OPINION
WinstonSakm Chronicle |
Ernest H. Pitt
Publisher/Co-founder
Elaine Pitt
Business Manager
Fannie Henderson
Advertising Manager
jrfTX
Ndubisi Egemonye,
Co-Founder
Carol Trader
Production Manager
TJ. Wills
Copy Editor
IX % North Carolina
National Newspaper Pr??? Association
Publishers Association
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Audit Bureau Ameigwnaied A
of Circulations Put*shefs inc
Fuzzy Wasn Funny
When Tiger Woods became the first minority and youngest
ever Masters champion, it was only a matter of time before veteran
golfers took off the gloves. Well, 1979 Masters winner Fuzzy Zoeller
not only peeled off the gloves but showed some rather vicious claws.
During an interview on CNN's "Pro Golf Weekly," the free
spirited Zoeller, who has since claimed to be a friend of Woods, said,
"That little boy is driving well and he's putting well. He's doing
everything it takes to win. So, you know what you guys do when he
gets in here? You pat him on the back and say congratulations and
enjoy it and tell him not to serve fried chicken next year. Or collard
greens or whatever the hell they serve."
While that soul food menu sounds appetizing to us, Zoeller's
comments were in decidedly poor taste Kmart, which employs
Zoeller as a celebrity endorser, quickly denounced his offensive
remarks.
Golf has long been known as a gentleman's sport. Zoeller,
known on the PGA circuit for his humor, has apologized for his
comments which he insists were in jest.
Pardon us if we don't get the joke. But this time. Fuzzy wasn't
very funny. Was he?
All That Jazz
The joint is jumpin'! This is a jazz-packed week in African
American history. On April 29, 1899, Edward "Duke" Ellington was
born in Washington, D.C. On April 25, 1918, Ella Fitzgerald was
born in Newport News, Va. And on April 21, 1904 William "Count"
Basie passed on to that big band in the sky.
Earlier this month, composer and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis,
35, won a Pulitzer prize for "Blood on the Fields," an oratorio on the
theme of slavery. A New Orleans native, Marsalis has broadened the
audience for jazz and shed new light on its central place in American
culture. He lists Duke Ellington as his favorite composer. Inciden
tally, the Duke was himself a Pulitzer prize nominee.
A pianist and orchestra leader, Ellington was the most prolific
composer in jazz history. Over a career that spanned half a century, -
he wrote more than 1,000 short pieces plus concertos for orchestra
and jazz soloist; long jazz-inspired concert pieces; three large reli
gious works; and several movie scores. Ellington distinguished him
self as an innovator in every jazz style he adopted, including bebop,
stride, and swing. During the roaring 20s, his orchestra held forth at
Harlem's famous Cotton Club. As the nickname "Duke" suggests,
Ellington was also known for his royal bearing and debonair style.
We loved him madly. In fact, we still do. In the late 1970s,
Sophisticated Ladies, a musical featuring his band's most popular
songs, was a Broadway hit. Testament to his enduring appeal, "Play
On!" a new adaptation of Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night," uses
Ellington's songs as its score.
The play also showcases scat singing, an improvisational vocal
style popularized by Ella Fitzgerald. A great ballad interpreter, she
became known as the First Lady of Song. On her first recording, "A
tisket, A-tasket," (1938) she took a nursery rhyme and made it
- swing. Fitzgerald consistently transformed often trivial material into
high art. Her best-known recordings, songbooks of famous Ameri
can composers, have become jazz classics. Fitzgerald started her
career with the Chick Webb's band, which she led after his death.
With countless hits, she performed as a soloist with 40 sym
phony orchestras and with the big bands of Duke Ellington and
' Count Basie.
Born in New Jersey, William "Count" Basie was one of the
great exponents of swing. In 1935, he started The Barons of Rhythm
in Kansas City, Mo., and in 1936 moved to New York. His brand of
Kansas City jazz had jitterbugs jumping from coast to coast. Basie
was known for his polished, rhythmic versions of blues melodies.
The musicians who performed with his band include saxophonist
Lester Young and singers Billie Holiday and Joe Williams.
Between the birth of jazz and the advent of Marsalis, jazz has
evolved into an international industry. In the process, the complexion
of jazz bands and audiences has changed. Coltrane alumnus Reggie
Workman, an instructor at the New School for Social Research,
observes, "It used to be that the (club) scene was dominated by black
bands who occasionally hired white musicians.
Now it's mostly the other way around."
Enter Wynton Marsalis, an eight-time Grammy award winner
$ and the most celebrated jazz musician of the decade. The youngest
* musician in the history of the awards to win the jazz soloist perfor
C mance award for three consecutive years and the first to win
f Grammy's for both jazz and classical recordings, Marsalis is a self
; appointed jazz ambassador. He not only headlines festivals, but also
; teaches master classes for aspiring young musicians. As co-founder
* and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, he came under fire for
! promoting jazz as an African-American artistic domain. Historically
' speaking, his stance is well-founded. Sometimes you've got to toot
I your own horn.
Citizens will vote on bond package in June
By BRIDGET EVARTS
ind COURTNEY DANIEL
It's all up to the
public now.
Voters will decide
in June if the general
obligation bond referen
dum, approved Monday
by the Winston-Salem
Board of Aldermen, will
pass.
Some voters have
already made it clear
that they either do not
support the bond or the
time of its election. At
the April 21 aldermen
meeting, a number of
speakers said they did
not want the bond
because it involves a 4
cent tax hike; many dis
agreed with holding the
bond election June 24,
as it will cost an esti
mated $100,000 to stage
a special election.
These speakers
shared common denom
inators: they were
white, and they were
male.
Several African
Americans, such as the
Rev. Paul Lowe, Naomi
Jones and Mos? Belton
Brown, have publicly
supported the bond in
the past. Lowe and
Jones support the streets
and sidewalks package
which includes $2.6
million for the Liberty
Street Corridor project;
Brown is a member of
the Convention Cen
ter/Coliseum Commis
sion and supports the $7
million bond proposed
for convention center
renovations.
How much does the
rest of the African
American community
know about the general
obligation bond, and
what do they think
about it?
is*
? Racreation: $4 mMon, to be dMded among Bowman Onto 8todtom bnprava
mento ($1,150,000); a new athlete complex ($1,100,00); improvements to VMneton
Lake Parte ($800,000); improvements to the Southeast Gateway Park ($600,00) and
WtoNngton Parte ranovattone ($380,000). j ^
. ? , :?
Research Park. T.
? Convention Canter. $7 miSon, to be used to make improvements in the (oadn{tf:
zones; "back of house" storage arid corridors; concession and food service; Soutnf-'
Main Hal renovations; addttxtt and itforades to mechankaYSiectrical systems ancft
improvements to the mainantrance on Fifth Street J:
?Housing and Redevelopment-111 rnWion, to be dMdsd between clearance enrft
redevelopment ($5,300,000); first-time home buyer assistance ($3,700,000) and retwf'
housing opportunities $2 mMon). I
* Streets and Sktewata: $47 mikxi, to be dMded to construct new aidawafci and!
install wheelchair ramps ($5.8 miion); construct Industrial access reads ($2 mMkm);'
iuI/Iam Jiutiitym ?fin Ai /haIa< S8 81%$*% kjuui Ut SfckA u^H MtAtaluyJ $M4 A$%4%
wtoen existing reads (note, n tms oono h approved, tne tunos ww oe maicnea cy roe
NC Department of Transportation) ($29 mWon); improve intersections ($5 mWon) anrf
advance the Uberty Street and University Patlcway Corridor projects ($5.2 mlHon).
Total: $75 million
"I don't think it's necessary.
I mean in the end we're
paying for it anyway. Well
I'm not paying for it
because I don't pay taxes
yet, but our parents are pay
ing for it. And I just really
don't think it's necessary."
? Lashanda Robertson
"It all depends. Some
people say one thing
and some people say
another. It just all
depends."
? Ricky Rowland
"Winston-Salem needs
the improvement. What
we really need is some
where homeless people
can go."
? Ronald McCall
"I don't know anything
about it."
? Mary Piatt
"I really don't know
anything about it." . _,
? Otto Gaither
? ,f
The Chronicle Mailbag
Our Readers Speak Out
Nostalgia should not stand in the way
To the Editor:
I have heard from both sides
about the decision before the
county commissioners to either
keep the Reynolds Health Center
under the management of the
county or to turn its administra
tion over to Bowman Gray/Bap
tist Hospital.
From those who wish to
"keep it as it is," I mostly hear
what are some sentimental
recalls about the old "Katie B."
facility. Others say that Baptist
Hospital will be able to operate
the Health Center better than the
County and save money in the
process.
Nostalgia should not stand in
the way of better health care. We
all know that the present Health
Center was built to serve as a
hospital. Bowman Gray, as
everybody knows, is the county's
largest employer and a top player
in this region in medical care and
tops in the country in terms of
medical education.
I say let's move ahead with
the Bowman Gray plan. They
have pledged to be held account
able for the job stability of those
at the present center. A commu
nity board to oversee policy is in
place. There are plenty of other
challenges for human services
that the county can deliver. Let
the best health care delivery pro
fessionals deliver the best to the
people of Winston East.
Clarence E. Gaines
Support House
BUI No. 564
To the Editor:
The public has an opportu
nity to support legislation that
allows licensed dental hygienists
to provide clinical dental care in
settings such as nursing homes
and schools without having a
dentist on the premises. The
North Carolina Dental Hygien
ists' Association has introduced
House Bill (HB) No. 564 in the
state legislature. The bill is being
considered by the Judiciary II
Committee of the House of Rep
resentatives.
Presently, 44 of our sister
states have laws that allow dental
hygienists to provide clinical
care without having a dentist on
the premises or without having
direct supervision. The law in
North Carolina requires a dentist
to be on the premises when den
tal hygienists are workipg. It is
difficult for dentists to serve
patients outside their office.
With the changes in HB No.
564, licensed dental hygienists
can provide preventive dental
care to patients outside the dental
office without having the dentist
present.
HB No. 564 allows dentists
to use their professional judg
ment as to
1. whether or not to super
vise more than two dental
hygienists at a time
2. whether or not the dentist
is physically present while the
dental hygienist cares for the
patient.
The bill adds "a licensed
dentist, using professional dis
cretion, chooses not to be physi
cally present at the locale where
the acts are being performed but
the acts are performed pursuant
to the dentist's order, control and
approval" to the definition of
supervision in the dental hygiene
practice act. House Bill No. 564
as written allows dental hygien
ists to provide dental hygiene
treatment to those segments of
the public who cannot travel to a
dental office to receive treatment.
Preventive dental care is neces
sary for maintaining healthy
teeth. Healthy teeth are essential
for a healthy body.
The education of dental
hygienists prepares them for pro
viding professional preventive
dental treatment.
Dental Hygienists go
through at least a two-year
American Dental Association
accredited program that includes
1,250 hours of class work and
over 700 hours of clinical train
ing working on patients in order
to receive an associate degree in
dental hygiene. The University
of North Carolina offers a bache
lor's degree in dental hygiene,
which adds two years of general
college courses to the same cur
riculum required for an associate
degree. The core dental hygiene
curriculum includes courses in
chemistry, medical emergencies,
pharmacology, physiology and
other classes which address and
treat medically compromised
patients who take medications or
have physical conditions such as
heart valve problems. Dental
hygienists must pass a written
national exam and a rigid state
clinical exam to receive a
license. In addition, dental
hygienists are required to take 12
hours of continuing education
every two years as well as main
tain CPR recertification. The
North Carolina State Board of
Dental Examiners, composed of
six dentists, one dental hygienist
and one consumer, licenses and
regulates all dental hygienists in
North Carolina.
Dental hygienists are trained
in infection control procedures as
mandated by OSHA and to
review every medical history of
every patient they treat. Dental
hygienists are aware of medical
problems that could arise during
the cleaning of teeth. Should a
problem occur during treatment,
hygienists are well aware of w;hat
steps should be taken to remedy
the problem.
The Bill as written should
have no effect on the cost of pro
viding dental care to residents in
retirement facilities due to the
fact that the bill as written
would not require a dentist to
make a "house call." The bill-as
written generally conforms to
laws in 44 of our sister states
which allow dental hygienists to
provide clinical care withbut
having a dentist on the premises
or providing direct supervision.
Representatives Charlotte
Garner, Gregg Thompson ?nd
Beverly Earle are commended
for their vision of the "big pic
ture" in providing preventive
licensed dental hygiene treat
ment to the underserved citizens
of North Carolina by cosponpor
ing House Bill 564.
Pam Short, R.D3i.
ok' |
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