Newspaper Page Text
November 6, 1981
Spelman Spotlight
Page 3
Andy Reigns As City’s Mayor
by Valerie Peete
Political Reporter
Everyone said it was to be
close. Some speculated that the
run - off election for mayor of
Atlanta would be decided by a
few hundred votes. However,
this was not the case. Two -
hundred votes did not separate
the candidates. Twelvethousand
did. Andrew Young received
55.1% of the vote while Sidney
Marcus received 44.8%. Young
finished on -top while Marcus
conceded to defeat.
This was a hard fought, brutal
campaign, sparked by ac
cusations and insinuations by
both camps. During the last days,
it became very intense and very
difficult to pinpoint a leader.
The people of Atlanta got just
as involved in the run - off
election as they did in the
October 6 election. In fact, more
people voted in the run - off
election than voted in the
previous election.
Although some Young sup
porters turned to Marcus
becuase of Mayor Jackson’s
statement of, "... grinning and
shuffling Negroes ..." most
Eaves supporters voted for
Young.
At his victory party which was
attended by more than 4,000
people, Young vowed to bring
the city of Atlanta together. He
believes the business community
and the political community can
and will work successfully
together as a unit.
Sidney Marcus’ “victory" party
had a more sombre tone. He
said, "I would like to pledge my
fidelity to Atlanta and my sup
port to Andrew Young." After a
-vacation, he plans to return to
the General Assembly.
Many thought the turn out
would be low, but between 4:00
p.m. and 8:00 p.m., people
packed into their prospective
polling places. At Archer Hall,
1167 peoplevoted forYoungand
12 people voted for Marcus.
Wednesday morning at 7:30
a.m., Young was seen at Five
Points Station handingn out
thank - you notes. He wanted to
express his gratitude to the
people who made it possible for
him to become Atlanta’s second
black mayor.
Political Viewpoint... It’s All Over
by Valerie Peete
Political Reporter
Young For Atlanta Head
quarters was just not the same.
All the pictures and leaflets that
once hung on the bare walls
were all gone. The main room
which was always filled with
people had become an empty
space . The phone bank was
nothing more than four walls
and a floor with a ceiling. The
administrative offices were all
vacant, leaving just a trace of dust
for the custodian to clean. The
Blue Crew room in the back
seemed weary and dry. It was
October 28. The election was
over.
I ran my hands across the walls
trying to recapture the memories
and the time I had spent there. I
looked around the room trying
to remember all the different
faces that had once been there. I
tried to recapture the different
emotions that unfolded, but I
could not.
I walked over to the Coke
machine remembering all the
days my quarter got stuck in the
slot. I let out a shy laugh, afraid if
too much came out I might cry. I
sat in the same spot that Peabo
Bryson sat in, except that he was
on the couch, and now I was
sitting on the floor. I went into
Andy’s office feeling the walls
once again. They had a history
inside them. Tears, fears, and
jubilant cheers had fallen into
them, and yet they still stood tall.
I went back into the Blue Crew
room expecting to hear James
Orange's voice ringing loud and
clear, but no one was there. The
room that was always packed
with students was incredibly
empty. I closed my eyes and
remembered all the meetings we
had before we would go out
canvassing in the city. I could
practically taste all the Mrs.
Winners chicken we had con
sumed. I saw the walls lined with
names of all the students who at
one point in time had
volunteered. Once my eyes were
opened, I understood the
mirage I had just seen.
Everything seemed like a dream.
This somewhat drab building
had become a very special place.
It was home for over two
months. I met a lot of different
people that in ordinary cir
cumstances I would have missed.
The "Blue Crew” became my
extended family. I walked out of
the building with tears in my
eyes. It's always hard to say
goodbye. Even if it isn’t forever.
Pan Africanism:
A Viable Alternative?
by Karen Burroughs
“Pan Africanism is a vital
concept because until we, the
people who suffered through
the longest act of cultural
destruction in history, find our
roots we can never be free,” said
Michael Manley, speaking on
Pan Africanism at the Shrine of
the Black Madonna on Sunday,
October 25th. Manley, the
former prime minister of
Jamaica, is the son of Norman
Manley, founder of the Peoples
National Party, and the cousin of
Dr. Albert Manley, former presi
dent of Spelman College.
Pan Africanism is the total
liberation and unification of all
Africans. Pan Africanists con
ceive all Black people as being
Africans, no matter what part of
the world they have been
"scattered” to.
The struggle of the African
people is against the imperialistic
form of government in which
capital goods are owned by
private corporations. Pan
Africanists wish to achieve a
unified continent under scien
tific socialism, where goods are
owned by the government and
distributed more equally. "To
day we face a reality of economic
structure that has become a
complete Frankenstein's
monster. No one is in control of
it,” said Manley.
According to Mogale
Mokgoatsani, of the Pan
Africanist Congress (PAC), the
whole of Africa belongs to the
African people, although the
“white man” has claimed it as
his. "The Pan Africanist Con
gress, established in 1959, was
created because the struggle of
the African people was being
! lost; that struggle being
centered around the possession
of African land,” says Mokgoat-
! sani. "The white man claimed
the land as his, despite the
presence of the African people. I
ask you, how can this happen? If
you are in the kitchen when I
walk into your house, can I claim
the porch as mine?”
The All - African Peoples
Revolutionary Party (A - APRP) is
another organization devoted to
the liberation of African people
and the repossession of African
land. “Africa is our national
home," says Willie Ricks Mucasa,
of the A-APRP. "We must not be
tricked into thinking that the
lands which our ancestors were
illegally kidnapped and forceful
ly brought to could ever belong
to us."
Both members of the PAC and
the A-APRP wish to unite Africa
under an All - African Socialist
Government. Several years ago,
the late Kwame Nkrumah,
former presidedt of Ghana and
one of the first formal leaders of
Pan - Africanism, stated, "The
total liberation and unification of
Africa under All - African
Socialist Government must be
the primary objective of all Black
revolutionaries throughout the
world. It isan objectivethatonce
achieved, will bring about the
fulfillment of the aspirations of
Africans and people of African
descent everywhere”
The A-APRP believes that
there is a conscious, calculated
program destined to "divorce”
the African student born in
America from the.realities of the
African Revolution. This
program can clearly be recogniz
ed by analyzing the non - serious
nature of activities of African
students in the colleges. "Im
perialists are contriving to creat a
false “Black American” mentali
ty, as opposed to a revolutionary
African consciousness that is
bound to develop in African
students,” says Willie Ricks
Mucasa. The All - African
People’s Revolutionary Party is
organizing college students so as
toawakenthem to the realization
that they have a mission to
“bring power to a powerless
people.”
“Today, Africa is on fire. Africa
is fighting capitalism and im
perialism. Africans at home and
Africans abroad have a duty and
a responsibility to our homeland.
Only when Africa is free and
united can African people
worldwide be truly free and
command the respect of other
nations and other peoples,” says
Mucasa.
According to the A-APRP, the
U.S. capitalistic, imperialist
system, the FBI and the CIA, are
CONT. ON PG 7