The DISH
Unbossed and unbought news and information you can use
Vol. 11 Issue 21…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…May 26, 2008
Elizabeth Duncan
Koontz (1919-1989)
Born to Samuel and Lean Duncan on
June 3, 1919 in Salisbury, North Carolina, Elizabeth Duncan attended the
Salisbury public schools. In 1938, she received a Bachelor's degree with honors
in English and elementary education from Livingstone College. After receiving
her Master's degree in education from Atlanta University in 1941, she continued
her studies at Columbia University and Indiana University. Duncan also received
additional training in education for the mentally retarded at North Carolina
Central University (NCCU). On November 26, 1947, Duncan married Harry Lee
Koontz.
An education devotee, Koontz taught in a number of North Carolina schools,
including Harnett County Training School (1938-40), Aggrey Memorial School in
Landis (1940-41), Fourteenth Street School in Winston-Salem (1941-1945), Price
High School (1949-1965) and Price Junior-Senior High School in Salisbury
(1965-68). Fired from her first job after discovering the school principal was
overcharging staff members at a boarding house owned by the school, she
organized the teachers in a revolt against the system. This led to her
involvement in the local and state teachers' organizations.
In 1952, Koontz joined the National Education Association (NEA). From
1959-1963, Koontz served as president of the North Carolina Association of
Classroom Teachers (NCACT). Under her leadership, the organization published
its first edition of Guidelines
for Local Associations of Classroom Teachers (1961). During her
tenure, the organization passed a resolution against segregated accommodations
at NEA Department of Classroom Teachers (DCT) regional meetings of the
Southeastern Region; the resolution was cosponsored by the Florida Teachers
Association.
In 1960, she was elected secretary of the NEA-DCT, a position she held for two
years. After serving one year as the NEA-DCT vice-president, Koontz served as
its president-elect from 1965 to 1966. Nationwide, Koontz represented 825,000
teachers; she was the first black American to serve in each of these
capacities.
On July 6, 1968, Koontz became the first black elected NEA president. As
president, she called on teachers "to make use of their united power to
bring about change." In her acceptance speech in Dallas, Texas, she set as
her theme, "A time for Educational Statesmanship," emphasizing the
need for "educators ... men and women ... young and old ... black and
white ... to stand together," to organize, agitate, and if necessary,
strike to bring about change in the public school system.
One of sixteen Americans to visit the Soviet Union at the request of Saturday Review (1964), Koontz
held memberships in the North Carolina Council of Human Relations and the North
Carolina Governor's Commission on the Status of Women. In 1965, she served on
the President's Advisory Council on education of Disadvantaged Children.
Koontz became the first black North Carolina Teachers Association member
appointed to the NEA Commission and NEA-DCT advisory committee. In 1969,
President Richard Nixon appointed her to head the U.S. Department of Labor
Women's Bureau.
Koontz served as a delegate to the United Nations Commission on the Status of
Women (1970) and assistant superintendent for the Department of Public
Instruction. She retired from this position in 1982. Koontz received numerous
awards and honors in recognition and appreciation of her service in the field
of education. Elizabeth Duncan Koontz died in 1989. (Sources: www.aaregistry.com, www.culturebus.com
and www.awomanaweek.com)
Some Just
By Francis Duggan
Some just whine for the sake of complaining
They convince themselves that life to them is unfair
Whilst others they just suffer in silence
Though big crosses they've been given to bear
Suppose it takes all sorts of people
For to make up this world of ours
'Tis true what they say of true gardeners
They can tell the
weeds from the flowers.
In some young people one can sense
Wisdom whilst others grow sillier with age
And surely a good education is not
What goes to make a sage
Those who like to talk but not listen
Do never grow knowledgeable and wise
I know women and men in their fifties and sixties
With less wisdom than
some young girls and boys.
You hear some say that it takes all kinds
With their words I cannot disagree
I know a few school-going teenagers
And they are far wiser than me
They may be short on life experience
But many profound things they say
And they do seem to have far more insight
Than most who are
ageing and gray.
Some just live for their own selves
Only all of their stories to themselves apply
The three most used words in their vocabulary
You might have guessed--- me, myself and I
They must be the center of attention
They will never suffer from it does seem
From what is deflating to the ego
The thing known as
low self-esteem.
Some to bear have life's heaviest crosses
Yet they never once do complain
And others are known to whine loudly
Though they don't experience much pain
Suppose everybody is different
And each looks at life differently
The millionaire feels he's not wealthy
And the pauper
accepts poverty.
On People!
By Dot
People are strange, filled with
contradictions; I suppose that is one reason that I find them so interesting.
Lately, I have been observing them more closely.
Just the other day, I saw this young man meticulously unwrap his sausage and
egg biscuit, piously pray, consume it and throw the wrapper away. In tossing
the wrapper, he aimed for the nearby garbage can and missed. Since he did not
bother to pick it up, the act amounted to throwing the paper on the ground - a
litter bug. So, I wondered, how can one be a litter bug and be so pious
simultaneously. My momma always said, "Cleanliness is next to
godliness!"
For me, there is a certain joy in watching people. They say, 'the eyes are the
windows into the soul.' Lots of people drop their eyes or turn away, avoiding
eye contact or touching soul to soul. I wonder –what are they hiding?
Rather than look away to see something on the ground, out the window or on the
nearby wall more interesting or important to them than me, others pretend to be
busy with a cell phone or blackberry. Some people will do just about anything
to avoid making eye contact.
Figuratively, in the refusal to make eye contact, nod the head in
acknowledgment and/or speak, people are thrown onto the garbage heap of used
wrappers - just some trash. It is a dismissal that conveys a certain level of
disrespect.
I refuse to look away when approaching strangers on the street, in an elevator,
on an escalator or wherever we chance to meet. A true southerner oozing
hospitality, I speak. Acknowledging the other's humanity is important, at least
according to my momma.
I remember one day asking if she knew folks that were strangers to me. She said
no, she did not know them either. Being a curious child, I wanted to know why
she spoke to them. In the calm way she had about her, my momma replied, "A
hello is the polite thing to do. A smile and greeting cost nothing; it is a
simple acknowledgment of another person. And, it makes me feel good to greet
them."
Of course, you know, my momma was right. A smile and a greeting are free; there
is no reason to withhold them, especially when they make you feel better. A
morning person, I like to say "good morning" to the people I meet as
I start my day. You should try it! Don't drop your eyes when approaching that
stranger; instead greet the people you meet and you will see my momma was right
about the power of a simple smile and hello.
Georgia's CRCT Crisis
On Monday, the Georgia Department
of Education announced that approximately forty (40) percent of the state's
124,000 eighth-grade students failed the mathematics portion of the
Criterion-Reference Competency Tests (CRCT). In addition, the state's sixth-and
seventh-grade students performed even worse on the social studies tests with
failure rates in excess of seventy (70) percent.
While passing the social studies tests is not a requirement for promotion to
the next grade for these students, eighth-graders must pass the math test to be
promoted to ninth-grade. In addition, under the federal No Child Left Behind
Act, the test results help determine whether or not schools are meeting the
goals established by that program.
Understandably, parents are irate, students are frustrated and many public
school teachers are blaming the state department of education for failing to
provide the necessary training and materials to teach the new, more rigorous
math and social studies curricula. With children crying and parents and
teachers complaining, by Wednesday, State School Superintendent Kathy Cox had
announced the social studies test results would be thrown out, because of
"a disconnect between the test, the standards and what teachers
taught." In explaining her decision to retain the math scores, Cox
declared the results were valid and stressed the need for more rigorous math
education, if our children are to succeed in college and the workforce.
Approximately 50,000 eighth-grade students are expected to retake the math test
this summer. A large percentage of those students are expected to attend summer
school. According to Cox, most of these students will probably pass the retest.
Students that fail to do so can appeal for promotion to the ninth-grade.
Ironically, State Department of Education officials were not surprised by the
CRCT failure rates. Field tests conducted in 2007 predicted CRCT failure rates
of 50% and more for middle school students. However, this information was not
widely shared with teachers or school superintendents, so they were as
surprised and dismayed as students and parents by the high failure rates.
Property Taxes in
DeKalb County
At a time when public schools are
failing our children, not because of inadequate funding, property owners are
being hit with backdoor tax increases. Even as home prices in metro Atlanta are
declining, the DeKalb County tax assessor mailed out thousands of proposed
assessment increases last month, some as high as fifteen (15) percent.
Supposedly, these proposed reassessments are based on the increased market
values of the properties in question.
Given real estate market conditions, any increased appraised property value is
debatable. According to headlines in local papers, i.e., Atlanta
Journal-Constitution and Creative Loafing, home prices in metro Atlanta are
declining as they are nationwide in areas that experienced rapid rises in home
prices over the past decade. DeKalb County, which is majority black, was
particularly hard hit by the predatory and sub-prime lending practices that
resulted in the mortgage and credit crises.
Although the budget adopted by the DeKalb County School System does not call
for a tax increase, if the higher assessments remain unchanged, the county's
tax digest will grow, which means an increase in revenue for the school system.
Without a corresponding millage rollback to offset the added revenue, property
owners will pay higher taxes. This is a backdoor tax increase; it is being
achieved without a public vote by school board members, so taxpayers and voters
will not know which public official to hold accountable for the tax increase
during the next election cycle.
In DeKalb County, thanks to the Homestead Option Sales Tax (HOST), which was
first passed in 1997 and was supposed to last five years, but was extended by
voters in 2002, homeowners receive a 100% exemption on the portion of the
property tax that funds county government. The majority of the property taxes
go to fund our public schools, which receive additional funding through the
Special Local Options Sales Tax (SPLOST). Like the MARTA sales tax, which is
only assessed on purchases made in DeKalb and Fulton Counties and goes to fund
public transportation, HOST and SPLOST are one-cent sales taxes. As a result of
these regressive taxes, DeKalb County has one of the highest sales tax rates in
the state.
Back in 2006, the state legislature passed and voters agreed with the county
property tax assessment freeze, which is supposed to remain in effect for five
years. Unfortunately, the freeze only applies to the approximate 25% of the
property tax bill that funds county government; it does not affect the majority
that goes to fund the school system. So, even homeowners that applied for the
freeze could receive higher tax bills. In addition, the DeKalb County
Commission is proposing to reduce the HOST exemption.
Like the rest of the country, Georgia is experiencing an economic downturn, a
most inconvenient time to raise taxes. Three public meetings are scheduled next
month for property owners to voice their support or opposition to the county
commission's proposed millage rate increase. The public hearings will be held
in the Maloof Administration Building auditorium in downtown Decatur at 10 a.m.
and 6 p.m. on June 3 and at 10 a.m. on June 10.
Alessandro: A Fallen Loved One
By Gilda Carbonaro
It still seems unreal that Alex
did not return from Iraq, that his bright future was cut short, that his young
bride was left a widow.
A silent scream wants to break out of my chest as I contemplate his stark
absence and think of the young men and women who will die today and tomorrow to
fill the other graves that have been prepared at Arlington.
We do not honor our loved ones by accepting the continued loss of life in a
reckless, irresponsible war that has no military solution. We do not honor the
troops by standing by indifferently as members of the Congress give their
sneering Commander-in-Chief a blank check to continue a war based on a tidal
wave of lies and hubris.
We honor the fallen by beginning
an immediate redeployment from Iraq and by showing our determination to stop a
new war with Iran. We honor the fallen by making sure that those who return
from Iraq and Afghanistan receive all the help they need for their education,
and their physical and mental health. We honor the fallen by taking action, by
making peace.
About
Me: Gilda Carbonaro's only child, Alessandro, died from injuries received
in Iraq. Her words on her loss and call for peace are featured as part of the
CODEPINK Memorial Day protests.
Disgruntled wants to know: Real incomes and
the dollar are declining. Unemployment is rising. On top of this misery, prices
are skyrocketing everywhere, except in home prices, which mean no refinancing
to offset the shortfalls in income from earnings. According to RealtyTrac, a
real estate data firm, home foreclosure filings were up in April over March and
up more than 60% over this time last year. Drowning in a sea of credit card
debt, US personal bankruptcy filings are historically high. In 2007, Georgia
and Tennessee led the nation in bankruptcies. Given these dire economic
conditions, cities and counties across the nation are experiencing revenue
shortfalls as incomes, purchasing power and consumer spending decline. This
week, the Gwinnett County budget office recommended that the county commission
rollback the millage rate for 2008, despite a stall in revenue growth and
increases in the cost of services. Gwinnett is a majority white county. In
stark contrast, majority black DeKalb County is proposing just the opposite.
This dichotomy raises a number of questions. For starters, why do cities and
counties with large black populations, particularly those with black titular
heads of government, choose raising taxes as the prime method of addressing
budget shortfalls, even in an economic downturn?
Disgruntled
says: Crude oil prices set new record highs this week. The price of a
gallon of gasoline at the pump is likewise on a roller coaster ride with no end
in sight. My most recent fill-up produced sticker shock; it was well over fifty
bucks. In my area, where diesel has been above four dollars a gallon for weeks,
the price of premium gas, which is the type recommended by the auto's
manufacturer, was $3.99 a gallon, which was cheap! A drive around revealed
premium in most localities is more than four dollars a gallon. Some folks are
speculating that we are in a commodity bubble, now that the one in housing has
burst. Whatever the problem with petroleum, something needs to be done and
quickly. With the price of everything essential on the rise, having to choose
between food and fuel is no joyride. Just when we need the government to act
responsibly, it engages in a superficial show of concern for average Americans
by calling oil executives on the carpet. Everyone, except the brain dead, knows
this public display was an exercise is duplicity, because members of Congress
plan to do absolutely nothing to reduce subsidies to big oil, tax their
windfall profits or reign in the price gouging.
Disgruntled
feels: Deja Vu! I must admit that I have pretty much reached the
saturation point with media coverage of Senators Obama and Clinton's race for
the Democratic Party's nomination drama. It is not as though either of the
Democratic Party's hopefuls, or the Republican Party's presumptive nominee,
Senator John McCain, will change the status quo. Each is inexorably tied to the
special interests that run this country; only the politically naive thinks
otherwise. While Clinton and Obama continue their nomination fight, we should
not lose sight of what Senator John McCain represents when it comes to judicial
nominations. McCain has indicated a preference for strict constructionists,
exactly the same type of judges that George W. Bush promised and delivered in
appeasing his conservative base. McCain is making the same promise to appoint
the kind of judicial thinkers that gave us Bush v Gore (2000), which set a precedent
that can never be cited in another case, essentially reversed Brown v Board of
Education (1954), turning back the clock on the civil rights gains of the
1960s, and diminished individual freedom. With McCain, it is deja vu Bush all
over again.
Mailbox: E-Mails, Faxes and Phone Calls
Email hjeeway@bellsouth.net ...This latest
issue of the dish was as always, on point. You guys do a great job of posting
and commenting on a story or situation. As to the comments about young Blacks
wearing their pants in the "SAGGIN" style, I suppose everyone is
aware that when the name of the style is viewed in reverse, the name is as
insulting and vulgar as the style itself. I suppose lots of people didn't know
that. I suppose lots of people didn't care. Well hopefully this little piece of
information will make some aware and if they care perhaps they'll pull theirs
up, or tell someone they care about to pull theirs up!
Email www.ajc.com Ruling bolsters Georgia voter ID
law...By Bill Rankin...The US Supreme Court ruled that states may require
voters to produce a photo identification, upholding a Republican-backed law
similar to Georgia's aimed at deterring voter fraud. Opponents who contend
Georgia's law places an unfair burden on voters say they will continue to
pursue legal challenges. But the high court's 6-3 ruling approving Indiana's
photo ID requirement makes it more difficult for them to prevail.
Email www.codepinkalert.org From May 24-26,
CODEPINK and other progressive groups around the country will hang freeway
overpass banners calling for an end to war. With thousands of motorists hitting
the road for the holiday weekend, it's an ideal time to make our message
visible and viable. It's also an ideal time to call (202-224-3121) or plan
visits to our Congressional reps, who will be in their home offices May 24-June
1st. We need to let our reps know we won't stand for further war funding. For
additional information on banner drops, Congressional visits, other Memorial
Day activities and action camps planned for this summer, please visit www.codepinkalert.org.
Email www.neimpeach.org At Lunch with Daniel
Ellsberg: Impeachment Last Chance for Democracy...by Ralph Lopez...Americans
are at a strange crossroads in their relationship to their government. Never
has an administration brazenly admitted to breaking laws, as when George Bush
admitted to authorizing illegal NSA spying. Never has a president claimed the
authority to ignore so many laws with signing statements, or held that wartime
powers permanently trump citizens' rights. The administration is at its lowest
point in popularity to date, but there is little outrage of the kind that
topples presidents. Before the War on Terror it was safe to say that any
president would have been impeached over a fraction of these transgressions.
After the War on Terror, anything goes, including an American president almost
proudly declaring to the world that he has authorized torture. This is where
fear has brought us. Once Bush and Cheney leave office without incident, these
precedents will be firmly in place.
Email We-People@yahoogroups.com ...One analyst, economist Ismael Hussein-Zadeh, a professor of economics at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, has a different explanation for the price rise, and American motorists and homeowners should pay close attention. "Oil prices have gone from the mid $20 range in the fall of 2002 to $127 yesterday---a rise of $100/barrel in just over five years," he says. 'And the bulk of that increase can be attributed to the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and to the threats of war against Iran." Hussein-Zadeh's analysis looks at a number of ways that the Bush/Cheney wars have contributed to rising oil prices. Chief among these are two factors: the threat to supplies, particularly from the Persian Gulf region from which 20 percent of the world's oil supplies come, and a falling dollar, because oil is priced in dollars, and as it loses value, oil producing countries raise their prices to compensate.