Portland Observer October 18,1980 Pago 3 PSU professor compares Blacks, Africans By Nathaniel Scott Portland State University's Black Studies program has a number o f professors and assistant professors who are specialists in their fields. Assistant professor Malaku Lakew is one such person. Lakew was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 1945. After completing high school, he came to America on an Ehtiopian scholarship and began his studies in pursuit o f a doctorate in economics at the University o f C alifornia at Riverside. He has a master’s degree in economics and is writing his thesis for his Ph.D. His area of teaching at PSU is economic relationship o f the African and the A fro-A m erican. M arried and the lather o f one child, he is concerned about the plight o f the African and the Afro-Am erican. In this inter­ view, the Observer posed a number o f questions to him, relating to the A fro-A m ericans and the A fric a n Black. Observer: What are your obser­ vations o f the economic status o f the Blacks in Portland? Lakew : I am a new a rriv a l to P ortland, Oregon and I haven’ t studied the Black economic situation specifically, but generally speaking, what applies in another state might reflect here in Portland as well. The Black econom ic situation is always subserviant to that o f the economic performance o f the nation. To put it clearly, the Blacks are always the firs t to be fired and the last to be hired. They are also at the lower rung on the ladder o f income groups within the nation. Observer: Compare and contrast the Afro-American and the African Black. Lakew: A comparison between the Afro-American and the African Black is essential, because the Blacks in Africa seem to have what we call constitutional independence. Yet their dependant relationship with that o f the advanced countries, puts them in a similar position as that o f Blacks here in America. The Black people in A m erica have always been subjected to white economic dom inance and their community has physically depended on the economic performance, or the business man’ s decision to invest in the community and create jobs. The same thing applies to the Blacks in Africa. The Blacks have yet not established an economic base that would make them self-sufficient. Therefore, they are dependent on what we call a m u lti-n a tio n a l cooperation, who come w ith the finances and invest in the most profitable areas, disregarding the in­ terest o f the population o f the area. Disregarding the general interest o f the Black people in Africa and as a consequence, the m u lti-n a tio n a l cooperation w ill get the most profit at the expense o f the Black country. Basically the situation is the same. Compare and contrast the educational system o f the two. Lakew: Comparison o f the two educational systems is very hard to make. But to give a general remark, I w ould like to start w ith the education that is provided in Africa in a general form at, compared to the education here in the Black community. In Africa the education seems to be much more p ro fo u n d . The educational system is meant to produce well rounded students that can understand what they learn more substantially. In America my observations are that much o f the education is mass p ro d u ctio n . Student learning is not well established or what is required o f them. The student who finishes high school in Africa is equivalent to the student who finishes a junior college in America; as for as their capacity for thinking and their capacity for creative advancement are concer­ ned. Observer: What necessary changes are needed in the com ­ munity and the educational system ? Lakew: My area is economic, but I don’ t see economics divorced from the other disciplines. Every discipline seems to be related to one another. First we have to see the community by-and-large. What does the community lack? What composition o f people live in the community? Would they be able to get the necessary requirements for making the education effective fo r their off-spring? And further more, we have to ask the question, can the Black com m unity be self- s u ffic ie n t by itself? We have to create our own identity. We have to be creative enough to be imitated, rather than imitating someone else. The com m unity has to take the quality o f education in its hands, rather than leaving it in the hands o f someone else. In general these types questions need to be raised, it we have to tackle the problem o f education here in the Black com­ munities o f America. 9100 total move in to veta. low down FHA, FHA 245, and conventional terms also, model open Sat. Er Sun. noon to 5 p.m. 92nd Ave. at Burton Road. Vancouver, Washington. Call for a showing anytime. 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