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The Augusta News-Review - August 2, 1973
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MANY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCHES HAVE EMBODIED
THE INSTITUTION OF MATRIMONY INTO THEIR
SACRAMENTS. IT BASICALLY WAS A HEBREW ORAL
TESTIMONY OF THE MISHNAH, PUBLISHED IN EUROPE IN
THE 12TH CENTURY “BOOK OF WOMEN”. IT ALSO WAS
ESTABLISHED IN THE FOURTH VOLUME OF THE CODE
COMPILED BY MAIMONIDES, WITH THE HELP OF A GROUP
OF LEADING RABBIS.
In ancient times, a woman became betrothed by man, and it
could be out side of a religious climate. Often the man would use
money, if he did not posess an estate, as a token of betrothal. If he
used money, it could not be less than a “peritah in coin or its
equivalent. He would then say to his prospective bride: “Behold
thou art betrothed unto me” or “Behold thou art espoused unto
me”, or “Behold thou art become a wife unto me by virtue of this
gift-”
He would make this presentation to his lady before witinesses.
Today its the minister that pronounces a man and woman, man and
wife. It was not always that way; in ancient times, the man made
that important pronoucement. When a man married a woman,
whether virgin or non-virgin, whether adult or minor, a daughter of
Israel, proselyte, or an emancipated indigent bonds woman, he
pledged for his wife ten significant demands, and in turn expected
four urgently requested of her. Os the man’s ten pledges, only three
would fall under strict religious mandate. A few of the very
important ten are: the wife’s raiments, and her conjugal rights, that
spells out the mode of feminine sexuality that is suited for her, also
her complete maintenance.
The wife’s scriptural rights most of them are statutory. They
were as follows: to treat her tenderly, if she fell ill, to ransom her if
she was captured, to bury her if she died. To let her male children,
sired by her husband inherit her “ketubbah”. The next laws
pertaining to the wife would be violently opposed by most
present-day women. Namely the husband was entitled to the wife’s
earnings, also to anything that came into her possession.
If a man said to his wife, “I do not wish to have your family come
to my house”, his wish would be honored. The members of the
wife’s family would have visiting priviledges in case of illness or a
delivery. For no man could be compelled to allow others to enter
his premises. Also in some special cases, the wife’s wishes may be
honored under certain circumstances. The conjugal rights
mentioned in the Torah are obligated upon each man according to
his physical powers and his occupation. This is to care for
over-worked and physical misfits. For men who are healthy and live
in comfort, with pleasurable surroundings without having to work
hard, that would sap up their strength, the conjugal schedule would
be for every night.
But for laborers, masons, and the like, their conjugal duties
would be reduced to twice a week. These stipulations are layed
down by the Torah. For ass drivers conjugal duty was reduced to
once a week, camel drivers once in thirty days.
A man could marry several women, even a hundred of them,
either at the same time or one after another, and his wife could not
hinder him therein, provided that he is able to supply each one of
them with food, raiment and conjugal satisfaction. He may not
however,compel them to reside in the same courtyard, but must let
each one reside by herself.
THE MORE THINGS CHANGE, THE MORE THEY REMAIN
THE SAME. THE RELATION BETWEEN MAN AND WIFE
DIFFER IN DIFFERENT TIMES AND COUNTRIES, BUT
ALWAYS THERE IS A TINY THREAD OF COMMON
SIMILARITY.
RUSSIAN STYLE—The Institution of Matrimony changes as
years go by in custom and place. Russian women were bound by
Czarist law, before the revolution. The wife owed her husband
unlimited obedience. But the 1925 Revolution under Leon
Trotsky gave Russian women considerable reforms, that almost
equaled that of women in the United States today.
The most solid way to judge advancement for women is by
practical applications. When the mother and child’s position
shows material success by standards of cultural achievements in a
wide social range. The Russian Proletariat is no different than its
American counterpart. Customs in all societies concentrate on the
oppression of women, delegating them exclusively to housewives,
mothers and farm-hands. Although theoretically, they are
supposed to be equal. Such is the diabocial universal custom to the
family slavery of women.
The hardships and hopelessness of the Russian peasant woman
would be expected, but even the middleclass women are just a bit
better today, compared with the serfdom of yester-year. No
holidays, no bold action of relief, because they are not allowed to
fight for their rights without inhibitions. The woman’s revolution
in the United States has only recently begun to reach down to the
nondescript women in the offices and factories.
To improve the position of women, world-wide it is possible
only when all the conditions of family and domestic existence are
radically changed. The crux of the entire question of humane
treatment for woman-kind is the awakeness to the fact that
woman is totally human, and not the tool of man. Because this
realizaiton is the essence, a living point where the decisive threads
of moral and ral cultural values meet.
Womanhood is all of these things and more, love, respect, and
an innate desire for justic and fairness. The final analysis will not
be Russia’s nuclear-fusion stock piles, nor its mighty submarine
fleet, but its attitude toward its women, and children, that will
establish it as a mature nation in the community of moral
societies.
AMERICAN STYLE—Is wide-spread sexual promiscuity in our
times destroying the state of matrimony ? The United States has
the highest divorce-rate in the world. This divisive condition caUs
for urgency to the traditional attempt to regulate the relationship
between men and wofiien. The double standard that is prevalent
may discourage marriages, totally in the future.
In America, we rush into matrimony with much less knowledge,
that we use in purchasing our automobiles. According to the latest
report from th» National Center for Health Statistics in the
Department of Health Education and Welfare, 500 out of 1000
marriages made in this country last year are headed to wind up in
bitterness and divorce. With our towering divorce rate, now the
highest in the world, one is tempted to ask, what are we doing to
marriage? .
Are we letting people in too easy? Should we make it more
difficult to acquire a marriage license? Maybe this country should
force potential marriage partners go into an extensive exploration
together and put in writing their motive for marrying, as well as
what are their intended committments. In America, it seems that
the majority of the young people simply want to sleep together a
few nights, uninhibited.
Page 4
I OKM Speaking |
I Hffl From
, Athens |
c# Roosevelt Green, Jr.
wi s•s
Capsule comments about a number of issues this week may very
well be in order. So much is happening that Blacks and others
should stay aware of and sensitive to in these days of non- “wine
and roses”. It is hard or difficult not to be somewhat depressed
about the oppressed and plain mad about the sad state of public
affairs.
Mayor Howard Lee, the first Black mayor of Chapel Hill, North
Carolina, visited Athens and the University of Georgia School of
Social Work last week. Mayor Lee, who is also a professional social
worker, addressed himself to issues facing social workers and
citizens in general in a very meaningful way. He pointed out the
need for social workers to get involved in politics and dealing more
.with systems or institutional change rather than focusing primarily
on the victims of the systems or social institutions.
I readily agreed with Mayor Lee for I too feel that social workers
have historically done a great deal to help people to adjust to the
maladjustment of our society. It was also very helpful to see a social
worker serving very effectively as a politician who is greatly
concerned about the social service needs of Black and white
citizens. As a professional social owrker, I am always glad to see
Black and other social workers move away from clinical practice to
work within the' system for significant change within the so-called
establishment. I will present some specific points of Mayor Lee’s
several presetations next week since I want to move on to other
matters this week.
The sterilization of two little Black girls in Alabama by local
family planning zealots was not really a shock to me. Many local
welfare departments across this country, along with some federal
projects, foster Black oppression and genocide under the guise of
family planning and birth control. It has been mentioned before in
this column that coercive family population control is conducted
by white racists in a very evil and inhuman manner. Blacks must
begin to examine the practices of family planning agencies in their
local communities. We do need family planning agencies and
services but they must not be forced upon us by racist anti-welfare
whites.
It would be extremely helpful if Black civil rights leaders would
stop fighting among themselves and begin to deal with issues like
Black genocide, political and economic advancement. The recent
resignation from the presidency of the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference by the Rev. Ralph D. Abernathy and his
parting shot at Mrs. Coretta King and middle-class Blacks was most
unfortunate in many ways. First, I agree with Black syndicated
newspaper columnists Carl Rowan that Rev. Abernathy should not
have succeeded the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The
Reverends Andrew Young or Jessie Jackson should have succeeded
Rev. King. Most Blacks would agree to this statement if they are
asked to be honest about the matter.
Secondly, it is nearly always negative or bad for Black leaders to
fight openly and in the public spotlight because white racists delight
in keeping us divided and ineffective. AU of the major civil rights
organizations need to move beyond protest to political and
economic programs. We must move beyond total dependency on
whites for advancement and progress. This country is now in an
ugly mood that is characterized by the oppression develop
strategies for Black survival that wiU exchange a clenched fist for an
open hand to all Black brothers and sisters. HopefuUy, this will get
done in the future.
There is a tremendous need for Blacks in this country to begin to
take advantage of the many opportunities now available as never
before. Black parents must urge their children to stay in school as
long as possible. They must also urge their children to learn all they
can in schools while teaching them at home as weU. It is sad to see so
many Black youngsters drop out of school only to end up in the
so-caUed poverty cycle.
The typical public school cannot reaUy educate Black youth
since the kind of education for survival needed by Blacks is not
taught in public schools. Black churches and organizations must
begin to teach Blacks survival strategies and techniques. Black
history, politics, and economics coupled with securing and assuring
a comfortable sense of Black identity can only be taught to Blacks
by Blacks. No white person can adequately teach Black history to
Blacks and a number of Blacks cannot teach the subject either
because of oreo cookie hangups.
Public schools in his country are generally designed to produce
“parrots” rather than thinkers. Creativity is stifled by the time one
gets to the end of the first grade. Honor students are usually the
ones who can “play the game” the best. I have known many
so-called average or “C” students perform very well or even much
better than many “honor” students upon leaving school. Books
such as “Teaching As A Subversive Activity” by Neil Postman and
Charles Weingarten document what I am saying quite well. As a
matter of fact, pulic and private school education for both Blacks
an; whites need radical changes and restructuring.
The Empty Stocking Funds lovers ought to find out how the
people they gave that “one good dinner” to during last Christmas
are doing. The daily portraits of the poor that the newspapers who
sponsored that fund furnished to gain contributions need updating.
The poor and less fortunate who deserved help or assistance at
Christmas time could sure use some help today and all through the
year.
White people are generally very ignorant of the Black
Experience. It is for this reason, among others, that they think
Blacks like myself who resent and oppose their prejudices are
anti-white. They usually know nothing about Black history or
literature and think that Blacks ought to always smile and be
“happy go-lucky” in their presence. To hate and fight racism and
THE AUGUSTA NEWS-REVIEW
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Vernn" E. Jordan, Jr. Jy b
FOR A FULL EMPLOYMENT POLICY (II)
With ten million people unemployed or under-employed, with
another ten million working full-time all year long for less than
. 55,000, and with large sub-groups of the population - minorities,
teenagers, veterans, and women -- bearing the burdens of a
malfunctioning economy, it is clear that some drastic action is
needed.
At the National Urban League’s Annual Conference last week I
called for a Full Employment Policy that would insure a job for
every person who wanted one.
Every definition of “full employment” winds up accepting rates
that rrean two, three, or four million people out of work. Real full
employment means everyone holds a job, earns a decent salary, and
has his place in an abundent economy. There is no reason why we
should be satisfied with less; there is no reason why we should
accept definitions of full employment that leave people out of
work.
Many of the proposals that have been made to help cut
unemployment have been tried and failed, or have shown their
potential but weren’t carried far enough. Others are dangerously
unacceptable.
In the “tried and failed” category we can put voluntary hiring by
private industry. This works best in good times, but when recession
comes, newly-hired workers are back on the streets. Many
industries too, can't create jobs for workers who don't have the
education and skills they require, and they are not encouraged to
embark on really wide-scale training because of market conditions
and lack of subsidies and other incentives.
The Public Employment Program was a step in the right
direction. It put 100,000 people to work in local government with
federal funds, and it should be sharply expanded. Instead, the 1
Administration wants to end the program.
Most dangerous is the proposal that teenage unemployment can
be cut by means of a wage differential -- paying younger workers
below the minimum wage. I’m against this because it hasn’t been
proven that such a step would actually lead to more jobs for
teenagers, and it raises the possibility that employers will fire the
father to hire the son. Worst of all, it would punch another hole in
the already inadequate coverage of minimum wage laws. And who is
to say that the next step won’t be proposals for lower wage rates for
black workers since their unemployment rates too, are high.
It seems to me that a rational national Full Employment Policy
would include several elements. One would be realistic,
performance-oriented job standards and tests. We should do away
with present testsand educational standards that aren’t job-related
and which serve mainly to exclude people from jobs they could
handle.
Another step would be for federal stimulation of private and
non-profit sector job-creation through subsidies and training
programs broader than the ones we now have. Such a program could
be part of a national economic development program of planned
growth and subsidized construction of housing, parks and sewers
that will broaden private companies’ demand for workers.
Finally, but perhaps first, there should be a massive federal
job-creation program in he public sector. Some years back a
Presidential Commission found that public needs in cities and small
communities all over the country were so great that some five
million people could be put to work in public service jobs.
For many people, this country is going through a terrible
Depression. For all of us, the quality of life is declining because
public services are fewer and less well-run than they used to be.
These two problems could be solved by putting people back to
work in decent jobs doing things that need to be done at decent
salaries.
A Full Employment Policy can also depolarize a country that’s
been tom apart by racially divisive issues and suspicions. It is
something that affects whites and blacks equally. It is something we
desperately need.
SICKLE CELL ANEMIA TEST
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oppression is not necessarily to be considered as being nothing but
hatred for whites. Any sensible Black person who accepts his or her
Black identity and understands the dimensions of racism and
discrimination cannot help but be angry, Nearly every Black person
has his doctorate degree for studying the white man. It is no v time
for the white man to get his doctorate studying the real Black man
rather than the one imagined to exist.
There are two good books in paperback form that should be read
by thoughtful people. The first is “No More Lies” by Dick Gregory
who uses a surgeon’s knife to analyze the history of America minus
the usual myths and propaganda. The second book is entitled “A
Time To Speak and A Time To Act” by Julian Bond. Georgia State
Representative Bond gives a lot of sound political wisdom about the
oppression of Blacks and the poor with suggestions about how to
deal with that oppression. Both books are well worth reading and
delightful to read. They can be found at most worthwhile
bookstores in Augusta and Athens as well as elsewhere.
I hope to also discuss the “Fund For Renewal” of the American
Baptist Concention in next week’s column. The Rev. Charles S.
Hamilton of Augusta is the director of the eleven million dollars
program designed to aid minority groups in this country. It is
always encouraging to see a church organization take the teachings
of Christ about poor in a serious manner.
Fellow columnist Al Irby wrote an excellent article two weeks
ago on the language of white racism. A belated but sincere
congratulations to Brother Philip Waring, another fellow columnist,
who has resigned his National Urban League post after a highly
successful career as a professional social worker. It is about time for
the general public to learn that social workers render excellent
service beyond the area of local public welfare agencies. Augusta
, < greatly needs the leadership and service of men like Brother Waring.
I also wish that Augusta and Athens had branches of the National
Urban League in the two communities.
Finally, I appreciate the comments and criticisms friends and
enemies make about this column. It is encouraging to me and I shall
‘ strive to always improve and present frank and honest opinions.
* ’ j, the encouragement from the tremendous contributions of the
.iardworking editor and publisher of the News-Review makes it a
rewarding experience to be “Speaking From Athens”.
Harambee!!
11 GOING I
1 PLACES I
PH LIP WARING W
SUCCESSFUL URBAN LEAGUE CORFERENCE
LARGEST IN HISTORY
Washington, D.C. Hilton Hotel - Dr. Lucius Pitts and Dr. Daniel
Collins were seated with me and my wife, along with 2,200 others,
as the 63rd annual National Urban League Conference opened with
a keynote speech by Vernon E. Jordon, Jr., our nationLs leader.
Almost every state, community service agency, business firm,
governmental agency, educational institution, etc. were
represented at this historic event.
I am using N.M. Eugjish’s excellent news summary from the
Washington Afro-American to share with our NEWS-REVIEW
readers. As I talked with many of my friends here who are
associated with large American business firms, many of them said “I
met your associate, Mallory Millender of the Augusta
NEWS-REVIEW at the Publishers meeting, etc. “This made me very
happy because thanks to Mai’s thrust, Augusta has representation at
the National Publishers meetings. Now back to the summary on the
recent NUL conference:
NUL CONFERENCE SETS PRECEDENCE FOR FUTURE
“Providing economic security for black Americans and setting
the stage for the black movement in America for the next five
years” were the only order of precedence for the 6500 delegates
attending the 63rd annual conference of the National Urban
League.
From the Keynote address by Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., executive
director of the National Urban League, on Sunday night to the
closing moments Wednesday evening, the conference “set out to
dramatize the failure of the first Reconstruction and to say that a
» second Reconstruction is needed to insure equal participation for
blacks in all aspects of American life.”
Sterling Tucker, executive director, Washington Urban League,
said that the “National Urban League conference turned its energy
to findingjobs.”
“Economic security for blacks is the next battle hat we have to
win,” said Tucker, “and simply put that means jobs.”
With such national issues as revenue sharing, health, education,
housing and politics, the conference successfully laid down its goals
and went on to create strategies for the achievement of those goals.
Speaking and elaborating on the problem issues were such
national leaders as Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Governor
Linwood Holton of Virginia; Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm,
Barbara Jordan and Yvonne Braithwaite Burke and many other
noted and distinguished leaders of American society.
Commenting on the results of the conference, Sterling Tucker
said that the conference opposes a federal revenue opposes a federal
revenue sharing program because “it would put the fate of black
people in the hands of insensitive local officials who historically
have held black people as second class citizens.
“We (speaking of the Urban League) look to the national
government to provide economic needs, health needs, and housing
needs for black Americans that local authorities have totally
disregarded,” continued Tucker.
Tucker said that the conference set the stage for the black
movement in the next five years and that although battleshave been
won in civil rights legislation, that the “League is moving in an area
of higher education for Wacks and to now solidify these gains
through full and equal employment for all Hack Americans.”
With the more than 6500 delegates returning to some 101 Urban
League affiliates across the nation, Urban League officials feel
certain that the goals set forth at the 63rd annual National Urban
League conference will, in fact, become a reality in the League’s
future.
Highlights of the 63rd conference included a discussion on
“Black Women in Politics”, which dated six of the nations leading
black women politicians against several distinguished journalists; a
discussion on the black family in white America; an exhibition by
national corporationsand ajob skills bank.
In sum, the 63rd annual conference of the National Urban
League was accorded by League officials as being one of the most
influential in the history of the organization.
PATTERS TO EDITOR
Dear Editor:
I have just read with deep
feeling the news article
reflecting the life of my mother,
The Rev. (Mrs.) Essie M.
Mclntyre, and I wish to express
my deep appreciation for this
thoughful act on the part of you
and your staff. As a son, I try to
do everything to make my
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■ 1 P.O. BOX 953
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B 4 One yoer (In county) 36.00
One ynr (out of county)
mother happy because she
sincerely deserves all the
happiness this world can afford.
I am sure that this article in your
July 12 issue added to her
happiness.
My sincere thanks for this
beautiful comment to a true
child of God.
Sincerely yours,
Edward M. Mclntyre