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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 12, 1981)
Pag« 6 Portland Obsarvar M arch 12.1961 Property tax relief available Representative Hardy Myers. Speaker of the House, listens atten tively as A tto rn ey Frank W ilson exp lain s legal im p lic a tio n s of p ro p o sed R acial H a ra s s m e n t B ill. A m o n g th o s e a tte n d in g the Legislative Brunch, sponsored every other S aturday are: M a tth e w A k o m , R uth S p e n ce r, Burna Wingert. and Mildred Senator Frank Roberts, Representative Barbara Roberts and Representative W ally Priestley will be the guests at the M arch 21st meeting, 9 30 a m at Bourbon Street (Photo: Richard J Brown) Cell Talk By Asm ar A b du l SeifuUah A ka Joe West “ Racism exists in all instutions,” or so said a high ranking Black o f fic ia l rece ntly. H ow ever, w h a t’ s disturbing is that since it ’ s common know ledge, why isn ’ t som ething meaningful being done to eradicate it? T h e ir acknow ledgem ent o f racism w ith o u t active struggle against it, o n ly com pounds its assault upon its victims. I t ’ s u n fo rtu n a te that a rticles about racism , d is c rim in a tio n and b ru ta lity arc prevalent in the news service u n til the silent m a jo rity speaks out against its perpetuation. Consequently, I feel i t ’ s my duty as a Biackman to concentrate on it as a subject until relief is fo rth w ith . I'm sure that there are those individuals, state o ffic ia ls and prison ad m inistrators that would rather have silence on these disturbing issues but then there are already enough people in the cover-up business. Consequently once again I have one o f those d irty stories to report to you. I ’ ve been hesitant to w rite about it because I honestly believe that there are members o f the prison a d m in istra tio n who w ould like to stop the spread o f racism , d is c rim in a tio n and b ru ta lity . I, therefore, commend Superintendent C upp, Assistant S uperintendent Keeney and Security C hie f U hitley for their efforts to rid Oregon State P e n ite n tia ry o f these elements. However, it’ s becoming increasingly apparent that racism, brutality and discrim ination are rooted deeply in to the fram e w o rk o f the prison structure fo r th eir e ffo rts to have great impact on daily life behind the walls. Recently it came to my attention that racism and b ru ta lity are being perpetuated by members o f the O .S .P. s ta ff. I he c u lp rits o f these deeds are c o rre c tio n a l o ffic e rs whose responsibility it is to oversee the daily movement and security o f inmates. A couple o f weeks ago, a w hite correctional o ffic e r was accused o f circulating Ku K lux Kian member ship card to w h ite inm ates. S ub sequently an investigation was con ducted by the Oregon State Police to ascertain whether or not there was s u ffic ie n t evidence to w a rra n t dismissal o f the o ffice r in question. I was personally assured by Superin tendent C upp th a t i f s u ffic ie n t evidence were gathered, the o ffic e r would be dismissed if possible. The o n ly p ro ble m at th is p o in t seems to be fin d in g a w hite inmate that received one o f the cards to come forth with testimony. I'm sure you can see the f u t ilit y in seeking out a e m pathic w hite inm ate in a w hite m a jo rity in s titu tio n . I th e re fo re , im agine th a t the racist canine w ill return to work to spread more o f his odious racist germs. He is protected by a union, civil service re g u la tio n s and the b ig o try o f a system reeking with racism. This past week a group o f five (5) white officers were accused o f using excessive force in re s tra in in g a Black inmate who refused to take a shower. The brother was allegedly handcuffed and physically abused and was called a "N ig g e r” to boot! The incid en t was rep orte d by a C hica no inm ate w ho was an eye witness to the alleged assault. He has offered to take a lie detector test to substaniate his claim. It was then reported to Executive Assistant o f M in o rity A ffa irs , Ron M artin, who subsequently reported it to Captain W h itley, who conducted a p rim ary investigation and called the Oregon State P olice to fu rth e r investigate the m a tte r. Once a g a in , we were assured th a t the o ffic e r(s ) in q ue stio n w o u ld be dism issed i f possible. W hat’ s surprising is that in the fir s t case, the o ffic e r was suspended w ith pay w h ile the in ve stiga tion was co nd ucte d , but in the second in c id e n t, the o ffic e r(s ) were le ft on the jo b d u rin g the in vestigation. There has been fu rth e r ev idence o f in tim id a tio n o f pote n tia l witness by one o r m ore o f the officers in questions. Its the opinion o f the w rite r that these reprobates and scoundrels w ill do anything to protect their bastardly deeds. As was m entioned p re v io u s ly , I believe th a t the high o ffic ia ls o f O.S.P. are concerned and are doing the best they can under the circum stances. B u t, u n fo rtu n a te ly , the cover-ups are reinforced by fellow o ffic e rs w ho are e ith e r a fra id to speak up or condone the actions o f their fellow officers. It's impossible fo r the Superintendent or any other a d m in is tra to r to be on the spot when these incidents take place -- plus the a d m in is tra to rs are in a position where they have to try and s a tis fy b o th sides. It sh ou ld be evident from both o f these isolated in c id e n ts th a t there is a need fo r more Black co rrectio na l officers at O .S.P. I therefore appeal to mem bers o f the com m un ity to push the program here at O.S.P. There are w hite rnad-dog o v e r seers loose in O.S.P., I fear that the situation w ill worsen before it gets better. In conclusion remember that George Jackson was kille d because he allegedly had a gun in his a fro . “ Pleasant dream s Y 'a ll because they might come in the m ornin g!” Two years a fte r im p le m e n ta tio n o f the state’ s P ro p e rty T ax R e lie f Program , m any residents s till are not ta k in g advantage o f the p ro gram . M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty ’ s Assessment and T axa tion D ivision w ill accept claim s under the progiam u ntil A p ril 1, 1981. Home owners who have filed and received property tax re lie f last fa ll on their present residences should not file again. T h e ir tax re lie f w ill be con tinued autom atically. Homeowners who have changed the use o f their property must n o tify the assessor o f the change; those who do not must pay back any state payment plus a 20 per cent penalty. The Property Tax Relief Program was enacted by the 1979 O regon Legislature as a separate program (in a d d itio n to b ut n ot p a rt o f H AR R P). The qualifications for the PTRPare: 1) The applicant must be owner o f record. Owner o f Record means th a t the in d iv id u a l(s ) has a deed, contract or assignment o f contract for the property filed upon, and that the docum ent must be recorded in the C ounty Deed Records. 2) The applicant must occupy the property. The property must be the a pp lica n t’ s princip al residence, on June 30. 3) The applica tion must be filed w ith the C o u n ty Assessor in the C o u n ty w here the p ro p e rty is located. The last day fo r filin g an a p p lic a tio n in a c a le n d a r year is A p ril I, 4) The application remains in ef fect on the p ro p e rty u n til the property is sold or the owner moves. As long as the a pp lica nt owns and occupies the property, only one ap p lic a tio n m ust be file d . The a p p licant does not have to file every year. (However, when the property no longer qualifies due to sale or the a pplicant m oving, the a pplicant is <00ft N f »**var’ Cl 1503) 287 4029 B 'o a d w a y P o rtla n d value on their home and receive a lower tax bill, Wilcox said. For more inform ation, citizens may call the property tax relief of fice, 248-3221. required to n otify the County Assessor of the disqualification.) Indidivuals who file and qualify for the Property Tax Relief Program have a lower assessed Boneless H am s FwHy Cooked S*nok«d, Mo# lb *2“ B eef o r M e a t Franks Oscar Mayor I-lb PLg 1 Sliced M e a ts Land O' Frost 2 '/l Io 3 O1 PVg 4 8 c fille t of Snapper «. $1” H alibut Roast Kippered Salmon P ork Loin Roast Pork Spare Ribs c ^ ^ f ^ m s* $141 Country StyU P ork Link Sausage Corned B eef Brisket Murphy ftorwleu *b 1 Chicken Hoagies Chicken Breast -lx??.',. s SE 20th b DIVISIO N SE 72nd b FLAVEL NE 15th b FREMONT W BURNSIDE at 21st SAN RAFAEL 1910 NE 122nd Forest Grove 2329 PACIFIC Oregon City 878 MOLALLA Candy 1051 SW 1st LLOYD CENTER ,2o, *2“ .2o,$3“ 14410 SE DIVISIO N 3955 SE POWELL NE 74th ft GLISAN HILLSBORO 960 SE OAK O e g o n 9773? Classic Studios ________________________ J Priced less Gas & M erit Markets Hillard discusses Black History G rassroot News, N .W . - On M arch 6, at the M a llo ry Avenue C h u rch , the Black U n ite d F ro n t sponsored a c o m m u n ity h isto ry lesson given by Asa H illa rd . D r. H illard is presently at Georgia State a fte r h o ld in g status o f Dean o f E ducation at San Francisco State fo r eight years. H illa rd entitled his presentation "F re e Your M in d. ” The basis premis o f the presentation was present aspects o f our historical greatness and clear up some o f the mis-education that goes along with A frica and A fro-A m erican history. Below are some excerpts fro m hts presentations: “ We must re tu rn to the source and to return to the source we must re w rite the m is w ritte n h is to ry o f Black people. And th is is the m is w ritte n h is to ry o f all people because no one can have a true h is to ry i f o u r h is to ry is not to ld c o rre c tly . O u r h is to ry , lik e o the r conquered people, had to be destroyed because if you are to be a slave, you can’ t have a m emory. It hurt us because false memories were created fo r other people. For us to return to the source we must return to o rig in a l docum ents fro m the A frica n origins o f civilization. You must remember that the oldest living bones found in Europe, and Japan appear to be the bones o f the small people who inhibit the hearthland o f A frica. “ M ost o f the in fo rm a tio n fed to the Am erican public is false. There are also studies which show how the m inds o f Am ericans are managed frequently by people who try to get you to buy what you don’ t need, go where you don’ t want to go, and do things that are not in your best in terest but theirs. "S ublim inal suggestion is just one way that it ’ s done. As far as Black people are concerned, people who have told our story, almost all have been w hite, have been lo o kin g fo r som ething called a p rim itiv e . But there are no p rim itiv e Asians, In dians, Whites or Blacks. Prim itive is a w ord co nq ue ro rs made up fo r taking land away from other people. The p rim itiv e was created by professors and the idea th a t one group is inferior grew up w ith these professors. We d id n 't have racism u ntil we had a concept o f race and th a t started 200 years ago. You always had people who d id n ’ t like each other but a very strange thing was started a bo ut the tim e Europeans needed other peoples' land. This thought enabled people to come to America and kick out the Indians and the In d ia n s became natives and the Europeans became Americans; go to Australia and kick the people out, the real Australians become A b o rig in a ls and the Europeans became Australians.” A ll through his presentation. Dr. H illa rd presented historical facts o f African history with truth as its only in te rp re ta tio n . A fte r the presen ta tio n , D r. H illa rd was asked the following questions: What arc some * o f the problems in education faced by Black people? H illa rd : O u r biggest p roblem is the lack o f a free m ind or low con scious. G ra s s ro o t N ew s: When tra d itio n a l scientist deals w ith the e d u c a tio n a l d e fic ie n c ie s o f some Black children there is a tendency to place the blame on the parents. A re Black parents, because o f the social pressure imposed by w hite society, resp on sible f o r the e d u c a tio n a l deficiencies o f their children? H illa rd : N o, parents are respon sible fo r the e d u c a tio n o f th e ir c h ild re n but not fo r the inadequacies in th e ir education. I f you have good teaching, Black kids w ill learn like anyone else. G rassroot News: W hat a ffe c t is the three year old "B a k k e " decision having on the e d u c a tio n a l o p p o r tunities f o r the Black comm unity? H illa rd : T h a t's one o f the worst decisions th a t have been handed down in a long time. The sad thing is that it made the medical aptitude test legal. Grassroot News: W ill the federal cutback in e d u c a tio n have an adverse e ffe c t on the e d u ca tio n provided to the Black comm unity? H illa rd : Right now, positions that are held, are supported by federal funds. M any people w ho h o ld positions hold the lowest level ones. So as school d istricts are forced to cut back, those p o s itio n s are the first to go. Hour: 7:00 AM -10:00 P.M. 7 days a week Featuring the Original Premium Unleaded Gasohal; North Portland Blvd & Greely — I I I c o Q. □ o u C oupon— — $2 off On purchase of $5 or more O (Food and Soft drinks only) ? I N A M E :__________ __________ I I I Phone:_________ __________ Signatura: Priced lato G at and Marl» M arkets Coupon good until 4 /2 /8 1 . ❖
