Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Sept. 17, 1977, edition 1 / Page 1
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WSSU Ranked 4th Nationally Story Page 10 Winston-Salem Chronicle U IV No. 3 Saturday September 17, 1977 Suite 603 Pepper Bldg. Winston-Salem, N.C. * 20 Cents \Boycott Likely lAt ABC Site By Sharyn Bratcher embers of the black community, angered over at they believe to be the unfair treatment of Dr. ond Oliver and concerned about possible ■espect to a black church, are discussing a sible boycott of the construction site where an ;C Store is being built. 'he ABC store is being constructed by Ihe Ison-Covington Construction Company, a white ipany who got the land after the ABC Board jsed to negotiate with Dr. Raymond Oliver, a ck dentist and land developer, ■ who had pnally been awarded the land, lome members of the community, including eral political candidates, feel that an injustice 5 done to Dr. Oliver. Oliver and Mayoral didate Cecil Butler have written to HUD idquarters in Greensboro to ask for an estigation. We are considering a boycott,” says Lee Faye ck. President of Concerned Citizens. ‘‘They cannot keep doing this kind of thing to the ck community. In fact, I don’t even think it is cool for those construction workers to be over re. People are very upset about this, and lething might happen.” .nother concern is the fact that the ABC Store face Galilee Baptist Church. It is disrespectful for them to build a liquor e right in front of a Baptist Church,” says ermanic candidate Virginia Newell. I See Boycott, Page 2 I Filed in Middle District Court Haley Protests Bias Charges In Land Sale This Street Scene fan was trying to boogie to bluegrass: his “Don Cornelius” dancing with a hillbilly band was one of the stranger sights in Saturday’s festivity. Integon Denies Discrimination Sharyn Bratcher Staff Writer orneys for the Inte- Insurance Corpora- filed a six-part Ise Tuesday in U.S. le District Court in !r to a discrimination iled by six minority original complaint {d. by Herman Ste in !. attorney for the ini n, charged Integon maintaining an ))Tnent policy of segregation, and mination against in hiring, promo- transfers, qualifica- requirements, dis cs and other terms inditions of employ- suit asks for 00 in punitive ;es and the cost of gai fees in bringing it, as well as back ind other benefits "St of its Kind in State that the women claim to be entitled to. The ten-page answer, submitted by Integon’s counsel David A. Irwin and Guy F. Driver,Jr., denies the charges of discrimination and asks that the plaintiff’s action be dismissed. The six women who complained of discrimina tion are; Dorinda L. Smith, Lizzie C. Todd, Juanita Gail House, Char lene H. Shaw, Delaine Renae Scott, and Rose Dillard Hart. A,U except Ms. Scott have resigned or been terminated from the company. Dorinda L. Smith, a 1976 graduate of UNC- Chapel HiU was the only black recruited out of 20-odd management trainees in May 1976. She charges that because Integon offered her inade quate training, made unfair evaluations of her work performance, and failed to provide here with an adequate opportunity to demonstrate her abili ties, she resigned. Lizzie Todd went on sick leave from Jime 21, 1976 to September 1, 1976. Although she was assured that her job would be held until her return, she was replaced by a white employee. After being given a series of tempora ry jobs, she was assigned to the Information Control Department to a grade level #5 job-on a temporary basis. She was not permitted to apply for the job on a permanent basis. She further charges that the compajpy altered her absence records from sickness leave to vacation, and when she took her vacation on May 23, 1977 she was telephoned by Integon’s vice-president and persoimel director who told her she was fired. The third plaintiff, Juanita Gail House re turned from sick leave November 1, 1976 to find that her job had been filled by a newly hired white employee. She was assigned to the Propert & Liability Claims depart ment but received inade quate training because the person assigned to train her was absent for several days of her training period. In January a white clerk was hired. Ms. House trained the employ ee, after which Ms. House was fired by Integon. Charlene H. Shaw, a 1974 graduate of .WSSU, was employed as a grade level 2 administrative assistant. In January 1976 she applied for a grade level #5 job. The job was awarded to a white part-time employee less quaRfied than Ms. Shaw. In November 1976, perso nal difference arose be tween Ms. Shaw and another employee. Refus ing Shaw’s request for a transfer, the company gave her a choice of staying where she was or resigning. Charlene Shaw resigned; no action was taken against the other employee involved. Rose Dillard Hart re peatedly applied to Inte gon and was told ‘‘No openings” despite the fact that there were jobs for which she qualified. In December 1975, Msl Hart was placed on probation for ‘‘excessive absentee ism” despite the fact that some white employees had many more absences than she. She resigned because of this. When she See Integon, Page 2 by Sharyn Bratcher Staff Writer Redevelopment Com mission director James Haley called a press conference Tuesday to clarify his organization’s position in the sale of Parcel 129-C of redevelop ment land. ‘‘We would welcome a HUD investiga tion, ” said Haley. Dr. J. Raymond Oliver, a local black developer, has charged that there was a ‘‘possible conspira cy” to keep him from developing the land, and has written to the HUD Regional Director Sebella to complain. Parcel 129-C, a one-half acre tract located on Claremont Avenue behind Winston-Mutual and the Burger King, was offered for sale in 1975. Haley says that originally only one firm bid on the land-Wilson-Covington Construction Company. Dr. Oliver asked to be able to submit a bid, so they reopened the bidding. At the bid opening October 9, 1975, the bids submitted were: Dr. J. Raymond Oliver-$16,100; Cumber land Development Corpo- ration-$12,164.85; and Wilson Covington Con struction Company; $10,813. ‘‘Cumberland Deve lopment Corporation was represented by John Duncan, who is black, but the company is owned by whites,” said Haley. John Duncan, director of the Midwest Piedmont Area Business Develop ment Association, says that the company is interracial. One of the co-partners Edward Jen kins is a black architect from Greensboro. On October 23, 1976 the Board of the Redevelop ment Commission ap proved the sale to Dr. Oliver, but after applying for and being granted an extension by the Redevel opment Commission, Oli ver was forced to withdraw his bid, because of difficulties in financing. One of the main priorities set by the Redevelop ment Commission for use of the land was the building of an ABC Store to replace the one on Fifth Street. See Haley, Page 2 Minister Threatens To Sue Broadcaster ‘‘I have consulted an attorney, and I may take legal action,” says Reverend Rayford J. Thompson, referring to a clash between himself and WXH reporter Jane Harrington. The issue arose last May when the Black Business Action League sponsored a banquet, which they said was endorsed by the Ministers’ Association, the NAACP, and several other local organizations. Some of these organizations subsequently called press conferences stating that they did not endorse the banquet. WXn began an investigation of the banquet, which they felt might have been mistaken for the NAACP Freedom Fund Banquet whose proceeds go to charity. ‘‘It was an investigative report,” Jane Harrington recalls. ‘ ‘I discovered that the money would go to the Black Business Action League, and not to charity.” She also did some checking into the back- Russell Refuses ground of Reverend Ray ford Thompson, who was one of the banquet’s sponsors. “He got his doctorate from the Teamers School in Charlotte,” said Ms. Harrington. “I called there and asked how could go about getting my degree. They told me to send them some letters of reference and a sizeable contribution to the school.” She also checked Thompson’s church back ground, and discovered that his former congrega tion had fired him and taken him to court for “moral turpitude.” Since the story was aired on WXII, “it has Politicos Disclose I Finances Three of the four Democratic candidates for mayor have made or agreed to make financial disclosure statements in order to reaffirm their belief 'in ‘‘openess in government. ’ ’ William G. Pfefferkom made the first financial disclosure in a Tuesday morning press conference at which he presented lack Museum Dedicated Carolina Community News Service at Bryant, a founder and editor of the Carolina Community News Service ke at the dedication of a Black History Museum by the Chatham Coimty in Pittsboro Tuesday afternoon. The program was a presentation of the th division of the fair to honor the late Charlie Baldwin, described as a eless worker for the fair” in the past. Baldwin was credited with curing the slave cabin which will now serve as a museum on the ground site. he cabin, donated by Willis Wrenn, on whose property it stood, is an lentic, handcrafted 19th century dwelling hewn of cypress wood. Mr. Bryant, President of the local Farm and Home Organization and iirman of the Museum Committee, supervised the transfer and Dnstruction of the cabin. Artifacts and furnishings were obtained through efforts of the Pittsboro and Siler City Chapters of the North Carolina eration of Negro Women. Descendants of the Milligans, builders and 'inal inhabitants of the cabin, still reside in the area and were present at dedication. They assisted Mr. J.E. Ramsey Jr., Chairman of the dmont Council on Performing Arts, in drawing up a geneology of the ily. he efforts of the Chatham County Fair organizers to preserve the history African Americans were praised by Pat Bryant, who spoke of the lificance of slavery and its impact on the present day status of blacks:, ag news stories published in black newspapers this year, he drew ailels between these current events and conditions during the years of d bondage. He exhorted the audience to a vigilant awareness of thes^ nts in order to combat continuing in justices in the economic and judicial •ems. fUest artist at the fair, Mrs. Lula Watson, a 103 year old musician, treated See Museum, Page 2 , . , ,, members of the press with been a nightmare says ^is 1976 federal Ms. Harrington. She has ^ received a tape of ^is financial Thompson cnticizmg her holdings. They included and Thompson s letters of his residence, valued at complaint was forwarded $81,640, property hold ings totaling approximate- “ ly $140,000, $60,000 in certificates of deposit, to the television station from WFMY-TV Greensboro. Thompson says that he will deal with the matter in his forthcoming book. See Finance, Page 2 Renewal Removes Black Business The black museum In Pittsboro offers tangible roots to the black experience. Durham, N.C. [CCNS]— James Pridgen, 69-year- old black man, is struggling to do what appears to be the impossible; Build a retail grocery business on Dur ham’s North Mangum Street, a location in which the last tenant, also a retail grocer, folded due to lack of customers. Pridgeon has been a grocer since 1946. His Quality Food Market, once on Pettigrew Street, was one of the sixty black businesses located in Durham’s Hayti section. But like the sixty other businesses. Quality Food Market has been forced to make way for urban renewal! in 1969. Quality had a ‘ ‘good and moving business,” recalls James Pridgen. He continued, saying, ‘‘If I could have stayed on Pettigrew Street I could have sat down and crossed my legs.” After moving from Pettigrew Street, Quality Food Market had ‘‘a fair” business for almost eight years in what was called a temporary location on Fayetteville Street, three blocks from the Pettigrew location, until the Durham Redevelopment Commis sion informed Pridgen that again he’d have to See Renewal, Page 2
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