Friday, October 2. I964

SCARLET AND BLACK

Page Three

 

Shades of Gray
Americana on Trial

By Carl Otis Gray

Two years ago New York
City's public schools w are
forced to remove all copies of
Huckleberry Finn from the
shelves of their libraries. This
year a Chicago television net-
work was banned from allowing
Amos ’n Andy reruns to be
broadcast. Oliver Twist, as
Well as The Merchant of Venice
have been closely scrutinized in
various cities long known as
hotbeds of liberalism. To add to
this list of hallmarks in Ameri-
can and English tradition that
have recently come under fire
— America’s Own jovial god-
dess of the culinary art —- Aunt
Jemima, has been placed on
trial — not for illicit kitchen
tete-a-tete with Uncle Ben —
but for virtual genocide.

Being a product of Western
civilization, and Freudian psy-
chology, I feel than this black—
baiting is sure to frustrate my
Oedipal fixationLThat Aunt Je-
mima is a stereotype is true,
but that she is an offensive
stereotype is heresy; regardless
of what the new Civil Rights
Bill says, I can’t bring myself
to think of Betty Crocker in
terms of "Mamas"

Now picture, if you can. that
rotund grandmotherly lady with
the coffee hue and the red and
yellow bandana in front of all
those nasties at the NAACP.
There she stands armed only
with two dozen of those succu-
lent mouthwatering buttermilk
pancakes smothered with blue-
berries and maple syrup; she
smiles demurely at her ac-
cusers revealing that special
ra‘y of sunshine that has sealed
millions of boxes of self»rising
floor, There, four bespeckled
middleagers ranging in color
from buttermilk brown to burnt
biscuit black, sit in judgment.

, Two reporters from The Pitts-
burgh Courier and three from
Ebony are covering the trial.
All nine of these men have de
aided to forego the SNCC rally
in Biloxi in order to give the

high priestess of the pancake
a fair trial—besides the climate
in Biloxi is is bit uncomfortable
this time of the century.

The moderator oi this inquiry
— an executive Vice President
in charge of interracial Affairs
for an all-white corporation —
rises and with impeccable Ed-
wardian accent (acquired at
Fisk University in Nashville)
reads the sentence:

”You, Aunt Jemima, are ac»
cused of perpetuating the stere-
otype and crimes against the
Negro People; you are accused
of waffle witchery, biscuit
butchery, and conspiracy with
Beulah, the ever happy maid,
for the eventual overthrow of
the New Negro Race.

There is a great hubbub
among the members of the Ne-
gro Nurenburg. “Tsk, tsk!
Shamel Shame." they hiss in
unison.

“Woman
plead?"

how do you

Picture our heroine, her pan-
cakes wilting, the gleam gone
from her immaculate iridescent
ivory incisors. She rises from
her seat with the dignity of
Sheba before Solomon, walks
with the sultry sensuality of the
ebony empress of the Euphra-
tes, surveys the tribunal with
the cool collect‘ ity of a Con~
golese countess. And with the
good Gospel Book in one hand
and "The Cook’s Kitchen Kaf—
ka" in the other: she trumpets
in sweet Gabriel-like tones
“Aw, man. knock it OK"

The moderator s h o c k e d.
lapses into dialect for a few off-
color remarks, signals that she
be taken away while shouting:

“Wicked wench, that cock-
sure coon, impudent nigger—i"
and wonders to himself ”But
what will they say at B’nai
B’rith?"

His colleagues uninterested
in the whole proceedings, look
at him in utter contempt and
say.

”Shut up, man, and help us
finish these pancakes!"

 

I Davis
Ice cream

The Best
Home Made
Ice Cream

Check Our
prices for parties
and
special occasion:

 

Knock . . .
Knock . . .

Fix it with cl
tune up from

Collum's

Miﬁ
STA N DA R D

Willy
Service

 

Encampment Discussed Six Areas
0iGrinneli College Community

By Susan Taylor

The fifty five student leaders,
faculty members, and members
of the college administration
who participated in the Student
Leadership Encampment last
weekend did a lot of tough
thinking and encountered a lot
of ideas and obstacles
' It was more than a weekend
away from campus for brain-
storming, It was more than a
weekend away from campus
for these people who will be
working together all year to
get. to know each other.

It was 'a'weekend which was
filled with a large number of
hours of disciplined discussion,
creative thinking, and frank
meetings of minds in areas
which are of vital concern for
the Grinnell College commun-
ity.

A composite of what emerged
from the weekend can best be
described as an understood
concept of that community.

Such a concept emerged from
six discussion groups—each con-
centrating its efforts in a spe-
cific area, but from time to
time, by design and necessity.
venturing out of its narrow con-
fines into the general area of
the college taken as a whole en-
tity.

One discussion group consid-
ered the address “A Game of
Numbers Revisited” which Dru
Howard Bowen delivered to the
college before his resignation
as president last June. Starting
with the basic philosophies of
education or this speech, which
would provide for more inde-
pendent work, thus teaching the
student how to educate himself,

 

this particular discussion group
considered the relevance and
feasibility of a tutorial system
and more independent study at
Grinnell College,

Anonher group considered
Grinnell as a preparation for
graduate school and the busi-
ness Worldl They discussed
such things as the academic
community which places a pro-
fessional emphasis upon grad-
uate study and the Vocational
alternatives which Grinnel‘l
readily represents its students,
Concluding that the liberal arts
education is valuable in itself,
the group suggested that not
only theacademic, but the so-
cial atmosphere of Grinnell is
relevant to preparation for
whichever path may be followed
by a student after he receives
his diploma,

Student lrresponsibility was
the problem encountered by
another discussion group. Con-
sidering such specifics as the
library theft rate. quiet hours
problems, and illegal visits of
women to men’s rooms, this
group arrived at a prevalent
attitude (among students)—
lack of involvement in the com-
munity. The objectives of the
college were seen as being able
to give the best liberal arts edu»
cation possible, and secondar-
iiy, giving students as much
freedom as possible However,
the group emphasized that the
secondary objective must not
infringe upon the primary aca-
demic one.

Still another group considered
the attitude of the various ele<
ments of the community to-
ward rules, and came to an un-

 

STAKE YOUR
. CLAIM

buy cl

Start an
account at
Grinnell
federal

share

in our business

and find

yourself

a goldmine

al'

Grinnell

Federal

Savings and Loan Association

"Where you save doe

x make a diiierenco"

 

derstanding of why the college
takes many of the stands that
are represented by the rules, It
sought to increase and improve
the avenues of communication
in order to erase some of the
prevalent misunderstandings
in this area.

Another group considered the
extra classroom activities of the
entire college year, and sug-
gested improvements which
would increase the benefit of
these events for the entire col~
lege community.

A sixth discussion group con-
sidered the role of Student Gov-
ernment within the whole frame-
work of the college. Seeing two
functions of student gov’t—to
handle those responsibilities
properly delegated to the stuu
dents, and to consult with the
officials of the college in mat<
ters which concern students—-
this discussion group deter
mined the present structure of
student government to be in-
adequate for these purposes.
It began to suggest means and
plans for revision of the struc-
iure. t

At present it is impossible to
predict how much effect on the
campus the weekend will have
had, it did have some effect
on fiftysfive people.

A report will be made within
a few weeks and various discus-
sions and committees have al«
ready begun to react to some of
the ideas and concepts which
resulted,

Below is a list of those who
participated in the 1964 stu-

ENCAMPMENT— ‘
Continued on Page I ~

m

Now—Ends Sal.

"ENSIGN
PULVER"

* Robert Walker
* Burl Ives

Starts Sum—4 Days

IIzULUII

IN COLOR

* 'V . IOWA" ,
CLEANERS

 

