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Council expresses regret over '79 shootings

Wednesday, June 17, 2009
(Updated Thursday, June 18 - 7:29 am)
By Amanda Lehmert
Staff Writer

GREENSBORO — It was a much debated, carefully worded statement.

Thirty years after a Greensboro shooting — and four years after the issue first came before the City Council — the council said Tuesday night that it regretted the 1979 killings at Morningside Homes and pledged to help the city heal.

The council voted 5 to 4 to approve a statement of regret about the incident — one of the recommendations the city Humans Relations Commission made after studying the shootings and the 2006 Truth and Reconciliation Commission report about it.

Council members Mike Barber, Zack Matheny, Mary Rakestraw and Trudy Wade voted no.

Five people were killed and 10 were injured in November 1979 during a confrontation between Ku Klux Klan members and neo-Nazis and Communist Workers Party members.

Previous councils had voted to oppose the Truth and Reconciliation Commission process and not consider its recommendations.

On Tuesday, residents and human relations representatives urged the council members to address the issue.

“Acknowledge it and tell the world this won’t happen in Greensboro ever again,” said Randall Keeney, a minister.

The city attorney added language to the statement of regret to ensure that the council did not unknowingly create any legal liability for the city.

Others asked the city to stop dwelling on the shootings, which some said did not represent the current state of race relations in Greensboro.

“I will tell you what my generation is talking about,” Matheny said. “Look at our successes. Let us move on.”

In other action, the council voted to have the city staff explore options for trash disposal in the city.

The issue was raised after Councilman Mike Barber asked that the city consider dumping up to 50,000 tons of residential trash at the White Street Landfill, which was closed to household refuse in 2006.

Council members did not take Barber’s recommendation to consider expanding the use of the White Street Landfill. Last week, council members learned that the city could save $2.9 million a year by using the landfill instead of a transfer station that sends off the city’s trash.

Barber suggested that savings from using the landfill could go toward city libraries or a planned day center for homeless residents.

Residents near the landfill have been on the defensive in the past few weeks, protesting Barber’s recommendations.

Council members debated the issue at two meetings Tuesday. Some members were clear that they did not want to expand the landfill under any circumstances. But others, including Mayor Yvonne Johnson, argued that the city should explore the city’s trash options, including alternative technologies.

“That way we can get all the facts on the table and make the best decision,” Councilman Robbie Perkins said.

Other council members agreed with Perkins. They approved suggestions by Wade, who wanted the city to ask the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources to review potential health risks of the city landfill and another, abandoned landfill on Nealtown Road.

Contact Amanda Lehmert at 373-7075 or amanda.lehmert@news-record.com
 

Accompanying Photos

File photo (News & Record)

Photo Caption: Each of the people killed in the Nov. 3, 1979, shootings are represented by a white rose and a photograph during a Truth and Reconciliation hearing in 2005.

Additional Photos

News and notes from the meeting

  • The city will not cut any additional funds from the library system. County commissioners contributed $350,000 less than expected to the city libraries when they passed the 2009-2010 budget. The city will reduce the money that it contributes to a worker’s compensation insurance fund to make up for the loss.
  • Council members did not approve the 2009-2010 city budget Tuesday night as originally planned, due to last minute discussions about water rates and other issues. They plan to have another budget workshop on June 22 and pass the budget June 23. They must adopt a new budget by June 30.
  • A $20 million bond referendum will be on the November ballot to fund renovations of the Natural Science Center, the City Council agreed Tuesday night.

Comments

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Get Real

June 18, 2009 - 1:54 am EDT

i'm so glad gso me is posting on here.

Panacea

June 17, 2009 - 9:48 am EDT

The CWP made inflammatory statements, yes that's true. They threatened violence if the Klan showed up, yes that's true.

The Klan didn't have to show up. They CHOSE to show up with guns and start shooting. The Greensboro PD knew the situation was hot and did NOTHING to prevent the violence, and then let the Klan get away cold.

Everyone is to blame here. The City needs to be the grown up, to be the leader. Issuing the statement of regret put them in a leadership role.

Beachwalk

June 17, 2009 - 10:02 am EDT

"They CHOSE to show up with guns and start shooting."
Only after they were attacked by the CWP. And the CWP told the Greensboro PD to stay away.

You see this is what I am talking about. This issue needs to die. There is nothing but back and forth comments on this issue and no one is changing anyones views.
I think the City needs to grown up and tell these thugs to stop trying to twist the council's arm into making "regret" statements (which does NO good whatsoever) and it will still NOT put an end to this issue. As I said before; the thugs do not want this to die. This issue must continue to be stirred up for them to keep their ugly faces in front of the public and they is what they want.

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 10:23 am EDT

Okay, let's talk about lame since that's what you thought of my language statement. Since when does any police department, Greensboro or otherwise, stay away (and not protect citizens) just because someone asked them to? Get real! If the fact that it was their JOB to be there was not enough, knowing that a caravan of Klansman were on the way with a trunk full of guns should have been enough reason for them to show up at the correct place for the rally.

Beachwalk

June 17, 2009 - 10:37 am EDT

Your comments prove you are not interested in "truth" or "reconciliation".
Your twisted mind want it both ways. You ask the police to do something and then you get mad at them for doing it. And once again you need to stop being so loose with you word games. And the "correct place" was moved in order to try to avoid the police.
This is why this issue need to die. No one is changing anyone mind and it is causing more hard feelings.

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 10:54 am EDT

The starting point was not moved. That was just the story that the GPD and the City put forward.

Panacea

June 17, 2009 - 12:10 pm EDT

You miss the point. The Klan didn't have to show up. Had the Klan not been there, no one would have died or been hurt. The CWP would have beat their chests for a few hours and gone home.

But the Klan did show up. They had information on the march given to them by the police. The police knew the situation was explosive and didn't have any officers in sight to discourage it. They allowed murderers to leave the scene of a crime.

The City owes an apology for that. Until they apologize and mean it, yeah, the issue won't die. And it shouldn't.

Beachwalk

June 17, 2009 - 2:39 pm EDT

"The Klan didn't have to show up. True. And the CWP didn't have to attack them either. Had the CWP not attacked the klan no one would have died or been hurt. The CWP could have beat their chests for a few hours and gone home. But no, the CWP couldn't resist physically attacking the Klan.
And even if the city does apologize and mean it, the issue still won't die. Too many racist thugs have to keep it alive in order to keep their ugly faces in the public.

Panacea

June 17, 2009 - 11:08 pm EDT

I never said the CWP didn't have culpability. In fact, I've said they have their share of the blame elsewhere. But you behave as if it was ALL their fault, and it wasn't. The CWP is responsible for its actions, the Klan for theirs, and the GPD for theirs. That's what I've said all along.

As for racist thugs, the only one I see here is you. You scream and shout for the issue to die because you don't want Greensboro to admit it did the wrong thing, because you'd like to keep on being a racist. If the issue dies, then you get to sit in smug reassurance that your views are acceptable in a civilized society when in fact they are not.

tledford

June 18, 2009 - 10:20 pm EDT

"Too many racist thugs have to keep it alive in order to keep their ugly faces in the public."

Proved by your presence.

(Edit: Once again, I replied to Beachwalk and the software the N&R is using appended it to Panacea's comment.)

PWS24

June 17, 2009 - 11:26 am EDT

I have read and heard more about the events of Nov. 1979 in the past 10 years than I did in the 10 days after they actually happened. I did, anyway, unitl about a year ago when I vowed to quit reading, listening to radio reports or watching any TV news reports related to this subject.

From the look of the headline, it looks like the Council "expressed regret" over the incident. So did any thinking person when it happened 30 years ago. Now let's move on. Please!

tledford

June 18, 2009 - 10:28 pm EDT

"The City needs to be the grown up, to be the leader."

That will NEVER, EVER, EVER happen, as the City is completely enslaved by The Bryan (dead fat white guy) Foundation and E. S. "Jim" Melvin (old somewhat-fat white guy). No matter how many black folk get elected.

Mialamasoul

June 19, 2009 - 4:06 pm EDT

It's this lame of a town precisely BECAUSE a 30 year old incident and some other obscure 40 something year old incident still dictate the attitudes of those living here.

Fred

June 17, 2009 - 5:59 am EDT

Whenever Nelson Jonson is involved in anything trouble and money are what he is after. If Greensboro insists on dwelling on the past it will only sink ever lower into mediocrity.
At least I no longer live in the city and don't pay city taxes to support the City Council. The Guilford County Commisioners are enough of a burden.

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 11:09 am EDT

And for crying out loud, stop vilifying Nelson Johnson. He has apologized profusely for his part in the events of November 3, 1979 and continues to work toward making Greensboro a better place for all of us, including and especially for those who are not privileged enough to have time to sit around and post comments to news articles.

Rev. Johnson is a very kind, gentle and caring person, and not just to those he knows personally. He models good citizenship for all of us; being an active and engaged leader in a community that keeps fighting to get rid of him. Challenging the status quo does NOT make someone a bad person!!! Figure that out, and we will all be better for it. I am very thankful that he hasn't let you all run him out of Greensboro.

Thank you, Nelson Johnson, for all that you've done and continue to do for Greensboro. Maybe someday these folks will accept that you have grown and learned from your past, and they can do the same. I know I have.

Beachwalk

June 17, 2009 - 9:54 pm EDT

The Pulpit Forum is nothing but a bunch of racist thugs. I wish they all would leave Greensboro. The city would be MUCH MUCH MUCH better without them. They do nothing but cause trouble.

johnnybegood

June 17, 2009 - 7:52 am EDT

HMMM? Does this truly make conscious sense? I mean really people...think logically...follow me here...should the CITY COUNCIL apologize for something that happened 30 years ago? Lets see, hmmm? Most of the members on City Council in 1979 were either teenagers at the time, or perhaps college students partying like its 1999 not 1979! Now considering the fact that they gave an (clears throat) apology for this also mean that MAYBE they should start apologizing for many other things that have happened in a negative light over the last 30 years, and trust me alot has happened. Grant what went down in 1979 was not cool at all...it was redneck and it was ghetto at the same time. So with this in mind, LINE UP PEOPLE and GO MARCH into the city council to request an apology for something they never had anything to do with....wow...sometimes people have nothing to do with their time! Maybe if the city of greensboro brought back 'asian spas' into town, people would be a little bit more relaxed!

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 8:53 am EDT

Thinking logically...okay, here goes: if the City Council had not chosen to oppose the Truth and Reconciliation Process (and try to imagine for a minute that it was what it was, which was a systematic, open, scholarly inquiry about a meaningful event that indeed happened 30 years ago) this issue would not have been brought before them last night. They did not apologize, but rather stated that it was a regrettable event. REGRETTABLE. That is taking no blame, no liability, just stating that it was regrettable.

What is so painful to you people about them saying that? Why is it so hard to take that the City Council would take such a step to attempt to right a wrong by attempting to take the high ground instead of again denying any significance of the events that day and a need for community healing.

All of the haters on here say you don't need healing, but I beg to differ.

Also, it would be great if you all would stop calling names of those who supported the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's work and who support the ongoing Truth and Reconciliation Process that some of our community leaders continue to work for. It is simply not true that there is a group of racist thugs holding this city back...keeping Greensboro from being all it can be each and every time November 3, 1979 is mentioned. There are MANY people who believe in the importance of the process, and honestly, those who do the most for Greensboro are exactly the people you keep calling names.

The name calling and hateful speech had much to do, on both sides, with the events of that day. Clearly, that has not worked to make Greensboro a better place. Why can't those of you who are so vocal about hating the process try not calling those who believe in it and work toward reconciliation hateful names? Would it be so hard? I am not racist, nor am I a thug, yet I believe strongly in the process and the importance of what the City Council did last night. To deny, ignore or actively oppose something that could have been Greensboro's chance to show that those dark days are seen as important to understand and that violence like that will no longer be accepted in our town was the mistake of the City Council when the first Truth and Reconciliation Commission ever to happen in the U.S. happened here.

Much like our city not taking a lead and pride in the Civil Rights Museum that we should have by now (but, of course, something always gets in the way...not enough money, but we have enough for a baseball stadium; you know, the important stuff), showing full support of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission would have shown that Greensboro is not the backward town it was 30 years ago where the Police chose not to be at the scene to protect the folks who were gathered for a permitted demonstration. They chose not to support it then, but I am glad they finally at least acknowledged the work done by the GTRC and other organizations before and since and that it was a regrettable event.

Again, try not to be such HATERS. Maybe you'll sleep better at night.

Highmiles

June 17, 2009 - 8:58 am EDT

Why should the city take any responsibility for an event created by the CWP to create exactly the response it got? You are either incredibly naive, or incredibly uninformed.

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 9:39 am EDT

I am neither incredibly naive nor uninformed. The City did not take responsibility, they simply stated that the events of the day were regretful. Fear not, the City Attorney, Mike Barber and the other 3 council members who voted NO to the motion, were sure that the language in the statement did not imply liability.

So, highmiles, no responsibility taken by anyone.

johnnybegood

June 17, 2009 - 9:35 am EDT

Once again, this 'apology' makes no sense. Should the city of greensboro apologize to all the families in town that have been victims of murderous crimes? Should the city apologize to these families and say " we regret that you son/daughter was murdered in our town, please forgive us and our city". Do you understand where i am going with this? This is what i call too much idle time on behalf of the individuals requesting the apology. Does it truly make them feel better about things? No, of course not. It's so incompotent! " PLEASE APLOGIZE CITY COUNCIL FOR THIS CRIME 30 YEARS AGO, I know you had nothing to do with this crime city council, but please apologize, please??".... i mock! AND Righfully so!

Once again, businesses, families start making your way downtown to the city council and REQUEST an apology for crimes that YOU have been affected by. Demand that the city council makes a public apology stating " we regret your business was robbed, and your clerk was murdered", we regret your daughter was raped in our city and your son was sexually assualted by a clergy member" please FORGIVE OUR CITY! etc...you get my point? This is so ignorant! To think that there were members on the council that voted for this proves how WEAK minded they really are.. READ MY INITIAL RESPONSE ABOVE FOR CLAIRTY PEOPLE! Finally my base of close friends and close relationships (winks) include african american, asian, cuban, indian, arabic, portuguese and more...and thats coming from an open minded professional white male!

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 9:43 am EDT

I guess I will just keep posting the same thing. THE CITY DID NOT APOLOGIZE FOR ANYTHING. THE CITY COUNCIL SIMPLY VOTED ON A STATEMENT THAT THE EVENTS OF NOV. 3, 1979, WERE REGRETFUL. They did not apologize...they were clear on that in the discussion of the motion to vote on the statement of regret.

I don't know if the video footage of the meeting is available after the fact, but I would strongly recommend watching it if you can before getting further worked up about all the other things the city might need to apologize for.

bigwill

June 17, 2009 - 10:20 am EDT

A regret is a form of an apology. They just worded the statement to not sound like an apology, so don't be so simple minded. When you apologize to someone you tell them your sorry and one of the definitions of the word regret is to be sorry. So please tell me how a regret and an apology differ? They go hand in hand. Being regrettful is nothing more than a formal way of saying your sorry, AKA apologizing.

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 10:25 am EDT

You are absolutely correct that they were intentional with language...intentionally not explicitly saying they are/were sorry (aka apologizing outright) because it might imply liability. So, there is a difference there bigwill.

bigwill

June 17, 2009 - 10:30 am EDT

But you keep making statements that the city didn't apologize and you keep trying to correct everyone here. Yet like everyone is saying they did apologize, they just said it in a formal way. People aren't stupid they know how to read between the lines.

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 10:41 am EDT

Not so good at reading between the lines on the "Death to the Klan" flyer that was not about killing the individuals in the Klan, just ending the institution that is the Klan. Keep telling me about the ability to read between the lines. Actually, I have a better idea; if you want to know what you are so busy opposing, read the TRC report and see a balanced account. They gave every group, as Panacea pointed out, their fair share of blame (CWP, KKK and GPD).

bigwill

June 17, 2009 - 4:20 pm EDT

Well then what is the point of needing a statement of regret if everyone already received their fair share of the blame?

gso me

June 17, 2009 - 5:44 pm EDT

Various survivors from that day, both CWP demonstrators and Klansman made public statements of regret, or outright apologized for their part in the events. The City had not yet. That's the point.

Panacea

June 17, 2009 - 9:52 am EDT

gso me is right. No one has really apologized yet.

And the City does need to take accountability for the UTTER failure of the Greensboro PD to serve and protect the innocent citizens of that neighborhood, who got caught between the Klan and the CWP. They FAILED to stop a violent confrontation they knew was coming. For God's sake, they GAVE the Klan information on where the CWP would be marching, setting up an ambush! Then they let the Klan start shooting, and then get away cold.

That's what the City needs to apologize for.

The CWP and the Klan also need to step up, but since they are hate groups, they're not likely to. But the City of Greensboro needs to be and should be on the moral high ground. They should apologize for the role of the GPD in this sad affair.

Beachwalk

June 17, 2009 - 10:13 am EDT

The CWP had told the Greensboro PD to keep their distance. Panacea refuses to admit any wrong doing on the part of the communist thugs.
The City needs to tell the communist thugs to shut up, get a life and leave the City of Greensboro alone. This issue needs to go into the history books and be left alone. To continue to stirr it up only makes matters worst. No one is going to change anyone's mind.

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