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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 30, 1978)
Mrs Frances Schoen-Nevapapor Room U n iv e rs ity of Oregon L ib ra ry Eugene, Oregon 97403 Jefferson loses voc ed programs PORTLAND ____ OBSERVER Vela— 8 Ne, 14 Thursday, March 30, 1878 10c per copy Feds call cross burning 'joke’ Jess and Carol Bryant were notified last week that the burning of a cross on their front yard nearly a month ago was a mere joke. An F B I investigation found that the three men responsible were fellow em ployees of Bryant at the Bureau of Land Management's Salem office. The men had been in Portland to attend a conference so committed the act on federal time. The vehicle they used, as well as the material for making the cross, was federal proper ty- The men, who have not been publically identified by the F B I or by federal attorney Sidney Lezak, work with Bryant on a ten man work crew and often are with him in three or four man crews. As a Forestry Techinician, Bryant cruises and appraises timber on federal land and writes environmental impact statements. Ix-zak has stated that after reading the FBI report he is convinced that the act was a “joke”, that the men were playing a prank and “intended no harm”. Although the men involved were interviewed by the FB I three times before they admitted guilt, they were able to convince Lezak that the incident was not reacially motiv ated and was intended as a joke. “W e view the incident as one that demonstrates the insensitivity of other wise decent people to acts which should be easily seen to create concerns of racism," he said. The case has been referred to the U.S. Department of Justice, but Lezak explained that prose cution is largely dependant on motiva tion. The men have not been disciplined and are still assigned to Bryant's work unit. “I was really appalled by Lezak's statement about it being a joke,” Mrs. Bryant told the Observer. “I f this hap pened to a white family it wouldn't be a joke. “Jess is expected to continue to work with these men every day and act like nothing has happened. He is expected to respect his supervisors who have done v bathing to protect his rights. He has put ten years into this job and yet can't expect common decency and respect.” Mrs. Bryant, who is a candidate for the Oregon Legislature, House D istrictr 14, said that after the news that the men had been found was reported some persons called to tell her they were relieved to Otto Rutherford, 67 year old Director of the Union Avenue Senior Citizens Service Center, announced his intention to retire from that position at the end of June this year. Reports are circulating in the community, however, that the Urban League has requested his earlier re tire ment, citing program deficiencies in contracted services as the cause. “We don’t feel that it's right," said Mrs. Marie Smith, Chairperson of the Centers’ advisory board, “H e’s done so much for us in keeping the thing together and open, things that are above and beyond what the job calls for. We don't have enough qualified people on staff and the C ETA employees they (the Urban League) sends us aren't trained and are disre spectful. It's not that they are young but they undermine the directors' authority. They just tell him ‘You don't tell me nothing. Urban League hired me’ and it makes it hard for him to do his job if he isn't respected. W e aren't against young people you understand, we just don't want to be treated like we're senile.” Asked about the relationship between the Urban League and the Center, Area Agency on Aging head Bob Holdridge said that the contracting agency is the Urban League and it sets policy for that and other programs. The Urban League, as part of that contract with the city, receives administrative funds through the Bureau of Human Resources. This Bureau is the responsibility of M ayor Neil Goldschmidt. “We monitor all the centers (eight centers in the Urban Portland Area) and make quarterly reports that indicate how well the programs are meeting contract Students completing the Medical Ca reers program have enough training to be employed at convalescence homes and with some additional training can become LPNs. There has been good success with job placements from this program - one student is in Medical School and two others are in nurse's training. The Legal Secretary program is part of the Business Careers program and is one of the better vocational programs. Cur rently th irty-tw o students are enrolled, eight from the Jefferson attendance area. “This is a superior program and has been good for the business departm ent,” Douthit said. He has been assured that the program will not be moved for the coming school year but there is great controversy over it. Monroe/Washington has the Secretarial Magnet so some ad ministrators believe the course should be offered at that school rather than at Jefferson. D r. Blanchard recently replied in an inquiry by the Community Coalition for School Integration th at there is cur rently no discussion of moving the pro gram from Jefferson. Douthit believes one of the deciding factors in whether the program remains at Jefferson is enrollment. The program is used as a magnet to attract white students to Jefferson, but currently it is under enrolled. Jefferson has several vocational pro grams - metal shop, auto shop, television production, electronics, child care and business education. Black enrollment in these programs is roughly proportionate to the Black enrollment in the school, but there is a tendency to leave these programs after the first year. There now is a staff person working with students to try to keep them in the programs. “One problem is getting Black students into vocational programs is that the parents want them to take only English, Math, foreign languages and academic classes. I t is good for the students to take those classes but a shop class can be a great help. They learn to handle tools and to create something and it can add a lot to their self confidence." Douthit also will be leaving Jefferson after this year, going to M onroe/W ash ington. “I have real mixed feelings about leaving. I can follow the logic of the administration and agree with their deci sion, but I feel somewhat bad. I would like to see the Performing A rts Program come to fuli growth. I t is hard when you only see a few kids graduating -- I would like to see the kids graduate who came after the program was in full operation. “The kids here are great! I felt tears in my eyes when the basketball team lost the tournament game the way they did. It is hard to mentally transfer - to see myself at another school. “Jefferson has survived for sixty-three years and I'm sure it will get along without me. I'm glad the Board decided to give D r. Ayers the principalship, he has the confidence of the staff and kids and that is im portant.” D r. Lawrence Ayers, Jr., who is a vice principal at Jefferson w ill be Jefferson's next princi pal. Douthit. who has been at Jefferson for four years, credits the community with much of the progress he has been able to bring to the school. "The community has been very helpful. The people get together and, even though some of them might have disagreed with the perform ing arts magnet, they helped. When I said something dramatic had to happen to change the school, the community was always supportive.” King residents approve Nordstrom project Taken on a happier day...Carol and Jeaa Bryant with four year old M ark in the front yard of their home - the same front yard where a cross was burned by Bryant's fellow employees. hear that she had not had the act committed for publicity. “I was just shocked that anyone would think that Black people would have to resort to such a thing - that we can’t stand on our own merit. A fte r all of the pain and fear we have gone through, that is all they had to say." Mrs. Bryant accuses Lezak of attempt- ng to protect the men. “He is smoothing the whole thing over and protecting them. The way this case is being handled it almost makes me feel like I am the guilty one - guilty of not doing enough to promote interracial understanding - or even of being guilty of being Black. But that is not fair and I refuse to be put in that situation. Jess and I are completely innocent. N either of us has committed a crime in our entire lives. W e are the victims. Lezak seems to have forgotten that." M r. and Mrs. Bryant have sought legal assistance and are currently exploring avenues by which to seek civil redress if the criminal procedures are not brought to bear. Jess Bryant is a native of Mississippi. He came to Oregon as a Job Corps trainee at Tillamook and has been with BLM for ten years. M rs. Byrant, a native of Berkeley, is a graduate of M t. Angel College and the PSU School of Social Work. Rutherford’s forced retirement called 'ruthless’ by Don Fuller Jefferson High Scuool's TJ Room and food service program have been closed and will be transferred to Monroe/W ash ington; the Medical Careers program will be transferred to Monroe/Washington; and rumors are circulating that after another year the Legal Secretary pro gram will move. Jefferson Principal Eugene Douthit program had been under discussion for two years and the final decision to move was based on tw o factors - low student enrollment and inability to place grad- us es in employment. The $26,000 program had only sixteen students, ten in their first year and six second year students Some the graduates of the program got jobs t.,^7 could have had anyway, at places like McDonalds and Burger King, where no prior training is required. The school has had difficulty placing students with better restaurants. Douthit be lieves much of t^e problem is racial. “Some of the Black students don’t want to go out of the area to find work - they don’t feel secure. Those who are willing to go can’t find jobs.” Only Thunderbird and the Benson Hotel have been willing to cooperate with the school. The Jefferson equipment will be sent to Monroe/Washington where the pro gram will probably reopen in January of 1979. Monroe has a similar program but it places ignore emphasis on nutrition. Juniors and Seniors at Jefferson who want to participate in the program can take it at Monroe/Washington. The Medical Careers program also has few students and this year has a part- time teacher. The District has made Mon roe the Medical Careers Center so it was probably inevitable that the program would go to Monroe/Washington. ed goals," said Holdridge. "The program of monitoring is a positive sort of thing to encourage constant improvement and growth." M r. Holdridge added that the (Union Avenue) program, while difficult to compare with others, was no better and no worse than others. “It's a body count, pure and simple. So much money for so many bodies," said Rutherford. Asked if the Urban League had evaluated him or the Program before Rutherford said. “No, in fact I haven’t signed this one yet. The Observer was informed that acting Executive Director M r. Nate Nickerson was out of town and though Mrs. G er trude Rae, while refusing to comment on the retirem ent issue, did confirm that she had maintenance responsibilities over the program. She added that Evaluations had been done by the Urban League since 1976. The Union Avenue Center has been in existence since the days of Model Cities (1971) and then was administered by the Bureau of Human Resources under Com missioner Jordan and later Mayor Gold schmidt. Rutherford was born in Port land in 1911. He has served on the Model Cities board and was President of the local chapter of the N A A C P . Recounting some of his earlier experiences as a child with the curfews, Rutherford remembers when elders were respected and the extended family system, brought with the Africans through the terror and hardship of slavery, still functioned in the community wherever Black descendents lived. In response to an inquiry about the last monitor reports completed by the Area Agency on Aging, Ms. Cathy Mischke indicated that the difficulties were not something that would require a personnel ciiange and in fact the Agency had just furnished technical assitance to the U r ban League that would improve the results of the next report. "It's just a m atter of reporting services." said Ms. Mischke, "and we are adding another $3,000 to the administrative budget we have contracted for with the Urban League." The Chairman of the Urban League board of directors, Ms. Geraldine Chris tian, indicated that she felt Rutherford was “a little prem ature" in reacting to the March 30th deadline. “M r. Rutherford is still an employee and w ill be tomorrow as fa r as I know," said Ms. Christian, “...there is an appeal procedure in our Personnel Policies,” if there is a grie vance. Reliable sources indicated that the June date was set because it was the end of the contracting period of the Area Agency on Aging and this would allow Rutherford time to start receiving his retirem ent and pension checks. Questions remain, however, as to the action that may be taken by the advisory committee to find another sponsor for their pro gram. "A fte r all we had to go through to get the program, we would rather close the doors than be treated with so little consideration," said M rs. Smith. That would be a blow to many and a loss to the community -- both old and young people. The old stand to lose services and a place of respect and dignity: the young lose an example of care and concern for tradition and the rich heritage of history that only their elders can provide in the continued struggle to develop the Albina commu nity. Members of the King Neighborhood Association, deeply divided because of a Nordstrom pull-out on the proposed distribution center on Union Avenue, voted 36 to 27 to approve the program. Although many residents were not pre sent at the meeting because of Nord strom's announcement that they will not build the project, the vote was indicative of what some considered to be growing community acceptance of the project. The Tuesday night meeting was per vaded w ith the anger of those who wanted the project and felt it had been sabotaged by others. Members of the King Neighborhood Association Execu tive Board, which had held two public meetings and a w o .k’ bop to enable citizens to gain information and express their views denied that they had opposed the project. The Board had met with Paul H unter - * Nordstrom, gaining additions1 ¿norma - tion on the project and his assurance that Nordstrom would make no final decision until after March 28th, when an Associa tion vote would be held. H u ite r had indicated that he had ninety days (from March 1st) in which to decide to go ahead with this project or find another site. Adding to the confusion at the Tuesday night meeting was the fact that no one has come forward with any information as to why Nordstrom made its sudden withdrawal. The M ayor’s office express ed shock and concern; Portland Develop ment Commission had no information; and K N A was not contacted by Nord strom, PDC or the City. In his letter to PDC , H u n ter wrote; “In recent weeks it has become increasingly apparent that the acceptance of the project was not receiving the support from the community. The meeting of March 1st, individual discussions, subse quent meetings, newsprint, and recent correspondence received this week indi cates that what has been presented over the last several months was not having the anticipated positive effect." Nordstrom was fully aware that the neighborhood decision making was in proce«» and that in removing homes inere would be opposition at least from some individuals. One elderly citizen believes Nordstrom was influenced by President Carter's new urban plan that would give grants to businesses locating in depressed areas. “Maybe they want to w ait until the government will pay them to come in here!" Several spokesmen from the K N A expressed concern that although the organization has functioned for nearly ten years, many residents participate only at times of crisis and often only to complain. They hope to involve more citizens in the on-going w ork of the organization and to begin planning for economic development - plans that would come from the residents rather then from outside in terests. Although he was disappointed that the project was not developed. Commissioner Charles Jordan told the Observer that this w ill not be the last opportunity for economic development in the Albina community. "Maybe it would have been a good project, maybe not. W e thought it was good but there is no way it could have been developed without a price being paid. The question is, what price is the community willing to pay? “M aybe the next project proposed will call for less sacrifice - or it will be something the people want. W e really can't fault the community too much. Conflicts and frustrations are inherent in citizen participation so we can't say we want the people involved and then when they don’t do what we would like, just say T o Hell w ith it.' I still have faith in the community and w ill be very involved in helping promote some type of economic development in that area." Roosevelt teacher best in Industrial Arts Andrew J. Hoagland, industrial arts teacher at Roosevelt High School, was named the “Oregon Industrial Arts Teacher of the Year" at the international conference of the American Industrial A rts Association, in Atlanta, earlier this month. Receiving similar awards were 46 industrial arts teachers from the United States and Canada. The recipient of this coveted award is selected by a statewide committee of former “Oregon Industrial Arts Teachers of the Year.” M r. Hoagland was chosen this year for his outstanding record or service to youth, to his fellow industrial arts teach ers, and to the community. He says, “M y greatest satisfaction from teaching comes from visits with former students who have entered my chosen field, electronics, because of their experience in my class es." He adds, “Teaching industrial arts gives one the satisfaction of helping students utilize and sharpen the academic skills they have learned in the classroom in a practical situation.” The one-hundred plus industrial arts teachers throughout the state appreciate his ability to organize and teach in ser vice classes. As past president of the Oregon Industrial A rts Association and of the Portland Industrial Education Association, he has participated in va rious industrial arts committees for Port land and for the state of Oregon. His Students ceremoniously enter the newly renovated Wood lawn School to begin classes in their own school. The building section on electronics in the “Shop Teach ers Handbook" has been widely used by shop teachers in Oregon. M r. Hoagland's contribution to the community includes service to the Boy Scouts of America. Goodwill Industries, the Toy and Joymakers, and to the youth in his church. Andy, as he is known, began his electronics career in the Navy. He served as a Chief Petty Officer in electrical maintenance during W orld W ar II. He is retired from the naval reserve. His nineteen years of teaching include time in the Treasure Valley Community College, Aloha High School, Madison High School, and currently at Roosevelt High School. baa been renovated to become ax “E arly Childhood Education Center." The pre-school program w ill be added next year. W ill South A frica’s apartheid rebuild America’s Black movement1? by Steve Talbot N A S H V IL L E , T E N N . - “It's strange." »bserved a middle aged Black woman, who said she had taken part in lunch counter sit-ins here in the early 1960s, "but, you know, it looks like South Africa is bringing us together again, getting us tired, old folk back on our feet. W e just have to do what we can to help those poor, brave kids in Soweto." The sit-in veteran spoke as she march ed through the streets of Nashville last weekend with some 6,000 mostly Black demonstrators protesting the United States-South Africa Davis Cup tennis matches at Vanderbilt University. The three-day protest - sponsored by the National Association for the Advance ment of Colored People, and organized locally by Black and white students may transform the growing but mostly white student led anti-apartheid campaign into a national movement coordinated by Black organizations. A t the same time, the Davis Cup protests suggested that the South Africa issue may be the spark that re ignites a Black protest movement in the United States after nearly a decade of relative quiet despite worsening economic condi tions for Blacks. Billed as the largest protest of its kind since the civil rights movement, the demonstration recalled for many of the participants the days of M artin Luther King and SNCC -- a movement reborn “It's a new day today, the beginning of a new era of protest," Black activist and comedian Dick Gregory told the cheering crowd, which had been drawn to Nash ville from as far away as Chicago and rural North Carolina. “I f the American corporations that invest in South Africa don’t listen to what's happening here today, and if the universities don't listen, they're gonna see a whole lot of trouble.” N A A C P President Benjamin Hooks promised, “W e will lead other marches in other cities, and we will be raising not only the issue of South Africa, but also of unemployment and racism in this coun try. This is not the end but the beginning...We shall march on until vic tory is won and all God's children are free." The Davis Cup demonstrations drasti cally cut attendance at the games - the 9,000 seat rapacity stadium was never more than fifteen percent full. The embarrassingly low turn-out compelled the U.S. Tennis Association to release Vanderbilt, the host, from its financial obligations, and a local coal mine owner, Joe Davis, offered to pick up the tab, W ith the active participation of Black organizations from the Urban League to the Southern Christian Leadership Con ference, and white and Black students, the Davis Cup protests also provided a major forum and stimulus to the anti- apartheid movement. But strains and difficulties - especially regarding the N A A C P 's role - remain that could pre vent the formation of a coordinated, large scale, national movement of Black and w hite Americans. The Davis Cup was the N A A C P ’s debut in recent protests against United States South Africa ties. Many rank and- file members applauded the group's acti vism, welcoming Hook's announcement that he expected 40,000 demonstrators to (Continued ou Page 3 Column 1)
