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Augusta Ncms-iKpwiu Vol. 4 Halt Consolidation May Suit By Blacks Effort The News-Review learned this week that a group of Blacks plan to file suit to prevent the merger of the city and county governments. A referendum on the merger is scheduled for May 14th. Attorney John H. Ruffin said the group is filing the suit FRANK YERBY Blacks Voice Opposition To New Government Proposal At the last announced meeting of the Augusta-Rich mond County Charter Commission Monday night, a largely Black audience expressed fears that their vote would be diluted under the proposed new government. The Charter Commission issue was sidetracked early in the meeting, when those present began asking questions about the May 14 referendum and the proposed new government. One man likened the referendum to “giving a man a blank check and telling him to go down to the bank and fill it He said no one knows what the 18 commission members and the mayor-chairman are going to come up with if the referendum is passed. Charter Commission member, and chairman of the night’s meeting, James Hinton, said the referendum would not necessarily be a blank check, because the new commissioners would have the Charter Commission study made available to them. The main concern of most of those present was the idea that “people are voting on something they will have no say in,” as one man said. Hinton said there are some Black members on the Charter Commission to provide input from the Black community. Those present said there was not enough representation. “The main thing Negroes are objecting to is losing their voting strength,” another man said. He mentioned the present voting districts and the fact that they appeared to be drawn for the express purpose of putting all the Blacks in the community in one district, instead of allowing them to spread through several districts, thus giving them die possibility of more Black representation. Hinton held on, citing his presence as chairman, from I NATIONAL BLACK NEWS BfcfWlC* MEMBER because it feels that the proposed consolidation will unfairly dilute Black voting strength here. Ruffin said he expects to file suit Thursday. The attorney also revealed that the Justice Department has announced that the consolidation proposal is in Novelist Frank Yerby To Visit Augusta In May World renowned novelist Frank G. Yerby will be in Augusta on May 19th, according to an aunt of the novelist, Mrs. A.B. Bampfield. Mrs. Bampfield said Yerby wrote her a letter last week saying that he would be here. Yerby, an Augusta native and Paine College graduate, now makes his home in Spain. Other local relatives include, Timothy Yerby, Harrison Yerby, and Rufus Lowe, all cousins of the author. Yerby has two brothers; Paul, a pharmaceutical doctor in Detroit, and Alonzo, who giving his opinion on the value of the referendum for Black citizens. Another Charter Commission member, Joseph Jones, said the referendum “was not in the interest of the Black community. Only two representatives out of 19 are guaranteed and two out of 19 is not very good. “We’re talking about coming into a system not as good as the one we’re under now.” Another man said, “they tell us not to do things based on race yet they turn around and do them to us.” Still another remarked, “They had better get this (voter representation) straightened out before coming to the Black community and asking for our support to cut Sheriff Anderson Mum On Gambling Raid - Fears Pre-Trial Publicity By R.L. Oliver Citing fears of pretrial publicity, Richmond County Sheriff William (Bill) Anderson refused to release the names of 60 persons arrested in a raid ona gambling house on Old Savannah Road, early Saturday morning. “We’ve had people all over us before on pretrial publicity. This is a state case made by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), I leave it up to them to release any names,” Anderson said. Two persons were charged with running a gambling house, and about $45,000 was seized during the raid by the GBI. Others arrested in the raid P.O. Box 953 violation of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 in that the proposal has not been sent to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia judicial review, or to the Attorney General for administrative review. Assistant Attorney General teaches medicine at Harvard University. Yerby’s oldest son lives in California. Asked when Yerby was last in Augusta, Mrs. Bampfield replied, “He hasn't been here in years.” A profilic writer, Yerby has a new book, published this month entitled “VOYAGE UNPLANNED”. Last fall, he donated a prized collection of his manuscripts to Paine College. Yerby was bom in Augusta in 1916. Following graduation at Haines Institute, entered Paine College in Sept. 1933, our own throat.” State Rep. Matthew W. Mulherin (District 81) tried to explain the delegation’s actions in passing House Bill 2062 (new government). “We felt,” he said, “city residents were paying double.” He said the county collects taxes for the Sheriff’s Department and the Roads and Bridges Department (about $2.5 million he said). “You and I pay for it and we don’t get a penny out of it. We felt that we have got to combine these services and this was away,” he added. Jones tried to sum up the input from the night’s meeting by saying the Charter Commission members should be aware of one word, “participation.” were charged with frequenting a gambling house. The raid was conducted by GBI agents, members of the Sheriffs Department, and several FBI agents who went along as observers. It has been reported Anderson invited the GBI to assist him during the Masters Tournament because he felt gambling and prostitution would be on the increase. A spokesman for the FBI said Monday that they had received a report there would be gambling in Augusta during the golf tournament, and “We are checking out to see if there has been a violation of interstate gambling laws.” THE PEOPLE’S PAPER for the Civil Rights Division J. Stanley Pottinger wrote a letter (April 8) to State Attorney General Arthur Bolton stating that changes which “affect voting are unenforceable unless and until preclearance requirements of Section 5 have been met. graduating third in his class in 1937. It was during his student days at Paine that he penned the words to the often sung and cherished Paine Hymn which was set to music by Mark Fax, then director of music at the college. Yerby wrote one novel a year for fifteen successive years, amassed 21 million sales for his twenty-one best sellers. He had three of his novels made into successful movies. His books have been translated into 12 languages. ROSCOE WILLIAMS Williams Appointed To HRC Roscoe Williams was appointed to the Augusta-Richmond County Human Relations Commission, by the Augusta City Council Monday, to fill the seat of the late Dr. Lucius Pitts, former Paine College president. Williams was nominated to the post by Mayor Lewis A. Newman on the recommendation of the commission chairman John Radeck and commission director Charles Walker. A 1958 graduate of Paine College, Williams also holds a masters degree from Fisk University and has done further study at Northwestern University, Evanston, 111. He has taught biology, chemistry, physics and Russian in the Richmond County school system. He is currently serving as assistant dean of students at Augusta College. Williams is married to the former Bertha Carter and is the father of two children, Thaydra and Roscoe, Jr. His appointment is effective immediately. Augusta, Georgia JAMES BROWN James Brown Civil Rights Charges Against Knoxville Dropped - Police Charges Pending Soul singer James Brown’s civil rights suit against the city of Knoxville, Tenn, was dismissed by U.S. District Court Judge Robert L. Taylor Monday. The action was taken by Judge Taylor after he determined from testimony that the city, its agencies and administration were not directly involved in the incident, and “could not be judged guilty of any civil rights violations in the matter.” However, the police officers involved in the suit are still facing charges in the violation of the civil rights of Brown and two associates, Bobby Dyers and Freddie Holmes. Richmond Count) Sheriff Denies Nasty Treatment Charges Richmond County Sheriff William “Bill” Anderson denies he is guilty of the “nasty treatment” charges filed against him with the Augusta-Richmond County Human Relations Commission. According to Anderson, he did witness an incident that occured at the Krispy Kreme shop on Gordon Highway Sunday March 16th, as he and his family were driving. “I s -J? A ’ woL- -SMB a I Wlfola HR i w HUPP (L-R) Mr. and Mrs. W.L. Dent, Dr. I.E. Washington, John W. Dent, Dr. Justine Washington and Father Bruce Williamson. Drs. I.E. and Justine Washington (center) were the godparents of John Westley Dent in 1945 when he was christened at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church. Thirty years ago Drs. I.E. and Justine Washington were the godparents of John W. Dent, Jr. when he was christined at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church. On Easter Sunday of this year they were the godparents of John’s daughter, Dina Delores, who was also christined at St. Brown and associates filed suit against the city and several police officers in connection with an alleged beating of the trio by Knoxville Police in Dec. 1972. In the suit Brown claims that following a concert in Knoxville he was talking to a racially mixed group of teenagers about drug abuse, the value of education and patriotism in America, when he was rudely told to move out of the area by several policemen. The suit said when he (Brown) questioned the policemen’s motives, he and his associates were attacked and beaten. The police officers being tried in the case are Phillip Bowling - who has been went over to Mrs. Davis’ car and told her that I was the sheriff of Richmond County to roll down her window. However, “I noticed that she appeared scared, so I presented my identification and asked her to roll her window down and explain what was going on. 1 never got nasty or did I see a gun as was reported,” Anderson said. A complaint was filed with Christening Scene Repeated 30 Years Later Mary’s. The Dents now make their home in Philadelphia, Pa. Gathered here from Philadelphia were the children of Mr. and Mrs. W.L. Dent, Sr. to witness the ceremony: Dr. and Mrs. W.L. Dent; Mr. and Mrs. B.J. Dent and daughter Bonita; Mr. and Mrs. R.A. Doit April 18, 1974 No. 5 transfered from the police department to that city’s fire department - Kenneth Sloan, Davis McGoldrick, Kenneth Bowman and Ed Cummings. According to Radio Station WJBE in Knoxville, Bowling was suspended from the police force there in Octorber, 1972, for allegedly beating a suspect he arrested with a walkie-talkie. Those defendants dismissed in the case were Mayor Cariye Testerman, Safety Director Dwayne Ausetts, Police Chief Joe Fowler, Civil Service Secretary Preston V. Phelps and Capt. Charles Patty, all of Knoxville. HRC by Mrs. Elaine Davis an Augusta Black woman, who charged Anderson with unfair treatment and “very nasty” treatment. Mrs. Davis, at Apt. 10F Amsterdam Dr., told the News-Review that she was the object of profanity and a woman making obscene gestures as she left the doughnut shop on Gordon Highway. She further charged L J M Sunday, the Washington's were godparents of John’s daughter, Dina Delores, at the same church. Pictured here are (L-R) the Washingtons, Mrs. Rachael Mitchell. Mr. and Mrs. John W. Dent with daughter, and Father Berlin. and son, Richard, 111, and daughter, Jennifer; Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Dent and daughter Dina Delores. The Dent’s youngest daughter, Wilhemina Yvonne, and her husband, Lewis P. Emory, who live here were also present. A daughter, Lillian Louise Aaron's Fete Marred by refusal to pause for Dr. King Page 6 Masters Visitors Robbed Page 2 $900.00 Worth of tires stolen Page 2 20 Local Black Viewpoints On Masters Aired In National Magazine The April 15th issue of SPORTS ILLUSTRATED magazine quote several Augusta Blacks’ viewpoints on the Masters Golf Tournament. Among those quoted in the national magazine are City Councilwoman Carrie J. Mays, educator James Dunn, The News-Review and The Mirror News. The comments appear in an article entitled “A Town’s View of the Affair.” that as she turned into Barton Chapel Rd., a green car pulled up beside her and that the sheriff pulled up beside her and asked to see “something with her name on it.” Mrs. Davis also told the News-Review that the woman had told the sheriff that someone in her auto pointed a gun at them. However a search by the sheriff produced no gun. Harley of Chicago, was unable to attend. Other Augusta relatives in attendance included an aunt, Miss L.E. Dent, State Representative Richard A. Dent and City Councilman Benjamin Dent, uncles of the Dent children. lln ■ I this I I Issue | WANTED NEWS BOYS Good Pay CALL News—Review Office 7224555