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OVERDUE HONOR
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Volume 29 No. 32
The Voice of the Black Community
Canciis
Allure is
smcUy
polMcal
N.C. sanctions limits
future fund raising
By Herbert L. White
herh.white@thecharlottepos!.com
Davis
For two years, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Black
Political Caucus will have to be all politics all the
time.
But that’s not necessarily a bad
thing.
With its community funding cut
off by the N.C. Board of Elections,
the BPC will have to survive as a
political action committee.
Contributions must be document
ed and limits are imposed, the
result of last week’s finding by the
State Board of Elections of repeat
ed improprieties by the caucus.
The caucus broke state law in 2002 by accepting
more than $20,000 loaned by N.C. Rep. Pete
Cunningham, exceeding the $4,000 limit per elec
tion cycle. It repaid Cunningham $6,074 from its
general fund, another violation, in addition to
accepting $3,000 in excess contributions from
another political action committee.
“The State Board of Elections felt we violated
the law in a profuse way because we’d done it
before,” said Bob Davis, chairman of the N.C.
Human Relations Committee and a former cau
cus chair. ‘We violated it twice and we should’ve
known better.”
The elections board determined the BPC took
money from its general fund and used it for polit
ical purposes, an allegation initially made four
years ago by Mecklenburg County Commissioner
Please see CAUCUS/7A
Roseland sweeter
community after
year of change
By Herbert L. White
herb.\vhite@thecluirlottepo.'it.com
Roseland Apartments isn’t the same, and its res
idents are proud of it.
The complex, which has undergone demograph
ic and structural changes under new manage
ment, will host the New Roseland Unity Festival
at 1220 Pressley Road Saturday at 1 p.m. The fes
tival is a multicultural gathering with food, music
and snacks. Admission is free and open to the pub
lic.
Roseland, located in southwest Charlotte near
Interstate 77, has changed dramatically with
Interstate Realty Management taking over day to
day operations. Crime has gone down in the
Pressley Road area, with 89 incidents reported
fiom April 1, 2003. to April 1, 2004, according to
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police. From April 1,2002
to March 31, 2003, 121 reports were filed. The
increased presence of law enforcement and kick
ing troublesome tenants out of the affordable
housing complex helped.
We have successfully evicted over 150 undesir
able residents, and we could not have achieved
this without the outstanding support of the
CPMD and Metro (Special Police), as well as the
coxirts,” site manager Nathalie Werst said.
Please see ROSELAND/2A
MINISTERS IN
TRAINING
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inn Realties Ford Rd
charlotte NC 28216-5302
Also serving Cabarrus, Chester, Mecklenburg, Rowan and York counties
WEEK OF APRIL 29-MAY 5, 2004
CELEBRATING APARTHEID S FALL
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO/LORI WASELCHUK
Young and old gathered to celebrate “Ten Years of Democracy” in Pretoria, South
Africa Tuesday where President Thabo Mbeki was sworn In for a second terms.
South Africa cheers
decade of democracy
By Terry Leonard
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PRETORIA, South
Africa - South Africa inau
gurated a president
Tuesday and celebrated 10
years as a multiracial
democracy with cheers
and songs of tribute to
Nelson Mandela, the
patriarch who peacefully
led the nation out of
apartheid.
Thabo Mbeki, Mandela’s
successor as president,
began his second term
with a pledge never to
betray those who suffered
and died to end white
minority rule.
“Despite the fact that we
are a mere 10 years
removed from the period of
racist dictatorship, it is
today impossible to imag
ine a South Africa that is
not a democratic South
Africa,” Mbeki said in his
inaugural address.
“We are proud that every
day now, black and white
Please see SOUTH/2A
Key dates for South Africa since end of
apartheid:
• April 27-29, 1994 - First
all-race democratic elections
won by African National
Congress.
• May 10, 1994 - ANC
leader Nelson Mandela inau
gurated first black president
• Dec. 5,1995 - Truth and
Reconciliation Commission
formed to investigate crimes
committed under apartheid.
• May 8,1996 - New consti-
Mandela
tution ratified guaranteeing equal rights and
majority rule.
• Dec. 20, 1997 - Thabo Mbeki succeeds
Mandela as ANC leader.
• June 2,1999 - ANC wins sweeping majority
in national and provincial elections.
• June 14, 1999 - Mbeki inaugurated presi
dent.
• March 21,2003-Truth Commission recom
mends government pay $348 million to victims
of apartheid-era abuses.
• Nov. 19, 2003 - Cabinet approves compre
hensive AIDS strategy, including free medicine
for all who need it within five years.
April 14,2004-Third democratic national and
provincial elections.
Eastland
hotline
response
strong
Input taken into
account by mall
management
By Chens F. Hodges
cheiis. Hodges @ thecharlottepost. com
Eastland Mall management wants
public input to keep the mall safe and
friendly for shoppers.
Last week, the mall set up a web
site and hotline for shoppers and peo
ple in the community to respond to
incidents involving teens who hang
out in the mall.
Since the hotline and web site were
launched last Thursday, mall officials
said they have received about 100
calls and e-mails.
People who call the hothne hear a
recorded greeting asking them to
leave their comments.
“We’ve continued to work with the
city of Charlotte to identify solu
tions,” said mall manager Kevin
McCluskey.
McCluskey said a number of the
suggestions the mall have received
were both constructive and emotion
al. ‘We had people asking for better
stores, more national stores. We have
people that were for the parental
escort policy and some that were
against it,” McCluskey said.
Before final decisions are made
about changes at the mall to curb
future violent incidents, McCluskey
Please see EASTLAND/3A
Foster kids
get boost in
parenting
with program
By Chens F. Hodges
cheris. hodges@thecharlottepost. com
The Mecklenburg County Youth
and Family Services Department is
joining foster parents and biological
parents to benefit
OPEN HEARTS, ^terkids.
OPEN HOMES Social worker
Dianne Horton
said foster parents and natural par
ents are sharing the duties of raising
children. She said foster parents are
encouraged to allow natural parents
to take a key part in the foster child’s
life - not just do fim things with the
child while they are in foster care.
Horton likened it to a child of
divorce. “If the only thing a child does
with their father is go to the movies
and eat out, but the mother has to be
the disciplinarian, then that is not
realistic,” she said.
Shared parenting also helps the
department with its main objective.
“Our goal is always to be able to
place the child back with their family
as quickly as possible,” Horton said.
Please see NEW PROGRAM/3A
Inside
Editorials 4A
Life 4B
Religion 8B
Sports 1C
Real Estate 5C
Business 8C
A&E ID
Happenings 4D
Classifieds 5D
To subscribe, call (704) 376-0496 or FAX (704) 342-2160.
© 2004 The Chariotte Post Publishing Co.
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