit Filed Against
Sen. John McClellan And Committee
WASHINGTON -A $300,000
damage suit was filed March
4 against Sen. John McClellan,
of Arkansas and members of
his investigating committee.
Among those filing the suit
in U. S. District Court here are
A 1 and Margaret McSurely, of
Pikeville, Ky., who were under
subpoena to appear before the
committee the day the suit
was filed.
Other plaintiffs are four
human rights and student orga
nizations: the Southern Con.
ference Educational Fund
(SCEF), on whose staff the
i —V
DR. SWfFT
grams. As part of its responsi
bility, the Division supports
development of educational
facilities for students working
toward professional degrees in
medioine, osteopathy, pharma
cy, podiatry, veterinary medi
cine, public health, and other
allied health professions.
(See SWIPT page 8A)
- I
A . A H
'' -'^^H
B|
■ \ s
■ V
n ■
DR. JAMES RUSSELL JR.
Guest Speaker
Chapel. An academic proces
sion will precede this pro
gram.
McSurelys work; Students for
a Democratic Society, (SDS);
the Southern Student Organiz
ing Committee, (SSOC); and
the Student Nonviolent Coor
dination Committee, (SNCC).
The McSurelys have been
ordered to turn over to the
McClellan Committee material
related to these and'other orga
nizations. The suit asks that
the subpoenas be quashed on
grounds that they violate con
stitutional rights. Each plain
tiff also asks $50,000 damages.
The plaintiffs charge that
the subpoenas are part of a
conspiracy between the McClel-
PRICE: 20 Cents
Death Penalty
Used Mostly in
Blacks Crime
NEW YORK - The Na
tional Urban League called to
day for the abolition of capital
punishment throughout the
United States.
The League, in a statement
issued from its New York
headquarters, declared that the
death penalty failed to deter
crime, was discriminatory as
applied to black persons and
the poor, and might even be
a violation of the United States
Constitution.
The League's National
Board of Trustees adopted the
position on capital punishment
at a recent meeting in New
York City. The 55-member
Board is the League's govern
ing body.
The League's statement was
prompted by moves in several
(See FINALTY page 8A)
ATLANTA, Ga.-The Black
Methodists for Church Renew
al called here Feb. 23 for a
boycott of the Methodist Pub
lishing House (MPH) until it
joins Project Equality, a fair
employment program.
In one of the closing actions
of the three-day second annual
conference, participants resolv
ed to lead a mass demonstra
tion against the publishing
headquarters in Nashville,
Tenn., on Good Friday, April
4, if it is not by then commit
ted to join Project Equality.
They urged that all g
ches, especially black churches,
immediately cancel all standing
orders for literature, goods and
materials from the organization
and that ministers mail their
Cokesbury (MPH retail outlet)
courtesy cards to the publisher
as a means of protest.
The Rev. James M. Lawson,
Memphis, Tenn., pastor, was
re-elected chairman of the na
tional organization. Other offi
cers chosen by some 300 dele
gates here are Miss Minnie
Stein, New York City, vice
chairman; the Rev. Melvin Tal
(See METHODIST 8A)
Lan Committee, Thomas Ratliff,
prosecutor in Pike County, Ky.
and the coal operators of Eas
tern Kentucky to deprive the
McSurelys and others of their
rights to organize in pursuit of
civil, human and political rights.
Ratliff is founder of the Na
tional Independent Coal Oper
ators Association.
The McClellan Committee
claims it needs papers belong
ing to the McSurelys tor Its inves
tigation of urban disorders.
The papers were originally
taken from the McSurelys in a
midnight raid on their moun
(See SUIT page 8A)
New Building
To Cost Nearly
One Million
NEW YORK -Official! of
the F. W. Woolworth Co. today
signed an approximately $l
- contract with a Negro
contracting firm for the con
it ruciton of a major store in
the heart of Harlem.
The Winston A. Burnett
Construction immediately and
is scheduled to complete the
work in the latter part of this
year.
When completed, the entire
project will be valued at more
than $2 million. It is part of
the unique sale-leaseback ar
rangement under which a black
group, Harlem Freedom Asso
ciates, both the property and
will lease the completed store
to Woolworth.
Representing the principals
at the signing ceremonies were
William G. Baker Jr., Wool
worth's Northeastern regional
vice president, and from the
Burnett Company, Winston A.
Burnett, president-chairman;
Robert W. Jones, vice president
-national operations; Albert
Holland, general counsel, and
Carl F. Burnett, vice president
contracts and estimating.
The Winston A. Burnett
Construction Comapny is one
of the largest black companies
in the contracting field. It was
organized 25 years ago and has
grown into one of the largest
construction companies in the
nation.
Burnett said the company
has bondibility exceeding $l5O
million and employs more than
500 people. Its offices are in
the Empire State Building and
at 200 W. 135 th Street in
Harlem. ,
It has subsidiaries in San
Francisco, Calif.; Washington,
D. C. and in Pennsylvania The
subsidiaries function as exten
tions of the national offices
within the "framework of our
concept of employing available
experienced people who live in
the areas where we operate."
Work will commence imme
diately on the buildings at
208-220 Wast 125 th Street in
Harlem to construct a modern
Woolworth store with a total|
of 55,000 square feet of floor
space, making it one of the
largest Woolworth stores in the
state.
Midiigan Congressman Introduces
Luther King Jr., Memorial Holiday Bill
Congressman John Conyers,
Jr. (Dem-Michigan) today an
nounced re-introduction, with
23 co-sponsor% of legislation
to make the birthday of the Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. a legal
public holiday. Congressmen
Conyers, Henry Reuss (Wis.),
William Ryan (New York),
George Brown (Calif.) and
Benjamin Rosenthal (New
York) were joined a press con
ference by Rev. A. D. King,
brother of the late Dr. King and
Rev. Delaney, also of the
Southern Christian Leadership
Conference. The conference
table was piled with nearly
one-half million letters and
petitions which have been re
ceived in support of the legis
lation.
"We are overwhelmed at the
number of persons who have
written to us and various radio
stations in support of the bill,"
said Conyers. "Hie impressive
thing is not just the amount of
mail, but the fact that much of
it has come form persons who,
seldom, if ever, write to Con
gressmen. This obviously is an
(See CONGRESSMAN 8A)
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|rannuM - m ■ ;
FORMAL GROUND-BREAKING
for Unity Village was per
formed here Wednesday morn
ing following Invocation by
Rev. Philip R. Cousin, pastor
of St. Joseph's A. M. E. Church;
remarks by Mrs. James H. Se
mans, president, Durham Homes
100 Two And Three
Be Made Available In Unity Village
Last Rites Held For N. L. Dillard
At Caswell County High School
YANCEYVtLLE—Last rites
for Professor N. L. Dillard,
principal of Saswell County
High School of Yanceyville for
the past 38 years, were held at
the school Manday, February
24. The eulogy was delivered
by the Rev. J. W. Bethea,
pastor of the Saint Matthews
Methodist Church of Greens
boro.
Dillard, the son of the late
Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Dillard of
Greensboro was born and rear
ed .in Leaksville where he
attended the public schools.
He later received his A. B.
degree from Shaw University
in Raleigh. Later, he received
his masters from the University
of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
Dillard succumbed at Duke
Hospital, following four weeks
of illness.
He is survived by his wife,
the former Miss Gladys Mot-
I * lp * rtK 4#rHJ IIH
BLACK CONTRACTOR SIGNS
contract with the F. W. Wool
worth Co. to build one of New
York State's largest Woolworth
stores in Harlem. Construction
work will begin immediately
and response by Bdn Ruffin,
executive director United Or
ganization for Community Im
provement. Unity Village will
be a low income housing de
velopment that will provide
purchaseable homes for their
occupants.
I PROF. DILLARD
ley of Danville, Va., one son,
Anthony Dillard of New York
and one daughter, Mrs. Annette
Coward of Springfield, Va
Interment was at Maple
wood Cemetery in Greensboro.
on the property which already
has been sold to a (roup of
black citizens who will lease
it beck to Wqolworth. In the
picture are (left to right) WU-
I liam G. Baker, Jr., Woolworth's
Those in the picture and tak
ing part in the historical
ground-breaking, from left to
right, are: Ben Ruffin, James
R. Hawkins. J. J. Henderson.
Rev. Julius Corpening, James
Potter and Mrs. Semans.
(Herald-Sun Photo),
Mrs. J. H. Seemans
Presides At
Opening Event
Ground was broken Wednes
day, at 9:30 am., March 5,
for a unique low-income hous
ing development in Durham.
In ceremonies presided over by
Mrs. James H. Semans, Unity
Village of Durham Homes, Inc.
formally began construction.
Participating with Mrs. Semans
were the Directors of Durham
Homes and James Potter, Pres
ident of U. 0. C. I.
As President of the develop
ment corporation Mrs. Semans
pointed out that Unity Village
was designed to provide oppor
tunity of home ownership for
low-income persons. The site
will contain one humked two
and three-bedroom houses on
spacious lots. The houses will
be brick veneer. The develop
ment itself will contain paved
streets and curbing along with
an ample recreation area.
The corporation directing
the development is composed
(See HOMES page 8A)
Northeaster* regional vicn
president and Winston A. Bar
nett, president-chairman of the
Winston A. Burnett PIHMEM
tion Co. of New Yerk, hfc