Wedding and Travel Special Section/IB
tKIje Cljarlotte
VOLUME 21 NO. 28
MARCH 28,1996
75 CENTS
Charlotte churches not afraid of arsonists
By John Minter
THE CHARLOTTE POST
The rash of arson attacks on
southern African American
churches hasn’t struck the
chord of fear among Charlotte
congregations, several pastors
said this week.
Investigators have linked at
least 23 fires at churches in
seven southern states, includ
ing neighboring South
Carolina and Tennessee. Most
were set over the past two
years and civil rights groups
fear they represent a re-emer-
gence of intimidation tactics
by white hate groups.
One of two white men
arrested in connection with
church burnings in
Williamsburg and Clarendon
counties, in South Carolina,
had connections to a Ku Klux
Klan faction in Lexington
County, S.C. Whites have
been charged in connection
with several other of the fires.
Federal investigators have
begun taking a closer look at
the arsons as evidence mounts
of a race hate connection.
But Rev. Clifford Jones, pas
tor of Friendship Baptist
Church in Charlotte and mod
erator of the N.C. General
Baptist State Convention, said
he’s not aware of any fires in
North Carolina “that has been
traced to any kind of violence
or racism.”
Jones said
he’s not
heard any
other pastor
express any
fear of possi
ble attacks
here. “Arson
is one of
those things
we would
rather not
talk about or
rather not
think about,” Jones said.
He said the number of
attacks elsewhere is higher
Jones
than during the ‘60s.
“Even doing the height and
zenith of the civil rights move
ment, there was not that mas
sive an attack on the
Christian church as we have
witnessed in the last two or
three years, 27 churches
burned.
“We have a great deal of
empathy with and compassion
for those church families that
have been devastated by
rather sick demonic spirits
with so little regard for a
building that has been dedi
cated to the Lord,” Jones said.
He said there will be a reso-
See CHURCHES page 2A
VOYAGE INTO HISTORY
Dawn Womack, Spirit Square vice president, with Henrietta Marie plaque. Womack secured exhibit of the slave ship at Spirit
Square after local museums turned it down. She has launched a drive to raise $80,000 to bring the exhibit and accompanying
lectures and activities to the Queen City. Exhibit will show this fall in Spirit Square’s Knight Gallery.
Spirit Square official spearheads Henrietta Marie drive
By Tammie Tolbert
THE CHARLOTTE POST
awn Womack believes people should know their histo
ry.
Even if it hurts.
Womack, vice president of art and education at Spirit
Square, is the driving force behind the Henrietta Marie slave
ship exhibit coming to Charlotte. The ship's cargo will be on
exhibit at Spirit Square from Nov. 8, 1996 through Jan. 25,
1997. Discovery Place, the Mint Museum, and Museum of the
New South all declined to exhibit the Henrietta Marie for vari
ous reasons.
"We are still having roundtable discussions about cultural
diversity and inclusion and I am thinking ‘hey, this is the 21st
century, so why are we still talking about multiculturalism, cul
tural diversity, and inclusion?’ ” Womack said. “This doesn't
make any sense."
With today's racial animosities ranging from the opening of a
Ku Klux Klan memorabilia shop in South Carolina to the O.J.
Simpson verdict, American history needs more exploratrion,
says Womack, who has been at Spirit Square for three years.
"Opening up the paper every day and seeing where acts with
blacks and whites are not getting any better, the understand
ing between blacks and whites is not getting better, and blacks
not understanding themselves and denying our past is not get
ting any better are enough reasons to me to have this exhibit,"
she said.
The Henrietta Marie’s voyage to Charlotte has been choppy,
with some venues rejecting the exhibit because of its size or
See WOMACK page 2A
By John Minter
THE CHARLOTTE POST
The YMCA has withdrawn a
proposal to take over manage
ment of Charlotte’s Greenville
Neighborhood Center.
The city’s neighborhood
redevelopment office had been
discussing the takeover with
YMCA officials. But when
community residents and oth
ers who use Greenville found
out about the discussions they
wanted to know why they had
not been included.
Several speakers told the
City Council Monday night
they were interested in look
ing at other alternatives,
including Greenville residents
taking over the center them
selves or maintaining city con
trol.
“Now it’s back to the draw
ing board,” said Larry
Howard, president of the
Greenville Center’s advisory
board. “Some lady said it came
about during a brainstorming
session, but when you start
implementing a proposal,
that’s not brainstorming.”
Howard said he favors the
city running the center. “The
city of Charlotte is trying to
decide what they are going to
do with the building,” Howard
said. “The city will go back
YMCA withdraw
Greenville proposal
and ask the community what
they would like to do...would
get community input.
Hopefully they will involve
the entire community and not
the select few.
“I would think that the city
would continue to maintain
this building, along with
Parks and Recreation, and to
support funding for it and the
building,” he said. “It’s tax
payer money. I think the
building was put here for a
purpose. I hope it will
remain.”
Tom Sadler, president of the
Greenville Homeowners
Association said his group is
interested in running the cen
ter, if the city wants to turn
management over to anyone.
At a meeting of the City
Council Cities Within A City
subcommittee, Don Steger,
speaking for YMCA board,
said it was “stepping aside,”
and would no longer pursue a
Greenville management
agreement.
The YMCA had wanted to
use Greenville center as a
base to
expand programming in the
area between Graham Street
and Freedom Drive, south of
Interstate 85, similar to pro
grams run out of the Johnson
See YMCA page 3A
Fighting Back waits
for foundation’s
funding decision
By John Minter
THE CHARLOTTE POST
Mecklenburg County’s Fighting Back program officials are anx
iously awaiting word on whether the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation will continue funding the grassroots anti-drug effort.
The program is about halfway through a five-year $3 million
grant period to provide anti-drug efforts in Charlotte north and
westside neighborhoods. Foundation officials came to town last
week for a day-long report meeting with city and county officials
and Fighting Back partners. The foundation, one of the nation’s
largest, made the midyear assessment visit to help decide if it
will continue funding for the “drug use demand reduction pro
gram.”
They heard from officials such as Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory
and Ann Schrader of the Mecklenburg County Board of
Commissioners, who co-chair Fighting Back’s executive board.
They also heard from community leaders such as Pastor Gwen
Curry of Present Day Ministries on Rozelle’s Ferry Road.
“I think Fighting Back should be continued with some new
energy and motivation and more internal unity,” Curry said.
“There programs are necessary.”
Present Day Ministries houses Fighting Back’s first and only
Resource Center, which serves Cluster One. Three other resource
centers are planned to serve the four other designated cluster.”
neighborhood grouped together for concentrated services.
The Cluster Two and Cluster Five center is planned for 1514 N.
Tryon St., and was set to open in March. No location has been
selected for the Cluster Three center, but the Cluster Four center
has been proposed for 2209 Statesville Road. It was set to open
this month also.
Curry’s ministry, with her husband, Bishop George Curry,
already was providing services such feeding programs, drug edu-
See FIGHTING page 6A
Howell a pillar of support for academic achievement inside
By John Minter
THE CHARLOTTE POST
PrlOTO/fAUL WILL’A^iS III
Nay Howell leans on “support administrator of year” bronze
plaque awarded by the N.C. Association of Educators.
It wasn’t an Oscar, but the
bronze plaque Nay Howell
received from her peers
recently was just as important
as the coveted statuettes
handed out in Hollywood.
Howell directs the minority
achievement program for
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Schools.
She labors without the sup
port of some other programs
and has to constantly fight
and beg for resources.
When the N.C. Associaton of
Educators named her support
administrator of the year at
its annual convention in
Charlotte, it told Howell
someone was watching and
appreciated her efforts.
“They validated what I had
been doing and what I had
been saying,” Howell said.
“When I found out about hav
ing won the local award, I was
totally shocked. I did not
know I had been nominated.
“Winning the state award
was undescribable. When the
man called and told me, I
screamed. This has encour
aged me at a time when I real
ly needed it. The award says
other educators are saying
‘Nay go on.’ ”
The NCAE said Howell’s
“indomitable spirit” was a fac
tor in her being named sup
port administrator of the year.
“The Minority Achievement
Program she designed, which
looks at the child holistically,
and incorporates her “student-
centered” approach in helping
children succeed has won her
numerous community and
school accolades and letters of
praise,” organization leaders
said.
Howell, who has worked
with scores of community
groups on diversity and
human relations issues, says
her job is to oversee a program
which by its very existence
tells the school system it is
not doing what it should be
doing. The program provides
academic support for children
of color. “Many children are
invisible in our school sys
tem,” she said.
See HOWELL page 3A
Editorials 4A-5A
Community News 3A
Lifestyles 1B
Religion 6B
Arts/Enterlainment 9A
What's Up 13A
Regional News 8B
Sports 10B
Classified 13B
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© 1996 The Charlotte Post
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