Newspaper Page Text
Page 5
November 18, 1992
[
\
LOCAL NEWS
GSU Students Fight Racism
Breaking All Barriers:
Carol Moseley Braun
By Marisa DeScilles
In a successful 14-hour sit-in at
Georgia State University on Nov 9, a
coalition of black, white, gay, lesbian
and bisexual students gained promises
from the University’s President that
their eleven demands would be met.
The coalition, which included AUC
students, demanded the formation of an
African-American Studies Department,
a university hotline to deal with racist,
sexist, and homophobic issues, and
suspension of two predominately white
fraternities and two deans in the
students life department.
According to the demands, the two
deans "forfeited essential trust and
confidence that are necessary
requirements for the positions." The
students charged the deans with racism
and ignoring student complaints over
the last few years. One dean, Carole
L. Pearson, went on record saying that
she supported segregated sororities,
according to students.
Also included in the demands were
amnesty for all students involved and
written public confirmation of all
promises from the President Carl
Patton. The students also asked for
percentages of African-American and
who lent their support included tne
Urban League, the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference, and the
National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People^
Speaking to the students, the leaders of
these organizations congratulated the
students for remaining nonviolent and
for their courage.
The white fraternities held a
counter-demonstration on Nov. 10
protesting President Patton’s handling of
the situation, but all of his decisions
were upheld. The students of the
Black Student Alliance are scheduled to
meet with President Patton late this
week to negotiate on the details of the
demands.
other minority faculty commensurate
with the percentages of minority
students at Georgia State University,
and adequate resources and equipment
for those faculty. Those two demands
will be negotiated later.
The students gained the demands
by shutting down the downtown
campus through peaceful sit-ins in the
cafeteria, the general classroom
building, and Sparks Hall, which
houses the financial offices of the
University. Although threatened with
police intervention and disciplinary
action all day, the students stood their
ground until 9:30 p.m., when President
Patton agreed to their demands.
Students for Afrikan-Amerikan
Empowerment, an Atlanta community-
based organization made up primarily
of AUC students, provided security and
support throughout the demonstration.
Other Black community organizations
By Adrienne M. Crenshaw
On Nov. 3, Carol Moseley Braun
broke another racial barrier by
becoming the first African-American
woman and fourth African-American
elected to the United States Senate. She
is also a part of the largest
representation of women (6) in the
U.S. Senate. This Illinois Democrat is,
according to Essence magazine
(October 1992), "a combination of
pragmatism, personality, and political
savvy."
Ms. Braun credits the Senate
confirmation hearings on the
nomination of Clarence Thomas to the
Supreme Court as her catalyst for
running in the Democratic primary last
March against three term incumbent
Alan J. Dixon, and A1 Hofeld, a
wealthy attorney.
In the Essence interview Ms. Braun
comments, "I became convinced that it
(Senate) absolutely needed a healthy
dose of democracy, that it wasn’t
enough to have millionaire white males
over the age of 50 representing all the
people in this country. That this group
was so insular is so one of the reasons
the policies have failed us so badly.
Small wonder we can bail out the
savings-and-loan institutions when our
infrastructures, our schools and our
economy are falling apart."
A product of the Chicago public
schools, Braun attended the University
of Illinois at Chicago and the
University of Chicago Law School.
After law school, she worked as an
assistant attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s
office, was elected to the Illinois House
of Representatives where she served for
10 years, and became the first African-
American woman to hold an executive
office in Cook County government.
In a year proclaimed as "the year
of the woman", Carol Moseley Braun
continues to break barriers for African-
American women and African-
Americans everywhere.
Sister Souljah Spreads The
Word At Emory
By LaNae Dora
An audience of both black and
white people gathered in the
gymnasium at Emory University on
Nov. 5 to listen as Sister Souljah,
rapper and activist, informed them of
the "war" that is going on between the
two races.
"People often get confused when I
say we are at war," said Sister Souljah.
"A war is when a group or system
tries to take what is rightfully yours -
- your life, the right to think, to learn,
to celebrate our own culture, to control
economic activity, and to celebrate our
own gods."
The self-proclaimed "raptivist"
explained that many black people
don’t even realize that they are in a
state of war. She also said that in a
war, the most direct target is the male.
Racially motivated crime and the lack
of African-centered curriculum in the
classroom are both characteristics of
this war.
The Rutgers University graduate
said that she’s often been accused oi
being a racist, but contended that there
is no such thing as a black racist.
"Racism is a system of power. It
cannot exist without power. In the
absence of power, all you can do is
react to the racism," said Sister
Souljah. "Reverse racism is something
that was contrived by the white elite to
make us feel guilty for being proud of
our race."
The LA riots was another topic
touched upon by Sister Souljah. She
said that when the riots took place last
April, the media came to her and asked
her why black people were burning
L.A. Sister Souljah told the media that
the riots were an act of revenge.
"We thought this time, unlike other
times, we would receive justice because
we had it on film, " said Sister
Souljah. "It was revenge against a
justice system that does not work."
Several solutions were proposed to
African-Americans by Souljah, for
combatting the problem of racism. The
first among these was knowledge of
self and the history of Africans in
America, as well as in Africa.
"If you don’t know the answers of
what happened in the past, you’re
destined to repeat the same mistakes,"
said the Brooklyn native.
Souljah talked about the
importance of male/female relationships
as a key to the empowerment of black
people, stressing the fact that African-
American men and women should be
considered equal.
Another part of Souljah’s solution
is business initiative. Souljah urged
students that it is not too early for
them to begin thinking of ideas for
their own business ventures.
"We have become the consumers
and not manufacturers or producers,"
said Sister Souljah.
Souljah’s final topic was the
importance of spirituality, during which
she stressed its importance.
"We (African-Americans) come
from a very spiritual base. We need
your spiritual power," said Sister
Souljah.
The rapper announced that her next
album will be released sometime
towards the end of 1993, on a new
record label.
