hor Blacks Not To Vote Is A Cop-Out!
By Ofleld Dukes
Special To The Post
Some blacks are trying to make
a case against black participation
in the Presidential election on
November 4.
We do not doubt the good
intentions and integrity of these
persons, but we do have a serious
problem understanding this type of
negative thinlnng. We disagree
vehemently with the notion that
black Americans have nothing at
stake and, therefore, should not
vote on election day.
We also disagree with the pre
mise that there is little or nothing
to choose from in the Presidential
C:tion. This kind of backward,
d-in-the-sand thinking is a cop
uui. r,ven worse man mat, it is a
betrayal to those black civil rights
fighters who were intimidated,
brutally beaten, and some fatally
shot in the determined struggle in
the 1960s to gain and protect voting
rights for blacks.
In the 1960s when he was the
Director of the Southern Voter
Registration Project, Vernon
Jordan would often tell the story
about an old man in his late 70s
who was determined to register to
vote. He leaned on a crutch and
stood for hours in a long line under
the hot, sweltering sun in rural
Mississippi. Watching and waiting
were more than a dozen rednecks,
armed with pistols and clubs.
Unafraid, the man stared straight
ahead while he waited.
A black reporter from the North
went up to the old man to ask him
why was he, at his age, risking his
life to register to vote. Why did he
think his one single vote would
make a difference?
The old man pulled a cloth from
I
his back pocket and wiped the
sweat from his brow. Looking at
the reporter, he paused and said:
“My parents...many years ago...
warned me about a trouble a
cornin’. They told me to stay away
from trouble a cornin’. But trouble
a cornin' ain’t cornin’ like it usta
did.”
The raw courage of that old man
made it possible for blacks in the
South and throughout this country
to vote without any threat of
“trouble a cornin’.’’
On November 5, the election
results will be counted. One of the
two major candidates - either
President Jimmy Carter or
Governor Ronald Reagan - will be
declared the winner and will serve
as the President of these United
States for the next four years.
That man will make major de
cisions determining the fortune
and fate of black Americans. The
reality is that those blacks who
participated in the electoral pro
cess and contributed , in some
way, to the election of the
President would then be in a
position to influence his decisions
about policies and programs af
fecting the lot of blacks. Those who
followed the backward path of
staying home would have given up
their rights as citizens.
In the words of Rev. Jesse
Jackson: ‘‘We can't expect a Pre
sident to stand up if we drop out.
The churches, organized labor,
civil rights groups and the pro
gressive political forces must take
a more aggressive role in all levels
of politics and economics. We must
break the dependency syndrome.
Nobody will save us from us but
us.”
There is no other choice for
blacks but to go to the polls in
massive and record-breaking num
bers to make our feeling known
and let our voices be heard. Our
votes - your own vote - will make
a difference. We cannot afford to
waste it or lose it.
Qeet Again
Jim
McDuffie
N.C. Senate
SBring Your Set In And Save MoneyS
l_T.V. Service
Quality Service At Reasonable Rates
By A Certified TV Technician
WE SERVICE MOST BRANDS
2711 Tuckaseegee Road (At State St.)
399-7150 Open Mon. - Fri. 9-6
During his first term, TOM RAY has worked hard at improving
our community's quality of life.
We wholeheartedly endorse the RE-ELECTION of TOM RAY
to the COUNTY COMMISSION on NOVEMBER 4th.
Deborah Herndon
James Roseboro
_ Toni Brown
Phil Dawkins
Hunt Williams
Senetra Chambers
George Jackson
Tamara Roseboro
Phillip E. Gerdes '
Wayne Stitt
Jim Brown
Naomi Worthy
Mrs. John Massey
Booker T. Maye
Robin Leary
James Smith
Frances Bsten
Melvin Watkins
Mary Kitchen
Ron Morgan
Carolyn Straite
Dorothy Burgess
Lyvonda Monroe
Luther T. Moore
Mrs. Daryl Cassel
Rita Bogle
Fay Harris Maye
Morris Speizman
Donald Pearce
Daryl Cassell
Jim Babb
Bob Culbertson
, Odessa Rose boro
William Starnes
Gwen Williamson
Hugh McColl
Adelaide Hunt
Thomas L. Moore
Willie Robinson
Milton Short
Sharon Bowman
John Massey
Randy Bolton
Tricia Byrum
G. Sidney Waddell
Ella Mills
Gloria Potts
Martha Moore
Betty Maxwell
Marsha Pearson
Emma Bogle
Jim Black
Greta Peay
Mike Cassell
Katrina Brown
Jeff Beaver
Delois Miller
Edward Conway, Sr.
Rufus Lassiter
Viola Allen
Wayne Strong
Vanessa Conway
Victor Fybrace
Randy Taylor
Donald Johnson
Johnny Herndon
Kim Edwards
Louise Roseboro
In Australia, some
one who doesn't
vote gets fined. In
America he’s just
laughed at.
Because:
As a Charlotte City Council Member 1971-1973 Jim
McDuffie was the first elected neighborhood
representative.
Jim McDuffie -- elected to the N.C. Senate in '74 and
'76 was the top vote getter in both elections!
Paid for by Committee to Elect McDuffie
r
Susan Green
Belongs on the County Commission.
Paid lor and authored by Campaign Committee lor Susan Green