PCC offers contemporary African literature
T im o th y Saben was raised in
Uganda learning English and Swahili
as he lived w ith " o n e fo o t firm ly
p la n te d in B lack c u ltu re and the
other in colonial white cu ltu re ."
Saben w ill o ffe r a course in Con
temporary A frica n Literature winter
term at P o rtla n d C o m m u n ity
C o lle g e , S ylva n ia C e n te r, 12000
S.W. 49th Avenue. The class lasts 12
weeks and meets each M o n d a y ,
Wednesday and Friday from 10-11
a.in. Students can audit the class or
earn three tra n s fe ra b le college
credits.
“ When I was growing up in Ugan
da my companions were Black kids
my own age," Saben said. "1 learned
the A fric a n ve rb a l en cyclo pe d ia
fro m my c o m p a n io n s . 1 knew
S w a h ili so it was easy. 1 learned
stories o f the slave trade in Swahili
from old wizened men in A fric a ."
Saben credits his childhood com
p a n io n s,
his p a re n ts ( " t h e ir
w e lls p rin g o f p h ilo s o p h y was
h u m a n ity ") and early friendships
w ith Black A frican intellectuals with
his interest in A frican literature and
w ith helping Americans understand
contemporary A frica n culture.
When Saben was growing up in the
1950‘ s in A frica he said the literary
tradition was coming from the West.
“ The written tra d itio n was a white
perspective but 1 knew how much o f
a bias it was because my other foot
was in the Black w o rld ,” Saben ex
plained.
The most fam ous o f the 195O's
A frica n novels was "S om ething o f
V alue” by Robert R uark--a book
which is not on Seban's list for the
PCC course. " R u a r k 's book is a
white man's view o f Black c u ltu re -
fu ll o f stereotypes that white men are
big, rugged and handsome and white
women are beautiful and simpering
and Blacks are either nice or beastial
savages jum ping around in skins to
the throb o f to m -to m s," Saben said.
"T h e re 's treineindous lite ra tu re
coming out o f A frica now ,” Saben
said. " I t doesn’ t have the groping
cynicism o f western literature. It is
ru ra l, c o lle c tiv e and a g ra ria n
literature rather than industrial, in
literature that you don’ t find much
in western lite ra tu re ."
Saben, w ho was educated in
Kenya, Scotland and England before
receiving his doctorate at the Univer
sity o f Oregon, lived in Canada and
Australia before settling in Portland
in 1974.
T w o experiences in P o rtla n d
d iv id u a l and u rb a n as o urs is.
There’ s a spontaneity about A frican
(please turn to page 10 column 5)
PORTLAND OBSERVER
Volum e 9 N um ber 50
Decem ber 20. 1979
10C per copy
USPS9S9 680
Blacks celebrate January 1st
as "Jubilee Day."
January I, w ill not be just the ad
vent o f a new year; National N AA C P
Executive Director Benjamin Hooks
has called on Black people across the
country to annually celebrate January
1 as "Jubilee Day,” to commemorate
the signing o f the E m ancipation
proclamation by Abraham Lincoln in
1863 which abolished slavery in the
United States.
Hooks and the N A A C P look to
“ Jubilee Day” as a day o f "spiritual
renewal; a day o f worship and thanks
giving; a time to commemorate our
Black Heritage, and a time to reflect,
rededicate and revitalize our efforts. .
in our quest for equality o f opportu
nity.
The "Jubilee Day” concept was fir
st intrixluced by Director Hooks in his
benedictory address at the 70th A n
nual N A A C P N ational C onvention
held in Louisville, Kentucky last June.
A re so lu tio n to include the com
memoration as part o f the national
o rg a n iz a tio n ’ s agenda was passed
overwhelmingly.
The annual celebration is intended
to involve various p ortions o f the
Black community in a conjuctive ef
fort to solidfy and embrace 'he two
m a jo r in s titu tio n s w hich have
historically key to Black survival in
America; the Black fam ily and the
Black church.
S p e cifica lly, the "J u b ile e D a y”
resolution calls for local branches to
encourage governm ental leaders to
issue commemorative proclamations;
for families to take time out to recount
“ the experiences o f Black freedom
fighters, historic Black heroes and
heroines...to instruct children about
the value o f hope and perseverance in
overcoming adversity and despair.”
Black pastors are encouraged to
hold special services "lin kin g the civil
■
t
I '
* ,•
»
National NAACP Executive Director Benjamin Hooks
rights struggle, the N A A C P ’ s role,
generate the funds necessary fo r its
campaigns.
and the mission o f religion to the
vitality o f family life.
"Jubilee Day’ ’— January I — will not
The national N A A G P leadership
only signal the advent o f something
w ill set aside "Jubilee Day” to con
new, but the effort by Black people to
re-new their faith in themselves and in
vene, reassess and plan strategies for
obtaining its civil rights goals, and to
a unity o f purpose.
NAACP give top honors to
Zodiac contest winners.
Calvin Russell Graham Jr. at age 12 take time out to pause with violin. Calvin is 17 years old now.
Young violinist tour Tokyo, Japan with
Portland Junior Symphony
Hv Stephanie L. Michael
Recently the P o rtla n d Y outh
P hilharm onic, better known as the
Portland Junior Symphony went on a
twelve day educational tour to Sap
poro, Ebetsu and Tokyo, Japan. The
group o f I02 musicians, ages 13-23
plus 30 staff and escorts participated in
six concerts, tw o school visits, two
n a tio n a l television broadcasts and
home stays w ith Japanese fam ilies
while in Japan.
The trip to Japan opened up the or
chestras 1979-80 season. The groups
visit to Sapporo was in recognition o f
the 2(Xh anniversary o f the sister-city
re la tio n sh ip between Sapporo and
Portland. The orchestras trip was to
demonstrate Portland's commitment
to the sister-city program , o ffe r a
recognized Portland cultural entity to
the Japanese and to allow a person-to-
person experience through home stays.
The trip cost was around $125,000
dollars. The city, orchestra families
and the community each contributed
one-third to the cost o f the trip.
Calvin Russell Graham Jr. is the
only Black musician in the orchestra,
now in its 56th year o f existence. The
|7-year old violinist has participated in
the accomplished orchestra on several
occasions since he was 12 years old.
G raham is one o f the few young
people in the group representing not
only Portland, but distant cities such
as the Dallas, Salem and Longview.
The orchestra conducted by Jacob
Avshalomov is maintained by the Por
tland Junior Symphony Association, a
n o n -p rofit educational organization
which provides annual music training
at no cost and without tax support for
its regular operating expenses.
Russel Graham began playing the
violin when he was four years old. His
parents initiated the start o f private
lessons for the instrument as soon has
he turned five. Looking back through
the years Russell says he d islike d
taking the lessons that lasted through
junior high school. But now, he feels
the w ork, time, and money put into
lessons helped him get a seat in the or
chestra.
Grrahatn says, " I was 12 when I
signed up to be in the orchestra, so it
was necessary that I audition fo r a
seat. I had to pick a piece and play it
for two or three minutes. Then you are
required to play a scale and do on the
spot sight reading. I guess I must have
been pretty good, because I got in and
there was alot o f kids who wanted to
be in the orchestra."
" I didn’ t then and I still don’ t find it
hard being the only Black in th? group.
Now there are fo u r other m in o rity
people playing in the orchestra. I don't
think that many Black people listen to
classical music. I think they appreciate
any type o f music, but money has alot
to do with the lack o f Black people
being involved with classical music. It
takes money to have private lessons
and to own an instrument such as a
v io lin .”
When young Graham first started
playing in the orchestra he was not
serious about being a musician, his
outlook was towards being a doctor
like his father. But now in his last year
o f high school, he's made some
decisions about his future life.
" A t first, I didn’ t know what I wan
ted to do with my life. I think when
you’ re grow ing up i t ’ s d iffic u lt to
make decisions about the future. To
tell the truth, I wasn't serious about
playing music u ntil this year. Right
now, I know 1 want to be an accom
plished musician in a metro orchestra,
hut I also want to do many things in
my life. I'd like to always do work in
the community and help people. Over
a person's life tim e you ju s t d o n ’ t
know where things might lead yo u ."
As a daily pratice, Russell not only
has to keep ahead on his academic
studies, he also has to pratice on his
v io lin and tru in b o n e . He says his
pratice sessions on the instruments can
range from 2 to 3 depending on how
he feels. He stressed that at this time,
he’s trying to learn how to discipline
himself.
“ Hopefully next year, I will be ac
cepted to a school next fa ll. I'm
preparing m yself fo r that whole
process right now. I'd like to go to
school somewhere in the east,
<Please turn to page 10 column 3)
T hrce-ycar-old N icole, the Can-
ccrian daughter o f Phillip and Carolyn
Murray, raised $214 in Holiday Seal
sales. Ms. Bowman, representing Mt.
Olivet Baptist Church, raised $600.11.
Total revenues from both o f the con
tests and the December 2 Fashion Ex
travaganza am ounted to some
$3581.98. The H o lid a y Seal Fund
raising campaign netted $2169.93
At the December 9 ceremonies of-
licialfy ending the campaign for this
year, held at Bethel A .M .E . Church,
Ms. Murray received a check for $25;
Harold Williams— son ot Board mem
ber H arold W illia m s - to o k second
place honors and a check for $15 for
raising $205.75; T h ird place Felicia
Robertson, daughter o f Edna Robert
son, received a check for $10 for her
$182 fund-raising effort.
Following Ms. Bowman, who was
o ffic ia lly crowned "Q u e e n ” at the
ceremony, were M r. C.C.McCorvey,
representing Allen Temple, who raised
some $500, and M r. Ed Raibon o f
Vancouver Avenue Baptist Church
who raised $269.62.
>
Ms. Nicola Murray
ms. Nicole Murray and Ms. Jawall Bowman walked off with top honors
as winners of the Portland Branch N A A C P ’s Holiday Seal C hildren’s
Zodiac Contest and King/Queen Contest respectively
"Operation Phone
Lions Club in the greater Portland
metropolitan area w ill again be con
d ucting th e ir “ O p e ra tio n Phone
Btx»k" recycling project. The proceeds
from this year’s December 14 through
January 12 co lle ctio n o f obsolete
phone books w ill be shared between
the Lions Sight and Hearing Foun
dation and participating youth groups.
Each Lions C lub w ill w ork w ith a
youth organization in their area
About 30 collection sites where the
Ms Jawall Bowman
general public can turn in their old
phone books are listed on an insert in
the new 1980 directories. M ajor users
o f telephone books are going to be
collected on a scheduled basis.
Since 1925, Lions throughout the
world have responded to the needs o f
the blind, and more recently have ex
tended into sight and hearing conser
vation. In 1959 the Oregon Lions
founded the Sight and Hearing Foun
dation. The foundation is a regular
ook"
contributor to the Devers Eye Clinic
and the Oregon Lions Eye Bank at
Good Samaritan Hospital and Medical
Center, as well as supporting other
projects fo r the b lin d such as the
Southern Oregon Blind Center and a
summer camp.
Chairman of this year's “ Operation
Phone Book” project is Dick Brattin
(233-2522) working closely with
District tiovernor [Tennis Tnchenor
I