5A
OPINIONS/ The Charlotte Post
November?, 1996
Louis Farrakhan makes a statement for Cuba
Black nationalism has always had two conflicting ten
dencies - conservative vs. progressive. Marcus Garvey’s
Universal Negro Improvement Association in the 1920s
attracted over 1 million followers.
Some were Marxists and socialists, wliile others advo
cated strict racial separatism and black capitalism.
Advocates of Black Power such as Floyd McKissick and
Roy Innis of the Congress of Racial Equality became
apologists for conservative Repubhcanism. Conversely,
Malcolm X moved ~rom the conservative black national
ism of the Nation of Islam in the 1950s toward a revolu
tionary Pan Africanist politics by the time of his death in
1965.
One finds the same contradiction in the politics of the
Nation of Islam and Louis Farrakhan. In the 1970s, the
Nation of Islam’s newspaper, Muhammad Speaks regu
larly presented information sympathetic with the nation
al hberation struggles in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The most popular and prominent opponent of the
Vietnam War, for many people throughout the world,
weis heavyweight champion Muhammad Ah, a devout
member of the Nation of Islam.
On domestic issues, Farrakhan adheres to a conserva
tive social agenda; opposition to black feminism, repro
ductive rights, and gay and lesbian rights. Farrakhan’s
economic strategy is essentially Booker T. Washington’s
century-old program of black entrepreneurship and
racial segregation, patronizing black-owned businesses
as a means to build African American economic power,
while failing to recognize how globalization and corpo
rate capitalism have fundamentally transformed the
rules of the economic game for milhons of working people
regardless of race.
On some international issues, Farrakhan has alsc
taken conservative and even outright reactionary posi
tions. His defense of his visit to the Nigerian dictator
ship, only months after the execution by that regime of
human rights activists, was shameful. Conversely,
Farrakhan has defended the progressive poUtical right
for all American citizens to travel abroad and to dialogue
with other countries that our govermnent opposes, such
as Iraq. Black radicals such as W.E.B. Du Bois and Paul
Robeson took similar positions, and were victims of Cold
War repression.
In his recent visit to Libya, Farrakhan expressed a
desire to his host, that he would hke to travel to Cuba.
Representatives of the Cuban government were contact
ed, and Farrakhan was invited to come to the island. In
September, 1996, Farrakhan and a delegation of about
twenty members of the National of Islam went to Cuba,
as part of a tour throughout the Caribbean region.
During the visit, the delegation spent most of its time
examining two issues - education and public health care.
Farrakhan asked numerous questions about Cuba’s suc
cessful health programs, and its educational institutions.
In an informal conversation with Cuban leader Fidel
Castro, Farrakhan discussed a wide variety of topics,
including philosophy and rehgion. At the conclusion of
the tour, Farrakhan talked at length about his impres
sions of Cuba.
As reported in the Cuban press, Farrakhan declared
his opposition to the U.S. embargo against Cuba, and the
recently passed Hehns-Burton legislation which greatly
restricts economic, social and cultural contacts between
the American and Cuban people. Farrakhan stated that
“Cuba is on the right path”, and asked why a coimtiy
should be “punished for attempting to make its own way
in the world, through its own efforts.” He stated that
Farrakhan
“Cuba must be allowed to build its own destiny.”
When asked if he and others in his delegation were
concerned about having their passports seized by U.S.
officials for travelling to Cuba,
Farrakhan replied that conviscating
their documents “would be a mistake,”
because the group had “come on a reli
gious mission.” Farrakhan-explained
that while he and others in the delega
tion “had learned about the shortages
of medicine and other essential goods”
inside Cuba due to the US embargo,
that they had also recognized that “the
fundamental strength of the Cuban
people is their spirit, their will and
their capacity for resistance.”
Farrakhan charged that the U.S. gov
ernment’s policies against the Cuban people were inhu
mane and indefensible. “President Clinton should
remember what happened in Babylon,” Farrakhan
warned. In that ancient country, “those who were
responsible for wrongdoing received the hearts of ani
mals in place of human hearts.” The U.S. today suffers
fiom “the same symptoms as ancient Babylon,” the same
“arrogance” and “insensitivity.”
Progressives who support Cuba’s right to self-determi
nation and who favor direct dialogue, economic and cul
tural exchanges with that country, find themselves
agreeing with Farrakhan on this issue. This only rein
forces the fact that while black progressives and femi
nists disagree with Farrakhan on many issues, that we
can iU afford to refuse to engage in a real dialogue with
him. People who hold different political perspectives can
in many instances work together for common purposes.
MANNING MARABLE is Professor of History and
Director of the Institute for Research in African-American
Studies at Columbia University, New York City.
To keep pro basketball, Charlotte needs new arena
By Ed Brown
SPECIAL TO THE POST
We need to re-focus the
debate.
Does Charlotte want to keep
its National Basketball
Association franchise long
term?
'That is the central question. It
has been obscured by the media
reports and resultant discussion
this week surroimding the pos
sibility of a new Uptown arena
as the centerpiece of an econom
ic development proposal.
There will be a detailed pre
sentation to Charlotte City
Council and the Cameron Blue
Ribbon Committee on Nov. 11.
Prior to that meeting, any dis
cussion of the specifics of the
proposal we are trying to assem
ble would be inappropriate.
But there is some pertinent
background that helps explain
why we have worked for more
than six months to put together
a proposal worthy of considera
tion by City Coimcil.
The central issue is whether
the Charlotte Hornets can
remain a viable NBA francliise
while contiuing to play in a
building that does not provide
the team revenues comparable
to other NBA teams. It is
increasingly obvious that the
answer is a resounding “No.”
And league-wide trends are
working to further erode
Charlotte’s position. NBA
Commissioner David Stern
Why city needs to
support Hornets
recently stated that by 1999, all
but on team in the NBA either
will be pla5Tng in a new-genera-
tion arena (one that includes
substantial premium seating
revenue) or have one under con
struction.
Unlike the NFL, the NBA
includes all revenues, including
premium seating revenues, in
determining salary cap.
Therefore, the salary cap will
continue to rise significantly
over the next few years. And
unfortuneately, as we all recon-
gnize, the Charlotte Coliseum
offers negligible premium seat
ing revenue. By way of example,
Charlotte is projected to rank
25th our of 29 NBA franchises
in gross arena revenue for the
“96-97 season.
The consultant hired by the
City of Charlotte to review this
situation has conciured that the
Coliseum is not adequate to
generate the required revenues
for an NBA franchise.
Additionally, the consultant
determined that modification of
the existing facility is neither
structurally feasible nor a long
term solution.
In the end, the franchise will
need a new, competitive plasdng
facility—and the tens of millions
of dollars spent on renovation
would have been wasted.
So, the short-term question:
Does Charlotte want to field a
competitive NBA team? And
again, the long-term question—
the real question—is: Does
Charlotte want to retain its
NBA franchise?
If the answer to theat question
is “yes,” than a new arena must
be built. The details then
become where and how. The two
most obvious possibilities for a
new site are on the Coliseum
property or Uptown.
(Some news stories earher this
week reported that the private
sector would buy the existing
Cohseum as a part of a develop
ment proposal for a new arena.
This is factually incorrect. That
site is city property, and City
Coimcil will decide the future of
the Cohseum. That is not part of
the plem we are developing.)
The existing Coliseum site has
been an economic boom for
Charlotte, which is testimony to
the city’s foresight in making
major infrastructure investment
in the T5rvola Road area. The
result has been the creation of
thousands of jobs and hundreds
of millions of dollars added to
the real estate tax hase for the
city and the county.
So, the city investment served
as an unbehevable catalyst for
economic development, and the
return on that investment has
been gratifying. All that is true
despite the fact that the
Coliseum was not built as an
NBA facflity. Its original intent
was to serve mainly as a college
basketball arena.
An Uptown site for a new
arena appears to offer much of
the same potential. As the
Panthers have proven with
Ericsson Stadium, the citizens
of this region are ready to come
Uptown. As the Performing Arts
Center proved with “Phantom of
the Opera,” the citizens of this
region are ready to socialize
Uptown.
If a new arena were to be built
Uptown, the citizens of this
region will come Uptown to
enjoy the Hornets, the just-
announced women’s NBA team,
the circus, ice-shows, concerts
and other events.
And if a new Uptown arena is
buUt, the city then will have the
opportunity to determine how to
maximize taxpayer’s investment
in the Coliseum property. On
any score, given the economic
boom that has occurred in the
Tyvola Road area, that public
investment has been excellent.
As to the second detail—^the
“how” of building a new arena—
many cities around the country
have determined that substan
tial public dollars fi*om a variety
of sources are justified.
Generally these kinds of analy
ses have concluded that the eco
nomic impact on a community
by a professional sports fran
chise benefits the entire commu
nity. By way of example, some
economists estimate that the
Charlotte Hornets have a $200
million a year impact on this
commuity.
Our group has been working
hard to deliver an economic
development proposal to the
City Coimcil that will give them
some options. We want a pro
posal that will address the
increasingly obvious revenue
problems with the Coliseum.
We also want to present an
idea that will have clear and
obvious economic value, both
short-term and longer-term, to
Charlotte and its surrounding
region. We would expect that
value to be so clear that the case
for some level of public involve
ment will be compelling. It will
be worthy of public support, or
we will not present it.
Again, we will present an
important, exciting, visionary
economic development proposal
for the city of Charlotte. We are
confident the entire community
will benefit and that City
Coimcil will recognize it merits
serious consideration.
And, we are not losing sight of
the central question: Does
Charlotte want to keep its NBA
franchise long-term? We are
working hard to dehver a pro
posal that will answer that
question resoundingly and affir-
matively.
ED BROWN is chairman of
the Business Development divi
sion of the Charlotte Chamber of
Commerce. He is also chairman
of the Carolinas Partnership
and president of the
NationsBank Corporate Einance
Group in Charlotte.
A bridge back for returning ex-offenders
By Dennis Schatzman
SPECIAL TO THE POST
While on the reelection circuit,
Gil Garcetti, the embattled Los
Angeles County district attor
ney of O.J. Simpson fame,
promised, a powerful group of
black ministers he would draft
legislation that would require
offenders who are high school
dropouts to earn a general
equivalency diploma before
being released.
If Garcetti makes good on his
promise, he would be prudent to
find a community-based correc
tional care facility with a proven
success rate to implement the
program. One such facility is
Bridge Back, an inmate out
reach center right smack in the
middle of South Central Los
Angeles. But I warn you,
although the place houses up to
77 non-violent offenders serving
the last four months of their
sentences prior to parole, you
have to look veiy hard to find it,
unless you know exactly where
it is. These inmates are rarely
seen and seldom heard.
Bridge Back is operated in a
quiet unassuming building that
sits near the busy corner of
Western and Vernon Avenues.
One doesn’t see young black
men standing around chillin,’
drinking 40 ounce beers, shoot
ing craps or engaging in any
other ne’er-do-well type activity.
Instead there are dozens of
young men inside working,
studying, going out on jobs,
attending schools and the like.
As they carry out their daily
activities, you don’t hear a peep
out of them.
A reporter who used to catch
the bus at the comer every day
never knew the place was there
until he heard the residents
were about to be moved back to
county jail by the Department of
Corrections as “a precautionary
measure” during the final days
of the federal trial of the four
LAPD officers charged with
beating black motorist Rodney
King. Celes King, III, state
president of the Congress of
Racial Equality of California
and the members of the local
businessmen’s association heard
about the discriminatory move
(similar centers located in white
neighborhoods were not forced
to relocate) and “persuaded” the
state to put a stop to such
action. 'They argued successfully
that the Bridge Back residents
were never involved in the April
29, 1992 riots that followed the
officers’ Simi Valley acquittals.
So why the harsh treatment,
they asked?
King, a local bail bondsman
and prominent civil rights
leader, has been a long time
friend of Roy Evans, Bridge
Back’s founder, administrator
and proprietor. “I have known
Roy for nearly 30 years,” beams
King, whose office is walking
distance from the facility. “We
answered his call for help on
that matter mainly because Roy
is the kind of guy who doesn’t
cry ‘wolf.’ When he says ‘let’s,
we say ‘go.’ When he says ‘Hal,’
we say, leluha.’ It’s as simple as
that. And CORE makes no
apologies about its support of
Bridge Back.” Evans founded
Bridge Back 14 years ago. He
operates the facility of a
$950,000
yearly budget.
A staff of 16
persons pro
vides 24 hour
service (which
includes job
preparation,
placement,
substance
abuse assis
tance, stress
management,
victim awareness training and
computerized educational ser
vices), seven days a week. Two
parole agents are assigned to
the premises.
Since its inception, over 5,000
people have passed through its
doors, receiving food lodging,
counseling and training before
being reintroduced to their
home communities.
Schatzman
“Bridge Back has come a long
way from its beginnings as an
anti-substance abuse program,”
Evans explains. “In the early
days we took advantage of the
opportunities provided by the
War on Poverty and Model
Cities programs to create and
establish programs of our own
throu^ which attacked some of
the problems overwhelming our
community. We networked, we
opened our organizations,
staffed them, and started to
work on the needs among our
people.” In a community where
nearly one-third of all black
men are either in jail, on parole
or on probation, correctional ser
vices has unfortunately become
em imwelcome growth industry.
Yet it is usually the court sys
tem, the lawyers and the jail
houses that reap the lion’s share
of the benefits. Evans believes
more Bridge Back-type facilities
are needed.
DENNIS SCHATZMAN is a
journalism professor in Los
Angeles.
In support of
diversity
By Sylvia Perry
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER
PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
Unity in the community
and all around the nation
appears to be the current
chime of the year. However,
an integral part of unity is
understandir^ - understand
ing and appreciating the
diversity and differences that
make us all unique.
One of the biggest fears that
people have is differences.
The Pilgrims didn’t hke the
Native Americans because
they were different. Cathohes
didn’t hke the Jews because
they were different. The
Americans fought with the
British because they wanted
different laws. In college,
AKAs didn’t like Deltas
because their colors were dif
ferent. Omegas didn’t hke
Kappas because their images
were different. Republicans
don’t get along well with
Democrats because they have
different philosophies.
Homosexuals are not hked by
conservatives because they
are viewed as different.
Whites didn’t like blacks
because they were different.
We could go on. Yet, the one
common characteristic that
we aU share, no matter how
many differences we have, is
that we aue all human beings.
We often forget these things
when we make references to
others who are not hke us.
Instead of shedding hght on a
subject over which we find
ourselves at odds, we immedi
ately ridicule or put each
other down. So what if it’s not
for you? So what if it’s differ
ent? Why do you worry? AU of
the energy that’s put forth
into generating negative
vibe^, could be turned into
positive energy — an asset for
you.
Celebrate the diversity of
others and rehsh the charac
teristics that make them dif
ferent. Broaden your own
horizons while strengthening
your understanding of
mankind. No matter how
many letters you may have
following your name, the
greatest gift you can give
yourself is a Ph.D,. in
Diversity The kind of degree
you can’t buy, but must earn
by experience and knowledge.
TTie first time I saw a white
pride shirt, it floored me. It
was the confederate flag on a
shirt that read, “You wear
your X, I’ll wear mine.” It
made plenty of sense alter I
read it. Who was I to be mad
at what someone had on their
shirt. If the shoe was on the
other foot, I would probably
be ready to fight if chaUenged
about my choice of apparel.
After I thought about it and
got over my shock, I pohtely
smiled and kept going when I
saw them again. That was
the weekend I decided to read
up on the confederacy and the
lifestyle of whites in the south
during that era. There’s noth
ing for me to relate too, but at
least I took the time out to
educate myself about them
before passing judgment
And, though I do not agree
with their praising of the old
ways, I accept and respect
their opinion as I would
expect them to respect mine.
When you have a free
moment, take the time out to
really talk with someone who
is different from you. Don’t
limit yourself by color, race
creed or religion. They’re all
types of inter-cultural differ
ences that separate us.
There is so much that we
can do to help ourselves
understand others, but it all
begins at home. Don’t expect
anyone else to give you any
more respect than you’re will
ing to give. And remember no
matter how you look at it, we
are all the same. If you pinch
me I win hurt. If you cut me,
like you I will bleed
Celebrate diversity, celebrate
others and you will find great
spirit and strength in cele
brating yourself
SYLVIA PERRY is manag
ing editor and co-publisher of
the Jacksonville Free Press.