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The Augusta News-Review, February 1, 1973 -
■Walking fl
I With I
■ Dignity Ifcjfl I
[I by Al Irby
black Involvement is a controversial as well as an ambiguous
state of being. Some of us talk of it, and use it in a clandestine
way, when it serves our purposes. Many local black businesses
boycott another black business. Take the Augusta News-Review
for an example, we are totally black orientated. But some of the
largest black businesses in our city systematically withhold a
minimum amount of their advertising fr m us. Can they
truthfully say, that they are totally, “Ebony Black?”
AMERICA HOLDS A BIAS OUTMODED RELIGIOUS
CONCEPTION ABOUT THE POOR AND POVERTY. DOES
THE OLD PURITANICAL SOPHISM, “GOD HELPS THOSE
WHO HELP THEMSELVES,” SOOTHES THE NATION INTO A
STATE OF “BENIGNED NEGLECT” TOWARD THE
POVERTY-STRICKEN UNDERPRIVILEGED?
A 1969 survey showed that a majority of Americans held,
that poor people themselves are responsible for their penurious
plight. The 93rd Congress will be faced with two herculean
problems, welfare and busing. It’s a possibility that busing will
receive some relief, but not all that its proponents hope for. But
welfare will remain the national bugaboo, because a large number
of well-educated white Americans accept myths and
misconceptions about welfare.
Os course this important segment will strongly deny that their
antipathy toward welfare has any racial over-tones; but the
majority of blacks will indubitably refute that assumption. Early
in the last decade most of the affluent society was mildly shocked
by Michael Harrington’s book “The Other America,” he pointed
out that here in the richest country in the world were some 40
million poor people.
Two years later in his State of the Union message, President
Lyndon Johnson declared all out war on national poverty. It was
brought to his attention that 35 million Americans in 1962 had a
per-capita income of only $590, compared to a national average
of $1,900 by 1968, according to the Census Bureau. The number
of people classified as poor had dropped to 25.4 million.
This certainly was a tribute to the Johnson’s “Great Society.”
Since 1968 the figures have changed very little. Recent unofficial
estimates place the count of the poor in the country at 10 to 15
percent. The Census Bureau reported for 1971 there were 25.6
million persons, who had incomes below the Governement’s
poverty demarcation which was $4,137 for an urban family of
four.
Let it be assumed, that both Nixon and McGovern were
sincerely opposed to all forms of penury; but the paramount
concern is how to deal with this complex problem. Workfare,
welfare, a guaranteed annual wage, income redistribution, in-kind
subsidies, could any of these suffice? Os course, the very mention
of any of the above suggestions would be met with vociferous
cries of outrage.
( APPARENTLY ENDING POVERTY IS LIKE FINDING
TRUTH - AN UNATTAINABLE, BUT WORTHY GOAL )
Why is the elimination of poverty such an up-tight
controversial issue? Is it our basic Protestant concept, clinging to
the puritanical fallacy, that virtue will be irrefutably rewarded.
The United States has proven to be the most reluctant provider
of all welfare states. But the question is still being asked by all
leading social scientists, why does America react as it does toward
the poor? It was the opinion of many progressive thinkers, that
this nation had lost most of its rugged individualism, way back
three or four decades ago. It seems as if economic individualism is
just as uglier a social vice as the greedy old money barons of the
old days.
( STATISTICS VERSUS HUMAN NEEDS - AMERICANS MUST
FACE UP TO THE INEVITABLE, AND FIND SOME WAY TO
DETERTHE CONCENTRATION OF THE BASICS OF LIFE.)
Dr. Robin Williams, a nationally recognized sociologist from
Cornell University has made a comprehensive nation-wide survey,
that has been studied with great interest by the Department of
Health, Education, and Welfare. Dr. Williams made this
statement: “The belief that virtue will be indubitably rewarded,
and that success, dogmatically attends upon efforts. This Pauline
ethic dies hard in our culture, failure is still more likely to be
changed to defect of character, than to fate, capricious accident,
or impersonalized social and economic forces.”
The major objective of several surveys is to examine beliefs
about the causes of poverty in America, to assess the extent to
which the individualistic view of poverty, as well as alternative
interpretations. A cross section of persons were asked to explain
why there are so many poor people in this country. Here is a list
of eleven reasons given. (1 Lack of thrift, and proper money
management by poor people. (2 Lack of efforts by the poor
themselves (3 Lack of ability and talents among the poor. (4
Loose morals and drunkenness. (5 Sickness and poor diet. (6 Low
wages, because of no skills. (7 Failure of society to provide good
schools. (8 Prejudice and discrimination against non-white ethnic
groups (9 Failure of private industry to give, or to provide
lucrative jobs or positions to nondescript workers (10 Taking
advantage of by the rich and powerful. (11 Just bad luck.
Most of these eleven items were paraphrases of explanations
given during a set of two dozen pretest interviews, some of them
were taken from various public discussions of poverty. About half
of the questions stated, that lack of thrift, lack of effort, loose
morals on the part of poor people. According to this line of
reason, individualistic factors are very important reasons for
poverty.
42% said that low wages played a key factor, and that brought
into focus, lack of training, but only 18% stressed exploitation by
the rich. The fatalistic factor varied greatly ; only 8% emphasized
the role of just plain bad luck in poverty. More than half
indicated the lack of know-how and lack of training, were
synonymous to the answer of this question.
It is crystal clearn that an individualistic, blame-the-poor view
of poverty is firmly entrenched in the American value system,
structural interpretations may be gaining some ground.
(SOCIO-RELIGIOUS GROUPS VIEW POVERTY)
The views of religious groups deserve some comment, bucause
religious background has been considered a very important source
of individual perspectives. Max Weber, a prominent
social-scientist in his book, “The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit
of Capitalism,” inspired by Weber and Gerhard Lenski, in their
1961 study of Detroit religionists. They found that white
Protestants and Jews were more individualistic and
competition-oriented than white Catholics or black Protestants,
who tend to have collectivistic, security-oriented attitudes. This
means white Protestants, Jews and upper-class black Protestants
are a bit intolerant toward the hard-nosed poor. These adverse
attitudes give understanding, why America agonizes with the
welfare problem.
Page 4
I Speaking I
I EjjK From I
I Athens I
jjy
■- Roosevelt Green, Jr. Eg
The mood of white America is one of frustration and anger at
Black Americans. The Civil War is now being fought on a
psychological battle front. The South has now defeated the North
by baring the soul of Northern hypocrisy. Blacks now represent a
troublesome presence because of our demand for desegregation
and equality. It is tragic to witness the degree of racial polasity in
this so-called democracy.
Whites are no longer generally committed to desegregation for
the moral outrage at segregation raised by the Rev. Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. has now virtually disappeared. White liberals are
no longer defending Blacks, other minorities and poor people
since they too (white liberals) have grown weary of struggling,
apparently. It is interesting to see how much the nation has
changed since the heyday of the civil rights movement. White
politicians who were regarded as friends to Blacks in the past have
now given up to a certain extent as this country grows more racist
and conservative.
A small minority of whites continue to stand up for what they
know is right and just but at great personal cost and sacrifice. It is
understandable how whites give in to their peer group pressure
because Blacks are angrily demanding their share of America.
There are no more Ralph McGills in journalism because the press
has given in to the intimidations of the president and
vice-president. The “white conscience” has all but disappeared
since it is popular to take the course of “tokenism” or least
resistance.
Blacks are very angry and frustrated today. Whites who
encounter Black rage usually react with little patience and
understanding. The rage and anger of Blacks toward whites are
sometimes directed toward the wrong targets. Blacks either take
out their rage on each other or murder and by attacking the
white minority that happens to be safe targets. It is one thing to
be angry and raise hell but quite another thing to perform
constructive and progressive activities.
It is sad to see the so-called radical and militant Black
organizations fighting each other. And it is equally sad to see
whites buying off good Black leadership. A true sense of
Blackness helps one to work at developing “peoplehood.” Black
unity is needed as the struggle grows more difficult with each
passing day. We must develop a sense of history and begin to
assess and study the present more clearly. Sometimes our worst
enemies are ourselves and that reality is a luxury we cannot
afford.
There is a critical need for Black and white leaders to transcent
the present conflict. We must rise above our selfishness and see
that we are all in this thing together. It often seems that potential
and actual white leaders are the ones most dedicated to stupidity
and foolishness. Unless courage and convictions about justice and
equality emerge from Black and white leadership there is bound
to be increasing violence and civil disorders.
There is basically a white problem in America since whites have
the power to correct social ills if they really so desire. Blacks
must wage a stronger battle for Black liberation if victory through
survival is to become much of a reality in the future.
All things being equal, this country must live up to its ideals of
freedom and democracy or facism and Black genocide will
become increasingly a horrible reality. We must move beyond
anger and frustration coupled with retreat from racial progress to
the reality of the Rev. Dr. King’s dream. To retreat from that
dream is to wake up to a nightmare of hate and fear.
The worst tragedy is that this so-called Christian natiion does
not even begin to practice the teachings of Christ. God must weep
to see what fools we mortals have become. The Christian faith
and other religions are the tail lights rather than the headlights of
our time in America and the world. God belongs to all religions
and not just Christians. Hopefully, the day will come when we
can move down the pathways to the reality of God which insures
and assures the brotherhood of all men.
' LETTERS TO
Dear Editor:
The staff of the Maternal
and Infant Care and Family
Planning Projects of the East
Central Health District and the
Medical College of Georgia
would like to express
appreciation to the Augusta
News-Review for the assistance
your publicity has given us in
serving this community during
the past year.
I would especially like to
cite the article in your
December 14, 1972 edition
entitled “Babies Need Food
and Clothing.” People in the
community certainly did
respond to our plea for held in
this article. As a result we ill be
able to provide some milk and
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BLACK POWER
is in the voting box this year.
food to some babies who might
otherwise starve. We also
received some new and used
infant clothing and have
already given all of it out to
babies. Our patients’ needs for
such help continue and we do
hope the public will continue
to respond to their needs.
Thank you ever so much for
this help.
Sincerely,
Charion Seegar
Chief Social Worker
Maternal and Infant Care Project
Family Planning Project
East Central Georgia Health District
Medical College of Ga.
Augusta, Ga. 30902
I! "GOING Wll
I PLACES” I
■ ’ USsrjJh If
fl With Philip Waring
Lyndon Baines Johnson
History most assuredly will view the leadership of the
late President Lyndon B. Johnson as having achieved
monumental strides in civil rights, education and human
betterment for his fellow Americans. He did more than any
other person, including Abraham Lincoln, to remove the
harsh barriers of prejudice facing Black Americans.
My Memories Os LBJ
I first met Mr. Johnson back in the early 1960’s when he
was Vice-President and I was serving as a member of the
Missouri Advisory Committee to the U.S. Civil Rights
Commission. On another occasion, a group of our St. Louis
Frontiers International (business and professional service
club) flew out to Washington for a day to participate in the
Vice President’s Conference On Equal Employment
Opportunities (this was prior to passage of current Federal
Civil rights laws). My last meeting with Mr. Johnson was at
the National Urban League’s “Community Assembly” in
Washington, D.C. in 1964. This was one of the late Whitney
M. Young’s greatest community organization
accomplishments. Over two thousand community leaders
gathered for three days to hear the President and his
Cabinet members give out guidelines on the newly enacted
Equal Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (War On
Poverty). This was the first public occasion for these
announcements and was of great help in advancing this new
program throughout the nation.
Two pictures which I treasure very deeply are those
taken in Washington, D.C. in which I appear with Mr.
Johnson. I have mounted at the Urban League office an ,
exhibit of pictures, clippings, program material, etc., on
“The Civil Rights Thrust of LBJ”. This is open to the
public.
On the race relations front he made solid history: (1) the
appointment of Thurgood Marshall to the U.S. Supreme
Court, (2) Robert Weaver as Secretary of HUD and (3) Dr.
Andrew Brimmer as a Governor of the Federal Reserve
Bank. His brilliant political skills aided in the passage of
significant civil rights laws which were decades overdue.
To Black women Mr. Johnson endeared himself when he
danced with Mrs. Lynette Taylor, Executive Director of
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority at his Inaugural Ball.
The Good Lord has a particular way of making it
possible for great men to speak significant “last words”
before their immediate death. The late Dr. Martin L. King’s
“I’ve Been To The Mountain Top” just before he was cut
down in Memphis and Jackie Robinson’s dramatic plea at a
basketball game and on national television for opening
managerial ranks to Blacks. One of President Johnson’s last
statements at the recent civil rights convocation in Texas
was “We Shall Overcome”.
God bless vou President Johnson... and thanks!
LBJ 1908 - 1973
"I want to be the President who educated young
children to the wonders of their world.
"I want to be the President who helped feed the hungry
and to prepare them to be taxpayers instead of tax-eaters.
"I want to be the President who helped the poor to find
their own way and who protected the right of every citizen
to vote in every election.
"I want to be the President who helped to end hatred
among his fellow men and who promoted love among the
people o f all races, all regions and all parties.
"I want to be the President who helped to end war
among the brothers of this earth."
"To hunger for use and to go unused is the worst hunger
of all. Few men have the power by a single act or by a
single lifetime to shape history for themselves. Presidents,
for example, quickly realize that while a single act might
destroy the world they live in, no one single decision can
make life suddenly better or can turn history around for
the good."
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A TERRIBLE THING
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There are people bom
every day who could cure
disease, make peace, create
ait, abolish injustice, end
hunger.
But they’ll probably
never get a chance to do
those things if they don’t
get an education.
Were educating over
45,000 students at 40
private, four-year colleges
every year.
Most of these young
people would never get to
college on their own. Three
quarters need some kind of
financial aid. Well over
half come from families
earning less than $5,000
a year.
You can help us help
more. By sending a check.
To UNCF, 55 East 52nd
Street, New York, N.Y.
10022. Whatever you can
afford.
Because we can’t
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z (fSWJt
Veroo"E. Jordaa,Jr. K >
BLACKS DISAPPOINTED IN INAUGURAL
The inauguration of a President is a colorful and exciting
spectacle, but beyond the surface appeal of the bands, the balls,
and the baton-twirling is the deeply serious business of the
President telling the nation what to expect in the coming years.
From this standpoint, many people found the Inaugural Address
lacking in information and also in the inspiration a nation needs if
it is to think greatly of itself.
For black people and for all the country’s poor and minorities,
there was little encouragement for change.
The theme of the President’s Address seemed to be that we
shouldn’t look to Washington for the resolution of the country’s
ills, but that local communities and individual initiative should be
the order of the day. This is a theme that has great appeal for
many Americans who yearn to return to the days when social
problems seemed less comples and less intractable than they do
today.
But others would argue that without bold, afffirmative
leadership from the national government, our problems will
continue to fester unsolved and worsening.
Certainly, the items the President listed as major challenges at
home - better education, health, housing, transportation and
environment -- demand federal initiatives, federal resources and
federal leadership. And what the President rightly called “the
God-given right of every American to full and equal opportunity”
has depended, insofar as it has been partially achieved, on
vigorous federal action.
The shift in emphasis away from federal programs strikes fear
into minorities who are well aware that white people got out
from under the terrible Depression due to the bold federal
programs of the New and Fair Deals. Now that Washington has
finally begun to initiate programs to improve the lives of black
and brown citizens, they’re told to look to local governments
notorious for their historic insensitivity to the poor, and to
individual initiative.
For those who haven’t had the individual initiative to inherit
wealth or to be provided with the education and skills necessary
in our technological society, and for those who are the victims of
a malfunctioning economy with high unemployment and a
society that continues to be marked by racial discrimination, the
President’s message offers few hopes.
Aside from the phrase, “equal opportunity,” there was no
specific reference to black people in the speech. Yet many of us
had hoped that the President would make some concrete
indication of awareness of the sufferings of a tenth of the nation
and would, even if not endorsing new programs, at the very least
tell the country that the clock would not be turned back in race
relations, and that America would fulfill its promises of freedom
and dignity.
When the President suggested we ask not “what the
government will do for me, but what can 1 do for myself?” I
thought of the many millions of poor people today who have
done everything possible to survive and endure without the
government favors bestowed on better-off people and interests.
But despite their efforts, they’ve got to depend on
governmental actions to create job opportunities, to build
housing, aid education and construct hospitals and health clinics.
Such people ask not what their government can do for them, but
why their government neglects their needs while spending billions
on war, on tax subsidies for the rich and on direct subsidies to
businesses.
They are asking of the government not to embark on programs
to satisfy selfish objectives, but to do those things that are clearly
beyond the reach of individuals and beyond the desires of local
governments shaped in the image of entrenched local interests.
They are asking their government to exercise the moral and
programmatic leadership that will indeep usher in what the
President called “a new era.”
The President was right when he said that this is a “time of
great responsibilities greatly borne in which we renew the spirit
and promise of America.” The great spirit has been too long
dormant and the promise too-long delayed to be brought about
with anything less than bold moral leadership.