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Page 3 - Spelman Spotlight
Ms. Dorothy Gilliam was here at Spelman as a Woodrow
Wilson Visiting Fellow (Photo by Terrance V. Smith)
Journalist Visits Spelman
What are the recent trends in
the field of journalism like for
blacks? According to Ms.
Dorothy Butler Gilliam, as
sistant editor of the
Washington Post, most
recent statistics show that
only one percent of the editors
in this country are black.
Ms. Gilliam came to the
Spelman and Morehouse
college campuses as a
Woodrow Wilson visiting
Fellow. The visiting fellows
program attempts to broaden
student’s conception of the
working world by bringing to
the liberal arts colleges
successful men and women
from fields such as journalism,
business, government and
other professions.
Ms. Gilliam said, at a recep
tion the Alboro Guest House on
Spelman’s campus, roughly
800 blacks are working on
daily newspapers in this coun
try and so few of them are be
ing promoted. How did Ms.
Gilliam become the Post’s as
sistant editor?
After working with the Post
as a city reporter from 1962 to
1967 Ms. Gilliam left to do a
television talk show called
“Panarama” which is still be
ing run. She subproduced a 15
minute interview segment
which was often about people
from the black community.
The entire program was ac
tually two hours long. “I got
the job at a time when
television needed black faces,”
she said.
In 1972 black reporters at the
Post filed suit against the
paper charging that blacks
held no editorial positions
there. Ms. Gilliam said that the
Post remembered her and
asked her to fill the position.
She left “Panarama” and
became assistant editor of the
section of the Post which
concerns life-styles,
personalities, civil rights,
political figures, changes in
society, minority affairs and
cultural events.
After graduating from Lin
coln University Ms. Gilliam
applied to Columbia
University in New York City.
She was turned down because
officials said that she did not
have enough liberal arts
hours. She went back to school,
applied to Columbia again and
was accepted.
“Many schools are begin
ning to say that graduate
journalism may be more useful
than undergrad,” Ms. Gilliam
told students, “and there is a
lotto say about undergraduate
specialties and a graduate
degree in journalism.”
Ms. Gilliam suggests that
students interested in a career
in journalism think about
specializing in such areas as
political science, philosophy,
education or even art. She
contends that there is a strong
need for black art critics.
“Journalism calls for every
element of your being. You
should have a strong academic
thrust-read newspapers,” she
emphasized.
Ms. Gilliam is on the board
of directors for the Summer
Program For Minorities In
Journalism (SPMJ), a
program started in the early
’70’s at Columbia and funded
by the Ford Foundation. When
the funds from Ford dried up,
black journalists, realising the
program was too valuable to
let go, raised money to con
tinue the journalism program.
They could not, however, raise
enough money to continue the
broadcasting segment of the
program.
The SPMJ involves thirteen
weeks of extensive journalistic
training. The participants
produce a newspaper and upon
completion of the program, are
placed with a daily newspaper,
usually located in a small
town. Graduates of the
program are asked to work
with the paper for two years.
Thus, the program is not for
students who plan return to
school the next semester. Not
all of the participants are
students, lawyers and teachers
have gone through the
program also.
Besides her interest in
newspaper work, Paul
Robeson, All-American is a
biography on Robeson written
by Ms. Gilliam and published
She became interested in
Robeson after writing an
article on the salute to Robeson
at Camiege Hall in New York.
“I never knew that a black
man had experienced what he
had experienced,” she said.
“In the '50’s Robeson was
tagged as a communist,
someone to be afraid of, one of
“those” people. I was of that
generation. When I saw his
career unfolding that day in
Camiege slides, filmclips ... I
realized that he was the most
talented man this century has
produced!”
Those of you who missed Ms.
Gilliam really missed a source
of education. She was very in
formative and very direct.
Visiting fellows are given a
choice of parts of the country to
which they may travel. Ms.
Gilliam said, VI was very
happy to learn that I would be
coming to a black college.”
This Month In
Spelman’s History
1934
The “Spel-More” Dramatics
Guild was organized.
1935
The Senior class held a county
fair in Howe Hall.
Talking motion pictures were
shown in Sale Hall Chapel.
1940
The buildings that were to
become the new Clark-College
went under construction.
An October Song Festival took
Morehouse
Women On The Move At Marta
in 1976. “I think Robeson is place on the
one of the phenomenas of the College Campus,
century,” Ms. Gilliam said.
A MARTA bus driver makes her way down Fair Street.
(Photo by Terrance V. Smith)
by Valita Sellers
The Metropolitan Atlanta
Rapid Transit Authority, com
monly known as Marta em
ploys 45 women out of ap
proximately 1190 workers.
Marta began hiring women
during World War II because of
a shortage of men. Women em
ployees have been increasing
in numbers steadily
throughout the entire system
since then. The original com
pany from which Marta
originates can be traced as far
back as 1800. The company
was transformed into Marta in
February of 1972 under the
General Management of Mr.
Alan F. Kiepper.
Most of the women whose
buses operate from the Brady
Avenue Garage have been
with Marta on a gamut rang
ing from 3V4 years to 1 month
and 2 weeks. They applied for
the job mainly because the
salary was good and the job
offered unlimited op
portunities to meet people.
Mrs. H. A. Copeland, one of
the 3Vi year veterans at Marta,
states that being a bus driver
was one of her lifetime as
pirations, and also that she
was unhampered by prejudices
concerning women having
such occupations. Mrs. Emma
Knight, who is a novice at
Marta, says she came to Marta
because she wanted a change
of pace. Ms. Knight had
previously been a nurse for
nine years. She has been with
Marta less than 2 months.
As with any occupation,
driving a bus has its’
problems. The women feel they
handle these problems as
competently, if not better,
than their male colleagues.
Some of the usual problems
that arise are passengers
smoking, operating a radio or
talking excessively loud, and
occasionally a school
youngster’s fist fight. The
women all agree that a firm re
quest in a kind tone of voice
usually yields the best results.
They are also extremely con
fident in their ability to handle
the buses and they quickly and
enthusiastically admit it.
When asked how the public
reacts initially when they see
her behind the wheel, Ms.
Stone, replies that during her
2 '/i years employment at
Marta, the reaction, if any, is
the immediate recognition
that she is a woman, and then
doubts about whether the
arrival of the bus will be safe
and punctual. The women all
agree that it is now time for
those ancient prejudices about
men being the best drivers to
be disregarded.
Ms. Bessie F. Gresham, also
a driver, notes that women
themselves are the major
perpetuators of these pre
judices. She says that she has
been told more than once by
female passengers that they
would feel safer if a man were
driving. All of the women feel
that attitudes like these not
only make if difficult to obtain
these once all male jobs, but
also make it difficult to stifle
misguided prejudices.
The women feel they should
have no special regulations,
contracts, or uniforms because
they are females. Nor do they
feel that being a bus driver
detracts from their feminity.
Ms. Betty Turner, who has
been driving a Marta bus for 3
years, feels feminity is a
definite advantage. She finds
that people show her great
respect and kindness while rid
ing her bus.
The qualifications for being
a Marta bus driver are simple.
A driver’s license, an age re
quirement of 25, and a high
school diploma is all that is re
quired. Women are welcome at
Marta, and have previously
found satisfaction with it. Mr.
Govan Emerson, the Division
Manager of the Brady Avenue
Garage comments “The
women are very good drivers.
On the average, they are as
good as the men. They are
extremely dependable and get
along especially well with the
public.”
Emerson also states that he
does not consider the female
employees an advantage or
disadvantage. He thinks of
them only as competent
workers.
All of the women heartily
recommend the job for women
seeking employment,
especially those who are the
financers of their families.
They recommend it because it
is good pay, exciting, and a
challenge for women.
So when the sign says “You
are riding on the safest major
transit system in the Uijited
States, Canada, and Mexico”,
remember that the women at
Marta helped give them that
title, and are helping them to
keep it.
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