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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 12, 1976)
S Portland Observer Thursday, August IStk. 1*1« Seniority in schools We see the world Coplay News Service through Black eyes Appointment b order Dick Davis, Director of the Department of Human Resources, recently announced that J, N. "Nick Peet, Administrator of the Public Welfare Division, will assume the duties os Administrator of the Child ren's Services Division. We think this is a good appointment. We know that Children's Services Divi sion has been beset with numerous problems. We expect Mr. Peet to bring direction and order to the Division, which he has very ably done in his previous position. We do think, however, that it is time AAr. Davis made some top appointments of minorities and women. We urge AAr. Davis to fill the position Peet has left — Administrator of Public Welfare — with a minority man or woman. Housing urgent need Congratulations to the Emergency Helping Agen cies Committee of the Tri-County Community Coun cil. After much discussion, they are embarking on a long overdue analysis of emergency housing needs in the greater Portland area. Helping agencies have long recognized the need for emergency housing, as well as regular housing, but have felt powerless to cause the development of such resources. We hope that the Committee will not overlook the large numbers of decayed, dilapidated and deteri orating houses in which people are forced to live - in highly unsanitary conditions, faced with rodent problems and in constant fear for their own safety and security. We recommend that particular attention be given to the Albina community with its high minority population, high unemployment and low income, high crime rate and low percentage of clean, decent housing at reasonable rates. Committee members, we will be watching your efforts and stand ready to assist you in your endea vors. Get involved now The Tri-County Local Government Commission, a group that was formed to study the workings of local government has made recommendations for chang es and will be seeking public input. These changes, if adopted, will drastically effect not only county and city government, but public service districts and special boards such as the Co lumbia Region Association of Governments (CRAG) and Tri-AAet. These changes could make many of these boards elective, could change their functions, or could elim inate them altogether. Elected membri could serve geographic districts or be elected at-large. These reforms are supposed to make government more coordinated and more responsive to the people. This is too important to matter for us to sit back and allow changes to be made that could effect our lives for years to come. AAony of the recommendations made by the Commission, or made by the public, might be desirable. Others might not. This issue requires our study and evaluation, and our parti cipation — in numbers large enough to be seen and heard. Let's not sit back and lose what little we have — then start hollering after the decisions have been made by others. Another Potat of View THE ABORTION DECISION by Kenyon C. Burke Guest Editorial In the midst of the fanfare and Happy Birthday U.S.A. festivities surrounding the Bicentennial, it was heartwarming to see the U.S. Supreme Court clarify and strengthen the rights of women to decide for themselves whether or not they want to terminate a pregnancy. Although the Supreme Court's landmork 1973 abortion decision indicated that termination of a pregnancy was basically a decision for a woman to make herself, there were hold-outs amoung us who wonted to limit and restrict that right by insisting that husbands or parents of a minor give their consent. In the abortion cases recently decided, the elimi nation of a requirement for a husband's consent to his wife's abortion and the limitation of parental participation in decisions where minors are involved are but logical extensions of the original opinion. The soundness of the principle is indicated by Justic Blackmun's common sense argument that when a husband and wife disagree, only one can prevail and that since the wife "is more directly and immediately affected" her views should bear more weight. Also, the court's extension of the right of decision to "mature minors" is not simply dictated by the logic of the 1973 decision, but also by the common experience that where safe abortions are forbidden by law or by parental flat, bock alley butchers flourish. The price of illegal abortion in the days preceding the Supreme Court's abortion decision was paid in the currency of women's dignity, women's health and women's lives. Though many paid the price, none paid it more often and more cruelly than minority groups and the poor. More than nine out of 10 of those who died at the hands of incompetent practitioners in the days before abortion was legal were Black and Spanish speaking. While abortion and Its physical and psychological ramifications are not to be taken lightly, access to medically supervised abortion does bring about sig nificant health advantages to individuals and their families. Since the 1973 Supreme Court decision game legal anction to abortion, the maternal death rate and infant mortality rates have materially declined. Any attempt to interfere with a women's right to person ally make a choice on this crucial matter would reverse that trend and be a step back into our dark and ignorant past. One would hope that the court's reaffirmotion of this most intimate of privocy rights might serve to defuse much of the heat out of the abortion issue and free up activists to deal with improving the quality of life of all people alike and respond positively to the real gut survival issues we face in the Bicentennial yeor. OUR THE B LA C K PR E SS — F R E E D O M D E P E N D S ON Portland Observer * 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: $7.80 per year in the Tri-County area, $8.00 per year outside Portland. 8 eread Class Postage Paid at Portland, Oregon A L F R E D L. HENDERSON Editor/PebUsber 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 Partiaad Obesrver. IT ! Is t Place ty Service ONPA 1*73 I t takes a bit of imagination to see bow discussion of seniority practices in Con gress can relate to the education that students receive in schools. The common bond is the similarity of seniority practices in Congress and in education. Traditionally, teachers with the moat experience have Brat choice of teaching aaaignmenta Just as members of the House and Senate with longevity have, in the past, filled all the top con grseaional assignments. In recent years Congress baa reevalu ated and changed its traditional seniority patterns. By doing so, it has considerably improved its responsiveness to public I t is my opinion that the schools must do the same. In the inner-city schools are many dedicated, talented teachers. Year after year they are able to successfully challenge youngster and help prepare them for today's world. However. If the level of teaching in these schools b to be uniformly high, then the balance between inexperienced and experienced teachers must be equalised. This can only be done by modification of teacher seniority practices. A recent study showed that the num ber of inexperienced teachers b much higher in center city than in suburban schools. Herrick Editorial Award, N N A1973 Best Editorial 3rd Place (Continued from p. 1 col. 6) Now there are forces that will come out of Moxambique, out of Angola, and out of Zaire that will topple the Smith govern ments. Brookins said he appreciates the ef forts of Secretary of State Henry Kbain ger to at last form a policy on Black Africa. Kissinger’s policy now is that the government understands that it can deal no differently with Black Africa than it does with white nations that sought free dom and received aid from the govern ment to insure majority rule. Kissinger has asked that Blacks form a high level committee to consult with him on how he should deal with Africa. “I t is the first time in the history of this coun try when the State Department was even inclined to respect Blacks enough to re spect their opinion as it relates to their own culture and native land.” Brookins has some advice for the government: 1. The United States should ask the U.N. Security Council to send peace keep ing representatives to South Africa; 2. The Republican Party and President Ford should come out publically and de nounce the tragedy that is going on in South Africa; 8. The United States should send Blacks to dialogue with Blacks in South Africa to find out what b really happening there, since news reports are not usually accurate; 4. The United States should use economic sanctions against South Africa. Brookins assesses the Soviet Union's activities as "playing with Africa." ‘They attempt to come in on the side of the freedom fighters to give the impression that they are friends of Africans. The future of Africa must be determined ex clusively by Africans. The reason is that the white powers have not responded to Africa for hundreds of years on the basis of that which is good for Africans. I t b in the interest of Russia, in the interest of America, in the interest of France, in the interest of Germany, in the interest of Britain and all of the rest of them. I t b for thia reason that all of those struggling forty-six nations that now claim indepen dence have political independence but still have economic slavery and colonial ism, and if not colonialism, than neo colonialism. And of course the end result is the same. They have a symbol of free dom but they do not have economic free dom and until you get economic freedom it all becomes just a paper job and a symbolic thing." “What we have to do is withhold our self-righteous involvement and self-serv ing involvement after the fact. We went into Angola after the fact to try and say that we were for the Angolans when we went there only in the interest of Ameri- A fA 1A M A Í e W p A pgr for thia country." Brookins believes that the United States will have to respond to the criais in Africa. "I don't think there will be any voluntary, moralistic response to Africa's problems. I think that circumstances will cause America to reaoood. We are no longer that world respected power, where everybody b bowing at the shrine of our liberty while we are actually deny ing freedom and opportunity and demo cracy here in America." What will bring America to that point ia the realisation that the Third World eontrob the U.N. Also, the greatest crisis of the future will be in the production of food and the only bnd avaibbb will be in Africa. The 0 8 . will also be dependent on Africa for oil and metals. “Africans will use that which is beneath their feet to determine where their feet will go." Another factor is that there are 30 million Blacks in th b country and thia year Blacks will use votes to make certain that a stronger, more vbble, more sensi tive foreign policy relates to our home bnd; to insure that the administration of 1977 will confront the issue of Black and white. “W e do not think it is right tor thb nation to use one kind of foreign policy for white nations and another kind for Bbck nations - it b in thb same sense that we can no longer allow that administra tion to apply one kind of equal justice in thb country to one race over against the over race. Bbcks are no longer waiting for handouts - we are no longer waiting for welfare - we are waiting for the same job market, tor the same economic advan tages, and for the same political advan tage to participate in deebion making b veb that the rest of America b all about" Regarding the upcoming election, Brookins said President Ford has contin ued the same 'da nothin” policies for Bbcks that Richard Nixon did - on all counts. He expreseed the opinion that Jimmy Carter b saying the right things - he has promised to place Blacks at all b veb of government and to look at the regubtory agencies - and based on hb record in Georgia, he offers more hope. "If we get him in office and he doesn't do what he says he will do. we'll get him out of office." He said Carter might be earthy enough. Southern enough, genuine enough and naive enough to do the right thing. "We know America b going to respond because we're not going to rest until It does. We're not going to do It viobntly; we're going to use the non viobnt. highly sophbticated economic techniques and strategies to make th b government more responsive to what w eaTe all about" The African Methodbt Episcopal Church will be in the forefront of thb renewed drive for Bbck liberation at home and abroad. “We are going to use the Bbck Church, the African Methodbt Episcopal Church b 177 years old. I t b the liberation church; it b the only church that b concomitant with the history of thb nation and we are going to use our own vehicles to insure, for exampb, In these 14 Western states that we get from the political adminbtration that which these underprivileged and these Bbcks, particularly are entitled to." Bbhop Brookins received world-wide attention when he was declared an “un- desirable inhabitant of or an undesirable vbitor to Rhodesb" and barred from Rhodesb by the Ian Smith government. Thb followed hb efforts to aid the eco nomic and socbl development of Bbck Rhodesbns and hb public pronounce ments in favor of Bbck majority rule. The Rhodesbn press credited Brookins with inbting, in the United States, support for the 6 ‘/» million Black peopb who are in a life and death struggle for majority ru b in Rhodesb. Brookins served as Bbhop in Central Africa - Zambb, Rhodesb, M abwi, Mo xambique, Zaire, Tanxanb and Angob - from 1972-1976. In June, 1978, be was appointed to the United State's largest Episcopal D btrict. the 17 states west of the Mississippi River. Brookins b a native of MisaiaaippL He b a graduate of Wilberforce University and Payne Theological Seminary (D.D. 1961). He pastored First African Metho dbt Episcopal Church in Loa Angeles from 1969-1972. In keeping with hb belief in the church's involvement In economic and socbl development First African (Please turn to p. 8 col. 8) Oregon Black History Project Tri-County area $ .50 arww $ 8 .0 0 MEMBER N cn and we went there in contest with Russia, with no interest for the Angolans at all.” The U.S., he said, became involved in Angola because we were afraid it would go communist. “Africans are not inclined to go communist, or democratic, or facial, or Naxist. They are trying to get thier freedom and whichever government serves that end. they will cooperate with, at least for the time being. Hungry bellies know no morals and no more than hungry people here are concerned about a philo sophy. hungry people don't go around looking for philosophies - they go around looking for bread, and butter, and goods, and services; and thia is what b going on in Africa. America will not lose in Africa if America moves now. We call on the Secretary of State to give massive eco nomic aid to Africa on all fronts - parti cularly in the area of rural development, of education, in the area of health and nutrition and that alone will make friends $2.50 of your row subscription to The Portland Observer will go to tbe Nomo MEMBER opportunity to teach anywhere In the ' dbtrict. the problem of hooping experi enced teachers in the center city grows larger. 1 Ws know there are no easy answers. But we also know that action must bo taken. I t Is clear that traditional seniority practices are counterproductive. On the other hand, the random selection for teacher transfer or lottery pbn can only be considered as an interim or expedient way to face the present problem. The lottery b the method recently adopted by the Lao Angeles Board of Education in response to federal pressure to desegr e gate its teaching staffs. Seniority practices must bd modified. Faculties must be balanced to provide for a varied and rich learning climate. To do this, a faculty must be mixed, by subject interests, race, sex and expert ence. Only In thia way can children be prepared to enter the complex world that awaits them. Opening a discussion of seniority prac tices ia like opening a beehive. But those who take leadership in discussion and in action should receive courage and inspir ation from the U.S. Congress. Nowhere was seniority more ingrained and pro-' tected than in that august body. And yet. changes were made. Or, to put it another way, If Congress can do it, anyone can do it. The stakes it s high, the discussion heated and the re sults, I pray, will make the beat possible educational climate for children. AME Bishop demands liberation Is t Place Best Ad Results ONPA 1973 Sth Place Best Editorial N N PA 1973 For instance, in Los Angeles schools. Area B includes the communities of Ver non, Huntington Park and South Gate with 43 schools. In these schools, the students are 83 per cent minority of which 87.8 par cent are Blacks and 43.8 per cent have Spanish surnames. In this area, 38.8 per cent of the teachers are inexperienced, being either probationary or long-term substitutes. In contrast. Arsa L. which includes the communities of Canogs Park. Chatsworth and Woodland Hills, has 49 schools. The students are 11.4 per cent minority and 88.6 per cent white. Probationary or long term substitute teachers make up only 7.8 per cent of the staff. Why does thia pattern of inexperienced teachers in the center city prevail? The answer b not news. Teachers tend to prefer the middle-income areas. Teach ing assignments in the inner city are considered harder, leas rewarding, farth er from where teachers live and, in some cases, frightening. Teachers, as they gain seniority, often move from the center city into suburban schools. A t present, the situation in Loo An gelas is further complicated by the fact that the city b in danger of losing $100 million in federal funds because its school teachers have been racially segregated. In the past. Black teachers have been a source of capable teachers in the center city since they were traditionally exclud ed from predominantly white schools. If Black teachers now have an equal Address City Mail to: Portland Observer P.O. Box 3137 Portland, Oregon 97208
