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Page 2 - SPELMAN SPOTLIGHT • November, 1975
"Seif befense is Legal, Rape is Not
- Remember Joanne Little"
Cornelia Edwards
Staff Reporter
On June 17, 1975, two Black
Atlanta women, Cheryl S. Todd
and Dessie X. Woods were
arrested and charged with
murder and armed robbery in
Wheeler County, Georgia. These
Bisters were defending them
selves against an attack by a
white man who is known in the
community for his sexual attacks
on Black women.
“We know that the state will not
give these sisters a fair trial so it
is up to us, the people, to defend
these sisters as in the case of
Joanne Little.” These are the
words and main objective of the
Dessie X. Woods-Cheryl S. Todd
Defense Committee. This case
focuses on the question, “Does a
Black woman have the right to
defend herself?” They point out
.that the Joanne Little case set the
precedent. They agree that this
case can not be tried thoroughly
and justly unless this precedent is
recognized. Brother Omawake, a
member of the Defense Com
mittee, states that the Joanne
Little decision, “raised the
political question of whether a
Black woman has the right to
defend herself. What we are
seeing now is just a link in the
chain to back up with the Joanne
Little case and consolidate the
right which was won in the Little
case.”
Because they feel that a change
of venue is very difficult to obtain
in Georgia, the Defense Com
mittee has mounted a
professional campaign to compile
and circulate a questionnaire
intended to expose widespread
racist and sexist attitudes within
Wheeler County. The Defense
wants to have the trial moved
from Wheeler County in hope that
Sisters Woods and Todd receive a
“fair” trial.
Sister Juanita Nur, another
member of the Defense Com
mittee, calls our attention to a
broader issue. “Black women are
most often the victims in sexual
attacks. She also says that “a lot
of fallacies and rumors have been
floating around about Black
women and their morals. Black
women are seen as being
promiscuous and as sex objects.
Even white women in the Defense
Committee’s survey often replied
that they felt that Black women’s
moral standards are much lower
than those of white women.”
Ms. Nur in speaking for the
Committee says that “we will not
be satisfied with anything less
than an aquittal.” She feels that
“it is very important because
we’re fighting for something we
supposedly won in the case of
Joanne Little.”
Black people in Wheeler County
have already pledged their
support to the Dessie X. Woods-
Cheryl S. Todd case. The
question that remains to be
answered is, “Will Atlantans and
Black people in general UNITE IN
THIS EFFORT AND JUST
STRUGGLE?”
Contact:
The Dessie X. Woods-Cheryl S.
Todd Defense Committee
Council for Community
Involvement
94 Griffin Street, N. W.
Atlanta, Georgia
Telephone numbers are:
688-1130 [day]
525-0848 [night]
Contributions are needed.
Should Schools Combine?
Paula Spence
The Search For A
New President
The rationale for combining the
schools of the Atlanta University
Center has consistently been
“together we stand, divided we
fall.” At present, the A.U.C.
schools represent separate en
tities, eacl) attempting to
facilitate the same educational
goals. In this era of economic
uncertainty, it is-conceivable that
each school could possibly be on
the verge of economic ruin or
collapse. However, any existing
institution, philanthropic
organization or, as recently seen,
an urban city, can even be
susceptable to economic collapse
at such a time. Therefore, the
assertion that the A.U.C. should
The construction of a new library
for the Atlanta University Center
is about to get underway, the
head librarian of Trevor Arnett
said a few weeks ago.
Casper Jordan, head librarian,
said the plans for a new library
have been in the making for a
long time, but only recently have
foe architectural firms been
sought to start actual con
struction.
“The need for a new library has
been felt since the ’50’s”, he
said. “In 1968 the Council of
Presidents recognized the need
and appointed a committee on
library development, which
worked from 1968-72 on the
idea.”
Jordan said the actual con
struction of the building will
begin in 1977 and should be
completed in 1979, hopefully in
time for the celebration of the
50th anniversary of Atlanta
University as a graduate school.
When asked about its location,
Jordan said several plans were
being considered, but presently
combirie' in the face of today’s
prevailing economic conditions
implies that the W. T. Grant store
should combine with G. C.
Murphy and Bell Telephone
should combine with I.T.T., and
the government of Georgia should
combine with the government of
Tennessee.
One argument for the combining
of the schools is the uniformity of
academic course offerings. The
fact has never been
acknowledged that if courses
aren’t uniform, then they are
poor. However, uniformity
doesn’t readily imply something
that is better. As evidenced by
the graduates of the A.U.C.
the building is scheduled to be
situated “in the area north of Fair
Street.”
Under a joint venture-Toombs,
Amisano and Wells and J. W.
Robinson and Anderson, it will
probably be a low rise of 4 stories
or a high rise of 7, depending on
its site, he said.
Commenting on the library itself
Jordan said, “It will be a media
center (audio-visual) as well as a
library. Some of its facilities will
include closed-circuit television
studios, listening rooms, and
open stacks on the various floors.
It will have a living room at
mosphere with carpet and lounge
furniture.”
The present library, Jordan said,
will be renamed Trevor Arnett
Hall and serve as an ad
ministration building for the
School of Library Science at
Atlanta University.
Jordan said the new library,
quoting several nationally known
consultants, will 'be “the best
academic library in the State of
Georgia.”
schools, academic excellence
prevails.
Others argue that combination
would cause an increase and rich
diversity in available educational
resources. Over the years, each
school has been able to in
dependently obtain the necessary
funds to promote, insure and
prolong its own existence. In
spite of having to act as a family
unit by coming together and
tightening purse strings, the
schools of the A.U.C. have
successfully maintained economic
independence from one another.
Furthermore, schools of the
Center give financial aid in
various forms: academic
scholarships, work study and
athletic scholarships. Each
school currently assists a number
of athletes in paying for their
school expenses for their sports
efforts. Under a uniform
program, many of the athletes
could lose their scholarships.
Many of them may not qualify for
work study or academic
scholarships. Should we, by
merger, diminish their op
portunity to receive an education?
When all control rests with one
president, one board of directors,
and one department for each
academic course of study, it is
obviously easier to eradicate one
combined institution rather than
one Clark, one I.T.C., one
Morehouse, one Morris Brown
and one Spelman. The “in
terdependence” has been one of
the major forces guaranteeing our
continued existence. Instead of
combining and having fewer
black institutions, our battle cry
should be for more in order to
maintain and train more top-level
black professionals who will, in
turn, render their services to the
black community and to the larger
community as well. Together we
stand, divided we fall?--not in this
case. This non-transition
seemingly keeps us together.
The Spelman Government
Cabinet and other selected
students met with the Spelman
Board of Trustees concerning the
needs of Spelman and the
selection of the next president.*
The Board members were per
sonable, objective, and quite
receptive to the point of view of
the students concerning the
needs of Spelman and the criteria
which should be used in selecting
the next president.
The suggestions and recom
mendation that the SGA Cabinet
and students rendered were:
student evaluation of instructors;
revamping academic structure,
for example: programs which will
allow the student to apply what
she has learned in the classroom
in actual job settings as part of
the required sequence, increased
faculty, developing existing
departments and establishing
new departments in areas such as
business, communications, pre
law and urban affairs; and more
preparation in our academic
studies to meet the demands of a
changing and complex society.
The students also suggested as
criteria for selecting the president
that the president should be a
black woman; she should be a
good fund-raiser and have
established the necessary con
tacts for ■ good fund-raising;
promote understanding of the
difficulties which are inherent in
heading an institution, the
president should also have keen
insight into the complexities
which face a private, black and
souther institution; the president,
should be around the age of 35-
45. Old enough to have gained
the experience and expertise that
is acquired with age; yet young
enough to be objective and
receptive to change, and the
president should have a Ph.D. or
its equivalent.
It was also suggested that
selected students other than the
4-Way Committee should meet
with the Board on a regular basis.
Further, the students should be
allowed input in every phase
concerning the selection of our
president.
The members of the Presidential
Search Committee are co
chairpersons Mrs. Marian W.
Edelman, director of the
Children’s Defense Fund in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, and
Dr. Eoin W. Trevelyan, professor
of business administration at
Harvard University. The other
members of the committee in
clude: Mrs. Laura R. Chasin,
doctoral student and housewife;
W. Gerald Davenport,
Rockefeller Foundation associate;
Dr. Charles T. Davis, professor of
afro-american studies at Yale
University; Mrs. Asa G. Yancey,
civic worker, and Francis Day
Rogers, chairman of Spelman
Board of Trustees and an ar
chitect.
There will be no student
representation on the special
presidential search committee
whose function it is to choose the
candidates for the presidential
screening and to make the final
decision. There will be student
representation at the interviews
of the candidates in December.
If students have any suggestions
or recommendations concerning
criteria for choosing the new
president, the committee asks
that they write:
Office of the Presidential Search
Committee
Mrs. Enid C. Baird, Secretary
500 East 62nd Street
New York, New York 10021
AUC's New Library
RitaD. Ford