Mayor Bill Bell spoke to a crowd of students Wednesday in the first event of the year for the Duke chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. This speech focused on the interaction between Duke and the Durham community,
The event began with Bell’s speech and was followed by a Question and Answer session. The North Carolina Central University chapter of the NAACP was also present.
Introducing the mayor, Duke NAACP president Crystal Sanders emphasized this year’s NAACP “Durham Initiative,” which aims to “bridge the gap between Duke and Durham.” Hearing the mayor speak was a first step in inspiring students to become active in the Durham community, said Sanders, a senior.
“We want to make sure students understand all the opportunities they have in Durham,” she said. “And not only in tutoring and mentoring, but also in local politics.”
Bell began his speech by giving background on Durham County politics, explaining how local issues were treated and policies were carried out.
He then focused on the demographic make-up of Durham, noting that out of a population of approximately 190,000, 40 percent of residents are black and 7 to 10 percent are Latino. Turning to the history of the black population in the region, Bell described Durham as the “envy of the South” in terms of how much black people participated in areas such as business and medicine.
“[It is important that we] maintain some of our heritage,” Bell said, referring to the prominent black community in Durham. Specifically, Bell noted plans to “recycle” the tobacco factories in downtown Durham rather than tear them down and to reinstate the railway by having a train run from Durham to Raleigh.
Turning to the relationship between Duke and the Durham community, Bell emphasized his delight in being able to work directly with Duke presidents, including President Brodhead, in planning initiatives that serve to increase community interaction.
“I can tell you, [community service] can make a difference,” he said, acknowledging that college offers many other attractions, which may prevent students from getting involved.
Highlighting student involvement in politics, particularly during an election year, Bell stressed that “your vote does count.” He referred to his personal election experience to illustrate how much “individual votes [can] count.” In his 2001 campaign for mayor, he won by less than 1 percent of the vote, which amounted to fewer than 500 votes.
Following this speech, Bell answered numerous questions from students, covering poverty, crime, education and racial issues.
“[Crime is] the number one [issue] that concerns me in the city of Durham,” Bell said. He noted that while overall crime decreased in 2003, the number of violent crimes increased. Twenty-two homicides already have been committed this year.
He explained that the profiles of criminals are similar, as many of them are young black men. “They are not random homicides.... Generally, the [victim and criminal] know each other,” he said.
Reducing crime “is a community effort,” Bell said, adding that “we must understand the root causes.” He emphasized improving after-school programs and reducing the number of suspensions as ways to keep children off the streets and discourage them from committing crimes.
Bell de-emphasized the role of race in local issues, stressing instead that “there are not many issues where we don’t see African Americans participating.” Although issues may seem racial, he described them as “issues not of color but of circumstance.”
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