Thursday's Op/Ed in the local rag - and my response. Steven
Dear Herald-Sun:
Since you chose to malign me by printing mis-information about me in your paper I assume you will give me the opportunity to set the record straight. My opinion piece follows. Please print it as a guest column not as a letter to the editor. You did so last time and I greatly appreciated it then.
Your editorial of Thursday, June 16th calls on the Concerned Citizens of Durham to stop our “tactics of intimidation”. You proceed to print the lies that Charlotte Woods is spreading. The truth of the matter is that CCOD went to where Ms. Woods was collecting signatures to be sure that the African-American’s she was soliciting were being told the truth about what her petition really says. Ms. Woods has been known to mislead folks in the past. Ms. Woods walked over to where our group was standing and engaged me in an argument. If Ms. Woods thinks that I “bumped” her or in any way physically intimidated her she needs to take her complaints to the police and stop slandering me in the press. She won’t, of course, because lying to the police is a criminal offense and comes with consequences. The Herald-Sun does us all a disservice by repeating unsubstantiated assertions. In fact, I have personally been told by HS staff writers that they wouldn’t look into allegations I brought to their attention because it was just my word. Funny how you aren’t so squeamish when such unsubstantiated allegations further your own agenda.
As far as the charge of “Race Baiting” is concerned. I would like to point out that it is not Ms. Woods or her grandchildren or any other white children in Durham who are being abused in Durham Public Schools. It is black kids who are being punished more harshly than white kids. It is black kids who are being denied a free and equal public education. It is black kids who are being searched without cause. And it is Charlotte Woods who is circulating a petition that would allow the white majority to pick black leaders in Durham. That way not only can the abuse continue but the white community can install black folks who don’t make them feel uncomfortable by bringing the problems up again and again. It is a common tactic of those who are committing the offenses to try to turn the offenses of which they are accused back on their accuser. I’ll tell you this and I have told Charlotte this in person; What she is doing is attempting to implement a racist agenda. That makes her a racist. In this day and age when cross burnings are met with calls to “heal” the community before any examination of the climate of racial intimidation that exists in Durham is held it comes as no surprise that nobody even wants to hear the world “racist” uttered. It reminds us of a past that we thought was dead and gone. Well, it isn’t dead and gone. It has never been dead and gone for black folks. It’s only white folks who delude themselves that racism doesn’t exist. Today we don’t have racists we have “differences of opinion”. Today we don’t have prejudice we have “limited funding”. Today we don’t have ghettoes we have “self segregation”.
In answer to the demand contained in the headline to the Op/Ed piece that CCOD “Ease Up On Tactics of Confrontation” my response is this; when has the Gang of Four, the Herald-Sun, Charlotte Woods, and the majority of the white community in Durham ever taken the time to even look into whether the allegations we have put forward are true or not. I’ll make a deal with you. Investigate and correct the abuses of these children and we will all go home and this whole ordeal will be over.
Ease up on tactics of confrontation
The Herald-Sun
Jun 16, 2005
We can sympathize with many of the goals of the group called Concerned Black Citizens. The members' focus on equitable treatment and educational opportunities for black students in Durham Public Schools is laudable, as is the insistence that the administration be held accountable. We also agree that the school board must be open to hearing public comments and responsive to requests from citizens.
With that said, the continuing tactics of confrontation and intimidation used by the Concerned Black Citizens are damaging to Durham and Durham Public Schools far out of proportion to any positive impact they have on black students. The tactics are also a huge overreaction to the alleged wrongs they are supposed to target.
A case in point was an ugly scene this week involving Charlotte Woods, who heads a different group, the Concerned Citizens for Accountable Government. Woods and her organization want to change the way the school board elects its members, from the current 4-2-1 district voting system to an at-large system. The Concerned Black Citizens oppose the change, which they believe would elect more white board members.
On Sunday, one of the members of Concerned Black Citizens, Sheryl Smith, phoned Woods, gave her a phony name, and told her she was a black supporter of the change in voting. Eager to have support from the black community, Woods invited Smith to The Village shopping center on Sunday, where Woods was gathering signatures on a petition to support the change.
But it was a setup. Members of the Concerned Black Citizens showed up instead. Accounts differ on what happened, but we know there was a confrontation. Woods wound up toe-to-toe with Steven Matherly, who called her a "white racist" and told her to get back to the plantation. Woods said Matherly bumped her. He denies it.
Whatever happened, it's ironic that a group that so loudly declares its own right to free speech would try to silence others. It's clear that was the intent -- to deceive, confront, and silence. Woods, by the way, has every right to collect signatures on a petition.
Despite Matherly's race-baiting, most supporters of an at-large voting system are not racists. On the contrary, most hope that a change in voting patterns would help ease racial tensions on the school board by having all citizens in the county choose all the board members -- the same way City Council and County Commission are elected.
Concerned Black Citizens could do something positive for Durham by easing back on the "in your face" tactics.
Since you chose to malign me by printing mis-information about me in your paper I assume you will give me the opportunity to set the record straight. My opinion piece follows. Please print it as a guest column not as a letter to the editor. You did so last time and I greatly appreciated it then.
Your editorial of Thursday, June 16th calls on the Concerned Citizens of Durham to stop our “tactics of intimidation”. You proceed to print the lies that Charlotte Woods is spreading. The truth of the matter is that CCOD went to where Ms. Woods was collecting signatures to be sure that the African-American’s she was soliciting were being told the truth about what her petition really says. Ms. Woods has been known to mislead folks in the past. Ms. Woods walked over to where our group was standing and engaged me in an argument. If Ms. Woods thinks that I “bumped” her or in any way physically intimidated her she needs to take her complaints to the police and stop slandering me in the press. She won’t, of course, because lying to the police is a criminal offense and comes with consequences. The Herald-Sun does us all a disservice by repeating unsubstantiated assertions. In fact, I have personally been told by HS staff writers that they wouldn’t look into allegations I brought to their attention because it was just my word. Funny how you aren’t so squeamish when such unsubstantiated allegations further your own agenda.
As far as the charge of “Race Baiting” is concerned. I would like to point out that it is not Ms. Woods or her grandchildren or any other white children in Durham who are being abused in Durham Public Schools. It is black kids who are being punished more harshly than white kids. It is black kids who are being denied a free and equal public education. It is black kids who are being searched without cause. And it is Charlotte Woods who is circulating a petition that would allow the white majority to pick black leaders in Durham. That way not only can the abuse continue but the white community can install black folks who don’t make them feel uncomfortable by bringing the problems up again and again. It is a common tactic of those who are committing the offenses to try to turn the offenses of which they are accused back on their accuser. I’ll tell you this and I have told Charlotte this in person; What she is doing is attempting to implement a racist agenda. That makes her a racist. In this day and age when cross burnings are met with calls to “heal” the community before any examination of the climate of racial intimidation that exists in Durham is held it comes as no surprise that nobody even wants to hear the world “racist” uttered. It reminds us of a past that we thought was dead and gone. Well, it isn’t dead and gone. It has never been dead and gone for black folks. It’s only white folks who delude themselves that racism doesn’t exist. Today we don’t have racists we have “differences of opinion”. Today we don’t have prejudice we have “limited funding”. Today we don’t have ghettoes we have “self segregation”.
In answer to the demand contained in the headline to the Op/Ed piece that CCOD “Ease Up On Tactics of Confrontation” my response is this; when has the Gang of Four, the Herald-Sun, Charlotte Woods, and the majority of the white community in Durham ever taken the time to even look into whether the allegations we have put forward are true or not. I’ll make a deal with you. Investigate and correct the abuses of these children and we will all go home and this whole ordeal will be over.
Ease up on tactics of confrontation
The Herald-Sun
Jun 16, 2005
We can sympathize with many of the goals of the group called Concerned Black Citizens. The members' focus on equitable treatment and educational opportunities for black students in Durham Public Schools is laudable, as is the insistence that the administration be held accountable. We also agree that the school board must be open to hearing public comments and responsive to requests from citizens.
With that said, the continuing tactics of confrontation and intimidation used by the Concerned Black Citizens are damaging to Durham and Durham Public Schools far out of proportion to any positive impact they have on black students. The tactics are also a huge overreaction to the alleged wrongs they are supposed to target.
A case in point was an ugly scene this week involving Charlotte Woods, who heads a different group, the Concerned Citizens for Accountable Government. Woods and her organization want to change the way the school board elects its members, from the current 4-2-1 district voting system to an at-large system. The Concerned Black Citizens oppose the change, which they believe would elect more white board members.
On Sunday, one of the members of Concerned Black Citizens, Sheryl Smith, phoned Woods, gave her a phony name, and told her she was a black supporter of the change in voting. Eager to have support from the black community, Woods invited Smith to The Village shopping center on Sunday, where Woods was gathering signatures on a petition to support the change.
But it was a setup. Members of the Concerned Black Citizens showed up instead. Accounts differ on what happened, but we know there was a confrontation. Woods wound up toe-to-toe with Steven Matherly, who called her a "white racist" and told her to get back to the plantation. Woods said Matherly bumped her. He denies it.
Whatever happened, it's ironic that a group that so loudly declares its own right to free speech would try to silence others. It's clear that was the intent -- to deceive, confront, and silence. Woods, by the way, has every right to collect signatures on a petition.
Despite Matherly's race-baiting, most supporters of an at-large voting system are not racists. On the contrary, most hope that a change in voting patterns would help ease racial tensions on the school board by having all citizens in the county choose all the board members -- the same way City Council and County Commission are elected.
Concerned Black Citizens could do something positive for Durham by easing back on the "in your face" tactics.
posted by Durham Community News @ 2:32 AM
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