ichi
an
ace n
I
ichigan.
Arthur Johnson, president of
the Detroit NAACP branch.
W 0 desa d race relations in
Michigan as "fair to poor t" said
he was not surprised by the
survey's findings. D to racial
oppression and segregation,
race relations have not im­
p oved to the level they should
hav ,he id, .
"The degree of racial isola­
tion is worse now than it was
years ago," he said
Johnson said unti -Blacks
receive equal opportunity in the
wor place race relations will
continue to su er.
It's a blaring fact," said
"For every dollar a white- person
earns a Black person Cams 58
cents."
Equality in education for
Blacks also must be achieved
before race relations can im­
prove, he said.
Thirty-one percent desaibed
them "good",wbiIe six percent
called them "very good". Nine
percent characterized them as
"poor" and three Percent called
them "very poor.· About 400
Michigan residents re asked
to characterize race relations in
,s -
Capital News Service
Copyright 1988
LANSING - Fifty-one per­
cent of ichigan rdsidents
call d r ce relations in the state
"fair", Capi tal e Service
poll revealed
c � d
_; _",_
.:»:
esJack 0
ont end'
ad
in e
,
c
o
" 4
• ftI'CllIIIB
CapiUll News Service
LA SI G - There are no
immedi te alternatives to con­
tinuous prison expansion, but
there re long-range alterna­
tives, and preschool i 0 e, Gov.
James 8lanchardsaid
"You either in in the front
end, or, Jesse Ja n said,
you go bankrup at the tail end,"
8 chard said in an interview.
Education to be made a
top priority in America as it af­
fects everything including aime
rate, mental he lth, elfare
rates and joblessD Blanchard
said It's important to emphasize
the tender years, especially .
high risk situatio he added.
In urban are more than half
of t Black· are born into
detrimental· boo, he .
"Unless we do ometbin
fairly aggre sive t eyre ot
8· to ve any ee,
�ether they see themsel­
ves winners or losers in the
fir t grade i going to influence
whether they see themselves
winners Or losers when they are
eniors in high chool," Co
said.
Cole added that by not get­
ling a head start on school and
spending time with peers, kids
who will be labled "loser" will
probably be "losers" for the rest
I of their lives. This, id, will
lead to human costs U s0-
cial costs.
"Losers go on welfare, losers
go to prison, losers don't pay
taxes, losers bring up losers," he
said 'The difference be en
winners and losers. . .. their ex-I 28
perience. " Jo)'Ce &. ....... H
'1n preschool, you're learning t
ere the potty. and how" to get
a10 with frien and all of
C 16
they start school, to even feel a
sense of worth or belonging
much less a sense of hope or op­
portunity," Blanchard said
Rick Cole, president of the
Michigan Education Trust and
special adviser to the governor,
said that there is absolute
evidence th t preschool is a
valuable deterrent to social
problems such welfare and
crime later on.
"It's imp and logical as
saying, 'a stitch in time saves
nine," Cole .
Cole em ized the specific
importance of preschool and
early education on children
from impoverished families.
By giving children winning
experiences and the too to be
winners they can feel like win-
ners themselves, I. t feeling
inferior to children & more
aftIue b ds, Co said.
