Arizona sun., 1947-12-19
Sahuaro Club Invites
Three Guest Speakers To
Discuss School Bond Issue

At a meeting last Tuesday eve
ming, members of the Sahuaro Club
listened to three speakers on the
subject of the bond election for
placing a civic auditorium on the
grounds of the proposed West
Phoenix High School. Mr.. Wade
H. Hammond, Rev. L. B. Nelson,
and Principal w. A. Robinson, the
three speakers were all of one
mind on the issue.
It was brought out by them that
the proposed bond issue was
strongly opposed by the Board of
Education whom the people have
charged with the responsibility of
making careful and deliberate
judgments regarding the proper
functioping of the high school sys-
tenn and the welfare of the high
school pupils. While the Boards
judgment is not infalliable, it was
stated, but surely knows more
about what will contribute toward
the best functioning of the school
system than group of business
men who are concerned about
bringing conventions to Phoenix
and cultural entertainment for a
few wealthy people.
Negro children will not attend
West Phoenix High School in the
near future but Negro citizens, the
speakers said, are interested in the
welfare of all the high school chill
dren of Phoenix and would defin-
itely vote against exposing the chill
dren, who will attend West Phoe-
nix High School, to the kind of go
ings on that too frequently go
along with conventions.
Rev. Nelson brought out the fact
that there were entirely too few
seats in the proposed auditorium
for such "civic auditorium" to
serve any large section of the pop
ulation. The charges for admission
to any cultural entertainment
would necessarily be so great that
it would be far out of range of Ne
groes and many other groups who
might desire ever so much to be-
come cultured.
It was the opinion of the speak
ers that Phoenix businessmen are
not thinking about all the people or
they would work for the erection
at some accessible location of an
auditorium large enough to contain
low priced seats as well as high
priced.
Mr.. Hammond brought out that
Negro tax payers would be called
upon to pay heavily for structure
which would in no way serve them
and at best could serve even the
wealthy section of Phoenix for only
few years when it would then be
thrown back on the School Board
to maintain as a costly white ele-
phant on the West Phoenix School
grounds.
Mr.. Robinson called attention to
the fact that the three hundred
thousand dollars of bonds would
carry the schools dangerously close
to the limit Of their bonded indebt-
edness, and at time when Carver
enrolment is fast outgrowing the
present plant which was built over
twenty years ago for less than half
the present enrolment. He pointed
out farther that all of the other
schools in the district: Phoenix I'm
ion, North Phoenix, and Phoenix
College have insistent needs that
must be met if these schools are to
function in the best interests of
our city.
The Club appointed a committee
to arrange for forum on the issue
of the bond election to which a
large number of the colored citi-
zens would be invited for the pur-
pose of acQuainting them with all
the issues involved in the bond
election which is to be held in jan
uary. y