Federal Lawsuit Puts Vote Statute on Trial
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WWW.TRIANGLE TRIBUNE.COM 1998 15 YEARS Remembrance for Durham’s The Triangle 2013 RIBUNE murdered children with vigil TTHE TRIANGLE’S CHOICE FOR THE BLACK VOICE VOLUME 15 NO. 31 WEEK OF OCTOBER 6, 2013 $1.00 Parents, relatives and supporters honor Durham’s murdered children at a First Tee helps candlelight and vigil at the Durham Courthouse. By Latisha Catchatoorian Durham County Courthouse. girls learn the [email protected] “No one should ever have to cope game of golf DURHAM – Dozens of Durham cit- with this loss alone,” Durham County izens remembered their own last Sheriff Michael Andrews said. “There week with a candlelight vigil. are no perfect words for me to say The National Organization of and no perfect actions for me to take.” Parents of Murdered Children held a Andrews said he and the police remembrance gathering at the See REMEMBRANCE/2A Chavis Park Gov’t celebrates shutter ‘salt in 75 years wound’ Research questions the value of food pantry staples Southeast Raleigh were out in full force to celebrate Chavis Park’s 75th anniversary. By Latisha Catchatoorian [email protected] RALEIGH – Community members flocked to the John Chavis Memorial Park last weekend for two days of food, events and recreation to celebrate the historic park’s 75th anniversary. Chavis Park opened in 1937 and was often referred to as the “Negroes’ Park” until it was officially named after John Chavis, a local black teacher, preacher and Revolutionary War veteran. Born a free man, Chavis was one of the most prominent Raleigh teachers of the 19th century. Barbara Tharpe Walker brought her daughter to the Saturday activities. She remembers coming to the park as a child. “It was wonderful. Chavis was the park we went to for recreation, for swimming, dancing, the best snowballs Critics are calling for in the world, riding the carousel - just socializing with fresher produce at food everyone,” she said. pantries. Walker said everyone knew each other, and they were like a big family. She and her friends would come and By Stephanie Carroll watch the cheerleaders and football team practice. Those Carson are some of her happiest memories at the park. NORTH CAROLINA NEWS SERVICE “It was absolutely wonderful, and it just gives me CHAPEL HILL - The federal chills to even think about it,” she said. government shutdown could Gwen Haywood Goode, 82, calls Raleigh home and threaten disability and food- was 11 years old when the park was first built. She used assistance benefits for some to live right around the corner from the old baseball in North Carolina, according to groups charged with help- Please seeCHAVIS/ 2A PAUL WILLIAMS III FOR THE CHARLOTTE POST ing that population. Although benefits will be dis- Joan Abrams expresses her sentiment regarding North Carolina’s overhaul of voting rules tributed despite the shutdown, during a Moral Monday protest in Charlotte in August. The U.S. Department of Justice is Kristin Lavergne, director of suing the state over the new laws, contending they violate the Voting Rights Act. the Inter-Faith Council for Social Services in Chapel Hill, Vigil honors domestic said people who are waiting to be approved for benefits or violence victims have outstanding issues may do without until the govern- ment is up and running. “They are living on the Federal lawsuit puts edge,” she said, “so if we add to that - that their food stamps don’t get here on time, that the disability check is delayed - I think all those things could be voteJustice Dept. allegesstatute N.C. law violates on Voting trial Rights Act factors.” By Herbert L. White every eligible American to cast a ballot.” The shutdown could indi- [email protected] Justice’s complaint challenges provisions of rectly affect her organization, The U.S. Justice Department is taking North House Bill 589 under the non-discrimination Lavergne said, adding that Carolina to court over its voting standards, en- requirements of Section 2 of the Voting Rights there could be a reduction in acted after the Supreme Court struck down a Act. Holder will ask a judge to place North commodity foods supplied key provision of the Voting Rights Act. Carolina’s law under advance federal approval, through federal programs. The A small crowd gathered in downtown Raleigh to Attorney General Eric Holder warned in re- or pre-clearance. The Supreme Court struck Inter-Faith Council also re- honor victims of domestic violence. cent weeks that states with stringent voting down Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act, which ceives fresh food through the rules would face litigation. placed mostly southern states under federal Farmer Foodshare, a N.C. non- scrutiny. Forty of N.C.’s 100 counties were sub- By Latisha Catchatoorian Justice started the campaign on profit that provides fresh pro- Aug. 22 by suing Texas over its ject to pre-clearance. [email protected] duce to food pantries in the voter ID law and asking a feder- “The Obama Justice Department’s baseless state. RALEIGH - The steps of the Wake County Courthouse al judge to stop redistricting that claims about North Carolina’s election reform According to new research were adorned Tuesday evening with purple-clad peo- opponents say discriminates law are nothing more than an obvious attempt by Farmer Foodshare, ple holding candles in honor of domestic violence vic- against blacks and Latinos. to quash the will of the voters and hinder a processed foods on pantry tims. October is Domestic Violence Awareness month, African Americans make up 23 hugely popular voter ID requirement,” N.C. shelves are not the healthiest House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) and this year’s theme is “No More Silence.” Holder percent of North Carolina voters. choices for the people who InterAct, a private nonprofit agency that provides safe- The suit was filed in Greensboro. and Senate Pro Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) rely on them. A nutritional ty, support and awareness to victims and survivors of “By restricting access and ease of voter par- said in a joint statement. “The law was de- analysis of typical food-pantry domestic assault, sponsored the event. Speakers ad- ticipation, this new law would shrink, rather signed to improve consistency, clarity and uni- offerings found that the aver- dressed the modest crowd and candles were lit. than expand, access to the franchise,” Holder formity at the polls and it brings North age item contains 30 percent “I can’t be a voice by myself,” Sen. Tamara Barringer said at a Monday press conference. “Allowing Carolina’s election system in line with a ma- to 50 percent more sodium said. limits on voting rights that disproportionate- jority of other states. We are confident it pro- than the federal Food and Nicole Wiley, a domestic violence case coordinator for ly exclude minority voters would be inconsis- tects the right of all voters, as required by the Drug Administration’s daily Wake County Courthouse, read an original poem penned tent with our ideals as a nation. Whenever war- U.S. and North Carolina constitutions.” recommendation. by a domestic violence victim. It was supposed to be ranted by the facts and the law, the depart- Under pre-clearance, a court must find a state Margaret Gifford, executive read by the victim herself, but at the last minute she ment will not hesitate to use the tools and le- or local government is biased under the director of Farmer Foodshare, opted out of coming because of fear and shame. gal authorities at our disposal to fight against Constitution’s 14th or 15th amendments or said food assistance needs to racial discrimination, to stand against disen- the jurisdiction admits discrimination. See VIGIL/3A Please seeGOV’T/3A franchisement, and to safeguard the right of Please seeFEDERAL/ 2A The Rev. Michael Battle Index To subscribe: 919-688-9408 or takes over at St. Follow The online http://tcppc.com/Subscribe Tribune on Titus Episcopal Editorial 4A Sports 1B Church in Email: [email protected] Please Durham. Focus 6A Classifieds 4B © 2013 The Triangle Tribune Arts & Life 5B Religion 6B recycle 2A NEWS/The Triangle Tribune Sunday, October 6, 2013 RemembranceContinued from 1A own experiences as a mother forbut across Durham’s the nation. ment. murderedilar loss. childrenyoung girls she helped through force are doing everything they who lost two sons. “When you think about the “She terminated the relation- “It’s just nice to be around childbirth. She assisted young can to bring the victims’ per- “It saddens me to be here, but murders all over this country, ship prior to that, but he could- other people that share in the pregnant girls who didn’t have petuators to justice. I wouldn’t be anywhere else,” we are talking 10 to 20,000 a n’t accept that,” he said. same, and it feels like we are coaching partners. Diane Jones, a co-leader of she said. “I know what it’s like year,” she said. “It’s more than Gigliotti said things are only just one great, big, happy fam- “It makes me angry. I know the Durham POMC chapter, to lose a child by gun violence.” we have lost in our recent wars. going to get worse instead of ily,” he said. things are being done but said cities all over America Nellie Jones, one of the And America does not want to better. He cites the unemploy- Wilma Liverpool, a retiree things are not being done that come together on Sept. 25 to founders of the Durham chap- bring some sanity back.” ment rate as a reason more and community activist, said need to be done,” she said.