A Reawakened
Black Middle
Class?
Editorials/ Page 7A
Looking At Windows On Trade
Lifestyles/ Page IB
First Black-Owned NBA Team
Sports/ 9B
Alliance
NBA Stars
In Gastonia
Page 13B
CFjarlotte
Vol. 15, No. 7 Thursday, July 13,1989
THE AWARD-WINNING "VOICE OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY"
50 Cents
Local African-Americans Entering OOP's Open Door
By HERB WHITE
Post Staff Writer
African-Americans are taking
advantage of the Republican
Party's op)en-door policy toward
blacks by running at-large city
council campaigns.
But those campaigns could
pose some problems for the
GOP as the party faithful de
cides who gets nominated.
Three Afrlcan-Amerlcans--
James Ross, Elloree Erwin and
Roosevelt Gardner--have an
nounced their candidacies and
more may be on the way. At
present, seven Republicans are
expected to run for the four at-
large nominations that will be
decided Sept. 26.
The OOP's success In recent
local elections has made the
party more attractive to voters.
Including blacks, said Mecklen-
■ ■
BMii. I I ^8,
"Ithink traditional
politi^hsvyillbe
shodkeKttos^aa
irtanyblack;::
candidates as we
have;";
Ross Erwin Ganteer
Black OOP Candidates fn AMarge :
.;. PMsidnnt; Mebkieribtirg
'; Blacli iRiepuhiician Poimpll
burg Elections Supervisor Bill
Culp. The party has grown to the
point where there Is now a diver
sity of candidates.
"The Republican Party has ex
perienced enormous success tn
the past few years." he said. "And
that success has encouraged
other Republicans to run."
Bobby Loweiy, president of the
Mecklenburg Black Republican
Council, said the emergence of
African-American candidates Is
likely to astound political ob
servers.
Family Remains Skeptical Of
Recent Mandela-Botha Meeting
"I think traditional politicians
will be shocked to see as many
black candidates as we have," he
said.
While the Republicans have a
slate of African-Americans, the
party Is unlikely to give Its sup
port to any particular candidate
during the prlmaiy season, Culp
maintains. If the number of an
ticipated candidates stays the
same, there's the possibility at
least O'ne black will be on the
November ballot.
"It's too early to endorse any
one," he said. "Once they have
their four candidates, then
they'll back them."
The GOP will offer Its support
to all Its candidates, Lowery
said, but there won't be a special
emphasis on African-
Americans.
"I would expect they would get
the same help as the other can
didates," he said. "No more, no
less."
The sudden appearance of
black Republicans Is linked to
the party's Intention to embrace
conservative African-
Americans. said Black Political
Caucus Chairman Bob Davis.
"It appears there is a new
thrust by black people who were
real active In the 60's and they're
coming back as Republicans,"
he said.
The Republican drive to at
tract African-Americans hasn't
been lost on Its competition.
"It's sending a message to the
Democratic Party about taking
black voters for granted," Davis
said. "I think the Democratic
Party has got to recruit blacks to
See OOP Black on page 2A.
BYLAURINDAKETS
Aasodated Presa Writer
PAARL, South Africa (AP) —
Winnie Mandela met Monday
with her husband. Jailed black
nationalist leader Nelson Man
dela, who has not been heard
from since his meeting last week
with President P.W. Botha.
After a one-hour visit, Mrs.
Mandela declined to answer
questions, saying she first would
talk to antl-apartheld leaders In
Johannesburg.
"I'm afraid we have Instruc
tions from the (black) communi
ty leaders to go and report back
to them before we are able to an
swer questions," she tcrfd report
ers at the gates of Vlcter Vers ter
Prison In Paarl outside Cape
Town.
Mrs. Mandela said she planned
to meet with the Rev. Frank Chl-
kane, a family friend, but gave
no Indication of when a state
ment would be released.
Chlkane on Sunday described
the Botha-Mandela meeting as
an act of "political mischief In
tended to "sow confusion In the
minds of black people and the
outside wwld."
But other antl-apartheld acti
vists and commentators on vari
ous sides of the country's racial
Issues praised the event.
The Independent Cape Times
newspaper said the encounter
had "huge symbolic significance,
foreshadowing Mr. Mandela's
release and, ultimately, serious
negotiation to resolve the South
African crisis."
The white-led government's an
nouncement Saturday that Bo
tha and the leader of the out
lawed African National
Congress had met took the Man
dela family and the antl-
apartheld movement by sur
prise.
"The feeling Is that It Is of vlial
Importance that Mrs. Mandela
meets Mandela personally, so
she does not hear first from tlie
press what Is happening," said
Chlkane, secretary-general of
the South African Council of
Churches.
He said Mrs. Mandela flew
from Johannesburg to Cape
Town to visit her husband at a
prison farm at Paarl.
Chlkane said Mrs. Mandela al
ready had planned to see her
husband and that this was a
"normal visit." Her last visit was
three weeks ago.
Mandela, 70, was transferred
In December from Pollsmoor
prison at Cape Town to Victor
Mandela
Vers ter prison farm, where the
conditions of his Imprisonment
were eased and he was allowed to
stay alone In a prison wairder's
house.
He was jailed In 1962 and two
years later begstn a life sentence
on conviction of plotting to
overthrow the government.
Botha, who Is to step down af
ter elections In September, and
other members of his dominant
National Party have hinted in
recent months that they would
like to find an acceptable formu
la to release Mandela.
Botha has suggested that the
government could modify its de
mand that Mandela make an
outright renunciation of vio
lence before his release.
Mandela retains wide popular
ity among blacks. The exiled Af
rican National Congress guerril
la movement, as well as antl-
apartheld black groups within
South Africa, have said Mande
la's freedom Is a condition for
negotiations with the govern
ment.
Photo/CALVIN FERGUSON
HO'T SUMMER AFTERNOONS... are made for ka, 8, and Perry, 8, help him keep an ew on
nahlng. Mr. Enoch Bynum'a chOdren, Shaek- what'a biting at a local *i«hi«ig p^ryi
lousing Beyond Minorities
Housing Problems Severe Among Poor Black And Hispanic Households
Minority Housing Crisis
BY JENNIFER DIXCXI
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Afforda
ble housing Is beyond the reach
of nearly half the nation's black
and Hispanic families, accord
ing to a study released Monday.
The study by the private Center
on Budget and Policy Priorities
eilso found that blaclm and Hls-
F>anlc8 of all Income levels are
much more likely thart whites to
live In substandard housing.
Using recently released data
from the Department of Housing
and Urban Development and the
Census Bureau, the research cen
ter found that 42 percent of all
black and Hlsparilc households
spent more on housing In 1985
than Is considered affordable,
compared with 27 percent of all
whites.
Under standards established
by HUD, housing is considered
affordable If It consumes no
more than 30 percent of a fami
ly's Income.
'Hie study said housing prob
lems are especially severe
among poor minority house
holds, with nearly four out of
five paying for housing costs
outside the affordable range.
Some 40 percent of poor His
panic households and 37 percent
of poor black households were
spending at least 70 percent of
their Income on housing costs in
1985, leaving little money for
food and other necessities, the
stucfy said.
And while black and Hispanic
households make up 17 percent
of all households In the country,
they make up 42 percent of those
occupying substandard housing
and more than half of those liv
ing In units with holes In the
floor or evidence of rats.
In fact, the proportion of non-
Bigger Schools Are Winning In The Battle For Black Students
RV Tine AACuv^iAnrirn hdtjoa ^ _
poor black and Hispanic house
holds living In substandard con
ditions exceeded the proportion
of poor white households In
similar conditions, the study
said.
"These stark ffndlngs Indicate
that the growing lack of afforda
ble housing has reached a crisis
stage for blacks and Hispanlcs,
as well as for low-income Amer
icans In general," said Robert
Greensteln, director of the cen
ter, which studies the effects of
government pcrflcy on the poor.
Although the study was based
on 1985 data, the report said
housing costs burdens are un
likely to have eased since then
because rental costs and the av
erage Income of poor families
have risen at about the same
pace since then.
In 1985, the stucfy said, the typ
ical poor minority household
had an Income of less than
$5,000 eind spent 57 percent of
Its Income on housing.
"These high housing cost bur
dens are likely to have contrib
uted substantially to the grow
ing problem of homelessness
and to have Intensified other
problems, such as the rising In
cidence of hunger," said Eklward
B. Lazere, the study's principal
See HOUSING on page 3A.
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Severn North Carolina uni
versities expect significant In
creases In black student enroll
ment this fall, but there are
indications the growth may be
at the expense of some of the
state's sm^er colleges.
At Duke University, the num
ber of blacks In the freshman
class will Increase by 25 per
cent
"Since Duke opened Its doors to
blacks In the late '60s, this Is
probably the largest Increase
we've had." said Harold Win-
good, an official In the Duke ad
missions office.
Despite this year's gains, only
about 300, or 5 percent, of Duke's
student body wlU be black.
At Wake Forest, the numbers
are also small, but rising.
Ernie Wade, director of minori
ty affairs, ejqjects a 35 percent to
40 percent Increase In the en
rollment of blacks who are not
athletes.
Overall, about 80 of the 850 in
coming freshmen will be black.
That's more than 9 percent of
the class compared to 8 percent
last year.
Campus-wide, blacks make up
only 5 percent of the student
body, but Wake Forest officials
have set a goal of 10 percent by
1992.
Wade explained that Wake For
est has been aggressively re
cruiting blacks only since 1986.
'We're realty playing catch-up,"
he told the Greensboro News &
Record.
But so are many predomtnant-
fy white campuses In the state.
At North Carolina State Uni
versity, officials project that the
number of blacks In the fresh
man class will increase about 8
percent.
That means blacks should
make up about 10 percent of the
student body.
The news Is not as encouraging
everywhere, however.
At the University of North Car
olina at Chapel HlU, blacks will
make up about 13 percent of the
freshman class, about the same
as last year.
Nationally, the number of
blacks going to four-year colleg
es Is declining. However, some
admissions officers believe the
college-going rate is Increasing
for blacks In North Carolina.
But there's no doubt that the
competition for black students
gets keener every year.
Queen City News
Panel To Discuss
Racial Unity
A panel discussion titled, "Race
Unity: The Most Challenging Is
sue In America," will be held on
Saturday, July 29, 3:30 - 5:30
p.m. at the International House,
3000 Hawthorne Lane.
The panelists will be: Mary
Clark, president of the NAACP,
Charlotte chapter; Louise Sell
ers, conununlty and cMc leader;
and Ralph (Dick) Hauck, vice-
chairman of the Spiritual As
sembly of the Baha'is of Char
lotte.
The panel moderator and In
troductory speaker will be Fred
Me3rers, regional director of the
Equitable Life Insurance Com
pany, from Columbia, Mary
land.
An Informal question and an
swer period will follow the for
mal presentations and partici
pation from the audience
assembled will be encouraged.
The panel discussion is spon
sored by the Spiritual Assemble
of the Baha'is of Charlotte, N.C.,
Inc.
Refreshments will be served.
Admission Is free and there is no
collections. The public Is Invit
ed.
Inside This Week
Editorials
. Pg. 6A
Obituaries....
. Pg. 5B
Entertainment.
. Pg. 8A
Sports
.. Pg. 9B
Lifestyles
. Pg. IB
Classifieds..
. Pg. 12B
Church News.
.. Pg. 4B
Alliance
., Pg. 13B
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