North Carolina Newspapers

i i r NATIONAL ge Universa l MONTH MM Words Of Wisdom ... T1' .M,y differ"' between t rat and a grave b their dimensions. Ellen Glasgow A chip on the shoulder always indicates that there is wood higher up. - 1 VOLUME 58 -NUMBER 42 DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1980 TELEPHONE (919) 682-2913 PRICE: 30 CENTS n v; Yf St i a$i Mass Here o- ML Vafcy 1 . Wan Creates Laughter JACKSON, MISS.-Aaron Henry, state NAACP President, surrounded by Ku Klux Klansmen enjoy a big laugh recently as he reads a Klan newspaper at Smith Park in downtown Jackson where the KKK gathered for a rally and march. At Henry's right is R. L. Bolden. The KKK rally and march in support of white police in a controversy over a month-old shooting death of a black pregnant woman was the first in Jackson in two decades. UPI Photo oycott Staged American By Felicia M. Cassels A mass meeting was held at Russell Memorial CME Church on Satur day, October 11, to sup port a former North Carolina Central Universi ty student now ih; Raleigh's Central Prison: Charlotte native John E. McCombs, Jr., was in his College Plaza apart:? ment studying for a test on April 29, 1976 when he heard a knock at his door. Three friends and his roommate were with him, his mother, Mrs. Jessie McCombs, . said. Mc Combs looked through a window, but did not recognize the bearded black man dressed in blue jeans and an open denim jacket. As he went to ask his friends if they knew the stranger, he heard a loud noise from the front door. Frightened, he pick- Meeting Held aturday For John McCombs ed up is pistol, turned and saw the man pointing a gun at him and fatally shot the stranger. The man was later iden tified as policeman Larry Bullock. Eighteen second later, six white policemen entered the apartmerft and took McCombs to the police station where he was severely beaten, a crime the policemen later confessed to under oath. Mrs. McCombs said they admitted forcing him McCombs to sign a con , fession a id a search con sent form and denied him the right to an attorney. McComb's friends were also arrested and abused, but their charges were later dropped. A narcotics team sear ched McCombs' car and apartment and found marijuana. A second search turned up LSD. Pre-trial publicity in Durham was so prejudiced that the trial location was moved. The new location of Roxboro was even closer to the deceased of ficer's home. In a courtroom filled with uniformed policemen, defense at torney C.C. Malone, Jr.,' argued that McCombs fired in self-defense. The deceased officer's family sat directly in front of the jury. Many of the jurors admitted being relatives and friends of policemen. (Continued on Page 6) Durham Support Needed For McCombs By Ray Richardson The meeting, sponsored by People United for Justice, the Equal Rights Council of Charlotte, and the McCombs Legal Defense Committee, was held in Durham, "where it all started," said Rev., Barnett, "because we need! support in Durham. We1 want to show that John E. Northern Students Charged With Burning Cross By Barbara Taylor An estimated 75 to 100 employees of the American Tobacco Com' pany are into the third week of a boycott against The Canteen Corporation. ..Canteen Corporation, a subsidiary of Trans World Corporation which owns Twns World Air Lines, leases and operates the cafeteria facilities at The . American Tobacco Com pany. The dispute involves ; what the employees con tend to be an unjust and dishonest labor act on the part of Harold Weeks, manager of the cafeteria, against Mrs. Ruby Williams, a four-year tem porary employee. The employees stated in a memorandum to The Carolina Times that Mrs. ; Williams, after having worked for Canteen Cor poration for some four years, was denied a per manent.' position without explanation. Mrs. Williams, in an in terview with The Carolina . Times, says, "When I found out nobody was taking the position, I went' to the office and asked for the permanent job. Mr. Weeks told me that he'd, keep me in mind. He let , me work the whole two weeks. Then that Thurs day, after we had cleaned,' up and was getting ready! to leave, he called me inj the office. He said. 'Rubv.i don't bother about com-i ing in tomorrow. I've got! somebody to. come in.' Just like that! You know, the way I feel, I should! have had first choice since; I asked for the job per-; manently and plus; 1 filled: out the application for the job. And he hires thisi white girl." ' Mrs. Williams says that! she doesn't understand! why Weeks did not tell her' from the very beginning! that he wasn't going to, hire her. "I gave up my. Social Service check,", says Mrs. . Williams,! . "because I was sure I had! ' the job." - - . ! Harold Weeks refused , . to comment on Mrs.'. Williams' charges, but this; reporter learned that" he! upposedly informed several of the 'employees" - that Mrs. Williams wasn't! qualified for the job. One V;of the 'employees' organizing the boycott in K. formed this reoorter that Weeks commented to him that, "If he had told her that he wasn't going to fcire her, the might nave "kft him and he wouldn't have had anybody." Mrs. Williams said that, "It seems that he Weeks was just using me." Although Harold Weeks never gave Mrs. Williams a reason why she wasnU .considered or ,the jobr Mrs-. Wilrrarmrsays she learned that Weeks had complained to several iof the boycott organizers that she drank and used abusive language. Mrs. Williams denies Weeks' charges and stated that, "After I made my com plaint and everything, he starts telling them this." Weeks' alleged charges that Mrs. Williams drank and was unqualified for the job were inconsistant with the report that he of fered to give her good recommendations for a permanent position at the newly opened Canteen Corporation cafeteria at Research Triangle Park. "I told him I didn't have; transportation," said Mrs. Williams. "He said that if I go out there, I, might know somebody; and could catch a ride back and forth," Mrs. Williams said with an astonished exDressinn Shpl then laughed and said. "I don't male, .enough for cafe? $rnmSfJ TeMinlyj not going to stand out 4l .1 . . ! mere on tne nighway." Mrs. Williams says shei believes Weeks' actions to! be racially motivated. This is not the view of the 'Employees of American Tobacco Company. Their view is that Weeks' ac tions were "unfair and dishonest labor prac tices." "As long as I was back in the kitchen and everything, nothing was said. But when he didn't have nobody to work out front, he hires this whife girl. She's got to be train ed. I didn't have to be trained," Mrs. Williams said. Whether Weeks' actions (Continued on Page 7) By Felicia M. Cassels Five white Northern High School male students were to have been arrested and charged with violating parents to decide on their reinstatement. Their return depends on whether the - burning was a "practical joke" or an act a state statute against FEVe .?"na v...:l" r r:ai - of Tracial intimidation." i hurray., morning, wo jgET JZ "TnW Hon ?OtUC th,e fiu-arf-Wmt W in.: rim in lh. narVm W ' ' J i ' a ' j. I ' '.1 - ' m i ... .... ' 1 had run awav according to Sheriff William A. Allen. The five are accused of burning a cross October 9 at a football game, played at the Durham County Stadium, between Hillside, and Northern High Schools. David Poe, principal of Northern, said the five confessed to him October ; 14. He immediately suspended them for ten days and turned their, names over to the! I Sheriffs Department, he! said. He added he is ashamed of the burning; which "is not typical of! Northern students." Dr. J. Frank Yeager,' Durham County Schools isuperintendent, said he. will meet individually with cident to other students and teachers and after' reviewing their school, records and background. If they are allowed to return, he said, they can not attend any athletic events for two years. Poe said the incident oc curred just before the se-' cond half of the game, with Northern leading. 14-0. He said General Ser-r vices director Wade, Copeland told him prior to the game he expected, trouble and that extra security had been assign-' i ed. Poe said he did not see the actual burning, only' "a light that lasted for 15 to 20 seconds. Copeland said a teenage boy had told him there would be a crossburning at the came earlv last Charges thm fn.ir .nnk. I &l II . week. Copeland said he one junior and their was skeptica, unti, a friend c Against 10" By Felicia M. Cassels RICHMOND, VA. ! A North Carolina pro secutor admitted October i9 that the burning charge, against the Wilmington ' Ten cannot be upheld if the testimony of the! state's major witness is ex cluded from the case. The admission came during a hearing before Judges Sprouse, Winter and Butzner of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, the courtroom was packed to capacity whjle 300 peo ple marched around the courthouse in support of the Ten. - Defense, Attorney, . James Ferguson referred ' to the prosecution of the Ten as "bizarre" and identified the credibility of controversial witness b Alien' Hall as the central issue; pf , the hearing. rerguson contended that during the trial, Hall used a statement corrected by Prosecutor Jay Stroud that contained false infor- : mation. Ferguson said; defense attorneys were not 1 allowed to "see that state-j ' ment. and; at one point1 wewjfctoaiei:' erosi-i examination 6 ' nd k itatcwttncnj ut-b .chell. - !. Richard N. League in-1 sisted the trial was fair and ! defended use of the amended document.. One! judge began laughing dur ing this explanation. j The Ten, nine black, men and one white white woman, were convicted in I 1972 of burning property and conspiracy to assault emergency personnel dur-, ing a period of racial tur-i noil in Wilmington, N.C.i They were sentenced to a1 -total of 282 years in prison' but many were paroled early after Governor James Hunt reduced their sentences in January. . 1978. Rev. Benjamin F. Chavjs, leaderbf the Ten, ' was the last to be paroled, December 13, 1979. The United Church of Christ . Commission for Racial I Justice (UCCCRJ) is r financing ; the -appeal. Chavis is director of its ' Washington office. , j ' The court is not ex- j pected to announce its, decision for several mon ths. Special treatment of Hall by the prosecution is also an issue of the appeal. I 'Ferguson said Hall, whn was in prison before '-At; trial, was kept at a beach i . motel during the trial,1 allowed visits with his, girlfriend and received a; reduced sentence after the trial in exchange for his :. testimony. League said the motel was for "protection", the' meetings with the girlfriend were con-! ferences and the reduced . sentence was a technicality-Washington attorney1 David Bondurant joined; Ferguson in his! , . arguments. Representing! 53 congressmen, Bon durant said a psychiatric report on Hall was unfair-; ly withheld from the jury. He said the report showed Hall was a "borderline mental retard" with an IQ; !of 82, who "didn't know! what six times six was." The prosecution con-1 tends the report was a special privilege that was , not necessary, for the jury to see to determine Hall's ; credibility. ; w After the hearing, a ral ly was held across from the courthoase. Attorney ' Ferauson. UCCCRJ ecutive director Charles E. Cobb, and defendants Chavis, SViUie 'Ooe" Wright and Reginald Epps thanked the crowd for its1 support and expressed a, guarded optimism for a favorable decision. Ferguson said no one : : knows what the court will j do, but "nothing will erase the scars of the long! years of struggle for the' told him he heard the; stadium fence would be1 cut so that people could slip through to dig a hole for a cross to be burned in. Copeland said during the game he constantly watched the fence, only to have the burning take Lieutenant H.L Rigsbee and Deputy Walter L. Lawrence ex tinguished the flames at the burning, but Lawrence said they did not see the perpetrators. He said seven or eight black men, standing ten to fifteen feet away from the cross, ad mitted they saw teenagers set the fire. The men told him the teenagers had talked to them about the game and had asked what the score was, then met among themselves and started the . fire, Lawrence said. They left in a green Oldsmobile station wagon, he added. He said he was shocked when the men refused to describe the boys, saying they didn't "want to get involved." The men did, however, add that people in a nearby jeep were in- anno Wilmington Ten." i Miss Charlene Mitchell, executive secretary of thej National Alliance Against! i Racist and Political Repression; Mrs. Anne Braden, co-chair of the! I Southern Organizing Committee; and MsJ McCombs, Jr., was not just another hoodlum, because prior to this tragedy, he had no record." "We want to open peo ple's eyes," Barnett con tended, "because what happened to John could happen to anyone. Place yourself in the same situa tion. There are several things that need to be answered, like why send an inexperienced black of ficer to the door while six white experienced officers wait yard away?" Mrs. McCombs con tends that "if the police department had gone to the door like they were supposed to, John wouldn't be in prison for murder today." She said, "I'm not bitter, but I am disappointed in our legal system and I want.to tell Durham and the world, that t and mothers like me, are not noma to ' sit public to write letters to the governor asking for his attention to the matter and io the prison showing concern for having John McCombs removed from maximum security at Cen tral Prison. "The more letters, the more the chances of getting some positive action. I need your support," Mrs. Mc Combs added. Among the questions emphasized at the mass meeting were: Why was the trial put so close to the deceased's home? Why were not ex perienced police officers sent? Was juror selection part of a plot? Was the defendant pre-convicted? Can we trust a police department with officers -convicted of illegal drug j dealing? -bacr anCtaH what they was a retrial denied ' are doing to our black Citizens interested inr kids." She appealed to the.- -(Continued on Page 7) volved in the incident, Lawrence said, but the passengers denied it and the officers let them go after questioning. Hillside principal John Lucas said he was at the game but did not hear of a crossburning until the weekend. He said the bur ning was not confirmed until Monday when he talked with Durham NAACP president George Frazier. He said Frazier was a key factor in ex pediting the investigation. Frazier said three parents called him the , night of October 9 because their children said there had been a crossburning at the game. He said he con- 'tacted the sheriff the next morning who had not yet . been given a report on the incident. He went to the stadium, he said, and found a charred cross. He then notified the Public $afety Department which picked up the cross but hesitated to take action on thejnatter, he said, due to i "question of jurisdic tion.". Frazier said Publicj Safety Director Talmadge Lassiter finally started an inquiry. He said Lassiter revealed Saturday that there had been an in telligence report submitted to him three weeks prior (Continued on Page 6) Be Upheld ; Kathi Bell, president of, the Black American Law I Students Association, en couraged the people to (continue to support the I Ten. . ; . f Rev. Jack' Zylman said j fourteen. Birmingham. churches were" fasting in support of the Ten and .Nelson Johnson of the Communist Workers Par-, ty in Greensboro ad vocated reaching eyond political ideologies to , achieve solidarity. . . 600 Democrats Gather Friday Night To Boost Campaign Unity About 600 Democrats from the fourth Congres sional District filled the Edison-Johnson Recrea- j tion Center in Durham last Friday night to bqost : the state Democratic unity ; campaign. Ben Brown, deputy ; chairman of the Carter Mondale Re-election ; Committee, shared the j spotlight with Governor j Jim Hunt. Senator Robert ' Morgan, ; Representative i ike Andrew, and a host of other state and local candidates. ' Brown said North Carolina is a very impor-, tant state for the Carter Ifendale campaign and ' he prfcdfcted thatJheJ state's voters would sup port the President's re- election in margins second ' i only to the vote totals in I Georgia. He said ' President i Carter's spiritual leader ship, courage, and dedica tion were personal qualities that North Carolinians wanted in a t President and see in i Carter. Governor Hunt said Tar Heel voters . should Sup port Democrats . because "we are the party that cares about people and progress' For example, Hunt said,' "la the past thrtt, aiid poa-kalf years, m&r' the Democratic Ad-i ministration there has been about seven billion dollars of new industrial investment that created 110,000 new industrial jobs. Of that amount, $140 million was invested i and 3.000 new jobs were created in Durham Coun- i" ty alone." "This area has the best potential for growth than aI a any area in me, uruica i States if the Democrats give the -right kind of leadership," Hunt said. Senator Morgan' said the ' " Democratic ad ministration and Congress havatudtDroaressonthe i Sactby reducing, U tstjgsi egret aixsjDy rwcssi&s the Social Security system. Representative Andrews saittus experience in Con gress and as a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and the ! House Select Committee and Aging makes him the logical choice to b6re elected. V " ' , i Other . statewide Democratic candidates in attendance were ; Lt. Governor - Jimmy Green, Secretary of State Thad JEure. Attorney General Rufus Edmisten, - Stale. Auoiior candidate. to wrd. v Renfrew," Supermtendent of Public tostructictt Coil FfciUips..