For the children o f Atlanta and fo r
all children who are hungry, suffer
ar'd live in fear.
Refugees: A focus
By Nyewusi Askari
Believing that federal financial
aid to his fam ily would be ter
minated August 1st, 61-year-old
Laotian refugee, Shue Long Vue
hanged himself in the front yard of
his North Portland home Monday.
Hours later, after receiving angry
telegrams and telephone calls from
P ortland’ s Adult and Fam ily Ser
vice officials, and agency leaders,
the federal government announced
that Oregon had been allocated $1.5
m illion to keep the Indochinese
Refugee Group Assistance Program
alive through August.
The tragic death o f Vue; the un
certainty o f contunied funding o f
the Refugee Group Assistance Pro
gram; the economic and political
difficulties facing refugees, coupled
with the growing belief o f some
citizens that the refugees are
becoming an intolerable nusiance,
point to the need for a greater
political and cultural understanding
of the people we call refugees.
Refugees arc defined as those
persons who have fled from their
native country because of political,
economic or religious pressures. By
definition, the Pilgrims who landed
at Plymouth Rock, were refugees.
How they managed to leave does
not affect their status as refugees.
The presence o f S .E . Asian
refugees in the State o f Oregon,
came about because o f political
promises made to them by the
American government and military.
D uring U .S . involvem ent in S.E.
Asia, the American government
made commitments to thousands of
S.E.
Asians
who supported
American causes there, to protect
them if the communists took over.
The communists did lake over the
country, and, according to A stri
Suhrke, “ The early wave o f
refugees from Indochina -including
the 1975 evacuation o f 130,000
people - was followed by a relatively
small U.S. program to assist what in
most cases were persons who fled
because they had been associated
with previous regimes or the
American involvement during the
war. However, in m id-1978, the
refugee flow suddenly swelled as
Vietnam encouraged, or facilitated,
the departure o f tens o f thousands
of ethnic Chinese (Hoa). Following
C h in a ’ s invasion o f Vietnam in
early 1979, the exodus o f refugees
exploded as H anoi began putting
pressure on the ethnic Chinese in
northern Vietnam."
Suhrke continues: "A s the ethnic
Chinese descended upon the shores
of neighboring Asian countries, the
United States took the lead in
marshalling a massive international
assistance program. Some o f this
was also channeled via the U N H C R
to C hina, which received about
260,000 ethnic Chinese from V iet
nam. For some American officials
dealing with Indochinese refugees,
the assistance program appears to
be the last phase, if not the con
tinuation, o f the American war ef
fort.”
Many Oregon citizens simply view
the refugees as “ invaders"; a people
without a common work identity.
There are also growing sentiments
that S.E. Asian refugees are making
it
d iffic u lt
for
unemployed
Oregonians to find jobs because of
their willingness to accept jobs at
low wages. But according to D r.
Bernard H aldane, the refugees
possess a strong-work identity. " A
refugee possesses a work-identity in
his native country. He left that
/
(Please turn to Page 5 Col 1)
/
PORTLAND OBSERVER
July 30. 1961
Volume XI Number 41
2S< Per Copy
African businessman expelled
Caxton Muru Munne, a Kenyan
businessman, has been ordered to
leave the United States by August I,
1981, or face deportation.
Munne orig in ally came to the
U.S. in 1971 to attend school. After
completing Jackson High School in
1974, he returned to Kenya to
determine what career option would
best serve his country. He returned
that fall and enrolled in the Univer
sity o f Portland, where he studied
engineering and business ad
m inistration. A fte r his 1978
graduation, he again returned to
Kenya.
" I decided the best service I could
perform was to attempt to bring
business people in Africa and in the
United States together, to help build
the economies o f both countries,”
he explained. "1 think that the el-
fort o f the Immigration Service is to
stop the two from getting together."
Munne explained that he contrac
ted businesses in Kenya who were
willing to have him represent them
in the U.S. and Canada, and had the
option of operating from either the
United States or Canada. " I decided
to come back to Portland because I
had friends here and because I
wanted to repay the country for
providing me an opportunity to get
an education."
In January of 1980, Munne came
back to Oregon on a six-month visa.
He established a corporation -
Munne Trust Enterprise In te r
national - and over the next year did
$164,000 in exports to Africa. The
companies he represents include En
tertainment and Recreational Ser
vices, Ltd., Aladins’ Magic Lamp of
Kenya and Uzoagbato International
of Nigeria. U.S. companies involved
include A ta ri Video C o rp oratio n
Systems. Car Freshening C o r
poration and Dallas Products.
During the first months o f 1981,
sales increased rapidly and im por
tation o f products from Kenya
began.
Munne also had other interests -
African Market Consultants, to aid
American businesses interested in
the African market, and Firewood
Subscriptions Services, which he
projects would hire 300 persons by
1983.
Munne believes the threat o f
deportation stems from an incident
with the Portland Police Bureau
that resulted in his filin g a com
plaint.
Munne said he was in a
telephone booth at Portland
Boulevard and Greely when a young
white woman asked to use the
telephone. He allowed her to, then
when she left he made another call.
He then called a woman who had
left a message on his message
recorder. A fte r a few minutes the
woman came by and said “ You
have been on the phone too long.”
He went on talking; she went across
the street (near another telephone
booth). She came back across the
street, went into the Plaid Pantry,
and came by again saying, "Y ou ate
still on the phone.”
“ W ith in minutes she returned
with a can o f dog repellant which
she aimed at my fa c e ...In the
struggle that ensued, I, trying to get
the can o f repellent from her, and
she, trying to get a better shot at my
eyes, I saw the barrel o f a pistol
revolver trained at me by a male
Caucasian."
Munne states that he managed to
get the girl between him and the gun
and get away. He stopped at a house
nearby and called the police.
When a female officer arrived she
listened to his story and took the
dog repellant that he still had. She
told him the attackers had been ap
prehended and were on the way with
police officers. When the other
three police cars arrived - the scene
changed. M unne became the
agressor and they, the victims. He at
first was to be allowed to leave, but
when he continued to ask that the
man with the gun be apprehended,
he was arrested.
He was arrested for “ sexual
(Please turn to Page 2 Col 4)
(Photo: Richard J. Brown)
-----Smoke filled room s------
Roll another one
Fire on up!
Take a deep drag, baby
Fire on up!
Hit and pass it!
Grassroot News N .W . - Those are
the counter-culture phases of a 1974
recording o f Rasputin Stash. The
meaning of these hyped drug state
ment are derived from the social
ritual o f smoking m arijuana.
Whether you refer to this plant as
herb, smoke, dope or weed, the
question the young, habitual or even
the weekend smoker faces remains
the same: Is smoking dope hazar
dous to your health?
For many years conflicting medi
cal studies have canceled each other
out, but a current wave o f in fo r
mation is being circulated by the
medical and social professions that
reinforces the negative effects of the
drug along with establishing the
medical properties of "hemp.”
The recreational vice o f our
parent’ s generation was alcohol.
The vice for young adults in the 80s
is smoke. The accepted popularity
of "herbs” has caused a certain at
tractiveness that appeals to the teens
and pre-teens. Avel M ay fie ld ,
Director of the N .E. Youth Service
Center, has observed an increased
availability o f m arijunana to the
young. This accounts for an earlier
turn-on age and regular use during
the vital maturing stage, from child
to adult. "School personnel have
noticed the drug being very
prevalent. Adults use it and the act
is becoming glam orized. T h ere’ s
also an information gap of the ef
fects. However, the main problem is
the double-standard that’s being set.
You see, there’s no consequence for
drug use and no one is out there
saying not to use it because you are
physically and em otionally too
young.”
The contention o f experts in the
medical and social field is that
young people who start their
smoking at an early age fail to un
dergo adult personality maturation;
lack
perseverance and
self-
discipline; and are pre-occupied
with achieving only imm ediate,
pleasurable, self-gratification. The
textbook definition of these trait* is
maturational deficiency.
Jasper O rm and, a community
mental health specialist goes into
depth about the social aspects o f
smoking Mary Jane. "Drugs tend to
relax and sensitivity increases. The
in d ivid u al, young and old, is not
able to focus on items outside o f
themselves. This concentration can
cause an unnatural sensitivity,
creating hyper sensitivity. This can
effect your physical person because
your nervous system isn’t geared to
handle the increased pressure."
The economic concerns of main
taining a smoke habit grows ex
ceedingly high. This takes a large
chunk o f money outside o f the
community and family budget. A
three matchbox a month habit is a
$360 a year expenditure durin , a
time when a lo a f o f bread cost a
dollar.
A smoker told G ra ssro o t N ews
how they felt about their vice. "O h,
I feel a bunch o f d ifferent ways;
good, relaxed, tense, frustrated and
sometimes I feel broke. I do fear the
long term effects because it will
show up in my generation. I ’ m
afraid that people might not have
the same energy level."
The sensation brought about
through use is one described as
high, stoned, mellowed and spaced-
out. The physical and psychological
effects are an increased pulse iate,
reddening of the eyes, increased ap
petite and a distortion o f time and
space perceptions.
Dr. Jerry Fest, staff coordinator
at the O utside-In C om m unity
Health Clinic stated that the biggest
physical determinant linked to its
use are the effects on the lungs. " A
joint is about as harmful as a pack
o f cigarettes. To a certain degree,
the drug relaxes you, which may
cause an individual to become less
m otivated. Therefore, the use o f
m arijuana is a real individualized
decision." Another physical effect
is that pot stays in your system for
well over a week.
M arijuana is still an illegal sub
stance, although in the Portland
Metro-area, at any given moment,
you can purchase weed for as little
as a dollar a joint or as high as $75
an ounce.
W hether m arijuana is 5 or 500
dollars, the people who smoke it are
going to continue. It has become an
accepted social vice and the decision
to fire-up rests with the individual.
Teach your child about safety
By Nyewusi Askari
Now that summer vacation is in
full swing, and many Black children
are left at home while their parents
are working, The Black United
Front, The Urban League Northeast
Youth Service C enter, and the
C .R .I.B ., organization feel that
now is the time for parents to in
struct their children on personal
safety. Their efforts have resulted in
a pamphlet entitled, “ Personal
Safety Tips Parents Can Teach
Their Children.”
Noting that the arrest o f Atlanta
resident Wayne B. Williams, for the
death of Nathaniel Carter, has done
nothing to quell the fears of Atlanta
children, the writers o f the pam
phlet,
Ron H erndon,
M arie
Martin, and Avel Mayfield, believes
that what is happening to A tlanta’s
Black children, has the potential to-
happen in any Black com m unity,
including P o rtlan d, and that
preventative measures must be
taken now to prevent such tragedies.
“ Parents are the key," says Marie
M a rtin . “ It is time for parents to
begin instructing their children on
how to be and stay safe.”
The
phamphlet
gives
the
following instructions for parents to
teach their children:
• Never to talk to strangers, even
if they appear friendly.
• Never accept rides, candy or
gifts from people they don’t know.
• To stand near other children at
bus stops.
• To walk near the middle o f the
sidewalk to avoid passing closely to
shrubbery, passing vehicles, dark
doorways or places of concealment.
• To always stay at least an arms
distance away from vehicles.
• To remain alert o f people
follow ing them. Instruct them to
turn around and walk in the op
posite direction if being followed by
a car. Teach them to seek help from
nearby groups of people.
• To go to the nearest home
displaying BLOCK H O M E program
sign, if they need help and if the
neighborhood has the program.
• To never visit with a friend after
school unless they first receive your
permission. Instruct them to call
you from the friend ’ s home when
they arrive to let you know they
have arrived safely.
• To report all suspicious per
sons, activities, sounds, and vehicles
to you and to their school officials.
• To travel in groups or pairs. I f
you have small children teach them
to memorize full names, addresses
and telephone numbers. O r have
them wear a braclet or a necktag
with the data engraved upon it.
• To always carry a dime to make
emergency telephone calls. I f at
home alone, remind your children
to always keep doors locked, and to
never open the door for strangers.
Teach them how to dial "Operator"
when they need to make an
emergency telephone call to the
police, fire or to home. Tell your
children never to wait or play
around restrooms; never play alone
in alleys or in empty buildings;
always try to remember what a
stranger looked like and what he or
she was wearing, and to tell your
children to write down the license
number o f stranger’ s car who
bothers you.
In a special note to parents, the
pamphlet advises: ( I ) Parents
should always know where your
children are going, what time they
should arrive, and when they should
return; (2) Designate a safe place,
such as a neighbor’ s home or the
neighborhood youth service center,
for your children to go in an
emergency when you are not at
home; (3) I f you work, you should
be in constant contact with your
children throughout the day. Make
certin that they know your
telephone number at work in case an
emergency arises; (5) It is not good
to let children play outside when it is
dark, even if they are playing with
other youths.
Another area of concern, but one
not mentioned in the pam phlet,
has to do with teaching children
how to handle telephone calls from
strangers. According to Marie
Martin, many children have a habit
of giving information to strangers
that can haunt them later. For
examples (C aller) Is your mother
home? (Child) No. (Caller) Is your
father, brother, sister, or anyone
else home I could speak with?
(C hild) No, there is no one home
but me.
The above telephone conversation
illustrates how easy it for a child to
(Please turn to page It) col. 6)
I