Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 19, 1976)
I Pag,1 2 Portland Observar Tl 'day. August 19th. 1976 s Olympic Games analyzed We see the world through Black eyes GOP turns to right Federal law supreme The defeat of super-conservative Ronald Reagan gives the false impression of a defeat of conserva tism in the Republican Party. This could not be further from the truth. Although.no» as popular with the extreme right wing as Reagan, Ford is still a conser vative. It would have been amusing if it hod not been so pathetic, to listen to the seconding speeches to Ford's nomination. One could never believe the compas sionate, understanding man who is concerned about the underprivileged of the nation described by so many of the speakers -- and especially the Blacks — could possibly be the same president who has veto ed so many measures that would have brought relief to the poor and to minorities. A look at the Republican Party platform brings home to us the conservatism of that party — even the so-called moderate wing that President Ford leads. The Republican platform would rewrite the Consti tution with three amendments. These amend ments — school prayer, anti-busing, anti-abortion — strike at the most fundamental personal rights: the family, religion and equal educational opportunities. The tax plank brings tax breaks to business, investors and parents of college students — the upper and middle class. The choice will be clear in November: the Repub lican Party and its candidate, Gerald Ford, protecting the advantage and power of money, and the Demo cratic Party, with Jimmy Carter, seeking to bring the benefits of a free society to all the people. Judge Robert C. Belloni of the U.S. District Court in Portland declared orders by the courts of Oregon and Washington that attempted to supercede his injunc tion as null and void. Judge Belloni had ordered an end to the commercial Salmon fishing season in order to protect the Indian's share of the catch. The state courts attempted to restrain his injunction. Although the state orders were clearly invalid, this was an important decision upholding the power of the federal government in cases that come under its jurisdiction. We have seen states attempt to avoid federal court rulings in cases of school desegregation. If the states are ever allowed to supercede federal orders, the Black people in this country are in big trouble. There are many reasons for the current shortage of Columbia River Salmon — over fishing, pollution, the dams, changes in environment — but mostly neglect. The states have been neglegent in protect ing the resource. The Indians are not at fault — they have practiced conservation for centuries and have urged the states to do the same. We are fortunate to have a judge with the integrity and the tenacity of Judge Belloni on the bench. Mound Bayou hospital needs Black support In this Bicentennial year, the Census Bureau re torts the Black population of the United States as 23 ind a half million. Many of us ore unemployed and inderemployed, but we have the potential for great trength. Twenty-three and a half million mean at east six million family units. If each family would odopt each year some one tpecific target of opportunity, and all contribute whatever we were able — whether it is $1, $5, $10, 125, (or $100 and more for those of us who are in the higher brackets) - we could greatly strengthen insti tutions which have importance to the Black commun ity - whether at the local or national level. We suggest that this Bicentennial year is a time to start. The National Newspaper Publishers Association — the Black Press of America — at its meeting in February made the Mound Bayou Community Hospi tal its target of opportunity for this year. That small 34-bed hospital, founded and built by the Knights and Daughters of Tabor, as the result of a demonstration health project carried out for several years previously by the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, is struggling to survive. It is very important. It was there during our dark days when a Black in Mississippi could not be sure of a hospital bed; it was there during our glory days when the combined will of Blacks and whites marching together throughout the South changed how Blacks are looked at and treated; it is there today serving the medically indi gent - those who cannot pay for health care and have no third party to pay their bills. Mound Bayou Community Hospital does not turn anyone away. The editors of this newspaper urge you to send whatever amount of money (check or money order) you can spare to the Mound Bayou Community Hospital, Drawer R, Mound Bayou, Mississippi 38762. 1st Place sun anKy Service O N P A 1973 Portland Observer A Published every Thursday by Exie Publishing Company. 2201 North Killingsworth, Portland. Oregon 97217. M ailing address: P .0 . Box 3137. Portland, Oregon 97208. Telephone: 283-2486. Subscriptions: $7.50 per year in the Tri-County area, $8.00 per year outside Portland. Second Class Postage Paid at Portland, Oregon ALFRED L. HENDERSON The Portland Observer's official position is expressed only in its Publisher's column (W e See The W orld Through Black Eyes). Any other material throughout the paper is the opinion of the individual w rite r or subm itter and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Portland Observer. MEMBER 1st Placo lest Ad Results O N P A 1973 Sth Place Best Editorial N N P A 1973 ¡ck Editorial A w ard N N A 1973 2nd Place Boot Editorial 3rd Place ■ u n ity Lead. O N P A 1975 MEMMR Association - Founded f 996 Publishers Association $2.50 of your new subscription to The Portland Observer will go to the Oregon Black History Project Tri-County aroa Name Address City $7.50 other areas Thank you. whoever you ara. Mrs. Spinks of St. Louis thanks you. and I thank you. You made it possible for many of us to pause momentarily and gain strength from the w arm th of your spon taneous response to a vary human situa tion. W hile embroiled in political disputes, the Olympics claimed our attention over the toot weeks, from the withdraw al of the African nations to the final days of the Russian threat of withdraw al. Rut somehow, the world completed another international Olympics. T here ware memorable moments that stick in our minds. From the view of someone whose only athletic endeavor has been undistin guished participation in celebrity tennis matches, there w ere some particularly sentimental high points. W e mothers winced when Princess Anne fell from her horse in cross country riding competition, probably more for a distressed Queen Elizabeth than for her daughter, who recovered adimrably. W e bit our lip to keep back the tears as lightweight fighter Howard Davis dedi catad his gold medal to his mother who had died sixteen days before. Who could not sympathise with his agony while be ing torn between a gold medal and re turning home from Montreal to pay re spect to his mother's memory? There was certainly a different light shed on the entire issue of the African countries refusing to attend the Olympics when New Zealand gold medal winner John W alker explained that in his opinion the New Zealand rugby team should nev er have gone to South Africa and that the African nations were quite justified in their reproach of the Olympic Committee. T here was probably no better display* of the tru e spirit of the Olympics than when American discus throw er Mac W ilkins embraced his opponent from East Germany. W hen criticised by the press, he simply replied. "He is my Friend; I like him.“ Families everywhere identified with American boxer Sugar Ray Leonard's family and coach who pooled their money and rented a camper to drive from Wash ington. D.C. to M ontreal to watch him win a gold medal. And the television picture brought us the smiles ol Irena Kirsenstein Szewin ska's 6-year old son watching his Polish mother on television. A t the age of 30. Irena won a gold medal running the 400 meter in better shape than ever. Grandmothers shared in the noetalgia $8.00 Mail to: Portland Observer P.O. Box 3137 Portland, Oregon 97208 when Itieuilsc Ix-hmunn, 66, from Kansas was reunited with her gold medal swim mcr granddaughu r. Kornelia Knder ol East Germany. Rosalse had not seen Kornelia since leaving her homeland in 1969. Through the tears Itosalae Maid she would he a great grandmother in August when Kornelia's sister's (why is »torn. Hut (M-rhaps the high point for us mothers was when boxers Mike and Ixion Spinks won gold models as middleweight and lightweight contenders. I hey Is- came the first brother team to he gold medal winners in th history of the Olym pics. The real th rill came when Ksy Spinks, their mother, was sitting there in the arena as they blew a kiss to her. Mrs. Spinks, the mother of 11 who had watched the preliminaries in her small apartm ent in a St. Ixiuis housing project on a borrowed television, had received an airline ticket to the Olympics from an anonymous doner. She was able to go to Montreal to see her sons win their med ala. Just as we will remember the 1972 Olympics for its terro r and tragedy. I will remember the 1976 Olympics for the kindness of one anonymous person who understood. M rs. Spinks snd many of us from all over the world are gratelull. Black political activism in perspective by D r. Gloria E . A. T ests Numerous articles have recently oc curred in the w hite press as to why Blacks do not vote. The white press is again guilty of quantifying the defining black problems from their perspective, which in my view is fallacious and at least latently deceptive. Blacks do not need justification for not voting. Simply said. Blacks must act ively and consistently become involved in politics, if our economic and civil needs are to be addressed. Tolerance of Black voter apathy subtly encourages Black vo ter non participation. B LA C K P O L IT IC A L P O T E N T IA L G R E A T : The potential of Black political power in our nation is th a t of a sleeping g iin t. A power the establishment prefers xA to reckon w ith if a t all possible. I t is easy to capeulize the obvious as to why Blacks do not register or vote: I t is frustration w ith the ineptness of government to quickly respond to our precise needs. The political insensitivity to the Black experience and the failure to address issues of Black concern. I t is the exclusion or lim itation of Blacks from federally funded programs by state and local government. I t is the ■ lack of awareness of registration eligibil ity or ill conceived notions of ineligibility such as residency requirements. I t is the fear of loss of welfare and other government benefits as the result of supplying information required far registration, such as m arital status, num ber of dependents, and place of employ ment. I t is the verification of information on registration applications in some cities by the Police Departm ent. I t is harassment, intimidation, or actual acts of violence; or the hostile attitudes of employees in the voting register's office. I t is the lack of employment opportun ity and resources essential for individual development; and the resu lU nt attitude of hopelessness in being poor and a min ority. I t is the improper moral conduct of elected officials. I t is the belief that the political system and all involved are cor rupt; all these are contributing factors. VOTING ft SURVIVAL: Blacks must realize that our only real means of translating our individual or collective throughta into action is to vote. The old addege is still true: Register and vote and the choice is yours. Register and don't vote and the choice is theirs. Don't register and you have no choice. A recent black newspaper editorial read: “W e must force our concerns, our is sues, our assessments onto the national agenda. W e must persuade politicians and others th a t we are not political weaklings snd th a t we, too, configure, that we can not only count our votes, but Oregon Newspaper I by Yvesme Irs tk w s ite Burka can apply them in such a way to calculate the political life span of those who seek and hold public office." This is not simply counsel to Black Americans, but to Americans in general who are disenchanted w ith our political leaders snd politics. The Bureau of Cen sus reported in 1974 th a t 40 million Americans w ere not registered. This meant th a t only 62 per cent of the popuia tion was eligible to vote. The decline of the voting population continues. W ith 80 percent of the nation s minorities living in cities, Black voting participation declined from 61 percent of those registered in the 1970 Congression al elections of 56 per cent in 1974. In the 1968 presidential elections only 66 percent of registered Blacks voted. In the 1972 presidential elections Black vo ting declined to 66 percent. A comparison of white voting during the congressional and presidential elect ions cited indicates a 5 percent decline in the 1972 presidential race. O f the 5.2 million Blacks eligible to vote. 66 percent (or less than half) of the Black population was registered in 1974, and 2.6 million of them failed to vote. S T R A T E G Y O F BLOCK V O T IN G : The Black voting age population rep resents 10 percent of the nation's total potential voters, and is strategically lo cated in critical industrial states snd ms jor urban centers, w ith large electoral votes for presidential elections. The Black collective voting strength repre sents s balance of power, that can. if voted in a block, influence election out comes. Of the 435 national Congressional Dist ricts, the Black voter can determ ine the outcome in 120 elections, 27 percent of those elected to Congress. The following statistics indicate the Black political potential: 28 percent of major City populations are Black, 5 per cent of suburban populations are Black, and 1 out of every 3 persons residing in m etropolitan areas is Black. In 250 municipalities w ith populations 25.000 or more. Blacks comprise a t least 10 percent of the total population, yet more thsn 10 percent of these cities have no Black elected officials. Seventeen me tropolitan areas have Black populations in excess of a q uarter of a million. The largest cities in Am erica have Black pop ulations of more than 100,000. Blacks comprise 32.8 percent o f th e ir to ta l pop ulation. The 50 largest cities in America have Black populations equalling 22.7 per cent. M U S T M A K E W H IT E C 0NG RESSPERS0N8 ACCOUNTABLE: Last year the Congressional Black Caucus lost a pivotal floor fight on an African issue by 22 votes. A survey after the vote to impose sanctions against Rhodesian chrome, indicated th a t of the fo rty -fiv e lawmakers who represented districts w ith more than 25 percent Black voting strength, only ten supported the Caucus. In fact. Congressman P eter Rod ino (D -N .J .I. Chairman of the House Ju diciary Committee, whose district to more than 50 percent Black did not vote in favor of sanctions against Rhodesia and its practice of apartheid. B L A C K S N E E D H E L P TO U N D E R S T A N D P O L IT IC S The opportunity to comprehend the political process, snd the vital role that each citizen should play, has in many respects been denied to the Black citizen. U n til the responsibility of involvement ol citizens responsibility to clearly defined, and its benefits made apparent, political action w ill remain the province of middle class Am erica and those who seek to use the system for self gain. Blacks must realize th a t “politics to the science of who gets what, why and when", and that polities to a struggle not so much of men but of forces. I t to the conduit for special interest advantage. John M . Brown has w ritten . “Nowhere are prejudices more mistaken for truth, passion for reason, and inventive for doc umentation than in politics." Black political power can be a decisive factor and potent force tor change. No one knows better than we that "s hungry man to not a free man" (Adlai E. Steven son). Black political influence has not grown in proportion to the potential number of Black voters. Black political leadership has not been an effective force for social change. The sense of urgency of Black concern to frequently lost when echoed by elected representatives. Black Americans find themselves in the innocuous situs tion of being scolded by government snd industry for failure to have accomplished, while the very tools for accomplishment are subtly denied. G ranted there are limitations on poli tical influence th a t are a product of the political system, and constraints imposed by organizational structure. These fac tors can not convincingly be cited to justify our difference to a legal rig ht hard won. Genuine self government to more easily perceived in theory than in practice, par ticularly on the national level, where spe cial interest factors, usually representa tive of the interest of a limited number of citizens, seek power to influence govern ment policy. Robert M . Hutchins has said. "Faith rests on the proposition that man to a political animal, that participation in poli tical decisions to necessary to his fulfill ment and happiness. A ll men can and must be sufficiently informed and ed ucated to U k e part in making (political) decisions. Protection against arb itrary power, though indispenaible. to insufficient to make either free individuals or a free society. Such a society must make posi live provisions for ita development into a community learning together; for this to what political participation, government by consent, and the civilization of the dialogue all add up to." T he proposition th a t a major concern of • free society is the limitation of govern mental authority, and that government to best when it governs least to archaic. Our nation's poor can not condone the lessen ing of governmental activity to contra vene the influence of power by the p ri vate sector. The role of government as an, agency reap m etoll for the common good- must be e M M M e d . Per a . H u te h la - ■aid. “T h a t government to beet, which governs best." A M E R IC A B ELO N G S TO T H E PEOPLE An obligation facing America today to to SMure that government belongs to the people. Recent conduct by government officials such ss J. Edgar Hoover have in practice endangered this philosophy, to a results th a t infers that the people belong to the government. Most assuredly the proposed policy of the issuance of a social security number to infants a t birth, to a facet of the "big brother" syndrome of ultim ate government power over the in dividual. Another p riority concern for America is that economic equality be included within the perimeters of democracy. M inority concerns must become the sub ject, ra th e r than the object of political action. Black elected officials must as sume the function of initiating social issues, rather than responding to them, and selecting from competing issues, p ri oritizing them conditioned upon ultimate success. Black elected officials must be come statesmen. V . I. Lenin has said, "there are no morals in politics, there to only expedi ence." A preferable correlative to the rem ark of James Russell Lowell, "Com promise makes a good umbrella, but a poor roof, it to a tem porary expedient, often wise in party polities almost sure to be unwise in statesmanship." B L A C K 8 A R E A W A K E N IN G A t present, there to a climate for politi cal awareness in the Black community, of a magnitude heretofore unknown. There to a growing perception of the disadvan tages of s one party stranglehold on the Black vote, and the realization th a t power polities to reactive to the demands of capricious voters. A p arty label to meaningless unleM It purports the ability to influence. Too many Blacks, including civil rights lead ers, give preeminence to general party identification, and traditional party al legiances over specific candidates. In par- ttosn elections Blacks have failed to dis crim inate against hostile white candi dates in voting a straight Democratic party slate, thus causing candidates and indeed the Republican party to doubt the efficacy and wisdom of championing Black concerns. Black voters are not even prone to vote strictly along racial lines in a Black, white contest, where a competent Black to a candidate for a post on the Republican party slate. W ith a national tw o party system of government, it to political ineptneM, not to have parity w ith both parties. In no other aspect of the Black behavioral pat tern does such disjunction exist, which (Please turn to p. 3 col. 4)
