P«fl« 2 Portland Observer January 29. 1961
EDITORIAL/OPINION
Who is the constituency?
The number of Black elected officials in the
United States has increased by 6.6 per cent
between July 1979 and July 1980. Yet Blacks
are grossly under represented in elective o f
fices throughout the country. Blacks now hold
one per cent of all elected offices, tw ice the
per centage of 19769; Blacks make up eleven
per cent of the total population.
There are only nineteen Black o ffica ls for
every 100,000 Black persons, w hile there are
252 n o n -B la ck elected o ffic ia ls fo r every
100,000 non-Blacks.
Blacks in Congress increased to 18 this
November, making them 3 per cent of the 97th
Congress. Forty per cent of the Black elected
officals are on the municipal level; twenty-five
per cent are in education positions. The third
largest group is in judical and law enforcement
positions.
The leading states are Mississippi, Lousiana,
Illinois, M ichigan, and the D istrict of Colum
bia. W om en co n stitute about 20 per cent of
the Black office holders.
This d irth of Black elected o ffic ia ls c o n
tinues while the Voting Rights Act that made
gains in the South possible is in danger of ex
tinction, and while the nation is becoming in
creasingly conservative.
On the local level, there are few Blacks elec
ted inO regon. C urrently Gladys and Bill M c
Coy, Charles Jordan and Herb Cawthorne in
the Portland area and few on the horizon.
W h a t is the a lte rn a tiv e ? In th e tw o u p
c o m in g e le c tio n s -- fo r the S ch o o l Board
position now held by Wally Priestly and in the
Newhall/Beem an race, and in the contest fo r
City Council - the deciding factor w ill have to
be w hich candidate is the m ost sensitive and
responsive to the Black com m unity. W hat is
the past record? W h a t are the p e rso n 's in
terests and how do they relate to the c o m
m u n ity? W here are the ties -- p o litic a l,
economic ®r.d personal?
A fte r e le c tio n w ill the ch a n n e ls of c o m
m u n ic a tio n be open? W ill the new e lecte e
retu rn to the c o m m u n tie s w h ere he s o u g h t
votes, ask for advice, explain opinions, and a t
tem pt to represent the interests of those w ho
most need representation.
Elected officals -- whether Black or w hite --
will not serve the Black com m unity unless they
see it as their constituency. A lth o u g h Blacks
are only a small part of the School District and
of the City, they will have a unique part to play
in both and only those w h o see and u n d e r
stand that role should be supported for elec
tion.
Another Point o f View
from KATU
If applause is a sign of approval, then at
least one law proposed by Oregon's Governor
A tiy e h w ill receive p o p u la r s u p p o rt by the
legislature. It is a law that w ould make racial
harassment a felony crime punishable by fine
and imprisonment.
W hat's the recent record? Recently, a man
wearing Ku Klux Kian robes openly walks the
streets of Grants Pass evoking only the mild
curiosity of passersby.
In Portland, signs carrying racial slurs are
posted along 82nd Avenue.
And in M ilw a u k ie , the hom e of a racial
m inority is subjected to a rock-throwing attack
w h ich breaks w in d o w s , the fin a l act over a
period of weeks that was preceded by verbal
abuse. In v e s tig a to rs said n e ig h b o rs d id n 't
seem particularly aroused.
Governor Atiyeh's answer to this ''shocking
and damnable act of racial intolerance” is the
proposal of making racial harassment a felony
crime.
Do we need such le g isla tio n ? One w o u ld
think not since federal civil rights legislation
has been around fo r tw e n ty years. But, a p
parently the N A AC P, the Urban League and
the A m erican C onference of C hristians and
Jews thinks such legislation is necessary.
And, so do we.
Letters to the Editor_________
Supports Cawthorne
school board vote
Dear Editor:
W a lly P riestley strikes again --
like a kid who doesn’ t get his own
was, lie threw a stick and now w ill
ave the game. W rapped in his
cloak ol righteousness, working lor
the poor and B la c k .. against the
establishment, he w ill soon be o ff to
his place o f o b scu rity in the State
Legislature. U n fo rtu n a te ly , he’ ll
p robably surface again in A lbina-
Land when there is another press
worthy evil to conquer.
P rie s tle y ’ s vote against H erb
C aw th o rn e , as a second-term
( hairm an ol the P ortland Public
School Hoard, and your e d ito ria l
opinion supporting Priestley’ s vote
was not su rprising. How ever, the
innuendo that Herb is a “ s e ll-o u t"
is ludicrous and doesn’ t deserve a
comment.
I want to c o n g ra tu la te H erb
C awthorne fo r an outstanding job
as Chairm an during those d iffic u lt
tim es o f change on the school
b o a rd . H e rb ’ s steady, p roblem
soismg skills are still needed to help
make the necessary changes to
come. I hanks fo r stay ing in there
Herb, and keep up the good work.
Ocie H. Trotter
( E d ito r 's N o te The e d ito ria l
neither supports Priestley’ s vote nor
implies a “ S e ll-o ut.” I o become a
“ s e ll- o u t" s o ^ . iiiin g must be
gained in return.)
Patient diplomacy works best
To the Editor:
A ll A m ericans share a sense o f
p ro fo u n d re lie f and jo y at the
release o f the U .S. hostages. In
celebrating their return home, it is
im portant that we do not lose sight
o f an extremely important lesson.
T hat lesson is th a t patient and
persistent diplom ancy, despite the
m any fru s tra tio n s , was in the end
successful. No hostages were lost,
no Am erican or Iranian lives were
taken in combat.
In o u r jo y at the retu rn o f the
A m e rican hostages, we should
remember the continued suffering
o f other people in the region. We
now face the co nstructive task o f
b u ild in g better relations w ith Iran
and her neighbors, and we can begin
by urging our government to turn its
efforts to support for peace between
Iran and Iraq.
Even a foreign policy dedicated to
peace-making, however, shouldbe
tru ly noninterventionist. We in the
United States have learned from our
experience in Ira n over the past
several years that our armaments,
o u r investm ents and our g o ve rn
m ental su pp ort cannot fo r long
shore up a regime which violates the
rights o f its people. We have learned
th a t
U .S .
in v o lv e m e n t
w ith
repressive regimes id e n tifie s the
U n ite d States as an accom plice in
wrongdoing in the eyes o f those who
have suffered.
We now hope fo r a dom estic
dialogue designed to shape a U.S.
fo re ig n p o lic y w hich is tru ly n o n
in te rv e n tio n is t. We hope the U.S.
w ill call upon the other countries o f
the w o rld , in c lu d in g the Soviet
Union to join in creating a world in
w hich each n a tio n is free fro m
repression and from external in te r
ference.
a;
African Diary
By Fungai Kumbula
The past year, 1980, w ill long be
remembered fo r great changes a ll
over the A fric a n c o n tin e n t. C o m
p ilin g a list o f the highlights o f the
year is a bo ut as easy as w ritin g a
book on Black A m e ric a n m usic.
The lis t below is ju s t a ra n d o m
choice:
West Africa:
January 7: C ou p in M a u rita n ia
topples the government o f L t. C ol.
Mohammed Mahmoud Ould Louly.
,t. C o l M oham m ed K o un a O u ld
Haidala takes over.
January 17: A n e x p lo s io n at a
Texaco o il well in N ig e ria ’ s Rivers
State cause what o ffic ia ls describe
as the "w o rs t case o f o il p ollution in
Nigeria’ s h istory.”
F eb rua ry I: G uinea (C o n a k ry )
jo in s the M a n o R ive r U n io n , an
econom ic and c u ltu ra l u n io n in
v o lv in g the G a m b ia , Senegal and
Sierra Leone.
March 3: Several people are killed
when students take to the streets in
Sierra Leone to protest increases in
the cost o f transportation.
March 27: The then now govern
ment o f W illia m T olbert in Lib eria
bans the o p p o s itio n Peoples
Progressive P arty, setting the stage
fo r the biggest upheaval in L ib ria n
politics.
A p r il 12: 28 year o ld M aster
Seargent Samuel K. Doe suc
cessfully topples the Tolbert regime
ending 130 years o f True W hig party
rule.
A p r il 15: T o m ark the sixth an
niversary o f the coup that brought
him to power, Niger President Seyni
Kountche, releases tormer President
Hamani D iori from prison where he
had been “ residing” since his ouster
in 1974. A ls o released was D jib o
B a kary, leader o f the o u tla w e d
Sawaba Party.
J u ly 5: The gove rn m e nt o f
M auritania outlaws slavery!
September 24: Ghana’ s president
H illa L in m a n m arks the fir s t an
niversary o f his civilia n government
by declaring a broad amnesty.
N ovem ber 15: C ou p in G uinea
Bissau to pp les c o u n try ’ s fir s t
president and brother o f founder o f
the P A IG C lib e ra tio n m ovem ent,
Luis Cabral. Coup leader and er st-
while prim e m inister, Joao Bernar
do Vieira takes over.
N ovem ber 25: U pp er V o lta
P resident Sangoule L am iza n a is
to p p le d in a bloodless coup
fo llo w in g a teachers’ s trike and a
tw o day general s trik e . Lam izana
had come to power in a similar coup
in 1966.
December 2: L e o p o ld Sedar
Senghor who has led Senegal since
independence alm ost tw enty years
ago announces that he w ill retire at
the end o f the year. His hand-picked
successor is Prime M inister A bdou
D iouf.
Central Africa:
January 4: David Dacko, Central
A fric a ’ s President, bans all strikes
to q u e ll the ris in g tid e o f a n ti
government protests by disgruntled
teachers, u nem ployed y o u th and
others. The treasury is s till v irtu a lly
dry due to the very quick hands o f
one “ Em peror” Jean Bedel Bokassa
ousted in 1979 and now liv in g in
exile in nearby Ivory Coast.
January 12: Renewed fig h tin g in
C had between F ore ig n M in is te r
H iesein H a b re ’ s F A N (A rm e d
Forces o f the N o rth ) and those o f
fellow cabinet members M aham at
A b b a Said and A d o u m a Dana
dooms the coalition government o f
Chad.
F ebruary 18: T h irty fo u r people
accused o f c o m p lic ity in the
atrocities a ttrib uted to Bokassa go
on tr ia l in the C e n tra l A fric a n
Republic. Most are found guilty.
A p r il 15: A h m a u d o u A h id jo ,
ru n n in g fo r a f if t h year term as
C a m e ro u n ’s C h ie f o f
State
(President), is declared the w inner,
polling 99,99r o o f the vote.
May 20: Amnesty International, a
civil rights m onitoring organization,
releases a 23 page report accusing he
M ob utu Sese Seko regime in Z aire
o f o p e ra tin g p o litic a l d e te n tio n
camps "w h e re deaths by sum m ary
e xecution, to rtu re and s ta rv a tio n
are c o m m o n .” Despite denials by
M o b u tu w ho is a tte m p tin g to get
b ad ly in te rn a tio n a l loans, a su b
sequent re p o rt in September c o n
tains even more a llegations o f the
same gruesome nature.
A u gu st 24: Z a ire ’ s fo re ig n
m in is te r, Nguza K a rl Bond, sen
tenced to death in 1977 fo r alleged
c o m p lic ity in the fir s t Shaba in
vasion but since rehabilitated, is ap
pointed Prime Minister.
December 15: H isein H a b re ’ s
forces, engaged in a b itter struggle
for control o f Chad fo r most o f the
past tw o years, fin a lly flee across
the b o rd e r in to C am eroun befo re
the com b in e d fo rce o f P resident
G o u k o u n i O u e d d e i’ s forces and
their L ibyan allies. For now, Chad
is relatively quiet.
December 19: Deposed “ E m
p e ro r” Jean Bedel Bokassa, f o r
m e rly o f the C e n tra l A fric a n
R epublic but now liv in g in exile in
the Ivo ry Coast, is tried in absentia
on e ig ht charges. He is accused,
am ong o th e r th in g s , o f em bez
zlement, cannibalism and personal
involvement in massacres.
Next W eek: East A frica and The
H orn.
Jimmy and USA undisputed winners
To the Editor:
Freedom fo r the hostages has
been an event w hich b ro u g h t jo y
and r e lie f to everyone b ut the
p o litic a l re h e to ric e x to llin g th e ir
s a crifice and v a lo r and is not
ju s tifie d by the fa cts. The 52
Americans were confined fo r a long
time (14 months) under undesirable
circumstances. No one relishes con
fin em en t but aside fro m the c o n
finem ent, the hostages did what the
rest o f us d id fo r 14 m on ths; they
stayed alive.
I am paranoid enough to believe
th a t i f J im m y C a rte / and R on ald
Reagan th in k the hostages d id
something e xtra ord in ary, they did.
But it m ust have been m ore than
stay alive.
Back in N ovem ber o f 1979, the
Americans at the embassy were left
to tw is t s lo w ly in the w in d when
Jimmy allowed the Shah to enter the
c o u n try . The Shah was n o t a
popular dictator (what d ictator is?)
and Jim m y had been warned that
possible trouble could occur at the
embassy i f the Shah were allowed to
e nter. The S hah’ s interests were
given a higher p rio rity than the lives
o f the Am ericans at the embassy.
The exaggerated praise o f the
hostages has c e rta in ly m uted
criticism o f Jimmy for this act.
The aborted raid on the embassy
would certainly never have freed all
o f the hostages. Some o f the
hostages and some Iranians w ould
have been killed. Human lives could
be sa crificed in o rd er th a t Jim m y
C a rte r rid h im s e lf o f a p o litic a l
lia b ility and have a better chance at
re-election. A g ain the exaggerated
praise served to soften criticism fo r
this mindless endeavor.
The feeling o f re lie f and jo y was
shared by everyone b ut the
p ro fu s io n o f w elcom e home
cerem onies and the fla g w aving
mobs require more explanation and
justifica tion .
The hostages appeared to be in
the vortex o f a propaganda warefare
between Iran and the U.S. govern
ment. The Iranians wanted to focus
on the v illa n y o f the Shah and his
regim e and the c o m p lic ity o f the
U .S . in s u p p o rtin g a ruthless d ic
tator.
The U .S . d id n ot w ant to ta lk
about past transgressions but want
ed the focus on the hostages and
th e ir release. The three television
networks were w illing proponents o f
this focus. L ittle attention was given
to the savage excesses o f the regime
o f our middle eastern " fr ie n d ” the
Shah and v irtu a lly every news p ro
gram gave the running count o f days
held hostage. The Ira n ia n s were
crushed
by
a
m u lti- b illio n
propaganda e ffo rt. The e m otional
welcome by the mobs o f cheering
and
c e rta in ly
w e ll
m eaning
Am ericans is just a dem onstration
o f the e ffe cts o f a m u lti- b illio n
dollar propaganda campaign.
Hersche! L. Soles
Need criticism
To the editor:
Y o u r e d ito ria l on H erb C aw
thorne and the school board was in
fo rm a tive. We appreciate that you
are w illing to critize the action taken
by M r. Cawthorne.
We com p la in to each other that
some o f our Black o ffic ia ls do not
seem to hear what Black people are
saying and we get angry. I remem
ber that M r. Cawthorne was critical
o f G ladys M cC o y b u t it was to o
late. Someone sh o u ld have said
something p ub lica lly years before.
I f we are a fra id to co m p la in, then
no one w ill kn ow we are not
satisfied.
I hope M r. Cawthorne accepts the
c ritic is m lik e a man and re th in k s
some o f his decision. He is the only
one we have to hope w ill represent
us on the school board.
Portland Observer
Sincerely,
Warren A. White
Executive Secretary
American Friends
Service Committee
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ONPA 1973
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ONPA 1978
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