Portland observer., February 15, 1973, Page 2, Image 2

Page 2
Portland/O bserver Thursday February 15, 1*73
The
Editor’s
Desk
ALFRED
LEE HENDERSON
WE SEE THE WORLD
THROUGH BLACK EYES.
Steps
in History
Racism still prevails
George Washington Bush
crossed the plains with the
wagon train of 1845. Not al­
lowed to remain in the W ll-
lamette Valley, he settled
north of the Columbia, be­
coming the firs t American
settler In what Is now Wash­
ington. This fact strength­
ened the U.S. claim to that
te rrito ry .
The h is to ry o f Black p e o p le in th e U n ite d States is
a s tru g g le fo r fre e d o m . The s tru g g le in O re g o n has
b e e n d iffic u lt a n d fu ll fre e d o m has not y e t b e e n
o b ta in e d .
B lack p e o p le h a v e a lw a y s b e e n re stricte d a n d
p re v e n te d fro m ta k in g th e ir p ro p e r p la c e in th e
p o litic a l, e c o n o m ic , e d u c a tio n a l a n d so cial life o f
th e c o m m u n ity .
In th e e a rly d a ys Blacks w e re
p ro h ib ite d fro m re s id in g in O re g o n , a n d those w h o
w ith o u t th e p ro te c tio n o f th e la w .
A lth o u g h law s p ro h ib itin g re s id e n c e w e re not
strictly e n fo rc e d , th e y c re a te d a n a tm o s p h e re .
W h ite s c o u ld p ra c tic e racism w ith th e fu ll s u p p o rt o f
On
F ebruary
14th
O re g o n ia n s
w ill
p ro u d ly
c e le b ra te the b irth d a y o f th e ir state.
But w h a t is an O re g o n ia n ? Can a Black be an
O re g o n ia n -- a W e b fo o t -- a n a tiv e son? N o,
w e d o n ot b e lie v e h s can.
For th e tru e O e g o n ia n has bee n c a re fu lly
e d u ca te d — has bee n ta u g h t th a t O re g o n is the
"p ro m is e d la n d " -- the la n d " b u ilt by fre e m e n /
A tru e O re g o n ia n nas b e e n ta u g h t to lo v e the
m a je s tic m o u n ta in s, the sagebrush p la in s , the ta ll
tim b e r, th e m ig h tly ocean.
A tru e O re g o n ia n has b e e n ta u g h t th e le g e n d s o f
The F ounders - Joe M e e k, F rem ont, W ye th ,
S p a ld in g , the A p p le g a te s , Jo Lane.
A true
O re g o n ia n is ste e p e d in th e id e a ls o f th e ru g g e d no
p io n e e r, w h o e n d o rse d the id e a o f fre e d o m , w h o so
su p p o rte d the cause o f lib e rty a n d e q u a lity th a t he
a d o p te d on his state's m o tto — "T h e U n io n ."
A tru e O re g o n ia n does not kn o w his state
su p p o rte d no cause d u rin g th e c iv il w a r, c o m m itte d
no troops, th a t it's G o v e rn o r ran fo r V ice P resident
a g a in s t L incoln, th a t his state n e a rly a d o p te d
slave ry.
An O re g o n ia n is a m an w ith a h e rita g e -- o ne
o f fie rc e in d e p e n d e n c e b ro u g h t by th e fig h t to
co n q u e r the w ild e rn e s s , to ca rve o u t an in d e p e n ­
d e n t g o v e rn m e n t re sp o n sib le to no n a tio n , to rid the
la n d o f savages. An O re g o n ia n is the son o f p e o p le
w h o m a d e the lo n g jo u rn e y across the deserts a nd
th e m o u n ta in s or across th e tre a ch e ro u s seas to
b u ild a h o m e la n d . A p e o p le w h o w e re n o t co n te n t
w ith th e h a lf-fre e d o m o f th e Eastern se a b o a rd or
th e te rrito ria l status o f th e m id w e st.
The O re g o n ia n is a w h ite m a n , w h o c la im s a
w h ite m a n 's p riv ile g e . He is th e n a tiv e o f a state
b u ilt fo r w h ite s , a state th a t fro m its in c e p tio n
e x c lu d e d Blacks; a state th a t w as c o n c e iv e d in
c o n flic t a n d b orn in racism ; a state w h o s e in fa n c y
w as p re o c c u p ie d w ith s la ve ry — a p ro b le m th a t
d id n ot concern it; a state fe a r fu l o f fo rce s it nee d
n ot fe a r.
It is true th a t no Black can be an O re g o n ia n , fo r
h o w can a
Black c h ild
oppressed,
h e rita g e o f
p io n e e r on
c h ild
Black c la im th is h e rita g e . H o w can a
— w h o se paren ts h a ve b e e n iso la te d ,
n e g a te d
and
re je c te d , c la im
the
th e O re g o n ia n . W h a t can th e g o ld e n
th e c a p ito l b u ild in g m e a n to th e Black
w h e re
ancestors
w e re
e n s la v e d ,
a bu sed ,
re je c te d w ith in th e Dorders o f th is g re a t state,
w h o se p aren ts a re th e victo m s o f racism , w h o is
d e p riv e d o f e q u a lity in e d u c a tio n , a n d w h o loo ks to
a fu tu re w ith little h op e. H o w can he c la im the
h e rita g e o f th e O re g o n ia n ?
N o, n ot n o w a n d p e rh a p s n ot e ver.
A Black
ca n n o t be an O re g o n ia n u n til th e p e o p le o f O reg on
d e c id e to e x te n d th e ir rig h ts a n d p riv ile g e s , th e ir
h e rita g e a n d th e ir citiz e n s h ip , to Black A m e rican s.
A Black w ill n ot be an O re g o n ia n u n til w h ite
O re g o n ia n s re je c t th e ir racist h e rita g e a n d c re a te a
n e w O re g o n ; u n til Blacks a n d o th e r m in o ritie s are
seen a n d a re in c lu d e d in th e life o f th e c o m m u n ity ;
u n til th e o ld racist w ays — so c a re fu lly a nd
d e e p ly in scrib e d in th e last o f the tru e O re g o n ­
ians — is cast aside.
U n til th a t d a y, O re g o n w ill go on its w a y , c e rta in
th a t it is rig h t in a ll th in g s; u n w illin g to c h a n g e if it
is w ro n g ; u n a b le to le a rn fro m the e x p e rie n c e o f
o th e rs; passed by th e rest o f the n a tio n .
For yet a n o th e r ce n tu ry m ust the p o e t sing
"W h e re ro lls the O re g o n ? " a n d hears n o u g h t save
th e sounds o f its o w n d a s h in g s ......................................'
Wyatt W illiam s granduated
from Northwester Law School
In 1925 and passed the bar in
1927, becoming Oregon's first
Black attorney.
g o v e rn m e n t, d e g ra d in g a n d d e h u m a n iz in g p ra c ­
tices w e re e n c o u ra g e d .
The a ttitu d e o f w h ite
settlers, a lre a d y o p p o se d to c o n ta ct w ith b la cks a n d
o th e r n o n -w h ite s , w e re s o lid ifie d . W ith o u t c o n ta ct
w ith Blacks, these racist a ttitu d e s g re w a n d b e c a m e
a p a rt o f th e e d u c a tio n a l a nd g o v e rn m e n ta l system .
This a tm o s p h e re s till p re v a ils .
Blacks a re s till
is o la te d fro m the m a in s tre a m o f c o m m u n ity life
When three Black servants
arrived In Grants Pass In 1924,
(he Southern Oregon Spectat­
or said, "N igger, we don't
want you hers - and we won’ t
have you lie re - you had bet­
ter roll up your bed arxl rk le -
thls is to be a white man’ s
country, yeswrday, today and
fo never."
th ro u g h s e g re g a te d h o u sin g , e d u c a tio n a n d d is c ri­
m in a tio n in e m p lo y m e n t. Blacks s till do n ot h ave
re p re s e n ta tio n in g o v e rn m e n t a n d p o litic a l a ffa irs
a n d d o n ot h a v e a n in p u t in to th e d e c is io n m a k in g
processes th a t e ffe c t o u r lives
In v o lv e m e n t w ith the q u e s tio n o f s ia v e ry a n d the
fre e Black m an a t a c ru c ia l tim e in its h isto ry a n d
s e ttle m e n t by fa m ilie s fro m th e M id w e s t a n d U pp er
South g a v e O re g o n a m o re c o n s e rv a tiv e v ie w p o in t
th a n its n e ig h b o rs on th e q u e s tio n o f s la v e ry a n d
e q u a lity o f th e B lack m an.
This co nse rva tism
re m a in s. C a lifo rn ia a n d W a s h in g to n h ave a la rg e r
n u m b e r o f Blacks a n d Blacks h a v e fo u n d g re a te r
a c h ie v e m e n t th e re . M a n y o f those Black persons
liv in g in o u r n e ig h b o rin g states w e re ra is e d in
O re g o n , b u t had to le a v e to fin d o p p o rtu n itie s .
R estriction o f o p p o rtu n ity w ill c o n tin u e in O re g o n
u n til g o v e rn m e n t o ffic ia ls ta k e a c tio n .
It w ill
As I See It
Oregon’s affirmative
action agreement
by Lenwood G. Davis
A few weeks ago the
publishers of the Portland
c o n tin u e u n til the b oards o f m a jo r c o rp o ra tio n s
Observer wrote an editorial
on Oregon's Affirmative Ac
m e e t th e ir o b lig a tio n s . A lth o u g h no lo n g e r le g a lly
tion Agreement.
The es
restricte d, Blacks a re ig n o re d . W e a re not c o n su lte d
senee of the editorial was
u n til a fte r d e cisio n s h a v e b e e n m a d e .
S m a ll in
t h a t Oregon's Affirmative
n u m b e r, w e a re c o n s id e re d w ith o u t p o w e r a n d o f
Agreement is just another
piece of paper.
I concur
no co nse qu en ce.
The G o v e rn o r, th e C ou nty C om m issio ne rs, t h d * with that conclusion.
It may seem pedantic for
M a y o r a n d o th e rs in p o s itio n s o f le a d e rs h ip m ust
this writer to say that know
ing the history of Oregon as
ta ke im m e d ia te steps to b rin g B lack p e o p le in to the
I do, I can clearly see that it
p o litic a l stru ctu re . H un dre ds o f persons serve on
has a whole history of overt
state b o a rd s a n d co m m issio n s; less than ten a re
racism and benign neglect
Black. The co u n ty a n d c ity a p p o in t in n u m e ra b le
for Blacks.
The State of Oregon has a
c o m m itte e s a n d study co m m issio n s; fe w m e m b e rs
national image of being a
h a v e b e e n Black. There a re m ic ro sco p ic n u m b e rs o f
"'liberal'' state.
Yet, in
Blacks e m p lo y e d in state, c o u n ty a n d c ity g o v e rn ­
reality, it is not a "liberal"
state. This article is not so
m e n t in p o s itio n s o th e r th a n c o m m o n lab or. In most
much a phillipic against the
are as o f th e c o u n try it is in c iv il se rvice th a t Blacks
Agreement as it is against
h ave fo u n d o p p o rtu n itie s , b ut n ot in O re g o n . Every
the enforcement of it.
No
a g e n c y o f state a n d lo c a l g o v e rn m e n t sh o u ld seek
law or agreement is any
stronger than its enforce
o u t a n d h ire Black p e o p le u n til w e h a v e a fa ir
ment.
Even though the
re p re s e n ta tio n in a ll p ositio n s (as is re q u ire d by
Agreement is on the statute
fe d e ra l la w ). O re g o n is b e h in d m ost o f th e c o u n try,
books, it is not being im
in c lu d in g m uch o f th e South, a n d w ill be u n til the
plemented.
Oregon, like many states,
D o litic a l le a d e rs d e c id e to ta ke a c tio n .
surmises that if a qualified
Black applies for a position
[The a b o v e e d ito ria l a p p e a re d in o u r 1972 Black
with the State Government,
it will even give preference
H isto ry w e e k e d itio n , F eb rua ry 17th. A y e a r has
in some cases, IF the Black
passed b u t little has c h a n g e d .]
is as qualified as the white
applicant
especially in
departments that have not
hired minorities.
It would
MEMBER
be easier for one to list the
Oregon
1
minorities that are in the
1 1
Newspaper
departments than the ones
Publishers
that DO NOT have minority
I H = - Association
employees.
Moreover, e v e n
when
“qualified" Blacks have ap
plied for some position with
MEMBER
the State, they were not
hired.
The Governor has
declared that more Blacks
are on the State payroll
Association - Founded ISSÒ
than in previous years. How
ever, the increase is so mea­
ger that any addition is
THE NORTHWEST’S BEST W EEKLY
A BLACK OWNED PUBLICATION
worth noting.
Conversely,
■
■
Seventy-one Blacka lived in
Vernonia p rior to 1930 and
worked in the m ill. Theywere
segregated and lived on pro­
perty owned by the m ill. When
the m ill closed In 1930, most
moved to Portland.
The ADVOCATE. a Black
owned newspaper In Portland,
said in 1908, "T h e Intelligent
A fro-A m erlcsn wants to be
measured
by a standard of
mankind and not color. They
do not ask special favors, nor
do they want lifts from the gov­
ernment, but we do want tie
right to walk as a man un-
empeded."
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The O bserver’s official position Is expressed only In Its
Publisher's Column (The Observation Post) and the Editor's
Desk. Any other massrlal throughout the paper is the opinion
of the Individual w rite r or submitter and does not necessarily
reflect the opinion of the Observer.
Any erroneous reflection upon the character, standing or
reputation of person, firm o r corporation, which may appear in
the Portland observer w ill be cheerfully corrected uponbelng
brought to the attention of the Editor.
Mathematician
(1731-1806)
In addition. Banneker was
an astronomer, a mathemati
cian and a surveyor. One of
his greatest achievements
was serving as a leading
member of the Presidential
commission which designed
and planned the streets of
Washington. D.C.
Presented in
appreciation of
Black History
Week by
NERO
INDUSTRES
*
Binyon O ptical
Dispensers of Fashion Eyewear
however, the G o v e r n o r
failed to point out that there
is a SIGNIFICANT increase
in the Black population. Yet,
the increase in the employ
ment of Blacks by the State
of Oregon is a shame and dis
grace and is NOT SIG­
NIFICANT!
If the State is serious
about its Affirmative Action
Agreement, it must first
show its good faith. A first
step would be for Governor
McCall to set a paradigm by
adding some minorities to
his immediate staff.
A
second step would be for the
Governor to use his moral
leadership, influence, a n d
good office to bring about
the implementation of the
Affirmative Action Agree
ment. Third, the Governor
should appoint an Affirms
tive Action Commission and
give it some authority to
enforce t h e
Agreement.
Fourth, the State should
actively and energetically re­
cruit "qualified" Blacks for
employment.
Unless the
State strenuously enforces
the Affirmative A c t i o n
Agreement and hire more
minorities, then it will be
just another piece of pajiei'
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A LFR ED LEE HENDERSON, Publisher/Edltor
Published every Thursday by Exle Publishing Company, 2201
N . KUlingsworth, Portland, Oregon 97217. M ailing address,
P£>. Box 3137, Portland, Oregon 97208
Benjamin Banneker made
outstanding contributions in
many fields. He published an
almanac widely read by
many important men of his
day. Among his writings
was the suggestion that the
United Stales create a Sec
retary of Peace in “promote
and p reserve perpetual
peace in our country."
George Winslow
was
a
m ember ot the Ewing Young
exploration of Oregon In 1834.
d e fie d th e la w a n d re m a in e d c o u ld not vo te, o w n
p ro p e rty , ta k e p a rt in le g a l p ro c e e d in g s a n d w e re
Where rolls the Oregon?
G reat Black
Americans
of the Past
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