Newspaper Page Text
SPELMA N
THE VOICE OF BLACK WOMANHOOD
SPO TLIGHT
VOL. XLII, NO. 4 ATLANTA, GEORGIA FEBRUARY, 1975
E.R.A.
by Shirley O. Henderson
On January 11th, over 2000 women held a rally
in support of the Equal Rights Amendment. Their
enthusiastic cry was “Racism, sexism we can
defeat it, the people united will never be
defeated!” The rally was the culmination of a
march in support of the E.R.A. The march, which
consisted mainly of young, white females, began at
Central City Park and ended at the Capitol. There
were addresses from representatives of Georgians
for the E.R.A. including the Socialist Workers
Party, October League, Coalition of Labor Union
Women, and the Anti-Repression Coalition.
Miriam Richmond, dynamic editorialist of WAOK
radio station, also spoke.
One of the main themes of the speakers was the
necessity for the participation of minority women,
especially Black women, in the E.R.A.
Specifically, the E.R.A. is as follows: “Equal rights
under the law shall not be denied or abridged by
the United States or any state on account of sex.”
This is the proposed 27th amendment to theU.S.
Constitution. The E.R.A., which has been up
before Congress twice before, will ensure the legal
and economic equality of women. The passage of
the E.R.A. would be a meaningful act for Black
women who suffer from triple discrimination as
Blacks, women and workers.
Avis Topps, a senior at Spelman, is a member of
the Ad Hoc Committee for the E.R.A. and was
instrumental in the coordination of the rally. Avis
viewed the rally as a success in terms of the
numbers involved and the message which the
speakers relayed. When specifically asked the
advantages of E.R.A. for Black women, she cited
several advantages such as: Black women would
receive legal aid to combat discrimination in jobs;
it would aid in getting employment, provide child
care for mothers and make women eligible for the
G.I. Bill to further their education. When asked
how the E.R.A. would benefit, a student at
Spelman, she replied that it could help them get a
fair chance at entering law or medical schools and
in helping to secure scholarships. But beyond these
benefits she sees a deeper advantage, that is the
uniting of all oppressed people to throw off the
yoke of oppression and rise together with each
movement working to advance itself and thereby
advancing the cause of all the people. Avis
indicated that in the future, Black women must
stop looking at the E.R.A. as an issue that doesn’t
concern them and realize that it will help them
most because they are the most oppressed. She
expressed regret at the lack of participation by
Black women in the march and stated, “As soon as
Black women realize that we are fighting a two
fold enemy, racism and sexism, we can become
more progressive individuals in society.”
(See “E.R.A. ” page 6)
Chancellor Speaks
with
A.U.C. Students
by Sylvia Wofford
Recently, Chancellor Lisle Carter met with
students of the various schools of the Atlanta
University Center for a panel discussion at radio
station WAUC. Jim Harper, the program director
of the station, led the discussion.
The members of the panel consisted of Shirley
Michael of I.T.C., Eugene Duffy of Morehouse,
David Copeland of I.T.C., Ron Harris of Clark,
Sidney Locks of I.T.C., Rochelle Flemister of
Spelman, and Sylvia Wofford of Spelman.
Various topics pertinent to the A.U. Center
were discussed. Chancellor Carter talker about his
job and the duties which it entails, which among
others is Chief administrator of the Atlanta
University Complex. He administers programs
which the institutions agree to co-ordinate.
Chancellor Carter expressed his desire to make
himself accessible to students though at the time
his schedule is very rigid. He also discussed his
views concerning the merging of the A.U. Center.
He does not think the idea is too likely , reasons
for which he stated, “The environment is very
enriching as it now structured.” “Where,” he
asked, “can one go to a school small enough for
social interraction and still have a feeling of unity,
besides having access to quality education at the
various schools of this center?”
According to Chancellor Carter, each school
can keep its uniqueness while bettering itself by
collaborating with its associate institutions.
Besides his rigorous duties, Chancellor Carter
finds time in his busy schedule to work on his pet
project which is the Fund Raising for the Atlanta
University Library which is expected to cost an
estimated eleven million dollars.
Chancellor Carter is enjoying his work here and
is hoping for much more enriching years for the
Atlanta University Complex.
Dr. J. Saunders
Redding Speaks to
Spelman
by Debra Orr
Dr. J. Saunders Redding, Editor of Calvacade,
was presented by the English Department at
Spelman on Tuesday, Jan. 14, as a guest lecturer.
He was also invited to speak at other colleges in
the A. U. center. The title of his lecture — “You’ve
Taken My Song and Gone: Integration vs. Black
Nationalism — Reality or Myth” — was thought
provoking and very appropriate for the times. The
lecture covered the time span from the 1920’s to
the present day and showed how black thought
has changed throughout the times. He cited
various examples to prove his thesis.
Around the time that ragtime was becoming
popular, whites took over this aspect of black
culture, credited it as their creation and remaned it
jazz. This was also the case for the “Blues”. Black
thought at this time was not geared toward
cultural pride. The blacks were proud that whites
could find something in their culture to mimick,
not realizing that it was being taken away from
them. The push for integration was started then
and was continued until this time.
Another example Redding cited was the
movement known as SNCC. This organization was
started by both black and white college students
to educate southern blacks about their civil rights.
As with the music, the whites tried to usurp the
positions held by blacks. They eventually held all
the key positions in the organization, but the
blacks revolted against this and ousted the whites
from the organization.
Today, blacks are realizing that while
integration is necessary, it will not assure them
equal positions in the white society. The push
toward integration has not been as strong today
because of the push for Black Nationalism. There
is a resurgence to cultural pride and Blacks are
finally realizing that we have contributed a great
deal to the American society. Redding also stated
that we are now developing our own culture based
on the lost culture of the Africans. He said that we
(See “Dr. Redding” page 6}