|
Thomasville Times ACCR bus draws puzzled looks in GH |
|||
|
May 22, 2003 GROVE HILL - Several folks riding by the Grove Hill United Methodist Church last Thursday morning had to slow down and take a close look at the vehicle parked out front. Right in front of the entrance to the sanctuary sat a school bus covered in writing. The bus was not the victim of a prank. Rather, it is a "rolling petition" containing the names of school children from across the state and it is being taken from county to county and from town to town by the Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform, a group whose aim is to get rid of the 1901 Constitution and to replace it with a modern document that addresses Alabama's problems today. Kevin Garrison, a recent engineering graduate of the University of Alabama, has been driving the bus across the state. "We let the kids sign their names on the bus at each school," Garrison said. Not all the messages, though, pertained to constitutional reform. In between messages calling for a new constitution were more earthy sayings, like "Who's Yo' Daddy!" and "Seniors Rule!" Still, Garrison said the bus serves an educational purpose because the students get to hear the group's message about constitutional reform. Inside the church, a group of local leaders attended a community meeting, sponsored by the Clarke County Commission and the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce. Dr. Carl Ferguson, a professor at the University of Alabama, was the keynote speaker at the meeting. Dr. Ferguson pointed out that Alabama is made up of two economies - one rural and one urban. He said the gaps between the two economies continues to grow with urban areas becoming more prosperous while rural areas are becoming more poor. The professor noted that has led to other inequities, from transportation and economic development to education. He argued for greater local control of government and education and said a new constitution could achieve those ends. Garrison followed Ferguson on the program and laid out the case for constitutional reform. Return to: Constitutional Reform ~ In the News Return to: Editorial Index |
|||
| Alabama Citizens for
Constitutional Reform Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box 34 Montgomery, Alabama 36101-0034 E-mail: accr@constitutionalreform.org |
|||
| Home Page | Return to Top of Page | |||
|