Say...NO!
To
School Bond Issue
Page 6A
NO
Salem Baptist
Church Hosts General
Baptist State
Convention
Page 8A
"Cross Of Fire" ...
A Different View
Of The
Ku Klux Klan
Page IB
J.C.S.U. Basketball
Looks To Improve
This Season
Page SB
€f)t Charlotte BosJt
Vol. 15, No. 23 Thursday, November 2,1989
THE AWARD-WINNING "VOICE OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY"
50 Cents
How Valuable Is Political Caucus?
It All Depends On How You Look At The Organization's Contributions, Political Leanings, Most Observers Say
By WINFRED B. CROSS
Post Staff Writer
Members and observers of the
Black Political Caucus agree the
organization has a purpose In
the African-American commu
nity but some disagree on what
that purpose should be and how
to accomplish Its goals.
City council member Ron beep
er has been an active member of
the caucus. He says he Is no long
er a dues-paylng member be
cause, "I'm not sure they are
where I think they should be or
even If they want to be where
they should be.
"I don't think we are develop
ing people. We have to do more
than Just endorse candidates,"
beeper said, "You've got to pur
posely have training workshops
so people can get a feel for the
system. Any organization that
says 'we are about affecting the
political system' should make
preparing people to get involved
In the system (Its) priority."
Frank McCain, chairman of
the caucus' Issues and candi
dates committee, said one of the
organization's main goals Is to
promote new political talent.
"Out of that effort came Focus
on beadershlp, which was the
brainchild of the caucus. That's
not talked about much but it's a
fact," McCain said.
Focus on beadershlp Is a pro
gram designed to train African-
Americans to become communi
ty leaders and to become Inter
ested In the political system.
City council candidates Hoyle
• *>' *■' ' J.'-
1989
Martin and Darryl Broome par
ticipated In the program.
"The caucus recognized a void
In that area and did something
about it. The community needed
something more and we certain
ly responded to (that need)."
McCain said the other goals of
the caucus are to promote and
encourage voter registration and
voting: discuss Issues that relate
to the African- American com
munity as well as the entire
community; provide debates and
forums and to form coalitions
with other groups. It also en
dorses candidates.
"I don't know of any candidate
that does not seek our endorse
ments. There are very few candi
dates who don't call and ask to
present their views to our mem
bership and candidates commit
tee. That's not Just local but
statewide as well. That kind of
says something to us about our
endorsements," McCain said.
Broome, who Is a caucus mem
ber and the first African-
American to be nominated by
the Republican party In Char
lotte, received an endorsement
from the caucus for the Tuesday
election. He said he Is happy
with the endorsement and It Is a
"very progressive move" by the
caucus but he had mixed feelings
about how much clout the en
dorsement carries.
"I think It means a great deal
for those who are not In the jx)-
lltlcal know, particularly older
black church people. From the
See CAUCUS On Page 2A
■ I W
■I
I'SUllUUll uu
. celts
|Mbss Choir, belts out a song Sunday during the
.opening of the General Baptist State Conven-
I' ?iiiB r*. ..'-i-'-- ■iia'''-;- in. MMlHtir-.sii
Photo/FRANK WILLIAMS
TBS' Tx^!Sarloiie» 'Meiisct see the related sto:^ oS
Page HA.
Group Opposes New Bonds
By GWENDOLYN DANIELS
Post Staff Writer
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
schools haven't given taxpayers
the whole picture In pushing for
school funding, officials of Citi
zens for Effective Government
(CFEG) say.
As a result, the watchdog
group Is pushing to defeat the
$80.1 million school bond refe
rendum Tuesday.
CFEG said Mecklenburg
County needs more effective
teachers and parental Involve
ment, not new school buildings,
Don Reid, CFEG president,
and Joe Miller, past president of
the group told a group Monday
at the Adams Mark Hotel that
the group's opposition to the
bond Is based on the fact that
the school population growth
doesn't warrant new and larger
facilities.
'There were 79,000 students In
1979, and In 1989 there are
75,000," Reid said. "That's a
4,000 decrease."
Miller said the schools plan
ning and research committee
predicted a 48 percent Increase
In student population, but the
N.C. state demographer has
predicted an Increase of only 11
percent.
"This (school's projection) is
Just not plausible," MUler said.
According to research done by
CFEG, the Instructional cost per
pupil has gone up 19 percent In
nominal dollars while the ad
ministrative cost per pupil has
gone up 54 percent In the same
period.
Miller said that the county has
also spent bond money on pro
jects that the money was not al
located for.
'To our surprise It Is apparent
ly legal to spend bond money on
any project," Miller said.
CFEG reports show that citi
zens of Mecklenburg County
voted for school bonds In the
general election of 1985 In the
amount of 7.1 million to buUd
Providence High School, which
opened In the fall of 1989. The
reports show that at last count
the high school cost the taxpay
er $20,000.
The reports also showed that
In the general elections In 1985
and In 1987, $6.2 million and 7.8
million were approved to build a
Junior High School in Old Provi
dence and a Junior High School
In South Mecklenburg. Neither
school was built.
Voting to build a particular
school in a designated area Is
reason to believe that the
school system has not been
open and honest about what the
bonds are being used for.
"I hope that they have been
good stewards of money," Miller
said.
Reid said CFEG did not give
this Information to the public
until a week before the bond ref
erendum because the organiza
tion had problems getting Infor
mation from the schools.
"They were difficult to work
with," he said.
Reid said he wants the pro-
bond people to Join them in an
open forum to address the
school bond issue.
He said he wants to let the
public know the issues before
Nov. 7.
Woman Continues
Search For Spouse
lb."!
Ready To Make History
Virginia's Douglas Wilder May Become Governor
BY JEAN MCNAIR
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
VINIXDN, Va. (AP) — Democrat
L. Douglas Wilder enjoys recall
ing that a political analyst pre
dicted his bid to become the
state's first black lieutenant gov
ernor In 1985 would doom the
entire Democratic ticket.
"Now that analyst says the race
Is mine to lose," the lieutenant
governor said last week at a
fund-raiser In his campaign for
governor.
"We've come a long ways," he
said with a chuckle shared by
the crowd of about 400 support
ers in a banquet hall.
Wilder's campaign style In his
race against Republican J. Mar
shall Coleman shows the con
trast from his underdog victory
that surprised the pundits four
years ago.
Ihe 58-year-old Democrat, who
Is seeking to become the first
elected black governor of a U.S.
state, attracts a large pack of na
tional news media and spends
almost as much time signing au
tographs as he does shaking
hands.
After delivering an anti-drug
talk In a classroom at Church-
land Academy Elementary
School In Portsmouth, all the
students wanted to know was
whether they could have his au
tograph. The candidate bent over
each student's desk and signed
his name on lined notebook pag
es.
"If you come out to our school
again. I'm going to make a rap
for you," Lamont Askew, 11, told
Wilder.
Wearing microphones attached
WUder
by crews from Cable News Net
work and the USA Today televi
sion show. Wilder greeted work
ers outside the Dan River Inc.
textile plant in Danville.
Plant employees who seemed
dazed by the cameras and re
porters briefly shook Wilder's
hand and said little before head
ing through the gate.
But a city bus driver stopped
and opened his door to yell at
Wilder, 'You've got my vote." A
few minutes later, a man driving
by In a car shouted, "Coleman
for governor."
Even in the conservative
Southside city where residents
admit racism lingers, Wilder
has a chance of doing better
than Democrats have In the last
two gubernatorial elections, his
supporters said.
'1 think things have Improved
significantly in the past few
years," said Joyce Glalce, one of
two blacks on the Danville City
Council.
Older voters are more likely
than younger residents to be be
influenced by race, said John
Davis, 24, a white electronics
technician who's leaning toward
Wilder.
"When they were brought up,
you wouldn't have thought of
electing a black official to any
thing, " Davis said. "We Judge
people by what they do, not what
they are."
Pittsylvania County Common
wealth's Attorney Ray Carper,
another Wilder supporter, said
working-class residents remain
the most segregated.
"The people that are middle-
class socialize and race Is not a
big Issue," Carper said.
Carper's father, Joseph W.
Carper, said he Is a Ronald Rea
gan fan who likes Wilder.
"I take the man that I like the
best." he said. As for Coleman,
"all he's ever done Is pick on the
opposite team."
Abortion, one of the biggest Is
sues in the race. Is not talked
about much In southside Virgin
ia. But Wilder supporters said
Coleman could be hurt by his
anti-abortion views even in this
conservative area because resi
dents are suspicious of govern
ment Intrusion In anything.
In his stump speech. Wilder fo
cuses on his themes of not turn
ing the clock back and support-
See WILDER On Page 2A
By MILUCENT LINK
Post Staff Writer
December 10, 1974 Is a day
that Annie Bynum will forever
remember. This Is the day her
husband Robert Bynum disap
peared leaving her with four
small children to raise alone.
On this particular day her hus
band Robert asked his wife
whether she would take the chil
dren to school. Then he left in
his wife's Buick.
Five days later, Annie By
num's car turned up In her
mother's driveway with a note
stating that her husband was go
ing to Winston-Salem to get his
mind together and telling her
that he should be back by
Christmas. He also left a $1 ex
plaining that the money was for
bread and gas,
For nearly 15 years she
has searched for her missing
husband. "It is not fair for one
parent to do It alone, because it
takes two people to make a
child," she said.
If her husband is alive she
wants child support and If he Is
dead she wants to collect Social
Security.
Two of her children are under
the age of 18 and are still eligible
to receive chUd support.
The Bynum's first born, Vale
rie Kay was fatally shot at the
age of 12. Annie Bynum tried to
find her husband to let him
know of his daughter's death,
but there was no such luck.
She has tried to declare her
husband legally dead, but has
not been able to do so. The
North Carolina law stipulates
that a person can be declared
dead after seven years under cer
tain circumstances such as
plane crashes or automobile ac
cidents. However, death cannot
be presumed from someone's
mere absence.
Therefore, It will be up to the
Annie Bynum
courts to find sufficient evidence
of Robert Bynum's death.
In June 1983, Annie Bynum
filed suit in federal court asking
to see her husband's confiden
tial Social Security records. In
dicating his employment and
whereabouts. The records Indi
cated that Robert Bynum had
lived and worked In Inman,
Greenville, and Spartanburg,
S.C.
Because of her plight to help
parents that have been abandon
by their spouses and children,
Annie B}mum has established a
support group called the Runa-
See GASTON On Page 2A
Queen City News
JCSU To
Phone For
Dollars
The Johnson C. Smith Univer
sity Alumni Affairs Office will
hold a three-day Phonathon
each evening between the hours
of 6-9:30 p.m., November 14-16.
At that time, a student, staff
member or an alumnus of JCSU
will call Smith graduates, soli
citing their support for the Uni
versity's One Million Dollar
campaign. The funds will estab
lish a $1 million Endowed Fund
for Students of Academic Merit,
$500,000 for University Profes
sorships and $500,000 for Fa
culty Sabbaticals.
For more Information on the
November 14-16 phonathon and
the One Million Dollar Cam
paign at JCSU, call 704-378-
1026.
Inside This Week
Editorials
Pq-
6A
Entertainmen
Pg. 1B
Lifestyles
Pq.
8A
Sports
Pg. 8B
Church News.
. Pg.
9A
Car Page
Pg. 11B
WORD!
Pg-
12A
Classifieds...
Pg. 12B
Subscribe To
The
Charic
>tte Post, Call
376-0496