NAACP wants action in case of officers
Kweisi Mfume. president and CEO of the National Associa
tion for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), said
Feb. 28 that a federal circuit court decision to overturn the con
victions of three New York City police officers in the brutal tor
ture case of a Haitian immigrant should
be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The victim, Abner Louima. was tor
tured with a broomstick after he was
arrested outside a Brooklyn nightclub in
1997
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Second Circuit said there was insufficient
evidence in the convictions of the trio -
Charles Schwarz, Thomas Wiese and
Thomas Bruder - on obstruction of jus
tice charges. The court also said
Schwan's conviction for civil rights vio
lations had to be thrown out because he
was denied effective counsel, and the jury was exposed to prej
udicial information during his trial. Mfume said the federal gov
ernment should aggressively retry the civil rights violations case
against Schwarz. C
Schwarz, who allegedly held down Louima as he was being
attacked, was given a 15-year prison term. Wiese and Bruder
were sentenced to five-year terms. The ruling does not affect the
conviction of the chief attacker, police officer Justin Volpe, who
pleaded guilty and is currently serving a 30-year sentence. Volpe
pleaded guilty to ramming the broomstick into Louima's rectum,
causing severe internal injuries.
Mfume said that by acquitting both Wiese and Bruder, the
court rejected the decision of the jury and substituted its own
judgment, finding there was insufficient evidence to support the
conspiracy to obstruct justice conviction. Mfume said, "This
action sends a dangerously encoufaging message to all those
who would lie to conceal the misconduct of fellow officers."
Louima, who now lives in Florida, sued New York City and
settled for close to $9 million.
I Additional honorees
The following group and individual also will be honored at The Chronicle Community Service Awards
March 14. Below are bios for the honorees, who will be feted with dozens more at the annual banquet.
Lexington NAACP for special recognition
COMPILED BY THE CHRONICLE STAFF
This year's annual Martin Luther
King Jr. Parade in Lexington was a lit
tle more special than past ones. The
crowd was a little livelier. The music
and marching were more festive.
The passage of the MLK holiday a
few days earlier by the Davidson Coun
ty Board of Commissioners probably
had something to do with the festive
atmosphere.
The Lexington branch of the
NAACP sponsors the annual parade.
The same group was instrumental in
pushing through the passage of the
MLK holiday, which elected officials
had refused to push through for more
than a decade.
The fact that Davidson County was
only one of a handful of counties in
North Carolina that did not recognize
the King holiday did not sit well with
the Lexington NAACP, which has a
long history of standing up and speak
ing out for what's right.
The group lobbied hard for years for
the holiday, taking its argument for a
King holiday to the commissioners, the
residents of Davidson County and even
tually the people of the state.
Although business owners upset
about economic losses have often been
cited as the group that pushed the com
missioners to pass the King holiday,
many observers applaud Leon Har
grave, the president of Lexington
NAACP. and other members of the
chapter as the true warriors in the battle
for a Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in
Davidson County.
From left, Benny Miller> Nettie Hargrove, Rosa Terry and Leon Hargrove
Less air time for black TV reporters
Black reporters are not receiving an
equal amount of air time on network tel
evision, says a study by the Center for
Media and Public Affairs.
The annual report reveals that no
black reporters were among the top 25
evening news reporters in 2001. The
numbers are the lowest since 1996, the
report says.
In 2000, three black reporters were in
the top 10, but in 2001, there was none.
In 2001, Pierre Thomas and Byron Pitts
of ABC and Randall Pinkston of CBS
were the only black journalists in the top 50. Pitts and Thomas
were 28th on the list for 2001, with 72 appearances each.
White reporters delivered 88 percent of all stories last year,
with white men delivering 77 percent.
Rev. Henry Lewis for lifetime achievement
COMPll.lD BV THH CHRONKT I. STAPH
For more than 45 years, the
Rev. Henry Lewis has been a min
ister and so much more in Win
ston-Salem. Lewis began his
career at Winston-Salem State
University, where he earned his
B.S. degree, serving as the univer
sity's chaplain and the James A.
Gray Professor of Religion for 17
years.
Lewis also led Mt. Pleasant
Baptist Church during much of
that time. Under his leadership,
that church's membership sky
rocketed and members said good
bye to their old sanctuary and
relocated to a modern building.
Lewis has also made local his
tory. In 1970. he was the first
African American to teach a
course in the department of reli
gion at Wake Forest University.
The course was called Black Reli
gion and Black Churches in Amer
ica.
In 1977, Lewis was the first
African American on the pastoral
counseling staff at R.J. Reynolds
Tobacco Co. He worked at RJR for
more than 20 years, retiring as a I
senior employee counselor.
Although his schedule has
always been tight, Lewis has been
there for this city when its resi
dents have needed him. When
city-county schools were forced to
desegregate in the late 1960s,
Lewis led racial dialogue sessions
with integrated groups of teachers
and school administrators.
Lewis' life of service continues
today. He is the pastor of Wentz
Memorial Congregational Church
and devotes his time to a number
of worthy organizations, such as
the Society for the Study of Afro
American History. While Lewis
was president of the group. SSAH
released its popular book of local
black history, "African Americans
in Winston-Salem/Forsyth Coun
ty: A Pictorial History.
AG says border patrols are illegal
COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina's attorney general said
Monday that it is illegal to use interstate welcome centers for
picketing, and he again threatened to sue the NAACP over its
"border patrol" tourism protests.
Members of the National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People began protesting at welcome centers over the
weekend, urging travelers not to spend money in South Caroli
na until the Confederate flag is removed from Statehouse
grounds.
"Federal law makes it clear that interstate welcome centers
and rest stops are designed solely for the purpose of giving
motorists a place of rest, hospitality and recovery from road
fatigue. Use of those tax-funded facilities for other purposes is
strictly prohibited," Attorney General Charlie Condon wrote in
a letter Monday to Gov. Jim Hodges.
Condon, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomi
nation to challenge.the Democrat Hodges, called on the gover
nor to "join me publicly in condemning this so-called 'border
patrol' operation as an illegal use of public facilities."
NAACP state director Dwight James said he doesn't know
where Condon got his information. James said his organization
simply told government agencies - including the state Trans
portation Department - of its plans.
?
Foundations led by Gates giving
Baltimore high schools $20 million
BALTIMORE - Bill Gates' charitable foundation is leading
a group of organizations that have agreed to give the city's nine
worst high schools $20 million over five
years.
Foundation leaders say they want to
improve the lives of the 14,000 students
at the schools, more than 60 percent of
whom drop out.
The Gates Foundation has agreed to
donate $12 million, and $8 million will
be provided by other groups, including
the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
The school system's chief executive
officer. Carmen Russo, and foundation
leaders said they share the belief that the
system should break down its large high schools into smaller
schools of no more than 850 students. The schools also should
be more academically rigorous and give students a sense of
belonging.
The announcement could pressure state lawmakers to pro
vide more money to the city school system, which has asked the
state for a large increase in funding to improve the system.
. I
Company putting history into quilts
BY S.I. LYNCH
THE CHRONICLE '
So many hidden treasures
are lying dormant, waiting for
their unveiling. What surrounds
the mystique of these treasures
is they are jewels that can intro
duce the masses to historical
and even cultural awareness -
at a time very different from the
present. Brown Toes, a new
company, has unleashed jewels
called
baby
quilts.
These
are not
just any
o I d
quilts.
Here we
have
family
heir
looms
tnat are based on events relat
ing to the Underground Rail
road.
Brown Toes is the brain
child of an extremely vibrant,
passionate, community-focused
and faith-led man named
Anthony Young, who is the
?president. ?-He showed his
indomitable spirit in his years
of working on the John
Edwards and Mike Easley cam
paigns in various capacities.
Young said that for many years
he has been a proponent for
economic empowerment. He
believes in the importance of
educating African Americans.
According to Young, quilts are
one of the mediums that can be
used to infuse African Ameri
cans' rich heritage into house
holds in a very special and per
sonal way.
As Brown Toes is a .small
company choosing to do some
thing positive for the whole
community, it can't survive
without the assistance of people
who believe and support its
efforts.
Young graduated with hon- ,
ors from St. Augustine's in
Raleigh with a degree in orga
nizational management and is
en route to Wake Forest Uni
versity for its graduate pro
gram.
Young is determined to
make inroads with this present
venture. "I am not anybody
special, just a man who
believes, that's all. I'm trying to
say to people. 'Don't just look
at what my accomplishments
are. My measure of who I am.
as it is, is the manifestation of
where I am in this life and what
I choose to do in my standards
af faith."
Young recalls his thesis
with an energy that is indicative
of one who truly has convic
tions for a cause. He said it was
titled "The Creation of Eco
nomic Wealth in Poor Wealth
Communities." Young believes
that his desire to enlighten
African Americans came from
what he had experienced and
thus Brown Toes was born.
Young believes. "Brown
Toes is a testimonial of faith
and what God has done for me.
I am reminded of where I came
from, and I know where I've
been. And I've been in the
belly, and I've been at the top.
Right now I'm at the top.
because God has allowed these
feet of mine to bring me a long
way. I don't know where they
are going to lead me. hut I'm
going in faith. Because these
feet are what lead us to where
we're going. Brown Toes is a
representation of my testimony
to where God has brought me
and is taking me. Using it as an
example to people everywhere,
look what you can do if you
only believe and step out on
faith."
Brown Toes is an offshoot
of Ebony Eyes (Young's other
company), which addressed the
lack of African-American dolls
and toys.
People should realize that
quality isn't sacrificed simply
because an item comes from an
African-American establish
ment.
When you purchase a
Brown Toes quilt you are able
to keep history within your
reach. Brown Toes offers quilts
with various themes. The fami
ly series celebrates the many
different types of families.
Brown Toes quilts also tell the
story of the Underground Rail
road, a system of cooperation
pie in the United States before
1863 by which fugitive slaves
were secretly helped to reach
the North or Canada.
Each of the quilts in the
Brown Toes crib quilt series
symbolizes hope, passion and
determination despite
deplorable circumstances that
African Americans experi
enced.
These quilts also can be
used as tapestries or they can be
personalized (by embroidering
information about the baby)
and given as gifts.
Each quilt is delivered gift
wrapped with a small symbol in
the quilt and its historical
meaning for America. After all,
black history is American histo
ry
For more information, go
to www.hrowntoes.com.
The Brown Toes Family Heritage Quilt
Th& Chronicle (USPS 067-910) was established toy
Ernest H. Pitt and Ndubisi Egemonye in 1974 and is
published every Thursday by Winston-Salem Chronicle
Publishing Co., Inc., 617 N. Liberty Street, Winston
Salem, NC 27101. Periodicals postage paid at Win
ston-Salem, N.C. Annual subscription price is $30.72.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to:
The Chronicle, P.O. Box 1636
Winston-Salem, NC 27102-1636
INDEX
OPINION A6
SPORTS B1
RELIGION B5
CLASSIFIEDS B9
HEALTH C3
ENTERTAINMENT C7
CALENDAR C9