woe A ny - 0 DON ~~~ “by: Frank D. Brown George E. Curry Black America is in a state of emergency. African- American educators, elected officials, civil rights leaders, religious and spiritual fig- ures, Corporate executives, community activists and oth- ers are being warned of a crisis from which our com- munities may never be able to recover. Some are saying this is Black America's most pressing issue of this new, young millennium. And they are fearful it may resulf in the creation of a perma- nent Black underclass. And now that the country is a month past the national emergency created by the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, these voices are calling for the Black com- munity to pay heel to this other crisis. We must wake up right now, they. say, before it's too late. Ponder these recent statis- tics: About two out of every three Black fourth grade students can barely read. They read below basic liter- acy levels and barely com- prehend the meaning of most words. This is according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, the group responsible for issuing what is known as the na- tion's report card. And Black literacy levels are the lowest of all major ethnic groups. in the _ nation. Further, the rate of A frican- American illiteracy has barely changed over the past decade. Think about it: A decade from now. how will our children be able to function in this rapidly changing 2Ist century information-age society and global economy? This points to the need for an immediate. organized. Strategic. collective —_re- sponse. Recognizing this. the National Newspaper Publishers Associatin (NNPA) is attempting to play a critical role, much as this group of Black publish- ers has throughout its 61- year history. © NNPA is presenting this groundbreak- ing series, focusing on how Black groups are already responding to this crisis, Beginning this week, our four-part series brings to- gether national voices. of concern: We present infor- mation on innovative early literacy initiatives and ap- proaches, and tell the stories. of Black communities that have organizaed and suc- cessfully taken control of ; their local school systems ' and established new educa- tional priorities. We de- scribe programs that cater to the special needs of our youth, and provide excerpts from a new National Urban League publication, " Read and Rise: Preparing Our Children for a Lifetime of Success." We also report on the so- called education-reform leg- islation expected to be voted on by Congress later this month, and explain what this all means in this new era of segregated schooling. Indeed, recent studies show that our nation's classrooms are segregated in numbers the country has not seen since before the passage of the landmark Brown vs. Board of Education ruling in 1954. What are we going to do about it? — Library . DeM> CONTEMPLATE SWITC ms i He PARTIES... by: Vinette K. Price Traditional loyal Black Democrats are rethinking their practice to contemplate a switch on Nov. 06, by voting for the alternative party. Angered by the recent runoff campaign described as dirty and alleged to in- criminate Democrat Mark Green, some claim they will "teach them" a lesson by voting any other party but Democratic. The public discussions started immedi- ately after the recent runoff race, which pitted Bronx borough president —_and minority-favored candidate Freddy Ferrer against former Public Advocate Green. Although it was a close contest, Green raced ahead in polls reported during the final hours. Many attribute the surge to the negative campaign that demonized Ferrer's prinicpal supporter, the Rev. Al Sharpton, as the future dictator and advisor to @ Mayor Ferrer result. Posters reportedly placed in communities displayed a picture of Sharpton along- side the Puerto Rican candi- date, saying a vote for Sharpton, — Rumors had abounded that Sharpton Would decide the-next police Commissioner as well as Other key positions in city gOvernment. Compounded with that, the New York Post repeatedly lampooned ton as the chubby Mouthpiece who ‘would Speak for Ferrer if the Bronx representative were elected. promised a clean ‘ When . ap- proached about the abun- dance of negative campaign material, he denied any asso- ciation, saying he knew nothing of the posters or television ads that ruled Sharpton a liability. The win for Green removed the hope of a minority mayor. To that end, some minority activists are openly advocating a switch. "We ought to be like the other guys in showing intelligence by voting in a way that says we are important,” Conrad Muhammad, head of A Movement for C.H.A.N.G.E. said. "The Democrats have taken the Black vote for granted. We need to exercise a politi- cal option," said Dr. Lenora Fulani, of the Independence Party. The option, Fulani advised, is for minority vot- ers to cast a vote for Republican Mike Bloomberg. She said he offered the best prospect for a better New York. Although Cong. Charles Rangel has not endorsed anyone else since he stepped out for Ferrer, the New York representative met with Bloomberg and is expected to endorse the Republican. Meanwhile, Bloomberg has been meeting with members of the minority community, Last Friday, he met in Harlem with more than 20 members of the Black Press. There he detailed his plans for the city and how he is different from the current mayor, "| would meet with all leaders who have a constitu- ency," Bloomberg explained to the reporters. He said while he would continue to champion the course. of a safe city the way Mayor Rudy Giuliani has, he had a 4 number of added programs he would initiate to keep the reputation of New York as the financial capital of the world. Bloomberg renounced racial profiling. He stressed edu- cation as a priority. He promised more housing. He vowed to keep. businesses in New York. He promised to improve transportation. And he said he would work hard to represent the 8 million residents of New York City. "An inclusive community" is what he pledged. Punctuating that he did not intend to query each individ- ual on how they voted before providing services, he said once elected he would have to serve the entire commu- nity. . In addition to stopping into Harlem, Bloomberg's post- runoff television outreach has been visibly aimed at the minority community. ' Featuring numerous African American faces, Bloomberg's commericals contrast those of Greene's which seem to depict a less diverse New York City, Since the runoff elections Ferrer has accompanied Green on campaign visits to some communities, However, noticeably absent in TV commericals and on the trail is any image of New York's first African American mayor, David N, Dinkins. Despite the fact, the former mayor has decid- edly avowed his support for his "friend" Green during his "Dialogue With Dinkins" segments on the Black- owned radio. station, WLIB ~-- it is only there that Green seems to enlist the support of the official. = s From The Archives of the M'Voice Newspaper The Greenville C.M. Eppes Alumni pose for our camera. Name the persons pictured and win 5 CDs. Photo By Jim Rouse. . 4 4 v We Encourage You To Get Out And Vote Because The Fight Is On Shown at the Greenville City Council Chamber are some of the candidates who are running for the Greenville City Council seats, They are shown answering questions for Mike Hoffman of WNCT. All the candidates encourage you to get out and vote November 6th and remember to mark their names on your ballots. Photo By Jim Rouse a a2 It's Time To Get Out The Vote itical forum. Thirteen candidates are running Sane ed up at WTOW studio for a and Judy Jennette are shown to vote for them on W Joy 1340AM held a for Wahington city council. Four people show live forum. Ed Booth, Bill Booth, Mr. Briley dy outside thestudio of JOY 1320. They all encourage \ Photo By Jim Rouse election day. November 6th. SCLC,,,,,GOD BLESS AMERICA 1!!! | on God Bless America has always been the motto of black folks in America, Dr. “Matin Luther King, Jr., son visited Pitt County's SCLC this past week. Shown above with Brother King is the present local chapter Pres. Phil Higgs and his assistants. . ; bof xs Photo by: M. Adams jy, } ‘ BREENVILLE Ne up Ecu. e tare ‘lina oyner a Lars: