�E··thiopia snsn
ise Again
--�----------------�
, The
innie Andel, milit nt
edom ghter and the i fe of
el on ela, t e Ice C ir-
� of the African ational
COn (C), m t be een
nothin Ie th n tt c on
t e liber tion movement in
South Afric; n tt ck calcu-
la ted to undermine the
c dibility of the M ndel nd
t ANC. But . e mu t not be
fboled by thi nd other
ck pera te diver ion from the
al goal of full freedom for the
lac m jority in South Afric .
" It is the legitim cy nd
oredibility of the white minority
regime hich i really t t e.
can n illegal, raci t, apart­
beld system fairly judge the act
of tho e who re ctively
bgaged in the fight to overturn
oppres ive ystem?
Winnie Mandela i proud
African woman who stood by her
busb nd during the 27 years in
hich he w impri oned by the
outh African regime. She
refu cd to be silenced.
-, Winnie Mandela wa /i a
thorn in the ide of the apartheid
system he ha emerged a one
of the principal leaders of the
liberation struggle. Needle to
say her outspoken a d unflinch­
inj leadership has not endeared
Winnie Mandela to the
authorities in South Africa. She
liaS been hounded and haras ed
by the autborities and frequently
forced to live under house arrest,
She has also lived under constant
threat of personal harm and
death.
state.
Fa�d with these circumstan-
The struggle of the people of
lhiopia for self-determination,
edom, j us lice and peace has
ken another turn for what
lRiny other African nation ,
Bthiopia has suffered much.
(T.ver one million Ethiopians
have died in recent year either
tiam famine or a a direct result
of intense civil wars.
'Despite 11 of the tragedy,
d�ath and destruction, the deter­
mination of the Ethiopian
"eople to be free �a brought
this African nation to a critical
turning point.
The Western established
��e s continues to view the
�lluation in Ethiopia in terms of
sc-cauec "tribal conflict." Yet,
I)otwithstanding the difficulties
and histories of difference be­
tween the Eritreans, Tigreans
and Oromos,a the majori ty of
EChiopian want peace and a fu­
(ilre free of civil strife.
. We understand that much of
tbe civil trife inside Ethiopia is
due not just to the internal situa-
'ti'9n in the nation, but the civil
Ulrmoil s being driven by exter­
nal forces. The situation in
1991 cannot be fully understood
without knowing the extent to
wllich Ethiopia has been the
. cpnstant Object of East-West su­
pe.rpowe,r conflict for decade
because of its "strategic loca­
tion" on the "Horn of Africa."
.,J
'THE GEO.POLITICAL im­
portance of Ehtiopia ha in �act
been emphasized for centuries.
The problem is that Europe�n
and later American intere ts, tn
p�rticular in North Africa and
on the "H�rn" have been limited
to economic and military control
rather than the empowerment. or
development of this vital regIon
of Africa in the interests of the
ia4igenous peoples. ,
.It i most intere ting t�at It
, the U.S. State Department
ho played the role of b okering
a ,"ce e-fire" and the,e tab­
li.bment of a trans.1tiO� I
overnment. M the capital cIty
ces, i nie andela cted to
protect he elf u in h tever
me n hich ppe red to be
av it ble to her. Thou h her
judgement might be open to
que tion in term of the m nner
in wch he elected to provide
ecurity for he elf, the y tem
which /i end ngerin her
ell being nd the ell being of
million of Blac South ric n
c nnot legitimately try or con­
vict Winnie M ndela of ny­
thing.
Only the ANC, the Iiber tion
movement with which Winnie
Mandela i affili ted, can e
Winnie M ndela' conduct nd
judge her ccordingly. In r
of nation I liberation, the liber -
tion movements them elve are
the ole legitimate judge of the
conduct of their members. The
conviction or incarceration of
freedom fighter by the tate,
therefore can only give the
freedom fighters the statu of
poli tical pri ons.
We mu t never forget that it i
the South African regime which
is the real criminal; a criminal
regime and y tem which has
ruthlessly violated the human
rights of the Black majority for
decades; a criminal sy tem char­
acterized by barbaric political
oppression and economic ex­
ploitation which has reduced the
BJac ajo' t dilion
.... tml�e .. poverty
their own homeland.
It is that criminal y tem
which is on trial, not Winnie
B njam,ln
Chavl.
CIVIL
RIGHTS
of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, was
surrounded by rebel military
uni ts, a enior American
diplomat stated, "We want to see
law and order .. .lf the guerillas
can impose it, so be it." "Law
and order" is a loaded expre -
sion that the African American
community knows very well.
The "new world ordeJIt tha
the United States bas envisioned
for Africa is not based onjustice
or freedom, but on the need to
expand, develop an4 control
new "markets."
Again, U.S. foreign poliCY
, towards Africa is a policy that
condones violence rather than a
la ting pea�e. If the people of
Ethiopia and Eritrea' could have
a chance to stop the armed con­
flict, real peace could have a
chance.
Who is the biggest arms sup­
plier to Africa today? Who
gives guns to both government
and rebel in Africa? Now that
the so-called" Cold War" is over,
why doe the United State con­
tinue to supply the large t arm
shipments to Africa? Why does
the United States encourage
African fratricide?
In the Bible it tate that
"Ethiopia will stretch forth her
hands to the world." We believe
indeed that Ethiopia will rise
again but not becau e of armed
conflict or military might but
bee use Ethiopians will not let
others further divide and con·
quer them. In other word,
African victory for ju tice and
peace pre uppo e and demand
African unity. Only then will 11
of Africa be free.
liber tion
Afric .
There i no indication that the
"reform" hich the regime of
Pre ident D K1er i promoting
re de igned to fa cili ta te the em­
powerment of the Black
lJ!ajority. On the contrary, De
Klerk' trategy i to m ke a few
cosmetic ch nge as a mean of
e sentially maintaining the
tatus quo in term of protecting
white privilege nd white
domin tion.
A combination of cooptation,
divide and conquer and diver­
sion are all being utilized to
make a few ubstantive change
as possible.
THE TRIAL OF Winnie
Mandela and the regime com­
plicity in fostering and per­
petuating the so called Black on
Bla<;Jc factionalviolence mu t be
under tood in that context.
The apartheid resimc seeks
to divert attention away from
goal of Black majority rule by
provoking questions about the
capacity of tbe Black majority to
govern South Africa.
, Those who support the libera­
tion movement in South Africa
must be clear. The problem in
South Africa is not the behavior
of our courageou sister and
freedom fighter Winnie Man­
dela. The problem is a criminal
regime and system which is
prepared to use any and all
means to protect the power and
privileges of the white minority.
We must not be confused by die
cosmetics and the diversions. We
must remain firm in our support
God for the NAACP.
Two ks 0, a lack youth w mysteriously drOWlled •
McGinnis, 16, t seeD enteriDg a privately owned wee club •
white t clientele in St. Joseph, a city with a 10 history ofaDt,aao"".rdI
neighbor from cr the river in Benton Harbor.
Local officials have offered no explanation of ho McGinnis
ey boped t e ole t' would go away, blow OYer.
And it �emed like it would, until Mary DePoe, pr • dent of
NAACP got up and publically and officially ed authori •
'egitimate explaDation" of how and why the youth drowned.
Until her pica, authorities had done nothing in the way of even p .
of an investigation. Once she stirred things up, the police fiDally to bepD to
of Eric's friends and perform other functions u thoup there an . . tion. And
there is information to discover. Benton Harbor youth arc aware of racial tlareata phoned
to two friends of Eric's, and an argument that two white youth had hid McGinnis
three weeks prior to his death over his dancing with white girls. Whether the police
are uking questio of the white youths in St. Joseph remains to be
Statements made by certain officer now lead Black residenta to be .... · �, .... ·investip�
tion" will try in some way to make Eric McGinnis out to be a tro r, if Dot a
Cl'iminai. "
McGinnis wu a member f the )ROTC, the church ch� and the I
Chapter. In addition to his all-Americu activitioa, his fellow studo:DtI,I .... _101L
High School maintain the youth wu ODe to go out of his way to aYOid
We haw a fceq the NAACP', quest for the truth will be alo aacl.a:uJtone. We
support them and urge others to get behind the NAACP.
Black males are an ,endangered species. We lose too many to the cviIa 01 1990's that
we don't need to lose any in the style of the'195O's, like Emmett Till.
chlgan'
mm
T II
,
Comme
The graduation of the world's
finest, the multi-cultural college
and high school senior classe of
1991,1'cpresent the very be t of
our communities worfdwide.
HILTON: HIGHER EDUCA­
TION alutes each of you a you
pursue the options of immediate
career gratification and/or that
advanced degree.
STUDENT SCHOLARS, via
your cultures, grades and par­
ticipation, many of you were
able to ucces fully weave your­
selves into the in titutional
fabric of your colleges and high
s;Chools.
.•. These leaders
understand that they
are not minorities ...
ONE OF YOUR next major
goals will be to weave your el­
ves expertly into the in titution­
al fabric of our place of
employment, graduate chools
or new college for graduating
high chool senior .
Some of you did, not have a
great school experience, bu't
remember that you were not
alone. There is till time to
make those academic, career
and cultural adj u tment that
will enable you to move to the
front.
It i my role along with other
profe ion I t friend and
guide to ail with the e ad-
LETTER
contlnu�d from Page 4
alogue with the mayor and
county executives in Oakland
and' Macomb county. We are
seeing more of that now.
In addition to working with
Wayne County Executive Ed
for ANC's que t for a ne con­
stitution which will empower the
Black majori ty ithin a
democratic, non-racial SOCiety.
Ron Daniels serves as Presi­
dent 0/ the Institute lor Com­
munity Organization and
Development in Youngstown,
Ohio. He may be contacted at
(216) 746-5747.
McNamara for the Tiler
Stadiu deal, .Detrott's mayor
hould allo talk with the
Macomb county chief Carl �ar­
linga, and Dan Murpby of Oak·
land ty to develop a major
tranata m that could extend '
from � Uac to the Detroit
Riv� r, This will give
Det better aceeu to Job.,
and P re more Interaction
bet tri-county area rest-
de .... �f'��
I
But I
admi
ceinent.Message
justment. Let ua know what
you think you would like to ac-
complish. .
EMERGING LEADERS, yes,
your work is ju t beginning. You
have been honed in tbe .ame
spirit of Pan African and multi­
cultural student activi.ts who
came before you. Unfortunately
some have become those
dreaded prominent per-
onalities. Some, bowever,
ha�e ecome Ie ders.
These leader understand that
they are not "minoritiel"� but
rather a member of an emerging
world community. With that in
mind, we trongly encourage
you to "run, don't walk away
from those who refer to you a a'
minority."
YES, THERE IS a big dif­
ference between leader and
prominent personalities. of all
ethnicitie. If you remember
this, you wi II have one Ie bar­
rier to overcome.
SENIORS, our charge to you
is threefold; 1) Iway strive to
remain true to yourselve , 2)
plea e be true and upportive of
tho e coming behind you in the
education pipeline and school
ystem and 3) take eriously
your role in trengthening the
legacy and re pon lbility of im­
proving Pan Afric n com­
munitie .
Two of the t w y to con-
tinue growing re to remain
Keith O.
Hilton
ate Coleman Younl.
attacked some of hi.
atton 'a potteles and
_ ... his penonal acUoM.
...... the pOlice force with
_.,- terrific in 1975, but
".raln 1991 i. what the
ld rookie cop I. con-
abo'ut. Eighteen aDd �
.atM_·olds can't bank on.
I
It hal not always alreat :
live for Black folk. I
..... Mte life uncomfortable:
I
and/or become cui turally
. grounded and to al 0 identify
key people in your field who can
serve a mentors and friendl.
By the way, mentors and
friends should and can b of any'
ethnicity - as long as t ey sup­
port your interest in being CUl-
turally grounded.
Many of you will oar to Ireat
height in ,your professlonl;
ome will not. All of you have
to thi 'point experienced bits of
,-ucces that have enabled you to
reload the movement.
YOU HAVE DONE WELL.
Congratulations and good luck,
Clas '91.
In Detroit today" not
_aTA. it could, be eitb r.
air, and JobleuD l
to make Ufe uncom-'
aln. Former real-:
troit realized thll. :
_1M. us can afford to Uve I
....... �. In tact, in lome:
cheaper to live I I
. But we want to .tay I.
it to heart when our:
uestioned becauae of;
."0. we tak on Culo 0:
, the People Mover,'
anslon, the Chry.ler:
ai, or the Pord.
...... ite.
Wtll)(.iI"d a chanle of the:
Nfi���"n the Detroit PI.to ... :
ep aside and let tb
fresh r I In the door.
I hope you anawercd y
the 0 Ina que tlon.
HILTON: HIGHER EDUCA­
TION is designed to dialolllc
with college and world readers.
Education is ongoing and cer­
tainly, not limited to school
classrooms. Let's talk. (714)
899·0650.
Col