Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / Nov. 24, 1977, edition 1 / Page 2
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•cionaii (L coMcnii Positive Facts About Harris' Victory The most positive thing that can be said about Ken Harris' stunning victory over Jim Whittington for the privilege to serve as mayor of the city of Charlotte for the next two years is that Mr. Harris did not have to start the mayoral campaign with a poor image. For some difficult to explain rea sons Mr. Whittington fell into a deep pit at the beginning when word spread through the community that he "hadn't done nothing for Black people." Whether by design or accidental, the feeling swept through the black community like wild fire, and for reasons that are even more difficult to explain, no one in Mr. Whitting ton's corner took the time to combat the problem. What is quite disturbing is that not one of the anti-Whittington people would say what they specifically wanted Mr. Whittington to do, or, even more important, what they would expect him to do to earn their support. " * It would appear that a political figure of Mr. Whittington's stature ehould not have to deal with such generalities. However, once this kind of rumor surfaced, it is rather Odd and somewhat mystifying that it was not dealt with swiftly and effectively, with positive facts point ing out exactly what Mr. Whittington has done for the Black community during his unusually long tenure in office. To a novice in political shenani gans, it would appear that this was a problem that blacks in the Whitting ton camp would have easily resolved with public announcements of some of the issues that are vital to blacks that Mr. Whittington promised to address himself to - or had dealt effectively with in the past. It may be wise to call attention here to the fact that Mr. Whit ting top's loss could-well be attributed in tfiarge measure to the fact that the Black political leaders in his camp , dealt more in personalities than with the vital issues. The POST believes the black community will lend greater support to candidates who are responsive to community needs than they will do popular personalities who take on the enormous responsibilities of be ing a spokesman for the entire black community. It makes sense to understand that a grievance in Dalton Village would differ greatly from one in Hyde Park. It is also generally agreed that while one community is fighting collectively for better police protec tion another may have side walks and street lights as its No. 1 priority. The POST hopes the black com munity will not be among the big losers of the past election. Politics is played best when one has allies and strong bargaining power. While there is no visible evidence at the moment to support the follow ing, the POST hopes the blacks who supported Mr. Harris have enough bargaining power and the allies to hold the new mayor to his promises - if he made any - to help us all to work for progress in the black communi ty. The POST believes that progress in the black community would result in greater progress for the entire community. In our opinion it would prove most embarrassing two years hence if blacks have to start the next mayor al campagin with the generality that "Mr. Harris hadn't done anything for black people." Blacks must ever be mindful of the fact that no one, politician, business man, preacher, or black or white will deliver up to expectation unless he's made to do so. Charlotte blacks ought to develop the kind of political strategy that will impressively pro mote unity, define issues, bring out considerable gains in voter registra tion and overwhelmingly increase voter participation. Unless we effectively use the inte . rim concentrating on the improv ment of these glaringly weak areas in our corambnity's political leader ship, we more than likely will chorus the tune "He hadn't done anything for Blacks" melody again in 1979. JCSU s Plan Is Not Unique Johnson C. Smith University shou ld be commended for its ambitious 161-page report, "Planning Towards the Year 2,000," as a first step in assessing the 110-year old institu tion's future direction. The report's principal author, Dr. Bertha Max well, vice president of administra tion and planning at Smith, pointed out that the plan is really a prelimi nary draft that outlines purposes, planning procedures and tentative goals. The report states, and Dr. Max well emphasizes, that Smith must seek out non-traditional students of any race - adults over 21, the elderly, poor scholastic achievers, and those seeking to upgrade their job skills. These goals however are not unique as many institutions of higher learn ing - black and white large and small - are seeking similar goals in the face of declining traditional student enrollments. Equally difficult for Smith's task, we believe, is the fact that there are two local publicly supported institu tions -UNCC and CPCC - that in clude in their goals the same type of student. We hope these important competi tors for JCSU's planned new student have been given adequate conside ration as the look toward the year 2,000. ——2+BË LETTÉRS TOTHEËDITOR Support Asked For New Museum Buildine Dear Sir As chairman of the Art Commission of the North Ca rolina Museum of Art I would urge yjou and your newspaper to support the drive to com plete the new museum build ing and as director of the Ackland Art Museum of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, I can assure you that North Carolina has indeed a world famous art collection worthy.-"of a hand some new building. The General Assembly has appropriated $10.75 million to ward the construction of the new facility, construction has begun, but we will need anot ther $5 million to complete the building as planned. Toward that end, we have begun a drive which, will raise the additional funds from the pri vate sector: ι ne ursi pnase « uns cam paign will seek contributions from corporations and founda tions. We have already gained a $1.5 million challenge grant from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, a grant which expires on December 31, 1978, so we must meet our goal by that date. Because the first phase of the campaign will be over by this coming Christmas season, we are now seeking the sup port of North Carolina's news papers, support which we feel is eminently justified. We have already succeeded in gaining endorsement for most of the newspapers which have commented editorially on the Museum's fund drive. At least two of the newspapers which earlier made critical remarks about the museum and-or its suburban location have since changed their minds, a most heartening de velopment. We feel every as pect of the new museum - the site, the architecture, the me thod ot iinancing - will stand up to the most critical scruti ny. Lest you have any reser vations about our plan, I invite you to pose any and all ques tions to myself or to Charles Sneed at the museum's publiic information office in Raleigh (910-733-7571). We are here to 'tell the museum's story, to provide you with facts on every aspect of the drive to build the museum, as well as the museum itself. Another phase of the cam paign will commence with the New Year. The North Carolina Art Society is organizing a county-by-county fund raising effort and will be seeking funds in any amount and from people from all walks of life because it is important that the museum be built on a foundation of broadly based public support. At that time:" we will need your help iiP publicizing local fund raising events. Before too long North Caro lina will have the best art museum in the South - a fitting complement to the best art collection in the South. It will be a milestone in the development of our state and I ask you most earnestly to present it favorably to your readers. Sincerely, Joseph C. Sloane, Chairman N.C. Art Commission Black History Museum The Publisher THE CHARLOTTE POST Charlotte, N.C. 28216 Dear Sir: On September 5,1977, we in Chatham County, North Caro lina dedicated a unique Black History Museum - an authen tic slave cabin to house arti facts and memorabilia of an tebellum days and a pictoral review of the progress of black people from famous African Kings to present-day Ameri ca. This was heralded by newspapers throughout the State as significant. The Museum is located on the 10-12 acre black-owned fairgrounds. Our plans include the development of a park-like recreation area with an out door theatre in which we will present black drama begin ning next summer. Soon we shall open a George Moses Horton Room in our Museum honoring this early black poet who was a Chatham County slave. We are also developing a black History inter-school loan library for Chatham and neighboring counties. During Thanksgiving week end the Museum display will feature a salute to the Black Press, and we will appreciate your sending us an issue of lauuuuc ui your paper, "#*ip celebration will culminate on Sunday afternoon, November 27th, with a program ending our first drive for funds. We will be appreciative of any contribution you might see fit to make to any phase of our program. Yours very truly, Mildred B. Payton, Secretary Black History Museum Com mittee Telephone: (919) 272-9992 Enjoye The Poet Mr. Johnson, 1 want you and your sUtit to know how much my family and I enjoy reading the POST. We look forward to receiving it each week to read about our friends and neighbors and features of interest to the black community. Keep up the good work. Sincerely, Percy Ê. Lee ■g By Vernon Ε. Jordan Jr. Vernon E. Jordan Jr. Redlining Rules Issued Redlining is a long-standing practice that is one of the causes for the deterioration of inner-cities. Finally, the federal government is beginning to move against it. Simply defined, redlining is the refusal of financial institutions to make mortgage loans on homes in certain areas. Needless to say those areas are usually minority, neighborhoods, or neighborhoods that are integrated or in transi tion. The term refers to the red line that is figuratively drawn around the affected neigh borhood, with loans refused to property owners whose buildings are within the redlined section. A pioneering study by the National Urban League some years back documented redlining in the Bronx. Local financial institutions were taking deposits from Bronx resident, but made very few mortgage loans in the Bronx ~ most of those funds went out of state. In effect, low income depositors were subsidizing wealthy distant communities through mortgages they themselves were denied. Since that study there have been many others, in various parts of the country. All point to the same conclusion - that some financial institu tions persistently refuse to make mortgage loans in neighborhoods that have large numbers of minority people, and often redline white working class sections too. What happens when an area is redlined? Cut off from conventional mortgage credit, owners cannot afford to maintain their buildings. Houses deteriorate, people move out, the blight spreads block by block, and then the final blow of abandonment occurs. The devastation of the South Bronx is now well-known; less well-known is the process that creates the South Bronxes. And redlining is one of the steps in that process. - Federal laws prohibit discrimination in mort gage lending, but are relatively ineffective against redlining, since mortgages are refused on the basis of neighborhood deterioration, the age of 4he^ building,» or other* seemingly neutral * reasbns. 'cimv? ^Idibo erfl 'mood zsrl yôtHuÎ How the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, which regulates the nation's more than 4,000 savings and loan institutions, has proposed new rules to curb redlining. The Board would require member institutions to develop written stand ards to ensure equal opportunity in home financing, review advertising and marketing practices, consider all relevant factors in considering mortgage loans, and to keep written records of all credit applications for review and monitoring by the Board. Under these rules people wouldn't be denied mortgage credit solely because of their lack of previous homeownership, educational levels, or a history of job-changing. And maintenance of adequate record keeping will mean that infor mation often hard to come by will now be available to the federal regulators. The Bank Board can enforce its regulations through "cease and desist" orders and court orders forcing an institution to stop violating them. For the first time, institutions refusing mortgage credit will have to document the reasons for that refusal - in itself a major step that should retard redlining. THECHARLOTTEPOST "THE PEOPLES NEWSPAPER" Established 1918 Published Every Thursday By The Charlotte Poet Publishing Co., Inc. 2606-B West Blvd.-Charlotte, N.C. 28208 Telephones (704) 392-1306, 392-1307 Circulation, 7,185 58 YEARS OF CONTINUOUS SERVICE Bill Johnson Hoyle H. Martin Sr Bernard Reeves ... Julius Watson Albert Campbell... Editor-Publisher Executive Editor f y -General Manager circulation Director Advertising Director Second Class Postage No. 965500 Paid At Charlotte, N.C. under the Act of March 3,1878 . Member National Newspaper Publishers Association ι , North Carolina Black Publishers Association , Deadline for all news copy and photos is 5 p.m. Monday. All photos and copy submitted becomes the property of the Poet, and will not be returned. National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc. 45 W. 5th Suite 1403 2400 S. Michigan Ave. New York, N Y. 10036 Chicago, 111. 60616 (212) 489-1220 Calumet 5-0200 ic Black Home Ownership By Gerald 0. Johnson The Great American Dream is to own your own property and home. More than ever black people are beginning to realize that dream. Black peo ple are buying homes at a percentage number compara ble with their white counter parts. Unfortunately, neighbor hoods are going to pot because of the record number of blacks seeking homes. Clanton Park, Hidden Valley, Colony Acres, and many, many more have faded in appearance as quali ty neighborhoods in less than five years. It is no wonder that white flight occurs when blacks move into a previously all whiU neighborhood. However, there are several all black neighborhoods that are very well preserved. Hyde Park, McCrorey Heights, Nor thwood Estates are just a few such neighborhoods Consequently, the problem with degrading neighborhoods is not a racial one but an economical one. Thé difference in a Hyde Park and Hidden Valley is how Blacks got in them and why blacks wanted in them The more established black neighborhoods like Hyde Pai'.. were built for black people. Black people bought these homes when they were built and developed their commu nity into an established neigh borhood. Thus the neighbor hood has a sense of stability; few people moving out, few people moving in. Compare this with a neigh borhood like Hidden Valley that 1 consider a transient neighborhood. The neighbor hood was built for whites. When blacks moved in the' whites moved out. This caused a very unstable condition to exist in the neighborhood. In stead of people developing an appreciation for the neighbor hood they basically inherited a developed neighborhood. Thus, the basic community concern is lost. The situation is quite simi lar to a person earning a million dollars and a person inheriting a million dollars The latter is more apt to squander his million than the former Structures of the neighbor hoods like Hidden Valley and Hyde Park are different Consider the difference in buying a home in a transient neighborhood and a develop ing neighborhood When new homes are built the buyer basically buys a home from a developer. I say basically be cause most developers use agencies to handle the selling of their new developments. When a buyer buys a home in a transient neighborhood he is confronted with the unscrupu lous realtor. A realtor will sell a home to anyone who can pay the down payment and secure a loan. This is the major reason for the deterioration of a neigh borhood. A great number of blacks are misled into buying a home they cannot afford They cannot afford it because no one ever tells them that the maintenance on a home is just as costly as the home itself. Therefore, people will get into a home, start making monthly payemnts, and when some sort of problem occurs with the home, they realize that they can't afford to have it corrected. Consequently, the home begins to look bad, thereby leading to the neigh borhood looking bad. The obvious question that comes to mind is, "Why don't people buy new homes?" The answers are (1) Coat, (2) Availability. New homes cost more than a used home and they do not offer as much as a used home and they do not offer as much initially. By this I mean a ready lawn, im provements, and etc. More over, new homes are not as available today as they were 10 years ago. The problem with deteriora ting neighborhoods Is easily remedied by realtors exercis ing some sort of code of ethics. Realtors should be well aware of the financial situation of their client* By being honest with clients and telling them the pitfalls of home ownership the problem will remedy it - ' t self. But if you are looking for a home and your realtor is not leveling with you, you can do the following: 1) Never buy a home that cost more than twice your yearly income. Example: If you earn $14,000 a year you can afford a 128,000 home. 2) Never use both husband's and wife's income to deter mine if you can afford a home or not . If you do you are asking for trouble. Example husband earns 14,000 and wife earns 10,000 yearly; the combined family income is $24,000 a year. It would seem that the family could afford a $48,000 home. Not true. Never become dependent on a wife's income. A safe way to determine home affordability in this case is to take the husband's income and V« to V* of the wife's income and add them up. Double this figure and that will give you how much you can pay for a house. In the example given above we can re-calculate and get; hus band's income - $14,000 + ^ of wife's income · $5,000 gives total income of $19,000. Double this and you get the home affordability figure of $38,000. Using this type of planning not only will enable you to afford the mortgage on your home but also to afford the maintenance on your home. The stability of a neighbor hood ii dependent upon each person in that neighborhood buying what he can afford to upkeep a black realtor that ia more concerned with the buck rather than other blacks is a disgrace to his people. For a list of just such black realtors, please write to me in care of this newspaper. Tip For The Week: Listen to channel nine's editorial com ments by Paul Harvey. Then do just the opposite of what he suggests You can't go wrong. Metrolina Chapter To Meet December 1 The Metrolina Chapter of N O W. will hold its fourth monthly meeting on Thurs day, December 1 at 7:30 p.m. at the Pinehurst Apartments Clubhouse on Providence Road The program will Include a slide presentation about wo men in society today and a consciousness raising session on job discrimination.
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Nov. 24, 1977, edition 1
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