Battle To End Segregation In Goldsboro Schools May Land In Court

Officials claim six schools in the Goldsboro city limits are composed of nearly 100 percent black students. Church leaders said the issue is not just a school issue, but a social and moral issue as well.

"We must have new vision, new leadership and a major overhaul in the way that we are doing school policy," said the Rev. William Barber. "We must do better by our children. We must call on this community to be better."

"We understand that diversity is important. We want our school to be diverse, but it's a very complicated issue," school board representative Stan Alleyne said.

Last week, school board members approved two measures hoped would cool the fire. They tightened a policy that lets students transfer from one school to another, and they approved a plan to upgrade and build new schools.

Community leaders said there is a problem with the $82 million building plan. Only $3 million of the money goes to city schools for superficial improvements like air conditioning and auditoriums.

The community groups plan to file a complaint with the Civil Rights Office in Atlanta on Wednesday. They also plan to pursue legal action against the county.

Community leaders plan to hold a public forum on the issue 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Antioch Baptist Church. They said they plan to take the issue to the U.S. Supreme Court if needed.