Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Feb. 21, 2002, edition 1 / Page 44
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A time to create black history Around this time every year, w< celebrate Black History Month b; reflecting on our glorious past. Thi: year, we should establish a new goal Let's create some black history. Anc let's do so by vowing to take some bolt steps to strengthen our key institutions Like my colleagues DeWaynt Wicfcham of USA Today and radio per sonality Tom Joyner, 1 feel a stronj Statement wouiu De maue if Harvard's "Dream I ream" of public intellec iTjar tuals, led by Henry I 'Skip" Gales and Cornel I West, set up shop at a his- I torically black college I rather than complain I ibout how they were I Seing treated at Harvard tnd threaten to shuttle from one Ivy League university to another. As Joyner said in a speech lasi week at Knoxville College ir rennessee, "Imagine what a statement hat would make if these two professors West and Gates) brought their talent tc in HBCU." That doesn't take much imagina tion. Enrollment would certainly soar, students would get an opportunity to be . >ht by some of the most fertile : nds in higher education, and the col ege would probably be able to attract arger donations because of the fanfare. Ihink about it. Gates and west would be no less credible because they were no longer part of the Harvard icene. They will not get any fewet ipeaking engagements or book con racts. Their commentary on society would not be any less insightful because they've "transferred" to a >lack school. Let's examine two questions thai ire likely to arise. First, some super star irofessors say privately that black chools can't "afford' them. If you're alking endowments, no one can match iarvard's resources. But that shouldn't le the issue. Gates and West earn more han $500,000 a year from speaking ngagements and book contracts. With hat kind earning potential, salaries hould not be the overriding factor in leciding to relocate to a black college. Some high-profile professors say hey would be required to teach toe u many classes at a black Institution. What's the big deal? In deciding on a career in education, I thought college professors pledged to do just that. And if there's something more important than teaching our youths, maybe our priorities are mixed up. Gates and West are not the only professors who would attract national attention if they decided to teach at black colleges. Manning Marable of Columbia University, Michael Eric Dyson of DePaul University in Chicago, as well as Sonia Sanchez and Molefi Kete Asante of Temple University, would also add star power io any historically black college. Those first-rate professors would hap devel op first-rate students and, in the process, help some black colleges become first-rate. All of the aforementioned profes sors^ have expressed, to varying degrees, admiration for W.E.B. DuBois, the noted activist and scholar, DuBois, who did his undergraduate work at Fisk University in Nashville, did more than give lip service to the importance of black colleges. Armed with a doctorate from Harvard. DuBois taught at two HBCUs, Wilberforce in Ohio and Atlanta University, before becoming editor of The Crisis, the NAACP's official organ. In fact, some of DuBois' best work was produced while he was in Atlanta. In the interest of candor, let's state publicly what we often say in private: Some of these black university admin istrators are difficult to work with, and trying to get things done on a black campus is needlessly frustrating. On that point, you'll get no argument from me, though the same can be said of some white institutions. However, if we really care about the kind of education our students are receiving in African-American col leges, that shouldn't be reason enough to stay away. These students would benefit immensely if some of the star professors would hitch their stars to black colleges. And this should not be limited to academia. After learning from major financial institutions, some African Americans should consider working for black banks. Seasoned journalists who have worked for some I of the best daily newspa BHbB pers in the country might I consider buying or manag I ing black weeklies, instant I ly improving the quality of I these publications. And I after being stuck in corpo ? I rate America, some of that talent might consider open ing up businesses that will cater to African Americans. I will never forget a conversation 1 had with my stepfather, William H. ,Polk, when I first took over as editor of emerge magazine in 1993. I told him about the staff we were assembling at the magazine. I mentioned that I was hiring Florestine Purnell from USA Today as my managing editor (Flo now holds that same title at the NNPA News Service); 1 had selected one of my for mer high school workshop students, Alvin Reid, who was at Baseball Weekly, a spin-off of USA Today, to be senior editor. Wayne Fitzpatrick, who had created covers for U.S. News and World Report, was hired as art director. Clarence Brown, a former production manager for Time magazine, was pro duction director for Emerge and later, associate publisher. "George, you're doing what white people have been doing to us all along." he told me, brimming with pride. "They've always come into our community and taken the best we had and hired them. Now, you're taking the best they have and bringing them back home." It's time for many of us to come back home. George E. Curry, former editor of Emerge: Black America's Newsmagazine, is editor-in-chief of NNPA News Service and ' BlackPressUSA.com. File Photo "ornel West is considered one of the foremost black intellectuals in the country. AI.GRKE.N Al Or??n I'm Still In Love With You The Whispers Greatest Hits maze HUUHUE BEVERLY A A A /"k Maze Anthology ? Rachalla Ferrell Rachelle Ferrell Tnto Jays Best Of 1976- 1991 Bobby Womack Greatest Hits Mlnni* Rip?rton Petals Teddy Pender grass Greatest Hits f CDCC Receive A Black History Month Calendar With 1 EZ The Purchase Of Any Of The Titles Listed, r It EG J Available at: Miss Lady's Music Craatlon 1483 New Walkertown Rd. ? Winston-Salem 724-3047 ^ Muzic Inc. 1314 Lee Chapel Rd. Greensboro 375-4202
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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Feb. 21, 2002, edition 1
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