rA
How To Resolve
Marital Conflicts
UFESTYUES/ PAGE 7A
Charlotte To Get More Kool Moe Dee
ENTERTAINMENT/PAGE IB
Black Olympians Honored At Museum
SPORTS/PAGE 7B
CI)e Charlotte
Vol. 14, No. 12 niursday, August 18,1988 THE AWARD-WINNING "VOICE OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY"
50 Cents
Minority Affairs Task Force OK’d 5-1
By HERB WHITE
Post Staff Writer
Mecklenburg County Monday
came a step closer to resurrect
ing its Minority Affairs Office
nearly one year eifter It was all
but dead.
Commissioners voted 5-1 to
appoint a 15-member task force
to study the feaslblltly of bring
ing back the office, which was
merged with the Community Re
lations department last year.
Jerry Blackmon, a Republican,
cast the only dissenting vote
while Democrat Bob Walton, the
only black commissioner, voted
for It.
In the past. Minority Affairs
advocated services and projects
for blacks In addition to serving
as an Information network.
Walton said the vote for a task
force, along with reserving
$40,000 for a minority affairs
program Is the first step In
bringing the office back.
"I'm very pleased that during
budget time the commissioners
saw fit to set aside money to es
tablish a Minority Affairs Office
If that's what they see fit to do,"
he said.
The commissioners will most
likely name the study panel next
month, Walton said. Six com-
Sen. Helms
Backs Black
Judge
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen.
Jesse Helms says prompt action
Is needed to allow U.S. District
Judge Richard C. Erwin of Wins
ton-Salem to
become the
first black
chief district
Judge In North
Carolina.
"I would like
to see him set
that prece
dent," Helms
told The News
and Observer
of Raleigh on
Tuesday,
But Demo
crats say Er- Erwin
win could be
come chief Judge of the state's
middle district without the Sen
ate's action. A key Judiciary
Committee aide said the Senate
would not speed up Its normal
procedures In order to accom
modate Helms.
Erwin would become chief
Judge If the Senate confirms N.
Carlton "Woody" Tilley of
Greensboro for a federal Judge-
ship, clearing the way for Chief
Judge Hiram Ward to go on sen
ior status," a form of semi-
re tlrement.
But Helms contends the action
must be taken quickly.
Helms also accused Senate
Democrats of stalling numerous
Republican Judicial nomina
tions In hopes of killing them If
Democrats win the White House
In November. Because Republi
cans hold the presidency, they
make nominations for federal
Judgeships; Helms controls all
nominations from North Caro
lina because he Is the state's
only Republican senator.
Particularly vexing to Helms Is
the case of Gastonia lawyer
Richard Voorhees, who needs
only a Senate floor vote to
achieve his two-year battle to
become a U.S. district Judge In
the state's western district.
Helms has said that Democrat
ic Sen. Teriy Sanford of Dur
ham and other Democrats are
blocking final action on Voo
rhees. "1 don't see any hopes of
seeing Voorhees confirmed un
less they have a change of
heart," he said.
Sanford said several senators
objected to a final vote on Voo
rhees, but he declined to Identify
them.
Helms has said Sanford's hold
on the Voorhees nomination
was In response to Helms' block
ing of a wilderness bill for the
Great Smoky Mountains Na
tional Park. But Helms said
Tuesday the wilderness disa
greement was "Just one excuse
that's being used" to block Voo
rhees' confirmation.
Walton
mlssloners will name two mem
bers to the task force while
chairman Carla DuPuy will
name three.
Walton didn't say who he
would appoint to the panel, but
would likely choose from people
who express an Interest In serv
ing.
"I'm availing myself to those
persons who may be Interested,"
he said, adding that he would
recommend candidates if other
commissioners ask him to do
so.
The Republican-dominated
board probably didn't realize the
importance of a Minority Af
fairs Office when the program
was dismantled, Walton said.
Blacks accused the commission
of being Insensitive and even ra
cist when the office was
trimmed from the county's bud
get
"In my mind, the commission
ers did not have the full under
standing of what the Minority
Affairs Office was about," he
said.
Election-year pressure from
local groups and Individuals,
however, contributed to the vote
for a task force. Walton said
black support for the office and
his win In the Democratic pri
mary In May helped In his cam
paign to bring it back.
"1 look at it as my Job," he said.
"Regardless of who I sit with. It
Is my Job to make sure the inter
ests of the black community are
heard."
A Minority Affairs program.
Walton said. Is Important to
help blacks gain access to coun
ty politics and business. He com
pared the situation to the plight
of women before the Womens
Commission was established In
1974 behind the leadership of
former commissioner Liz Hair.
"Fourteen years hence, we have
a woman mayor, a woman who's
chairman of the county com
missioners and we recently had
a woman chairman of the
school board," Walton said. 'We
need a Minority Affairs Office to
do the same thing."
Contrary to speculation, Wal
ton said the task force vote was
not linked to his position to
deny county money to Planned
Parenthood. After 10 years of
supporting the agency, Walton
voted in June against funding.
"There was no deal pulled re
garding the Minority Affairs Of
fice and Planned Parenthood,"
he said.
Citing dtipllcatlon of services,
the commlsssioners merged Mi
nority Affairs with Community
Relations. But when It didn't
work, Walton said, separate
agencies became a possibility.
"The fact that It didn't work
out may have helped them say
'maybe we need to bring that
back,"' he said.
Momentum Building To
Eliminate Runoff Elections
By HERB WHITE
Post Staff Writer
When proponents pf second
primaries dragged their feet
about relaxing the choke hold
runoffs have on black candi
dates, civil rights activists like
Kelly Alexan- ~
der were sty
mied.
Now Alexan
der, a former
candidate for
register of
deeds feels
that second
primaries will
soon be a thing
of the past,
and he won't Alexander
settle for anything less than
their total elimination.
'The time to compromise was
last year when 1 was willing to
compromise," he said. "But I'm
not in the compromising mood
now."
The Mecklenburg County
board of elections last week de
nied Alexander's appeal to stay
the May canvass certifying Judy
Gibson's win over Alexander In
the Democratic runoff. The
board, however, will offer a
written opinion on Alexander's
appeal and will submit it to the
N.C. board of elections later this
month.
Paul Allen, Mecklenburg's
chief registrar, said the board
declared Gibson the winner
based on the way current law Is
written.
'The way the election laws are
written and Interpreted," he
said. 'There are a lot of different
variables."
The board could possibly
present Its findings on the ap
peal to the state board as early
as next week at meetings in
Greensboro, Allen said.
"You never know what the
state board is going to do." Allen
cautioned about its reviewing
process. "If the board turns down
the appeal, the next option
would be federal court."
Alexander, state president of
the NAACP, said that although
See RUNOFFS' On Page 2A
This 1985 collage by Bearden entitled BEFORE DAWN Is the model for Charlotte Public Ubraiy mtu^.
Romare Bearden Mural Is Picked
For Charlotte's Main Library
N.C. Colleges Get More
Minority Applications
The Charlotte/Mecklenbprg
Art Commission and the Board
of Trustees of the Public Library
of Charlotte and Mecklenburg
County have announced their
selection of a Romare Bearden
mural for the 1 percent art In
public places project for the new
Main Library.
The 9 foot high by 13-1/2 foot
wide mural, which will be fabri
cated from glass mosaic tiles,
will be placed on the first floor
of the library, adjacent to the
main entrance/lobby area, the
maquette (model) for the mural
Is a 1985 collage by Mr. Bearden
entitled Before Dawn. This work
Was selected; from a group of
available works as an excellent
example of the artist's Mecklen
burg County series. The collage
depicts a family's early morning
activities as they greet the new
day: the rising sun shines
through the doorway.
Romare Bearden, who died
earlier this year, was born In
Charlotte In 1911 and spent
much of his childhood here. Al
though he went on to Interna
tional acclaim and lived primar
ily In New York, he was fond of
saying that In his heart he never
left Mecklenburg. At the time of
his death, he was generally re
garded as the master living col-
laglst.
The $125,000 cost of the pro
ject was made possible by the
one percent of the construction
budget set aside under the City/
County art In public places ordi
nance, and by a major gift fixup
The Charlotte Observer. This
marks the first time since the
Inception of the 1 percent pro
gram that there has been such
public/private cooperation to
meet a budget and see a project
realized. In addition, other pri
vate funds are being raised by a
committee coordinated by Eliz
abeth Randolph, Library Trus
tee, and Jeanne Brayboy, mem
ber of the Arts Commission, to
provide lighting and printed ma
terial about the mursil.
The mural will be scaled from
the original collage and made by
the Crovatto Mosaic Company
of Italy. It Is expected that It will
be installed In the Library near
the end of February, 1989.
The Mecklenburg Board of
County Commissioners unani
mously approved the Bearden
mural In March, 1988. The mural
was then negotiated with Mrs.
Bearden and the artist's estate,
by Jeraldd Melberg Gallery, Inc.,
Bearden's local representative.
The collage Before Dawn, will
be on view the remainder of Au
gust in the lobby of the Char
lotte Observer building.
RALEIGH (AP) — North Caroli
na colleges are receiving more
applications from minorities,
partly because of more aggres
sive marketing, better school
counseling and a growing crop of
students whose parents went to
college, officials say.
'The reasons why minorities
are going to college In Increasing
numbers are the same as why
other students are going to col
lege In Increasing numbers: the
emphasis In our society Is on
getting education," said John J.
Schmidt, coordinator of school
counseling for the state Depart
ment of Public Instruction.
But the higher numbers do not
reflect all good news. Since fed
eral financial aid has shrunk In
the Reagan years, fewer poor
black students might be attend
ing four-year colleges, Patricia
Smith, legislative analyst for
the American Council on Educa
tion In Washington, told the
News and Observer of Raleigh.
The percentage of poor students
has dropped at at least one of
North Carolina's historically
black universities.
At N.C. Central University, 83
percent of the students received
financial aid In 1983. Three
years later, only 55 percent got
aid, a trend that appears to be
continuing. NCCU officials at
tribute the decrease to a growing
number of middle-class students
at the school.
Officials at predominantly
black schools In North Carolina
say they're getting more appUca-
tons this year.
"The message Is out there: When
you go to college It Increases
your ability to participate In the
American way," said Nathan
Simms, vice president for stu
dent services for the University
of North Carolina system.
"And many of those who aspire
to that goal have prepared them
selves well, already meeting or
beating stricter UNC system ad
missions standards scheduled to
go Into effect In 1990," Simms
See MINORITY On Page 2A
CPCC Threatens To Close West Charlotte Location
By LORA VANDERHALL
Post Stafl Writer
Central PleOmont community
College Is threatening to close
the West Charlotte High School
location due to lack of enroll
ment.
The site at West Charlotte
High has been there for the past
20 years and If the program Is to
be continued much more partic
ipation Is needed. Brenda
Froneberger, site administra
tor, says there are several fac
tors which may be contributing
to the lack of enrollment.
"Competition could be one of
the reasons for the lack of par
ticipation. The Double Oaks
site Is open all day and they of
fer the same type of courses. In
addition to that, there are
churches and and other organi
zations with similar type pro
grams."
"But there Is still a need-for
this type program In our com-
tles refuse to use the resources
available to them, despite their
personal need for the services.
Froneberger has been working
very hard to generate Interest In
the program. She has written to
thlrfy churches and passed out
flyers In various neighborhoods.
Gethsemane Enrichment Pro
gram will soon become Involved
In the effort to save the West
Charlotte site. The tutorial pro
gram at Gethsemane will offer
scholarships for parents who
are Interested In taking classes
at West Charlotte. Transporta-
See CPCC On Page 2A
Froneberger
munlty." said Froneberger.
There Is also an amount of ap
athy associated with the lack of
enrollment. This Is an example
of how some black communl-
Inside This Week
Editorials Pg. 4A
The westside's needs
are past due.
Entertainment Pg. IB
skip Murphy vies
for natl title.
Lifestyles Pg. 7A
Soprano to give recital
at SL John Baptist IIA
Sports Pg. 7B
Giants upset Jets in
Triple-County play.
Church News Pg. 9A
Youth workshop at *
SL Luke BaptisL
Classifieds Pg. 12B
The Alliance Sec. C
Subscribe to the Charlotte Post, call 376-0496.
Child Care Ctr.
To Open In
Work Place
Carla Dul’uy, Chairman of the
Board of Mecklenburg County
Commissioners, and Charlotte
Mayor Pro Tern A1 Rousso will
participate In the ribbon cutting
ceremonies at the grand opentng
of the University Child Develop
ment Center on August 25, 12
noon.
The center, a new child care
concept. Is located In the work
place at 8303 University Execu
tive Park offHwy 29, adjacent to
University Place.
This child development center
Is the first of Its kind in this
area, and Is In direct reponse to
the Corporate Champion Task
Force Report which called for
quality child development cen
ters close to where people work.