1
Tlu s VJpck In
BlilCk History
S,l OS - 0 rt
ot publi h'ed the
f t i ue 0 the Chi
D fender. 1 SO -
oly
tbe first Bl c
tizer Prize (for nnie
lien). 1 0 - Cli 0
overnment 0 i­
born.
ate Quaku, Wil­
lia Penn, ever a lave
o ner?
Y 6, 1931 - 1111
Y ,b eb 11 player,
born. 1812 - arti
'D 1 y,
major/l
was born.
Who wa the partner 0/
Bert Williams in their
famous comedy team?
MAY 7,1969 - Bo ton
Celtics, led by center III
u II, won 7th g
over L.A. L ker for
title. In Rti ell' 13
season , Celtic won 11
cb mpion hip . 1946 -
1111. H. Haatle, fir t
, Bl ck governor of the Vir­
gin I I nd, in ugurated.
· 1921 - P ul Qulnlehette,
axophoni t, wa born.
Approximately how
· many Black Baptists are
there in the US?
MAY 8, 1910 - Mary
· Lou Willi m , piani t,
compo er, was born.
Who is the name of the
, largest all-Black run bank
· in New York City?
MAY 9, 1927
· Clevel nd Abbott taged
· fir t Tu kegee Relay Car-
o nival giving women the
chance to show their
o abilities in track and field.
, 1800 - John Brown,
· abolitionist, was born.
o 1939 - Ralph Bo ton,
· olympic sprinter, wa
o born.
Who was the first Black
· democrat ever to be
· elected to the US con­
I gress?
MAY 10, 1837 - P.B.S.
, Plnehbaek, Civil War cap­
I tain and Reconstruction
I statesman, was born. 1762
- I J. 81 er
colonial physician, wa
l born.
� Were there ever Black
, slave inventors?
: MAY 11,1899 - cur­
l ton R. Wharton, Sr., first
: Black to head U.S. Embas­
, sy· in Europe, was born.
1895 - William Grant
Stili, composer, was born.
How many years
elapsed between the last
·
�
�
·
·
·
·
,.
J ackle Robinson
known Black player in the
major leagues and the
hiring of Jackie Robinson?
ANSWERS TO THE BLACK
HISTORY QUESTIONS
5th - Penn waas a
slave owner for a time. Yet
the Society of Friends, of
which he was a member,
generally abhorred
lavery.' ,
6th - George Walker.
7th At lesat
6,300,000 belong to some
30,000 churches within the
. National Black Conven-
tion. Blacks are al 0 mem­
. bers of other Black Baptist
groups not counted here.
8th - Freedom Nation­
al Bank.
9th Arthur W.
Mitchell (IL), a native
Alabaman, in the early
1930s.
10th - Yes. Patent
papers, however, were
signed by their
slaveowners by law. Be­
ide , many slave inven­
tor could not read and
write.
11 th - 57 years -
Jackie Robin on wa not
the fir t Black major
. league ba eball player.
.•
LA I 0 - I you live in
Detroit, nd h ve hi h to in-
ur nee r te , It m y not be
ba ed on ho ell you drive, but
according to ho ou re nd
here you live.
For th t re on, the ACP
alon ith t te Attorney
Gener I Fr n elley re uln
the Americ n Automobile
ociation of Michi an (AAA)
for lle edlye t bli hing higher
r te and premium in Detroit
than in urrounding re ,
pecific lly di criminating
a in t Afric n-Amerlc n . In
t tement from the Attorney
Gener I' office, even within
Detroi t African-Americ n
neighborhood were ingled out.
for higher r te •
According to t .. te Rep. Nel-
on Sauder, D-Detroit, there
are tark difference in rate c­
cording to n NAACP urvey of
auto rate in Detroit, Dearborn,
Wayne and Ink ter. The survey
wa based on AAA's yearly rate
for the arne c r and drivers in
all four citie .
In Detroit and Ink ter, who e
popul tion are more than SO
percent African-American, the
premium wa $1,734 and
$1,400, re pectively, while in
Dearborn and Wayne, who e
populations are less than 1 per­
cent African: American, the
premium was only $900 and
$928 respectively.
UNTIL 1986, there were
Macing to
By DENNIS M�NSFIELD
.... ,
Capital News Service
LANSING-An elderly couple
is taking a walk after dinner
when they notice some move­
ment around the corner. Both
take out a small canister from
their pockets just before three
youths jump in front of them.
They spray their would-be as­
sailants with the canisters, im­
mediately making the three
youths helpless. The youths are
barely able to breathe and cannot
see, but are not pernranently
hurt. .
Elderly people and others may
be able to defend themselves in
than a 10 percent difference in
rate between adjacent areas.
Legislation in 1986 did away
with these restraints. Kelley
said AAA-Michigan lowered
rates in areas they perceived as
a better risk. Sauders said one
of the rea ons used for enacting
uto theft.
cause of the high rates of auto
theft. Saunders mentioned,
though. that outstate companies
do not even operate i De troi l.
, Sauders 'aid the 986 law
created an auto theft prevention
authority. The plan was funded
by taking one dollar from every
percent rop in auto theft rate
failed. Saunders said the in­
urance companie would "not
even consider the amendment.
"Detroit's auto theft fate
went down by 30 percent, but we
still haven't enjoyed the savings
·in our auto insurance premium
sprays. Tear gas can cause
vomiting, dizzine s, nau ea and
even death in high doses ...
Capsicum causes swelling of
mucous membranes, preventing
all but minimal breathing, and
enlarges blood vessels in the
eyes, temporarily blinding the
assailant. The effects are tem­
porary and capsicum is reported
to cause no permanent damage,
"IT MAKES SENSE to allow
people to defend themsel ves
wi th this safe, non-lethal organic
product, rather than with more
harmful tear gas or with Mace,
which is illegal in Michigan,"
said Rep. Ken Sikkema, R­
Grandville, who sponsored the
bill:
Capsicum was brought to
Sikkema's attention by a 75-
year-old Grand Rapids resident,
Wheeler Whitte. Whitte began
hi search in 1988 for a non­
Ie thal sel f-defense tool out of
concern for the numerous cases
of elderly people being mugged
and robbed in previous years.
Whitte said that capsicum was
the only product he found that
wa instantly effective, even
againsy peo»le under the in-
. fl ue nce of drugs' or alcohol.
Other products, he said, do .not
take effect for 10 to 14 seconds
after the person is sprayed with
the substance, which may' allow
them time to harm the other per-
son. .
Rep. James McNutt, R-Mid­
land, said sprays like capsicum
can play a limited role in elf­
defense, but warned tbat the
prays may not stop everyone.
McNutt, a former Midland Coun­
ty sheriff, said that people
should not rely exclusively on
sel f-defense sprays for protec­
tion.
"For a limited purpose, tbey
are not bad," McNutt said.
"They might help you out in the
event you are being assaulted
and it comes down to a last-ditch
tand."
WHITTE HA been given an
exclu ive agreement with Guar­
dian Personal Security Products
Co., Phoenix, Ariz., for the dis-
in ur nee companie .
"People were unable to loc te
in urance cornpanic who were
m rketing out tate wi lower
ba e r te Cor 'Detroit t)ec u e
they were not offered nd they
had no gent in the City of
Detroit." Saunder aid.
Saunde id thi problem i
not limited only to Detroit, but
to other Michigan citie uch aa
Flint and Saginaw a well.
While the NAACP and Kell
are ch rging AAA-Michigan
with discriminatory practice,
spoke person for the company
ays their rate are not dis­
criminatory. Nancy Cain said
since there are more claims in
Detroit the co t of auto in­
surance i more.
I
y,
enate considers legalizing cap icum
tribution of cap icum in
Michigan once legi lation is
pas ed to leg lize t s tsnce.
The main concern from legis­
lator with legalizing capsicum
is the possible use of the spray
against police, but Whitte said
that more than 100,000 people in
Michtgan have illegally pur­
cha ed tear gas or Mace, which
is available through mail-order
catalogs.
McNutt said that be ha never
heard of a successfu! attempt of
a criminal using Mace or tear gaa
against a police officer.
Wbitte said the fact that the
F]�n's deci ion in 1989 to use
capsicum as its non-lethal
weapon convinced many Iegis­
lator of the products effective­
ness and u efulness. He dded
tbat 43 states have legalized the
sale of cap icum.
In 1981, a law was enacted to
allow people to purcha e a
chemical bield containing no
more than 35 grams of tear gas.
Sikkema's bill would allow for a
solution containing 2 percent
oleoresin capsicum.
scene 1i e this with a non-lethal
organic self-defen e pray,
oleore 'in capsicum, if a bill is
passed to legalize the spray. The
bill would legalize the manufac­
ture, sale and use of capsicum. It
was unanimously passed by the
House of Representatives last
week and now goes to the­
Senate.
Capsicum is an organic resin
extracted from cayenne peppers,
and is said to be more effective
than tear gas and Mace. Unlike
Mace, capsicum is effe ctj ve
against people under the in­
fluence of drugs and alcohol, but
it does not have the harmful
aftereffects of other self-defense
NAACP's 1991 convention
scheduled for Houston
Preparing A New Generation
For The Struggle" will be the
theme of the NAACP's 1991 an­
nual convention to be held in
Houston , Texas, July 7-11, at
the Houston Convention Center.
The theme, a refinement of an
e rlier announced one - "Each
o Reach One" - reflects
the Association's efforts to
focus attention on the nation'
African-American youth and the
need for more interaction be­
tween them and adults.
The five day convention is
expected io draw more than
20,000 people and will pro ide
a forum for notables 'from the
worlds of civil rights. education.
politics and the art to discuss
iss ue s of i m po rta nee to the
nation's African-American com­
munities.
The convention will 'show­
case a number of NAACP spon­
sored programs such as the
Back-to-School/Stay-In-School
Program and ACT-SO (Afro­
Academic, Technological and
Scientific Olympics) which an­
nually provides incentives to
achieve scholastic excellence
for more than 25,000 students in
grades nine through 12 from
across the nation.
Harri on
approve of
tax cut plan
State Representative Charlie
J. Harrison, Jr. (D-Pontiac) said
he was pleased that the Legi la­
ture has approved a proposal
that will freeze property tax a -
se sments in 1992 and' let tate
voters decide next year whether
homes tead a se ments should
be permanently capped to infla­
tion or five percent, whichever
i less.
"Toda y' action by the Hou e
and Senate i the first tep
toward major property tax relief
in Michigan," aid Ham on.
"Thi property tax freeze
doesn't completely re olve the
problem of relief for Michigan
taxpayers, but it i encouraging
that the legl lature nd the
governor took thi tep
together."
Under the proposal, 1992
property tax assessments on all
types of property would be
frozen at 1991 levels. The
proposal calls for a consti tu­
tional amendment to permanent­
ly cap homestead assessment
increases at the rate of inflation
or five percent, whichever is
le s, which would have to be ap­
proved by state voters in the
1992 general election.
"While this freeze is en­
couraging, there i still a wide
margin between the different
property tax cut proposals of­
fered by the Senate and the ad­
mini tration and the plan we
pa ed in the Hou e