Page 2
Portland/Observer
Thursday, October 25, 1973
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
WE SEE THE WORLD
THROUGH BLACK EYES
Congratulations
_
. . . .
fillir g a m o a n t
Dear Publisher Henuerson:
EDITORIAL FOCUS
What affirmative action?
On S e ptem ber 25th, a fte r charges o f d is c rim in a
tio n had been file d a ga in st the Portland D e ve lo p
m en t C om m ission, Tom Kennedy, PDC's D irector o f
C o m m u n ity Services, m et w ith James A. G a rfie ld ,
Equal O p p o rtu n ity D irector fo r the HUD o ffic e in
P ortland, to discuss PDC's a ffirm a tiv e a ction record.
In this m e e tin g the a llo tm e n t o f contracts fo r
housing re h a b ilita tio n and h om e re p a ir in the
M o d e l C ities n e ig h b o rh o o d w e re discussed a nd the
re g u la r w e e k ly re p o rt o f August 3rd su bm itted as
e vid en ce. No w ritte n record o f a ffirm a tiv e action
in e m p lo y m e n t w as su bm itted , nor w e re statistics
on the a ffirm a tiv e a ction status o f contractors and
sub-contractors. Yet PDC is responsible not o n ly fo r
its o w n e m p lo y m e n t practices and the le ttin g o f
contracts to in c lu d e a nd assist m in o rity business,
but is also resp o n sib le to see th a t its contractors
also pra ctice e q u a l o p p o rtu n ity in e m p lo ym e n t.
This inclu de s n ot o n ly contractors but professionals
such as architects, p la n n in g consultants, attorneys,
etc.
On O cto b er 11th, K ennedy requested a w ritte n
e v a lu a tio n o f PDC's e q u a l o p p o rtu n ity p rogram .
M r. G a rfie ld im m e d ia te ly re p lie d : " In e x a m in in g
yo u r reports o f NDP jobs co m p le te d from A p ril 9,
1973 to August 3, 1973, I le a rn e d that 10 o f 20
contractors in v o lv e d w e re m in o rity contractors.
" I w as p a rtic u la rly g ra tifie d to learn that in your
H ousing R epair Program fo r the Fourth A ctio n Year,
e ig h t o ut o f n in e contractors, or 92.5% w e re m i
n o rity businesses."
U n fo rtu n a te ly , G a rfie ld 's a rith m e tic is incorrect.
A cco rding to th e rep ort, o n ly 7 o f the 20 NDP con
tractors a re m in o ritie s and o n ly 6 o f 9 contractors
d o in g the H om e Repair Program w o rk are m i
n orities, or 66.6%. This e v a lu a tio n does not in d i
cate the p ercen ta ge o f jobs a c tu a lly a w a rd e d to
m in o ritie s or the p ercen ta ge o f d o lla rs earned.
G a rfie ld goes on to state, "A lth o u g h w e d id not
at this m e e tin g e x a m in e yo ur w ritte n A ffirm a tiv e
A ctio n Program w e d id learn th a t 33% o f PDC
p erson ne l are m in o rity g ro u p m e m b e rs ."
N o w w e m ust w o n d e r if THIS a rith m e tic is ac
curate. W h e re are these e m ployees? The m a jo rity
seem to be in th e co m m u n ity service unit in A lb in a ,
w hich , if cu rren t plans are ca rried out, m ig h t soon
be a b o lish e d .
W hat are th e ir roles and salaries
and h o w do they co m p are to those o f the w h ite
em ployees? H ow m uch d e cisio n -m a kin g p o w e r do
they hold? Do Tom Kennedy and Ben W ebb re a lly
m ake decisions or do they carry o ut orders?
Does PDC even have a w ritte n A ffirm a tiv e A ction
A g ree m e nt? If so, h o w does it co m p are to th e ir
p erform an ce?
There are m an y questions that com e to m in d —
but a p p a re n tly G a rfie ld was satisfied. He goes on,
"W e a p p re cia te the sp irit o f co o p e ra tio n th a t you
and yo u r co lle a g u e s e xte n d e d to us at our first
m e e tin g and loo k fo rw a rd to a lon g and p ro du ctive
re la tio n s h ip ."
Does this in d ica te th a t this is the b e g in n in g o f
HUD's e ffo rt to "c o u n s e l" PDC on its a ffirm a tiv e
a c tio n re q uirem en ts?
W here are the re q u ire d
re g u la r a ffirm a tiv e a ctio n reports? W h ile PDC has
been sp e n d in g m illio n s o f HUD d ollars, has if been
fre e to set its o w n req uirem en ts?
If this is the typ ica l HUD e v a lu a tio n , no w o n d e r
the contractors d o in g HUD jobs laugh at the w ord
"in v e s tig a tio n " . Is this w h y PDC has been assured
no a ctio n w ill be ta ken a ga in st them ?
A nd w h a t is PDC's m o tiv e in this m ove? C ould it
be th a t G a rfie ld is set up to be the " f a ll g u y "?
Published every Thursday by Exie Publishing Company,
2201 North Killingsworth, Portland, Oregon 97217. Mailing
address: P.O. Box 3137, Portland, Oregon 9720* Telephone:
283 248«.
Subscriptions: $5.25 per year in the Tri County area. $6 00
per year outside Portland.
Second Class Postage Paid at Portland. Oregon
The Portland Observer's official ,M*sitiori is expressed only
in it's Publisher's Column (We Sec The World Through
Black Eyes). Any other material throughout the pa|*er is the
opinion of the individual w riter or submitter and does not
necessarily reflect the opinion of the Portland Observer.
inemliei
Oregon
Newspaper
Publishers
Association
MEMBER
Blacks written out!
A c o m m itte e a p p o in te d by M ayo r G o ldsch m id t
has just re w ritte n th e P ortland H o m e to w n Plan.
The Plan w as o rig in a lly w ritte n in 1970 in response
to fe d e ra l re q u ire m e n ts th a t cities e ith e r w rite th e ir
o w n plans to in c lu d e m in o ritie s in the construction
trades or h ave a p la n im posed on them . The pla n
was w ritte n by contractors, unions a nd c iv il rights
groups. U n fo rtu n a te ly , the pla n w as never fu n d e d
or enforced.
The n ew p la n , w h ic h is not s u b sta n tia lly d iffe re n t
than the o rig in a l, w as w ritte n by a c o m m itte e o f
fiv e a p p o in te d by the M ayor.
Three o f those
p e rs o n s a re fr o m th e M a n p o w e r A re a P la n
nin g C ou ncil a nd tw o fro m the M e tro p o lita n
H um an R elations C om m ission.
The one Black,
C harles Moss, is a city e m p lo y e e a nd an o ffic e r o f
the M u n ic ip a l Em ployees U nion.
F o llo w in g th e M a y o r's suggestion that re p re
sentatives o f th e m in o rity c o m m u n ity be selected
by the c o m m itte e , th re e persons w e re add ed
a C hicano, an In d ia n a nd a Black.
W e do not k n o w th e q u a lific a tio n s o f the C hi
cano or the In d ia n , but it does seem strange that
LeRoy Patton w as chosen to represent the interests
o f Black contractors, construction w orkers and a p
prentices. W e w o n d e r h o w he w o u ld k n o w a n y
th in g a b o u t the p ro b le m s fa ced by these groups.
It also seem s strange th a t m in o rity contractors
a nd w orkers w e re not in clu d e d m ore fu lly in the
w o rk in g s o f the c o m m itte e
A fter a ll, the e n tire
purpose o f th e H o m e to w n Plan is to assist m i
n o ritie s, a nd w h o w o u ld k n o w b etter than they
w h a t road blocks are th ro w n in th e ir w a y by the
contractors a n d the u nions w ho thus fa r have done
a goo d job o f e x c lu d in g them .
Yet the A lb in a
C ontractors w e re in v ite d to o n ly o ne m e e tin g and
w h e n th e ir re p re s e n ta tio n co uld not a tte nd they
w e re not in v ite d a g a in .
The U nite d M in o rity
W orkers a tte n d e d one m e e tin g . N e ith e r g ro u p was
in fo rm e d a b o u t the a p p ro x im a te ly ten m ee ting s
th a t w e re h eld. ACA has not re c e iv e d a copy o f
the n e w Plan, a lth o u g h it w as supposed to have
been sent to a ll interested parties. S om ehow the
Black press w as o v e rlo o k e d also.
A ll o f this m akes us w o n d e r w h a t interests the
H o m e to w n Plan is w ritte n to serve The M a yo r and
his C o m m itte e should re a liz e that days are gone
w h e n p lans can be w ritte n fo r, ra th e r th an w ith ,
m in o ritie s .
On this, the week of the
third anniversary of the Port
land Observer, let me extend
both personal and professional
congratulations on behalf of
O NPA, its 116 Oregon news
paper members, and its board
of directors.
Your colleagues in the
newspaper industry realize
the difficulties you and your
s ta ff must have encoun
tered - and overcome
in establishing a local news
paper for the people within
your circulation area.
You can be doubly proud of
your achievement:
your
j membership in ONPA re
flects a fulfilling of basic
Journalistic membership re
th ie
fasta*
Responsible social worker
ia
quirements: and this feat is
overshadowed by an even
more important accomplish
ment
acceptance by and
support of the community you
serve.
A free, unfettered press
was never more important
than it is now, nor has the role
of the community newspaper
in shaping "grass roots" opin
ion and catalyst for neighbor
hood action been as conse
quential as today.
Again, during this momen
tous week, my best and most
sincere congratulations to you
and the Observer staff.
Best regards,
Rogert W. Williams
Executive Secretary
Manager. Oregon News
paper Publishers Aaooriation
*
Dear Mr. Henderson:
When elected officials fall
short in meeting their re
sponsibilitias the media often
bring such shortcomings to
the attention of the Elec
torate. and rightfully so.
I
believe those who demon
strate honest attempts to be
responsive to com m unity
needs ought to bo pointed
out and commended: that as
their records warrant, they
may retain public support.
Ms. Mary (W endy) Rob
erts. freshman State Rep
resentative from Multnomah
County, is such a person. A
social worker. Ms. Roberts is
very much aware of com
munity socioeconomic needs
and problems.
She and
others, recognizing that there
are some youth who cannot
live in their own homes or in
foster homes, sponsored a
bill which became law author
izing independen* living ar
rang em en ts for
persons
meeting specified criteria. It
is a forward step and will
permit us to better plan for a
segment of our youthful pop
ulation who previously would
be left to drift and hustle for
themselves for lack of re
sources.
Ms. Roberts addressed a
meeting of the Model Cities
District. Children's Services
Division staff to explain the
rationale of the measure as
well as legislative intent.
1 commend Ms. Roberts
and hope that other legisla
tors will follow her example
of establishing and main
laming 'grass roots' contacts.
Very truly yours,
Lewis L. Winchester,
Director. Model
Cities District
We have been robbed
Dear Sir:
Apology accepted?
Dear M r. McCrea:
Thank you for your letter of
September 27, 1973 in which
you apologized to members of
our community for badly
chosen words quoted by a
reporter of a w hite daily. It is
unfortunate that at times our
words do not properly trans
mit either our judgments or
our feelings and it is disas
trous whenever the news
media distributes such in
formation to the public.
Your responsibility to the
community is vast and since
you are answerable, state
ments for which you will be
held accountable should be
made with caution. Of par
ticular concern is the possible
negative effect such remarks
may have upon your students'
personal growth. High status,
positive image or just feeling
good about, yourself is hard to
come by for minority people
and experiences which tend
toward the opposite ought to
be avoided.
You of course
know that we stress quality
education (formal and ex
periential) and will as indivi
duals and as a community
take proper courses of action
to insure the welfare of our
children both within and
without the academic world.
Y our re g re tta b le ex p e r
ience is now history with
which you must live, and
your acknowledgment of er
ror denotes that you are a
man of strong character with
whom we can work and
move forward from this point
on. Let us concentrate upon
the future and having learned
from a negative experience
move on to positive exper
iences.
Possibly you may feel some
need for either my or our
agency's assistance as you
carry out your mission. Keep
in mind that I and we are
here to help you and when
ever you feel such a need, a
telephone call or a visit will
bring you a helping hand.
In the past five months the
P.S.IJ. Educational Center,
located at 2611 n . e . Union
Avenue, has been hit be a
series of four break ins. In
all over $1.000 in equipment
has been stolen and damage
to the office has also oc
currcd.
The staff of the Educa
tional Center emplores the
community to help protect
th e ir educational fa c ility .
The Educational Center is a
community project.
It was
established some five years
ago to fulfill the educational
desires of the community, so
when the Educational Center
gets ripped off. the com
munity gets ripped off!
The Educational Center has
the potential to do a lot for
the community in terms of
offering college courses at a
minimal fee.
We ask that
you be concerned enough to
help protect the Center. If
you see any unusual behavior
after closing time or es
pecially on the weekends,
please act!
Very truly yours,
Phyllis Benton,
Acting Director.
PSD Educational Center
P o rtlan d O b se rv e r
on y o u r 3rd
H IIC
tW M IN
M i l , C M M O ÍIM
P aige’s Pharm acy
Sincerely.
Cleveland Gilcrease
Executive Director.
Portland Metropolitan
Steering Committee
2701 N . E. 7 th 2 8 4 -4 6 5 6
Parent awareness
Student elections reveal
lefinite aspects of student
human relations and peer re
I have just finished read
spect. In a student body of
ing the editorial in the Oc
approximately 2.000 of which
tober 4. 1973 Portland Ob
there are approximately fifty
server, which arrived by
five Afro-American students,
mail today.
many
resident and transfer
As a Cleveland parent, I
students have been outstand
can say that a complete pic
ing in school, city, state and
ture of the Cleveland at
national activities including
mosphere is lacking. If the
academic and extra curricular
Observer has not already
competition.
During the past
done so, I suggest that a
eight years, Cleveland stu
visit be made to Cleveland
dents have elected two Rose
High School to determine the
Festival princesses who were
more predominantly positive
Afro-Americans. During the
aspects which prevail. When
past four years, Cleveland
facts are not presented in
students have elected two
perspective, a community dis
Afro American students to
service is performed.
Ob
compete for student varan
jective, on site visits are
cies on the Area I I I C iti
therefore essential.
zens Advisory Board. Afro-
American students have also
been elected to significant
re p re s e n ta tio n in student
government including Stu
d e n t C o u n c il p r e s id e n t .
Other student elections have
honored “the most valued
member" of the Cleveland
Forensics team, outstanding
athletes, outstanding scho
lars, etc. . . .
I t seems ap
propriate that these facts be
known and also the strong
academic program.
I feel it is approprate to
m ention c e rta in Cleveland
teachers who serve beyond
the call of duty: Mrs. Mason.
Mrs. Svobixla, M r. Pugh, Mr.
Durrell, Miss Ireland, Mr.
Bruce Johnson, M r. Robert
Kearns, and a former teacher
Mr. Howard Siegel.
Mr. Glen Hill, Principal, is
sensitive, p erc ep tive and
communicative with parents
and students. I believe it is
im p o rta n t to g iv ^ c re d it
where credit is due. Cleve
land problems, in their per
spective, do not currently
outweigh the positive stu
dent and faculty performance
evident in day today rela
tions. Has the Observer, in
fact, determined the cause of
Cleveland problems?
Dear Sir:
Sincerely,
Mrs. Osly J. Gates
N e 9Í p A l PER
Auoclalion - Founded TM5
la n H
C O e Y R lO M T © l9 7 3 D,
“ Let me make this perfectly clear."
sa
8'a m a,
IFditor's Note: The edi
torial of October 4 slated
nothing negative or positive
about Cleveland High School |
Hardy Best Wishes
On a successful
3rd Birthday
BANK
W h e re b a n k in g is a v e ry personal thing