Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Dec. 11, 1986, edition 1 / Page 2
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Page A2-The Chronicle, Thursd 'I Have a ] Editor's not*: It's boon mora than five years sine* businessman Eugana Lang promised a elaas of sixthgraders In Harlem that It they etudled hard and stayed In school, he would pay their way through college. Of the original 61 atudenta, It looks Ilka 52 will make It, and Lang's "I Hava a Draam" program la axpandlng to othar eltlaa. By NANCY SHULINS AP Newsfeatures Writer NEW YORK - Because a 14-year-old dishwasher was asked to step out of a restaurant kitchen and fill in for a sick waiter half a century ago, an impoverished city kid fulfilled his dream of getting an education. The dishwasher ended up serving dinner to Swarthmore College trustee George Jackson, whose curiosity was aroused hv th? ? ?J >?? youthfulness of his waiter. Shouldn't he be in high school? Nope, already graduated. What about college, then? College costs money. . s Because of Jackson's interest, the dishwasher did go to college. Not.to City College of New York, as he'd planned, but to Swarthmore College, on a full scholarship. The one-time dishwasher, Eugene Lang, went on to become chairman of the boafd at Swarthmore, as well as the school's biggest benefactor, donating $18 million r-^sort ^>f?a romance ~ novel," Lang says. Still, he wanted to do morey^" Third Work ty communities. 'if what happens in the Third World causes global economic problems, it's going to affect us first,'* he said. "If it causes war, it will affect us first because there is an inordinate number of minority servicemen. It would seem to behoove us to become interested in the world. Just because we've had to struggle so hard should not give us license to ignore the struggles of others." Andrews is a special consultant to the Global Missions Committee of the Synod of the Piedmont and liniv#?rQltv r?actr?r ? ? ? w. VI VIIV University of Delaware. Andrews also is recognized as a noted authority on Third World affairs. 4'We'd better start thinking about foreign policy and not leave it to the white majority," said Andrews, who is white, encouraging the audience to become more interested in the struggles of the Third World. "Fifty percent of U.S. forces in Honduras and Nicaragua are minorities. Those dying will be minorities.' * Andrews added that he is disturbed that only a few people realize that the head of the Presbyterians' World Council of Churches is a black man. "The leader of our world church is a person of color," he said. "Our leader, (South African) Allan Boesak, is not a white man, and we haven't made enough of it. Catholics regularly pray for their bishops and the pope. We (Presbyterians) don't even remember our world leader in our prayers often enough." The Rev. Carlton A.G. Eversley, pastor of Dcllabrook Presbyterian Church, served as a stand-in speaker for Dr. KayRobert Volkwijn, who originally was scheduled to speak about the crisis in South Africa. Eversley, a vocal critic of apartheid, pointed to connections between the conflict in South Africa and the United States. "The struggle in South Africa is old/' tvcrsicy tola an auaience gathered in the church's fellowship hall. 'The same institutions in Winston-Salem that don't lend you money for h i ay, December 11, 1986 Oream' pro; "Giving should mean more than just writing checks," explains the 67-year-old industrialist. And so, more than five years ago, when Lang found himself in a position to help other Harlem kids, he didn't bother to reach for his calculator. Instead, in an unrehearsed commencement speech at his first alma mater, P.S. 121, Lang told an entire . sixth-grade class that if they studied hard and stayed in school, he would send every one of them to college. As students went on to junior high school and high school, Lang saw he had to do more still to keep the dream alive. "A promise can be diluted with time. Eveir~if^hey stayed m~ school, the chances were that their educations wouldn't be adequate to get them into college," k. i?* ???i -t . iic says, i realized mai 1 would have to provide a program of support to encourage them to stay in school, to help them learn and qualify." And so, Lang began giving his time as well as his money. He organized study groups and seminars, field trips and meetings. He brought in guest speakers and scrounged afterschool jobs. He listened to the kids' problems and tried hard to solve them. He became, in effect, a one-man PTA. holdinc together a group of minority kids who'd been scattered among 19 high schools. Next September, the nowfamous dream will come true for Lang and for the "dream and want to go on to college or ^vbcational school. jf From Page A1 downtown development are doing beaucoup business with South Africa." Sofia M. Clark, first secretary of the political section of the Embassy of Nicaragua in Washington, represented Nicaragua in the panel discussion. She substituted for Francisco Cambell, the minister counselor of the Embassy of Nicaragua to the United States, who was forced to cancel at the last moment. Cambell had just received word that he was appointed the new ambassador to Zimbabwe and had been called away for briefings, Lassiter said. Ms. Clark outlined the history of the struggle of her country and its efforts to establish better diplomatic relations with the neighboring United States and other world powers. She said that in recent months Nicaragua, which is about the size of Wisconsin, has "become fashionable" as a discussion topic and that, while Americans are not especially familiar with the country, most of its citizens have historically been aware of the United States. "Many Americans are either uninterested in or know little about Nicaragua," she said, "but vou have been an omninotent factor in the minds of Nicaraguans." With approximated j.4 million residents, Nicaragu. an underpopulated country, Ms. Clark said. Most of the homes there, she said, have no refrigerators, families have no cars, and many communities rely on communal water supplies. The Pacific coast of the country consists primarily of Creoles, Indians and blacks brought in during the Dutch slave trade, she. said. Its Atlantic coast, she said, was largely influenced by the Moravians, the Spanish and the Germans. Throughout its history, Ms. Clark said, Nicaragua has been the target of interference from other countries. Today, she said, with the United States supplying arms to the Contras, history is repeating itself, but her country vton'i lie down and play dead. ?(* gram to sen Of the original 61 students, 52 are still attending New York public schools. Lang says the majority plan to become doctors and lawyers, teachers and scientists, mechanics and computer programmers. In all, Lang estimates that more than 90 percent will graduate from high school, "trein?ndflii? " - " L? ???, u? aa/3, Wlicri measured against the average dropout, rate of 75 percent for inner-city minority kids. The dream will also come true for poor kids in nine other sixth grades in New York. For up to a thousand more youngsters in Dallas. For an as-yet"J do have g good eye f or mai ?J never wanted to get boggec aspect of business." undetermined number in Cleveland and Los Angeles, to be followed by others in Baltimore, Chicago, Boston, Jersey City, Washington, Detroit and . 12 other cities throughout the coun try. This fall, the U.S. Department of Education donated $80,000 to help Lang develop a national network of "I Have a Dream" chapters in nine cities. The money will provide students a place to go for tutoring and social activities. A headquarters to nurture all these new hopes is being set up in Manhattan. The "I Have a Dream Foundation" will provide information, search for new sponsors and oversee additional projects^ ~fn the year since his efforts ? were made public, Lang has told If "We became the guinea pigs ... 1 on how to intervene in other 1 countries," she said. "Right now 1 in Nicaragua there is a feeling 1 that even against incredible odds 1 Nicaragua will succeed. 1 don't know if it's realistic, but you're i not going to take it away from ' ... ?? us. However, the price of victory is i becoming expensive. Ms. Clark reported that her country has lost 18,300 lives in combat. She also said that Nicaragua is not asking for anything out of the ordinary, only its basic rights as a separate country. "We're not asking for special rights, and we're not asking for special treatment," she said. "What we're asking for is that our rights as a sovereign nation not be abridged by any other, power." American grassroots and church efforts, she feels, will be essential in helping Nicaragua ob tain its full rights as a country. "It's time to reassess your relationship with Nicaragua," she said. "Changes in the administration's policies toward Nicaragua will come from grassroots and religious groups' efforts in the United States." She also said that the situation in Nicaragua, a predominantly Roman Catholic country, is causing its citizens to call for a position statement from the Catholic hierarchy. "The assessment throughout Latin America is that the conditions were not God-given but were man-made," she said. "People felt they had the right to respond to conditions, and if the church did not respond, they were going to lose members. We've had people raised in ~t. i ^ainouc scnoois who were taught all the values and virtues who went out and saw the living conditions and felt compelled to do something about it. The biggest question today is, What is the church's role? Does the church represent the interest of the poor or the interest of maintaining the status quo?" Ramzi Saffouri, a Palestinian Christian who is a graduate student at the University of . d kids to a his story on national television, on newspaper front pages and at the White House. He has met with President Ronald Reagan and Secretary of Education William J. Bennett. Last June, he received a Jefferson Award for public service. Each wave of publicity has brought more would-be benefactors to the fore. While Lang is delighted by the response, he isn't surprised *by the success of his experiment. "Nothing evil or sordid can be attributed to it," he says, "and it addresses a problem everyone empathizes with. We all feel a sense of responsibility. No one does not want our children to ting money, But life goes by? idown on the profit-making -- Eugene Lang get a fair shake." Lang insists that each class have a single benefactor, without visible corporate involvement. "There must not be even the slightest suggestion of corporate or public relations interests being served," he says. "Youngsters are very aware when they're being used. "The students have a perfect right to be suspicious as to why someone is doing this for themrThe sponsor, must understand and be taught how to respond to the kids. My dream kid^ taught me how dangerous it is to have preconceived notions about the way people react and respond." They also taught him how far he had traveled from his Harlem roots. Growing up in his 98th Street tenement, "we had very little. We Delaware and & member of the, panel, said that many misconceptions about the Third World arise because people want to attach labels to other people. "In the United States there is 110 such thing as a Palestinian; there are Palestinian terrorists, Palestinian killers and Palestinian murderers," he said. "The whole point of attaching labels is that it becomes easier, then, to kill someone if you label him a terrorist or whatever. People say, if he's a terrorist, he deserves to be killed. He was a terrorist, so it was all right for you to kill him.' " Saffouri also contended that an iin/UniohU Mi WI1WVI11HWIV IIUVHU VUII11W iO situations in South Africa, Israel and Nicaragua. Andrews agreed with Saffouri's assessment and said that the current conflicts in the Third World may spark the next major war. 'South Africa and Israel,*' he said, "may well touch off the final nuclear conflict between the two superpowers." The Winston-Salem Chronicle is published every Thursday by the Winston-Salem Chronicle Publishing Co. Inc., 617 N. Liberty St. Mailing address: Post Office Box 3154, Winston-Salem, N.C. 27102. Phone: 722-8624. Second? ? ? A I -A - ? mass postage paia . si Winston-Salem, N.C. 27102. The Winston-Salem Chronicle is a charter member of the Newsfinder service of the Associated Press and a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations, the National Newspaper Publishers Association, the North Carolina Press Association and the North Carolina Black Publishers Association. Subscription: $18.52 per year, payable in advance (Nortn Carolina Mies tax includad). Pleas* add $5.00 for out-oMown dtllvary. PUBLICATION USPS NO. 067910. . '* - 'V y\ >llege is exj didn't even have a bathroom; there was a toilet in the hall," Lang recalls. "But I had a full family - and I was white. My father didn't graduate from grammar school, but my parents placed an extreme value on education. "My experience was different from the conditions under which these kids have grown up, with a father who's walked out, a mother who has a live-in boyfriend, a brother who's a junkie and a sister who has a baby. The kid sleeps on a corner of a mattress on the floor. He has no money, no place to study. That's an accurate composite of what these kids face." After graduating from Swarthmore, Lang went 6nTonc?nra~ master's degree in business and industrial engineering at Columbia University's School of Engineering. He founded a business, Refac Technology Development Corp., that is devoted to creating new ventures. Over the years,, he And his wife raised three children. Meanwhile, through Refac, Lang set up hun *h vw? Wi UHUIUi?WIUIIll| U|^ia* tions in 40 countries. "I do have a good eye for making money," he says. "But life goes by - 1 never wanted to get bogged down on the profit- , 'making aspect of business. I believe the primary justification and dignity of human life is to fulfill a creative function so that the world and society has a little more than it would have had ifyou hadn't existed." And so, when he found himself - Addressing 61 restless sixthgraders, all?of^them bUu^T or Hispanic, Lang saw that his op-_ portunity had finally arrived. DID YOU KNOW ... that if you do not fall asleep right away when you go to bed, or if you wake up several times during the night, there may be a problem? Vou simply may not need as . much sleep as you think you do. The American Medical 1 Y-HAPP] WHFWS379TWWT 1986 ANNUAL 1W Don't forget our 1986 Annual Meeting o 1986, with the prestigious U.S. Represent (Democrat/Pennsylvania) as the Keynote is known to many for his articulate and < of the House Committee on the Budget, as the Senior Pastor at Bright Hope Bapt Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He speaks el mises to be one you'll remember for yeai friends at this affair? Tickets are availabl Store, Contract Office Furnishings, Gilm Winston Lake Family YMCA. MEET IRIS W. O Iris Officer's name has been associated 1 good things in Winston-Salem for many She is known for championing the caus< the community, and the YMCA is grate her support. For the past four years, M: ficer has served as a member of the Boa Management of the Winston lake Famil CA, on the Special Projects Committee, attends St. Benedict Catholic Church an recently retired as a career counselor wit Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools I HAVE YOU HEARD??? ... thai the R iL. ^ i a. ?t?. j - inc ?na at ??in wcanesaays at noon/77 Winston Lake Family YMCA will be cl December 25th St 26th, and on Thursdf Basketball League has begun practices I in January, 1987??? Call and register y ... that the Y's tutoring program is bad and volunteer your services on Tuesday from 4-$ P.M.??? ... that the Afterschc creative gym activities, storytimes, mov more?? Upcoming events include visits for children at home alone!!! ... that a youth membership at the Winston Lake You'd be surprised at the reasonable cc "PROMISE YOURSELF... To forget th to the greater achievements of the future. The Winston Lai The complete health-fitness c 901 Waterh To Join Cal "We've Got the Ke,\ ' , landed The dream was born in a moment of inspiration. Lang was ail set to tell the graduates that if they worked hard and stayed in school, then went on to college, they could one diay become successful, too. "I had spoken at commencements before. But this smiih \xi mm Aiffmmmr** V At A y VM|/ n mm WtIM ?!? * M1MII I know how to get to them. I felt completely like someone from outer space. It was as if I weren't there. v "It insulted my own selfesteem, but more to the point, I also felt a deep sense of caring. There had to be something wrong with me if I did not let this chance encounter count for something." Suddenly, the Rev. Dr. Martin ' Luther King's famous speech popped into his head. Everyone must have a dream, he thought. A dream of what to be, what kind of life to build. What more appropriate time for a dream to be kftni than Am* win uiui 111 vu? 9 iu?i y?uui* tion! And so, he began: "Dreams don't come overnight," he told them. "You have to believe in them, to keep faith and work hard to make them happen. Study hard and get an education - that's the building block of dreams. You must go on to junior high school, high school and college." It was the word "college" that tripped him up. "I realized 1 was being rather glib," he recalls. "It. became immediately apparent to me that few had any reason to expect to go on. 'The sequitur hit me; I didn't' stop to do any arithmetic. I just said, 'You can go. 1 promise that each one of you can go to college.' " Association has published a guide on how to get better sleep. It is available from Random House, 201 E. 50th St., New York, N.Y. 10022. It's titled "The AMA Guide to Better Sleep" and costs, S8.9S. - ROBERT N. TAYLOR ENINGS | IEETING n Thursday, December 18/ tative William (BiU) Gray, Speaker. Representative Gray apable manner as Chairman 99th Congress. He also serves tist Church in New oquently and the meeting pro's to come. Why not join le at the Community Shoe re's Funeral Home A the AOJBJua FnCERlll with years. fs for 9-jpMfeji^^H rs. Ofy YMShe id th the 'I IRIS W. OFFICER etired Men's Club meets at the Y on Call for information. ... that the osed on Thursday Sl Friday, ly, January 1st??? ... that the Youth For their league, with games starting our 1st- 12th graders, girls A boys!!! lly in need of tutors??? Why not call , Wednesday or Thursday afternoons x>! Fun Club includes arts & crafts, ies, homework supervision and from area agencies to discuss hints great gift for your child would be a f Family YMCA! Call for details. *t, for such healthy benefits!!! * mistakes of the past and press on ft - Christine Lawson ce Family YMCA enter for you and your family. vrks Road 1 724-9205 v 10 Excellence'' ? ' .[ ^ 50
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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