North Carolina Newspapers

BLACK NEWSPAPERS i— EFFECTIVELY REACH /% W w <W*V » ^ *+***+*****_^ _ YOUR BEST BY FAR, MORE • J • F 1 H 1 f f| Ij i • TTl YY /Y /) |Y) ADVERTISING MEDIA | -BLACK CONSUMERS-1 J. lijll \jHAXl jl X X JC» A U 0 A “Charlotte’s Fastest Growing Community Weekly" *i MU. I" — _ ---—_THE CHARLOTTE POST THURSDAY. OCTOBER 11 1979 - - PRICE ini' Will State Rip Up LaSalle Street And McArthur Avenue? Picketing Church's Fried Chicken at Five Points are Annie Thompson. Elizabeth Stywall. Melvin Twyne and Lillie Hill.(Photo by Eileen Hanson) At Church's Chicken McPherson Thinks Community % Should Support Strikers BY EILEEN HANSON Special To The Post Fifteen thousand dollars is a lot of chicken dinners. That’s why Ann McPherson thinks the community should support the striking workers at Church’s Fried Chicken l who have been picketing the fast-food chain at 1734 W. Trade!at Five Points) since Sept. 19. “Big businesses like Church’s come into a totally black community and take out a lot of money, but they don’t put anything back in,” said McPherson, owner of Sports N’ Stuff sportswear store across the street. According to the strikers, Church's Five-Points shop takes in $10-$15,000 a week in sales. They feel they deserve a better shake for their long hours of work. They also want an end to what they call “discrimination against women and arbitrary person nel practices. The strike started when Five-Points manager Lillie Hill was replaced by a new manager, A1 Gentle, recently from Detroit. I ve worked for Church's for four year and was manag ing for 6 months,'' said Hill. “I was responsible for the store from 8:30 a.m until closing-2: a.m. on weekdays and 4:00 a.m. on weekends. They never gave me an assis tant. I hardly had time to go home to eat or sleep." For her long work week, sometimes 70 to 80 v ours. Hill received $213 a -ek take home pay. But when the com pany brought in Gentle, Hill claims she was reduced to assistant manager, cutting her pay by $40 a week. ^ She was fired when she and r several other employees started picketing to protest Ceramics Classes Ceramics Classes are held at Latta Recreation Center every Tuesday morning from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. There is no registration fee. Cost includes materials and firing. The class is open for begin ners and advanced students. Storeowner Ann McPherson says big business should put more back into the black com munity.t Photo by Eileen Hanson) what they call “discrimina tion against black females in management. “Now Gentle has an assis tant manager. Why wouldn't they give me some help?’’ ask ed Hill. “Just because he’s a man and I’m a woman." Gentle refused to comment to The Charlotte Post, saying the case was in court. He would only say, ‘‘They’re out there because I fired them.” Lawyer for the strikers, Michael Sheeley, has filed 7 cases with the Equal Employ ment Opportunity Commis sion for alleged sex and race discrimination, and for retaliation against employees for carrying picket signs Sheeley said at least 7 of the 15 striking employees were fired Spokeswomen for the group, Elizabeth Stywalt who works at Church's Elizabeth Street store, claims women workers are especially hard hit. “Mostly they hire women to work here because they don't pay enough to hold a man,” said Stywalt. Like most fast food chains. Church’s pays $2.90 an hour, the Federal minimum wage. “We’re out here so it won't happen to anyone else.” Stywalt added. "It doesn't make sense to work 5 years and not have anything. It's just pitiful how they work you to death.” The strikers say 99 percent of the students at Johnson C. Smith University, and about 75 percent of the community is supporting their strike. "The community should be aware of what's going on and support these young adults," said McPherson. She would like to see businesses con tribute to the community by paying decent wages, pro viding better working condi tions and supporting com munity efforts. “Church’s could contribute to Johnson C. Smith, or sup port the student newspaper with ads," she said. “Now they just come in. take money and leave.” Church’s Fried Chicken, based in San Antonio, Tex , employs 6,000 people and has an annual revenue of $226.40 million. There are 5 locations in Charlotte, employing a total of about 50 people. CRC To Find Out & Does Housing Discrimination Exists? by EILEEN HANSON Special To The Post Does housing discrimination exist in Charlotte? The Community Relations Committee is trying to find out through the City's new Fair Housing Ordinance that went into effect Oct. 1. The new law gives the CRC power to in vestigate and prosecute cases where buyers or renters think they have been discriminated against because of their race, color, sex, religion or na tionality. Here’s how it works John and Mary Brown (not their real names), a black cou ple living on the Westside. needed a larger home for their growing family. They found a “just right” house on the Eastside, closer to John’s work. They made an offer on the house, but the real estate agent told them that "so meone else bid higher ' W hen the Browns returned with a se cond offer, the actual asking price of the house, they were told, "another buyer has made the same offer and the owner prefers to sell to them " The next week the "For Sale" sign is still on the house John and Mary smelled a rat racial discrimination. Donna Davis (again fic ticious) wanted to get her own apartment now that she has her first job. She called about a listing in the paper and made an appointment to see the apartment However, when she arrived the landlord told her. "I just rented it to someone else " Ms.. Davis wondered if her skin color had something to do with the rejection. Again, the smell of discrimination Now, for the first time, peo pie who suspect they have been victims of discrimination can get help The first step is to contact the Community Relations Committee, Suite 410 Executive Building, 623 E Trade Street (374-2424). The office is open from 8 a m to 5 p.m. You have 90 days to file the complaint. The incident must have happened after Oct. 1, 1979 The CRC will then in vestigate the complaint, and if discrimination is found, will try to resolve it by an agree ment between the two parties If this is not possible, the CRC will hold a public hear ing. and may take it to Superior Court, with the ap proval of City Council The Committee could seek an in junction against sale of the property, or punitive damages for the complainant There is no charge for filing a complaint and all records are kept confidential No complaints have been fil ed since the new law went into effect, according to CRC Ad ministrative Assistant Robert Stith. However, the office has received several inquiries. Last year the office in vestigated about 10 com plaints, but had no legal authority to back it up "There is no evidence of a lot of housing discrimination in Charlotte, but it does exist." said Stith A 1976 study by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Plan ning Commission showed that blacks had moved into every census tract in the city, a marked change since 1970 However. many neighborhoods are still nearly all-white or all-black “This is partly an economic factor," said Stith "But race is still a large factor is where people live.” Other methods used to keep neighborhoods segregated are "block busting" and "steer ing”. Block busting is when a real estate speculator moves one black family into a block and then tries to peddle panic among the white residents Many sell their homes at low prices and the speculator reaps the profits Steering is when agencies direct blacks to one neighborhood and whites to another A third technique is not providing full information to a renter or buyer Evangeline Redding Will Speak Here by EILEEN HANSON Special To The Post Evangeline Grant Redding, candidate for governor of North Carolina, will speak in Charlotte Friday, Oct. 22 at the Sheraton Center, 555 S. McDowell at 8 p.m. The pro gram is free and open to the public. Ms. Redding will b^ the keynote speaker for Black Awareness Week, sponsored by the Southeast Black Press Institute, an organization of black journalists and authors meeting in Charlotte this week. The theme of the conference and of Friday evening's pro gram is 'Black Studio* and Black Media in the 80s: Scholarship, Leadership and Institution Building." Ms. Redding launched her compaign for the 1980 gover nor's election last June as a people s candidate.” She has been active in civil rights ac tivities for many years, and recently wrote a book about the Wilmington 10 which will be published this month Sheris also author of the book "Nothing: The Mentality of the Black Woman”. R will be available at Friday’s pro gram, or at Dar es Salaam store at 7th and Tryon Ms Redding's campaign manager in Charlotte, Earline Nelson, said, "Now that the mayoral primaries are over we are beginning to recruit volunteers for Ms. Redding's campaign Anyone interested in working for her is welcome.” Ms. Nelson may be reached at 334-9296. On October 25 and 26 a "get acquainted program" is plan ned for Charlotte. Ms. Red ding isa native of Tillary, N C. and now lives in Oxford. 1 Miss Sonja Lee .m ff r.nl ('.harlfftte Senittr Lovely Sonja Lee Is Beauty Of Week by SHERLEEN MCKOY Post Staff Writer Sonja Lee, a senior at West Charlotte High School, is our beauty for this week In her spare time, Sonja said that she likes to play ping pong, listen to music and bake all kinds of pies and cakes. She also likes to act in comedy dramas, something she has been doing since the seventh grade. Athletically-minded, Sonja stated that she loves all kinds of sports, particularly basket ball. I^ast year she played var sity basketball for West Charlotte and anticipates playing again this year A forward on the team, she said, i’m looking forward to basketball season this year I'm expecting to do a lot bet ter.” Sonja describes herself as a "real comical" person, "it's a rare time that you will see me really serious or with a frown on my face," she commented A "fun person." Sonja said that she likes to engage in con versation and finds it "real easy to get along with others ' After graduation from high school. -Sonja plans to attend the University of North Carolina at Charlotte the following fall to major in Psychology "I’m taking it (psychology) in school and it's my favorite subject.” she explained. "I like working and dealing with people " Then, if her good fortune gives her a chance to gel her foot through the door. Sonja has other plans for the future "If I get a chance to make it big. I'd like to have a show like Carol Burnette's," she said (Sonja related that she inherited her comical nature from her mother > One of the most exciting times in Sonja's life occurred last Friday when West Charlotte beat East Mecklen burg in football "It's been a long time since we’ve won a game,’’ she said happily Sonja is competing for the "Miss Carousel," crown this Thursday at the West Charlotte Auditorium The winner will compete with queens from other high schools The final winner will reign as queen and the others as princesses during the festive holiday seasons Sonja is also a member of the Jan Thompson Agency, a group which secures jobs for people in commercials and as models in catalogs As a result of her affiliation with this group. Sonja appeared in a commercial last summer for Central Carolina Bank (shown in Kaleigh and Durham > and in family portraits!not her owniat Ivey's stores Area Residents: Enlarging Streets Is Wrong Move by VALERIE LYNCH Host Staff Writer Will the state rip up 1-aSalle Street and McArthur Avenue or will the citizens let them-’ The North Carolina Depart ment of Transportation representatives and Madison Madison International, a private engineering firm, will host a public hearing at Druids Hills Elementary School, Wednesday October 17, at 7:30 p.m., so that residents of these streets may voice their recommendations and opinions to proposed im provements to their area. The Board has devised an Improvement Hlan to reconstruct westside Charlotte's LaSalle Street and McArthur Avenue as its "1979-85 initial state project." The streets, •* hi eh bogie at Statesville Ave. and extend approximately one mile easterly to Graham Street will affect more than 171 families, in homes and condominiums Residents in the area say that if the improvement plan requires enlarging the streets into a four-lane highway then ' it s definitely a wrong move." A representative Irom the Public Affairs office of the Department o! Transporta tion. Jean Dodd, said that the board is now in the process of updating the project but it could be subject to change. The total cost of Ihe plan is estimated at $535,000 However, it does not incor pirate rise in construction cost Compensation of the Kn vironmental Impact State ment may calculate to be more by the time work begins Home owners and tenants shake their heads in disagree ment to the idea of the State's possibility of widening Ihe streets. "We don't have much yard now." says Mrs Ida Bell Gary, a resident lor over 20 years on LaSalle Street Presently. Mrs Gary lives almost two bloeks away Irom West Charlotte High School where constant traffic emerges in Hie area Then'S enough traffic already coming through with the high school being here If that's the plan, then I'm not for it’ Mrs Gary said that she would rather have sidewalks built on both sides of the street than extra driving space The immediate reaction towaril the potentials ol extra traffic in the neighborhood turns the residents ' off 1, ( Coleman, a community worker, said "all they were trying to do is take the people s land and use if for commercial purposes;! highway " He continues,"This is no im provement Since 1974, 15 dif ferent people bought land on McArthur Avenue and had no idea that this w.,bld happen This speculation is only lor in vestment - Coleman men turned the tact that a nursing home on McArthur Avenue would be nil in hall it a four lane highway came through 'I'li.it business w ould delinitely have to relocate He feels that the $500,000 is too much money to S(>end on an isolated street. "We've never had that much of so called improvement on any other street before The state is just taking the citizens tax money to build a highway on their land People on these streets do not speak out for themselves to officials. They especially do not speak out when they are not informed. The home owners on these streets didn't know a thing about this. " Coleman said Many of the residents on 1-aSalle Street including Mr. & Mrs George McDonald and James Davis say that there is entirely too much traffic now Especially when ball games are played at W'est Charlotte High School. They see no real need to widen the streets Davis said. "The only street proposition I'd suggest would be sidewalks so that the children can walk on them go mg to school." Benjamin Walker, an 1H year resident who lives across Statesville Ave. on McArthur Ave. said, “The on ly improvements we need is curbs and gutters as well as sidewalks " According to another McAr thur Ave. resident, I>ee Pat terson. the city had deleted a short cut to Graham Street from McArthur Ave. into a dead end "It'jrpeaceful now that those big trucks do no! come through! here besides they tear up our streets. And four lanes would end our peacefulness Leroy Kelly said that he would like a dead end on both ends of McArthur Ave “Anyway if they did pul a four lane highway here, where will welive-1" It's evident 'hat the citizens on I-aSalle Street McArthur Ave area disagree with the North Carolina Department of Transport.! tion’s plan of improvement There has been no sign of pro lest but the citizeas agreed in make their grievances known at the October 17 meeting NAACP Sets 36th Annual State Convention Kelly Alexander Sr., presi dent of the North Carolina Na tional Association for the Ad vancement of Colored People announced this week the thirty sixth annual state convention will be held in Greensboro, N C Nov. 8-11, Through workshops, discus sions and presentations, state branches will receive infor mation on implementing policies and procedures A "vigorous and aggressive" action program for the 1980s will be launched to raise public awareness to problems affecting the black population, disadvantaged and poor according to Alex ander 'NAACP Priorities In A Time of Kconomic Crisis" is the conventu>n theme The trouble with tile, you're halfway through before you realize it’» one of ihoOe DO IT YOURSELF