Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Four U.S. presidents join 10,000 at Coretta Scott Kinds funeral Errin Haines THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LITHONIA, Ga. — Ten thousand mourners — including four U.S. presidents, numerous members of Congress and many gray-haired veterans of the civil rights movement — said goodbye to Coretta Scott King on Tuesday, with President Bush saluting her as “a woman who worked to make our nation whole.” The immense crowd filled the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church — a modem, arena-style megachurch in a suburban Atlanta county that was once a stronghold of the Ku Klux Klan but today has one of the most affluent black populations in the country. More than three dozen speakers at the funeral took turns remembering the widow of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who worked to realize her husband’s dream of equality for nearly 40 years after his assassination. She died Jan. 30 at age 78 after battling ovarian cancer and the effects of a stroke. The president ordered flags flown at half-staff across the country. “Coretta Scott King not only secured her husband’s legacy, she built her own,” Bush told the crowd. “Having loved a leader, she became a leader, and when she spoke, Americans listened closely.” Former President Clinton urged mourners to follow in her footsteps, honor her husband’s sacrifice and help the couple’s children fulfill their parents’ legacy. Former President Bush said the “world is a kinder and gentler place because of Coretta Scott King.” President Carter praised the Kings for their ability to “wage a fierce struggle for freedom and justice and to do it peacefully.” The funeral at times turned political, with some speakers decrying the war in Iraq, the Bush administration’s eavesdropping program, and the sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina in mostly black New Orleans. The Rev. Joseph Lowery, who co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Martin Luther King Jr., drew a roaring standing ovation when he said: “For war, billions more, but no more for the poor” — a takeoff on a line from a Stevie Wonder song. The comment drew head-shakes from Bush and his father as they sat behind the pulpit. The lavish service stood in sharp contrast to the 1968 funeral for King’s husband. President Lyndon B. Johnson did not attend those services, which were held in the much smaller and older Ebenezer Church in Atlanta, where King had preached. Coretta Scott King’s body was to be placed in a crypt near her husband’s tomb at the King Center, which she built to promote his memory. The crypt is inscribed with a passage from First Corinthians: “And now abide Faith, Hope, Love, These Three; but the" greatest of these is Love.” Over the past several days, more than 160,000 mourners waited in long lines to pay their respects and file past King’s open casket during viewings at churches and the Georgia Capitol, where King became the first woman and the black person to lie in honor. Among the civil rights veterans at the funeral were Dorothy Height, longtime chairwoman of the National Council of Negro Women; Rep. John Lewis, former head of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee who led the “Bloody Sunday” march in Selma, Ala.; and the Rev. Jesse Jackson, founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. DEBATE • EODTinUED FROfTI I Creed Week and called for a “cut in wasteful spending.” Vice-Presidential candidates Ryan Holt and Sonam Shah touted past SG experience and accomplishments made inside and outside the campus. Holt, a third-year political science student, said his best quality for the office is “I’ve been Vice-President before,” citing his tenure as VP for the past year and the policy initiatives he was able to push through the Student Senate, including cameras in the Blossom Street garage and introduced State House legislation to stop the use of students’ Social Security numbers as school IDs. Shah, a third-year biology student, stressed “accessibility” after being impressed with . Congressional constituency services after a fall internship in Washington, and expressed the need to use members the Student Senate, over which the Vice President presides, as liaisons to student organizations, a tactic that she suggested was not actively pursued in the last administration. Presidential candidate Jarvis Jones stressed inter student and inter-school communication about educational events and policy initiatives. Jones said his outsider status as a second year law student provides insight into graduate student relations, saying “the lines of communication are broken” between student organizations and graduate students. Tommy Preston’s initiatives as this past year’s treasurer were his focus for his bid for the presidency. The third-year political science student said SG’s reputation among USC administrators as the group “to bitch and complain” was healed as he, Holt and current President Justin Williams worked to gain administrators’ trust to enact their policy goals. Julian Raymond, a third-year political science student, outlined a bid to overhaul SG’s pipes with his “Save USC” campaign, which included a textbook rental program, a CarolinaCard local business discount program similar to the Carolina Alumni card, and an emphasis on rape education and campus safety. The next executive candidate debate takes place today at 12:30 p.m. on Greene Street, where the candidates are expected to expand on their platforms. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocknews@gwm.sc. edu DEAD • COnunUED FROIT1I “It is obvious there is a gap between the demographics of our students and the demographics of our faculty,” Amiridis said. Amiridis added that minority and female staff members should not be hired “because of their gender or race, but because they are good faculty members.” Amiridis said the engineering college needs to work closely with other departments, especially the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Medicine, to create new interdisciplinary programs. With a stamp of high quality, Amiridis said only after many of the goals outlined in his vision were achieved would the college be nationally recognized, globally focused and locally engaged. He said he applied for the position for one reason. “I wanted to do this because I care about our college,” Amiridis said. Following his presentation, Amiridis fielded questions from his colleagues. Tangali Sudarshan, co-chair of the College of Engineering and Information Technology Dean Search Committee, thanked all the faculty and students for their help with the process and extended special thanks to Mary Anne Fitzpatrick, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and a co-chair of the search committee. “The success of the College of Engineering is important to the success of USC,” Fitzpatrick said. “My plan is to get (the college) a dean for 10 years so I never have to go through this again.” Laughing along with the audience, Amiridis said of his ability to lead for 10 years, “Let me ask my doctor. I have a physical next week.” Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocknews@gwm.sc. edu Nobody covers USC better. Enjoy the copy. THi%AMECOCK _ uioLATions • conTinucDFRomi of the Maxcy housing polio and understands that hi behavior is not allowed.” Lark also spoke of tw( previous incidents involving Smith at Maxcy under th< same circumstances. On thi second occasion in whicl Lark caught Smith breakinj policy, Smith said, “I know I’m going, there is n< problem.” It was not immediately clear whether the two r incidents mentioned include > the incident on Jan. 29. The violations of Housing i policy have been referred ; to the Office of Student : Judicial Programs, and : the Elections Commission l has warned Smith against f further similar behavior. t - i Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocknews@gwm.sc. edu -1 Has your college life been like tbis? r SCBOOLOFMEDICINE ftfn.d'M.I 100 U IMVCRSmOfSOttHCOOU^ ** J'T I 1 UU ■ ■—» I SOLUTION!!! | I~“~1