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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 17, 1981)
Portland Observer. September 17.1981 Page 7 Save money on your insurance. A p p ro p ria te T e c h n o lo g y V o lu n te e r T ra in in g W o rk s h o p . The Eliot Energy House will host a free workshop which will provide an introduction to appropriate technology (solar energy, weatherization, urban gardening), with a view toward encouraging participation in the Energy House Project. Saturday, Oct. 3, 198I, 10 am-3 pm. Lunch provided. Pre-registration nec essary. C all 284-7868. The Eliot Energy House is located at 3116 N W il liams. Auto • Life a Fire Commercial eTruck M onthly Payments Rita H. Jenkins S .i« t R eprm antM iv« 3714 N. W illiam s Portland Oragon 97227 16031 249 29SS faimers Mew World Lite Insuline* Co Mercer Island WA They eyes tell it all: Rletta, Cherry. Armondo and Kendra Payton, while visiting Artqueke, appear to — be convinced th at the rubber ball In the hand of the ventriloquist Is doing the talking. (Photo by Richard J. Brown) Cell Talk M ore than the mere supplying o f mortgage money, Lincoln also provides the knowledge, the organization, and the courtesy which speeds each transaction from application to completion o f financial arrangements. Subscribe Today 4 M ) U ) A \ A S S < )< 1 4 1 1 0 % Sixteen branch offices for your convenience by Asmar A bdul Seifullah aka Joe West » 40404 Recently the Watcher returned to (he scene. He was so subtle in his ap proach that his presence went unob served by most. Nevertheless the Watcher began his vigil, his eyes fo cusing on the various happenings on the prison yard. H is in v is ib ility greatly im proved the post he had taken up to observe the brothers en gaged in a game o f dominoes. Their laughter was fu ll— so catchingly in fectious that even the W a tc h e r’ s eyes gleamed in the m errim ent o f the m om ent. The dominoes were shuffled with the dexterity o f a Las Vegas dealer, as one p a rtic u la rly dark-skinned brother watched in tently. ’ ’ Get some and leave some but get enough to last y o u ,” was chanted by a big red brother, as the dominoes quickly disappeared into the hands o f the players. Thus began another day on the prison recreation yard and the Watcher was contented in his vigil. Dominoes is the game o f Blacks on the Big Yard. They play it seri ously and it seems to provide them w ith some sort o f release as they playfully shuck and jive (heir way through hand after hand. But many a friendship has ended at the ta b le - heads have been busted and lives have been threatened during a ses sion at the domino table. As the game proceeded the W atcher became aware o f another watching the players. The other watcher was a prison guard who seemed to be mesmerized by the banter and jesting o f the p a rtic i pants. He was literally transfixed— caught up in the play and a smile around the corners o f his m outh. Soon he became aware o f the W atcher and (heir eyes met for a brief moment in recognition. It was apparent to the Watcher that the o f ficer did not fully understand what was happening between them or at the domino table. He observed the W atcher as being just another brother on the sidelines o f the game and he saw the game in terms o f pri son recreation or so it seemed to the W atcher. But through the eyes o f the W atcher the game was an age- old ritual o f "laughing to keep from crying.” W ith every turn o f em otion the officer's face changed. At one point he was on the verge o f interrupting the game as two brothers fiercely ar gued over a particular play. Suddenly the Watcher understood (hat the officer had probably never witnessed Blacks in this particular ritu a l. T h at he had never been as close to Black people as he was at that very moment. They were laugh ing and jiv in g and this reinforced something inside o f him — his sense o f security oozed from him. He ac tu a lly believed that these people were happy and his role as overseer was strengthened, as he stood and watched their em otions color the situation. He couldn’t see their frus tration. . .their anger and pain was hidden from his view. To him they were just a group o f Blacks enjoying a game o f dominoes. It can 't be disputed that they weren’ t enjoying themselves. But the point is that it was a false song they sung, it had no melody and the beat wasn’t constant or fluid. They were just filling time, "laughing to keep from crying.” I t ’ s d ifficult to say whether any body present clearly understood their actions or the implications in volved. The brothers gave no thought to being viewed as happily contented inmates because they were practicing the art o f survival. Yes, their survival depended on th e ir a b ility to laugh, to jiv e , to cool-walk through a maze o f prison days and nights. I f they didn’t they would have to confront the reality o f their confinement. Many o f us, both outside and in side these walls spend our time sur viving through our laughter. We d o n 't want to see the roaches and rats that in h ab it our homes. W e don't want to see the bars and walls that block out the sun. W c d o n 't want to see our overseers and the way they smile when we smile. Our lives are so harsh that the least bit o f laughter that escapes from our m ouths is able to soothe us. O u r laughter drugs us, it debilitates us to the point where we have become afraid to face our circumstances. O n the streets when things get tough we go to the c lu b — behind these walls when things get tough we go to the d om ino table. There is nothing wrong with recreation but it shouldn't be used as a source o f es caping our responsibilities. It must not drug us or m ake us d ru n k, it should renew us, strengthen us for the struggle to come. The society we live in has had us laughing when we should have been screaming our in dignation. W e’ve been laughing and our laughter doesn’t even belong to us— it belongs to the people who laugh when we laugh. The good- times are upon us, w e’ ve become passive and domesticated when we should have become as aggressive as the people who oppress us. The only laughter that should exist in Black people's lives is the laughter o f plotting. We must plot and scheme like old Nat Turner, we must not laugh our way into another 300 years o f servitude. Remember that somebody is watching you and recording your laughter with cynical affirmation. 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