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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 18, 1975)
4 4 Page 2 Portland Observer Thursday. December 18, 1975 The Price off Being Equal by Congressman Augustus Hawkins We see the world through Black eyes years of progress; a pledge renewed On this, o u r fifth a n n ive rsa ry o f p u b lic a tio n , the sta ff o f the P o rtla n d O bserver give s special thanks to a ll o f those w h o h ave supported our e n d e a v o r to serve the p e o p le o f O reg on — our subscribers, a dve rtise rs a n d friends. The O bserver w as fo u n d e d w ith one g o a l in m in d -- to serve as an a d vo ca te fo r the Black co m m u n ity , to m ake kn o w n the g oals a spira tio ns a nd the s u ffe rin g s o f Black p e o p le To this end w e have a tte m p te d to present our local a nd n a tio n a l leaders the true p ictu re o f life as it is live d to da y by m in o rity p e o p le across the natio n. For this reason w e have a tte m p te d to in flu e n c e the decision m a k in g a nd the h irin g practices o f b oth the p u b lic a nd the p riv a te sectors. W e q u o te fro m Frederick Douglass, w h o in 1847 o ffe re d his p a p e r the ' N orth S ta r" to his p e o p le , a n d w e ta ke his p le d g e as our ow n. "W e so le m n ly d e d ica te the N orth Star to the cause o f our lo n g oppressed and p lu n d e re d co un trym e n. M ay G od bless the o ffe rin g to yo ur g oo d! It sh all fe a rle ssly assert yo u r rights, fa ith fu lly p ro c la im yo u r w rongs, a nd e a rn e stly d em a n d fo r you instant a nd e v e n -h a n d e d justice. Every e ffo rt to in ju re or d e g ra d e you or yo ur cause — o rig in a tin g w h e re s o e ve r, or w ith w ho m so e ver - shall fin d in it a constant, u n a n s w e rin g and in fle x ib le fo e "A m o n g the m u ltitu d e o f plans pro po sed a nd o p in io n s h eld, w ith re fe ren ce to our cause a nd c o n d itio n , w e sh all try to have a m in d o f o u r o w n , h a rm o n iz in g w ith a ll as far as w e can, a n d d iffe rin g fro m a n y and a ll w h e re w e m ust, b u t a lw a y s d is c rim in a tin g b e tw e e n m en a n d m easures. We sh all c o rd ia lly a p p ro v e e ve ry m easure a n d e ffo rt c a lc u la te d to a d v a n c e y o u r sacred cause, and stren uo u sly oppose a n y w h ic h in o u r o p in io n in a y te nd to re ta rd its progress In re g a rd to o u r p o s itio n , on q ue stion s th a t h a v e u n h a p p ily d iv id e d th e frie n d s o f fre e d o m in this co un try, w e s h a ll stand in our p ap er w h e re w e h a v e e ver stood on the p la tfo rm . O ur v ie w s w ritte n s h a ll accord w ith our v ie w s spoken e a rn e stly se e kin g p e a ce w ith a ll m en, w h e n it can be secured w ith o u t in ju rin g the in te g rity o f our m o v e m e n t, a nd n e v e r s h rin k in g fro m c o n flic t or d iv is io n w h e n s u m m o n e d to v in d ic a te tru th a n d ju s tic e ." "W h ile a d v o c a tin g y o u r rights, th e N orth Star w ill strive to th ro w lig h t o n y o u r d u tie s : w h ile it w ill not fa il to m a ke kn o w n y o u r virtues, it sh all n o w shun to d isco ver yo ur fa ults. To be fa ith fu l to our foes it m ust be fa ith fu l to ourselves, in a ll th in g s ." "R e m e m b e r th a t w e a re o ne , th a t our cause is one, a n d th a t w e m ust h e lp each o th e r, if w e w o u ld succeed. W e have d ru n k to th e d re gs the b itte r cup o f sla v e ry ; w e h ave w o rn the h e a v y y o k e ; w e have sigh ed b en e a th our bonds, a n d w rith e d b en e a th the b lo o d y lash; — crue l m e m e n to e s o f our oneness a re in d e lib ly m arked in o u r liv in g fle s h , w e are one w ith yo u u n d e r the ban o f p re ju d ic e a n d p ro scrip tion — o ne w ith you under the sla n d e r o f in fe rio rity - one w ith you in social a n d p o litic a l d isfra n ch ise m e n t. W h a t you su ffe r, w e s u ffe r; w h a t you e n d ure, w e e nd ure. W e are in d is s o lu b ly u n ite d , and must fa ll or flo u ris h to g e th e r." On the way to the mountain top top: 1970 ■1975 In those five years, the “Portland Observer" has become an important and influential element in the metropolitan press. - G O VER N O R BOB S T R A l'B Speaking for the needs and rights and aspirations of Portland's minority community, it promotes those same needs and rights and aspirations for all of us. - CO M M ISSIO N C H A IR M A N D O N A L D E. CLAR K The 'Observer' has taken an active role in the life of our community and through its editorial policy has been an important force for promoting human rights. - M A Y O R N E IL G O L D S C H M ID T Henderson E d ito r/P u b lis h e r P o rtlan d O b s e rv e r 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. Subscriptions: $5.25 per year in the T ri County area. $6.00 per year outside Portland. 1st Place Community Service O NPA 1973 1st Place Best Ad Results O NPA 1973 5th Place Best Editorial N N P A 1973 Second Class Postage Paid at Portland, Oregon A* F R E D L. H E N D ER SO N Editor/Publisher Honorable Mention The Portland Observer's official position is expressed only in Herrick Editorial Award N N A 1973 its Publisher's column (We See The World Through Black • Eyes). Any other material throughout the paper is the opinion 2nd Place of the individual w riter or submitter and does not rmeessarily Best Editorial reflect the opinion of the Portland Observer. 3rd Place Community leadership O NPA 1975 member MEMBER Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association I N O Atsocittion ■ Foundtd 1895 Most altitudinal polls today indicate that a majority of white Americans agree that non whites should have equal access to opportunities for the good things in American life. Some of the evidences of this thinking has resulted in relatively better jobs, better housing, better education, and better health care for some non whites. A significant number of non white, however, i.e., Blacks, Spanish speaking, Asians and Native Americans are still the recipients of appalling discriminatory treatment in seeking their share of the American promise. They are still less equal (in opportunity) than their white counterparts, who are in essence more equal in all relevant areas of achieving the good life. And this is the hub of the problem: the stumbling blocks; the obstacle to resolving dicrimination and prejudice in this society. But being more equal is no easy accomplishment to retain. Having the edge, as a member of the more equal group, means that non whites, (with less equal opportunities and seeking to be in the more equal class.) will forever be on the horizon trying to get their just due. Certainly the current busing crisis in I,ouisville and Boston is a prime example of the tenacity of non whites in aggres sively demanding equal opportunities for quality education. The demand won't go away until the demand is satisfactorily resolved. In fart, segregated education may even temporarily win out in these cities. Rut certain questions will remain: A t what point will a new demand be raised? To what degree will these demands immobilize all important com munity activities? And what will be the nature of the eventual resolution? On another front, one ran hardly deny that in this horrible Nixon-Ford depres sion, non whites have suffered eeonomi rally, way out of proportion to their numbers. That the old maxim last hired, first fired -- is working, and working well! Non whites have not had the luxury of job permanency, or job seniority since opportunities for such security have historically been denied them. Thus in very hard times, being more equal continues to pay off. especially when one has to feed, house and clothe one’s family. In the case of equal employment opportunity, non whites are told that present employers, and present prefee sional associations, and present unions, can't be held responsible for past discriminations. Well, non whites are just not buying these rationalisations - and lir a number of landmark court decisions (pressed by the "less equal folk”) the courts are saying past discriminations must be redressed no matter who is to blame. No one in this society should be provided an advantage of being more equal than anyone else. Every opportun ity for growth and achievement should be based on the concept that we all start at the beginning on an equal footing. Most of our human problems usually stem from someone wanting to have an unequal advantage over the other guy. Well, this just can't work, because it causes more havoc than it's worth. And it is more ironically treacherous when the disadvantaged person turns out to be as smart as the advantaged person! Advantages should be gained in honest, fair struggle. Anything less than this is shame -- and will hurt and haunt us all, until we learn that equal really means equal. W h a t happened to in teg ratio n? (Continued from p. 1 col. 3) psychiatric sense of the term. LaRouche says, "racism is an exhibition of paranoid shizophrenic tendencies that comes from an infantile form of hostility to 'out siders*. Likewise the zero growth or community control notions are imposed... to a subject population." In effect, you produce thia: 'don't bother me about long range solutions to problems, I'm worried about getting (burglarized, raped, era ployed, etc., etc.) R IG H T NO W In effect, such hysterical reductionism leads rather immediately to rape, burglary, and continued unemployment R IG H T NOW. Paranoid ideologies in family relation ships. IaiRouche says, “typified by J ia Crow racism spill over, out of the family environment. The notion that one ‘learns racial prejudice' is naive...a child becomes a racist when he learns to attach his paranoid (infantile) fears to the idea of certain kinds of people.” In contrast to the paranoid shizophre nic tendency exemplified by racism ~ whether white or Black -• "the mature identity requires an intellectually deter mined practical power over the outside world." To deal with any 'local' problem demands a rapid examination of the whole. "Industrial urban infrastructure has undercut the objective basis for Jim Crow" within the white and Black working class, more so than the integra tionist movement it is the development of creative mental activity in a socially useful way which enables the individual ‘to grow' the quality of character he previously larked and in that way to positively overcome the cathexized in fantile refuse (racism)..." “The left, in particular the SW P and C P U S A 's . preoccupation w ith racism exhibits the same paranoid schizophrenic tendencies as the racist himself. 'Rooting out' racism is identical in form to the racism...and is comparable to 'expelling demonds.' " By 1963, I-a Roue he writes, Rand. Ford and the other Rockefeller allied founda tions found they had few indigenous takers for starting the segregationist movement in the north. One of the main targets of the segregationist scenario was the lowering of education standards. Coinciding with the recognition that the integrationist movement was now useless to the Rockefeller group, they expressed their programatic awareness that there was no pressing need for a skilled working class - hence certain sectors of the population could be 'phased out'. Actual education can be replaced by animal control; teachers wages could be slashed, volunteers and aides with less training for half or even less the salary could be brought in. California, for example, has recently passed legislation dumping thousands of high school child ren out of school (of course, with a ruse). The Rockefeller group no longer recog nizes the need for a skilled work force there is your measure of the real govern mental recognition of depression. And if you can organize the Black land Hispanic et al) population into demanding animal control' as evidenced in the Emamu Baraka variety, what a victory for local control. Ultim ately both integrationist and segregationist remnants were to coalesce’ in community control with the red herring busing to become the issue, rather than adequate education for children. Initially, LaRouche states, radical white youth were diverted by the (OEO, etc.) to become the vehicles for targeting the municipal unions and construction trades - as well as urban political machines that interfered or would potentially interfere with L E A A , etc. programs. Quickly Blacks were brought into this operation, via Ford, H EW , AFSC, etc. monies. The target was again diversionary, based on the psychological profiles of the victim population. Rather than adequate employment which would have brought non governmental controlled organizations fare to face with Rockefell r and his allies their target was the white racist unions' and the ‘white racist power structure'. Groups like the SWP, laiRourhe develops, were w ittingly coopted into this. The press was to play its part in developing the necessary anti heron for the union busting operations, while "Goebbels like manuevers were used to convince seep tics that the anti tommunity control forces" were racist, etc. Be practical jobs are needed now.' “But the practical outcome of the busting of the labor movement is simply a significant contri bution to the development of a fascist economy.” Recognizing the terrifying unemployed and underemployed state of minority populations, LaRouche insists that the only real alternative is the development of an immediate framework within which 'to grow': "it is the process of progress itself which compells the individual to resort to his mental creative potentialiti ties in a sustained and directed way which results in a recognizably significant diminution of paranoid tendencies. The main obstacle (stemming "from the capitalist form of wage labor which alienates labor power from active per ception of the fundamental proper location of personal social identity in the active exercize of those creative mental powers) is a psychological problem, which is essentially solved if a programatic overview of the world wide network of productive relationships is actively en tertained." Thia is elaborated on in LaRouche's development of socialist morality being an adherence to the development of the quality of labor power. Briefly stated he defines it this way^propose no course of action, commit no act which is not in the objective interest of the successful progress of the condition of the human race as a whole...” Ideas ran perfst, he states, as active determinants as practiced behavior “only roughtly to the same extent that such ideas are appropriate in some practical sense to the objective social setting in which they persist." I^iRouche details Malcolm X as a particularly unique individual, who was able to escape the conditions of home and neighborhood life which “almost prohi bited the development of an essential cognitive attention span but Malcolm X found no socialist organization within which he could develop his qualities of leadership” he was incapable of by himself replicating his intellectual moral qualities to develop an organization that had more than a fleeting existence. The SW P attempted to orient him into is 60s community control program, while the CPUSA treated him as a fascist. IjiRouche concludes his analysis: "..the assumption that racial problems repre sent a continued priority issue, having priority over the I jb o r Party’s progra matir commitment, is necessarily a presumption that Rockefeller's hege mony will continue for a significant period, a presumption which, if acted on, means the rapid obliteration of the U.8. racial minorities in either thermonuclear or Schactian (slave labor) holocausts... there are no cheap tactical shortcuts for eradicating racism." SPECIAL PURCHASE ( <•* ■ ( (> Double Oven Cooking Convenience OOOOl with Automatic -7 SELF- CLEANING OVEN SYSTEM P-7 SELF-CLEANING O V E N SYSTEM: I Cleans entire master even, inner deer and window I Cleans removable companion oven panels and shelves Cleans surface unit reflector pans IN AVOCADO, ONIVi PLUS ALL THESE FEATURES: Automotic rotis serie, else trie meat thermometer, Senti-Temp automatic surface unit with coil for 4 " , 6 " or 8" utensils. 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