Page 2
Portland Observer
Thursday. November 18th, 1976
C a rte r a n d th e cities
We see the world
by Yvosne Brath waite Burke
through Black eyes
Key to better reading
Police behavior
reveals problems
Guest Editorial
The M ia m i H erald
The hig h speed chase should com e to an end. In
the .past fe w years p e o p le have been in ju re d and
k ille d , in c lu d in g one police m a n w ho was k ille d ,
w h ile chasing speeding cars. It is hard to b e lie v e that
the end result — the capture or death o f the cu lp rit —
is w o rth dange r to innocent bystanders.
D uring the chase most recently in the news -- that
o f a 16 yr. o ld car th e if to V ancouver -- fourteen
Portland po lice cars w e re chasing the subject. Even if
it w e re considered essential to catch the th ie f, surely
there is no excuse fo r a pack o f fo u rte e n p o lice cars
ro a rin g d o w n the hig h w a y. It seems it was m ore for
fu n then fo r pu b lic peace and safety.
N ot o n ly w ere they e n d a n g e rin g the p u b lic — But
th re e -fo u rth s o f the cars assigned to N orth Portland
jo in e d the chase — le a v in g the city unprotected.
Then there was the c lim a x o f the event -- the
a lle g e d b e a tin g o f the suspect. The abuse was
severe e noug h that p o lic e o fficers fro m V ancouver
a nd C lark C ounty fe lt o b lig e d to report it.
It is easy to understand that m en in vo lve d in a high
speed chase w o u ld be excited and w o u ld over react.
This is re m iniscent o f the shooting o f Ricky Johnson,
w here the use o f obsenity and racial slander was
excused by the Police Bureau as a com m on
occurance in periods o f excito m e n t or tension.
The th in g that must be rem em bered is that these
are not high school kids — they a re p o lice officers,
arm ed and sworn to u phold the law . They should be
ab le to control their aggressive instincts and re fra in
from the type o f b e h a v io r that w o u ld be considered
c rim in a l in others.
A p p a re n tly the o n ly d is c ip lin e g iven these o fficers
is that they w ill talk to th e ir c h ie f - w ho a lre a d y has
stated that he fo u n d their b e h a v io r acceptable.
M ayor G oldschm idt told the press that if it happens
again m ore severe measures w ill be taken W e think
the tim e to take action is now . This case is not un­
usual - it is in d ica tive o f the problem s that exist.
W hether the answ er is better tra in in g and discip lin e ,
better re g ulation s and policies, or a new com m and,
the problem s need to be d e fin e d n o w and answ ers
fo u n d b e fo re an o th e r m ore serious in cid e n t occurs.
Parents and taxpayers w ill be happy to note that
re ading skills are im p ro vin g in the nation's e le m e n ­
tary schools. But they should v ie w the news as a
be g in n in g , not a goal achieved.
N ine-year-olds througho ut the country scored
notably better in a standard test last year than they
had in 1971. W hite students d id 1.2 per cent better,
Blacks m ade a 4.8 per cent gain.
It was good news, especially the sharp im p ro v e ­
m ent in Black younsters' skills, w hich p a rtly closed
the long-stand ing gap caused by past in e q u itie s in
the educatio n system.
Statistics should raise questions as w e ll as answ er
them . These fig u re s d em and study to fin d reasons fo r
the gain. Educators cite the w id e r use o f k in d e rg a r­
tens, added em phasis on re ading classes and fe d e ra l
program s such as Head Start, but no one is re a lly
Today, they tell us that American cities
are an endangered species.
sure.
It is true that the cities have been
W hatever it is; som ething is w o rkin g . It's a
virtually abandoned by middle-class fami­
w e lco m e sign fo r a p u b lic that has too o fte n poured
lies. The increasing problem of decay has
m oney into program s and seen little in concrete
hastened the exodus. The population of
returns. If the schools can discover the most e ffe c tiv e
the city, more and more, is composed of
the old, the poor, the unemployed and the
program s, they should be expanded and a m p ly
destitute.
Ours, the greatest of all civili­
funded .
zations, is in danger of leaving the great
A nother a nd less pleasant question is w h y
buildings, museums, concert halls and
teenagers d id n 't show sim ila r gains. Tests g iven to 13 sport stadia in a sea of blight and despair.
and 17-year-olds fo u n d little im provem ent despite
When are we going to show some interest
in our own urban well-being?
fiv e years o f p u b lic concern. Even w hen high school
During the waning days of the 94th
students had m astered the w ords and gram m ar, th e y
Congress, the House Banking. Currency
often fa ile d to understand w h a t the test m a te ria l
and Housing Committee held 10 days of
m eant.
hearings on the plight of our cities. One of
Teachers and researchers are a lre a d y d e b a tin g
the most profound solutions was sug
gested by Paul K. Porter, author of “The
w h e th e r the test results m ean the back-to-basics
Recovery of America,” and former admin
m ovem ent should be e xpand ed or focused on
istrator of the Marshall Plan.
ch ild re n w ith special re a d in g problem s.
Porter's solution called for wholesale
A possible clue is in a report fro m Israel, w h e re
relocation of the urban poor to those
educators have had re m a rka b le success in u p g ra d ­ suburban locales where jobs are located,
and a return of wealthy suburbanites to
ing the basic skills of students fro m c u ltu ra lly
the central cities. It is a theory tailored to
d e p rive d backgrounds. In the Israeli program , the
inflame everyone, a fine academic theory
focus is on w e ll-tra in e d teachers a nd a to ugh
without much basis for practical applica
curriculum that challenges the student.
tion. It does, however, illustrate the
This is an approach w orth study. One " b a s ic " that's scope of the problem as perceived by
o fte n o ve rlo o k e d is the teacher-student re la tio n s h ip f experts.
Unfortunately, until nqw, the federal
Sophisticated teaching aids are o n ly tool*.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
From an accused Black m an
I have slept in your guest room.
In the Dallas.
Danced with your wives and daughters,
In Corvallis.
the Editor:
An Aeeueed Black Rapist?
f name is Larry Baker.
ieed an Attorney I can trust.
lave no money.
ily a handful of friends left.
Labored among your sick.
Counselled with your poor.
And begged for employment,
throughout your state.
I have been Accused,
of raping a white woman.
Many of you know me well,
Many wish to forget, when
j
a
ALFRED L. HENDERSON
Editor/Publisher
I am not guilty.
Will be judged by Jury, only.
Come November 22nd,
Or whenever trial shall be.
Have you ever seen,
a fool of fools trying
To defend himself?
Right now _ That's me.
Loved yesterday.
Feared Today.
e played among your children in
Eugene,
t next to you in classrooms at Portland
State.
orshipped with your church's congre
gation in Albina,
id dined at your home, in Lake Oswego.
Today I am walking through your
courtrooms, scared.
Tonight, I'll sleep in your jail, with
Tears of Innocence.
But I have suffered the last scars of life.
From a Black man's Civil Choice,
To the White man's Criminal Demand.
Scandelled by the press,
Tortured by T.V.
Lied to by Attorneys.
Threatened by your judges — why?
I am an Accused Black Rapist.
I need an Attorney I can trust.
I have no money.
My name is Larry Baker.
Portland O bserver
Published every Thursday by Exie Publishing Company. 2201
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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 writer or submitter and does not necessarily reflect
the opinion of the Portland Observer.
National Advertising Representative
Amalgamated Publishers. Inc.
New York
MEMOER
How will the experts explain the new
coalition of voters who, elected Jimmy
Carter November 2nd‘i*’The solid South
joined with the disadvantaged and poor
residents of the large industrial cities to
push the electoral votes for Carter over
the required number.
We know that the solid South now
reflects large blocs of recently enfran
chised Black voters who long have
dreamed of a fair share of the American
economic wealth. They teamed with two
dissimilar groups to put Carter in the
White House.
They teamed with other Southerners
in an act of regional pride that gave the
Deep South its first president since
Zachary Taylor's election in 1848. And
they joined the minority population of the
large industrial cities in a demonstration
that amounts to a demand for serious
consideration of urban problems.
The United States has, in many ways,
abandoned its cities. Yet, the history of
civilization can be told in the life and
death of its great cities. We all know the
stories of Pompeii and of Carthage.
Though they perished, they are a part of
history. Rome, on the other hand, our
vived. We can visit the ruins and around
those ruins are people and modern
buildings. Do the American cities portray
an accurate picture of Americans?
1st Place
Community Servier
ONPA 1973
government's response to urban pro­
blems has been woefully lacking in terms
of moral commitment and allocation of
resources. But now, we have a mandate
from the voters to change. Now we can
expect a presidential commitment to a
comprehensive national policy for the
salvation of our cities.
What will we expect to change?
We will expect people to be put back to
work by cooperation between govern
ment and private enterprise.
We will expect a uniform national
welfare program of benefits with strong
work incentives for the employable poor
and income supplements for the working
poor.
We will expect a national housing
policy, which will insure “safe and decent
housing" for all Americans. And further
more, we will expect our housing pra
grams to build up neighborhoods and
cities, not remove masses of people for
monuments.
We will expect a realization that our
Honorable Mention
Herrick Editorial Award
NNA 1973
2nd Place
Best Editorial
3rd Place
Community Leadership
ONPA 1975
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Typing of correspondence,
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ntel and Bling. Good spelling
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Maintaining
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cities are the cultural, economic and
A commitment that not only calls for
social backbone of our nation.
new legislative initiatives, but a commit
The big city mayors met recently to ment that assures the millions of good,
discuss a federal strategy that recognizes decent, hardworking Americans who live
that the survival of the nution is depen „ in our cities that their struggle is not a
dent upor. a national commitment.
hopeless one.