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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 17, 1972)
k / Editorials from Oregon History Ler's Keep G rants Pass a W bite M an's Town (b rorrt page editor lal - Southern Oregon Spec tator May 24, 1924) f * w . W illia m s Avonue looking north taken in 1920. ( Photo C ourtesy of Oregon llis t o i leal Society ) foreground T iv o li th e a te r. Senator Williams of Oregon; Author of Radical Senator G e o ig e It. W il to take the [o llttc a l conse- (uerues ol id e c is lo n , tire Con A lb in a , who made (u e g o o 's vention deckled to put ibe issue f ir s t e o u it decision involving to a vote of the people. T h is sla very and Is credited w ith question, as w ell as the Con preventing I it egon’ s liecom lng s titu tio n , was to le voied on a slave slate, w rote lias I en- N o ve m t« i of 1857. ur e -o f-( iff ice A c t, w ro te tire Dur mg the months p ie c e d - R econstruction Laws and le d ing t h e electio n, d e b a t e tire Impeachment proceedings reached a fever p itch and tlie re ■gainst P resident Johnson, lie was sei lous p ro b a b ility that fought for lire lig h ts of blacks slavei y would 1« acceded ut anti so for title d h is cai e e r, but O regon. A t th is tim e Judge in old a g e succumbed to t n e - W illia m s w io te his “ F l e e gon's “ soutirer n e x p o s u ie ". Slate L e tte r“ I n t h e O r e g o n George H. W illia m s a r r ived Statesman, which is credited hi O iegon in lus t, having been w ith turning tlie tide f r o m appointed the in st C hief Jus sla ve ry. A voiding them o r a I tice of lire C ourt of tire r n egon and legal Issue, W illia m s said I et r llo r y at ttie age of 30.( me s la v e iy should 1« avoided in <rf i fie f u s t cases Ire heal d was (n egon («cause It was not the pe tition by Robin Holm es, p ia c ttc .il (oi tin s a re a . Indus- a fo rm e r slave, to have fils t i y w a s seasonal a n d slaves c h i l d r e n d e c l a r e d 11 e e . would be co stly to suppoit d u r Holmes^ hie w ife ind his hil ing long months of in a c tiv ity , dr err, and another black man sm all fa rm s and lu in le t mg had been brought to ( ti egon by were not conduslve to tlie use a sluve-holdet f i oui M issout t. ■ ' , I W . I he three adults had obtained dangei of escaped slaves jo in then own fie c d o m , but the ing wai mg Indians. Children were field by th e ir 1 1« Constitution was adop- ow ner, Nathaniel For d . F ord ted try Hie ,«o ple on Novem - claim ed tie slaves had b e e n l« i 9, 1857. I hey turned down his p io fie ity le ga lly in M is sla very by a 4 to I vote. I le y s o u ri, and that a fte i lie had also voted, by an 8 to I m a r brought them to Oregon lie had gin, to Ira i i I m lesktence of I i r e d tlie adults tu t re ta in « ! blacks in O iegon. T h is was a the c litld ie n , whom be planned continuation of laws of t ie to fre e at the age of 21. Judge P ro v is io n a l and T e r r it o r ia l W illia m s returned the c h il C ovei nm euts. ( j i egon was ad d re n to the care amt custody of m itted to t ie ( nion on F e h iu - th e ir parents, stating t h a t r V ! l , |g$9. “ without some p o sitive le g is W Illia in s was a I lem ocrat in la tive enactment establishing a predom inantly D e m ocratic sla very tie ie , it did not and .state. He had been populai w ith Could not exist in ( n egon.“ .As p o litic ia n s ami a m em bei of far as is k n o w n th is was the t ie “ Salem C liq u e ” which last attempt to hold slaves le dominated Oregon p o litic s . g a lly in Oregon. " 1th the publishing of his “ I i«e staw i m w i “ , t.e aeon Fot years Oregon had ag i lor t favo r w ith t ie p a rty . W i l tated to become a state, fee l iu m s hod am b itio ns of h e u ^ ing oppress«! by l e r u t o i ia l one of O regon's f ir s t senator s, r u l e Irom W ashington, D.C. but when the le g is la tu re met Statehood was connected with the s la ve iy question, («cause to e I e c t, le was not chosen. It was necessary tod ete in lin e He again pre se n t« ! h im se lf lor ele ctio n w len t ie term - ex whethei O ie g o n would enter tlie Union as a fre e state or as p ire d in IMbUamt 1801 and again a slave state, o ie g o n was at w len senator B ake r was k ille d tn 1802, Ixil was not elected un that tim e predom inantly I le m - t i l 1804. By tle n the p o litic a l o c ru tlc anil m ost in flu e n tia l situation had changed, w ith t ie D em ocrats were sym pathetic D em ocrats s p lit in to two fac w ith t h e p io - s la v e iy v te w - tions and a sm all Republican potnt. None was a b o litio n is t. p a rty a llie d w ith t ie Union Although not yet adm itted as a I lenrocr ats. state, ■ C o nstitutio na l Con vention was cal 1er I in June of )V ith ln a month otW illia m s ' 1857 to w i tie a State C o n stitu a r r iv a l in W ashington, th e tio n . Unable to reach a d e ci C iv il W .ire n d e il. W llh a m s te - sion on s la v e iy ami u n w illin g came a Republican, op,weed lia m s , one of the founders of P re sid e n t Johnson and teeam e a rad ica l i econstt uctrom st. D u ring th is period le was in flu e n tia l on the s id e of those w tro advocated a m i l i t a r y rule in t ie South. He was the authoi of the I e n u re -in -o flic e A ct, which was designed to prevent P reside nt Andrew Johnson fro m replacing L in coln appointees. H e w ro te th e R econstruction A ct, w h ic h placed t ie C o n le le ra te States In t ie harxlsof m ilita r y g o ve r nors and planned t ie r eo rga ni zation a n d t« co n stru ctio n of t ie South. He supported t l« 13th, 14th, amt 15th Am end m ents ami was a strong advo- i ate of t ie black vote. Senator W illia m s was one of t ie lead e rs of the unsuccessful u n - peachment p r o c e e d in g s against P resident Johnson. These a c tiv itie s c o s t him support in Oregon. A ll ele m ents in Oregon w e r e vehe ment in the dental of th e d e s i- r a b ility of em ancipation and tn tlie11 denunciation of the a b o li tio n is ts . T I« e a rlie r a n ti black attitud es and the d e s ire to tem aln ap art fro m p ro b lem s of sla ve ry continued durin g tlie w ar y e a r s . The S o u tl« rn secessionists ami the N o rth e rn a b o litio n is ts were acco rd« ! equal blam e for t h e w a r. Oregon s e n t no troops and no support fot the w a r a l though individual c i t i z e n s fought on both sides. T 1« I8b5 State Senate pass«1 the 13th Amendm ent but the House refused to vote. 11« 18«' I e g lsIa trve A sse in b ly ra tifie d the 14th Amendment; the 1868 L e g is la tu re repealed the ■ ra tific a tio n ami asked Sena to rs W illia m s and H e n ry C o r- bett to resign. T he l87O Legrs- a ltu re r e j e c t e d the 15th Amendment a n d resolved “ th a t the s o - c a lle d 15th Amendment is an infringem ent u p o n popular rig h ts ami a d i r e c t fa ls ific a tio n o f th e pledges made to the state of Oregon by the federal govern m e n t." The O regonian said of it « black vote, “ Ib e man who knowing tire situa tion and ignorance of the A fric a n race in oui cou ntry, favo rs the ex tension of the p riv ile g e s of c i tizenship to them is sure ly re c k le s s ." 1 he D e m ocratic State Convention of I8b8 was “ opposed to shar ing w ith the s e rv ile races the p ric e le s s p o litic a l heritage a ch le v«] alone by white men and by them tra n sm itte d to th e ir po ste r it y . " U n til 1872 the question of black rig h ts dom inated O re gon p o litic s although fe w blacks lived in the state. Senator W illia m s re a lize d his actions would not b rin g him fa vo r In O regon. He w r o te ," I am w e ll aware that there is in Oregon a wide spread p re ju d ice against the negro race and have no doubt that m y course in le fe re n c e t-iw , a » « » . dw-a i ipii'üW W diftïffl Grants Pass has always been a white m an’ s town and there Is no reason under the shining sun why it shouldn't continue to te a white m an's town. I he fact that th is is a white man’ s country here irr this wonderful Rogue R ive r V a lle y has brought the best of the white race here and such population w ill bring the cream of the white race here in the fu tu re . I he attitudes of the [reople ol this peaceful, law abiding com munity toward the encroachment of the black, brown or red fates of t l« land, or the wot Id for that m a tte r is: NIGGER WE DON’T WANT YOL HERE - AND WE WON'T HAVE YCM HERS - YCX HAD BETTER ROLI UP YCXJR BED AN RIDE - n o s IS r o BE A W HITE M A N ' Ct NTRY, YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND FDREVER. WHO WANTS G R A M S PASS IO BE T HE SCENE OF A RACE R ID I? WHO WAN IS TO SEE the p ro p e rty values slum p in Josephine County? Who wants to see the handiwork of years pass into t l« hands of a designing black race who don’ t belong in Oregon and who w ill only cause trouble if they tr y to come here? F oreigners of any kind are not wanted in this com m unity that is made up of peacelul white people who are stiv in g to live, move and have th e ir liv in g in peace with the W0 under the law that God has la id down fo r man to obey . . . to the F re e d m an’ s Bureau and t l« C iv il Rights B ill w ill b e u n sa tisfa c- to ry to some of my fr ie n d s ." W illia m s was defeated in his bid fo r re -e le c tio n . He was appointed to the o ffic e of A t torne y-G ene ral of the United States by P re sid e n t G rant and was unanim ously c o n firm « ! by t l « senate. In 1873 he was n o m in a t« lb y G rant as C h ief Ju stice of tr« United states Supreme C o u rt. Strong opposition in O regon, as w ell as social in d is c re tio n s on the p a rt of his w ife , caused P re sid e n t G rant to request his w ith d ra w a l. W illia m s returned to O re gon and in 1902, at tire age of 79, he was e le c t« l M a yo r of P o rtla n d . H is term of o ffice was m «H ocre and w ithout s ig nificance to black i ’ or tlan de rs who had expected him to b rin g r e lie f fro m re s tric tiv e p ra c tice s. In his old age, speaking o f his life as a Judge, and Sena to r, and A tto rn e y-G e n e ra l, he said, " T h e r e is litt le doubt that in the controver sy over the re s to ra tio n of the r e f« l states much was saidanddone by both p a rtie s that m ig ht f e t te r have teen om itted, but it m ust be rem em bered that w h ile the clash of a rm s had ceased, the clash of le eling s had not subsided, and it was im p ossib le to subdue these feelings at once w ith the close o f the w a r as it would he to stop the waves of the ocean af te r a tem pest had s tir r e d it to its depths. 1 took an active p a rt in these proceedings fro m the beginning to the end, am) now In review ing the sub je c t, I do not see that 1 made any serious m istake s, unless It was w ith r« g ro s u ffra g e ." The Oregonian - e d ito ria l. M ay 20, 1905 It is obvious that any place of public amusement would speedily loose patronage it it were not understood that c e rta in d iscrim in a tio n s would 1« made. If one per s o n - a Chinaman fo r example - has a rig h t to buy any seat in the house and s it in it, so many other persons - a Hotentot, o r a woman of no torio us reputation - do the same thing, ft is not a question is to whether a w hite man objects to s ittin g next to a C h i n a - ■nan. It is sim p ly a w ell-know n fact that 1« does object, and the theater m ust gover n its e lf acco rding’v . It may be assumed that a s e lf-ie s p e c tin g person, like the p la in tiff in the case ju s t decided by Judge F ra z e r, w ill not hereafter in this state tr y to in frin g e upon the rules that forbid persons of his co lo r f i om oerrrg seated in c e rta in p a rts of the t h e a t e r . It is fa ir to presume that no such per son d e s i r e s to Intrude where he is not wanted, and where, were he to suc ceed in gaining entr ance, he would be subjected to glances of su rp rise if not of contempt and indignation. F act, not ju s tic e in ti« abstract en ters into th is contention. Colored People are wise who accept conditions that they can- ru t change oi co n tro l, inc go t.’.eir way c h e e rfu lly , re a liz in g that, a fte r a ll, their condition in th is c o u n try is much im proved over that of th e ir ancestor s of a century o r two ago. 11« social status, whether of races o r in d ivid u a ls cannot be li<ed by act of Cong ess, nor by force in any d ire c tio n , o r from any source. The F ra z e r decision was made to cover all (versons . . . but it is su ffic ie n tly spe cific to give colored persons a hint that, if taken in a frie n d ly s p ir it, w ill p ro te ct ite m fro m annoyance and d is c o m fitu re upon th is score in the future. The decision of JudgeFrazer in the case is p r ob a b I y good law, it is c le a rly good sense. (T his decision supported a c o u rt decision that upheld the rig h t of a theater to refuse to honor a box seat tic k e t purchased by D iv e r T a y lo r, a black pullm an c a r conductor. The decision was upheld by the Oregon Supreme C o urt.) he ( regoman - e d ito ria l, September 2b, 1909 J W ork, fo r which negroes are fitte d , ami encouragement to l«erform it, rather than agitation along p o litic a l and social 1 nes , is the cue to the dev elopm ent and usefulness of the negro dice in A m erica, as fu rn is h « ! by that s ta lw a rt man of the race. Hooker I . Washington. T l« South draw s a sharp line a ttire kind of labor these people are f it t « l fo r, and is in sista n t that they keep the place assigned to an in fe rio r race in the social and p o litic a l w o rld by the sacred tra d itio n of the old South. I his is not strange. It would be strange, indeed, if it were otherw ise. The negro, ch e e rfu l, subm issive, resp ectful, even lazy, when le ft to his own in d u s tria l in e l’"« tion a holds a place in the hearts of Southern people fro m which he is totally- excluded in the N o rth . It is only when they essay to become fa cto rs in t l« p o litic a l life of the state, o r assume the swag gerin g a ir of social eq ua lity, o r yie ld in g to g ro ss anim al in stin cts, become v e rita b le untamed beasts that the race question takes a serious im p o rt in the South. Ul-ßj/Ui&ul d u r in g E x tr a c tio n s and using I he in te llig e n t A fro -A m e ric a n wants to be m easured by the standard of manhood, ami not by c o lo r. They do not ask special favo rs, nor do they want lifts from the governm ent, but we do want t l« rig h t to walk as men unimpeded. The P ortland New Age - e d ito ria l N ovem ber 17, 190b (The New Age was a black owned newspaper P ortland fro m 189b u n til 190b) published in The Negroes m ust be accepted as p a rt of the c itiz e n ry of the country ami treated acco rdingly. If they vio la te the la w s punish them . Encourage them by a ll possible means to w ork, to 1« industrious and honest and to become independent. But they are not to be exterm inated nor e xp a tria te d . T here is no ne«! of fu ll social e q ua lity, and it is not o r should not be desired on one side m ore than on the oth e r. I hee is no social equality among w hite («ople e ith e r am! no g ie a t fuss is made about it. But colored people ought to be accorded th e ir p o litic a l rig h ts ami encouraged to p riz e A m e r i can citize n sh ip by p o litic a l recognition. If both races would behave them selves Letter ami w o rk m ore and talk less, ami each attend to its own business, and recognize o th e r's rig h ts , the “ race“ problem would soon dw indle into in sign ifica nce . F IL L IN G S Sodium Pentothal W H E N DESIR ED R e g ia f e r e r f A w e s f f c e liif in 4 < < e n 4 « w e e No Appointment Necessary j " I m m e d ia te " ' DENTURES JIEDITJ Pay in Smell MMithly A mnanti S a m e U a y • IN MOST CASIS « befo,. >o . m We W.II Try to Dsfatsr y o u Denture» by 4 p m Som« Day A ll D e n ta l ___ IN S U R A N C E A cc ep te d llwrenee D nroA .iilib Im ojrO flic« j The Advocate - e d ito ria l Decem ber 12, 1908 (The Advocate was a black owned newspaper e sta b lish « ! in P ortland in 1903. It was publish« ! u n til 1928 by E .D . Cannady and Rev. V\. W, Mathews,) C E N T IS T V ji .& j M u L S tre e t Level D E N T IS T 5 1 5 s w Ave. B e tw e e n A ld e r 4 W a s h in g to n Phi,nt- 227-2127 U l l i , , litu i,, ''a I,-m „ml ! itarin' AKOA- lOT 2nd t id S W M .,,, m Three programs in one to help you lose wetont and keep it off! The Mew V'tght Witchers’ program. I A FROE.RAM Many black cowboys r u le the range In the w est. Above, an un- Id e n tlfl« ! black cowboy rid es “ 11« F o o t” at the Pendleton Roundup. ( Oregon H is to ric a l Society Photo ) JOIN ANY CLASS ANYTIME T H E ELOQUENT N orth P ortland: Mondays - 7:30 p .m ., Thur sdays - 9:30 a.m . C a rp e n te r's H a ll, 2225 N. Lom bard St. C O Î-O B *© Tuesdays - 7:30 p .m . H A L L , St. John Lutheran C hurch, 4227 N. Lom bard St. N o rth ea st P ortla nd : T hursdays - 7:00 p.m . Em anuel H o spita l, 3001 N o rth Gantenbew E xtend«! C are B uilding - C om m unity Room Saturdays - 9:30 a.m . M aranatha E va n g e listic C enter, 1222 N .I.. Skidm ore F o r other cla ss locations, days and tim e s, TITS IH 1 E m iN f i, APRIL Mlb IS 70. Sr bjk . r • Tin- tirlo rr,. Citizen and Ihr Hallat." W hat hr w ill ill <l<> with il—A review of ih r Pant amt Prrurirt—T h r Kaihit and a Klimpar Ilf »nr 111 I lire , nmí I í < h i . a d m is s io n rirrv c en ts , (P ay ab le at the I loot | Hour* epen a< 1 - Inrb (See H N ra»«a «•«*»«» | Mpeeking tM m .nNM » a« * I. e ln rk MAINTE N A h K f D th W EIG H T WATCHERS MR. GEO P. RILEY, W ill Npeak at n iT T T iII A A M O N IO IIV IIIN C R IA N I'rwee and ( 'fe rs t re s i» . if u ll. , 1 7 rwepe« i i u i i j i Two unidentified black cooks pose on the steps of the Southern P a c ific dining ca i In 1919.( P ho toC o urtesy of Oregon H is to ric a l Society ) An u n td e n tifi« ! black woman, probably fro m P ortla nd . (Photo c a ll 288-6388. Com tesy of Oregon H is to ric a l Society) « i