ii| THE CHARLOTTE __ iii I Charlotte’s Fastest Growing Community Weekly" r PRICE 20Cv ' welfare Rolls Decline The Nation’s welfare rolls increase in February was substantially less than the January increase, Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger re ported last week. The February increase was 84,789--or an .08 percent in crease over January, the Se cretary said. In January the increase was 1.3 percent or 141,447 more than December. The February total was 11,239,611. The rolls have been rising since August 1974, when they turned upward after declining almost steadily from the March 1973 level. The decline has been attri buted in part to the continuing Federal State "Quality Con trol" effort aimed at reducing the number of ineligibles on the rolls and minimizing pay ment errors. The slow rise beginning in August accelerated in De cember and January as the unemployment figures in creased. James S. Dwight Jr., Ad ministrator of HEW's Social and Rehabilitation Service, said he found the reduced rate of increase in February en couraging. He added, "While the rolls are still rising, the smaller proportion of new comers suggests that the ad verse economic pressures on low-income people are begin n'V4° moderate.” Unemployed AFDC fathers, who make up a small propor - tion of the QC caseload, total led 114,431 in February 1975, rising by 8,937 or 8.5 percent more than in January, and 15.6' percent more than in February 1974. The AFDC rolls as a whole were 366,933 or 3.4 percent higher in February 1975 than in February 1974. Total Federal State public assistance expenditures, in cluding Medicaid-were $1,949,842,000 in February— about $4.5 million over Jan uary costs. Of this, AFDC money payments totalled $736,221,000 in February 1975, .9 percent over January but 15.6 percent more than a year ago. For the Nation a whole, the average AFDC family payment was $216 a month, about the same as January but $1*7 higher than in February 1974. Total medical assistance payments were $1,117,356,000 in February 1975, down 0.4 percent from January but up 31.4 percent from February 1974. Medicaid payments in any given month do not neces sarily correlate closely with AFDC caseload in that month. Mrs. Stephen Won Fourth Place Charlotte's candidate ioi the NAACP North Carolina Mother of the Year came back from the State Convention re cently with a fourth place prize. Mrs. Willie Stephen, pro prietor of the Trinity Beauty Shop raised $1,000 in her pur suit of the title and thanks "everyone for helping me out." _ Deborah Clark Is “Beauty Of Week” By Polly Manning Post Staff Writer The campus of Livingstone College, Salisbury, will be graced with a new face when its fall semester begins in August. The face will belong to none other than our “Beauty of the Week," Miss Deborah Denise Clark. “I have heard a lot about Livingstone,” explained Deb orah. “I was fortunate to visit the campus earlier in the year and I found it to be very interesting. I especially enj oyed the students there. Everyone seemed so friendly, almost as if they knew me all along.” At Livingstone our beauty plans to major in Secretarial Science. “I am interested in becoming a secretary, or maybe even a teacher. In any case I feel that with this major I Will be qualified to be eit her.” Deborah is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Lester Clark who reside at 1524 Griers Grove Road. Miss Clark is presently a senior at North Mecklenburg High School. She is a member of the Student Council, the Decca Club, and President of her homeroom class. Her hobbies are singing. Burn Center Festival Set For Saturday The Mecklenburg County Ladies Fire Auxiliary Assoc iation will, sponsor a Burn Center Festival at Freedom Park Saturday, May 31, from 10 a m. to 7 p.m. Proceeds from the Festival will be used in the establish ment of a Burn Center Hospi tal in Chapel Hill. There will be food, drinks, handicrafts, clowns and groups performing at the new Alan Newcombe Park Shell, plus an auction with a signa ture pen from President Ger ald Ford and a tie tack from Governor James Holshouser The festival will be coordi nated by Mrs. Judy G. Cook, president of the Auxiliary Association is composed of members of the auxiliaries to Mecklenburg's 24 Volunteer Fire Departments. dancing, and karate. She plans to start taking profes sional lessons in karate_some times this summer During the time she isn’t singing dancing, or practicing karate she enjoys being with Asa. The Clark family attends Clinton Chapel A.M E. Zior Church where Rev. Morgan W. Tann is the minister. Deb orah attributes the fact thal she belongs to an AME Zior Church as another reason foi her attending Livingstone. At Clinton Chapel she sings on the senior choir and is director for the youth choir. Miss Clark, who is 5 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 13( pounds, is eagerly awaiting her upcoming graduation. “The seniors will be verj busy during the next few weeks,” smiled Deborah “Wt will be practicing for gradu ation exercises, sending oul invitations, getting ready foi awards day, and best of all going to lots of parties." Deborah is born under the sign of Virgo. She considers Virgos as nice, kind people who can get along with any one. “I don't feel as if Virgo’s have any negative points,' replied Deborah Miss Clark's friends consi der her something of a pro blem solver. She enjoys mak ing little kids happy and mosi of all she loves clothes. "Wht knows”, exclaimed Debora'n “Someday I may become i model,” MEAC To Pick Site For Tourney Durham, N. C.-- The Dele gate Assembly of the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) which is composed of Presidents Chancellors, Ath letic Directors and Faculty Representatives of the seven member institutions, will de cide the site for the conference annual Basketball Tourna ment during its annual Spring Meeting which will be held this weekend in Columbia, South Carolina at the Sheraton Inn. In its four years of exist ance. the MEAC has conduct ed its annual basketball tour nament in Durham for the first two years and at Balti more Civic Center for the last two years. Thus far, the Baltimore Civic Center and the Greens boro Coliseum have made proposals to the MEAC to host its 1975-76 basketball tourna ment. The Delegate Assembly will vote during the three-day session on these proposals. Oth.er important items on the agenda for the meeting include discussion and deci sions concerning the proposed economic cuts in intercolleg • ait a nututa uy me nn. The MEAC will take a look at some of these proposals and decide how the MEAC will go about these issues. In addition to studying the current NCAA proposals, the MEAC will adopt recent NCAA legisla ture passed at the last NCAA meeting held in Washington. D. C. last January The MEAC Delegate Assembly will also consider recommendations by the MEAC baseball and track coaches to decide the 1974-75 track and baseball champion ship which were cancelled be cause of inclement weather. Following a meeting in Dover, Delaware May 4 when inclement weather forced cancellation of the champion ships, the track coaches voted to recommend to the body that the team champion be deter mined on qualifying an semi final times and distance in the events held May 3. If the Asembly accepts this recom mendation, Delaware State will be declared the track champion. All the Coaches Associations will meet May 29th and they are expected to recommend some economic guidelines to the body to cut back on cost. Among the expected proposals is compact scheduling of the 1 spring sports. Mrs. Clawson Is Vice Chairman Mrs Betty R Clawson, manager of Dudley's Beauty Center. 2020 N. Graham St., has been named to serve with a distinguished group of busi ness people as vice-chairman of a testimonial honoring S B Fuller, a founder of Fuller Products Co of Chicago, manufacturer of cosmetics and toiletries. More than 2.000 persons will attend the event which will take place on Fuller's 70th birthday. June 4. at the Con rad Hilton Hotel. Dinner committee members and guests represent a cross sec tion of the country's inter racial business leadership. Co-chairmen of the tribute are two of America's most outstanding Black entrepren eurs. George E. Johnson, president of Johnson Products Co., Inc., and John H John son, president of Johnson Pub lishing Co. Both Johnsons, who are unrelated, credit Ful ler with having been a major inspiration and success model in their lives. Each is now a millionaire in his own right. George Johnson as manu facturer of Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen toiletries, and John Johnson as publisher of Ebony magazine Like Fuller, the two John sons were born in poverty in the rural south and migrated to Chicago while very young Fuller s inspiration came from his mother who believed strongly that door-to-door sel ling hold the key to success She died when he was 17. leaving him head of the family of eight children He married at age 1H. and eventually be came the father of five child ren In 1935. with $25 in capital. Fuller began Fuller Products Co., rising from door-to-door salesman to millionaire manufacturer and civic sym bol in the 194()'s. Within two decades he built a national network of distributors and salesman and expanded into other ventures, including commercial real estate, farm ing. beef cattle production and publishing Mrs Clawson is very active in the Charlotte community and has held several helping sessions for home economic classes in the public schools On occasions when she has free time she discusses the secrets of beauty with the neighborhood children Recently, she was the guest speaker at a Mother's Day program in one of the local churches Ben Chavis Supporters Head For Washington, D. C. Rally By James Cuthbertson Post Staff Writer A bus trip to a Washington. D.C. rally is to be held at 11 a m. on Saturday in front of the Justice Department in support of Rev. Ben Chavis and the Wilmington Ten and all other North Carolina Pol itical Prisoners. The chartered bus will leave Charlotte Friday night at 12:30 a m from the admin istration building parking lotf of Johnson C. Smith Univer - sity at 100 Beatties Ford Road ‘The bus will leave Wash ington Saturday evening for the return trifc to Charlotte" said Dr Heleffothaw, who is organizing the trip. For infor mation call 394-6963 The trip is being held to protest the treatment that black political prisoners have gotten in the State of North Carolina, According to the officials of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repres sion. the Rev. Benjamin Chavis Jr. and his co-defend ants known as the "Wilming ton 10”. were denied a hearing on Wednesday, May 7, that has not been announced pub licly by the court The veterans civil rights activists, sentenced to a com bined 262 years in prison for defending a church in Wilm ington's Black community from a four-day siege by the Ku Klux Klan. will now appeal to the U. S. Supreme Court. Defense Attorney James Ferguson of Charlotte has asked the North Carolina court for a sta£ of executive execution of sentence and a continuance of the $400,000 bond pending the appeal to the U S Supreme Court. Ordinar ily such requests are granted as a matter of course, but in the Wilmington 10 case the state court has not yet made a decision The National Alliance See Chavis on page 10 Rev Ben Chavis Civil Rights Activist i Forces Abound To Weaken Civil Rights Movement Atlanta, ua • Utticials from eleven southern State and local human rights agencies were warned that without strong support tor existing legislation on civil rights mav hard earned gains mav be lost Addressing a throng of about 150 officials gathered at the third L\ S Commissin on Civ il Eights conference here in the Atlanta Internaitonale Hotel, under the theme of Making the Constitution Work for all Americans former HEW' Secretarv Arthur Fleming declared that there are forces abound whose aim is to weaken or destrov the civil rights movement Fleming, presently serving as chairman of the Com mis sion. said in the keynote address delivered on the first night of a three day confei ence that, "there are still people who believe that only white people can render qual ity service " Thus, he said, we must not let them dilute such programs such as affirmative action be cause any success by our op ponents in any area of civil or human rights will weaken the foundation of all of other civil rights The Commission, establish ed by Congress under the Civil Rights Act of 1957. is author ized to investigate complaints alleging that citizens are be ing deprived of their right t > vote because ol racial or sex discrimination Governed by six commis sionei s appointt-d by die President and confirmed by the Senate, the Commission also studies legal development constituting a denial of equal protection of the laws under the Constitution and submit reports of us findings to the President and the Congress Elder Citizens To Be Informed Of SSI Rights An attempt to reach 85.000 elderly citizens to inform them about supplemental .se curity income 'SSI' is in pro gress. The S. C Council of Churches, which sponsors the project called "Operation Shepherd, has distributed SSI screening forms to over 11.000 churches across Ihe state Ministers of churches will distribute the forms and will return those completed to local social security offices Appointments will then be made for applicants Of the estimated 160 000 persons 65 years of age and over who are below poverty level in North Carolina, only 75,429 were receiving SSI in December 1974 w e it-ci inai operation Shepherd is one of the best ways to contact people who need these benefits and are not getting them.' said Robert Q Beard, director of the Governor's Coordinating Council on Aging, which is providing a $7,700 grant for the project The project will help us find isolated people who are eligible for SSI and will help the religious segment of the :ommunity minister to the leeds of the elderly,-' Beard stated In recent months state, federal and private organiza tions have made a major effort to reach persons who should receive supplemental security income North Caro lina ranks fourth in the nation in the number of new persons filing and receiving SSI bene fits SSI is a national program for citizens over fif years old and the blind or disabled, who have little or no income and limited resnureres There have been twenty three of the Commission's reports cited in Supreme Court decisions, although >• is not an enforcement agency ■ and has not power to apply specific remedies in incite id ual cases Complaints of den ial of rights are referred to tr.e appropriate Federal ager.c • , for action After the chairman's up mg address, conferees fro.', agencies in the fields of rights, women's rights sr.c human relations in Alabama Arkansas. Florida. Georgia Kentucky. Loutsana. Missiv., ppt North Carolina, Souti Carolina. Tennessee and W gima engaged in open debate with Mr Fleming and the Commission's Staff Dire t urnimn'*u idsrs where the unemployers will stipulate the requirements in advance knowing fully well that he is exempting possible qualified candidates. " said Ms Tommiee .Jean Hagood. director of the Greenville County Human Relations Commission in South Caro lina The question drew no suit able solution and ended with a promise by the Commission to seek some avenues to clear it up Chairman Fleming, who serves as HEW Secretary under the Eisenhower Admin istrations in differing capaci ties. drew warm praise from Staff Director Buggs We were extremely sur prised when the President chose Dr Fleming We thought he had made a mis take. mused Mr Buggs. "really. I don't think he real ized what he did when he picked him See Rights on page 3 I TUETLt-WA 0 I V Getting your head together in your OLD AGE could sim ply mean ASSEMBLING . TEETH, GLASSES AND A TOUPEE MISS DEBORAH CLARK ...Livingstone Bound -— - - — Commission Recommends Strong Civil Rights Support MRS. BETTY CLAWSON ...Charlotte Area Manager