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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 21, 1981)
a For the children of Atlanta and fo r all children who are hungry, suffer and live in fear. An economic analysis Nation makes war against Black women by Dr. Manning .Marable Among the leading fighters in the struggle for Afro-Am erican libera tion have always been Black women. The tra d itio n o f m ilitant activist Black women runs deeply throughout the entire Black ex perience -- from H arriet Tubman and Sojourner T ru th in the nine teenth century to Ida Wells Barnett, Fannie Lou Hamer, Angela Davis, Barbara Sizemore, W illie Rae Reid in the twentieth century. This is no historical accident. However, it is no secret that for many years sexism has been a problem w ith in the Freedom Movement. There have been too many instances o f brothers who have underestimated the need to struggle against the special op pression o f Black women. There have been too few instances where Black men have attempted to be as honest and critical in their relation ships w ith sisters as they have en deavored to be with their white op pressors. Too many Black men have been silent partners in the war ag ainst Black women. Black women who live alone or who are the sole parent figure within the families are often the vic tims o f poverty and unemployment. Statistics from the M arch, 1980 report o f the Bureau o f the Census, reveal a pervasive pattern o f exploit ation. sons. This contrasts w ith white fam ily means o f 2.86 persons and 3.22 persons, respectively. There are 2.430,000 Black fam i lies or households where a husband is not present. 1,195,000 o f these families are below the poverty level established by the federal govern ment, a percentage (49.2) that is slig h tly higher than that o f Hispanics (49 percent) and much higher than that o f whites (30.1 per cent). Black families are larger than white or H ispanic fam ilies. The mean size o f the Black family with a female head was 3.64 persons; for those fam ilies below the poverty line, the mean figure was 3.93 per Black families headed by women without a male present also tend to be somewhat larger than those o f white or Hispanic women. Here the statistics reveal what our experience with the cruel and harsh realities of poverty tells us -- that the more children Back fam ilies led by women have, the greater likih o o d that the fa m ily w ill be poor. For example, the Census reported that there were 633,000 Black families headed solely by women that had three persons. O f this number, 293,000 or 46.2 percent were below the poverty line. 244,000 Black families with women heads had five persons in the household. O f this group 152,000 or 62.5 percent were impoverished. For Black families w ith women household heads having seven or more persons in the home, a staggering 28.6 percent (134,000 fam ilies) were below the poverty line. Poverty is often a product of poor schools a n d /o r the lack o f education. 333,000 Black female fa m ily heads have less than an eighth grade education. O f this group, 173,000 or 52.1 percent live below the poverty line. O f the 144,000 women with an educational level o f grade eight, 96,000 or 66.9 percent live below the poverty level. Vet due to the duality o f the bur den of race anc class. Black women who do excell in education arc far more frequently without work than their white or H ispanic counter parts. 358,000 Black female householders have attended one year or more o f college. O f this number, 96,(XX) or 26.7 percent are below the poverty line. This percen tage exeeds that for Hispanics (19 percent) and fo r whites (10.7 per cent) M illio n s o f Black and brown women were pressured in to the (Please turn to Page 5 Col I) PORTEND OBSERMER -- City wins affirmative action appeal The O regon I o u rt o l Appeals has reversed the decision by C ircuit Court Judge C liffo rd B. Olsen, who had declared the P o rtla n d ( iv il Service B oard’ s “ tw o -lis t" system u nconstitutional. Rule 3740 allows the a p p o in tin g a u th o rity o f a ( it s bureau that has been determined to have a w ork force, to request a list o f m inority applicants front which to hire. I he Portland Police Association sued, charging that the ( n il Service Board did not have the authority to institute the new system, that it in terferes with the bureau’ s ability to hire the most q u a lifie d applicants, that it denies equal p ro tectio n to r w hite applicants, that it would in jure the Association and its mem hers, and that it w o u ld endanger police moral by selecting less q u a li fied employees, and that it w ould create in te rg ro u p h o s tility , resent ment, distrust and tension. I he ( ourt o f Appeals found that (lie new rule does not interfere with the C iv il Service Board's role, since the board was established to insure that appointm ents to C ity jobs are made on the basts o f tunes and mem I uness is to be determined by an open c o m p e titio n exam in a tion and all who pass the exam ination are q u a lifie d I lie ( iv il Service Board refers qualified applicants to llie ( ity, but does not hire. I he ’ rule o f three" provides that when a vacancy occurs the ( iv il Service B oard sends a list o f the three in d iv id u a ls w ith the highest scores to the h irin g a u th o rity . Flic hiring authority must hire one o f the three, or subm it in w ritin g or ex planation and request a new list. Ih e C o u rt fo u n d that the new rule allows that another list be sub m itted. " F ile C ity charier requires the Board to certify upon request by the a pp ointin g a u th o rity the three highest scoring a pp lica nts lo r Ihe relevant vacant c iv il service position. Rule 3740 does not inter tere w ith th is req uirem en t in any wav. It s im p ly a llo w s the B oard, upon proper show ing, to c e rtify a second list o l eligible applicants in addition to the required one. I here is nothing in the C ity which permits the Board fro m c e rtify in g another list.. Rule .3740 sim ply inform s P ortland’ s departments, bureaus, and offices ol the way the Board proposes to deal with one basis for requesing a new or addition al list of potential employees." Under Rule 1740, the hirin g a u th o rity who so requests w ould receive the regular list o f the top three applicants and an additional (Please turn to Page 10Col S) A fric a n L ib eratio n Day will be observed May 23rd w ith a march beginning at King Neigh borhood I aeility at 12:30 I’ M. A program w ill follow at Irving Park, including speakers, music, dancers, poets, food and displays. I -veryone welcomed. Community offers policing proposals Saturday, Mav 23rd, theculm ina lio n ol several weeks ol public fo r ums on police/cotnm unity relations, sponsored by the Port land O bser ver, w ill come to I tin t ion w ith the presentation to police a u th o ritie s and the public ot a senes o l recom m endations and proposals lo r im proved p o lic in g o l the N o rth Northeast area. Am ong the public o ffic ia ls who have participated in the forums are Deputy d u e l Smith, North Precinct ( a plain M c( abe, In te rn al A ffairs D ire ctor Aichele, ( n n in iu n ity At la irs D ire c to r ( a p ta in D aily and several p o lice o ffic e rs fro n t the Police Bureau; Stan Peters, Port land P olice A s s o c ia tio n ; D is tric t A ttorn ey M ike Shrunk ami Deputy D A B a rry S cheldahl; Bob I am b, U s D epartm ent o f Justice; M ik e Bails, Public Defenders’ Office. Some o f the concerns that have been discussed are: I ack o f citizen inp ut h i policy m aking and in the com plaint process; dissatisfaction w ith the c o m p la in t process; b r u ta lity , harassm ent, abusive language and excessive fo rce by police o llic e rs ; lack ol response to citizen concerns; excessive patrols ol certain areas; excessive force when responding to crowd situations i.e., p arks; new c row d c o n tro l o r d i nances that restrict citizen's rights; lack o l e nforcem ent against p ro s titu tio n ; hick o f Blacks on the lo rc e ; and need lo r unproved training. I he to ru m s grew out o t p u b lic response to the "possum in c id e n t," which was seen as a serious racist act against the Black com m unity . I his act, peipetrateil bv police o fficers, lias escalated into a situation where possums have been th ro w n at the M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty C o u rth o u s e , the home o f an in te rra cia l couple, ami llie N A A( P o il ice. Although llie possum incident is considered to be a symbol o f police a ttitu d e to w a rd Ihe Black c o m m u n ity , tlie to ru m s have again brought to rth discussion o f many long-standing serious co m p la ints regarding police o pe ra tion s in the com m unity. I lie forum s, which have enabled face-to-face contact between police o ffic ia ls and com m unity members, have dem onstrated that there b a lack o f comm unication - that police adm inistrators aie not aware o f the deep concerns o f Black citizens - that co m m un ity expectations and police e xpe ctatio n s are not Ihe same. Bv p roviding an o pp o rtu n ity lo r police adm inistrators ami officers to express their own ideas and concer ns, has d em on strate d a lack o f knowledge and sensitivity ilia , fur liter points to the need lo r a better selection process m il comprehensive training. I he F orum S aturday w ill eon linue the o pp ortu nity lo r the police bureau p olicy makers, the D istrict A tto rn e y , and the c o m m u n ity to discuss the m a te ria l o b je c tiv e o f opening communication channels. Trouble brewing La Rica Coxeff enjoys a spring day at Pennisula Park (Photo: Richard Brown) Vancouver youth threatened By Nyewusi Askari W hile many residents o f Wash ington State celebrate the first an niversary o f the eruption of Mt. St. helens, the C ity o f Vancouver, Washington faces a possible erup tion o f another kind. Sheriff deputies are investigating a case involving a 10-year-old Black child who allegedly was threatened w ith death, by two w hite, A rm y National Guardsmen, last Sunday. According to the report, the young child was playing in his front yard Sunday, when the two men, dressed in Army fatigues, drove by and one o f them yelled an obscene racial slur at him. About 90 minutes tater, the car drove by again. This time, racial slurs were yelled again, only this time one of the men shouted, “ Y o u ’ re going to d ie ,” shaking his finger at the 10-year old. Because o f the murders o f Black youth in Atlanta, the child's father decided to notify authorities. The car pulled in to a driveway around the corner from the home o f the child. Deputies contacted a man at the house and were told that the men were on their way home from a National Guard meeting. The A rm y N ational Guard was contacted, and the names o f the two men were obtained. When contacted by the Observer, the Vancouver Police Department said it was not at liberty, at this time, to release any further in fo rm a tio n and that the case is still under investigation. Grassroot News, N .W . - “ We apathy, alienation and injustices? are in very deep trouble, my How can we be afflicte d with this brothers and sisters," the Congress- negative a ttitu d e when life is not woman from New York began her tolerable fo r so many o f our vivid presentation on comtemporary brothers and sisters? life for Blacks and poor Americans. Her campaigh slogan, “ U n Shirley A. Chisholm was the bought and unbossed,” was never keynote speaker for the Women of more evident as in her address. "W e Excellence Salute sponsored by the used to believe in a quotation that Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. “ Never said ‘ what is tomorrow that it can since the days o f reconstruction not come today.' My friends say did have Black people been in so much tom orrow come today or is today trouble because p rio r to 1981. yesterday? We are marching on a Whenever we fe ll threatened, we conservative quicksand that we were able to build alliances, but this d id n 't recognize was slowly begin tim e out there’ s no one there ning to engulf us. Does freedom because o f the changing mood o f mean to stand on street corners all this country,” she continued. across the nation or to become Shirley Chisholm was elected in lonely tokens in corporations and 1968, to the House o f Representa universities, or live in rat-infested tives. She remains the only woman houses? As the poor struggle in the House to have sought the through recessions, im patient do- presidency. "Anyone who docs not gooders in line with mindless budget advance, recedes. Are we as a ethnic- balancers, are ready to snatch away group or m in o rity or even as a the social programs. They’ re calling society, advancing toward a super o ut, times up. Sacrifice is o .k ., highway o f justice, or arc we when national abundance makes receding like the red light o f the last sacrifice meaningless. Now (hat the departing railroad car, from the new politics o f scarcity is upon us, commitments and achievements that the backs are turning all over this we’ve been able to make during the country, and no longer are people past 30 years? Is each o f us bright standing up to be counted. People eyed and ready to end the injustices, seem to be saying, ‘ the poor, the or have we become complacent and Blacks ar d Browns have had their submissive? Are we becoming more two or three decades.* ’ ’ atune to the prevailing attitudes o f (Please turn to Page 12 Col I) REPRESENTATIVE SHIRLEY CHISHOLM (Photo Richard Brown)
