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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 1973)
Mrn m eet U n i’ r I j ri Community united on ouster of Boise principal A public meeting w u held nt Bethel AME Church on September 27, 1V73. It wan attended by Black reaidenta of the Portland area and representatives of organiza tiona concerned with quality education, intergroup rela tiona and the welfare of Black citizen« generally. At thia meeting the September 24. 1973 article which ap peared in a white daily quoting David McCrea, prin cipal of Boia* Elementary School, was discussed at some length. Also discussed were public and non public re marks generated by that article, along with Mr. McCreg'a letter of apology to Black citizens generally. It was also noted that, unfor tunately, other principals in the Portland school system share the stereotype notions and lack of inaight and under standing of the better prin ciples intergroup relations evidenced by Mr. McCrea PORTLAND Volume .1, No. A4) AN fO U A t Portland, Oregon and that removal of Mr. McCrea does not automati cally guarantee hia replace ment will be an improve ment. It was concluded, however, that: 1. W hereas the serious problems which apparently exist at Boise Elementary School whose students are O FFO «TU N IIT (MFtOVER mostly Black deserve atten tion by a principal of a high degree of teaching and super viaory competence, empathy, insight and sophistication: 2. Whereas Mr. McCrea has admitted his failure as a principal to enforce the nec essary discipline to make for a quality learning experience at Boise Elementary School, and has through his press interview displayed a lack of sophistication and insight in to the many lifestyles of Black families whose children he and his staff are supposed to teach and motivate; 3. Whereas Mr. McCrea was admittedly improviden OBSERVER Thursday, October 4, 1973 10c per copy ACA,UMW charge city with racism Complaints have been filed with the federal government charging the City of Portland w ith racial discrim ination. The Portland Development Commission and the Housing Authority of Portland were specifically named in a com plaint filed with the United Stales Department of Hous ing and Urban Development by the Albina Contractors Association and the United Minority Workers. Euaene Jackson. Business Manager of the Albina Con tractors Association, said of the reference to PDC, “The Portland Development Com mission has conaistenlly and over a period of years ig nored the employment needs of Black people. Although millions of dollars have been spent right here in Albina, little money has gone to minority contractors and em ployees. PDC can’t even tell us whether the white con tractors who are awarded their joba have any minority CHAI.MERS JONES em p lo y ees Jones is Ombudsman Governor Tom MrCall re cently announced the ap pointm ent of Ombudsman Bob Oliver as his legal coun sel and assistant for public safety, and the appointment of Chalmers Jones to succeed Oliver as ombudsman. Jones presently is administrator of the Special Programs Divi sinn of the Department of Human Resources. Oliver succeeds Edward Branchfield, who was named by Attorney General Lee Johnson as assistant attorney general for the State Depart ment of Higher Education. Branchfield, a former Court of Appeals judge, has been the governor's legal counsel since 1971, when Oliver was named ombudsman. MrCall said the changes will be effective in mid October, after Branchfield has had lime to complete several projects he has undertaken for the governor. Oliver. 42, is a former chief deputy legislative coun sel for the Oregon Legis lature. He has served as a part time professor of law in the Willamette College of law. and an instructor in political science for Willa mette. I Please turn to pg. 6. col. 5) PDC statistics show that about one third of the money spent by PDC for housing rehabilitation in the Albina area goes to minority con tractors. B esid es the home rehabilitation program. PDC is building parks, recon structing streets and side walks, putting in street light ing, and doing additional neighborhood development work ACA has met with John Kenward. Executive Director of PDC, and members of hia staff to discuss the allotment of work to minority contrac tors. Although Kenward agreed to review the bidding system, which is working against minority contractors, and to include ACA in plan ning for changes. ACA has heard nothing further from PDC. The Housing Authority of Portland has the responsi bility to see that contractors building low income housing under its supervision meet the affirmative action re quirements of HUD. Nathan Proby. Director of the United Minority Workers, charged that HAP is not meeting this responsibility. He has visited housing sites a number of times without finding minori ties on the job Although some builders, including Western Balboa I also the subject of a complaint), have agreed to hire minorités, work is proceeding and the Black trucker eues Hoffm an William Jones, Black dump truck owner-operator, filed a complaint with the federal government charging Hoff man Construction Company and John L. Jersey and Son with racial discrimination. Jones applied to Hoffman Construction for work on the federal building that they are constructing for the General S erv ices A d m in is tr a tio n . Hoffman C onstruction r e ferred him to John L. Jersey and Son. the subcontractor for excavation. Jersey re fused to hire Jones, telling him that hr was not needed, although others were hired after he applied, that his truck was too small, although smaller trucks were on the job: and that hr had hired a Korean and did not have to hire another minority. Jones told Russ Rogers, Equal Employment officer for GSA who came to Port land Monday to investigate the complaint, that Jersey repeatedly refused to hire him. with the full knowledge of Hoffman C onstruction Company. As the prime contractor. Hoffman has re sponsibility for the action of its sub contractors. Jerry Cox, who served with the United States Ma rine Corps, is qualified to operate seven different types of heavy equipment, but was told by Operating Engineers Ixical 701 that he is not qualified to join the union. He was told that he needed 1000 hours of supervised work to join, but cannot find work because he is not a union member. Twelve com plaints have been filed against local 701 by mi nority workers. Leonard Spland spent 3*/a years in the Air Force. He attended a construction train ing school in Corvallis, but has found only two days work. Carl Bee. a veteran who sometning I you can count on at the Benj. Franklin ELECTRONIC CALCULATOR Fits in pocket or purse -fo r home, office, school or shopping Adds, subtracts, multi plies. divides. Floating decimal, constant key, clear entry. Complete with batteries and case; AC adaptor extra. Offer limited while supply lasts. BIQ DISCOUNTS FOR SAVERS $29.95 $34.95 $44.95 $49.95 with $5,000 deposit with $2,500 deposit with $1,000 deposit with $250 deposit B en j.lO Franklin r iv o a t «Avinés a lo an aaaes Hobart H Hazen. Pres « 22 Offices • Phone 24S-1234 Home O llies Franklin Bldg . Portland, Oregon <7204 was wounded in Vietnam, has been home for five months and has not found employment. These veterans and others are asking why the skills they learned in the service do not qualify them for jobs at home; why they fought for their country and now are not even allowed to hold a good job. Phillip Robinson, Poet Com mander of the Am Vets, is attempting to assiat unem ployed veterans find employ ment, housing, food for their families, and other emer gency needs. He meets many young men who have learned trades in the service but who are not able to use these skills at home. Proby asks the public. “If a man can fight for hia country and come home and be unable to find a job, what is he fighting for?” He said the United Minority Workers will file injunctions to halt federal money for construe tion work until diacrimina tion against minority vet erans ceases. One example given was the Gordan H. Ball Construction Company, which is working on the Salem freeway. Out of 162 em ployees on this federally funded job, 3 are minorities. Millions of federal dollars are coming into Oregon for con struction and few if any con tractors are in compliance with federal regulations on minority employment. UMW received letters and telegrams of support in their effort from Senators Mark Hatfield and Robert Pack wood, representative Wen dell Wyatt, and Special As sistant to President Nixon, Stanley Scott. Jones was employed by Hoffman Construction Com pany last spring on the site of the City of Portland's sewage disposal plant on Columbia Boulevard. He was paid $14.00 and the other truck drivers received $15.00. Jones raised his fee to $15.00 and soon was laid off. He was told that he was not needed on the job, although other trucks that were hired after him stayed. His was also the only truck that could get into the site on its own power - the others having to be pulled in and out with a cat. T herefore, the Portland School District #1 should im mediately take the necessary administrative action to re move Mr. McCrea from his position as principal of the Boise Elementary School and replace him with a person of pedagogical competence and supervisory skill, empathy, insight and sophistication about intergroup relations, school board policy and school press relations to ef fectively deal with the dis ciplinary and educational needs of the Boise students within the policy guidelines and ex p ecta tio n s of the School Board and the greater community of which it is a part. The preceeding statement was signed by representa tive organizations: The Ur ban League of Portland, the NAACP. Albina Ministerial A lliance, Albina Women's League. Albina Lion's Club, the Royal Esquire Club, and the Oregon Association of Colored Women's Clubs. The meeting of concerned citizens was held to discuss the implications of statements made by McCrea to the press, in which he stated that Boise has an atmosphere not con ducive to learning, that a white child cannot excel at Boise, and that general dis trict standards of behavior do not apply to Boise because of different cultural expecta tions. Concern was expressed over the mimeographed letter sent by McCrea to . organizations and school personnel and three newspapers. Some per sons questioned why an apology of such serious nature would have not at least been signed personally (See page 2). General consensus was that although the problems Boise is experiencing are not new and were not created by McCrea, the principal has to sel the tone and the standard of behavior for the children. The same educational process and the same opportunities should apply to Black stu dents as to white. The phil osophy of education of the school board and the possi bility that McCrea was really expressing that philosophy was also questioned. Court supports Black Coalition The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the ruling of U.S. District Judge Gus B. Solomon in the suit of the Black Coalition vs. the Board of Education, Portland Public Schools. The suit, which was filed in 1970 fol lowing racial problems at Roosevelt High School, al leged that the School District denied students their con stitutional rights by sus pending and expelling them without the right to legal counsel, to the right to con front witnesses against them, and to present evidence in their own behalf. Judge Solomon decided in favor of the Black Coalition and three Black students, ordering the school district to change its disciplinary procedures. The action followed inci dents at R oosevelt High School when racial fighting erupted and members of the su r r o u n d in g co m m u n ity threatened Black students walking to and from school. Armed police were used to patrol the halls. The Black Coalition called a boycott, temporarily removing Black students from Roosevelt High School and providing a "free dom school" for them. The Court of Appeals found that "brief suspensions" could be justified in maintining an atm osphere conducive to learning. However, the court ruled that "the expulsion procedures were unconstitu tional for failing to provide a hearing at which the student could be represen ted by counsel and, through counsel, present witnesses on his own behalf and cross-examine ad verse witnesses.” The Coalition also charged that disciplinary action was biased against Black students and that the absence of Blacks in administrative post tions discriminated against Black stu d en ts receivin g equal protection on disci plinary matters. This por tion of the case has not been heard by the court. The case was presented by Legal Aid. The Black Coalition in cluded the NAACP, Thomas R. Vickers, President; Albina Ministerial Alliance, Bishop W.L. McKinney. President; The Black Panther Party, Kent Ford, Director; Albina Citizens Council. L.R. Ander son. chairman; the Black Beret, William Granby. Dir ector; the Roosevelt High School Black Parents, Dr. Samuel Brown, chairman; and the Urban League of Port land, Shelton Hill, Executive Director; and the Albina Citi zens Together (Albina Citi zens War on Poverty Com m ittee), Edgar M itchell, Chairman. Because of the con stitution al restriction s, the Urban League withdrew from the Coalition when the suit was filed. Chairmen of the Coalition were Edgar Mitchell and Reverend Sam uel Johnson. Bid system fails B,ack wins rate Minority veterans seek jobs Nathan Proby. Director of the United Minority Workers, appealed to the employers and governmental agencies of Oregon to eliminate racism in the consideration of mi nority veterans for employ ment. Proby explained that veterans are returning home with training and experience in the service, but are being told by employers that they are not “qualified" for em ploy ment. work force is still all white. Under federal regulations all companies or agencies receiving federal funds must hire minorities in an equit able number and must sup port and encourage minority enterprise. The complaint charges that neither of those requirements have been met (Please turn to pg. 3. col. 4 tial in his choice of words in his press interview on such a sensitive school policy issue and has reflected adversely on District Administrative transfer provram and the Black population in the Port land area, subverting school district policy and losing the personal credibility necessary to perform his job as prin cipal in a school with a stu dent population such as Boise; Dump truck rolls again Dawson gets license David Dawson, Black dump truck ow ner-driver, was awarded a dump truck license by the Oregon Public Utilities Commission Tuesday. Oregon law requires that applicants for PUC licenses must prove a need for the additional truck. The effect of the law has been to per peluate an all white industry. The first Black trucker to obtain a license was William Jones, whose application this spring was opposed by white dump truckers. Dawson's application was also opposed by truck owners who charge that there is not enough work for existing license holders. It has been the practice of licensees to sell their licenses for as much as $3,000 when they quit. Dawson demonstrated the need for additional trucks by presenting witnesses who had exp erienced sh o rta g es of trucks available. The major thrust of his rase, presented by Attorney John C. Bar nett, was that the PUC, as a state regulatory agency, has the responsibility to insure that minorités are included in the industries it super vises. The PUC licen se was awarded on the basis of need for the truck, and avoided the issu e of affirm ative action. Todd signs pact Nathan Proby. Chairman of the U nited Minority Workers, announced the sign ing of an agreement with the Todd Ruilding Company spelling out the minimum minority man hours for the construction of the new Fed eral Building in Eugene. This $5 million dollar, two year job will use 20% minority man hours during the time of heaving activity with lesser amounts in time of lesser activity. The agreement was made after a series of conferences involving Proby and Mary Jo Ali of Portland, Patrick Me- lendy and James Montoya of the CISCO organization of Monmouth. Ron Anderson of Associated General Contrac tractors. Contractor Gordon Todd and others from the United Minority Workers. Proby expressed hope that other contractors will make similar agreements to include s u b s t a n tia l n u m b e rs of Blacks. Native Americans and Chicanos in their work forces. "This is the opening we have sought. It came about through negotiations rather than intimidation and speaks well for all concerned," Proby stated. Jv A 70 year old lady who prefers not to be named because of her fear of harass ment obtained a PDC grant for rehabilitation of her home last fall. She received a letter from the Portland De velopment Commission stat ing that she could choose a contractor. On the same day she received another letter stating that bids were being requested by three contrac tors - all white. When she called to ask that the work be done by a contractor of her choosing, she was told the contractor had already been selected. The contrac tor selected was not one of the three bidders, but was John Wilson, reported to be the brother of Ray Wilson. PDC Rehabilitation Super visor. The lady was asked by her rehabilitation sp ecia list to sign the contractor's check before the work was com pleted. When she refused, he was so loud in his insis- tance that her 16 year old grandson, who was sleeping upstairs, came down to see what was wrong. The lady did sign the check when the work was completed, although she was dissatisfied with the work. She just wanted nothing more to do w ith PDC. Among her more serious complaints: The windows leak, causing the water to make streaks on the wallpaper; water runs into the basement from the front porch (neither the win dows nor the porch leaked before the repairs); the new paint is pealing and falling off the house. This homeowner, like many others, resents the attitude of the PDC staff -- "It's a handout, so be satisfied with what you get!” -- and is sorry she ever became in volved with the Portland Development Commission. A tlanta, tlanta. Georgia Vice Mayor Maynard Jackson won the primary election and will face incumbent Mayor Sam Massed later this month in his bid for the office of Mayor. Jackson has been Vice Mayor of Atlanta for four years. Jackson received 47 percent of the votes anc Massed 19.7 percent, but ac cording to the law. if no can didate receives a majority of the votes, a runoff between the top two finishers will decide the winner. If elected, Jackson will become A t lanta's first Black mayor. Jackson. 35, campaigned Jacksoi on the issue of a rising crime rate and promised to make the city's streets safe. Jack son, an attorney, was a Ford Foundation Scholar at the age of 14. and graduated from colllege at 18. Reverend Hosea Williams, 47, ran second to incumbent Alderman W’yche Fowler in the race for president of the city council. Williams was an aid to Martin Luther King, Jr., and is currently Execu tive Director of Metro At lanta SCLC. Names in the News James Griffin, former dir ector of MEDIA, is working in Chicago as a financial advisor to Operation PUSH, founded by Reverend Jesse Jackson. Timothy Seidle is the first Black to be hired by the Oregon State Treasury De partment. Seidle is a resi dent of Portland. State Treasurer James Reddin says Seidle is doing a good job for the Department. Romona Welch, a member of the Chinook tribe, joined Clay Myer's staff as one of three front office secretaries. She is a graduate of James Monroe High School in Port land and has an Associate of Arts degree in Secretarial Technology from Brigham Young University. E. Shelton Hill, Executive Director of Portland Urban League, will retire at the end of this year. Watch the Observer for other details. Reverend Wendell Wallace, former pastor of Maranatha, is back in Oregon. He is speaking at churches in the Portland area. Paulette Robinson was re cently hired as a secretary by the Portland Council of Churches. She is a graduate of the University of Oregon with a degree in Business Administration. Her hus band. Warren Robinson II, is employed at Waverly Chil drens Home. He earned his Masters Degree in Education at the University of Oregon this summer. Ed Westerdal is making an effort to get some Blacks in top positions at the Port of Portland. Joseph Bostic is Vice Presi dent of V. Les Jackson As sociates. a firm offering con suiting on Public Relations, B usiness and M arketing. Bostic is director of the Port land offices Additional of fices are located in Detroit and New York. Wanda Wright, who started her airline career with United Air Lines ten years ago, has been appointed a sales representative at Portland, William L. Supak, manager of sales, announced. She joined United at Chicago in March of 1963 as a reser vations sales agent and later transferred to Denver r> rva- tions. A native of Chicago, she graduated from N them Illinois University and holds a Bachelor's degree in P sy chology. In addition to her terri' >ry in downtown Portland, she will cover east to The Dalles, and north to Yakima, Washington. 4 I