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Page A4 WnstonSalem Oironick Thursday, November 10, 1988 Winston-Salem Chronicle FbundedT974 ERNEST H. Pin Publisher ^ MICHAEL A. Pin : i Assistant to the Publisher. ; NDUBISI ECEMONYE vCo^'Po'uhder' " ANGELA WRIGHT Managing Editor ELAINll Pin V Office Manager ; JULIEPERRY Advertising Manager! YVONNE H:b; TRUHON C Production'Watiager x: Reader asks: Where are black leader^ To The Editor: A lesson from white Democrats There is at least one very good reason why none of the local Afro-American candidates for contested offices won Tues day's election. It’s called voting a straight party ticket. Afro-American voters had the opportunity to put another Afro-American in the State Senate. Republican candidate Vernon Robinson lost because not enough Afro-American voters gave him support. Too many could not wean themselves from straight party voting - that blind Democratic Party loyalty that beats us every time. Robinson was only a few thousand votes shy of unseating Democrat Ted Kaplan. His victory could have been handed to him by people of his own color had they voted strategically. County Commission candidate Mazie Woodruff and school board candidate Naomi Jones both lost because of unsophisticated Afro-American voting. By voting for every Democrat on the ticket, Afro-Americans gave their surplus votes to white candidates who already had the support of the majority white votes. Thus Afro-American voters gave white candidates, in many instances, the extra power to defeat Afro-American candidates. It is extremely difficult to understand why Afro-American voters believe that they must be loyal to the Democratic Party at all cost. We, as a people, can't seem to grasp the concept of voting for the Person and not the Party. We should take a lesson from white Democrats. They vote Republican when the mood suits them. In fact, this past Tuesday many white Democrats voted for Republican candidates. Anyone who doubts this need only to consider the fact that Democrats in the city outnumber Republicans by more than two to one. Add to that the voters in the county and the figure becomes 89,226 registered Democrats and 50,168 Republicans. So if Afro-Americans aren't voting for Republicans, obviously white Democrats are. How else can one explain the Republican landslides on the Board of County Commissioners, the Board of Education and in the State House? If Afro-American Democrats need further evidence that no one is loyal to their party but them, they should look closely at the returns from some of the predominantly white and Democratic precincts. Let’s look, for instance, at one of the Southwest precincts, Miller Park Recreation Center. There are 1,004 registered Democrats at that precinct and only 531 registered Republicans - a more than two to one ratio. There are only 20 Afro-American voters in that precinct. Yet, Miller Park voted overwhelming for Republican candi dates. Woodruff came in next to last in that precinct, getting only three votes more than David Drummond. That precinct also went for the Republican incumbents on the school board. At the Philo Middle School precinct in the South Ward, there are 790 registered Democrats and 464 registered Republicans. Only 52 of its voters are Afro-American. Yet, again, Philo went Republican. Both Woodruff and Jones came in last in their respec tive races in that precinct. Whitaker Elementary School precinct in the West Ward offers the most definitive example. The precinct has 927 registered Democrats and only 762 registered Republicans. Yet, Republican presidential candidate George Bush got 954 votes and Republican gubernatorial candidate Jim Martin received 983 votes. The precinct also supported Republican candidates over Democratic candidates for the County Commissioners and the Board of Education. If nothing else, this election has, hopefully, shown Afro- American voters the folly of voting for political parties over polit ical candidates. Nothing matters other than the individual candi date for office. It takes a little more time to vote for individuals rather than parties, but it's the way smart voters vote to assure that the people they want in office get in office no matter what their political affiliation. Black people today have no social structure among themselves; so their strength is diluted until it is nullified. The few that put forth an effort and break out of the endless circle of poverty, always find out they did not come out together, they only broke away from the herd. It does not take as much effort to break away from the herd, as it takes to move the whole herd through poverty canyon to a plateau of better grazing. This is the difference in men like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He could have made a good living for just himself and his family, but that was not enough, he stayed with the herd. In some circles they are called leaders, in others they are called shepherds. Slaves have bro ken out of slavery, only to find out they had to go back in after others, it was not enough to just be able to break away from the herd. The question is why? As dangerous as it was, no one made them go back, but they had to. The main question is; where are the black leaders today? The world scene has changed today and is constantly doing so. Every nation and race is juggling for a position on the world scene and in the global market, except the black people in America. Dr. King shep herded them out of the coral and through the canyon of segregation. Now they seem to be trapped in a corral of poverty, just milling around in circles. Question: Where are the lead ers that can get them on the move again? So many had hoped that more education would break us out of that coral; so we waited for it. It has been 25 years since Dr. King's "I have a dream" speech in Wash ington. Every year we have a grad uating class to come out of college, yet, there is no change! Stand in the shadows of the ghetto and behold the decay of a once proud and resourceful people. In the 60's we did not have many material things, but we had more, we had each other, now we have lost that You can see nothing but death stalking and feeding on them like wolves on a herd of livestock in a corral. It makes you wonder, where are the 25 years of college graduates that should have made a difference? Every year some graduate from high school and continue on to col lege, while others graduate from college. The cycle is pretty steady now, yet there is no change! The black community continues on its downward spiral, gathering speed as it goes. I know some of them have bet ter houses and fancy cars, plenty of material things; I am not talking about that. What I am asking is, what happened to the black people themselves? You can hardly find a trace of the real black people left. How could we fall so far in one generation? The paradox is, in a land of plenty, the blacks seem to have short-changed themselves and are going down, while less fortu nate people are rising up pass them. Unless we put a stop to the down ward spiral and turn things around, soon we will be beyond help. If we try to weigh ourselves on a economic scale on the community IN COMMUNIST COUNTRIES ANP half OF AMERICA CHRONICLE MAILBAO Our Readers Speak Out >sl . sti On fictiondl upsetshc level, we can hardly be found. On the county, state, national or inter national scale, we do not tip the scale a fraction in any direction. This is something we must find a remedy for. We should explore why so many blacks hate themselves and set out to destroy themselves with alcohol and drugs. Could it be they hurt themselves because they have lost hope and see no way out and need something to kill the pain? If this is so; why do they feel lost and without hope? If something is missing in their lives, then who or what is the cause of it? I know blacks must do like other unfortu nate people have done. They must find out what their strength is, where it is at and how to apply it. This is something we must do and the longer we put it off, the farther we drift behind. tion of duty and enhanced the buddy' feeling." Present among us were two ex sailors who were in boot camp together and assigned to the same ship on the same day. Their last contact with each other was when their ship was torpedoed, each landing in a different South Pacific hospital. Through the years they had thought of each other and final ly had a face to face meeting. One of the DE sailors who read the published article wrote that he used to visit his friend’s home and saw above the mantle a large picture of a destroyer escort that his friend's uncle served on. Years later this young man enlisted in the service and served on the same ship. The sailor and the uncle both attended the convention. Adolphus Lee Brown Mocksville Thank you To The Editor: I would like to express my thanks on behalf of the Destroyer Escort Sailors Association for the article you inserted in your paper to help locate former DE sailors. Your cooperation enabled us to receive over 1,000 responses. All of the newly-found were happy, and many were reunited with an old shipmate. A grand-daughter saw the arti cle in her local paper. Having heard numerous sea stories from her grandfather, she enrolled him in DESA and presented the member ship as a 65th birthday present An ex-DE sailor who served on one of the 30 Coast Guard- manned ships was delighted that we possessed current addresses of his crew. A newly located DE man informed us he will be in Charleston, S.C., wheel chair and all, for the 1989 convention to meet his buddies who served on these small but deadly ships. For many sailors who served on the destroyer escorts after the ships were recommissioned for the Korean and Vietnam wars, it was their first get-together. To The Editor: .ve Why is everybodjpii about a movie ('”^e 1® tion of Christ") thaiiismOr: is fictional and is not gospel text? Personally, the fury and divisiven®;*^ has raised is a blessingk: I say this because been such outcry or the theological commrait,®*! cially Protestantism, silK: ■ of Bultmann and TiHicIi long time since religimit^^' the front burner, aNo.l ®^* tional topic among the:®® those who are unfaiihft think this is healthy, % In the year of 1988,:^ wing" religions and sa stream Protestants area N members to rush ouiani:lN character and repatatioJc57 Christ because of some DS portrayal that they findtivid ask you, since whendbido and Savior Jesus Christ:- T defended? Asamatierciner under the impression ktua the world to defend way our of the human Racism, in the fcr^tde semitism, has raised its i: sal this whole affair. Incito P’f Greek Orthodox wrote the book upo^'?®^ movie "The Last Tem;,'® * Christ" is based, ’ Catholic Christian movie, were spared.^*"! protesters’ wrath, whilff* distributor was raadellie ®®P This writer has ncc It At the last convention, many of the wives were surprises at the fellowship evidenced. The firm handshakes and warm embraces displayed among the former DE sailors touched many on-lookers. One wife, seeing tears on the cheeks of her husband, exclaimed, "Oh! He's crying!" Another remarked that this 40th year reunion is far more touching than any gathering of the family tree. In response to that remark we can say, "We were a close-knit 200+ family, who shared the anxieties of war and sea duty; we were a group of young people who displayed the dedica- We also heard from several officers, some now retired admi rals. Those attending the reunion were delighted to renew acquain tances with the men who served under them in much more relaxed surroundings. From the many men of the destroyer escorts and converted DEs who were able to attend the reunion due to your placement of the article in your newspaper, "A HEARTY THANKS." movie and does not ^ ever, I read somewhere ' "resist not evil." protesting, the protesters ../US- aged to save the prodBti.“® of dollars earmarked and advertising ofil* In conclusion,noCt, PS ,2/63 chronicle camera Edward L. Lesniak National Recruiter Niles, III. has a clear understaniSj^ ^ teachings of Jesus, grounded in the faith ^ should ever feel threaie^g cure by a Hollywood any other portrayal of Ik head of the greatest world has ever known jjjjjg, thermore, we Christians' "the world can't douai®; the first place. Should the government provide daycare servicer Now that the countrv has a role in helnino' work-ina mothprc /Mif r.f tAn y->L,, ^ . Now that the country has a new president, Americans will be awaiting action on some of the many campaign promises. One issue both candidates addressed was child care. The question is whether the federal government should take an active role in helping working mothers acquire and pay for child care. Today more than 60 percent of mothers with children under 14 are in the labor force, according to fig ures released in 1987. Many moms are working because they have to, not because they want to. Seven out of ten working mothers need their salaries to make ends meet In ten years there will be an even greater need for child care, as experts predict the number of children under six needing super vision to grow by more than 50 percent. Child care is especially a problem for Afro-Americans, who have traditionally relied on family members or neighbors to babysit There are only a few states who have responded to the cry of working mothers by devoting resources to improving child care programs. Some businesses have acknowledged child care is an important need, but few have stepped in to fiU the void. vide some sort o tance. Of the nation's 6 million employers, only about 3,000 pro- The Chronicle ai dents if they thougfil emment should provi of day care prograni mothers. "Yes. Working mothers need daycare or they won't be able to work. The gov ernment should help business es provide day care." "Yes. I work in a day care center and I'm a working mother. They should sup> port working mothers." "Yes. Because more mothers I could work | and be more | responsible ^ people." Cynthia Brown "Yes. I'm a I mother and I have a defi nite need for it." Allison Gore
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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Nov. 10, 1988, edition 1
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