Portland observer., June 08, 1972, Page 2, Image 2

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Portland/Observer Thursday, June 8, 1972
Black Caucus
condemns Nixon
The N o rth w e s t1» Best W e e k ly
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\ s s t . P u b lis h e r b u siness m anage!
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_
Ilx r A
P e rso n n e l and P ro d u c tio n M an a g e r
V\ny e n -ieous r e tie c : >on upon th e c h a r a c te i, sta n d in g o i re p ­
u ta tio n ot .x rso n , lir m oi co i p o ra tio n ,w hich m ay ap p ea r in the
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b rought to the a tte n tio n of the E d ito r .
The
Editor’s
Desk
ALFRED
LEE HENDERSc'N
No justice for Angela
Angela Davis is innocent. A white jury has determ ined what
most blacks have known, that Angela Davis was innocent of the
crimes with which she was charged.
But what of the months M iss Davis spent in ja il awaiting a
trial in which the jurors took only thirteen hours to reject the
state's evidence’’ What of the months she was confined when
state law said she should have been out on bail? W hat about
the damage to her health brought about by ja il conditions and
lack of proper medical care? And what of the thousands of dol­
lars she and her friends spent on her defense that could have
beer, used constructively to assist the oppressed? Can the
American system of justice now remove these injustices
to an innocent person?
We cannot call it justice when the combined forces of 'he State
of California and the Lnited States government were brought to
bear on one young black woman whose only crim e was her com­
passion for a black man, George Jackson, who because of m i­
nor crimes and political beliefs spent most of his young life in
jail and was murdered there, and because of her concern for
thousands of black men and women suffering s im ila r fates
Why were hundreds of thousands of dollars spent to bring Miss
Davis to tria l - the full extent of the police power of the United
States used to pursue her, special facilities built to confine her,
and a propoganda campaign waged to condemn her? Of what sig­
nificance to the national interest is one young black woman? Was
it to remind us that no black can be allowed to call attention to
the inequities in the Lnited States, to bring concern for the plight
of prisoners in the United States, to declare belief in another
system of government - and yet be allowed to be free?
The Angela Davis case should not make us rejoice in
the “ white man’ s ju s tic e *. It should not deter us from the fact
that a black cannot have a fa ir tria l in the United States - or in
Oregon. It should make us more aware of the racism in
the judicial process. F o r if someone as prominent as Angela
Davis can be deprived of her position as a University professor
and can be held m jail for nearly two years when guilty fo r no
crim e - then what can happen to the rest of us?
It is clear that the protection of the law is not applied to the
black and the m inorities, to the poor and oppressed, to the young
and the political activist.
The Angela Davis case should make us think about Portland.
Portland - where there are few blacks on juries, where blacks
are routinely removed from the juries of Wack defendants,
where there is an all-white district attorney's office and a near­
ly all-white police force, where the city ja il is among the worst
in the country and where black inmates of the county ja il claim
discrimination and lack of medical care.
If injustices car. be heaped upon Angela Davis in the full view
of the world - what can happen to an unknown black in the courts
and jails of Oregon?
Blanchard offers:
Segregation
or elimination
Last week the Portland Observer predicted a plan to remove
the children from the schools of Albina. Friday, D r. E anchard.
Superintendent of the Portland Public Schools, told the C ity Club
that he advocates the removal of all "low -incom e" children
from their communities to schools in other areas of the city.
Educational research shows that "disadvantaged” children
H i m best in a setting where they are with children of higher
income levels. There are many reasons for this - resources,
teacher attitudes, peer expectations. We fully agree that eco­
nomic and racial mixture is a proper goal for the Portland Put>
lie School D istrict at this tim e.
But D r. Blanchard proposed the removal of children from such
low-income areas of the city as Albina, Sunnyside, Buckman.
Brooklyn and the closing or conversion of their schools to other
purposes.
Communities need th eir schools. Rather than escape to the
*ifxirt>s the Portland Public Schools should become an integral
pan of the community. Why not bring In middle-class white
children to provide the appropriate social mixture and b ru <
i^iallty education lb every community? Why always place the
burden on black children and poor children?
Has the Portland School D istrict only two alternatives to of­
fer - segregation or elimination?
The Observer’ » official position u expressed only la Ba Pub­
lisher’ s Column (The Obeervttwn Poet) and the Editor*• Deak.
Any other material throughout the paper is the opinion ot the » -
dividual w riM r or autaniner and doe* not neceasariiv r e f - c i
the opinion of the Observer.
We a ie not surprised at President Nixon's decision to mine
North Vietnam harbors.
Nor are we surprised that the Peace Movement, mainly
white has responded with protests and demonstrations all across
the country.
\nd we are pleased that the Congressional Black Caucus
has so soundly criticized Nixon fo r this new, arrogant escalation
ot the war against the Vietnamese.
It is clear to us that the arrogance which allows President
Nixon to risk the holocaust of a Third World W a r is the same
arrogance which allowed him to neglect the critic a l needs of
millions of Black children by vetoing theC hildC are Center B ill,
by his anti-bussing stand and by his anti-Black, anti-poor eco-
lomic policies.
Nixon is dangerous to our interests and to
international peace as w ell.
Perhaps it is time fo r Black people everywhere to coalesce
and develop joint action programs with the Peace Movement
in a massive campaign to end the war and direct the w ar dollar
to pressing domestic needs.
However, we must recognize the Peace Movement fo r what
It is.
\¡though we have some common interests with white Peace
activists, we must remember that not since the 1963 March On
Washington has there been a massive demonstration m support
fro m the Peace Movement of the many issues that most directly
a ffe c t the Black community .
We believe the Peace Movement wil’ have little chance of
durab.e success in ending our government’ s involvement in
V ietnam without the meaningful participation of masses of
P ack people. Concurrent with any coalition of Blacks over the
Peace issues, must be firm commitments from leaders of the
Peace Movement to incorporate into its activities vital issues of
major concern to Black Americans.
The Congressional Black
Caucus joined th eir liberal and
Democratic colleagues In the
resounding chorus of condem­
nation following I ’ resident N i­
xon’ s announcement of hises-
calation of the war in Vietnam .
Following N i x o n ’ s an­
nouncement over national te l-
ev is ion that he had ordered the
mining of the harbors of North
Vietnam and Increased bomb­
ing, the Congressional Black
Caucus issued a statement
strongly critical of “ Nixon's
latest and most barbarous acts
of war in the Indochina the­
a tre ."
The statement was issued by
Representative Louis Stokes
in behalf of the 13 m em hercau-
cus. Referring to the P re s i-
denc's move, Che Caucus said,
"H e has acted without the con­
sent of Congress, in violation
of the United States Constitu­
tion; he has defied established
canons of international law and
the wishes of the American
people.'*
They called on Congress to
f o r c e a suspension of the
bombing and an end to the
blockade. "W e urge our Con­
gressional colleagues and the
American people to work for
the speedy enactment of this
legislation, because as long as
this war remains outside the
control of Congress in the
hands of the President, the
needless tragic and daily
bloodbath w ill go on."
This land is your land
(But the entrance fees may go up)
Ron Hendrtn
IN WASHINGTON
l egislation has been pend­
ing In Congress since early
last year io restore the popu­
lar Golden Eagle Passports,
• program of low-cost admis­
sion to our national parks.
program Is almost as uncer­
tain as ever. With summer
approaching,
the situation
should le cause (or concern
among many citizens who en­
joy the outdoors.
The passports, which cost
$10 per year and allow (he
d river and passengers of a ve­
hicle access to a la rge number
of federal parks, have re­
ceived wide public acceptance
over the past few years. How­
ever, continuation of the pro­
gram is opposed by tie De­
partment of the Intel Iorwhich
seeks to raise the costs of us­
ing park lands.
Dixier S. 1893, (he Senate
bill, the program would (« e x ­
tended arel passports would
cost $10 annually, the tame
price charged Iasi year. C iti­
zens 65 and oilier could ra­
re I ve the permits at no cost.
A ” super’ * Golden Eagle
could he putrhased (or $25
($15 for those 65 and up) which
would allow fam ilies to ulilize
.ieslgtuted camping facilities
at no additional charge.
Proposals to extend the
Golden Eagle program were
passed both by (he Senate and
the House of Representatives,
but in different versions. A
joint conierence committee,
appointed to iron out (lie dif­
ferences, met twice in March
of this year.
But no bill was forthcoming
and the committee has not
scheduled further meetings.
Thus, the future of S. 1893 and
the Golden Eagle Passport
Thousands of Americans
enjoy (heir parks every year.
And they should. After a ll. It
was tax funds which pure ha sexi
these lands in the firs t place.
Ami while officials of the In­
te rio r Iwpartmeni have heen
.«legated (he responsibility of
managing our federal parks
and wilderness areas, they do
not own them. These lands a re
an important part of American
lierttage and one of the keys (o
maintaining a healthy environ­
ment. T h e ir use should 1«
available to all, and the De­
partment should not have the
authority to end a w idely-ac­
cepted and reasonable pro
gram or to set entrance fees
(hat might well le prohibitive
for some fam ilies.
(p u r example, the Depart­
ment lias proposed to charge
a $4 tee | « r (« n o n Instead of
the $10 fee for fam ilies. For
large, low-Income fam ilies of
eight, ten or m o r e , the annual
cost might approach $40 ami
simply be too high to afford.)
There still are children in
thia country who have never
v ia l toil a forest, or seen a
deer, or heard the music of a
fresh mountain stream as il
tumbles down to the valley
talow, somewhere Io join a
parent riv e r which more like­
ly than no! is already poIIxitexl.
Something of all that once
was must he preserved, must
l«long to each of us, become a
part of all of us, and at a price
even (he poorest among us can
afford. Such a proposal la S,
1893, pending inCongtess now
for more than one year.
WASHINGTON
BRIEFS
Change in social services needed
A [department of Housing
and L rban i level opment of­
ficial emphasized the need
for basic change in the in­
stitutions, public policies and
attitudes that shape the lives
of the central city poor.
Addressing National Fed­
eration of Settlements and
N e ig h b o r h o o d C e n t e r s
at the Pick-Congress Hotel
in Chicago for its 47th bi­
e n n ia l
conference, HUD
General Assistant Secretary
Samuel C . Jackson called fo r
re-assessement and change
in basic premises of the sys­
tem of social services fo r
inner-city residents.
The need for change is
Letters
to the Editor
Outlook beautiful
D e a r E d ito n
In one of your recent publi­
cations I was reading an a rti­
cle about M r.H a ro ld W illiam s
anc his observation of people
In Y u g o s l a v i a . Curious
thoughts run through all our
minds at tim es. We tend to
imagine how it would feel to
live in, fo r example. Africa
or even to visitH aw aii,w here
some people of ter. dream of
but can’ t afford. Experiencing
new languages and studying
the living pattern of different
people is a wonderful feeling
to add to one’ s life .
If it was possible to grant
every person in the world
the opportumry to see and
visit our distant countries we
would certainly change our
basic attitudes and maybe even
appreciate people more.
I think M r . W illiam s has a
beautiful outlook on life and
as one of the most outstanding
Black Men he truly contributes
his part of knowledge to our
Society Young and Old.
W e are never too smart that
we can’ t learn more about
ourselves and other people.
Our country is constantly
battling in Viet Nam. we’ re
fighting W elfare programs.
Housing Projects, anti still we
don’t understand the stressing
need to ready help each other
and this is really a reflecting
ordeal that w ill be passed on
to our children in years to
come. We must not give up
what we have been fighting for
so long -E Q U A L IT Y and SI R-
V IV A L In everyday life.
Like the remem be rance of
Luther King J r . and John P ,
Kennedy, both very deter­
mined men. who truly bel leved
in a nation of Peace, Love,
Non-Violence and better sys­
tems, I feel we should carry on
the broken confusing parts and
make them become not a
dream but true R E A LIT Y . So
thanks to M r.H a ro ld W illia m s
for his B E A L T IF I I. W R IT ­
INGS, 1 shall, as one. continue
hoping for a change,
by Elizabeth Ann Churchwell
Still "Niggers
D ear Editor:
Recently 1 have been read­
ing M r . Lenwood Davis* a r­
ticles ’ ’A s I See It” . In reading
his articles, I have become
more aware of things that are
happening in the Black Com­
munity and the city of Port­
land.
I
was particularly
pleased to sea that someone fi­
nally bed the guts Co speak out
on our so called black "M iddle
Class” .
It Is past time fo r all Black
People in Portland to realize
that no m atter where we live,
how we live, or who we live
with, in this country, we are
»till classified ae ’ Nigger»’ ’ .
It only take» one white man.
woman, or child to »peak this
one word to bring u» back to
»»
where we never should have
left, and that la with our own.
This should not he. It should
never take someone who is a
part of this violent, sick, so­
ciety to tell us what we already
k n o w . To the black "M iddle
Class” , lfyouexist.1 say wake
up before this society destroys
you as it is destroying itself.
To M r . Davis, I say, get down
with it, keep on telling it like
it is and maybe some day, we
as individuals and as a people
w ill finally wakeup: and to you
M r . E d ito r, I say, “ RightOn”
in the truest sense of the
words!
Where are our nation build­
ers?
A. J . Allen
evident. M r . Jackson said,
"in the every-day lives of
those
who are still til—
housed, hungry, poorly edu­
cated, untrained and isolated
from the larger society; the
evidence Is strong in urban
and suburban communities
where equal rights and fa ir
‘ cusing have yet to become
r e a litie s
for blacks and
minorities.
"And it is equally strong
in the fact that minority people
suffer more from lead paint
poisoning, cancer, m alnutri­
tion. high infant mortality
rates, unemployment, under­
employment, and all the other
negative aspects of society,"
he declared.
M r. J a c k s o n
identified
public policies that perpetuate
such conditions in innerclties
as "th e same policies that
dictate the who, what and how
of social w elfare. We need
to reexamine our basic philo­
sophy about what people who
need help really need. If our
institutions are Incapable of
dealing with the realities of
what Is and what is not needed,
then we must change our basic
premises to those which are
real and w ill w ork."
M r . Jackson cited several
HUD policy changes and Ini­
tiatives resulting from the
agency’ s own reassessment,
among them:
the new pro­
ject selection crite ria pre­
venting mass concentrations
of public housing in central-
city areas; development of
affirm ative marketing guide­
lines requiring all sponsors
of HLD-assisted housing to
actively solicit buyers o r
tenants of all races; fa ir hous­
ing guidelines to eliminate
discrim inatory
advertising;
and HUD*» collaborative role
with the Justice Department
m prosecution ofFairHousing
Law violators.
“ HUD w ill not support pro­
jects that merely provide
more housing In areas that
are neglected In all other
aspects, and serve only to con­
fine part of the population to
those blighted area s," he told
the group. "W e w ill nolonger
perm it our programs to be
used to beep people dependent
and restricted. If a city really
wants to help. It w ill want
good h o u s in g and a l l the
amenities and public service
that go with It, and It w ill
want to provide these ser­
vices In all locations at all
p rice s."
M r.
Jackson urged the
members of the Fade ration to
develop their own igenda to
accelerate provision of full
lousing opportunities for all
races In the conventional
housing m arket. He suggested
they challenge basic premises
and housing Inequities within
their respective communities,
end lend their full support
to development of fa ir share
housing plans expanding hous­
ing opportunities throughout
their urban and suburban
areas.
I he administration quietly
has reorganized the dwindling
Head Stan Program for needy
pre-school children and shift­
ed project D irecto r Richard
E , Orton to an assignment
in Texas, L'PI learned.
The changes, effective im­
mediately, are not expected
to have any immediate effect
on more than 1,660 local Head
Stan programs that offer chil­
dren of the poor medical,
nutritional, educational anil
other pre-school services
But the long-range effect will
he to mesh head s u r f with
other child service programs.
The number of Head Stan
children has been declining
since 1966, when 733,000 were
enrolled, to an estimated 383,
000 this year, because of a
shift of emphasis from sum­
m er programs to more ex­
pensive fu ll-ye ar projects.
«8
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The Agency for Internation­
al Development has announced
grants by the LUS. Government
to Israel and to Burundi. Israel
gets $50 mil Hon while the Cen­
tral African nation receives
$100,000.
The funds w ill be used by the
T el-A viv government in re­
senting Jewish immigrants,
particularly those from the
Soviet Union. The grant for
Burundi goes to Iximamtarlan
relief for 50,000 refugee fam­
ilies n u m b e r in g between
300,000 and 500,000 persons.
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