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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 10, 1981)
P»g« 2 Portland Ob— r v f , September 10. 1801 EDITORIAL/OPINION South Africa takes another beating by Fungai Kumbula What next? This week we are publishing excerpts from the arbitration hearing o f the “ possum incident.” Although this w ill take several weeks and con siderable space we believe the inform ation re vealed to be very important to all the people o f Portland. The transcript reveals not only the often dis cussed frustration police officers feel when they are either unable to prove a suspect committed a crime or when a convicted felon fails to receive jail time, but it also reveals the frustration these officers suffered because o f poor administration and internal conflicts. This frustration and anger was then turned against the community. The entire incident was racist— the officers projecting their own anger and frustration into the Black community. The transcript w ill also show the Police Bu reau’s inability to deal with the situation because o f its own inadequacies. A long history o f fail ure to properly discipline officers and adminis trators preceded this incident. The failure o f the Police Bureau to present testimony to support its case was the greatest failing. The Bureau relied solely on the opinions o f then-Chief Baker and Commissioner Jordan, while the m ajority o f the administrative sta ff supported the officers. The police union brought testim ony concluding that the officers could continue their police work and have community acceptance, even in the Black community. The Bureau, while maintaining the act was not racist, failed to call any witnesses for the community to testify about the response o f the Black commun ity. The transcript demonstrates that the incident was mishandled by the Bureau and that the City failed to present a case to the arbitrator to sup port the termination. The most important thing that now remains to be said is what the Bureau intends to do about the serious problems in its midst. What will be come o f administrators who fail to administer, o f supervisors who refuse to obey orders, o f of ficers who harass and abuse the public? What will the Bureau do to correct the explosive sirua- tion in its midst? That is what we are waiting to hear. Participate in selection The Portland School Board is in the process o f selecting a new Superintendent. The choice o f a superintendent is probably the most important decision that the Board w ill make this decade. As we have seen in recent years the mode o f op eration o f a Superintendent and his basic philos ophy about human beings can have a devastat ing effect on all o f the children o f the school dis trict. The selection process thus far has been open and fair-handed, directed by Dr. Leu o f Port land State University. An interior advisory com- mittee made up o f staff and a citizens’ advisory committee have been involved in setting selec tion criteria. Three o f the semi-finalists are Black; three are white. A ll are well-qualified and experienced. The six candidates w ill be interviewed in Port land in public meetings during the weeks o f Oc tober 12th and 19th. The public meetings are an opportunity for citizens to meet and size up the candidates. A l though the decision w ill be made by the School Board, strong public interest has its influence. I f there had been any doubt about South A fr ic a ’ s h ead -in-th e-san d logic, it was dispelled this past week. South A fric a once again invaded Angola on the lame pretext o f pur suing S W A P O guerillas. As we all recall, in January 1976, the excuse was to prevent the "Soviet-backed M P L A from coming to p o w er." It did not take South A frica too long then to discover that, while talk is cheap, backing that talk with action was another story altogether. In a few short weeks, the invading South A fric a n terrorists were routed and ignom iniously forced to w ithdraw leaving behind several o f their com rades as prisoners o f the victorious M P L A . This forever shattered the myth o f South A fric a ’s "in vin cib il ity .” It ’s only been five years since then and anyone with at least two ounces o f logic would have thought twice before m aking the same m istake again. But not South A frica; there logic and ra tio n a l th in k in g are crimes punishable by long prison term s— ask any Nelson M an d e la . This past week South A frica again invaded Angola and what the rea soning (is there ever anything ra tional about what the apartheid re gime does?) is, is still very unclear. C ould it be because South A fric a thought she could defeat the M P L A now and install Jonas Savimbi, the South African-backed puppet? Could it be that South Africa be lieved that since 1976 the mood in the West has turned definitely con servative and anti-co m m un ist? Could it be that the reception Botha and his cronies have gotten in Wash ington and the increasing tete-a- teles between the U .S .A . and the U .S .A . (U n ite d States o f Am erica and the Union o f South Africa) had been taken as a green light to go “ fight communism on behalf o f the " F r e e W o rld ? ” D id she hope to draw the Cubans into the fighting so she could more openly ask for help fro m her W estern allies? W hen Chester Crocker, assistant secretary o f state for Southern Africa went to Southern A fric a recently, he met with South African "o fficials ” but not the Black representatives either within South A frica itself or in N a mibia. Could his secret negotiations have had some bearing on this cur rent invasion which comes so soon after Crocker's trip? Whatever South A frica may have hoped to gain from this misadven ture, it has turned out to be another m ajo r m iscalculation because the Africans have fought back— giving as good as they go. As o f last F ri day, the Angolans had shot down at least tw o South A fric a n planes, killed a reported fifteen South A fri cans, destroyed three tanks and halted the South A fric a n push. It was explicitly pointed out that it was the Angolans who were doing the fig h tin g . The Cubans have not taken part in any o f the skirmishes as verified by Western journalists reporting both from P retoria and Luanda (the Angolan capital). On the diplom atic fro n t, South A frica has come ou, with the short end o f the stick also. Not one country has come out in support o f South A fric a ’s invasion. The U .S ., Britain, and France, her traditional supporters, have all condemned the invasion and called for South A f rica's immediate withdraw al. A d d ing their voices to this condemna tion and calling for withdrawal were D enm ark, Ita ly , Sweden, Canada, Portugal, China, the Soviet Union, S w itzerland, the O A U , the U .N ., the Front-line States, India, Czecho slovakia, North Korea, Cuba and a whole host o f other countries both in L a tin A m erica , the C arib bean and A sia. The fact that not even Reagan could excuse this act o f ag gression on the part o f South Africa was a bitter blow to the apartheid regime and has indicated another step back in her attempts to become “ acceptable." Clearly the big winners in this war are Angola, which has had the sup port o f the whole international com m unity (m o ral only though it has been) behind h er, and S W A P O which can now clearly demonstrate its legitim acy as contrasted with South A frica ’s criminal intent. The war itself also is another indication o f the vulnerability o f Free A frica and more than anything else demon strates what we have contended all along— that A frica is not free until the whole continent comes under m ajority rule. As long as there is a South A fric a . Free A fr ic a ’s inde pendence is only paper indepen dence. Now that South A fric a has vio lated A n g o la’s te rrito ria l integrity so flagrantly, maybe Angloa should initiate her own " h o t pu rsu it" and chase the South Africans all the way into Angola; maybe all the way to Windhoek (the capital) just to be on the safe side. Rem em ber Nyerere and Amin? Amin invaded Tanzania and. in chasing Amin out, Nyerere’s Tanzanian soldiers chased him all the way back to Uganda and, u lti m ately, to Saudi A ra b ia . A ngola should do (he same just to be sure there will be no repetition o f the vio la tio n o f her te rrito ry . A lo n g the same vein, all S o u 'h ern A fric a should be prepared for just such an eventuality. These " h o t pursuits’* should operate both ways. W hen South Africa is liberated, the threat to Free A fr ic a ’ s independence would be removed forever. This South A frican cowardly in vasion o f Angola may the bc.t thing to happen to Free Africa since inde pendence. And the lim e to act would be now when the diplomatic ball is still in our court. An Open Letter Portland Observer The Portland Observer (USPS 968 680) « published every Thurs dey by Ex.« Publishing Company Inc., 2201 North KiHingsworth Oregon 97217, Poet Office Box 3137, Portland Oregon 97208 Second class postage paid at Portland. Oregon Subscriptions »10 00 per year in Tn-Coonty area Postm aster Send address change» to the Portland Observer. P .0 Box 3137, Portland, Oregon 97208 The Portland Observer was founded in October of 1970 by Alfred Lee Henderson Bruce Broussard Editor/Publisher WÍMUR ~ ■ ■ O r« 9 ° n 'i£ > l New spaper Publishers 4 1 Association = B MEMBER NÉW"AL PER The Portland Observer it a champion of |ustice. equality and liberation; an alert guard against social evil»; a thorough analyst and critic of discriminatory practices and policies; a sentinel to w a rn of impending and existing racist trends and practices, and a defender against persecution and oppression The real problems of the minority population will be viewed and presented from the perspective of their causality unrestrained ano chron ically entrenched racism. National and international arrangements that prolong and increase the oppression of Third World peoples shall be considered in the context of their ex ploitation and manipulation by the colonial nations, including the United States, and their relationship to this nation’s historical treatment of its Black population 283-2486 SUBSCRIBE TODAY! ONLY $10 PER YEAR Name- Address- -State- -Zip- 1st Piece Best Ad Result ONPA 1973 5th Place Beet Editorisi ONPA 1973 Honorable Mention Herrick Editorial Award NNA 1973 2nd Place Beet Editorial 3rd Place Community Leadership ONPA 1975 3rd Piece Community Leadership O N P A 1978 3rd P* te In depth c e-age ONPA 1979 •0 0 *1 National Advertising Representative Am algam ated Publishers. Inc N e w York Aaaocfaffon - Founded IM S City- let Piece Community Service ONPA 1973 Portland Observer Box 3137 Portland, OR 97208 A ?' * 1 IV , m t «*«, «x. To Portlanders. I am Joe Harris, Moving on, it’s OK to throw pos that he feels are informative. Well I a tw o-tim e candidate for m ayor in sums, but I think that real people personally am still waiting on that. the city o f Portland. M y p latform One addressed driving habits o f o f who see dead animals will dispose o f was police b ru ta lity and harass ficers. W ell, that's fine tool I can re them properly. A fter all. rodent or ment, and that still i$ a concern. I late to that, but I can also relate to pet, why k ill it, let alone toss it know some laughed and some didn't. the Oregon Drivers M an u al which somewhere public? Yes, I am dissat I know also that I d id n ’ t think it says that an emergency vehicle can isfied, like many others, and noth was funny when I was being brutal only exceed the speed designated by ing will change that. I know it takes ized and now, since the recent inves 10 mpb. (In addition many Blacks a lot to live here and to live together tigations o f the P o rtla n d Police have been driving for a period o f but I didn't know that it took all this D e p t., neither do you— you know years much longer than the rookies and I refuse to accept it. So I want it who you are. that give the majority o f tickets.) to be known that it will not be for This is being written in response Again I say that many have lost gotten, what it will be is kept alive in to the articles that the new chief o f faith in the service o ffe red by the our children and elders what a fool police, Ron Stills, has been putting Police D ept. (especially after false the white eyes has made o f himself in the P o rtlan d Observer. This col again. (N ow let me talk back!) arrest, drug planting, possum toss umn also includes in fo rm atio n as ing, a cap tain stealing and L ord The open letters from the chief well as the general feeling o f the knows what else, lik e u n ju stifie d don’t sound like the true gut feeling damage that has been done to Black o f the chief. A fter 28 years o f po- killings or murders). But all in all. P o rtla n d . Based on facts told by licework something is missing. I ’ m let’s face it, many people don't like Black businessmen and women and led to believe that the public in fo r guns, let alone being accused, tried, the community we have been highly mation officer writes them and the and convicted or suspected especial disrespected. chief reviews them and signs them. ly when innocent. Guns put fear in Since this country is the land o f Now I can speak on this because I ’m the hearts o f many. This type o f im the free and home o f the brave, I a professional judge o f character, age we don’ t need, especially with wish to exercise my right to freedom fo r exam ple, when 1 and Bruce shotguns. o f speech, whether lo u d or soft. I Baker (fo rm e r chief) cou ld n 't see don’t have to be brave. So in summing up, Ron, I want to eye to eye, I could tell that there was So, addressing the P ortland Po say that I ’ m not one to talk about a lot o f fool in him and sure enough lice Dept. and the new chief and the nobody, but the mayor also has an what did he turn out to look like but articles that he feels are an avenue to awful lot o f fool in him and if you a — . Let me add I ’ m not one to better com m unicating with Blacks d o n ’t help solve the problem , you talk about nobody. But keep in and other residents in Portland, es become part o f the problem. mind this wasn’t the few Black o ffi pecially in the Northeast (A lbina), it So please try to find out from o f cers on the force, but in all in c i sounds and reads to be very p ro ficers W ard and G alloway who the dents, some wild whites. gram m ed. The feeling is also that Black and w hite lawless tro u b le Ron Stills talks about communi the F .B .I. investigations w ill give makers are, for people want to cation, but there continues to be a the public, mainly Blacks, the facts know th a t. A t the same tim e it problem with calls coming into the they want to know. People have lost would be helpful to know why Black Bureau. The short waits turn out to faith in the P .P .D . and are begin women and in some recent cases, be long ones, the operator is defin ning to get leery o f the entire crimin children, are being harassed and de itely not a police person. al justice system more than ever be tained right here at home, instead of fore. Still is definitely not telling Port the w hite woman who has come I would like to give special (hanks landers. m ainly Blacks, what they from Lord knows where. W hy there to the P o rtlan d Observer for being don’t already know. (H e ain’t talk arc so many unsolved murders per the liaison between the two forces. in’ ’bout nothin’ .) Now if he’d stop taining to Blacks in Portland. Why T he c h ie f claim s that he wants talking all that foreign language and vehicles parked on property in N E better communication and good re o ff the wall smack, then maybe we A lb in a receive tickets, when in SE lations and has begun this w ith can relate to those things that are and SW they'll be all on sidewalks those who are older. W ell. I know important for us to deal with as we and nothing happens. Also why the i t ’ s not w ith me nor is it w ith my approach the future (which is every police o fficer exchanged uniform s mama or daddy. W hat is old? O r day). I ask you, chief— loudly— do with the radio cab driver, aiding and who is old? As if the young people you understand that?!! Especially causing the death o f R ickie John don’t know how to communicate or those issues that involve our child son, a 17-year-old Black. It really aren’ t faced with problems. Issues ren. (A ttem pt to encourage people wouldn I hurt to attempt to find out come up o f people being deprived o f to come down to your Com m unity whose bullet killed M r. Leroy Clark their rights, excessive force that will Relations Division and get necessary in the shoot-out at Vans O lym pic always be used. I ’m talking about a in fo rm a tio n straight fro m the Room in 1976. police officer o f 21 talking bad to a horse’ s mouth and in writing if ne I hesc are the types o f things that cessary.) grown man o f 42, let alone 50. Con we the people who pay your salaries frontations do exist such as an o ffi So start ta lk in g fact and not want to know and try to un d er cer saying, " L e t me see your smack. Positive results are neces stand, especially where the future o f drivers’ license!!” in a tone that is sary, not promises, for people aren’t our loved ones is concerned, not les hard to relate to. It is often said that going to have the Police Dept. belit sons in foreign languages that are if you fail the attitude lest then you tling them any more. nowhere near the realm o i under have bought yourself a sure ticket. A nother open letter stated that standing. (This is what Bruce Baker That is true. the chief will explain laws and issues (Please turn to page 4 column J)