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News-Review - June 17, 1971 -
THE NEWS-REVIEW
PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY
930 Gwinnett Street - Augusta, Georgia
Mallory K. Millender Editor and Publisher
Mailing Address: Box 953 Augusta, Ga. Phone 722-4555
Application to mail at Second Class postage rates is pending at
Augusta, Ga. 30901
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One Year in Richmond County $2.50 tax incl.
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Office Hours -10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mon. thru. Fri.
mu___j i j ■ ■ ■
Winning Is The
Name Os The Game
Win! We are number one! A winner never quits and a
quiter never wins. Win! Win! Win!
These and similar expressions are designed to
stimulate a winning attitude. They can be very effective,
and, when properly used, wholesome.
When properly used, the winning attitude can bring
out the best in an athlete; it can make him play “over
his head.” That is to say that he can be so ingrained
with the desire to win that he surpasses his normal
performance level. This is good and totally desirable.
However, fans, coaches and parents can become so
over exhuberant in their zeal to win that they abuse the
athletes upon whom they depend to bring them the
victories upon which their egos thrive.
We believe that such abuse occurred in a recent state
championship game at a nearby high school.
A certain star athlete with scholarship offers in both
baseball and basketball was forced to pitch in a state
championship game although he was suffering from
painful ankle wounds in both legs. His coach sent him to
a doctor where he received two shots of novocaine and
was rushed back to the mound to pitch.
The athlete was able to play until the novocaine wore
off. According to the athlete the novocaine was the
coach’s idea. He concedes, though, that he probably
would have agreed to play if he had been asked.
The athlete’s team lost the game but that is not the
point. The point is that our subject is a human being.
Iteyond that he is a star athlete with an apparent bright
Bture. No responsible person would jeopardize an
Mdete’s future just to win one game no matter how
Kjortant that game might be.
RThere is a law that prohibits the use of drugs on
■rses to kill pain before a race. We think that the same
Whcern should be extended to human beings.
Our bodies are equipped with a protective alarm
device called the nervous syetem. It warns us when our
body tissues are in danger of being damaged. The degree
of danger is expressed through the degree of pain.
If we place our hand in or near a flame, we
experience severe pain. This lets us know that if the
hand is not immediately removed, the tissue therein will
be severely damaged if not destroyed. If we had no such
system we would experience no pain and our bodily
tissue would always be subject to destruction without
our knowledge. And so it is with our star pitcher who
had his alarm system desensitized by novocaine.
The stakes were high; he wanted to win the state
championship; so did his team and coach and apparently
the doctor who administered the drug.
There is no way of measuring the intensity of their
desire to win. But neither was there any way of
measuring the degree of permanent damage to the ankle
with a dead warning system. But who cared about him
and his future? The coach? Os course not, he ordered
the drug. The doctor? He administered it.
Coaches have no right to exploit high school students
in order to get promotions or to boast “We’re Number
One”!
We are not debating the legality of the case. We are
saying that it was irresponsible and immoral.
URBAN
LEAGUE
REPORT
As a community service the News-Review will print the entire
text of the report and recommendations of the National Urban
League concerning the causes of the events of May 11,1970.
It should be made perfectly clear that the text of this
report has not been edited or otherwise altered in anyway. Since
the report is too lengthy to be printed in one issue, we will print
it in a weekly series. We urge you to read it and carefully consider
the information found therein so that we may begin to work
seriously toward meaningful progress in race relations and human
dignity.
RECREATION AND LEISURE TIME ACTIVITIES
How the black community in Augusta-Richmond County is
served by recreation has not only been expressed by the black
community but among the white community leaders as well.
A recent report on recreation in Augusta and Richmond
County prepared by the Augusta-Richmond County
Government Study Committee provides broad information on
recreation programs and a frank critique of some of the major
problems existing as deterrents to an effective recreation
I
Page 2
program in Augusta-Richmond County. These deterrents include
in inadequate budget for operating expenses in contrast to
National Recreation Association recommendations. An
inventory of existing recreational facilities in Augusta show that
there are twenty-one community facilities (ten of which have a
predominant black clientele, see Table 39). Table 39 shows that
there is only one facility serving a predominantly black
community with acreage of 10.34, while there are four facilities
in predominantly white communities with acreage in excess of
24.0.
TABLE 39
INVENTORY OF EXISTING RECREATION FACILITIES
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA - 1970
Recreation Facility Location Acreage
Allen Homes* 1130 Peters Road 1.03
Allen Park* Fifteenth St. & Walton Way 1.00
Robert Blount Playground* 2510 Allen St. 4.00
Central Park 1130 Merry Street 3.80
Chaffee Park 1800 Pearl Avenue 24.40
Delta Manor* East Boundary 1.50
Eisenhower Soft Ball Field Eisenhower Dr. 7.00
Gilbert Manor* University Place 2.30
Hillside Park 2107 Telfair Street 1.47
Hickman Park 965 Hickman Road 2.49
Stephan Heard Playground Heard Avenue 1.54
(2275 Broad Street) 27.85
Julian Smith Park Lake Olmstead) 86.18
Jones Pool* 1600 Holly Street 1.08
Pendleton King Park Kissingbower Road 64.00
May Park* 2100 Broad Street 1.04
Play Area Central Ave. Fire Station 0;50
Sunset Homes* 15th St., McCauley & Linden St. 10.34
Sunset Center* 1610 Hunter Street 4.96
Tennis Center 2835 Central Avenue 1.43
General Wood Park 189 Highland Avenue 4.00
Robert S. Williams Park* Taylor & King Streets 0.60
Four recreation facilities which serve predominantly white
communities have acreages of 64.0, 86.2, 27.8, and 24.4
respectively.
The major programs of the department are softball, baseball,
basketball, ceramics, and daily recreational activities. The
contributions of businesses to promote recreation in the city
and county have facilitated the involvement of black and white
youth. The Little League (ages seven to seventeen, boys and
girls) is one of the most popular summer activities. Some of
the Little Leagues are all black and others are all white, while
others are desegregated.
♦Denotes those facilities which serve predominantly black
communities.
The Optimist Club annually contributes funds to both city
and county recreation departments to expand recreational
programs which could not be provided otherwise.
Even though Augusta and Richmond County have shown
progress in improving recreation for all citizens, the
Augusta-Richmond County Study Committee points up certain
weaknesses which affect the quality of the programs. For
instance, the department has no procedural manual for formal
organizational structure to guide employees’ activities and
identify lines of responsibility.
Inadequate salaries is also a deterrent to recruiting quality
employees. The top salary ($3,427 for a six-hour day, five-day
week supervisor) and lesser salaries for playground leaders offers
no inducement for persons qualified to provide the kind of
supervision needed.
Richmond County operates seventeen park and recreation
facilities, six of which are frequented predominantly by blacks.
The activities consist primarily of directed activities and some
counseling.
Black residents have equal access to other facilities; however,
the pattern of living precludes their full use of all facilities.
The following is a list of the Richmond County recreational
facilities used predominantly by black residents:
Name of Facility
Hephzibah (privately owned) Athletic Area
Hyde Park Athletic and Play Area
East View Athletic Area
Boy Scout Road Athletic and Play Area
Southside Community Housing Authority and Play Area
Terrace Manor Community Housing Authority and Play Area
In addition to the above parks and playgrounds, the county
maintains certain Board of Education athletic fields during the
summer.
Only two county parks have year-round facilities -- Terrace
Manor (predominantly black) and Doughty Park. Activities
offered at these two centers include arts and crafts classes as
well as athletic programs. There are no continuous adult
activities sponsored by the County Recreation Department.
During the summer, adult softball leagues have been popular as
a participant and spectator activity.
The Department of Recreation has no formal agreement with
the Board of Education FOR USE OF SCHOOL FACILITIES.
The Richmond County Board of Education has cooperated
with the Recreation Commission in permitting use of seven
outside school facilities, i.e., playgrounds and ball fields for
programs scheduled following school sessions and on weekends.
All playground facilities in Augusta and Richmond County
operate on a nonrestricted racial basis. However, the housing
pattern in the city almost isolates one racial group from
participating with fire other. The exception is in ball teams
where a few are integrated.
The City Recreation Department currently (1970) employs
thirty-five full time staff members. Six playground supervisors
are black and six are white. Other employees include one black
and one white coordinator, one black senior supervisor, one
program director who works with white and black supervisors,
one black hostess, and nineteen part-time employees.
As one tours many of the congested areas in Augusta, it is
obvious that the leisure time needs of youth and adults are not
being adequately met by organized or supervised activities.
Mrs. Myrtis Deas, Director of the Augusta Recreation
Department, stated that acquisition of land was one of the big
problems. She also cited the need for more small neighborhood
centers and play lots and additional staff at more attractive
salaries.
THE U.S.O.
Military personnel in the Augusta-Richmond County area are
served by two U.S.O.’s. One branch on 1123 Gwinnett Street
serves predominantly black servicemen, even though both
agencies provide service for black and white military servicemen
and their families.
Activities include games of various types such as: Bowling,
table tennis, and cards. Movies are sponsored weekly at both
centers and social dancing at least monthly. A committee of
black and white sponsors serve a buffet luncheon each second
and fourth Sunday, followed by a social affair to which the
community is invited to meet and socialize with the servicemen.
According to Mrs. Gardner, Director of the Gwinnett Street
U. 5.0., the monthly attendance is approximately 7,000, which
includes relatives and friends of servicemen. In addition to the
recreational and social activities, the center provides counselling
service for military personnel.
■j
* to the
People of
GEORGIA
ATLANTA (PRN) - The
third portion of this year’s
effort to save your money and
make government work more
efficiently is Zero-Base
Budgeting. This is a very
thorough and far reaching
program which is already
requiring extra work from all
state employees. Their
response has been excellent.
They know it is designed to
help us get a better return
from every tax dollar spent
and this is what almost
everyone wants.
Basically Zero-Base
Budgeting is just what the
name implies. It is away of
preparing the budget starting
from scratch. To often a
program that was worthwhile
when it was begun has
outlived its usefulness, yet it
still goes on and on, eating up
tax money. This happens
because in the past a
department could assume that
everything already underway
should continue and at budget
time departments simply
presented a request for
additional funds for new
programs. These requests are
almost always reduced by
both the governor and
legislature. Sometimes
worthwhile new programs are
eliminated while less
important programs continue
just because they were already
in existence. This is no way to
conduct the public’s business.
Zero-Base Budgeting
requires department heads and
managers all down the line
within a department to take a
The staff, which consists of one professional and two part
time persons, is assisted by thirty volunteers. An inter-racial
council assists in developing programs and recruiting and
screening junior and senior volunteers. The U.S.O. receives its
principal financial support from the local United Fund.
Library Facilities
The main library and three branch library facilities in
Augusta serve all segments of the population without
restriction. These branches include the Appleby, Wallace, and
the Burke County Library. The Wallace Branch (1237 Gwinnett
St.) originated as a black branch, but since desegregation of
public facilities it serves all segments of the population. This
branch is located near the center of the black community and
its facilities appear quite adequate and attractive. In addition to
library facilities, an auditorium is available for community
meetings.
Miss Gwendolyn Cummins, librarian at the Wallace Branch,
stated that the black community does not avail themselves of
the branch services as one might expect. Efforts to enlist the
cooperation of religious, social, and civic groups, she continued,
have had a minimum effect on encouraging more active use of
the library facilities. According to Miss Jean Cochran, librarian,
services to the disadvantaged is receiving increased emphasis by
the public library system. Programs for the disadvantaged
members of the community include work with Upward Bound
and Headstart programs. Library books are sent to various parts
of the city through the Bookmobile program.
Circulation statistics for the Avgusta-Richmond County
Library System are shown in Table 40.
Y.W.C.A. - Central and Phyllis Wheatley Branch
The Augusta Y.W.C.A. provides a wide variety of recreational
and cultural activities that relate to the black community.
Facilities for serving the total Y.W.C.A. membership are located
in the Central Building on Greene Street. The Phyllis Wheatley
Association was organized as a branch in 1918 to serve the
predominant black community. In 1945, the Y.W.C.A. Charter
was incorporated, integrating all facilities of the Central and
Phyllis Wheatley Branch. Since 1964, the Residence Hall and
swimming pool of the Central “Y” have been open to black
members.
The Central “Y” has a membership of 4,000, while the
Phyllis Wheatley “Y” has a membership of 900. Membership
fees range from 50 cents to SIOO.OO for a life membership. The
Y.W.C.A. memberships range from $3.00 for adults, SI,OO for
teenagers, to 50 cents for children.
Special programs sponsored by the “Y” include a summer
camp funded by the Office of Economic Opportunity. The
summer camp accomodates fifty girls during four different time
periods. There is also a special education program for inner city
boys and girls funded under Title 11.
It was stated by several black female leaders that although
the memberships are relatively small, there are many black
adults and children who cannot afford them.
Included in the activities of the Phyllis Wheatley Branch are
the following: Music, modeling, sewing, and hat making.
The “Y” teen activities include baseball, discussion groups,
and sewing school clothes. Blacks are represented on the
Central Association Board and serve on various committees.
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■MM O» IKIIUMX
* IT TAKES A GREAT CAR ...
* TO MAKE A GREAT CAR DEAL!
WE HAVE BOTH.
WIDE-TNACK |] ] fh| CORNERS
TELFAIR STREET
PONTIAC I st iMASTER
"After are aell—HE’ SERX E—ainre 1937
long hard look at all of the
functions that they are to
perform. Alternate plans for
doing the same job are
required. Existing programs
and new programs are
compared and rated according
to their importance.
Based on this thorough
review of what is needed and
what is already going on both
the governor and the
legislature can decide the most
efficient way to spend the
money available.
Zero-Base Budgeting is a
way to get more services for
every tax dollar. Georgia will
be the first state in the nation
to put it into practice. It costs
us nothing to establish except
some extra work at all levels
of state government. I think it
is worth it. By their own
enthusiastic participation,
state employees have shown
that they do too. I hope that
you, the people of the state,
who will benefit most from
this extra effort will let us
have the benefit of your
encouragement and support.
In closing let me add that
response to Goals for Georgia
and Re-organization has been
tremendous. If you have an
idea about making Georgia a
better place please write:
Goals for Georgia
The Governor’s Office
Atlanta, Ga. 30334
You have my word that
your ideas and suggestions will
receive thorough consideration
as all of us together do our
best to return Georgia’s
government to the people.
(SCHOOL INTEGRATION IN THE SOUTH NEXT FALL)
The national attention will be focused upon the South this
fall with massive integration brought on by the U.S. Supreme
Court’s latest decree justifying busing. The small communities
will solve their problems much more easily than metropolitan
districts.
Comparatively, integration is ignored in the rest of the
country. The larger cities, where the concentration of black
students out-number the population as a whole, is where the
real crunch will come.
Black civil rights leaders should low their rhetoric, and help
in this gigantic task. It will take dedication, and people of
good-will of both races, if America is to cope with this huge
undertaking.
Here are some interesting statistical data that confronts bur
country. The nation’s capital, where the population is 71%
black, has an elementary and secondary school population of
95% black. Philadelphia with a 34% black count, has a racial
school population of 60% black. Atlanta’s population is 51%
black according to the 1970 census; New Orleans is up to 45%
black, and in both cities the school systems are two-thirds
black.
Maybe some people will say that integration isn’t all that
important and that the real need is to improve the quality of
education everywhere- in all-white schools, integrated schools,
and all-black schools. It is partially true that the entire
American school system needs over-hauling. Educators have
been doing a miserable job of educating well-to-do schools as
well as all black slum schools.
Enlightened educational experts still are sticking to their
guns, with this statement, “that in a multi-racial society,
integration is a necessity. Two highly rated educational
researchers as James Coleman, and the business-led Committee
for Economic Development declared in a recent special report
on urban schooling that “An integrated racial and social setting
substantially improves the educational performance of less
advantaged kids.” The report continues - “school integration is
of critical importance for the quality and equality of education
as well as for social relationships.”
(ARE WE DEVELOPING TWO COMPLETELY SEPARATE
CULTURES?)
Still a great many people contend that the only way to
achieve integration is through gradual integration of schools or
to integrate residential neighborhoods. Yet this is almost
impossible for many reasons. Neither the Nixon administration
nor the Democratic Congress would support such a far-fetched
plan.
More blacks are moving to the suburbs, but many more
whites are moving there faster. Many advocates of integration
are favoring the use of the federal carrot to promote
cooperation among school districts - cutting across political
boundary lines to combine the black central city student bodies
with those of the white suburbs.
The inter-district plan could be utilized in many ways;
cross-busing between urban and suburban schools, with
exchange student bodies, and faculties. There is another plan
known as the educational park, where the elementary and
secondary schools gathered in one huge complex on the
outskirts of the city, drawing students both from city and
suburbs.
Then, in theory, there is the magnet plan, where slum
schools whose curriculum and faculty have been upgraded to
the point that white suburban kids will want to come. That’s
only a remote hope and a dream for the far future. All of these
approaches should be tested. The educational establishment is
understandably reluctant to give any of these courageous
innovations a trial; also local political leaders, especially those
in the suburbs are very hesitant.
One of the most potent objections to experimental programs,
is the huge amounts of money they will cost; for instance, a
typical educational park for some 20,000 students would cost
as much as 40 or 50 million dollars. The irony, and the
frustration that middle class Americans exhibit are simply
pathetic; because the same suburbanites who resist school
integration, also object to sending tax dollars to help black
urban schools.
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WITH
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BY
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