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Page 7 - Spelman Spotlight ' } \Z % TYRONE BROOKS 34* House District Tyrone Brooks (3rd from left, bottom row) with some sup porters. Brooks Continued Continued from page 2 Christian Leadership Conference headquarters at 340 Auburn Avenue in Atlan ta. My platform will develop from the people, Brooks said, “We're sponsoring a mass rally next week and I'd like everybody to come out. 1 hi 1 people of that meeting v,ill decide what mv platform will be.”’ The cocoa-brown, wood- paneled walls of his office are covered with a variety of wall paraphernalia: a sticker that reads, Abolish The Death penalty, pictures of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rev. Ralph D. Abernathy could be seen in several places on the wall. “I’ve seen a few changes in the 34th district,” Brooks said, he has been a resident of the district since 1967, “The dis trict has gone from majority white to majority black. I haven’t really seen any im provements. e.g. substandard housing — many are leaving for suburbia. I am concerned abou tthe slumlords who let property go down. Atlanta housing will not enforce the code.” There’s a faded brown newspaper clipping tacked to Brooks’ wall with a headline that reads, Klu Klux Klan Rally. Another clipping, not as faded, refers to the Pensacola, Florida murders of five black men.. “There is an increase in crime,” Brooks stated. “The F.B.I. and Atlanta public safety say that the crime rate is going down, but this doesn’t seem so in my district. Old folks are afraid to go out. Young ladies of the Atlanta University Center are in constant danger of rape. There’s been an increase in the drug traffic in the schools.” This is certainly the year of the common man’s ascen dancy in the area of politics: President Jimmy Carter, “up from the peanut farm,” and Tyrone Brooks, national com munications director for S.C.L.C., out of what he des cribes as “a very poor area” of Warrenton, Georgia and into the race for the 34th district seat. “I consider myself a hard working person,” Brooks asserted, “I believe that hard work pays off. I plan to be the most active representative with a full time staff.” Brooks grew up in a rural en vironment on a little farm, current population 2000. He says that his roots will always be in Warrenton. He said what got him out of Warrenton was Dr. King’s movement. “I plan to be serious,” Brooks stated, “Many people said, “Ty, go into politics now,- “I don’t plan to be a politician but a representative of the people if it takes going to jail.” It all started for Brooks when he was in high school, in 1963, in the eleventh grade. The schools were operating on the black-white system, Brooks explained, “The white system was better equipped and had better facilities. The black kids noticed this and began to take notice of what was going on around the country.” Protests against the un balanced school systems took place. Brooks, at 16, was iden tified as the spokesman for the protest groups. The incidents made headlines and put Warrenton on the map. As a result of his part in them. Brooks was often taken down to juvenile authorities. During this time. Brooks was being advised by Dr. King and began to work with both Dr. King and Rev. Abernathy. They stayed in touch and in 1967 Brooks was offered a position as field secretary, a position that re quired that he work closely with the community. “My mom and pop were divorced when I was about four,” Brooks remembered, “Mom had to be both mom and pop. She showed no opposition (To his activist activities). She has never been the kind of mother to say, ‘Hey, don’t do this.’ She would say, ‘If you do this, this is what might happen on one hand and this on the other.” “I was arrested for leading protests against the board of education, Brooks recalled, “The police went to her (his mother) and said, ‘Go over there and talk to your boy and tell him not to do what he’s doing.’ My mother said, ‘Number one, he’s not a boy, ‘number two, I don’t know if I can convince him, and number three, he’s old enough to do what he wants.’ Brooks attended Warenton high school. He studied fc nr years at Albany State where he received his degree in political science. He studied one year at Howard University in the area of communications. He attended Atlanta University for one year where he continued his studies in the area of political science. Even though Brooks has had this education, he says that most of his education was obtained on the streets, being out there with the community, with the movement. Brooks is interested in drug- related crimes. “We have to prevent drugs from coming into the city on the whole,” said Brooks, who believes that marijuana should be decriminalized, “We have to pay more attention to those bringing it in. We have to pay more attention to the in filtration of drugs into the country, state and community. Those who bring it in shoudl be prosecuted to the fullest.” One thing I’m really worried about is what we’re doing to each other. Brooks lamented, “We don’t love each other. Why is there such a high black crime rate? We have to start speaking on this issue. I do understand the social im plications, this is something the major organizations must began to deal with.” Brooks said that another th ing that worries him is black colleges being on the brink of bankruptcy. He said that if the black colleges were to go out of business he doesn’t know what we as black people would do. He emphasizes that the black colleges must stay black, in other words, geared towards the black person. Brooks is the youngest can didate for the 34th district seat. The others are in their 40’s, 50’s and '60’s. “I really don’t know what my opponents are doing,” Brooks stated, “I’m not run ning against my opponents. I’m running for the seat. People in Atlanta know what I’ve heen doing. That’s what people will vote on.” Brooks was the first to an nounce his candidacy for the seat. He said that he was surprised to see how many people stepped up to support him. Young people, old people, Library Continued from page 1 and records of African folk rhythms and Afro-American music are all also a part of the extensive collection. Many scholars, students and tourists have annually traveled to Harlem to partake of the wealth stored in the Schom- burg Center. Yet, there are numerous volumes of books and other materials that haven’t been accessible to the public because of lack of space. These items have been kept in boxes and on top of files. Massive deterioration of the building, lack of air con ditioner or any proper ven tilation has endangered not only the health of the staff persons but also its irreplaceable artifacts. In fact, much of the material has already been destroyed. A leaking roof damaged the Maximilian Collection (slave narratives) from Haiti during Hurricane Belle. In the colder months, because of an im proper heating facility, the windows break. The library was once forced to close because of lack of heat. A boiler had been broken for over a week and no promise of repair had been made definite. The N.Y.P.L. is part of a privately owned foundation which has 70-million dollars in investments and annually receives millions of dollars in city, state and federal funds. In an issue of the Worker’s World, black author Anita King said that, “The Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations, who are the owners of the New York Public Library System are again using the cry of lack of funds to further their long standing policy of racial dis crimination against the Schomburg. In actuality, money which had been allocated for a new building for the Schomburg was taken by the N;Y.P.L. and used to construct the Lincoln Center Library in N.Y. which is located in a prestigious white area. Renovations have been done on the 42nd street library also located in the same type of area. Continued on page 8 New Creative Workshop By Debra Gilmore A creative writing workshop has recently been instituted on Spelman’s campus. Ms. Ruby Sales of Spelman’s history department initiated the workshop because of her own interest in writing. According to Ms. Sales, writing is an im portant avenue of expression for students. The workshop will give students the op portunity to come together and Each Tuesday the members of the workshop meet at 6:00 to discuss and criticize their writings. Each Thursday at 6:00 the members have a Coffeehouse which allows writers in the Spelman com munity to share their works. All meetings are held in the Manley College Center on the lower level. New members are invited to attend the workshop. share their writings. The workshop will aid the students in developing their individual writing styles. Through the workshop students will be able to obtain constructive criticism of their work. The workshop will be another means of augmenting the intellectual life on Spelman’s campus. black people and white people have rallied to Brooks’ side,” he says. Among his many supporters are councilman Arthur Langford, the Afro American Patrolman’s League and Ms. Jondelle Johnson, youth coordinator for the Atlanta chapter of the National As sociation for the Advancement of Colored People. “Many people don’t like troubling the waters-rising hell,” said Brooks, discussing what it takes to get some things done, “It takes raising hell. I intend to fight like hell.” Monthly Date Mark it on your calendar. Once a month — every month. BSE. Breast self-examination. Life-saving protection against one of woman’s deadli est enemies—breast cancer. 95% of breast cancers are discovered by women them selves. And the earlier the detection and treatment, the greater the chances of cure. Ask your local Unit for our leaflet on breast self-exami nation. Then mark your cal endar—BSE. Every month. American Cancer Society