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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 1979)
^o rtla n d j0 b sa rva ^^h u rsd a j< JF a b ru a rjH 6 O 9 7 9 P a fls 3 Future bleak fo r aging minorities Racism adds another dimension to the problems o f the minority poor. Direct results o f racism are early death, poverty, and poor health. In recent years the trend in fund ing social programs has been to ignore racial and ethnic differences. At one time Model Cities and “ War on Poverty” programs targeted mi nority populations in an attempt to deliver services to people who had not been served by traditional social service agencies and who have special needs because o f c u ltu ra l and historical backgrounds. One example o f this trend is in the field of aging. In Portland, a highly successful senior adult service program in the Model Cities was nearly dismantled and funds that had been targeted at the minority aged were d istrib u te d th rougho ut the county on a per-capita basis. Under the per capita concept, the elderly in middle income white areas receive the same funding as areas serving the poor and minority populations. In the poor minority areas the funds go toward basic needs, while in the middle class white area the funds are used for recreation. The D epartm ent o f H ealth, Education and Welfare is currently planning to change the emphasis in program funding from the elderly to a category called “ frail elderly,” the definition o f which w ill be persons who are age 75 or older with no con sideration o f social or health factors. In an era o f attention to “ reverse discrim ination,” the use race and ethnicity in planning for delivery o f social services is suspect. The reality is that m inority aged have lower in comes. poorer housing, poorer health, and less access to services be cause o f racism. M inority people have suffered a lifetime o f discrimination and depri vation. Most were deprived o f the opportunity to hold good jobs and to gain an education, some were strip ped o f th e ir culture and their language. They had no opportunity to plan for retirement or to insure that they would be financially secure in their later years. Most older people are dependent, at least in part, on Social Security for their incom e. Because m in o rity people were barred from employ ment o p p o rtu n itie s and Social Security is based on earnings, and because many were in employment not covered by Social Security — maids, household workers, farm workers, etc. — their average Social Security payments are smaller than those o f whites. Nearly 55 percent o f the 1.8 m illion Blacks aged 65 and older had incomes below $2,500 in 1975, compared to 29 percent o f the elderly whites. Average Social Security benefits were $210 fo r whites but $168 for Blacks. Because o f racial d is c rim in a tio n in em ploym ent, fewer m inorities have been able to supplement their retirement income with private pen sions, annuities, dividends and in terest payments. In 1976 only one- sixth o f all Black elderly families had incomes from dividends, interests or rent while two-thirds o f the white families did. M inority persons do not live to collect the fu ll benefits o f Social Se curity that they have earned. The average life span for Black males is 64.1 years, compared to 69.7 years for white males. The life expectancy o f males o f the other m in o rity groups is even lower — therefore the average minority male does not live to draw his retirement benefits. M inority people are more likely to have severe health problems, to be debilitated at earlier ages than whites. Poor nutrition, lack o f medical care, and long hours o f hard work — mining, stoop work, hard labor — have taken their toll. Racism restricts the a v a ila b ility o f medical care. Non w hite elderly die from LOOK FOR THE BIG "T" "A Sure Sign of Good Taste" W hat do you look for in choosing a food store? Wide selection? Competitive prices? Confidence in the quality of the items you buy? W e provide all of these ingredients at every TRADEWELL Store. And, because we really value you as a Customer, w e add another ingredient that we think is the most important of all: Friendly, personal ser vice every time you shop! Remember, look for the Big " T " — it's a sure sign of good tastel (Photo: Rosemary Allen) cerebrovoscalar disease, cancer, dia betes and kidney infections at a higher rate than elderly whites. Many hospitals — especially in the South — do not take elderly Black patients and many minorities cannot afford to pay the fees doctors charge above the medicare limits. M edicare is financed through Social Security, so those persons who are not eligible for Social Security cannot receive medicare. There is an in e q u ity in medicare, w ith the average expenditure on minorities in 1974 at $321 and for whites at $560. Part o f the difference is because many elderly persons receiving medicare are in nursing homes, but nursing homes are overwhelmingly white. Another critical problem is the shortage o f minority physicians and the inability o f white doctors to un derstand cultural attitudes, practices and values o f m inority people. A nother problem facing the m inority elderly because o f racism is housing. Black aged are less apt to own their own homes than whites, and the value o f their homes tends to be lower. Over 55 percent o f the Black aged live in central cities, where housing is more likely to be deteriorated, as compared to 29 per cent o f the white elderly. O f the 31 percent o f elderly Black families living in rental units, six per- (Please turn to Page 6 Column 1) S X 20th A DIVISION 14410 S X DIVISION S X 72sd A R A V & 3955 S.E. FOWEU N.E. 74th A CUSAN N.E. 15th A FREMONT W. BURNSIDE at 21 (t HILLSBORO-960 S X OAK SAN RAFACL-1910 N X 122n4 T R h » * « Orava-2329 FAQHC Oreasa G ty-571 MOLAUA Conay-1051 S.W. 1 * LLOYD CENTER □□□□□ L L Luther joins Observer (Continued from Page 1 Column 6) readers who take exception to a single strip. Brandon finds most have been stung by barbs aimed at their own occupation. When a s trip critical o f education for Blacks ap pears, he is likely to get angry re sponses from teachers. The need fo r L u ther sprouted early. Brandon cannot remember a time, even before he started school, when he has not drawn pictures. When he was fourteen years old and taking ar, at an all-Negro high school in Washington, he decided to make art his profession. After graduation he enrolled as an art education major at New York University. He discovered in his first year at the university, however, that his professors were unwilling to criticize the “ gag” cartoons he occasionally sold to large circulation magazines on the grounds that i f they sold they were good and did not require criticism. Brandon, who was supported by his parents and not by his art, looked at the matter somewhat differently. He wanted professional advice so he could increase his sales and reduce parental subsidy. When this advice was not forthcom ing, he dropped out o f school. It was not until his Army hitch end ed in 1952 that he sought and land ed a job as an artist. He was hired as a beginning technical illustrator by a Washington, D.C. firm . “ An employment counselor re ferred me to the opening,” Brandon says. “ He was Black, too, and aware that we were both bucking the tide in employment because o f our race. He was so zealous about helping me get the job as an illustrator that he called me at home to remind me to comb my hair before 1 went for an inter view. This annoyed me at the time, but I now understand how dedicated he was and how much he was trying to help me.” After a couple o f years Brandon became the company’s assistant art d ire c to r, and then moved on to various aspects o f film work. Mean while, he nurtured an idea for a car toon strip with Black and white cha racters. It was not u n til 1968, however, while spending a month in the hospital to mend an ailing back, that he realized that he was ready to give birth — to Luther. Brandon’s cartoon child first appeared in a New York weekly newspaper and is now syndicated daily. Nowadays, three projects take up most o f Brandon’ s tim e: A New Y ork television program beamed prim arily at inner-city children, lec tures to high school Black studies classes, and Luther. Known on tele vision as “ M r. B .B .,” Brandon shows youngsters how to make paper puppets and other toys with simple materials, teaches drawing, and illu strates stories as they are told. In his school lectures, Brandon promotes positive attitudes toward being Black. He helps students ex plore areas where they can draw on Black experiences and get positive results. “ We can write stories, draw comic strips, compose songs and operas. There is great economic po tential in this Black resource o f ours,” he says. As he talks, he does chalk drawings o f Luther. To students who assert that if they were white they would have no prob lems, his response is: “ Just being alive is a problem, no matter who you are. Being Black only adds another dimension. I f we fa il to evaluate carefully things that happen to us, the result may be disastrous. We may blame race when something else causes our difficulties.” Brandon is not certain that during the past year he has earned a living with his enterprises. (His wife brings home a regular salary as a school teacher.) “ This is an experimental year,” he says. “ I ’m still not sure how well I ’ m doing, but I want to find out i f it is economically feasible for me to keep going with the kind o f projects I now have.” One project that brings him great satisfaction — but no money — is membership on the Emergence o f Identify Forum, a part o f the prepa rations for the White House Con ference on Children and Youth this month. Along with his fellow mem bers — a broadly representative group including child psychologists, church representatives, mothers, pediatricians, early education specialists, and the like — Brandon is helping to d ra ft recommendations for action by the Conference. The re commendations are aimed at helping all children develop healthy and func tional self-identification during the years before they reach the teens. Whatever changes in his work Brandon decides upon after this year, giving up Luther is not likely to be one o f them. “ The Luther strip is me,” Bran don says. Much o f Brandon’ s life experience is packed into lines like these: Luther — “ My Daddy was telling me how im portant it is to set a goal! He said a lot o f people don’ t do that and they never get ahead!” Have you set a goal, Hard Core?” Hard Core — “ Sure . . . I want to make it till tom orrow !” THIS YEAR OREGONIANS WILL EARN OVER $ 5 MILLION IN FIRST NATIONAL bonus n CHECKING/SAV1NGS PLANS T o d a y , s ta rt e n jo y in g th e c o n v e n ie n c e o f a c h e c k in g a c c o u n t w i t h t h e e a rn in g s o f a s a vin g s That's Bonus II Here’s how it works for you. When you make a deposit to your Bonus II checking account it’s immediately and automatically transferred to a special savings account. Here your money earns 5% annual interest until you write a check Then only the amount needed to cover the check is automatically trans ferred back to your checking account The rest stays in your special Bonus II savings account, earning interest Y o u m a y b e lo s in g m o n e y e v e r y d ay. If you’rd' not getting Bonus II earnings where you bank now, you're losing money If you're not getting Bonus II checking a c c o u n t. convenience where you save now, you're losing time and flexibility Either way, you’re not getting the service you deserve You can change all that —to d a y — at First National. G e t t in g s ta rte d . Just call or come into your nearby First National office We’ll shcrw yoti hew easy it is to con vert your current checking account or open a new Bonus 11 ilan right away There’s no service charge for Ion us II unless your savings balance falls be- ow $2,000 (in which case there is a $5 month- y service charge). Bonus II —it’s one more reason why all over Oregon people like you are saying, "First National —that’s my bank. FIR ST N A T IO N A L B A N K OF OREGON t
