The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1961-06-16

0NNA OAAANC tCACPIiOA1C 10 Ia
port 2-38O2.
AFSC Aids Program
The American Friends Service
Committee has had Z staff in the
county since June 1860. Through
its Emergency Placement Pro
gram AZ senior high school stu
dents have been placed In 10
communities in 6 states. The
present Also Community Rela-
tons Director is working in q
program directed towards pro-
viding enrich educational oppor'
tunities for the leaders Of the
children's Centers. A. Parent
Club has been organized whose
purpose is to help parents Of high
school children who are away
from home to meet the many
problems which arise In relation
to the children in their new
homes.
Each month AFSC sponsors a
Leadership Institute for the lead
erS of the Centers. In such inSt-
tutes. resource persons discuss
with the leaders materials Of
education, children's problems.
problems in democracy. Negro
history and civic responsibilities
This group has recently c0mplet-
ed a study in seminars of "Vir-
ginia's Role in the Establishment
of Our Democratic Government. "
The eliminating activity of this
study was a trip to Williamsburg,
Virginia for all of the women
who are leaders in the Centers.
Smaller groups Of leaders are be-
ing organized around varied
group interest such as sewing.
reading. voting.
The Also office is located in
the Miller Building on Main
Street. Its address is P. o. Box
463 and the telephone number is
Export 2-5296.
What of the community? 1t is
a beautiful rural county with no
basic industry and without any
public transportation syste m.
Farmville is its only town and it
has a population of approximate
ly 5000. The racial ratio is SIS
per cent white. IS per cent Me-
gro.
Long Struggle
For the Negro community
which has been struggling since
1910 for adequate school facili-
ties for its children, this must
seem like an endless treadmin
operation. but they trudge on
meeting each Wednesday evening
at one of the churches, bearing
small bundles of fuel for the Cen
ters, pooling rides to get any,
where. collecting nickels and
dimes to buy community cen
ter in Farmville. No Negro child
in this community has access to
a movie or a gymnasium or a
bowling alley or a pool or a skat-
ing rink or Y.W.C.A. or a civil
service job or any clerical job.
For the white community it is
difficult to establish the facts.
We read in the paper that SO per
cent of the white children are in
accredited h 90 S. LongWood
College, a State Teachers Col
lege, here does not admit Negro
students. The private Foundation
Schools make use of the church
buildings for their program. The
churches seem not to recognize
any moral issue in this struggle
and none have spoken out even
in defense of public education
much less Indignation.
The newspaper is rabidly seq.
regationist. Individual white
voices which take issue with il
have by now been silenced by
some sort of unseen pressure
And yet we daily exchange all Of
the pleasant courtesies as we
meet in the stores. post office OF
on the street. These pleasant
greetings and our mental con
facts in services are our only
points of contact, SO that there is
absolutely no communication be
tween the races about any of the
problems which have thoroughly
upset our lives here. We laugh
in passing about the weather as
if we are each unaware of the
| loads on our hearts because Of