By Susie Clemons Greenville, NC | GREENVILLE, NC - The West Greenville Focus Group (WGEG),. a coalition of residents, neighbor- hood groups, community organi- to:provide new homes for employ- zations, and businesses, is asking where's the fairness in eliminating a historically Black voting district ee eee He eeoen ees of thé soon to be completed ECU School of Nursing and the University Health Systems Car- diac Center. a It's no secret. that the Thomas R. Williams (stand: ing on the left behind the group) is from Rocky Mount NC. He joes from Rocky Mount enior High School in 1957. He enlisted in the United States Navy in August 1957 and retired on October 31 1987 with the rank of Commander. Com- mander Williams served in sub- marines as an enlisted man and as a Naval Aviator after being commissioned in 1966. He has bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from North Carolina State University and a Master of Science degree in Systems Management from The University of Southern California, Following his mili- tary career, he worked for EW A Inc”in Ridgectes;CA provid- military experiences wi Former Submariner Thomas R. Williams shares th Little Willie Center grandchildren who also live in Greenville. He stays busy in re- tirement with travel, teading, fishing, hiking, golfing, and vol] unteer activities. that, “there were no iti meiioee. 2. Minority Communitie RNR RR RE OI si Helis Ea: RR Ce te re a 76 ae tn ee ¥ * ae @ oe mission (GRC) and the West Greenville Focus:‘Group (WGFG) have been going back and forth for some time now concerning the fate of the Center City-West Greenville Revitalization, The proposed 45- block area of planned revitaliza- tion. in West Greenville is strate- pically located between East Caro- ina University main campus and the new site of both the ECU School of Nursing and University Health Systems Cardiac Center. In a landslide vote of 6 to 1, over the objections of West Greenville residents, the To the left is Amos Blunt and years. Hemby died in the 30’s, survived by his current wife, great grandchildren, ro Greenville Redevelopment Com- Jamine Edwards Next to th At the time of his a daughter, two sons, The Desceendents of Amoos and Annis Carr Hemby will come together for th ier iat. = PR vera 200 a ae Sv ee Ra we 88 hoe Greenville Redevelopment Com- mission approved plans for the Center City-West Greenville Re- vitalization. But now those plans may be changed after the Plannin and Zoning Commission refused to give their approval of the plan, after considering questions raised by the West Greenville Focus Group. Since that time the Focus Group and City of Greenville of. ficials have been working on a compromise plan. Political Base Threatened The Center City-West Greenville Revitalization will dis- place in excess of 3,500 Black resi- ee HR eeu & Since 19886 intents atthe eee Complimenta: Please Take One] (Retail [VOL XVIIENO. IX July 1 - y { SSuULe Value: $0 Cents) N 30,2005 | dents who live in the 45-block area, including virtually all-exist- ing Black owned businesses and their more than 100 employees. WGFG spokesmen Rev, Ozie Lee Hall, Jr. says, "This action will eliminate the political voice of the Black community to elect repre- sentatives to City and County government. It also will mini- mize the Black voting strength in the 8th House, 3rd Senatorial, and Ist Congressional Districts that were originally carved out. by the Justice Department to al- low representation that had been Story Continues On Page 5 death, the Daily 175 Grandchilkdren, at is that of Freeman Hemby who lived to be 103 | Reflector reported that Hemby was 15 great Blount and Jamine Edwards B eir quinennial (every five years) dchildren ‘and 25 great ount and Freeman Hemby reunion beginning Friday night, August 19, 2005.. ®6%6 Exploring Our Past by MaryWilliams (p GREENVILLE, Ne North Carolina. 15, 2005), the town tended to the Frog City of Greenville -of Blount Towr were all “col- ored folks” and were mem- “bers of the same family. ‘Deacon Best recalled. White people in Blount Town and that the land was owned by Amos Blount (pictured above),” who was one of the first settlers. There was a road that cut through the land and even to this day, most Blacks who have resided in this area refer to this road as Blount’s Lane. From what itured in the back on left) - Blount Town, Pitt County, More research will be needed to uncovered the dates when Blount Town was es- tablished. However, according to Deacon Leroy Best, recently deceased (August 21, 1915 - July was located in Pitt County in and around Waterside Baptist Church and ex- Level area. At that time the was much smaller and _ Seemed quite a distance away. Ac- cording to Best, the residents for worshi fessor Go Kilpatrick, Amos Blount owned about t dred (300) acres. Jim Blount owned about seven acres of land in front of the current Warren Chapel Church. It was rumoured that Jim lost his land because of taxes. At that time, tioned as a school during the week and was used on Sundays. Under the direction Pro- dson who was the Gibbs, Mary Walker, Williams worked ing to Deacon Best, some of the The Story of Blount Town father’s name was Major Best. jccording to Jesse r ee hun- Warren Chapel Church func- principal, Delzora Glenny and Layette as teachers. Accord- men were Rev. Hill and Sweet?, and Professor Artis (Dr. Isaac Artis father) also taught there. When I asked him who lived in Blount Town at that time, he replied repeatedly “there were no White folks there,” and the area had from eight to ten households. He recalled by name that some of the people who lived there were “Boy” Evans’s father, Viola” Knox, Tom Turnage (the oldest name there) and Anna Evans who was taised by The Children of The Little ing engineering support for, elec- Willie Center: FRONT ROW (left to rigbt) Jattir| I recall Best said, “there should be a hundred acres Tom Turnage. Mary Sue Brown married Arthur tronic warfare ‘programs for the raige 8; Joshua Paige 10, nt Cari 7, Jaylen Jones 4, Jeniya Garris 4, Brianna} of land there.” After Mr. Blount died the land Mabry and Lonnie Brown was the first Colored US Government. He and his Li e 5, Ariya Lynch 7. MIDDLE ROW (left to right) Darrius Ward 11, Joshua was said to be heir property. Family members said man to build a brick house. wife, Carol Clawson Williams of Stratford CA, reside in Greenville. Mr. Williams has a daughter, a nurse at Pitt County Memorial Hospital, and 3 Jones 10, Teaswana Garris 8, Dasia Ward 8, Shazia Brown 8, Isaiah Carr 9, Sequoia Nobles 9, THIRD ROW: (left to right) Tius Wooten - 22, Youth Advisor, Mike Best - 16 Youth Adviser, D.J.Smith - 13, Youth Adviser, Marty Best - 12, Youth Adviser, De’Shondra Harris 10, Shaquanna Jones 11, Randy Jones 13 and Oldliria Carr 11. Deacon Brown recalled that, “the house had lass partitions in it.” Best named not only John Brown, but also Amos Thigpen, Ben Brown, He- brew Spell, John Ivey Spell, Sr... McLawhorn and See Community Voices - Page 7 that Blount had split or ‘pointed out’ to his family members a lot or an area they were to live on. On the opposite side of the Blount Town land was the Best farm. That is the land we are now on. My mother’s name was Pearlie Johnson Best and my girls ages 9-15. The basketball League was established in 2003 something constructive to do over t ing Pictured are the Lady Sparks who well as the tournament game was played Wednesday, July 2 nority Voice Newspaper an Players much future success. the young ladies will have a better chance and opportunity to better their skills and possibly have a chance to obtain a scholarship for college. Coaches Eddie Grimes and Ervin Mills are only two of the basket all coaches in Greenville who support and direct the talented youn , 80 that the young girls would have he summer, With the proper train- won this season's championship a games. The season started in Juné.and the las 7", 2005. All of us here at the Mi WOOW radio station wish the coaches an PHOTO: Faith May ' Wachovia partners in support of African-Americans CHARLOTTE, NC - Wachovia Corp. will contribute $10 million over the next five years to help benefit the African-American community, The Charlotte-based bank (NYSE: WB) says the funds will go to- ward preserving and promoting Afri- can-American hi ® istory and culture and NC educational and economic NC Democrati RALEIGH, NC - North Catolina Democratic Party Chair Jerry Meek announced that Starla McKenney has been hired as Deputy Executive Di- rector. In the position, McKenney will focus on building the Party across the state and oversee the Party's regional litical directors, Mark Hufford was ired as Western Political Director in April and Joyce Mitchell was hired as Eastern Political Director in June, A Central Political Director will be hired in the near future, C Starla McKenney, a _ of Pict Jounty, up in a political famil where both patent held elected of- fice, her mother was'a Pitt Coun Commissioner and her father was Greénville Mayor Pro Temp and Ci Councilman, A graduate of Nomh aes opportunities for Aftican-Americans. To that end, Wachovia is form- ing and broadening partnerships with various organizations, Wachovia will work with the As- sociation for the Study of African- American Life and History to support ublic education of African-American bistory told from the African-Ameri- c Party Carolina Central University, she most recently served as the Legislative Li- aison for the N.C. Department of Health and Human Servies, She was Political Director for Erskine Bowles’ 2004 U.S. Senate campaign and the Special Assistant and Legislative Liai- son for N.C. Insurance Commis- sioner Jim. Long from 1996-2003. McKenney has been very active in her community and in the Party. She was a recipient of the RaleighWake Citizens Association's Community Award, was a member of the Governor's Minority Executive Leadership Council and served on the NC Democratic Party Council of Review, the NC Democratic Party Stave Executive Committee and the Wake County Democratic Party Af- can perspective. Wachovia will sup- port the creation of new curriculum resources for an online education tool developed by the National Humani- ties Center for teachers and students. Funding will support access to education through a significantly en- hanced partnership with the United Negro College Fund, a new partner- hires Deputy Exec. Dir. rican American Caucus. She is cur- rently a member of the Wake-Wendell NAACP serves on the Partnership Elementary PTA Board and an active member of Elevation Baptist Church in Raleigh. “We are thrilled to have Starla McKenney on board as our De uty Executive Director,” said North Caro- lina Democratic Party Chair Jerry Meek. “Her government and politi- cal experience and community involvement will strengthen the Democratic Party as we continue. to build the Party across the state. Starla’s hiring will help to fulfill my promise to provide unparalleled support for parties,” McKenney,will start work Aug. 2nd. . ship with the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund, and continued su port of the NAACP’s educational agenda, which is aimed at eliminat- ing educational inequity in our nation’s public schools. Support for a National Urban League initiative will help provide capital and technical assistance to minority-owned small businesses with annual revenue between $500,000 and $1 million. “Our partnerships reflect feed- back and ideas that we received from employees, customers and community organizations, including many leaders in the African-American community,” says Wachovia Chief Executive Ken T ae “We believe that these special efforts, combined with our high level of ongoin community sup- port, demonstrate Wachovias stron, commitment to serving groups and individuals who have been historically underserved.” The new and enhanced partner- ships reflect a total corporate contri- bution of more than $10 million over five years, which will be enhanced by additional volunteer support, em- ployee giving and technical assistance. €¢ new community initiative follows Wachovia's June 1 announce- ment of historical ties to slavery through two predecessor companies, . election. We WASHINGTON (NNPA) - Be- _ Gause America has fallen short _ Of Services’ to the poor and le of color, the National Ur- an ue will use. its annual convention this week ro focus on ' ,fesources within the Black com- munity and establish an “oppor- tunity covenant’ for the 21st century, says National Urban gue President and Chief Ex- “ecutive Officer Marc Morial. "This year’s convention is Very different from others,” says Morial. “We probably have fewer “Washington election offi- cials’ than we've had in the past...We want to focus on the community building itself up. We also want to focus on the _ community developing a conver- sation about what we need. This is the year after the presidential : ave to contextualize ir,” Morial says focusing inter- nally does not mean that the fed- eral government will be absolved of its responsibility to help im- By Earl Ofari Hutchinson Editor's Note: Stops and SON gees. +. searches by Brit- | ish po- ‘| lice are dispro- |} portion- /] ately tar- | geted at lacks and Asians and do not deter terror- ism, the writer says. | LOS ANGELES—The slaying of Brazilian legal émigré Jean Charles de Menezes by the Lon- don police again cast an ugly glate on racial. profiling. in.Brit- ain — police procedures that have had nothing to do with stopping terrorism. uring the past decade, Lon- don police have stopped, patted down and detained legions of black, Asian, and Muslim doc- tors, lawyers, athletes, business rofessionals and even British Frome Office officials. Accord- ing to a voluminous 2003 Brit- ish Home Office report, “Race and the Criminal Justice Sys- tem,” Blacks and Asians were four times more likely to be stopped than whites. North Af- rican and Middle Easterners were seven times more likely to be stopped than whites. The humiliation of being subjected to unwarranted stops and searches didn’t end there. London police have issued scores of what's euphemistically called a “producer.” That's a summons that requires the detainee to ap- pear at a police station and pro- duce their driver's license and Car registration. . British officials claim that . the unwarranted stops ‘and searches are a regrettable but necessary tactic to fight terror- ism. That's not true. Three years before the London train station Declarin on th by George E. Curry NNPA Editor-in-Chie CHICAGO — When the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA} bh held its 65th annual con- vention here last week, there was one topic that overshadowed the usual maneuverings to elect a new president and the perennial concern about " the failure of major corporations that rely on Black consumers to advertise in Black newspapers. The burning is- sue this year — and I do mean burning —~ was the disclosure that the New York Times plans to start an African-American newspaper in Gainesville, Fla.. Black publishers freely con- cede that anyone has the right to start a newspaper. That is not the issue, What is so galling is that White-owned media companies that have done such an embarrass- ingly poor job of accurately por- _traying people of color on their 4 prove the plight of the a g of Brazilian _ fhe opportunity covenant is about jobs, housing, entrepre- neurial and business develop- ment, health care and. the ti fe of all Americans to have health care, and education, five pillars of the covenant,” says Morial in an interview with the NNPA News Service. “This is a covenant between the people and their government, a cov- enant between people and society, it is basically a covenant that we think is needed to develop the coun- try in the 21st Century and to de- velop African-Americans. he right to a job that pays a decent wage, the right to afford- able health care, the right to qual- ity education from early childhood to higher ed, the right to become a homeowner and to build assets, the right to pursue your dreams if you want to become a business owner and an investor.” In the 95th year of the NUL, the nation’s premiere Black eco- nomic organization, Morial says political speeches will be limited in order to. allow the organiza- tion to focus inward on the Black community with the goal of set- bombings and the killing of Menezes, British police made more than 20,000 stops and searches under authority of the Terrorism Act, according to the 2003 Home Office report. Less than 2 percent of those stopped were arrested. | Even that figure is mislead- ing. Only two of those arrested were charged with involvement with a terrorist group, and their arrest did not result fom a street stop and search. By contrast, nearly 15 percent of those stopped as suspects in criminal activities were arrested. In Lon- don, nearly 40 percent of those stopped on suspicion either un- der the Terrorism Act or the Police and Criminal Evidence Act were non-whites. ony The issue of racial profiling has long been a sore spot for the black and Asian communities in Britain. It exploded to the sur- face in 1993 when white hooli- es and broadcast outlets are now seeking to supplant the only legitimate Black media voices that have performed that task admira- bly for more than a century. It is arrogant and ridiculous to think that newspapers that primarily portray African-Americans as criminals, athletes and entertain- ers will suddenly be able or will- ing to present African-Americans in their full complexity. Equally culpable are compa- nies that refuse to advertise in Black-owned media but are will- ing to place ads with White-owned ublications, broadcasts and nternet outlets targeting African- Americans. They shoul be pub- licly exposed and boycotted. In fact, every Black newspaper should identify them each week so that African-Americans, will be able to support only corporations that re- spect and support them. The New York Times’ decision to compete with Black newspapers is all about money. Daily newspa- rs havelNn losing circulation of more thaga decade, more clas- sified ads ar€Whifting to online portals and conglomerates that purchase media ‘properties’ are pressuring them to become more America, ‘an opportunity coy- enant. a. A sidelines as civil rights and grassroots economic leaders discuss among themselves what future actions to take, Morial says. Even President Bush was not invited this year. Exposes Britain's Longtime ans beat Stephen Lawrence, a Black London youth, to death. Police came under intense fire for their foot dragging investi- ation into the beating. It took Five years, and a mass protest campaign, before British of fi- cials formed a commission to investigate the killing, called the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry. Scores of black and Asian Lon- doners told harrowing tales of harassment, verbal insults, and even physical assaults by police. In a stark admission, the com- mission concluded that institu- tional racism infected all levels of policing in Britain. British officials made a mild stab at reform. In 2003, they an- nounced that under new guide- lines an, individual could not be subjected to unwarranted street stops because of race, but only when there was clear suspicion of criminal activity. It was a hol- low victory. Five years after the rofitable. The Project for Excel- [ence in Journalism at Columbia University reports that only 22 corporations control 70 percent of daily newspaper circulation. As a consequence of mergers and de- clining circulation, what often gets Passed on to readers as news is pabulum. There is also the issue of changing demographics. In 50 years, Whites are projected to be- come a minority in this country for the first time. Over that same period, the U.S. population is ex- pected to grow by 50 percent, with 90 percent of that growth being among people of color. So for eco- nomic reasons — this has nothing to do with altruism — the New York Times, NBC, Times Warner and other media giants are eager to add Black and Latino publica- tions and stations to their portfo- lio. We've already seen this with Time, Inc.'s decision to purchase Essence magazine, Viacom's pur- chase of Black Entertainment Tele- vision (BET), American Online's (AOL) ownership of Africana.com and Blackvoices.com, and a deci- sion by NBC, a subsidiary of Gen- eral Electric Co., to purchase Telemundo, a U.S. Spanish-speak- ting ati agenda for Black report, issued in - tails the se- thou gh« . tiousness of "some pollti- | “the prob- cians, such © lems facin as New Blac E York? s. “America. It Democratic noted: Sen. Hilary - ¢ The Rodham. ' median net Clinton and F> worth of an Maryland's | - African- Republican . American Lt. Gov. family is Michael S. . $6,100 Steele, have . compared been invited } to $67,000 to speak, in for a White most in- ~~ family; stances, in- . © The vited politi- i cians will ‘ rate for observe "Mark Morial Urban League ¢CEO —- Blacks is from the Former Mayor of New Orleans nearly 50 percent versus more then 70 percent for Whites; * On average, Blacks are twice as likely to die from dis- ease, accident, behavior and ho- commission fingered institu- tional racism as the cause of pro-' filing, and a year after the guide- lines took effect, a commission advisor found that young black ‘men were still twice as likely to be stopped by police than five years earlier. . The Terrorism Act of 2000 ives British officials virtually un- imited power to question and detain anyone they deem a likel terrorist suspect. In nearly all cases, the suspect is black, Asian or Muslim. _ Some U.S. states have assed laws that ban racial pro- iling, and police departments have spent millions on sensitiv- ity programs and. training. Michigan Congressman John Conyers’ Traffic, Stops Statistics Act,-which would collect data on olice traffic stops, has been Eicked around Congress for the past five years. That at least ceps the issue of racial profil- ., bi ta e Black Press ing cable network, in 2001 for $2.7 lion One of the most important characteristics of the Black Press is that it is a trusted source for news and perspectives. Readers turn to the Black Press to get an alternative to White-owned media that routinely parrot the Establish- ment view and don't offer, let alone understand, alternative perspec- tives, In 1978, the American Soci- ety of Newspaper Editors (ASNE) established a goal for the year 2000 of having newsroom employment ¢ “equivalent to the percentage of minority persons in the national population.” Although African- Americans represent 12.5 percent of the population, Blacks are only 5.4 percent of the nation’s news- rooms, according to a survey by the American Society of Newspa- per Editors. Instead of achieving those foals, ASNE’s solution was tO push the target date back to 2025. Rather than trying to supplant Black and Latino publications, ite-owned media companies should show that they can improve their unbalanced coverage and in- crease African-American presence _ micide at every stage of life than _ Whites. Life expectancy is 72 . years for Blacks and 78 years for ‘Whites; . __ © The inequality gap between Whites and BI growing from 68 percent to 73 percent since 2003. * Blacks are three times more likely to become prisoners once’ arrested and a Black person's av- erage jail sentence is six months longer than a White’s for the same crime - 39 months versus 33 months. In addition, the unemploy- ment rate remains in double dig- its for Blacks, currently at 10.3 percent, more than twice the rate of Whites at 4.3. : Instead of big-name politi- cians such as Bush, who spoke at NUL conventions last year, in 2003 and in 2001, grassroots ac: tivists and civil rights leaders such as Rainbow/PUSH coalition’s Jesse Jackson Sr., Na- tional Action Network’s Al Sharpton, the NAACP’s Bruce. Gordon, former NUL President and CEO Hugh Price, and ac- tivist Dick Gregory will speak at plenary sessions. Among discussions will be topics such as the plight of Blacks Racial Profiling ‘ing alive at the federal level. But with the terror war now in full swing in Britain, and na- tional jitters that more attacks could happen at any time, Brit- ish officials are in no mood to protect against blatant civil lib- erties abuses. The reaction of British officials to the police killing of Menezes is a prime ex- ample of a collateral fallout of in- nocents getting killed in the ter- ror battle. British Prime Minis- ter Tony Blair’s apology for the killing sounded more like a de- fense of the police than a sin- cere expression of regret over the tragedy. Blair and British offi- cials made it clear that the street stops and searches will continue and that there will be no change in the shoot to kill policy. The ave,.no, indication that the, of- icers that killed"Menezes would be punished. The hard-nosed attitude of British officials ignited justifi- at all levels within their or aniza- tions. According to a recent Knight Foundation study, people of color make up 30.9 percent of the New York Times’ circulation area. How- ever, they comprise only 16,7 per- cent of the Times’ newsroom. The Paper’ first responsibil- ity should be to have its newsroom mirror the diversity of the com- munity it is pledged to serve. If that happens, perhaps we will see more well-rounded portrayals of people of color. In the meantime, uying or creating Black newspa- pers does not absolve White-owned media companies of that respon- sibility. In 1827, Samuel Cornish and John B. Russwurm, founders of Freedom's Journal, the nation’s first Black newspaper, proclaimed: "We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us. Black people don't need the New York Times or any other White-owned media company to speak for us. We do that quite well ourselves, George E. Curry is editor-in- chief of the NNPA News Service and BlackPressUSA.com, He a eats on National Public Rado NPR) three times a week as art of “News and Notes with Ed Gor- _ acks-in the crimi-— nal justice system is expanding, males, pn phere» and business development, Africa, and a plenary session on history as well as the future of the civil rights struggle. a In looking inward, the Na- tional Urban League panels will “determine what demands should be put on gorernmpént and what demands the. Black community must place on itself. “When it comes:to jobs, wes must sharpen our skills and raise children with an emphasis on education, not just school dis- tricts educating; but making sure they read and go to school every _ day. We must realize the impor- tance of homeownership and sac- rifice some things to accomplish that,” Morial explains. “It’s going to be a great con- ference, “ Morial says. “Black eople are at a point where we Pave to place demands on the in- stitutions in American life and we have to place demands on ourselves... It’s not a one-way street. It’s a two-way street for us. And I think we should not be afraid to say we've got to make demands on our govern- ment, we've got to make demands on the private sector, but we've got to make demands on our- selves, too.” able outrage among many Bra- zilians. Relatives and friends of Menezes demanded that Blair ‘arrest the cops that killed him. That, of course, won't happen. There will be a perfunctory in- vestigation, another statement of regret, and compensation to Menezes’ family. Police policies and practices in Britain will not change soon. Even if the train bombings had never occurred, blacks, Asians, and Muslims in the country would still be stopped and searched with im- Punity on the streets and re- quired to troop to police stations to “produce” documents. hat won't stop one poten- tial terrorist attack, or break u a single terrorist cell. It will just be business as usual. PNS contributor Earl Ofari Hutchinson is author of “The Crisis >in, Black and’ Black” (Middle Passage Press). don.” In addition, his radio com- mentary is syndicated each week by Capitol Radio News Service (301/588-1993). To contact Curry or to book him for a speaking en- gagement, go to his Web site, Www.georgecurry,com The Minority Voice is Ponae 8 The Mino Voice. Inc. Jim Rouse Publisher/Founder Gaius 0, Sims, Sr. Operations Mana r/Editor ‘Home Office 405 Evans St. Greenville NG 27835 Phone: {282 757-0365 Fax: ( } 57-1793 EMAIL: The Minority Voice is Owned & Operated-by Jim Rouse Communications, also dba WOOW Radio Greenville NC. Wm. Clark: Gen, Mgr. and WTOW Radio, Washington, NC. Our Subscription Rates Are A Modest or $20/Half Year by Anthony Asadullah Samad _ As the politics of progressivism mes More an examination of a engineering whereby segments o society seek to establish a social peck- sing order Mm based on achievement of the collec- tive, the pro ress of | ac k America still represents the iil most suspect Proposition. While there are more examples of black achievement on an individual basis, there is a decline in wages, jobs and wealth among African Americans in the collective. ° Yes, more individual blacks are doing better, but the race is regress- ing in an era of “progress.” No mat- ter how you look at it, whether as individuals or in the aggregate, the exception is not the rule when it Comes to measuring black progress. But how do we know the difference, and how do we know whos contrib- uting to black progress and who's not? ee talk ‘bout Blacks, and black progress, as if they are a monolith ctioning in America’s Eurocentric egemonic society, but it’s just not true. Asian communities function as a monolith within the Eurocentric he- gemony: The Jewish community func- tion as a monolith despite the poli- tics of America’s hegemony. Mono- liths move toward a collective goal, in spite of individual interests, the outcome of which is progress. The African American community's pur- suit of individual interests, many of which go against-the interest of the By Sujette Jones “On behalf of Wachovia Corpo- ration, I apologize to all Americans and especially to African. Americans | -andpebpl t,” Chairman and chief ex- ecutive G. Kennedy Th- ompson said after a study found that his company had that exploited Suejette ‘Jones purchased two banks slaves. According to Darryl Fears, a news staff writer, Wachovia revealed on June 1st that one of the banks put ORY collective, and the absence of a col- lective goal produces little, if any, . rogress. So how is it that we can fave so many Blacks doing well, yet have sary poncr that are not pro- sressing? Largely because we don't rec- tiene we are, and what many of us do, to counteract progress. ‘Share your thoughts on this story on the ChicagoDefender.com mes- sage board. A critical part of this “dysfunc- tion” goes to the very notion of self identity — how we see ourselves. Many see themselves as contributing but what are they contributing to, our Progress, or our regress? Are they tearing down the wall of inequality, or are they helping build the wall higher making it more difficult for ‘the next generation to achieve equal- ity. y Many African Americans are products of their environment, oth- ets are products of their time. Either way, they may not be products of progress. Progress, particularly com- munity progress, is a product of con- scious behavior on the part of Blacks who understand that personal respect is tied to how others perceive the race. None of us can separate our- selves from the realities of the condi- tions associated with the race. Yet, many of us try to. Others even try to reinforce the realities by exploiting the situation, meaning using the con- dition of black people’s suppression _ as a way “to keep it real” that offers a distortion as to what black poverty, black economic deprivation, black oppression is really about. These are not “a way of life,” they are “a product of social circum- stances” and “a fact of racial hege- mony.” The goal should be to change, hundreds of slaves to work on rail- roads and another accepted more than 100 more as collateral on defaulted loans in the 1800s. Wachovia, one of the nation’ largest banks, was required by the city of Chicago to investigate its [past td: participate ‘in’ the ‘redevel- opment of a housing project on the city’s South Side. Chicago's law is the result of a campaign by a network of black poli- ticians, lawyers, professors and repa- rations activists who say they want Americans to know that slave pur- were often financed with bank loans and insured. Through the mid- 1800s, insurance companies often paid claims when slaves escaped, then they would place ads in publications offering rewards to bounty hunters to track them down and bring them back, even if they had The Mystery Of The By Charles Cinque Fulwood I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Noth- ing (Open the Door, Ill Get it Myself).” — James Brown “In the colonies the truth stood but the citizens of the mother country preferred it with clothes on.” ~ Jean-Paul Sartre, introduction to Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth I double-dog dare anyone to solve the mystery of the Negro Conservative. The dictionaries define conser- vatism as “the tendency to maintain the existing order and to resist change;” conservative is “favorin * preservation of the existing order. Why would an African American, whose historical experience and con- temporary status are largely shaped by racism and discrimination in every facet of social, political, and economic intercourse, want to “preserve the ex- isting order” and “resist change”? 0 be clear, I am not referring to African Americans like my parents who were strict in their values about self-respect, work, faith, family, com- munity, discipline, and manners (“Sit down, Junior, and quit acting a fool.”) Laziness, or “loafing,” was close to a sin before the Almighty God. Self-help at both the individual and community levels was the gold standard. So was justice. Since when are these values “conservative”? Since the right-wing think tanks and media hine reconfigured its code words to obscure racist intentions. Since it upgraded its language and operati tem to give cover to the same ol isgraceful practices of disenfranchise- ment. Since old (young, too), en- trenched, Manifest Destiny right- wingers crafted a grand strategy to return America to “the good ole days.” Remember them? As a part of its relentless propa- ganda campaign to demonize African ticans, the right-wing has hi- jacked the values o my parents and theit contemporaries as its exclusive playbook. And if “the problem” with African Americans is rooted in the lack of “conservative values,” then that logically dismisses all of the traditional k complaints. In the conservative mentality, it makes sense that after centuries of sla- very and discrimination, affirmative action is “reverse discrimination.” The Voting Rights Act is “political affir- mative action,” and the plague pn the nation’s house is not an absence of voting tghs, but voter fraud commit- ted by blacks. Fair employment poli- cies are “politically correct” straitjack- ets choking the life out of businesses, and Trojan horses for the dreaded “multiculturalism.” And safety net policies represent New Deal social- ism, big aera hand-outs, and a sense of entitlement by people who are recklessly devoid of “personal re- sponsibility.” What is most egregious is that the right-wing has recruited a new generation of N to communi- . ’ “ ee cate its propagan give “legiti- macy to message@Mat otherwise would be recogni obvious poi- son to the needs andMhterests of Afri- can Americans. The New York Times recently reported that the Republican is grooming a crop of eager Negro ublicans to run for governor or the S. Senate in 2006 in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Mi igan, which is a part of a larger scheme to take a chunk of the black vote from the trifling Democrats, Deeper still, Bush's faith-based initiative has furnished a cash-driven enticement to a growing network of black preachers parroting the “conser- vative” message, and attacking the credibility of progressive black lead- ership as well. The package is com- pleted and the bow is tied by the out- of-the-blue appearance of a truck load of right-wing black media commen- tators, from Armstrong Williams to Joe Watkins. The list is long, and grow- i " If you depend on the visibility of or progress, the circumstance, not glorify, or reinforce, the circum- stance. That is the difference between someone who is a conscious Black, versus someone who is a Negro who accepts the circumstance, or a Ni**a who exploits the circumstance. That takes us to the question, what is the differentiation between the Negro and a Ni**a? The Negfo is an American invention wheseby his origin is disconnected from his iden- tity, and his new identity is a teflec- tion of the social standing assigned to him by the hegemon, which in this case is American society. Not only does the Negro have No past, Bs present is marginalized in a way that offers little ability to change the real- ity of the race. Because the Negro is a product of his socialization, he (and she) does not willfully try to hurt the race, but their ignorance and their acceptance of the social construct does not allow them, to force mean- change socially accept- able forms of fond a The Ni**a is an outbirth of the social engineering imposed on the American Black, whereby they offer no solutions, and react to socio-eco- nomic conditions in ways that will only reinforce the most negative per- ceptions of the race. For instance, social engineers know that, irrespec- tive of race, lack of commerce and/ or business will produce “survival of the fittest” conditions whereby people will prey on others to survive. Ni**as into, and buy into, it as an ex- cuse for not having what others have. Instead of changing the circumstance, they seek to exploit the circumstance. So they rob, steal and kill their own for the sake of surviving. Or they take money to promote a lifestyle that is ‘OFORE states. The slaves would be resold. Since 2000, when the first dis- closure law was enacted by the state of California, similar laws have been passed in Los Angeles, Detroit, Phila- delphia and New Orleans. According to one Chicago alderman, other city lawmakers ‘have expressed interest. Disclosure laws in the past have re- quired companies to reveal their ties to the Holocaust and South Africas former apartheid government. The al- derman quotes: “Americans deserve to know that companies they rely on for mortgages, credit cards and insur- ance supported the slave trade with similar loans. We have a history that’s not be- ing told. We want our history to be tol in every book and every school— our true history.” (Recently, all of the schools in Phi r Negro conservative commentators to measure African American public opinion, you could only conclude that Black America had gone “Right.” The only demographic of media commen- tators growing faster than black right- wingers is the surreal saturation of blonde Eva Brauns. To be frank, Negro conservatives have always been with us, starting with old Tom on the plantation (“Massa, we sick?”). To be Eis some have been honest in having a different approach to the road to freedom; Booker T. ington comes to mind. Others have been charlatans. (I won't call any names here, you know who they are.) Others have just béen inexplicable; Zora Neale Hurston comes to mind. Pardon me, but it must also be said that even though I have not met a black tson over 40 who didn't “march with t. Kang,” I remember the black reachers and churches that ran away rom him. I remember scary Negroes saying Dr. King should “just Oughta hush and go somewhere and sit down.” And certainly it is understandable that blacks embraced the Party of Lin- coln after Emancipation, as the ocrats and Dixiectats mounted a campaign of disenfranchisement and terror against African Americans for decades following the Civil War and into the early 20th century, includi a fierce resistance to tion an anti- i islation, Bren during the sixties ~ and per- haps before — there has always been a schism between those blacks that measured progress and social change only the extent to whi were included in American life Big House”), and those who pushed for structural change beyond mere inclu- sion. So, the seed of an honest ideo- and strategic disagreement are deeply Lease ie our history, (They tell me that Booker T. and WE.B DuBois are still arguing.) That is a debate that needs a new summons, nothing more than one of depriva- tion, and use it to degrade women, promote “slanging” and “dealing” and destabilizing relationships between black men and women, ot black fami- lies apd black communities, Ni*as are always quick to tell you what you havent done for them, but cant tell you what they've done to _ change themselves, and the destruc- tion is perpetuated until progress is overwhelmed by regressive behaviors. Ni*as make a conscious decision to UNTOLD dated to teach African-American history) According to a recent article in The Boston Globe, “Cashing in on America’s racial guilt,” Wachovia's chairman has admitted its guilt, and vowed to make amends b giving money to organizations that pro- mote further awareness of black'his- tory. Reparations to African-Aineri- cans are extraordinarily rare: The $1.8 million award in 1994 to vic- tims of the riot and massacre in Rosewood, Florida is one of a few. In that 1923 incident, white au- thorities and citizens killed 26 black men, women and children and bur- ied them in a mass grave. About 355 black residents were driven from their homes as the community burned. The U. S. Government has never apologized or paid reparations to the descendants of slaves. Pin Negro Conservative Bill Lucy's recent call for a return to “Gary” is right on time, and offers an Opportunity for leadership account- ablity and honest, vigorous debate about vision, strategy, message, and integrity. Let the Negro conservatives come to “Gary” and let’s explore the merits. Let's have an honest discus- sion about 21st century America and the best strategy for African Ameri- cans. But later for the disingenuous and asinine rhetoric hatched in Re- publican think tanks by white right- wingers. Later for the prophylacytic engage in activities that degrade the race and destroy the community, turn- ing progress for a community into a neat impossible proposition. Ni**as are the biggest detriment to the race today — and there are more of them than you think, because everybody “gotta get theirs.” Progress will only come about when there are more Blacks of con- scious positive behavior acting in the interest of the collective than there are Negroes, or Ni**as, acting against the collective interests of Blacks. That should be the goal for Black America > faising conscious Blacks, marginalizing Negroes and eradicat- ing, at all costs, Ni**as. + ; Anthony Asadullah Samad is a national columnist, managing direc- tor of the Urban Issues Fore and © author of 50 Years After Brown: The State of Black Equality In America (Kabili Press, 2005). He can be reached at www.AnthonySamad.com. Recently, however, the U.S. Sen- ate issued an apology for the lynch- ings that occurred in the past. Other groups such as Japanese Americans, who were forced into camps during World War II, have been more suc- cessful. Swiss banks paid reparations to Holocaust victims after the bank acknowledged they had accepted money and goods stolen from: Jews by: Nlazis-during World-War I. “| ACNN/USA Today Gallup poll fh 2002 showed the 9 out fe 10 white Americans said the govern- ment should not make cash repara- tions payments, arguing that white Americans are descendants of im- migrants who came to this country after the Civil War, and have no con- election to slavery; hence, is “un- thinkable” to penalize people for something their great great-great grandfather did to someone else’s great-great great grandfather. ost of other companies other than banks are fighting the disclosure lawsuit after investigations found links to they are Aetna; J.P. Morgan Chase; Bank of America; Lehman Broth- ers Holdings Inc.; Lloyds of London; American International Group, Inc.; to- bacco makers R.J.Reynolds Tobacco Holdings; Brown &: Williamson To- bacco Corp.; Ligget Group Inc.; the rail- toad firms Union Paci ‘Corp ahd Norfolk Southern Gorp: Why is it important’ to pay resti- tution? Historically, the lack of finan- cial capital has been a barrier to black rogress. It’s harder for us to get bank fears, and red lining is a vestige of slavery. It's about them helping us to heal the wounds they historically caused. Respectfully submitted by Suejette A. Jones Sources: various articles, comments and research. Ms. Jones is a former Pitt County school teacher, retired - Ed. messaging and absurd role-playing. Lets take the historic baton and solve the mystery of the Negro con- servative. Is it a legitimate political course connected to the realities of African Ametican challenges? Is it mere mathematics of putting our troops in both parties and all camps? Is it like simply choosing which team you want to play on? Is it just being tired of sitting on the bench? Is it only about getting paid? Is it what America really is, take it or leave it? Is it the T. word? Is it akin to the Stockholm Syn- drome? Do we really want a class of Duvaliers, Savimbis, and Mobutos in America? Is it possible to be a Negro con- COOPER'S COMMENTARY servative when American conserva- tism is inextricably tied to racism, the obstruction of every single step of black progress, and the dichotomous syndrome of black inferiority and white supremacy? Is it a butt-neckit contradiction? Is it real or is it Memorex? Let's see. To paraphrase your president, “bring it on.” ‘Meet me in “Gary” and let’s talk. But come honest; come rel And if it your motor running, take a tom the story about the cherry tree and George Washington, with his wig wearing self. Charles Cinque Fulwood is a writer and communications strategist living in Washington, DC. er GREENVILLE, NC- [In a memo to Don rj. 2005 | 0 - “ - says city’s Redevelopment Plan not feasible for long term solutions | hash irn cde hg omens aegis eed: al po at i opinion. The criteria for Mr. Fenner’s decision to dis- sent ate as follows - Editor :] WASHINGTON, DC - If 2 bomb were to explode on a crowded inner- city bus or if a nuclear power plant came under attack by terrorists, would nearby low-income neighborhood residents know where to go or what to do ‘for ey pia While U.S. anti-terror agents shifted to heightened alert last week after a'string of terrorist bombings in | » one U.S. anti-poverty orga- nization announced plans to broaden a m that aims to protect poor neighborhoods from terrorist attacks ind prepare people for emergencies. atgely poor communities are those communities that are least likely The Teas bch information. hey are ikely to have any kind of preparedness training. They are least likely to have positive relations with law enforcement officers. Those communities are least likely to have an evacuation plan,” says Dertick Span, national president of the Community Ac- North Carolina Bankers Associatio " We:do not have a Harry M. Davis Ph.D NCBA Economist Perspective is everything. Most people believe the economy is not peorming very well based on the in- ‘ormation delivered by the national news organizations cach evening. If the performance of the economy is put in historical perspective, most people might think the economy is doing better than we think. re are numerous positive as- pects of this economy. Gross Domes- tic Product (GDP) growth in this re- covery has exceeded that of the previ- ous recovery and the post I av- erage. GDP grew 3.8% in the Ist quarter which is well above the ex- pected rate. Job growth is on par with the 90s recovery and the unemploy- ment rate is lower than the rate for the last 20 years except for a brief period prior to 9/11. Housing sales and starts are booming. Existing home sales set a new record last year at 6.9 million units which was the fourth record year in a row. Housing starts remain above the 2 million a year level which is a 20 year high. Housing prices are rising at double digit rates, Do the housing numbers mean we are in a housing Bubble: Not yet. Clearly some markets are overheated. If we look at inventory numbers for either new or existing homes they are near historic lows. These numbers do not support the idea of a national bubble at this time. With mortgage rates at forty year lows, we should not be ised by a robust housing mar- ket. Consumers are doing well. Wages and salaries grew 6% last year which was the best showing since 2000 and household wealth stands at the highest level ever. Retail sales for the tion Partnerships, a coalition of 1,000 organizations around the country that serve poor neighborhoods. “Yet, they are more likely to have residing in them the untutored and the elderly who may not understand this color code idea. And they are more likely to be situated by these wer plants and chemical plants. So, or that reason, they become more susceptible to bio-terrorism.” Fhe rogram, Community Land Security, has been in operation since last year in three cities - Middlesex County , N_J. ; Bolivar County , Miss. ; and Knox County , Kentucky . But, they are expanding to seven more cit- ies this summer through affiliates of the CAN, Span says. They are: Monroe County OP rtunity Program, Monroe, Michi- oan WSOS Community Action Com- mission, Inc., Fremont, Ohio; Cos- tal Community Action Program, Rockland, Maine; Office of Human Affairs, Newport News, Va.; 12 months ending in April grew 8.6 percent while consumer spacing grew nearly 4% in both 2003 an 2004. Personal bankruptcy filings and most delinquency rates are down. Consumer confidence reached a 3- year high in June. These are all im- pressive numbers. Strong economic growth can clearly be seen in the dramatic in- crease in government revenue. Fed- eral tax revenue through April of fis- cal year 2005, increased $146 billion for a 13.6% increase over the same period a year earlier. For the same tiod, corporate income taxes bal- fooned 48% to $134 billion. Numer- Ous states are experiencing exploding Frederick Community Action Agency, Frederick, Md.; Community Council of South Texas, Rio Grande City, Texas; and Little Dixie Commu- nity Action Agency, Hugo, Okla. € programs are being run with a $300,000 grant from the U. S. De- partment of Health and Human Ser- vices that the CAN first applied for in 2002, Span says. The money was granted last year. He hopes to receive an additional $200,000 to start 10 additional Community Land Security programs next year. CAN affiliates that apply for the Community Land Security funding must be able to rove their realness to train e for the program an nahe blero match the inital fund- ing of $10,000 per program, he says. The vulnerability of neighborhoods and proximities to potential targets for terrorists are also Fighly considered, Span says. “Much of the criteria had to do with, number one, the ability of the n Business Barometer national h state revenues. Energy prices and outsourcing receive far more attention than th deserve. When Toyota builds its 4th and Hyundai its ist auto assembly plant in the US it goes unnoticed. That represents outsourcing into the US. Energy prices are having little impact on our economy even at $50-60 per barrel. The FED will increase rates an- other half of one percent over the re- mainder of the year. Consumets will continue to spend as employment improves. The national econom should grow about 3.75% for the sec- ond half of the year. That rate of growth will continue to lower the un- Community Action Agency to reach out and be a part of these emergency response connections,” he says. Gary Goldberg, an emergency management consultant, who has worked in federal emergency manage- ment for at least 30 years, includin the Department of Energy, developed the training manual for the program. He says Community Action agencies are, in part, being trained as advocates between neighborhood resi- dents and emergency agencies to as- sure sensitivity and responsiveness before and during emergencies. “What I’m training them to do is to be able to consider the fact that low-income people are also a special needs group in terms of emergency response just like disabled people and seniors and people who are incarcer- ated and people in hospitals and school children,” he says. Those who have been trained are responsible for disseminating informa- tion such as evacuation methods; ousing bubble!” employment rate to around 4.8% by year-end. 7 . North Carolina’s economy will continue to improve. We added jobs in the first quarter and the rate o job growth was 1.6% for the state and 1.7% for the nation. State govern- ment revenues are increasing and the sectors of construction, the military, tourism, and home sales are the areas driving growth for the state. knowledge of people who may need » Chait and No. 1. Prior to Plan Approval 1 Redevelopment. - integrated into the by the consultant) studied by vir- such been the case, one could examine the details and the City of Greenville The wie asa ed Ge Stivers cea tivel thelae of oe atey oma (AAM) become aware of recommended actions that would pro tCom- variety of open'space, public parklands, recreational ar- to simulate the demand for by generated in the area. duce immediate positive oreadverse apest, Lalcewie, mission, Ashley A. eas, historic resources, viable businesses and a fairly large ®, an economic impact model to describe the impact studies and recommendations would have t en Feason- Fenner, a member urban population. Careful attention should be given to of accessibility derived from the AAM and combined able and feasible alternatives to the proposed action, should was the only person to the relationship between these resources and the proposed with some other variables of the areaseconomy. An en- action be required. Seco lly, the consultants by- past con- ae : disagree with the Ac- disruption of the existing conditions with consideration vironmental impact model to deal with air pollution and sulting with local firms ane onpentiations with social-eco- Og) ’ ceptance of FinalCen- for the proposed alternatives due to their important con- noise generated by moving and fixed sources; and net- nomic experience within our local community that have at ON] ‘ter City - West tribution to the “quality of life” in the total environment — work systems costing model to derive the cost of new been in Practice for twenty years and more. These firms am ae } Greenville [National Environmental Policy (NEPA) 1969 - Sect 4(t) modes should be implanted in the AAM.. The and organizations have a past history of contributing to ss i ment Plan.Mr. Fenner of tment of Transportation (DOT), Act of 1966 as Commission's Plan also fails to incorporate a plan for the social, moral and economic equity base issues badly - Ashley } Fenner holds a. Engineerin is ars Sect.} 06 of the Historic Preservation Act]. traffic flow ca acity and quality of services to be ren- needing addressed by local government - a ee : ~ Degree from MIT, Sect. 102 of (NEPA) requires the preparation of a detail _ dered. None of the above was either done or made avail- Presently, the Commission's rush to approve the plan i.e., Massachusetts Institute of Technolgy with an em- environmental impact statement, whi.ch includes a de- able despite such requests being put forward at meetings in the state that it is, appears to be driven by newly se- - Phasis on the discipline of transportation systems found scription of the environmental impact, unavoidable ad- _ from time-to-time. . lected members of the Commission whose responses to the redevelopment plan deficient. verse effect, alternatives, and irreversible commitments No 3. Consultant's Proposed Plan Failure to Incorporatea in-depth issues show acute shallowness, and absent of the - Fenner as a volunteer member of the Commision in of resources for major federal actions significantly affect- Functional Strategy or Plan for the Integration of Services ability to handle understanding of the infrastructure of '@ Statement submitted to the paper, said that he is con- ° ing the quality of the human environment. With regards _ for west le, economic and sound planning processes. In fact these cemed only as private citizen and what he does asa pub- to the before stated, two aspects of this proposed project, Upon initiation of the City of Greenville’s Redevel- members may have petty person objectives, which over- lic official is not the issue. 1) the relocation of the existing rail service at Albemarle pment Commission, it became obvious to some as meet- shadow the broader picture of collective socio-economic According to his letter of dissent which was submit- and lothStreet and 2) the building of a viaduct has not ings continued that direct involvement and critical con- gains for the residents of west Greenville community and ted this past Apri duting a meeting of the Redevelop- been discussed as to whether these Proposed actions are scious thinking were not welcomed nor expected due to the Center City ment Commission, the commission was charged with economically or technically prudent or feasible; nor have _ the fact that the major part if not all of this Proposed plan In summary, due to the absence of the required stud- ing for the plan prior to being sent to the City Plan- measures been discussed in detail with regards to imme- was already in progress. Additionally, when the issue of __ ies and feasibility plans as stated above, the proposed ning Department for Approval, and then tothe CityCoun- diate and adverse effects. west Greenville entered the discussion, the consultant plan appears grossly incomplete. However, the decision cl for approval. Fenner said that Consultant's fail No 2. Consultant's Plan Failure to incorporate a employed a firm from Maryland to specifically study west to proceed should be based upon the best png-range so- ure'to secure environmental impact statements regarding planning model for transportation in urkan activity Greenville to solicit suggestions from citizens (businesses, lutions for providing for human capacity building (em- ~ the west Greenville community and surroundi neigh- center and its adjacent neighborhoods (west Greenville residents, service organizations etc) concerning their fu- — ployment, business maintenance an expansion, adequate bothoods was the reason why he voted ‘Nay’ 00 the plan. ete). \ ture within the proposed area to be incorporated as part housing, health care, etc.), measured economic growth, In a letter submitted to ete Minority Voice Newspa- With the proposed 10th Street connector being fed _ of this plan. However, when one visits the in formation and infrastructure efficiency for daily living, recreating per he submitted a detail analysis outlining his dissenting by Route 264 into the center city from the West, the presented by the consultants, there are no clear concise and working - Signed: Ashley Fenner ernment representatives, and coordi- nate volunteer emergency prepared- ness and response teams, Span says, “The Partnership became acutely aware that the 110 million Americans living in or near poverty were not be- ing protected,” Span says. “It is of utmost importance that a constant stream of information is flowing into these communities about national se- curity efforts...In order to do this suc- cessfully, we ultimately need a Com- munity Land Security program in ev- ery low-income community across the nation, but the 10 pilot sites are a step in the right direction.” special assistance in the case of an at- tack; translating meanings of security codes; providing the names of re- sources in emergencies; and teaching anti-terrorism tips such as how to be alert and aware of their surrouridings, They are also trained to broker rela tionships between community leaders and first-responders, Goldberg says. “We want them to be pro-active.” The agencies are required to es- tablish and maintain a coordinator to oversee the program, a Community Land Security Resource Center ; to facilitate presentations by local gov- Top 20 Gospel/Praise & Worship Music, Clerpy/Choir Robes, Church Supplies, Books, ee Greeting Cards, Gifts, Wedding & Songbo Vacation Bible Schoo! 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Sept, 5: Hwy 13 South, Greenville, NC |I cates Open 11:00 PM - Program Starts 12:00 Noon *WOOW « WTOW « M-VOICE NEWSPAPER RAIN OR SHINE ON THE PROGRAM sacha eneeaen Tr eenerensuenerente $14.50 At Door $16.50 | Children (under 12) $8.00 At Door Ticket Information | 252-757-0365 Ct oo ger eng 7 ey ee ka a ERED a Rhee ee es ah a Sat | ae ‘ait "July 1-31, 2005 STILL VITAL BUSINESS LOCATIONS UNDER REVITALIZATION t is another shot of Albermarle Street. fe where in particular, college students and s Shown above on this wide expanse of real estate is; to the far left,’ Anthon the Nation Of Islam's Mosque #79 on Martin Luther King Blvd. Below that aid to the left and located in a prime location, that sits empty in the midst of densely | historical site and a museum. To the ri Movie Theater and the famous Bell’s C er & beauty sh y's Nieghborhood Game Room‘ and “state of the’art” fast food resturant there has been talk of making this a ops, small black owned supermarket, the Roxie is a vacant, but somewhat ulated residential artea. The center picture shows the old ice house and although it is no longer needed, i € street use to be the site of secveral bar RESIDENTS UNEASY (Continues from Page i) historically denied to Blacks in Pitt County and the City of Greenville." Currently seated Black elected officials representing this district include the most recently elected Melvin McLawhorn who joined seated incumbent David Hammond on the Pitt County Board of Com- missioners; City Council mem- bers include Rose H. Glover and. sixteen year veteran Mildred Council. This list of Black elected officials also includes Pitt County School Board Mem- ber Bishop Ralph Love and School Board Chair, Michael Dixon. Congressman G.K. Butterfield's district could also be affected by the redevelopment plan. | Displacement of Residential Home Owners, Renters and: Businesses the proposed Center City-West Greenville Revitalization Plan is a race based gentrification plan. West Greenville's strare ic loca- tion will create hundreds of up- scale housing options for Univer- sity Systems employees, the vast majority of whom are not Black. According to the proposed revitalization plan, new housing options will be created through the bulldozing of about 500 existing homes, and another 250 current residences will be permanently dis- placed to allow renovations. Once the project is under- Way, over a period of 15 years, about ninety new homes t year would be constructed; o those, about 8% have been allocated for low to. moderate, fhcome housing. Public.amonies, ‘includ grant money, will be used to acquire current dwellings and property for rebuilding and renovations. Unfor- tunately the current resident's me- dian income is only about $17,000 annually. They will be priced out of this new housing market. Even more disturbing, under the proposed plans, virtually ev- ery Black owned business in West Greenville would be forced out by rezoning. This plan will taff from ECU would dine frequently. It's a widely held notion that ding. federal. PHOTOS: Jim Rouse i destroy over 100 existing jobs that support families in the Black community. The City's pro- posed revitalization plan calls for the acquisition of all these Black owned businesses by January 2007. City officials have been promising to relocate these Black owned businesses into a new 10th Street Commercial Node but that project would not be acdc until January 2010, about 3 years later. WGFG members quickly point out that this plan would result in the destruction of all Black owned businesses in West Greenville. This plan requires the removal of the Little Willie Center, West Greenville Com- munity Development Corpora- tion, the Pitt County NAACP Offices, and the Pitt Cothe SCLC Offices. Hall calls if, a "direct attack on the Black com- munity and the institutions that support our children, youth, and amilies." ° The Bond Referendum The last city elections saw the passing of a bond referendum that approved $5 million for the downtown "Center City" revital- ization that includes several Projects proposed by East Caro- ei Dwight A. Smith Personal Loan Manager lina University. The university expansion into the downtown area will result in a loss of about $30 million in tax revenue to the city, and will result in a need to raise city taxes on all Greenville residents. East Carolina Univer- sity is a tax-exempt organization. According to Hal "The en- tire plan was ill conceived. It doesn't make a lot of sense to destroy a historically Black neighborhood and area busi- nesses, including over 100 exist- ing jobs those businesses provide to the community, and then give away $30 million in tax revenue for the city then sell it to the public that this is revitalization. How could you do that and keep a straight face?" w gldall says, "City officials and rr e- developers. privately say. they can offset the city's loss of the $30 million by tripling the value of homes in west Greenville from an average of about $45,000 to $130,000 plus once they remove the Blacks." A Declining Neighborhood It's a well-known fact that the proposed 45-block area of west Greenville up for revitaliza- tion is a declining neighbor- hood. The question begs for some reasonable explanation on how it got that way.. No doubt the City of Greenville, for all its lush greenways, noted golf courses, upscale suburban housing, and hip retail boutiques, has allowed to fest in its heart the Black com- munity of west Greenville and its commercial areas. It's no secret that over the years the City of Greenville has made little if any investment in west Greenville. City officials have allowed slumlords to openly operate housing without upkeep while collecting excessive rents on dwellings unfit for human . off the hands of slumlor The Minority Voice Newspaper Page 5 habitation. Curiously, the intro-" duction of the Certter City-West Greenville Revitalization Plan is when those dwellings were tagged as condemned. The City of Greenville is al- leged to have used public money to take condemned pro erties own- ers to make way for the planned redevelopment. Some have called this a publicly financed bailout of slumlords. This in the aftermath of killing a neighbgrhood and leaving its homeowners so much in need of a peaceful sanctum that selling is what they'd do when the realtors, or the city for that matter, come courting with an offer in hand. . Truth is that for any tax payi g homeowner in west Greenville con- sidering selling their property they might possibly become a renter, as the dollars from such a sale would altogether place them out of the Greenville housing market. Some West Greenville homeowners advise that they have already received ques- tionable offers from realtors. Negotiations Forthcomin According to Hall, "the fo- cus group is attempting to nego- tiate with city officials to stop the revitalization plan, as writ- ten, from being adopted by the Greenville City Council." As in- dicated earlier, in a landslide vote of 6 to 1, over the objec- tions of west Greenville resi- dents, the Greenville Redevelop- ment Commission approved the Center City-West Greenville Revitalization Plan. Hall further notes "should west Greenville Revitalization move forward, as proposed, any- where from 1,200 to 1,500 new white voters will become the new political voice within the heart of the Black political districts that were carved out by the Dé? partment of Justice.to.correct istorical racism that prevented Blacks from having a political voice." Hall advised, "we have legal counsel on standby if nego- tiations fail. We are kéeping all options open. This is a very se- rious matter. Today, west Greenville's Black eeevail home and business own- ers occupy some of the most im- portant property within the City's proposed revitalization areas, FG members says the area should be revitalized for the ben- efit of the people who already live in west Greenville, including home owners, business owners, and rent- ers. This was once a group of beau- tiful neighborhoods. West Greenville can be beau- tiful again, but eliminating the political voice of the Black citi- zens of West Greenville as pro- posed is not an option. Ms. Susie Clemons is a con- tributing Op-Ed and staff writer for the Minority Voice News. Questions or comments should be directed to: opinionsandtalk@yahoo.com elie Core Childeore Center “TRAIN UP A CHILD IN THE WAY HE SHOULD GO" PROVERB 22:6 HOURS OF OPERATION M-F 6:30 AM TO 6:00 PM STRUCTURED LEARNING N A CHRISTIAN ENVIRONMENT “YOUR CHILD'S SAPE HAVEN & PLAY , 405 Evans Street [Greenville, NC 27834 P.O. Box 8361 C) Yes, C Yes, NAME UBSCRIPTION PAYMENT MUST BE INCLUDED WITH C) Yes, I'd like a 6 months subscription by mail $25 Id like a 1 year subscription by mail $45. . Id like a 2 year subscription by mail $75 ° ADDRESS CITY. | ; STATE AP ‘ASEE American presence in law CE eB Scho: ofession d Saysreport IRS to enneth Mallo : qual access to lawyers thing that I would do if I wee a law | school,” he said. , ‘ , nr sf es ponte: find my graduates ~ McGahee said Black students weal or eahaes group it is, and ask them for their prepared for the LSAT. ~ i past two ves 4 Beige t0 ; ; Schoolsshouldn rely asmuchonthe ° = | ae Ne Past two years Baca said he believed a major stand: dize mh ~»-'. WASHINGTON, DC — The __- Minority rep i reason Black students are not consid- “Law schools concerned with in- Internal Revenue Service said it 7 oetits as dropped for ering careers in law is because they - Gteasing the diversity of their student will launch later'this year a study. nO) ve stom 20.6 percent in lack role models in the profession and - bodies néed to focus less on the LSAT to m€eancelt df ellesjowsited Afm- a eee “2 do not hear about positive things law- and more on other measures of Alinai ) rtudy, will ex- See Hndings in the ci declined _yers have done with their careers. achiey » including undergradu- amine 5,000 randomly selected AMles to Go: 8 of Mi competitive school, He also said lawyers have not ate grades'and work history,” she said. S corporation returns from tax me | on}, publi *h, according to the ABA, received been pictured ina ositive light inthe ~~ | it Kim Keenan, president of the years 2003 and 2004. - poe ABAS Commission on re than 11,000 applications in media, possibly deterring students National Bar Association, a group S corporations are entities oe Ur he Legal 2004, . . from considering law careers. Tepresenting thousands of Black law- whose income and deductions aes “Two, three and four years ago, “The legal trade for one reason Yets, discussed the possible ramifica- pass through’ the corporate Miles to Go} finds that A we admitted a certain number of mi- or another has not had the best repu- tions the underrepresentation of Af- structure to the shareholders. $ enican representation in lay nority candidates, and usually the num- tation in the press, and to the extent tican Ameticans'in law will have for corporations are now the most in other. professions, like bers that enrolled constituted about a that it be causing students to not the Black community in the future. common corporate entity. In and medicine. at ae __ third of the class,” said Stanek. “Last apply to law school, the way to get “Ultimately, at some point, you 2002, the latest year for which 4 In mapa Sek contends year, our same number of offers of that is for our folks to go into the will not be able to find Lawyers of data is available, § corporation ape wt a Whites to admission resulted in a much lower few schools and ay done shea color,” said Keenan. returns accounted for 59 percent head to private law after leaving percentage ‘registered. We didi't see what you wrote about in the paper. Acknowledging that the number of all corporate returns filed for law school, more likely to resign from an application decline. We saw a:de- Here's what | did last week with my of Blacks, particularly Black males, at that tax year. firms after there and “con- cline in the numbers accepting our career,”” said Baca. law schools is beginning to decline, “The use of S corporations tinue to be undertepresented offer of admission.” | But a major concern voiced by Keenan said the Black community has has exploded,” said IRS Com- in top level, obs, § N pa Stanek said school officials are still many future Black lawyers, as well as ‘0 start ensuring that Black children missioner Mark W. Everson. Corporate | trying to “digest exactly what [has] those dvocating increased diversity have the necessary “educational op- “The. IRS needs a better under- ‘he repo happened,” ‘and, subsequently, have in the profession, is the hurdle the portunities,” as early as grammar standing of what this means for : not initiated any new recruitment ef- LSAT to Black students. ool, to properly train fem and tax ve ae This research is ~ forts bd minority students, a o “One of the main gs 2 in- inctease their chances to enter the pica - achieving pur strate- «, But Reginald McGahee, dean o creasing diversity among law students rofession. | ic goal of ensuring that corpo- admissions at Howard University Law is law schools’ | tellance on the if “Our professional workforce ratio and high-income indi- School, perhaps the premiere African- LSAT. African Americans and other’ should look like our country,” said viduals are paying their fair said the number of applicants apply- age, than Wh on the LSAT; yer. | Numerous restrictions and ing to Howard Law and many other law schools’ reliance on this measure of ig yesaar wig are pom acres i- the country has declin » especially among Black males, 7 “There is a universal drop in Af- rican-American males that are apply- ing to law schools, and ora , higher education in . And aby seeing that same decline,” he said. Law officials discussed obstacles that might preclude Blacks from pur- ing careers in law, such as a grow- ing disinterest in the profession and the LSAT (Law School Admissions Test), which many feel is biased against Black law school applicants. Lawrence Baca, chair of the ABA ut- Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession, said law schools can increase the number of minorities by having Black law school graduates reach out to Black students, “Any law school that wants to in- crease minority participation, or, par- ticularly, Black participation, is going ke; no ave to Bet contributes teach work,” out and do some out- Baca said. “The first sig- nificant, and even though the LSAT does Not predict success as a however predict lawyer, Stanek. agreed that the LSAT is uickly becoming the most important r in law school admissions. “Is it overriding all other factors? | I don't think so — yet,” he said. McGahee said some currently believe the LSAT is biased. > main thing that we have to realize [is] that there's a lot af’debate out there right now that there are some inherent biases that go along with the LSAT. Being at Howard, we're more sensitive to that than some other in- : stitutions in the countries may be. But | what we can't get away from [is] that, right now, there is no other test to properly evaluate and predict whether . @ student will or won't do well in law « . a * ‘ bed es . ‘ L 7k oe , | me . . Soa ; we y i. be Fi T; Evasion . i : . : : . _ , a i ee, se i gh: ate : set . . . €o.a . . r v obras ee Ren. $4 Bol, os ae Se “ r; | £(252) 736-1403 BUSINESS 4(252) 756-7134 FAX | (252) 375-6000 CELL 5 (888) 537-1403 TOLL FREE | _Plenette.chapman@coldwellbanker.com Se ee on f | BANKCRO EAGER “Allow me to show YOU your next new home, — Regardless of Listing...” . requirements apply to § 3 Afticam American (Black) men have the lowest life expectancy and the Bea sea ae ag ee "pressure, harde ” and-heart disease blea _ {high Ulood presse) and heart dis ease of-any group of:people inthe + Eating right could help them live ens arteries and causes - Stich ailments as kidney stones and” anal Deg ; . » flour (which eonealld _. CLOSING THE BETWEEN SCIENCE RELIGION By Faith May The connection between spirit and body may be age-old, but as "healing became.a science, Western: practitioners moved away from spirituality and celigious faith: Now patient demand, coupled with sci- “>< numbers. GAP i AND» ee Was, 4 Baseball Lea Cornerstone Family Life ie . : MPP iikgn <2 4:00 p.m. — 6:00 p.m. 1095 Allen Road Greenville, NC 27834 B WITH FAITH MAY gue Banquet Sunday, August 21, 2005 Center | entific studies correlating faith with’ _ good health, is slowly converting:a skeptical. médical community. | $ci-’ entific journals and many’ new - books are taking up the subject. _ Doctors are attending conferences on faith and: healing in increasing i A wave of recent studies: is | | chippitig away at the wall between church and lab.’ Research has _ Shown, for example, that people - - who attend religious services mote than once a week live, on average, seven years longer than those oh do not. A 1988 study by Duke Uni- versity Medical Center doctors Harold Koeing and David Larson found that those tended church weekly wete not as likely to be hospitalized, and when they were, they. did not spend: as much time.in the hospital as those people who at- Men’s Haircut $10.00 to $12.00 Shave $5.00 | _ Eye Brow Arch $5.00 Boy’s Haircut. ecklin Tie & Edge N e $5.00 Beautician’s Pricing Varies According To Hairstyle Unaversrry Square -Easr 10H Sr, Gaeewvi.iz | | Barner Stor: (252)754-2600 Beauty Suop (252) 754-2606 Ganbohntene dias (252) 353 953-1617 fatty acids,’ SC alieine tw destroys cells) - Second handed smoke because itis just aw fener igerous as smoki + For healthy living in a | “world ‘boils down ‘to’ practices <> preached to us a kids, Live a life of |. Moderation; educate yourselves on mbine a. sensible diet with mod- erate exercise and regular doctor vis- what we ate putting into our body. i ones are tse. > Excessive sugar has a: toxic ef. : ~~ fect, poisoning effect on the pod +. ‘+ Margarine and other cooking - |. oils that produce trans. chemicals that lead‘ to artériosclerosis. ©. Stay away from red meat roximately 180,000 cancer dea nd smoke causes ap- > Ifyou are 50 or older, you need to be tested for colori Cancer, Colon caficer is one you can avoid, simply by peteing tested. se Who went to church less fre uently, "© These correlations can be pare! tally explained by the fact that | -Churchgoers’ are less likely to. smoke, drink or engage in risky. -. sexual behavior, and they are more ) eae rk of social’ “support. In The Faith Factor: Proof. | fie ; of likely to ‘hhave’a’ netwo of the Healing Power of Prayer, in- ternist Dale are isolated are mote like physically. = "> » Doctors“and patients, how- _ ever, Continue to express the desire to keep the faith. “Students enter medical school because they want to take care of people. They see the technology is great, but they also want to be able to communicate b with people so they can care for them. They want to do it with be- ing in touch with the soul. ~ Excerpts from Reader's Digest 2001 The Story Of Continues from Page 1 ‘Evans. The first person he knew was Ora Blount. He also recalled ‘that City (or Citie) Thigpen was the midwife for that area and she ‘served people over-im Greene County, too. The atea still pro- vides a homestead for the ‘tealtives OFthose who originally _ lived, Gaston Monk who resides in: Bell Arthur an nei shboring ‘town, residents suc » Turnages, the Andersons, the Barretts, the Bests, the Joyners, the Kilpatricks and of course the _ Blount Family. as the _ As Deacon Best continued to lumindte he said, “I do not ‘recall very much about’ Ben Brown except that his wife was acco use Catises na s. ately 3,00( cases of hung can- cer in the U.S, each yx . Tap water (which coniaihe lead) . - Fast food (which contains pre-" selste ete ue Aatthews points out: that ofganized religion provides a” “community to. do and to be done: :.. for—bake ‘cookies, visit, help out.» And studies show that people who y todo | poorly both psychologically and July 1-31, 2005 The Minority Voice Newspaper Page7 . Replace junk food: wit nutri- - tious rip - Men are beginning to place in- creased importance on hat -_ ©. Coronary heart disease is te Number 1 killer ah zur e community especially har . Marriage and family are where you find true happiness (Kanye West) : Change is growth for institu- tions and individuals . ‘DON’T GIVE UP STAND UP... with conviction for what you believe. Be willing to de- “fend what you believe in. Don’t allow youtself to be a victim. Protect and ‘defend yourself, er ’ SPEAK UP... you are worthy. Learn fear of rejection..Learn how to com- ‘Municate and articulate your desires, dreams and concerns. Learn how to sell and express your ideas. REA CH UP... to be taught by men- : senihata, NC -Biochemist Dr. Li- An-Yeh has been app inted director of the Biomanufactu ing Research Inethuee and Technology Enterprise (BRITE) at North Carolina Central University (NCCU). She brings to NCCU more than 21 yeat~ of biomedical research experience in major pharmaceutical companies, small totech companies and academic settings. She started her career at Pfizer Central Re- search from 1984 - 1992.as senior research investigator. Yeh then served asa director of research for 12 years at leading private . sector centers of biotechnology research Blount Town named Sarah. An important event was when Sarah Thigpen matried John Brown. When I asked, who does he know now living that may be able to tell a little more about Blount Town, he named Naomi Parker Best. After interviewing Deacon Best in early May, he suffered a seri- ous stroke that took away his active life and he died.at. Pitt Memorial Hospital June 15, 2005. A July 19, 2005 as I contin- ued my research I interviewed Mr. Robert Lee Carmon (No- vember 22, 1919-). At first, Mr. Carmon was a bit slow in get- ting started. But according to Mr. Carmon, his great grandfa- _ "TRAIN_UP A CHILD IN THE WAY HE SHOULD OO PROVERB 22:6 . HOURS OF OPERATION M-F 6:30 AM TO 6:00 PM INA CHRISTIAN ENVIRONMENT -¢ "YOUR CHILD'S SAFE HAVE “AWAY FROM HOME" M252) 753- 8653 oF (252) 327-4525 ED LEARNING & PLAY "Enroll Your Child Toda” Erlgn Mayor 6 Opa AR ae ee NTMYER MOTORS ‘i, Road, the power of “asking”. Overcome the - = Soe ee CREDIT | tors, teachers, elders anid those that ; will teach you how to avoid unneces- sary snistay. Ego and pride can be : your worst enemy, eee OPEN UP... to change and learn new ideas, meet new people and go new places. Don't get stuck in a rut... GROW! : | POLISH UP.. find ways to constan dy improve your image, vocabulary, hab- its, working area, wardrobe and ap- pearance. Think QUALITY and ‘te- member the true saying, “the first im- pression is a lasting impression,” STEP UP... to ea and follow through. Keep your commitments.’. Procrastination is a thief. Stay focused on the most imiportant things that need to be accomplished today, tt. SAVE UP... “saye money and money Will save you” is an old Jamaican rov- erb. Financially successful people are able to respond to, emergencies and opportunities. Develop financial wis-- NCCU Appoints New Director of Bio-Manufacturing Institute including: OsteoArthritis Sciences, Inc.; Phytera, Inc.; NEN Life Science Products ~~ {a PerkinElmer company); and at the . Slarvand Center for Neurodegeneration an . Most recently, Yeh has served as re- search advisor in lead generation biology for Eli Lilly & Company at its corporate headquarters in Indianapolis This background has afforded her ex- > tensive experience in building and man- aging new biotechnology osgAnleations e to her as | that she says will be invaluab ~ afaculty for BRITE, BRITE is scheduled to beginvaccepting students in the 2006 - 2007 cadet | . iting new chall for me,” said Yeh, “With over 20 years experience working in the biotechno industry cane and mentoring rami scientists, I have developed a particular interest in increasing minority representa- tion in the field of biomanufacturing and biotechnology research and training,” In addition, while serving as a director of re- _ search and development at PerkinElmer, Yeh was responsible for developing new products used for drug discovery research. In this process, her department was respon- “hep.” dom, which reduces stress and in-— creases success, Bets, 9 ane ae eee casion. Be good to ; , Feel wor- of 5 * »” f thy of the “good life.” LOOK UP remember the wonds of Psalms... “I will lift UP mine eyes unto — the hills from whence cometh my Juring those dark uncertain times, endure, hold on and look to God within and above for your. strength and guidance. Let your faith be strong, not weak. Bg EIGHT GLASSES OF WATER A 1. Reduce swelling and water reten- 2. Help burn fats and carbohydrates. 3. Help provide more energy we 4. Help remove waste peokace. 5. Avoid constipation. 6. Help reduce hunger. 7. Reduce the possibilty of bladder cancer. sible for bench scale to large-scale process development, and quality assurance and quality control methodologies develop- ment for man ing, = - Yeh is comfortable in the academic setting as well. As director of lead dis- covery at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repait, Yeh served as an instructor in the Harvard Medical School and was responsible for training numerous graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in collaboration with Harvard faculty members at the Bri and Women's Hospital and other Harvard- affiliated teaching hospital, —_- Yeh received her bachelor of science from National Taiwan University in Taipei. = She received her master of science in chemistry at Kent State and her Ph.D. in biochemistry at Purdue University. NCCU’s biomanufacturi training program received its initial funding of $19.1 million largely from the Golden LEAF Foundation. The physical struc- ture is planned as an addition to the new Mary M. Townes Science Building, which will open its doors this fall. The BRITE addition is scheduled for comple- tion in 2007. - . ther was Jude Nobles, his-father’s name was Frank Carmon and his mother’s name. was Arnett Carmen. Mr. Robert grew up in the Rountree community, which was down the road from Blount Town. His great, great grandfa- ther was named Edie Blount. According to Robert Lee Carmon, he was a young boy | and was runing ii the area bac then. Blount Town was located about four miles northwest of Zion Hill. Zion Hill was in the Rountree. community. Residents of Blount Town included Mr. Tom Turnage and his family. Amos Blount had a house full of children. Amusingly Carmon recaledd that, “women back then ° had children and did not do what women do now to keep from hav- ing children.” Black Folks Making A Living.... When asked how did colored people buy land back then, he re- lied: “some worked it out!” hen the agreement was made, you kept your word. The folks ~-now will pull tricks. Backthen people were honest. ‘Wages in- cluded fifty cents ($.50) a day but some received even less than that such as thirty-five cents ($.35). Seventy ago some worked by the week and received two dollars ($2.00) a day. The workday included from sun rise to sun set. And the week was from Monday until Saturday at lunch and a week’s pay was $2.00. Daylight did not catch the + man in the bed. Women did not work because work included dig- ing ditches or ditching the ditch anks. The work tools were the shovel, ax and the saw. We. ate by lattern light. The best pay I received was from Lufer Dale who paid young boys for getting up nutgrass. and hauling it off Even though he could not re- member the acreage, he said that it was a lot of land. Back then, he stated that colored eople did not see white folks But he recalls Mr. McKenly Taft. To get around, everyone had to walk therefore, they did not walk far for most things. I, (Rob- ert Carmon) had liquor still and it was the best [liquor around). Aunt MaRoth, a midwife de- livered Buddy (William Carmon) my son. But most of all, I recall Polly Moye and I don’t know her name before marriage because back then women had the title of the man she married. Polly had many husbands. Every time one would died, she would marry again. She married “Chicken” oye, Peter Rountree and they had three boys, Thomas and her had two boys, She also had some girls by somebody. As of this writing, research has not uncovered the docu- mented information as to the acknowledgement of this Black Town. Most of the older Blacks living today (2005) in Greenville recall Blount Town was an area located between Greenville and Farmville. Ms. Williams is the grand- daughter of Caroline Hemby Blount and Alex Blount. _ NOTICE: The Desceendents of Amoos Blount and Jamine Edwards Blount and Freeman Hemby and Annis Carr Hemby will come together for their quinennial (every five years) reunion be- ginning Friday night, ‘August 19, 2005, ATTENTION BUSINESSES ADVERT WRITERS!! Page 8 The Minority Voice Newspaper July 1 - 31, 2005 i: Me en —. Guy arnelis. Goodbye, r. Nigger, it is 1969 and Bob That ties become the first African-American professor of a predominately White southern university. He quickly faces severe prejudice and prejudice and disre- spect from both stu- dents at ty. The situa- tion only esca- lates when he be- gins affair with a White colleague. This is a fascinating story, writ- ten with vivid character portrayals, The focus is put vivid character por- trayals. The focus is put on racial bias of the worst kind, delivering a book the reader won't soon forget. Darnell taught school for over 40 years; earning his A.B. from Morehouse College, where he was a schoolmate of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, He then went on to earn his M.B.A. from the University of Chi- cago. He eatned his Th.D. che Arkan- sas Baptist Theological School be- fore. beginning his teacher career, which included stints at Fort Valley State College, the University of Ar- kansas Baptist Theological School before beginning his teaching career, which included stints at Fort Valley State College, the University of Ar- kansas at Bis ¢ Bluff, and Florida A&M University. Darnell, now retired, is also the co-author of College Business Law, published in 1960, BLACKS RAISING UP WHITE FOLK’S CHILDREN The new book by Laurie Gunst, Off White, is the story of a decidedly different southern fami- ily—Black, White, and Jewish. It’s also a tribute’ to the grear-hearted African-American‘ woman, Rhoda Lloyd, who, as caregiver, presided over five generation of the family, amidst the vivious racism of the Jim Crow South, Growing up in a long estab- lished German-Jewish family in Rich- mond, Va., Laurie always knew that she was. “off-White” + ani outsider, Although she felt closest to all of the African-American women who worked in her home, she was shocked one day to. find ouit that they did not al- ways recip- rocate that closeness. Claudine Leake, who cooked for the Gunst family, in- formed Laurie that her people often said, “Negros always singin’ an’ workin .,.Jew’s always eatin’ an’ countin his money.” From then on Laurie knew that she belonged not just to the Black and White worlds, but chere was a third distinction: Jew- ish, Rhoda had been _ her grandmother's maid in New York City and was summoned to Rich- mond at Laurie's birth. Building on her strong bond with Rhoda, Ls has always felt shame at certain as- pects of her family’s racially intoler- ant past. She had ancestors who fought for the Confederates in the cooperated Wi cere than anything, Off White is the story of che ston, bond be- tween women of color and the White they nurtured, RA. Jeffreys Distributing Co, LLC Salutes : Cs aeaerhae a Rey a bt aks ENGR o Page 12 The Minority Voice Newspaper July 1 - 31, 2005 < + 2 Shing Pull Width Spsate™ ¢ 3 Fixed White Door Bins =i EG with Gallon Storage) Side-By-Side ! 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