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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 24, 1979)
■ >* * » * • ' • « * ObM TVM Thursday. M ay M , 187» the Wall Prison Ministries states FIRST SEMINAR & VOLUNTEER TRAINING SESSION Larry Laker »35031. O.S.P. Correspondent Thursday, May 31.1979 — 7:00 p.m. by Abdul S haHerd M ad yum (Aka: William Grandyt During March o f 1968 an organi zation was founded by a handful of Afro-American inmates at O.S.P. At that time there were only about thirty to fotty inmates o f African descent in a prison population of approxi mately 1,100 inmates. It was during the turbulent sixties, a time o f dis content in the Black ghettoes, dis satisfaction with the war in Vietnam, and the universal struggle for freedom and self-determination of all oppressed people that the U H U R U organization began. The organization initially was formed to foster awareness o f Afro-American history, its culture, development, and self-awareness. U H U R U had to struggle hard with the forces o f racism, which at that time were very much felt at the prison, also to gain the confidence, respect and recogni tion o f the prison administration. At first the administration was very skeptical and hesistani about support ing a Black self governing organiza tion, but finally granted o ffic ia l sanction to the organization. That was over a decade ago and U H U R U has come a long way since then. Now there are approximately 250 to 300 prisoners o f A frica n descent in a population of 1,400. In addition to fostering positive at titudes of self and community to its members, U H U R U has, over the years, reached into the outside com munity for support o f its projects and programs. For the past six years members of U H U R U have been leaving the prison on work projects sponsored by the organization. W hile these work projects provide an oppor tunity for an inmate to leave the con fines o f prison for a few hours, they also afford him the opportunity of looking at his community from a dif ferent and more constructive per- U H URU was organized to speak of the problem s of Blacks in prison. PLACE: Maranatha Church 1222 NE Skidmore Portland. Oregon 87211 Reverend John Garlington, Pastor SEMINAR LEADERS: It was during one of the concerts for women that Linda was approach ed by a sister musician and asked Lt. Warren F. Cook, Manager Courthouse Booking Facilities Sgt. Vera Pool Claire Argow Women's Center Betty Taylor Member, Board of Parole. Salem QUEST SOLOIST: Mrs. Gerutha Favorei COME AND BRING A FRIENDI i of U HURU service projects. spective. M ore im p o rtan tly , however, these w ork projects provide a voluntary service to the outside communities ranging from clean-up crews to moving crews. In short, U H U R U offers a labor force at no cost to the community. The organization does accept donations large and small, monetary as well as material to help it better serve the community. For some time now there has been an outside chapter o f U H U R U in Portland and just recently a chapter was started in the Salem area. At present, the outside chapters are working with the prison members to achieve success in two relatively new but very important projects: the Step by Step Foundation and the Family Assistance Program. The Step by Step Foundation is de signed to assist those in the com munity who are financially in need of transportation to and from jobs, supermarkets, etc . . . In short, those who are simply and obviously in Music aids freedom struggle Linda Tillery is the kind o f artist that seems to arrive complete with status and reputation as the first time one hears her. And in fact, Linda has been “ around” for a meaningful while, through the time of San Fran cisco's leadership on the rocky ship of roll, when she sang with the Load ing Zone, sharing the bill at the Fillmore with such high recognizabi- lity talents as John M ayall, A rlo Guthrie, Chuck Berry, Buddy Miles, Creem, Iron Butterfly, B.B. King, Led Zepplin, Jeff Beck and Janis Joplin. On the occasion she shared the bill with Janis, Philip Elwood headlined his review in the San Fran cisco Herald Examiner of April 12, 1968, "Great Vocalists Shake The Fillm ore,” and went on to write: “ Two girl singers almost lifted the Fillmore Auditorium o ff its founda tions last night. Janis Jop lin , responding to a ‘welcome home’ cheer from the jammed rock-concert hall, wailed and moaned and turned on the crowd. Linda Tillery, a big, bright nineteen-vear-old from the Fillmore district, took over on the next set, along with the Loading Zone octet, and practically blew out the fuses.” She was playing a lot in the Bay Area then with the Loading Zone, and as happens, they were scooped up, contracted, recorded and spewed out by one of the BIG record com panies to meet a fate sim ilar to many, being lost in the shuffle around the turntable. The band went on for six years and through many personnel changes and finally broke up in 1973. Linda took the free time to sort her ideas and values into keep and discard, deciding eventually to reexplore her initial musical roots, started when as a child she had sung in church choirs. She joined an a cappella singing group of women called Gente Gospelaires, none of whom were “ professional,” and did political gigs, all of them benefits for women. At the same time she kept her “ more professional” life going by recording with Santana on his album by the same name, plus two albums with Coke Escovedo, Coke and “ Disco Fantasy." She also sang on Boz Scaggs* “ My Time” and on Lenny White’s “ Big C ity.” All o f these albums garnered considerable airplay and made L in d a's name familiar to those who pay attention to what they like. Chaplain E.J. Stelle Portland Bureau of Police room to plan community need! The Family Assistance Program is primarily designed to assist families o f Black inmates with child care, transportation services, food, clothing and shelter. To achieve success with these en deavors U H U R U needs the support of the business community as well as individuals. They need and welcome any assistance La.: clothes, food, transportation, household appliances etc . . . To increase their capability to function in serving the community. Any support that is put into this or ganization will come back in the form o f community services. For more in fo rm atio n call 287-9481 (Portland) and ask for Ms. Martin or Mrs. Stokes; for the Salem area call 387-2446 and ask for a representa tive of U H U R U . Address all letters to: U H U R U , 2605 State Street, Salem, Oregon 97310. (Editor's Note: Loft out of last w e ek 'e story on Suparintondont of O .S .P . H oyt C. Cupp was that in 1877 Cupp obtained his Bache lors Degree from Oregon College o f E d u c a tio n in M o n m o u th , Oregon.) . . . UNION OR COMPANY DENTAL INSURANCE is a valuable asset. . . your health and appearance C O M PLETE C O O P ER A TIO N ON A L L D E N T A L IN SU R A NC E C L A IM S WE HANDLE ALL THE DETAILS OF COMPLETING YOUR CLAIM FORMS no appointment needed Come in at your convenience PARK FREE - Any Park n Shop Lot HO UR S: Weekdays 8:30a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays 8:30a.m. to 1 p.m. Dr. Jeffrey BRADY, Dentist S.W . 3RD & Y A M H IL L ST.. PO RTLAND. OREGON TAKE ELEVATOR TO 2N D FLOOR 3RD ST. ENTRANCE EXODUS a -ru / re d e t 1518 N E KILLINGSWORTK PORTLAND. OREGON 97211 284 7997 M AY 1979 EXODUS GROWS Reports its Director Rosalie Boothe 1. EXODUS is implementing Portland's first com munity-based Youth Theatre Alcohol Awareness Project, this project is funded by the Department of Labor. L IN D A TILLERY why she wasn’t recording for Olivia. Linda wasn’t sure — she felt that she didn’t know very much about the com pany and did not want to associate herself with any group whose musical/political outlook was not in harmony with her own. She was invited to attend a negotiation meeting between Bebe K ’ Roche and Olivia, and sat in while they worked out their responsibilities and aims around their upcoming O livia album. Linda was intriqued, and af ter talking with the Olivia collective, wound up producing the Bebe K ’Roche album and negotiating for her own solo album, which now re leased is called simply (or complex ly) “ Linda Tillery.” Linda sees herself as having double responsibilities as a musician. She feels strongly that as a Black woman she must struggle against a double oppression. She hopes that her music will give strength to other women as they too strive to attain the freedom that comes when restric tions based on race and sex are elimi nated. Linda puts it this way- “ We are proud o f our level o f musician- ship. We want to get it across that it is possible to produce high quality music. We are hoping that as a band we can present a different image, a way for women to see the needs of working together and supporting each other.” Linda T illery, along with Mary Watkins and their band, will make their Portland debut on the heels o f a sold-out, standing room only engagement at San Francisco's Boarding House, 8:00 p.m ., Satur day, May 26th, St. Mary's Academy, 1615 S.W. 5th. Tickets are J5 and S6 sliding scale, and available at Music M illineum (East and Northwest), Women’s Place Bookstore, House of Sound and at the door. Free child care will be provided at the site. 2. EXODUS through its community Advisory Coun cil will implement the "EXODUS Forum", which is an information sharing service to the commu nity. The first forum presentation will be held at 12:30 p.m., May 17, 1979 at EXODUS Day- Treatment Center. 3. EXODUS has also grown to develop the "EXODUS Women Forum" which is composed of women in treatment of alcoholism, from care units, Portland hospitals, institutions, educational centers and agencies. 4. EXODUS graduated its third class on the "Triple R Concept" (Rights, Respect and Besponsibility concept), Apri, 7, 1979. EXODUS is fast becoming an important service cen ter to our community. With nearly 400 clients, and employing 16 full-time employees.
