Students acknowledged at a Saturday meeting that improving the area's race relations will take some work, but they also fleshed out suggestions about how to do it.
The high-school students at the meeting were part of a youth task force formed by the Greenwood-Leflore County Chamber of Commerce. A total of 98 students between ninth and 12th grades volunteered to help with a community project, and 32 were selected at random to plan it.
Dorothy Robertson of Life Help Mental Health Center directed the meeting. Also on hand were Janice Moor, Lora Evans, Sheriel Perkins, Larry Griggs and Larry "Kite" Johnson.
At an earlier meeting, students filled out questionnaires about their perceptions of community race relations. On Saturday, they broke into groups to assess some facets of community life, such as religion and recreation.
On the subject of whether Greenwood is a good place to live, Pillow student Lee Brunson said yes, because the pace is laid-back and many people know each other.
However, Marshala Lee, a student at Greenwood High, said the race relations are bad. She mentioned that she is often watched warily in public places or looked at strangely because she wears baggy clothes.
"Until I start talking, people really don't respect me, or (they) look at me crazy," she said.
Nancy Powers, a student at Pillow, said she didn't see racial problems in her daily life but added that she doesn't know any black teens in town well. She said she used to attend a school in Tennessee where white and black students interacted naturally.
Much of Saturday's meeting was spent discussing recreational opportunities that might unify the community. The students suggested that building a community pool might help do this.
Perkins said that idea has been discussed before because the current pool can't accommodate the area it serves. However, no agreement could be reached about a site. For example, she said, some have suggested Whittington Park, but others weren't comfortable with putting it in that part of town.
Students suggested Saturday that someone might be encouraged to donate land for such a project.
Lee said bringing a Boys and Girls Club might help. Perkins said state Rep. May Whittington has been trying to bring a YMCA to the area.
But the participants agreed that any attempt to bring the races together will require changing some mindsets.
Many students don't interact with people who are different because their parents don't encourage them to do so, said Pillow Academy student Katharine Douglas. But teens can still take initiative to make things better, she said.
"That's the only way that Greenwood is going to change - if the youth takes it on and says, 'I want this community to be better, and I'm going to change it,'" she said.
She suggested holding activities for both parents and children, to put the parents at ease. For those not interested in swimming, there could be other activities such as basketball or volleyball, she said.
Powers said a new recreation program might start with small children, so they can "get used to the idea that different kinds of people are together."
Griggs said students might be open to the idea of interacting with others but might run into roadblocks if their parents object.
"The problem that you're going to face is whether or not the parents are comfortable with doing this," he said.
Still, he added, the young people can have an impact. A recreational endeavor might start with teens or younger children as long as the environment is controlled, he said.
Robertson agreed that students would be open to interacting more. She takes peer helper groups from Pillow and East elementary schools to large gatherings at sites such as Jekyll Island, where children of all races interact naturally. "They enjoy each other," she said.
Johnson cautioned the students about a frequent complaint made about this area - that there is no place to hang out. Just hanging out in large groups can lead to trouble, so it's better to have activities with some structure, he said.
He said a basketball tournament at the Civic Center for all schools, public and private, would generate plenty of interest.
"If those teams were to play at the Civic Center, who would not want to see that kind of competition?" he said.
Also in the survey, students were asked whether elected officials were responsive to their needs. That group responded that they didn't know many of these leaders and that maybe they could come to schools and speak about issues relevant to students.
Perkins, a member of the Greenwood City Council, responded that she does go to schools but spends most of that time around schools her children have attended. "I see now that I'm going to have to get out of my comfort zone and go around," she said.
Asked about the availability of church activities, the multidenominational group's responses varied depending on the churches. Some churches are more active because they have more members and other resources.
Robertson suggested putting together a conference in which students of different faiths could discuss their concerns. She also said churches from different areas of the community might be able to pool their resources to do things together.
The task force has agreed to meet once a month. It was decided that later meetings probably will be devoted to one topic each, such as recreation or the religious community.
The chamber sent task-force application forms to schools and some churches and then selected students from each school. Those represented are Greenwood High School, Leflore County High School, J.Z. George High School, Greenwood Alternative School, Pillow Academy and Carroll Academy.
