Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Dec. 15, 1994, edition 1 / Page 14
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ston-Salem Chronicle J ? ?" " H. PITT, Publisher/Co-founder * NDUBISI EGEMONYE, Co-Founder I ? ? ; Richard L. Williams, Executive Editor ' ELAINE PlTT, Director of Community Relations ,^MlCHAEL A. PlTT, Advertising Manager MEL WHITE, Business Manager 2 Pushing an Agenda v*- ? j " . j ' -V- ? As 1994 draws to a close, there is one key issue that lfi. African- American community leaders and elected officials should place high on their agendas in 1995 that would enhance eastern Winston-Salem and put it on a little closer to equal footing with other parts of the Twin City: economic development , Despite a few housing and retail developments that have sprung up recently in eastern Winston-Salem, the area remains greatly lacking in economic development. One of the best ways leaders can immediately impact on r"this is through pushing an agenda that will get improved road , ways in the area. Accessibility to an area through good road V, ways is pivotal to an area increasing its economic vitality. t? Ability to get in and out of an area is important to retailers >?- and to shoppers. One project currently, on the table is the Eighth Street Connector. Community leaders should make sure that the ^project is well under way in the spring, as planned, and not -cput on the city's back burner. The $6.5 million improvement u would connect Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to University Parkway and would make it a lot easier for people in East ^ Winston to travel to the Coliseum and other parts of the city. , At the same time, it would make it easier for people to enter East Winston to shop at the Eastway Plaza and visit other areas of the African- American community. ? An example of this is how maneuverability has been much more easier in that section of eastern Winston-Salem with recent improvements made to 14th Street. ; . ? ** Community leaders should also push to see that the plans. vare implemented for the Liberty Street Corridor, and that rec ommendations from the updated Hammer Siler George Study ^ are carried out They should see to it that funding is provided " ' ' 't for many of the study's recommended projects. The Hammer Siler George study recommends, among ??*other things, holding meetings to educate the East Winston community about efforts that other areas of the city have used ^rirttyJe'rih^hce) development. It calls for eliminating blighted y ^ areas; increasing middle-income housing; locating and help ^jng to attract housing developers to build in East Winston; improving the quality of existing small businesses in the area;1 : >iand approving loans for start-up businesses. All of these projects require funding, and our community f , leaders and elected officials must hold city officials account arable for these projects during the budget process so that ade I'.^quate money is set aside for them. They will nnt get funded if <ii>.no one pushes them; and if they don't get funded nothing will .'>happen. ~ If carried out, these projects will significantly improve "* "economic development in eastern Winston-Salem. . - Some of these projects are currently on the table of the planning board ? many others need to be put there ? and that's where they might just remain unless someone in the black community spearheads the effort to have the first loads "{of asphalt poured. Decade of Development :<r - * Cleon Cleon Thompson's announcement two weeks ago that he ?f>va s stepping down as Winston-Salem State University chan "cellor should not have been a complete surprise. ?c , When he arrived in Winston-Salem in 1985, he told many riitelose to him that he only intended to remain at the former teachers' college for 10 years. True to form, he kept his word. The past 10 years has been a period of significant devel opment and achievement for Winston- Salem State under ^phancellor Thompson's leadership. The improvements have come in several key anw student prnfilp, farnlty prnfila, nir riculum and facilities. When Chancellor Thompson assumed the role of chancel ; the student enrollment was at 2,425 and the composite ^scort was 612 for the freshman class. Today, those fig ures are 2,845 and 8 10, respectively. a +3 He not only improved significantly on those figures, but S as he leaves, the number of minority students has increased ; Ijy 74 percent; the applications by freshmen have increased ; by 18 percent; the four-year graduation rate has increased ' ffom 9 percent in 1986 to 17 percent in 1994; and in 1986, | tVSSU conferred 218 degrees compared with 467 last May. i * Chancellor Thompson also increased endowments, saw a i revitalized nursing program during his administration and he | placed greater emphasis on undergraduate research. Since 1985, when Chancellor Thompson took the helm, ^/SSU has accumulated $37 million in construction projects and land acquisition. We wish him well as he leaves a much stronger institution i Postal Workers Urge Electronic Media to Cover Story To the Editor: j Over the last four weeks the Winston-Salem Chronicle has run front-page news articles concern ing allegations of mistreatment and discrimination of current and former postal employees in Win ston-Salem. It is our opinion that the Chronicle has showji bold leadership and concern by bring ing to the attention of the commu nity the adverse conditions of Winston- Salem postal facilities that are affecting the lives of many citizens of Winston-Salem. We write to urge WXII to become involved by conducting your own in-depth investigation of Winston-Salem postal facili ties. It is hoped that the news media of this city have a sincere interest in investigating and reporting news affecting all mem bers of our community, and will respond to the cries for help from postal workers of this city. There are many fine employ ees in our postal family who strive daily to serve our cus tomers as best we possibly can and we respectfully request the assistance and involvement of WXII in addressing our concerns. BUI Campbell Editor's note^This letter was written to the news director of wx//. j Apology to Matics To the Editor: v It has been brought to my attention that I may owe Mr. Mat ics an apology^ forealling him a~ higot Yon ran imngine mv sur prise! I merely said that it was narrow-minded to allow bigotry, slavery and/or racism to dictate i one's moral values. Bigotry is defined as obsti nate or blindly having an attach ment to a particular creed; an unreasonable zeal in favor of a party* (Sect or opinion; excessive prejudice; or intolerance. A bigot is a narrow-minded, prejudiced; v. and intolerant person. I have not called Mr. Matics a bigot. I do not know the man. Please note that the character of a . bigot is very dangerous in any person. You will know the tree by its fruit ^ We have struggled for many years to overcome the scars and labels, which society has so cho sen to bestow upon us. It seems that people will always complain about our disabilities when we are down and out. Then when we attempt to pick ourselves up, guess who's the first person to try to pull us back- down? That's right ... the same person. Then comes the lie: "We don't do that in our system because we are an equal opportunity employment organization. The Bill of Rights and the Constitution govern our rules and regulations/* Right? Wrong! We have a right to earn a decent living; to own property; to be treated as human beings; to raise our families in a decent environment; and to be respected the same as you. It is by the back breaking labors of us common (everyday) people, that people in power have obtained status. With out us, where would you be? . What gives you the authority to change our rights as stated in the Constitution? We all have rights. What would happen if our positions were reversed. Should we treat as you are treating us? , Even the Bible teaches us to treat ' others as ourselves. We respect your rights. Why can't you or should I say, don't you respect ours? 7? How would you like to have the table turned and have me/us to be the dictators over your future? John W. Morant Greensboro Holiday Shopping />' To the Editor: As the holiday shopping sea son advances, members of our organization, along with mem- " bers of QULST (African- Ameri can group within Sara Lee Direct), and the William C. Sims Recreation Cenier are taking pan in the national "DunH Buy Wai Toys" campaign. We hope that parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles will participate by thoughtfully purchasing toys that are fun and entertaining, toys that foster creativity and imagination in their precious children. We, as adults, have an enormous respon sibility to instill the values in our children that will shape them for I life. What kind of message do we send to them when we give them violent video games and war toys as gifts? Violence is incompatible with the message of Christmas. Let's avoid unconsciously pro moting violence to the children we love. Wishing you peace in your hearts, homes and neighbor hoods this holiday season and the new year. > V Ellie Collins Slave History To the Editor: Kristin Goree who was wel comed in Senegal recently is indeed lucky to be able to trace his ancestry back to Goree Island, the infamous slave island as was stated in an NNPA article describ ing his retur . His name is very precious to Africans and African Americans as it reminds them of the proud spirit of their ancestors. This is why I am perplexed by a statement in the article which says it was a slave owner who gave Kristin 's ancestors their name. Since Goree does not know the story behind his name, this affirmation is not fact but mere conjecture and it ignores relevant history. In fact many Americans kept their names as , much and as long as they could. The Gullahs of the Sea T Islands had African names well into the 1940s. The South Car olina Gazette lists 126 African names for the slaves from 1732 to 1775. In the archives of Louisiana, Dr. Gwendolyn Hedlo-Hall found about *200 African names from 1727 to 1802 Evi?n snnrv* color'* held on to their names. In 1778, Paul Slocum,, along with eight brothers and sisters, gave up his father's owner's name and took instead his father's African first name, Cuffee. As Paul Cuf fee he would become a wealthy ship owner and the father of the Back to Africa Movement. The famous Marie Thereze Coincoin, the founder of the Creole dynasty who owned the Melrose Planta* tion in Louisiana, always kept her African name, Coincoin (Kokwe), of Togolese origin. After she died in ifclfc, three gen eration of her descendants added I Coincoin to their names. In fact, history tells us that there was a strong will by many Africans to keep their nanies. Sometimes it was a true African name, sometimes as with the Goree and Senegal families (the latter in Louisiana) it was the namt of the place they came from, still others kept the tradi tion of naming a child by the day on which he/she was born. Hence the numerous Mondays, Fridays, etc. In fact, Cuffee is the Ashanti name for boys bom on a Friday. In Kristin Goree 's case there is little doubt that his ancestors, and not a slave owner, are the ones we must thank for all their resilience and pride. Today Goree Island is symbolically the place of origin of all the African-Amer icans who wish to reclaim their heritage and we are eager to wel come them back to their ancestral homeland. Sylviane Kamara New York, N.Y. Jesse, Bubba, Barry To the Editor: Republican Senator Jesse Helms of North Carolina, chair Of the Foreign Relations Committee, says the President is so unpopular on military bases in that state that he "better watch out if he comes down here" and "better have a bodyguard." These remarks were made on Nov. 22, the 31st anniversary of the assassination of another presi dent ? They are more than just another brutalization of our pub lic discussion. Many are the nuts roaming this country who don't need any encouragement. Jesse may have incited them. Jesse does not apologize, but rather justifies the remarks by saying the president is a draft dodger who wants to put homo sexuals into the military while cutting its budget 'Only presidents Jesse approves are safe in mutinous " North Carolina, now apparently our banana state. But, though extreme and immoderate, Jesse is probably just pandering to Bubba. Bubba doesn't want to face three facts: that Republicans-like Danny-boy Quayle-as well as Democrats avoided the draft dur ing Vietrtam; that homosexuals are going to be in the military along with women, blacks, and Unitarians; and that, with the - Soviets gone, the military has to Sony, Bubba. : = Bubba is not a nut, but nuts do roam. In 1964, just after JFK's death, Barry Gold water pro claimed to the GOP Convention that "extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice and moderation in the pursuit of justice is not virtue." toe Barry's and Jem's remarks the two ends of a contin uing thread of basic Republican thought? Congressional Republi cans can say "No" by moving Jesse to another committee and by adding North Carolina to Kansas, Colorado, Hawaii, Alaska and Kentucky as states soon to lose another military unit or base. I . ? ' Republicans are right about onething: the need for a return to personal responsibility. It means disgruntled students do not walk into class and shoot their teacher. It also means dis gruntled Senators do not incite assassination of the president J.A.Hoage Sevema Park, M D Rapper Shakur Brings Bad Media Image to Blacks Tupac Shakur, the 23-year old rapper notorious for violent lyrics and frequent brushes with the law, was convicted of first degree sexual abuse by a New York jury recently. The case is another in the series of young black males continuing their image of violence and crimes against society. The Manhattan court case also gave attribution to the protests of civil rights leaders against "Gangsta Rap." The verdict against the rapper and his road manager, 24 year* old Charles Fuller, came down less than two days after Shakur was shot five .times by three assailants outside a Time Square ~ recording studio. Shakur was entering his recording studio with three acquaintances when three gunmen accosted them, yelled "Give it up," and grabbed a reported $45,000 worth of dia monds rings and gold chains. According to police, Shakur lunged at one of the men and was shot five times in the ensuing struggle - in the hand, the head and the groin. Although Shakur underwent surgery atMnhattan's Bellevue Hospital, for injuries to his groin, hours later bis mother - former Black Pantner Afeni Shakur - came and checked him out. "Bellevue was not secure^ and Shakur was afraid for his life," said Robert Etttse, one of his attorneys. Although he was not present for the verdict against him, a heavily sedated Shakur appeared in the courtroom in a wheelchair, wearing a white ban dage around his head. Shakur has been arrested three times on weapons charges and convicted twice of assault, has the phrase "Thug Life" tat tooed on his chest and was once interviewed on MTV with a 9mm pistol tucked in his waistband. He had a gunfight with two off-duty Atlanta police officers and an assault on a felluw rapper wttft a baseball bat. Although he has been publicly chastised by civil rights leaders such as, C. Delores Tucker and Dick Gregory, Shakur was flanked at his trial by his mother and actress Jasmin Guy of "A Different World" A sentenc ing date is yet to be set and Shakur 's lawyer, Michael War ren, said be would appeal the case. The sexual abuse conviction stems from an incident over a year ago in a New York City hotel room. A woman who Shakur had met in a Greenwich . Village nightclub - and who had willingly performed oral aex on him on the dance floor - alleged that Shakur and several of his < body, guards had engaged in sodomy and forcible sexual abuse when she met Shakur several days later in his room at the Parker Merkiien Hotel in mid town Manhattan. When police came to investigate the woman's allegation's of "deviant sexual intercourse" and "sexual contact by forcible compulsion," they also found a handgun and filed a weapons charge against Shakur. In one of the many strange twists to Shakur's lifestyles, one of the officers on the scene after Shakur's shooting, and his friends having called 911, was the same lifestyle," states Olive Vassell, -editor of the Afro-American newspapers' "Every Wednesday "publication. Statistics show that African-American youth are overwhelmed by violence. Many blacks say ShakurY antics show case this negative aspect i)f black life in America. Shakur's defense that the sex was consensual, and the initial actions of the victims, cast businessexchange By WILLIAM REED officer who arretted him in the hotel. "ffiTWffcer McKernan," Shakur *j?portedly said when he saw the policeman. With Shakur being a best selling musician and film star, many black leaders cite him and other African- Americans rappers, such as Snoop Doggy Dogg, with creating bad images for the black youth who are the principal con sumers of such materials. In fact, > many say that his ascendance in the rap world has been directly linked to his increasingly violent behavior off-stage. "It seems the more bad things you do the more respect you get in that music another cloud on black female - youth. He maintained during the trail that the woman had actually > assaulted him. 44 Just because I don't want to be with that girl don't mean she has the right to say I did all these tilings she said I did. It was her who sodomized me." The juiy found Shakur bno? cent of the weapons and sodomy charges. But it found both men guilty of sexual abuse, which is defined as nonconsensual groping and touching. The two men each face a sentence of 28 monthtw seven years. (William Reed is NNPA direc tor of communications.)
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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Dec. 15, 1994, edition 1
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