Page Two "LION'S EYE March, 1969 RACISM AYE! By Paula Levin At present, there are many per- sons deeply concerned with what they consider reverse-racism or black superiority. Some try to maintain their status as “liberals” by loudly denouncing ‘racists on both sides,” but we know it isn’t George Wallace they're worried about. Somehow, it is extremely diffi- cult for the middle-class white to understand the necessity for the newly - awakened black pride. They naively maintain that one can, and should, exist on his own merits, without falling back upon his group identity. The tragic part is that these people believe they have done so. ‘What whites must realize is the fact that they live with their heritage every day. American his- tory and culture have long been based almost solely upon the white man. It’s easy to under- stand. After all, how many African tribes ever celebrated Christmas? And how many black men besides George Washington Carver ever found their way into American history texts? In short, our culture relates to whites giving the black man little to identify with. Couple this with the ignorantly accepted concept that black men are inferior, and it is easy to see the need for the black renaissance now taking - place. Come, then, white people— we've got pride in ourselves and our heritage; let’s not deny it to anyone else. Shouldn’t we start concentrating less on assimilation and begin having a respect for the traditions of others? If we can do this, the respect will be mutual and people will get along a good deal better. LETTER Dear Editor, Hurray for the editorial in the last issue on the sloppy way the petitioning for SGA was done. During September registration I was approached by several strangers asking me to sign their petitions so that they might be- come councilmen. Not knowing any of those who ‘asked me to sign their petitions I declined to do so. Now I am not represented in the SGA and have no idea of what the organization is doing at their meetings. One would think that the SGA would have done something to rectify the situation, since the goof has been brought to their attention in the paper. So far the SGA has chosen to ignore the situation completely but I hope that they will get on the ball and do something about it. THE UNREPRESENTED ONES especially |, NAY! By Joseph Bacanskas Our campus is alive with under- currents. Unfortunately, it may commit suicide with one—racism. It is instilled in the hearts of some students—both black and white—who have seen fit to desig- nate theirs as the Super Race. This racism seems to be based on two things: fear and bettering oneself by degrading someone else. The fear is two-fold: it is the fear of something unknown or not understood, and it is the fear of being inferior to an individual of another race. This second fear seems to be responsible for the “betterment” of oneself by degrading someone else. When a man is inferior, he looks for someone of believed greater inferiority to rule, and not finding one, he will create one. As a result of these moves, re- actionary racism takes place. When a person is acted upon, he reacts, sometimes with counter- racism. If this situation occurs, a movement of polarization usu- ally takes place. Incidents occur, inevitably making matters worse and finally sides must be taken as a defense. Hventually, you will have two “armed camps.” The final step is confrontation, which is nothing more than gang warfare. It may go as far as civil war, all because of fear, in- feriority and the illogical racist argument. The basis for the racist argu- ment (as opposed to racism it- self) is collectivism. The lowest form says a man is no good be- cause he belongs to a certain collective group—perhaps a race. This concept is irrational and is parallel to Hitler’s Arian Suprem- acy. A more recent example of this collectivism is the slogan I'M BLACK (or WHITE or fill in your own blank) AND I'M PROUD. If being a member of a certain race is your only reason for being proud, you have no rea- son to be proud. A man is not a Black or a White—he is a Man. The answer I have found is ethical judgment of an individual, as an individual, not as a member of a collective. By ethical judg- ment, I mean judgment of an in- dividual for his merits and flaws, not his color. This is the alterna- tive—the only sensible alterna- tive—to armed confrontation. MODERN DANCE Modern dance classes and ex- ercises will be held each Tuesday during the third period in Room 110. Leotards are required. Classes are for women only. Mrs. Anne Karmatz is in charge. THE LIONS EYE Published by the students of the Delaware County Campus of The Pennsylvania State University, 6th and Penn Streets, Chester, DAVID BERGER... ... SANDRA MORGAN JOSEPH G. BISCONTINI Photographers: Jim West, Edgar Hollingsworth, Sol Cooper- son, George Lewis. Contributors: Paula Levin, Joe Bacanskas, Joe DiCostanza, John Powell, Carolyn Hayward, Ginny Roberts, Fred Schray, Vaughn Morrison. 19013. Managing Editor News Editor Editorial Editor Pa. Layout Editor Advisor Garner Raps — Playboy Style James I. Garner is a second term student at the Delaware County Campus. He’s big. He's bearded. He's black. And he’s angry. But he’s quietly angry. Garner is 26, considerably older than most of his freshman coun- terparts. At least partly because of his age, he’s been looked upon as a leader of the black students at the campus since his arrival here in September of 1968. Garner grew up in a quiet, raci- ally-mixed neighborhood in the Germantown section of Philadel- phia. He was the second of four children and his father was a sub- contractor for concrete and cement construction jobs. James didn’t live high, but he wasn’t a Claude Brown either. Some years later, after having graduated from Germantown High School and serving a four- year stint in the U.S. Air Force, James is a college student. He's an activist in matters of Black Advancement. He's proud of his race and insists that his black friends be equally proud. James was instrumental in forming the Black Student League at the campus. He is also active in the Uhuru Kitabu (Freedom Bookstore) on German- town Avenue in Philadelphia and the Uhuru Kawanda (Freedom Workshop) where he meets with black youngsters every Sunday afternoon to help them study black culture and Afro-American history. James is married and he and his wife have one child, James II, one year old. James answered these questions for the LION’S EYE: EYE: When did you first be- come bitter about race relations? GARNER: I never said I was bitter, man; I'm not bitter. I'm aware, if that’s what you mean. I became aware of the race prob- lem for the first time while I was in the service. Even in the elite U.S. Air Force, you were still called a nigger and were shoved aside as something lower than a white man. I never really knew that prejudice ran so deep until I encountered it in the service. EYE: You spent six months in Vietnam as an electronic tech- nician and flight instrument in- structor at Tan Son Nhut Airbase near Saigon. Were conditions any different there? GARNER: If anything, they were a little worse. Whenever a black soldier is stationed in an area where there are no black people living, he has it rough. The white soldiers were edgy and showed their jealousy if a black man went out with the same girls that they (the whites) had been dating. Some of the girls looked for black soldiers and the white didn’t like it one bit. EYE: Was that because of the white man’s traditional or legen- dary fear of black sexual superi- ority? GARNER: I don’t know. EYE: When did you decide to go to college? GARNER: While I was in the service, I guess. It was no big revelation or anything like that. I just decided to go. I'd seen enough to convince myself that education was important — espe- cially for the black man. EYE: Are you a militant? GARNER: No, not really. Not as far as the black people are concerned. The Negro and some whites might call me militant. I'm working for the black man because I want to see him have justice and equality under the present system. Black Panthers EYE: How does your position differ with the Black Panthers’ stand ? GARNER: The panthers are the same kind of guys that I am. They aren’t afraid to die for something they believe in. The Negro in general hasn’t been seen yet to be ready to give of himself for some freedom. The Panthers are trying to accomplish that. They feel that a man must be free in mind before he can be free under the law, free from slavery, ee from welfare handouts. . Garner EYE: Do you agree with that? GARNER: Of course. 1 may not agree with all the Panthers say and do, but I can’t argue with their premise. EYE: If whites want to join the struggle on the side of the blacks, will they be welcomed or re- jected? GARNER: That’s hard to say. I would personally welcome them if they are sincere. I was con- fused for a while by Malcolm X who called all whites devils. But I began to read more of what Malcolm X had to say and I heard more of his speeches and his po- sition became more clear. After his pilgrimmage to Mecca, Mal- colm discovered that ' whites, blacks and yellows all shared the same beliefs and the same re- ligion. He then drew the con- clusion that only some whites were devils. That’s a little bit easier to live with, I think. Black Apathy EYE: What makes you mad? GARNER: Black people who refuse to be recognized as black people. The ones who straighten their hair and dye it blonde, the ones who try to be white. Another thing that gets me mad is black apathy. These people are the ones who are content to sit with their lot, collect welfare and suffer quietly while their brothers and sisters fight the battle for them. If they win, fine; if they lose, it doesn’t matter to them. EYE: What's your solution to black apathy? GARNER: Three things must be accomplished. First, the blacks must be unified and realize that this is a struggle for an entire brotherhood. Education is second in importance. By that I mean education of all kinds. Black people must be informed and aware of the world about them. Third, the blacks must be willing to learn more about them- selves, about their culture, his- tory, background. EYE: Can they get any of this in the public schools? GARNER: Not through the white media and the white edu- cation process. In all my history courses as a kid, the only thing they ever talked about in Africa was Hgypt—but they never told me it was in Africa. I grew up thinking Egypt was a white civilization because I was never told anything different. I know better now. Tutors Kids EYE: What are you doing per- sonally to supplement the white education of the schools? GARNER: I meet with kids in restaurants, shops and street corners in Germantown. I push the whole idea of education down their throats until I get a reac- tion. We run a workshop for all people at the Uhuru Kawanda and teach black history, music and culture and literature. Our Black Student League on campus tutors kids at the T. M. Thomas Com- munity Center in Chester. These (Continued on page 4) EDITORIAL No Taxation Without Representation Once upon a time the empire of Great Brotton ruled over the land of New Inequality, which was separated from Great Brotton by a vast ocean. The people of New Inequality appealed to the king so that they might also have representatives to determine how their taxes were to be spent. The king, Greedy III, however, refused to accept the New Inequalitans’ repre- sentatives, and to put them back in their places, he put a tax on all tea that was to be imported. (Tea was legal back then.) This angered the New Inequalitians and they burned all of the tea. The king, equally angered, sent his soldiers over to put down the uprising that was beginning. To the king’s surprise, his soldiers were defeated and the New Inequalitians declared their independence, calling their new country The United States of Inequality. In the new country everyone was still taxed but they really didn’t mind since they all had representation in the government. The government of the U.S.I., however, did not give representation to all the people. A select group made up most of the nation’s army and were required to pay all of the taxes. It is the opinion of this paper that the arbitrary age for wisdom (and the accompanying franchise) should be lowered or that the age of taxation should be raised so that they might correspond with each other. This, we believe, would help to end at least some of the inequality in the Land of Inequality. 3 oy Se ee
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers