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Walking With Dignity By AL IRBY Mighty Nigeria Is Heading Toward Its Rightful Place In The Sun Nigeria, the expected gem of the African nations, has eventually come around in handing the reins of government back to the people. The Western World will be watching with great interest, this important transition. Nigeria’s military government will soon make public the text of a draft constitution as part of its avowed plan to return the country to civilian rule by October, 1979. The draft, submitted to Head of State Lt. Gen. Plusegun Obasanjo recently by a hand-picked 49-man committee, is certain to recommend an American-type executive presidency to replace the British-type parliamentary democracy adopted at independence in 1960, that has been suspended since the military seized power in 1966. Nigerians are waiting for public debate on the draft constitution to be opened. Heated discussion is clearly in the offing, as the constitution drafting committee itself split into two factions. University lecturers Segun Osoba and Yusuf Bah Usman presented their own separate reports to General Osasanjo. They said the report prepared by the other 47 members of the committee “has failed to provide for true democracy and does not provide for the politics of consensus.” A temporary constituent assembly with both elected and appointed members are expected to accept the new constitution. The assembly’s work as well as public debate on the constitution will last until October, 1978. This will represent the second stage of a five-year plan to transfer government back to the civilians. The first stage was the formation of seven new states, bringing the total to 19, and the drafting of the new constitution. In drawing the new state boundaries, officials tried to cater to the country’s minority tribes which had asked for their own states even before independence. But not everyone is happy about the outcome. General Obsanjo recently reprimanded a new group of agitators and warned them the military authorities were in no mood to set up any more states. The establishment of the new states and the reorganization of local government councils are almost complete. In all 19 states, local governments are being organized along guidelines issued by the federal government in consultation with traditional rulers and a cross-section of the populace. yfafifwneM Meattk By Otto McClarrin New Invention May Revolutionize Treatment Os Diabetes A team of scientists says a tiny sensor and teaspoon-sized plastic pump have cured dogs of diabetes and that the devices may give people the same relief within a few years. Doctors at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center have invented a tiny pair of devices that measure the amount of sugar in die body and then pumps the proper amount of medicine automatically. Dr. Samuel Bessman, who built the machinery at home in his garage-shop, believes the invention is about to revolutionize treatment of diabetes. The devices are a glucose sensor and a tiny pump with a pulsating crystal that has been used to trigger land mines and letter bombs. They have been implanted experimentally in dogs, and Dr. Bessman believes they could give an extra 20 years of life to human diabetics as well. “I think there’s no question that it’s going to be applicable to humans,” Bessman said “We’re almost 100 percent sure that this can be done now commercially because this is a very simple technological thing.” AFFECTS 10 MILLION Diabetes affects more than 10 million Americans, and in 1974, 38,000 persons died directly as a result of the disease. The National Commission on Diabetes says the actual number of death at least partially attributable to diabetes probably was close to 300,000 that year. Bessman said Dr. Lyle Thomas designed the teaspoon-capacity pump and Dr. Ennis C. Layne designed the revolutionary glucose sensor that tells the tiny computer whether “Tissue sugar is too high or too low” in the patient whose pancreas has stopped functioning properly. One dog, a mongrel named Mambo, has the pump installed in his chest muscle and the sensor underneath the skin of his back. The sensor also can be used to measure the oxygen in people withing taking blood samples, Bessman stated. Medical theory has held that when a pancreas stops producing insulin, the blood sugar increases, causing diabetes. “Out theories about diabetes are a little different,” said Dr. Bessman. We believe blood sugar isn’t the problem but only a signal that something is awry in the tissues. The blood is just a conduit. It s where the sugar arrives that counts.” When a pancreas fails to produce insulin, he said, ‘ the rest of its functions usually remain normal.” But if necessary, the team s invention can also counter Hypoglycemia, the overproduction of Letters to the Editor Praises To Janies Brown Dear Editor: We must at sometime pause to say something good about someone who greatly deserves it Our native son, James Brown, has contributed so much to our society. He has been recognized by the highest officials in our nation. Former Vice President Hubert Humphry awarded Mr. Brown personally for making “Don’t Be A Drop Out” which was an inspiration for kids to stay in school It’s evident that Mayor Johnny Ford of Tuskegee, Ala. had love in his heart for the “Godfather of Soul” when he choose to rename the street on which he resided to James Brown Dr. I for one would like to thank Mr. Brown for having such an informative Future Shock TV Show. Some kids had never been to Atlanta until he made it possible for them to do so. On his dance contests he gave away lots of cash trying to better our youth. Yes, he’s a wonderful man that has a lot to give so let’s give him a little recognition in his ole home town, Augusta, Ga. Dorothy Sutton Young 601 Monte Sano Ave. Augusta, Ga. Perform* death-defying Exercise regularly. A Oecegle Heart Association ,T / Elections for local councils will be held in about half of the states this December. The other states have opted for indirect elections and will elect their leaders in November. Some former politicians have critized the system of indirect elections. Alhaji Aminy Kano, leader of the banned Northern Elements Progressive Party and a powerful leader in the coming civilian government, argues that such a system “has taken Nigeria back 20 years.” He expresses concern that councils will be filled with “yes men and errand boys” of some rulers. The system renews the attitude that one part of the country is more developed than another, he says. Nigerians have not shown much interest in what has been described as “elections without political parties.” When voter registration closed in Lagos State, only 5 percent of those eligible had registered. The federal guidelines for local reorganization are broad. As the government of Sokoto State, Col. Umaru Mohammed said in an address to his constituents: “The aim is to agree on the basic essentials for a free, democratic, and effective local government system, and to allow each state choice to implement this system in a manner appropriate to its culture and history.” The cultural disparity in the various tribes had made integration very difficult in the past. One question at least, remains to be answered; Will women in the Muslim-dominated northern states be allowed to vote in the coming elections? The third stage of the projected transition from military to civilian government is reactivating political parties in preparation for state and federal elections. The ban on political activities is to be lifted in October, 1978, allowing only one year for political reorganization before the election. The relatively short time allocated for political activity and general elections has given rise to speculation the country might emerge with only one or two parties instead of the many allowed under the old constitution. The fourth and final stages of the power transfer are to be the actual elections for state and federal legislatures. This timely transition will be watched with great understanding and sympathy; because Westerners, especially Blacks had hoped so diligently, that “mighty” Nigeria would set the pace for real progressive growth for “MOTHER AFRICA”. insulin, Bessman said. HEART OPERATION ALLOWS SOME RETIREES TO RESUME WORK Aortocoronary bypass surgery, a popular operation that’s successful 85 percent of the time, is also proving successful in getting patients back to work. A study of 893 men who underwent the operation found that 83 percent returned to employment afterward, and about one-fifth of them were retirees who resumed working. The investigation, reported recently in the Journal of the American Medical Association, was conducted by researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee for 14 months after the operations. The results show that patients “are probably better off’ - medically and socioeconomically - “if they have the operation,” said Joseph J. Barboriak, professor of pharmacology at the medical college and one of four authors of the report. Bypass surgery relieves and often ends crushing chest pain called angina pectoris. A new blood vessel, taken from some other part of the body, is grafted to the heart so that it takes blood from a large artery and pipes it around an obstruction in one of the tiny coronary arteries. It’s estimated that more than 50,000 Americans undergo bypass surgery annually. TO BE EQUAL By Vernon E. Jordon Jr. Cities--The Hidden Issue We've managed to get this far in the election campaign without anyone really pressing the big hidden issue -- the fate of the cities. Except for the growing metropolises of the so-called “sunbelt”, most major American cities are experiencing loss of jobs, deterioration of housing stock, poor transportation facilities, high rates of inner-city poverty, and extreme fiscal crisis. Large sections of some cities look like bombed-out wastelands as housing abandoment spreads. Crime makes many neighborhoods unsafe and the schools are laying off teachers in the face of the special needs of poor pupils. Such a situation calls for a Domestic Urban Marshall Plan that would harness the vast powers of the federal government, state and local governments and the private sector for a full-scale effort to save the cities and restore urban vitality. But neither candidate has endorsed such a program, or even come close to it. Caution seems to be the byword, as both candidates fear scaring off voters with proposals for bold new programs. But this assumes a conservatism among the electorate that’s not justified. True, many public opinion polls show more people willing to call themselves “conservative.” But at the same time most people favor social programs like national health insurance and expanded efforts to cut unemployment. One national poll on federal priorities found only 3 percent concerned about “excessive spending on social problems.” The same people who parrot the common complaints about Washington and “big government” also say they want the government to do something about jobs, housing and other issues that affect their lives. So there’s little reason for candidates to misread the polls and assume they’ve got to soft peddle the issues that really concern the people. Both candidates are being cautious, saying that only a little tinkering will do the trick and shrink from programs of the scale of a Domestic Urban Marshall Plan. Meanwhile, supporters of both imply that once the elections are behind us the winner will take a bolder stance. But why mistrust the people? Everyone knows that poverty is eating away at the cities like a cancer, and that the numbers of SUBSCRIBE TODAY ; THE XEVVS-_REVIEW J One year (in county) $ 7.00 ' SUBCRIBER I | ADDRESS 1 CITY <1 Something Blacks Can Do For Themselves... Vote fcgik i a if Ww /I / "WE HAVE BEEN AWAKENED TO || IF / JUSTICE BY THE SOUND OF SONGS 4 1 AND SERMONS, SPEECHES AND ||||||| £ M | PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATtONS.BUT V | THE NOISELESS, SECRET VOTE I mll thunder forth a hundred / TIMES MORE LOUDLY.' / U;. • J? / - ■ / "GOING PLACES” Anniversary Edition To Recapture Rich Augusta Black History As there’s wide agreement that Blacks have been largely committed from American and Augusta history, the forthcoming Part 11, Fifth Anniversary edition of the News-Review will attempt to put some of it in place. Yes, before it is lost forever, with those who remembered it. Our October 28 edition will attempt to so some of this. 1 am asking all of our readers and friends to assist in these endeavors. Our May 31 edition coupled with the Fourth of July paper captured some of these people and events on paper and preserved for our history. SOME OF THE BLACKS WHO HELPED BUILD AUGUSTA Again we are featuring a panel of people living today and others who have passed. the poor sharply increased last year - an additional 2.5 million people became poor, largely through loss of jobs and the end of their unemployment insurance coverage. Not enough people are aware that the federal government takes a disproportionate amount of urban resources in taxes and then redistributes much of it to other sectors. Hard pressed New York City, with 7.6 percent of the population paid 11.4 percent of all federal income taxes in 1974 and now is shutting down hospitals, schools and day care centers. The federal government has been running an unofficial Marshall Plan program for the suburbs for years, with road-building programs, housing mortgage subsidies, and tax breaks, and the private sector has cooperated by a wholesale movement of plants and offices away from the inner-city. No one labeled this a as a special program, but that’s the result of a multitude of federal and private actions. As the financial magazine, Business Week, put it: “Restoring the cities to self-sufficiency” would mean “the kind of investment that has reproduced pieces of the city, including whole business districts, in the suburbs over the past several decades. Neither Carter not Ford is talking about such investment. Anything less is not likely to make much difference to cities.” The candidates know this. They know that whoever wins the election will have to deal with an urban crisis that can largely determine the future of the nation. So why not level with us now? Why ask people to go to the polls unsure of how the candidates will deal with this hidden issue? The candidate who goes to an inner-city slum to see first-hand what’s happening to our cities and uses it as a forum to unveil his plans for a Marshall Plan for urban America will do more than spark a lacklustre campaign, he’ll take a giant step toward victory in November. ft THE AUGUSTA NEWS-REVIEW g Mallory K. MillenderEditor-Publisher Frank Bowman General & Advertising Manager ft ft Stan RainesManaging Editor & Circulation Manager X Audrey Frazier Editor-At-Large Al Irby News Editor Michael Carr Chief Photographer ft ft Mary Gordonßookkeeper X ¥ Mailing Address: Box 953, Augusta, Ga. Phone 722-4555 ft Second Class Postage Paid Augusta, Ga. 30903 ft $. SUBSCRIPTION RATES X ft Payable in Advance ft ft One year in Richmond CountyS7.oo tax incl. ft ft 6 Monthss3.so tax incl. ft ft One year out of County SB.OO tax incl. ft ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT S: ft Classified & Display Advertising Deadline ft 12 Noon on Tuesday ft ft News Deadline Monday 5:30 (printed free) S; AMALGAMATED JjTRIJL ift L-L PUBLISHERS, INC. ivl ft ..yINAI Ao.t.»IS>l•»<•.«( »•«.• V J <F BNE* YORK •CHICAGO Ob k' • "vj ■ft.. ■■ We’d like pictures immediately in small glossy finished black and white, but no larger than a silver dollar if possible. Let’s start off with some of our dedicated public school administrators which would include Raymond Jenkins, Music coordinator Shaw, Marian Bonds, Tracy Williams,ll, Albert Greenlee, H.H. Brigham, Lee Beard, Rev. Luther Neal, Jimmy Starks, Wigham Raybom and Herbert Evans.... (did we miss any administrators?) We’d like pictures of L.B. Wallace, one of Augusta’s outstanding business and civic leaders.... From Pilgrim Life we’d want; Walter Hornsby, 111 and Solomon Walker, H.R. Scott and retired executives C.O. Hollis (a past president of NIA) and John Barrington.... Let’s remember A.M. Carter (Ed, could you get a small photo of him? Thanks). THE BLACK CHURCH TO BE FEATURED Base-spring of Black History is the Black Church. This edition will highlight several including their pastors. It will include those now carrying weekly announcements in the N-R. We will attempt to show several buildings and institutions which have been built during the past 15 years.... Examples of new structures are: The new Pilgrim branch office down on Laney/Walker Blvd., the CSRA Business League, Williams Funeral Home, the new Paine building and Bethlehem Commuinty addition.... N-R staff photography will show office buildings occupied by Attorney Ruffin and Doctor 810unt.... Churches which have made structural renovations will be viewed.... The idea here is to show that millions of dollars have been spent in the Black community over the years on new and renovated structures, labor costs, furnishings and the like.... Any economists will tell you that a Black community the size of Augusta feeds money back into its local economy, in this case Richmond County.... Take Tabernacle, with its quarter of a million dollar renovation j0b.... PUBLIC OFFICIALS OUT FRONT Local Black elected and appointed officials will be featured.... Thrust is to encourage citizens to register, vote and make then civic contributions.... We have a paucity of public officials and the ballot is one route towards advancement.... Still another section will present a number of Black and white political officials (outside Augusta) who are helping to shape political change in the South.... We’ve invited a number of prominent Augusta Black leaders to write special articles for this edition... This should aid greatly as this edition will be around the nation and advance the image of Augusta.... Now for the health field - Would physicians William Griffin and Randy Watson and Dentists Arthur Keller, Maurice Thompson and Lattimer Blount kindly forward their small black and white pictures.... The same for Attorney John Watkins, head of the local Conference of Black Lawyers. Civil Rights lawyer Jim Hinton and Attorney Davis.... Photos are needed of Mrs. A.W. Gardiner, Dean of Black Social Workers”, Prof. M.B. Braxton, outstanding educator, Lonnie Hamilton, “Dean of Housing Professionals”, Mrs. Ora Thompson, co-founder of the Women’s Civiv Club, Mrs. Ophelia Donahue, Mrs. Charlotte H. Watkins, Mrs. Evelyn Green Screen, outstanding military recreation specialist, insurance executive Ronald Loftlin, Mrs. Jerrylyn Dent, Civic worker.... Also Mrs. Geneva F. Scott. Our readers want views of Mrs. Gwen Cummings, head of the Wallace Branch Library* Mrs. Addie Scott Powell, curator of the Black Heritage. Commission, Ms. Laura Garvin, retired educator, Dr. Vivian Robinson, Paine College dean, Mrs. Rosa Tutt, and Mrs. Ruby Jenkins, both music educators. REACH BACK IN HISTORY- LEADERS REMEMBERED This edition will reach back into history with photos of: Deacon H.B. Garvin and Deacon Walter Harris, two famous leaders and editors, Willie Wilburn and Louis Bohler, Masonic and religious leaders, J.C. McNatt, all-time great athlete, Earl Pickerton, one of the first Black theatre managers, Mr. A. Green, owner-operator of one of our first mattress factories (his daughter is Evelyn C. Screen), Clarence Wigfall and insurance man George Johnson.... Would relatives of these persons kindly forward pictures to the N-R office at once.... Support Your Local SCLC