! cmm tcom
New Level Of Maturitv
The Democratic mayoral primary
race between Harvey Gantt and
Eddie Knox was, without a doubt, the
most exciting, issue oriented and
closely fought political campaign for
any public office in Charlotte in well
over two decades.
Yet, in spite of issue differences the
race was cordial and well man
nered. ;
Knox, who won the primary by a
slim 0.6 percent or 22,637 to Gantt’s
21,360, differed with Gantt on the
issues of growth, powers of the
mayor or leadership style, public
transportation, public employee
unions and city revenues, to name a
few. Each candidate was consider
ed nearly equally qualified, as the
final vote count verified, Knox for his
political contacts in state govern
ment and Gantt for his 5-years of
Council experience and clear know
ledge of the issues.
The election, and some events
leading up to it, included a number
<rf ironies. For example, while The
Charlotte Observer endorsed Eddie
Knox, they said on the same edito
rial page that Gantt was a better can
didate for urban-oriented growth
issues. Furthermore, Knox was crit
icized for his failure to have annon
ced earlier that his land holdings in
southeast Charlotte might benefit
him in the outer belt controversy.
In addition, and considering
closeness of the race, the absence of
any heated political debat might
any heated political debate might
cost Gantt the election, except lor
Gantt’s reference to Knox’s ads as
being “sick” during the final days of
the campaign there was nothing
even remotedly resembling a
serious heated conflict over
campaign issues.
One news reporter suggested too
that there were some whites in
southeast Charlotte who didn’t want
to vote for Gantt because he is black.'
However, to avoid admitting that
they might have racist tendencies,
the reporter concluded, such people
sought desperately to find some
issue upon which to support Knox
and not Gantt. Again, considering
the closeness of the election outcome
all such speculation seems meaning
less. "
The ironies in themselves, the
absence of race as a visible issue, the
clearness of the issues and the
closeness of the vote appears to
indicate that Charlotte may have
reached a new level of (political)
maturity is just the beginning of
better things.
Let’s hope too that this maturity
will enable us to find a meaningful
way to continue using the talents of
to continue using the talents of
Harvey Gantt, who served this
community for 5 years as an articu
late, knowledgeable City Council
member. We cannot continue to
mature without the public use of the
Gantts in our community.
Post Office Move Economical?
Nearly two years ago to this date,
Willie Stratford, public information
Officer of the Charlotte Post Office,
■' told a concerned group of West Char
lotte citizens that the University
Park Branch Post Office would “not
be closed in the foreseeable future,
however, the lease on the building
expires in 1979 and I do not know
what will happen beyond that
time...”
It is now 1979 and Mr. Stratford
has said recently that the Postal
Service is studying the possibility
of relocating the 6,000 square-feet
University Park Poet Office Branch
because that facility is too large and
too costly-124,000 yearly-to operate.
Stratford added that with the re
assignment of the mail carriers to
other facilities the branch Post
Office needs only about one-third of
its present square footage.
Westside Community Organiza
tion president L. C. Coleman has
objected to the possible relocation
stating the new location in an aban
daned service station will be too
small and require elderly people and
others seeking food stamps to have to
line-up outside in inclement
weather.
Mr. Coleman’s argument appears
weak, and uneconomical. His views
are like that of so many who
^comjglainand object to high govern
ment spending and inefficiency.
However, when the federal
government attempts to act effic
iently everyone, seems to say be
efficient in somebody else’s back
yard but not mine. That kind of
thinking is not good for the country
nor you and I as taxpayers.
As long as the Post Office is com
mitted to retaining a service facility on
on Beatties Ford Road generally in the
same area it appears that there is no
no merit in opposing an economical
ly relocated facility that meets the
same community needs.
something On Your Mind?
“Something on your mind” is the
name of a column devoted to you
the young at heart readers of this
newspaper-as long as it relates in
some way to young people, regard
less of age.
Or any other subject you want to
write about.
Remember it’s your column.
Your article should be at least 250
words, type-written and double
spaced preferred. Include your
name, age, school, and a clear
photo, and send it to the Editor,
Charlotte Post Newspaper, Post
Office Box 97, Charlotte NC 28m.
Blacks’ Destiny Jn Own Hands . . .
Cure For Inflation
By Gerald O. Johnson
Special To the Post
There must be something in
the air because so many wo
men are pregnant today. You
walk downtown during the
lunch hour and about one out
of every three women is in the
inflated way.
The economy is suffering
from the same kind of thing
these women are suffering
from. The government has
done to the economy the same
thing that men have done to
these pregnant women. Conse
quently, the economy has
come up inflated.
Unfortunately, the outcome
is not as certain with the
inflated economy as it is with
the inflated women. Nine
months from now the economy
will probably still be inflated.
You see, once the women
become inflated, no more
damage can be done for nine
to ten months. However, once
the economy is inflated the
more you mess with it the
worse it gets.
What we need to do is put a
prophylactic on ole Uncle
bam to keep him fron doing
any more damage, especially
since next year Is an election
year. The Carter Administra
tion will enforce tax cuts and
do other inflationary antics in
an attempt to win the Presi
dential election. All of this will
be similar to using a band-aid
to heal a severe cut.
To understand this we must
have a brief and simplistic
economic lesson. Let us as
sume that the economy is a
circle. The size of this circle
is determined by what con
sumers are spending or by
what businesses are produc
Gerald" O. Johnson
ing. We can use either one of
the two because the two must
be equal. If the consumers’
buying matches the business
production we have a balanc
ed economy. If business pro
duces much more than the
consumers will purchase then
we have a deflated economy.
Of course, If the consumer
purchases mote than busi
nesses produce we have an
inflated economy.Interesting
ly enough our circle should ex
pand during inflationary
times and contract during
deflationary times because
the economy tends to move to
an equilibrium state. Why?
During deflationary times
businesses will cut back on
production and drop prices to
get rid of the excess inventory.
Once the Inventory and pro
duction are down to what
consumers are buying then we
have reached equilibrium.
However, the overall economy
has decreased in terms of
gross national production or to
put It another way our circle
him rnntra/’fftH
Conversely, during infla
tionary times the equilibrium
move must be increases bus
iness production. The consum
er demand can successfully be
met only by the circle expand
ing.
If the circle is kept from
expanding then the only re
course left is for prices to rise.
Whenever a lot of consumers
bid for a few amount of goods
then price rising is the eco
nomics way of deciding who
gets what. This is the current
scenario we are facing now.
There are several factors
causing the expansion of
production to take place. The
spiraling co6t of energy is the
number one cause. Unions and
the government are running a
close second. All of these
factors increase the cost of
production and force a stifling
effect on our circle. A tax cut
would cause more spending
pressure but would not cause
an increase in production. It
would only worsen the infla
tionary condition.
Moreover, striking unions
have a deafening affect on our
circle. During the times when
the economy is not expanding
there is no extra money in the
economy. Not only does the
new contract Increase the cost
of production but it also means
that someone somewhere
must lose a job. The money
used to meet the new contract
can not be produced, hence it
is shifted from other segments
of the economy.
In order to expand the econ
omy the government must
encourage savings and invest
ments, and give business s tax
See Cure on page7
' »■» Vernon E. Jordan, Jr.;
TO
>
BE
EQUAL
Opportunities For Young People
If we as a nation wanted to give all our young -
people the skills training and job experiences *
they need, we would do so.
Let’s look at some of the supposed causes of
youth unemployment. One is that the economy
isn’t creating enough jobs for all. That’s true.
But it is creating enough jobs to provide word
for many. And blacks lag in getting that
work-with black youth at the end of the line.
Another supposed cause is the minimum wage.
I reject that absolutely. After the last hike in the
minimum wage white youth employment declin
ed while black rates went up. If the proponents of
the minimum wage argument were right one
would expect rates for both races to rise. They
didn’t, which suggests that race is a bigger
factor than the level of the minimum wage.
The minimum wage argument is not really
concerned with black youth; it is part of a
general effort to restrain the gains of labor. A
split-level minimum wage would be the breach in
the wall of protective legislation that surrounds
working conditions.I’m opposed to driving holes
in that wall.
Another cause is the attitudes found among
many young people today. It is hard to make a
clear distinction between the negative attitudes of
some and the experiences in the workplace that
reinforce those attitudes.
The behavior patterns that pay off as status on
the street are the opposite of those that pay off in
work setting. The schools have failed to assist
those kids in making the transition, and
employers often don’t want to.
If the need for labor were to expand, we would
find that many of the attitudes employers
find objectional would no longer constitute an
excuse to avoid hiring young people.
We would find instead, that employers, would
make greater efforts to train youth, to overcome
their supsicions and hostility, to provide the
services alienated youth need to break through \
their protective armor, and to treat those
young people with respect and dignity.
The remedy for youtt^joblesaness is simple:
create jobs in the public and private sectors.
I favor a national full employment policy that
guarantees jobs for all who want to work. Every
young person should have access to educational,
skill training, or work experiences as a matter of
right.
I also back voluntary National Youth Services
that emphasizes recruitment of disadvantaged
youth. The Service would grant volunteers paid
educational, skill and work habit training and
experiences that would enable them to compete in
the economy.
There is a need too, for a Federal Youth
Commission that would coordinate all federal
programs that impact on youth and provide
leadership in changing educational and other
institutions to better serve disadvantaged
young people.
And both government and private industry have
to practice affirmative action. Affirmative
action today has weathered the threat of Weber,
but it is often diluted through inclusion of all
women and all minorities.
Opportunities have to be concentrated on those
who nave the least, and that means the black
minority in general and blacks in particular.
__ From Capitol Hill
Blacks Are Full Grown Men; No More Paternalism
THE CHARLOTTE POST
Second Class Postage No. 965500
“THE PEOPLES NEWSPAPER-'
Established 1918
Published Every Thursday
By The Charlotte Post Publishing Co., Inc
1524 West Blvd.-Charlotte. N.C. 28208
... Telephones (704) 376-0496-376-0497
i: Circulation, 9,915
60 YEARS OF C0NTIN0US SERVICE
BILL JOHNSON...Editor Publisher
BERNARD REEVES...General Manager
I: • .
Second Class Postage No 965500 Paid At"
: _ Charlotte, N.C under the Act of March 3.1878
Member National Newspaper Publishers
Association
North Carolina Black Publishers Association
1 ■ 1
Deadline for all news copy and photos is 5 p. m.
Monday. All photoaand copy submitted become
the property of the POST, and will not be returned.
Nattaaal Advertising
Representative
AmalgamatedPublishers Inc
45 W 5th Suite 1403 *0° s Michigan Ave
New vork NY. 10036 Chicago, <*>616
(212) 400 1220 Calumet 5-0200
By Alfreds L. Madison
Special To the Post
In the fifties and sixties
black Americans shocked the
world thr * igh the Montgom
ery bi lx. cott, business boy
cott, sit-in, entrance into seg
regated white school, march
es on state capitals, on Wash
ington and the advent of the
greatest world leader in mod
ern times implementing true
Christian principles as a work
<ble venture; Dr. Martin Lu
r King
I ack gains received from
these movements have met
with a 'rong effort to set the
clock back through anti-bus
movements, affirmative ac
tion opponents, gerrymander
ing the widespread use of the
phrase, "reverse discrimin
ation ”
For some time the entire
black population has recog
nized this and the leaders
have somewhat floundered in
frustrations, as just what to do
about these conditions How
ever, out of these baffled
feelings, the forced resigna
tion of Ambassador Andrew
Young which certainly may
prove to be a blessing in
diguise, has become a crys
tallized sense of direction
Recently, in New York, a
meeting initiated by the South
ern Christian leadership Con
ference brought together
black leaders from all of tne
major organizations, and
from all across the country.
Among these leaders were
Rev Lowery, President of
SCLC, who is really revitaliz
ing and reactivating that or
ganization, Dr. Kenneth
Clark, who certainly could be
called Mr. Legalized Desegre
gation, Benjamin Hooks of the
NAACP, Vernon Jordan of the
Urban League, who never
fails to lay the economic stat
us of blacks blame exactly
where it belongs, Jesse Jack
son of PUSH with his know
ledge and charisma who is
certainly second to none in
handling T.V. interviews,
Representative Walter Faunt
roy, Ambassador Franklin
Williams, State Senator Julian
Bond, Mayor Richard
Hatcher, Eddie Williams,
Joint Center for Political
Studies and many others,
numbering 200 prominent
blacks
This meeting issued a plan
to do the following:
1 Issue a statement holding
up to light the double stan
dards by which Mr Young has
been judged
2 (’all upon this nation to
live up to ideals of decency
and candor that Mr Young
established as ambassador
3 Call for continuing dia
lOflU^ ' T *'
Afreda L. Madtsoh
in an effort to lessen the deep
polarization which has been
worsening between them and
black Americans.
4 Underscore the historical
involvement of blacks in de
veloping U S. foreign policy
These leaders met one day
with UN Representative
Terzi of the PLO and the next
day they met with Ambassa
dor Blum of Israel. The group
asked both sides to lay down
their guns, and instead work
hard, through negotiations for
a fair, just and peaceful settle
ment for both sides They
called for a continued home
land for Jews and homeland
for the Palestinians They re
cognized that with the present
onlirv live, will continue to be
iost on both sides. This group
also faced forthrightly that the
Jews have vital anxieties and
the PLO vital fears. The Jews
consider the Palestinians
murderers, the Palestinians
consider the Jews raiders.
Both boil down to human
killings. These conditions
necessitate a peace talk policy
involving both sides, with only
a one-sided talk policy, human
killings will continue to per
sist.
It was stated, at these meet
ings, that because of the black
background, heritage and tra
dition black Americans have a
natural tendency to sympa
thize with deprived people
wherever they are This in
cludes, Jews, Arabs Palestin
ians, Native Amer.iars, Viet
Nam boat people. Haitian re
fugees, Europeans who have
come to this country in search
of a better life, as well as
many others It was strongly
felt what the United States
foreign policy should equate.
In this international year of
thechild, the Palestinian child
and Israeli child with its own
child
Blacks also met with some
members of Jewish organize
tions in an effort to reconcile
the gap between blacks and
Jews This situation has been
going on for around ten years
as Jews have opposed bla-ks
in the affirmative action
cases, and some Jewish or
ganizations have given
credence to the reverse dis
crimination policy. The Jews
were also asked to pressure
Israel into cease selling arms
to South Africa and Rhodesia.
Mr Terzi of the PLO hailed
the meeting with the black
group, while Mr. Blum, Israeli
Ambassador and the Jewish
organizations deplored the
talks with the PLO. Yet, these
New York meetings come for
th with black unity, black
direction and a viable Ameri
can and international force to £
be reckoned with. Blacks have
decided on; no more begging
to be included in the main
stream, no satisfaction with
tokenism, no more being
quieted by handouts, but in
stead a stand-up position of
full manhood
Black To Head Mortgage Group ,
special To the Post
Washington-President Jim
my Carter has announced his
intention to nominate Ronald
P l-aurent, of Chicago, Illi
nois, to be president oif the
Government National Mort
gage Association. He would
replace John Dalton who has
resigned
Laurent is senior vice presi
dent of McElvain-Reynolds, a
Chicago mortgage banking
firm, where he is in charge of
the multi-family government
insured loan division
He was bom May ll, 1937 in
Evanston, Illinois He receiv
ed a B.A from Fisk Univer
sity in I960
I-aurent was with Johnson
Publications in Chicago from
I960 to 1961, and was a housing
inspector with the Evanston
Depart...ent of Health from
1962 to 1964 He entered the
mortgage banking business
1964 as a loan officer with
Salk, Ward & Salk, Inc.
From 1969 to 1970 Laurent
was assistant vice president of
Percy Wilson Mortage and
Finance Corporation. He Join
ed McKIvain Reynolds Com
pany in 1970 as vice president, *
and has been senior vice presi-4
.dent^sinceHjTT^_k
I*Hie I’o-t each week for tnB