P ili.’ 2 Portland/Obeerver LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Thursday, March 21, 1974 Grant High Principal strives for minority representation Dear M r. Henderson: As you know. Grant High School is a subscriber to your P o rtla n d O b s erver, which is made available to members of our staff and to students through the school library. M y a d m in is tra tiv e and teaching staffs and 1 have found that through reading and sharing your publication we do gain worthwhile in formation and news about one part of our community which enhance our own per spectives and are helpful to us in our human relations work at Grant, where we have close to 4(H) students who are Black. In this context I would lie remiss were 1 not to call WE SEE THE WORLD ALFRED L. HENDERSON E d ito r/P u b lish e r THROUGH BLACK EYES EDITORIAL FOCUS Make dream a reality For the first tim e , the Black co m m u n ity has a vo ice in C ity H all. C om m issio ne r C harles Jordan, a p p o in te d by th e C ity C ouncil as th e best person in Portland fo r the job - w ill soon fa ce the voters. Black voters can — fo r th e firs t tim e — present a u n ite d fro n t a nd sh ow P ortland th a t w e also b e liv e C om m issio ne r Jordan is q u a lifie d to serve. Jo rd an is a m an w h o m a ll e th n ic groups a nd a ll persons w h o ar in te re te d in justice can support. There a re o thers w h o have set aside th e ir o w n p o litic a l a m b itio n s fo r th e tim e b eing , in o rd e r to p re ve n t th e usual " d iv id e a nd c o n q u e r" tactics. W e c o m m e n d Ed M itc h e ll and G e orge Rankin fo r th e ir sa crifice. N o w the c o m m u n ity must u n ite b e h in d Jordan a nd h e lp m a ke a re a lity the d re a m that the Black p e o p le o f P ortland have w o rk e d fo r m any years to a chieve . W e can present C om m issioner Jordan as our ca n d id a te w ith pride. No minority programs T ele visio n is p ro b a b ly the p rim e e n te rta in m e n t a nd e d u c a tio n a l m e d ia in the U n ite d States. The latest fig u re s a v a ila b le show th a t in 1972, 97 p e r­ cent o f A m e rica n hom es h ad at least one te le v is io n set and the a ve ra g e A m e rica n w a tch e d te le v is io n 6'/a hours a day. The te le visio n industry is b ig business. It has investm ents that run in to b illio n s a nd it in flu e n c e s A m e rican s to buy a ll kinds o f th in g s th ey p ro b a b ly w o u ld not o th e rw is e purchase. TV helps establish values a n d d e te rm in e how A m e rican s fe e l a b o u t th e ir society. TV has the p o te n tia l fo r ste re o typ in g groups or in d iv id u a ls in the tra d itio n o f H o lly w o o d , w h ip h d e v e lo p e d a poor record in its d e p ic tio n o f Blacks, Chicanos, Indians, O rie n ta ls a n d PThers. M in o ritie s w e re the subject o f h um or or scorn, a nd w e re n eve r taken seriously. TV to d a y has the" o p tio n to co n tin u e the H o lly w o o d stereotpyes or to d e a l re a lis tic a lly w ith m in o rity cultures. U n fo rtu n a te ly the Federal C o m m u n ica tio n s C om ­ m ission, the a gency resp on sible fo r m e d ia re g u ­ la tio n , has not consistently m o n ito re d the TV industry. The U.S. C ivil Righls C om m ission in Ja n u a ry o f 1973 fo u n d th a t a lth o u g h FCC p ro h ib its e m p lo y m e n t d is c rim in a tio n and re q u ire s that broadcasters be responsive to c o m m u n ity needs, it does not strictly e n fo rc e th e la w . The C ivil Rights C om m ission has la u n c h e d a study o f the p ro b le m s o f m in o ritie s a n d w o m e n w ith the broadcast m e d ia . It w ill e x a m in e the d e c is io n -m a k in g process, e q u a l e co n o m ic o p p o r­ tu n ity rights, e q u a l e m p lo y m e n t o p p o rtu n ity , and > th e re la tio n o f these factors to th e im a g e -m a k in g ‘ - p o w e r o f the broadcast p ro g ra m m in g . In P ortland, m in o rity p ro g ra m m in g is a lm ost n o n -e xiste n t. A lth o u g h the fo u r m a jo r TV stations o cca sio n a lly touch on m in o ritie s in th e ir re g u la r p ro g ra m m in g , th e re are fe w p ro g ra m s fo r and a b o u t m in o ritie s a nd those a re show n at tim es w h e n the v ie w in g a u d ie n c e is a t a m in im u m . KGW-TV show s a p ro g ra m a b o u t m in o rite s and w o m e n ca lle d "G e ttin g It T o g e th e r", p ro d u c e d by Joan Biggs at 10:30 a .m . on Sundays. KPTV-TV has "M o d e s to R ios", a im e d a t C hicanos, on Saturday m o rn in g s at 11:30 a.m . KATb-TV p la ys "T h ird W o rld ", p roduced by G e orge Page, on Sunday n ig h t a fte r the late show . KOIN-TV has no m in o rity p ro g ra m m in g . It is e vid e n t that th e m a io rity o f m in o rity p e o p le cannot see these program s. Sunday m o rn in g is c e rta in ly not a tim e w h e n m ost p e o p le are a v a ila b le to w atch TV. Page's p ro g ra m , seen a ro u n d 1:30 a.m ., is a travesty. S urely th e p ow ers at KATU do not b e lie v e that th e y a re p ro v id in g a service by p re sen ting "T h ird W o r ld " — a construc­ tive a nd th ou gh t p ro v o k in g p ro g ra m — in the m id d le o f the n ig ht This consistent ig n o rin g o f the m in o rity co m ­ m u n itie s is not o n ly im p ro p e r — it is ille g a l. OEO’s first 10 years: Success or failure? Ten years a g o the O ffic e o f Econom ic O p p o r­ tu n ity o p e n e d a n d the W ar on Poverty b egan. In P o rtlan d, m a n y persons spent lo n g hours d e ­ v e lo p in g pla ns, w ritin g proposals a nd searching to d e te rm in e w h a t the citizen s n e e d e d a nd w an te d . Since 1964 w e h ave seen a series o f pro gram s c o m e a n d go. Som e w e re h ig h ly successful and o th e rs w e re not. Some p ro gram s c o n tin u e to be fu n d e d a n d su p e rvise d by OEO, a nd o thers have b e e n ta k e n in to o th e r a ge ncies a n d g a in e d p e rm a n e n c y . T here has b e e n m uch criticism a b o u t these p ro g ra m s — w h ic h w e re d e sig n e d to b rin g persons liv in g b e lo w p o v e rty le v e l in to the m a in ­ strea m o f A m e ric a n life — la rg e ly because they w e re in itia lly p ro po sed and o p e ra te d by the poor. They h a v e b e e n th e w h ip p in g boy o f p o litic ia n s o f b o th parties. P u b licity g iv e n to pro gram s serving Black c o m m u n itie s b ro u g h t the usual racial tira d e s . The P resident has a tte m p te d to tear the a g e n c y lim b fro m lim b . But those w h o h ave bee n associated w ith OEO h a v e reason to be pro ud . M a n y have p ro v id e d v a lu a b le services to the poor. The Foster G ra n d ­ p a re n t P rogram , H ead Start, job tra in in g program s a n d Legal A id c o m e im m e d ia te ly to m in d. M a n y in d iv id u a ls have b e e n p ro v id e d job o p ­ p o rtu n itie s a n d h ave been a b le to m ove up into re s p o n s ib le p osition s. O thers h ave re c e iv e d e d u ­ c a tio n a l o p p o rtu n itie s a n d h ave been a b le to seek p rofessions. Parents h ave le a rn e d h o w b etter to ca re fo r th e ir c h ild re n . W ork has been p ro v id e d fo r students a n d y o u n g p e o p le . N e w p h ilo so p h ie s a n d m eth od s fo r the d e liv e ry o f services have b e e n d e v is e d a n d a n e w a ttitu d e to w a rd the poor d e v e lo p e d . But p ro b a b ly th e g reatest success has been the p o litic a l d e v e lo p m e n t o f citizen s In d iv id u a ls w ho c o u ld not discuss th e ir o w n p ro b le m s a nd d id not k n o w w h e re to tu rn fo r h e lp n o w use so phisticated p o litic a l m eans to speak fo r th e ir c o m m u n itie s. N e ig h b o rh o o d s th a t had no p o litic a l or social id e n tity n o w h ave strength in city h all. A lth o u g h p o v e rty a nd d is e n fra n c h is e m e n t still a re ra m p a n t in this n a tio n , th e W ar on Poverty w o u ld h ave to be ju d g e d a success. The e m ­ p lo y e rs -- fro m a d m in is tra to rs to train ee s, and e s p e c ia lly th e v o lu n te e r m em be rs o f co m m itte e s a n d boards w h o g iv e th e ir tim e a nd e ne rg y w ith o u t p a y — dese rve our thanks. Go over Jordan Brothers and Sisters of the Community: An opportunity has come to all of us to assure a brighter future in city government lor all minority people. This came in the appointment of Mr. Charles Jordan to a City Council seat by Mayor Neil Goldschmidt. The door has been cracked. It is up to us to make sure that it is thrust wide open. As usual, when one of us is honored such as Mr. Jordan has been. many, or should I say a few of us, begin to bicker and fight among our selves to indicate that he might not have been chosen by the people. I would sug gest that we stop fighting among ourselves and give thims man. Mr. Jordan, the full support and loyalty that he deserves. The Mayor has shown faith in him and other people of the community have faith in him. 1 would suggest that we adopt the same kind of faith for one of our own that we show for so many of our other (ample, if 1 may say, who are white. This time those (ample of anglo descent and other nationalities have come out to support Mr. Jordan. It would la’ a shame if those of us ot ebony would not give him ths- same sup port. Black people have been crying and praying for cen turies. "Lord, let us gel over Jordan," but I think it is time to change that prayer to "lavrd, help Jordan get us over the Willamette into City Hall to bring about change for Black people anil all (»eople of color." 1 hiqa- we can really come to the realization that getting over Jordan is in the past, but helping Jordan get over is in the present and in the future, for with Jordan getting over in the City Council. City Hall will tune its ear to our needs. Brothers and sisters of Blackness, join together and help Jordan get over. Peace and freedom. Harold C. Williams Is President Nixon whistling in the dark? by Benjamin E. Mays Nixon must resign R ep ub lica n Senator Jam es B uckley, the most c o n s e rv a tiv e o f co n se rva tives, has c a lle d on Presi­ d e n t N ix o n to resign. He join s his lib e ra l c o l­ le a g u e , S enator Edw ard Brooke, in c h a rg in g that th e President c a n n o t re g a in th e trust o f the A m e ric a n p e o p le . This is in d ic a tiv e o f g ro w in g unrest a m o n g R e p u b lica n o ffic e holders. A lth o u g h m ost a re not y e t w illin g to say p u b lic a lly w h a t th e y are co n ­ fid in g to each o th e r, th e y re a liz e th a t th ey w ill h ave to b ea r th e b urd e n o f W a te rg a te at the polls. As m o re e v id e n c e com es to lig h t a nd as the President beco m e s m o re v e h e m e n t in his attacks on the C on g re ssio n a l in ve stig a to rs, an im p e a c h ­ m e n t tria l seem s in e v ita b le . As the A m e ric a n p e o p le p o n d e r th e W a te rg a te , in co m e tax, Ellsberg tria l, ITT, m ilk fu n d , a nd o th e r ye t u n k n o w n scandals, a n d as e v id e n c e co n tin u e s to be w ith h e ld or " d is a p p e a r " , th e President's c re d ib ility must n o w be b e y o n d re p a ir. It no lo n g e r m atters w h e th e r the President is g u ilty o f crim es. He is th e le a d e r o f th e most c o rru p t a d m in is tra tio n in th e h istory o f the n atio n . W ith m ost o f his to p s ta ff m em be rs, a n d a ll o f the p o lic y m ake rs o f his e le c tio n c a m p a ig n u nd er c rim in a l in d ic tm e n t or a lre a d y fo u n d g u ilty , it is re a s o n a b le to assum e th a t the President was in v o lv e d or he e x h ib its in c o m p e te n c e a t its h eig h t. If the President, w h o re p e a te d ly states " I refuse to be a p arty to the destructio n o f the P re sid en cy", has a n y concern fo r the A m e ric a n p e o p le a nd th e ir g o v e rn m e n t, he w ill im m e d ia te ly resign. Published every Thursday by Exie Publishing Company, 2201 North Killingsworth. Portland, Oregon 97217. Mailing address: P.O. Box 3137, Portland, Oregon 97208. Telephone: 283 2486. President Nixon said re cently that he will not resign, that he will serve out his second four years, and be­ sides the Republicans will be in office for eight years after -- that is through 1984. Spiro Agnew boasted a few days before he re­ signed that he would not resign. The vice president was whistling in the dark. Is it possible that this is what the p resident is doing, whistling in the dark? If the president does not resign, he has confidence that Congress will not oust him. I am of the opinion that the president is right. I doubt that Congress will try the president in the Senate and get enough votes to put him out of office. Even if the data reveals that the presi dent is guilty, the Senate would hardly vote him out, even if the House impeaches him. The constitution is not clear on what offenses are impeachable. Treason is clear, and bribery is clear. If these ran be proved, the rase would be won. High crime and other misdemeanors art not so clear. I do wonder why the president, the vice president, and his legal advisors keep saying that the president can be impeached and tried only if he is convicted of crime. Not only laymen, like the w riter, are confused, but lawyers seem to be equally confused. Is the president so certain that he has done nothing that is criminal in nature that he ran insist that his case rests solely on the commitment of crime? Is misconduct in office an impeachable offense? Can the Chief Executive bomb Cam bodia in secret and answer to no one? Is the president free to sit on billions of dollars which Con gress has appropriated for specific purposes and be answerable to no one? If it ran be established that the president had a hand in the W atergate coverup, is he answerable to any on«»? If perjury is found, then what? W arren Weaver. Jr. says in the New York Times “Virtually all criminal law authorities agree that the president is not subject to legal process while in office, cannot be compelled to ap pear in court and is for all purposes not triable. Thus any attempt to indict him would be doomed from the start.” These may be the reasons the president insists that he ran be impeached only on criminal charges, definitely proved. This is a serious matter faring the nation. The White House lawyers and the presi dent insist that only charges of crimes are legitimate rea sons for impeachment and ouster from office, while the J u d ic ia ry C o m m ittee feels that gross misconduct is rea sonable grounds for impeach ment. The best legal minds are divided. It may be that when all this is over, the Congress will have to write into law stating clearly when a president is impeachable or ran be ousted from office. One thing is clear: if the courts and the J u d ic ia ry C o m m ittee reveal enough evidence that is damaging to the Republican cause, the Republicans themselves will see to it that the president resigns. If they think that the president will hurt them in 1976, they will get M r Nixon out. NAACP REGIONAL CONFERENCE BANQUET April 6th Subscriptions: $5.25 per year in the T ri County area, $6.00 per year outside Portland. Beginning at 6:30 p.m. S H E R A T O N H O TEL Tickets $10.00 Second Class Postage Paid at Portland, Oregon The Portland Observer's official position is expressed only in its Publisher’s column (We See The World Through Black Eyes). Any other material throughout the paper is the opinion of the individual w riter or submitter and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Portland Observer. your attention to an ap parent oversight in your fea tu re a rtic le . "P o rtla n d Public Schools: Why not Black men?", of the March 7th issue. In your listing of high schools with Black male teachers. Grant was left com pleteiy out and naturally we wondered why and felt even a little slighted, especially in view of the Black teachers who serve « h i our staff and the emphasis 1 have placed on hiring qualified Blacks to fill openings as they have occurred over the past four years. Perhaps you would be in terested in learning that al though Grant had to reduce its staff drastically for this year by about 14 staff mem bers. we presently have the following Black staff per For reservations, call: Joelette Hargo, 288 5075, or Francis Walker, 288 8187. Reservations limited call before April 1st. AttociH ion ■ Founded 1895 r sonnel who have continued to function moat satisfactorily as teachers, counselors and as administrative assistants. They have also each cot, tributed much to the sue cessful progress in human relations ut this school and many other programs and activities which are impor tant to Grant as a multi eth n ic and m u lti c u ltu ral urban school. The total Black staff comprises I I men and women which breaks down into the following cate gories: a. Three are certificated classroom teachers one each in Social Studies, Busi ness Education anil A rt (two men and one woman); b. Two are counselors tone man and one woman the latter having served as a top notch classroom teacher at Grant for five years): r. tine is a community agent (woman): d. Two are administrative assistants tone man anil one woman); e. Three are non certifi­ cated aides who counsel and supervise students in hall ways and the gym areas (three women). Although this represents 10% of our tolul staff and I will continue to add as open ings occur and q ualified Blacks for such openings apply at the district |x-r sonnel office, please do not underestimate in terms of nunilx-rs the significant im pact that these fine staff people have had at Grant. In many respects we have been fortunate that foresight anil sound planning at this school have included the im,Hirtant addition of Black men and women who are giMxl, know ledgeable and dedicated "teachers" of youth with faith in our school goals and trust in the school's administration and teaching staff to work out complex tasks for the benefit of all of our students. You are welcome to share this information with your readers and I trust you will view this letter as indicative of my support of efforts which will bring more badly needed qualified Black edu cators into our public schools. 1 am personally contident that the opportunities now exist and perhaps the real crunch is that the demand for the kind of teachers we are seeking. Black or white, exceed those who are being prepared for today's urban school challenges. I am hopeful that this gap will close in the near future as more young Blacks are en couraged to prepare them selves for classroom teaching and school c o m m u n itie s recognize th e ir im p o rtan t contributions as teachers to a total pluralistic sw iety. Sincerely, Gust Kanas Principal Grant High School Will not run To the Editor: I feel that I owe many people an upology, an ex planation, and a tremendous vote of thanks. Through events over the (last three months. I ilc velo,ted the opinion that I might lie the answer to the Black community's desire as a candidate for political of fice. If conditions had re maineil as they were prior to Monday. March 4. 1974. I would have filed for Frank Ivancies' City Council seat, and we would have won. But the chain of events. Ivancies' return as the in cumbent. Lloyd Anderson re signing, and Charles Jordans' appointment, caused many people to regroup. Including one George Rankins. I am not sure that I want to lx* a city councilman or Of a more serious nature was the continual hasse| over lesson plans. A lthough Speiginer made specific and detailed lesson plans, they were never acceptable. He said he asked for assistance and suggestions, but that the curriculum vice president of fered none. Speiginer had 3 double periods (or 6 periods) of class with from 20 to .'15 students in a class, but had no aide and no preparation time. Speiginer had students of three age groups Sopho­ mores, Juniors and Seniors in the same classes. He had first year automotive stu­ dents and those who had already had a year of auto­ motive shop in the same class, e also had a dispor portionate number of "pa tential dropouts". Speiginer also had prob lems over his choice of courses for his career de­ velopment. A t one point he asked to take Educational Psychology but was told it did not apply to his classes, but later was told to take general learning psychology. Speiginer describes a long series of harassments, ending i hold any other political post tion, but I consented to run in hopes of helping our com mumty succeed in "step one" of its many goals; that is. getting Black representation for the first time in a deci sion making |wid position. Now, however, I feel with the appointment of ( harles Jordan, a gentleman I re­ spect. admire and offer my 100% support in this new assignment, caused us to complete "step one in our community's goals. Therefore, this correspon dence is to announce to my many friends ami supporters “I will not run for a political office." I apologize to those I may have disappointed. and many, many thanks for their support and dedication. Sincerely, George Rankins Program trains vets Dear Editor: In January of 1972 the de escalation of the Vietnam W ar liegan and the (>ost Vietnam syndrom began. In light of the growing rate of inflation and th«- rising rate of unemployment here in the United States, the problems of the Vietnam veteran, abh­ or disabled, were only to be passified hy the government here in the United Stales. The rale of unemployment and lack of education plagued m in o rities all over the c o u n t r y , e s p e c ia lly th e Blacks. There is a program at the Mt Hood Community College Extension Center for low income minorities who lark the equivalent of a high schixil diploma, or for those who desire to go to college, but whose high school GPA was relatively low. The pro gram entitled the Veterans Educational Center of Ore gon was established in June of 1973 through the co ordmated efforts of Gerald Potter, ex captain in the U.S. Arm y. The program is now fully staffed by veterans who have served in the Vietnam war. Black turnover (Continued from pg. 1. col. 61 to get prior approval for purchases. He had problems locating the persons who gave approval ano many times this delayed the job, which were the work assign ments for the students. Eventually he had the owners bring their own parts. The next problem was payment for the work. He was not allow«*d to receive the pay ment, but often the book keeper could not be found and the customer could not take the car until he paid. I Editor's note: We apolo gite lor our error in missing Grant's two Black male «dass room teachers. We com mend Principal Kanas lor his sincere efforts on behalf ol Black students and teachers ! in his refusal to sign an evaluation he considered to be incorrect and unfair. In H rfe m b rr he was removed from Jefferson and sent to the area office where he compiled notebooks and was under observation. He was sent to a physician and a (isv rhialrist. Finally, in January he was terminated by the schixil board. S p eig in er believes his problems stem from a con flict between the academic and career education pro ponents. His own thinking was to train students in a trade, but also to interest them in general education. He tried to teach them how to study, how to make judge ments, and how to develop their skills. He «Joes not believe that he was intended to be successful in this en­ deavor. He believes that the administration attempted to force him to resign or to reart in such a way that they would have grounds for dis missal. Speiginer’s insubordination charge did not stem from defiance or refusal to do as ordered, but from his just not have some of the the paperwork completed to the satisfaction of the adminis tration. The main charges against him appear to be his inability to w rite satisfactory lesson plans and the ad m in is tra tio n 's disagreement over how much time should be spent on lectures and how much on experience. Speigi ner maintained that more lecture time was made neces sary by the mixed rlasses. but that the students did get enough “hands on" expert ence. The program operates in two phases: Phase I serves the G ED training componant of the program and Phase 2 is incorporated into the col lege sampling rom|Minent of the program. Veterans who enroll in the VECO program are authorized under guide lines of the Veterans Ad ministration Art to receive up to nine months deficiency money which will stimulate any part of their certified e n title m e n t of e lg ib ility . lljion enrolling the veteran will receive a stipend check from the University of Ore gon to supplement his income until his check arrives Upon completion of the college sampling rnnqionent of the VECO program, a veteran may attend any institution of higher education in the State of Oregon, as stated in the guidelines of the program. Any veteran who wishes to contact the VECO program for more information ran w rite to VECO. 10100 N.E. Prescott, Portland, or phone 256 3434 or 256 3430 Jerome Griffin Other teachers who have witnessed Speiginer'* strug gle to stay in the system have two theories one, that Speiginer. like other Black teachers hired in 1969 to quiet down the Blark stu dents, was never intended to attain tenure but that while Marshall was principal he determined that Speiginer would stay; and two, (hat Speiginer. who is now 60. will not be allowed to remain in the system until he is 65 and ran retire with full benefits. This antagonism toward Speiginer, which lasted over a 5-year period, is an example of what many teachers call differential treatment toward Black teachers. Whether or not any of the administra tion's com plaints against Speiginer were justified, his peers believe the matter could have been settled equitably in less than 5 years. Apparently his sue cess with the students was not questioned but his man­ nerisms or his attitude t a ward the administration at Jefferson were a matter of contention. The school district now has a percentage of 4.7 Black teachers with a student en rollment over 10 percent Blark. As of January of 1973, with about 3,(MM) certi fie«| teachers in the Portland Public Schools, only 137 were Blark. Blark teachers and other Blark staff have been terminated or resigned dur­ ing the 1973-74 school year and will continue to leave for a variety of reasons until they feel th a t they are treated with respect. In the meantime, Portland's Black children are deprived of their opportunity for a quality, integrated education. f