I think it was. There's one other thing, though, before we go
to that. We were talking about Ben Ruffin and things.
I remember UOCI. These were a group of people, low income and so forth,
and so on. And they got together and wanted to do something to improve
their lot. It was the United Organization of Community Improvement. And
they came up with the idea that they wanted to get in business. And what
kind of business they could get in. And they decided a grocery store,
because all had to buy groceries.
Page 27 And they wanted
to organize a grocery store and to raise money. And they needed
twenty-five thousand dollars to get an SBA loan. And this was after I
had retired. I think it was the first year after I retired. And I was
busy at that time; I had gotten connected with General Electric to do
some consulting work, and also the Ford Foundation. And Ben Ruffin and
Nathan Garrett came to my office to see if I would help by being
chairman of the committee to try to raise the twenty-five thousand
dollars. If the relationship had been a strained relationship, they
wouldn't have come to me for that. And really I
didn't feel that I had the time or anything else. Because I
had just moved into my office—if I am recapitulating it as it
was—and was trying to get lined up and trying to keep my
contacts and do the consulting work and all. And had no help; I did have
a girl come in part-time, certain days of the week. To make a long story
short, I explained to them what my situation was and told them,
"I just don't see how I can." And they
wouldn't take no for an answer. I didn't say no,
you know, but it looked like I was getting there. They said,
"Well wait, you just think about it tonight and let us come
back and see you tomorrow." And sure enough I did. After they
left I got to thinkingabout it. I said now, here is a group of people
who are trying to do something for themselves, and they're
always criticized for wanting to be on welfare, and never wanting to do
something for themselves. And also the charges that have been made over
the years that the black middle class, or middle class, forgets those on
a lower level, or does not reach down to try to help pull them up. If
you get up, you forget about trying to pull them up. I came home and
talked to my wife about it that night. The first place, they were going
to run it. And in trying to get it set up, they wanted two classes of
stock, A class and B class. I don't recall which one was to
be the voting stock, but the voting stock would
Page 28
only be sold to the low income people, so that they would always be sure
to have control. Well, you know what the reason was for: to elect the
directors, officers, and operate it. And those who were sympathetic
toward them and willing to make an investment in it, would get the other
class of stock. Now, I don't recall now whether or not the
one limited to the non-voting stock would be permitted to buy one or two
shares out of a certain number, or not. But anyway, there was no way
that the low income people could lose control. That was firmly fixed
with the limitation of stock. So I talked to my wife about it and we
went over everything. You know, thinking about these things and what
people would say about it. And I said now, these people need to be
encouraged instead of discouraged. And one way to bridge
gaps—and this might be an opportunity—that is,
coming to me to help bridge a gap in the community. To make a long story
short, I decided to do it. And when they came back the next morning to
see me, I gave the answer yes. So we went through the rationale of the
whole thing. And I arranged—I don't know if it was
the next day or the end of the week—for a press conference.
The press and the T.V. and the radio to announce the formation of the
committee and the purpose of it, and that we needed the twenty-five
thousand dollars. And I used as part of my argument that here is a group
of people that's trying to do something for themselves. And
instead of criticizing I feel that we ought to encourage them. And two
things would come out of it. They would either make a go of it, or, if
they didn't, they could see how hard it is to operate a
business and be more sympathetic to the people and the problems that
they have in trying to run a business. So it would be an educational
experience. So something good would come out of it. And we had this
press conference and we had the stock classes and certificates planned,
Page 29 and set up a campaign. And the T.V. man,
white, who came to the press conference bought the first twenty-five
dollars worth of stock. He was so impressed with the rationale of the
purpose and so on. In other words, whether it succeeded or failed, he
would give that as a contribution for the good of it. And instead of
twenty-five thousand dollars, I think we actually raised thirty-one
thousand dollars. And a lot of people who bought it didn't
ever expect any return. Well they didn't, and they
didn't expect any. They felt it was worth the effort. And
sure enough, they were able to get the SBA loan to either buy the land
or lease the land, I've forgotten which now. And they built
this store on Mangum Street, North Mangum Street. And had it well
stocked. But, in the meantime, Mangum Street had become a one-way
street, and it was inconvenient to get in. And most of the black
community was on this side of town. There was a black community over on
that side, but to run a grocery store, you know, and especially your
fresh vegetables and things of that nature. And getting someone who
understood the art and science of buying, and cost counting and
everything else. Well, it operated for a while, and it never did get to
the place where it broke even, and so it went by the way. But they did
form the United Durham Corporation and got funding. So out of this UOCI
came UDI, and out of that came UDC, United Development Corporation,
which now has this tract of land off of Fayetteville Street, with this
industry coming in there, the industrial park. So the descendants of
UOCI, just like a family tree, it's still going and going
well. It looks like it's really going to make a significant
contribution.