Portland Observer, October 29,1961 Page 5
The m urder o f Black Children
by Ron H erndon
O
Portland Public Schools m ay feel
the Black United Front is blaming it
fo r oil the problems resulting from
centuries o f racism. W e do not. But
we do see p u b lic e d u c a tio n being
one institution capable o f providing
Black children with skills that would
at least give them a ch ance to
achieve some victories in their life
long battle against all form s o f ra
cism.
P o rtla n d schools ra il th is task
miserably. Instead o f being a vehicle
o f hope they jo in every other institu
tion that stifles, maims and destroys
Black children. A Black E nterp rise
September editorial describes this as
“ A C ase o f M u rd e r By N e g le c t.”
‘ ‘ M u rd e r is not too strong a w ord.
N o , unless you believe th ere is no
co nn ectio n between the fa ilu re o f
o u r schools and th e fa ilu re o f so
m any o f our young people to enter
the economic m ainstream. T he fact
that violence (m u rd e r and suicide)
is the m a jo r cause o f death among
Black youth has much to do with the
fate to which they are consigned as
victim s o f racial and econom ic in
justice. O u r unavoidable premise is
tha, decent schools are the exception
fo r Black children. For every Black
child fortunate enough to obtain ac
cess to a q u a lity education, dozens
o f o th e r are co nd em n ed to atte n d
e d u c a tio n a l in s titu tio n s th a t are
h o r rify in g to o b s e r v e ., . These
words were not w ritten in an a n a r
chist manual but in a sober, m oder
ate, responsible business publication
read p rim a rily by m id d le - and u p
per-income Black people.
T h e latest achievement scores re
veal ag ain th a t P o r tla n d P u b lic
Schools c o n tin u e to p e rp e tu a te
“ M u rd e r By N e g le c t.” Schools in
th e B lack c o m m u n ity once ag ain
have scored low est on th e test:
nothing changes except the faces o f
the young victims. T he latest statis
tics on suspensions and expulsions
again show Black children receiving
these fo rm s o f p u n is h m e n t in fa r
higher percentages than w hite c h il
d re n . Last year J e ffe rs o n H ig h
School expelled nine students, eight
o f (h em B la c k ; it suspended one
hundred and one students, seventy-
fo u r o f whom were Black; it began
this school year expelling eight stu
dents— one white, one Chicano, five
Black students. This school is barely
50 per cent B lack and its statistics
were not the worst in the d is t r i c t -
check out O ra n t and W a s h in g to n -
M onroe.
W h ite apologists and misled N e
groes are quick to say Black children
do p o o rly in school because th ey
com e fro m " l o w s o c io -e c o n o m ic
fam ilies and c o m m u n itie s .” Sweet
tric k , blam e the victim fo r being a
v ic tim . T h is is a bunch o f d o -d o .
Education has always been prized in
the B lack c o m m u n ity ; d u rin g
slavery we tried to learn reading and
writing even with the painful know
ledge that discovery by white people
w ould cause us to receive the most
p a in fu l form s o f to rtu re and m u r
der. O u r shackled ancestors were so
hungry fo r education that all slave
holding states passed laws that made
it illegal to teach Black people read
ing an d w r itin g . A f t e r s lavery we
rushed to schools th at were estab
lished during reconstruction and did
w ell. This is u tterly am azing— peo
ple who were brutalized in the worst
ways to drive ou, the desire for edu
cation, held tight to this notion and
when given a chance literally ran to
schools. W h a t "s o c io -e c o n o m ic ”
b a c k g ro u n d is lo w e r th a n c h a tte l
slavery?
B lack c h ild re n to d a y w ho c a n ’ t
read and w rite com e fro m hom es
where their grandparents read, write
and do m ath better than they. T h e
grandparents fo r the most p art are
products o f the so-called in fe r io r,
all-B la c k schools in the South. W e
learned at those schools because we
had B lack s ta f f th a t b e lie v e d we
co uld le a rn , in sisted we le a rn an d
taught us what it meant to be Black
in a white racist society. Black peo
p le never have accep ted th e
proposition th at being poor equals
being d u m b ; this th e o ry is racism
with a little polish on it.
B lack p aren ts and c o m m u n ity
m e m b e rs, i f th is h o r ro r w ill be
changed we have to do it. W e must
becom e m o re co n c e rn e d an d in
volved w ith o u r c h ild re n ’ s ed uca
tio n . W e send our children to these
schools k n o w in g h o w p o o r th e
schools are and we do very little to
change the schools. I f we ta k e o ur
clothes to the cleaners and the clean
ers messes them up we w ill raise hell
and m ake sure that doesn't happen
a g a in . D o n ’ t we ow e at least th a t
much concern to our children?
Q. There has been a lot in the
news recently about delegates to the
White House Conference on Aging
beirfg polled about their political
T h e y go, a q u ick reply fro m the
c lu b ’ s captain. It said, " I regret to
in fo rm you that in view o f p re v a il
ing circumstances beyond our con
trol, the committee and I are at pre
sent unable to contem plate opening
m em bersh ip o f this c lu b to all
races.”
That rebuke came at a most inop
portune tim e for the adm inistrators
o f S o u th A fric a n sports, w ho had
been announcing to the w o rld that
ra c ia l d is c rim in a tio n in sport in
South A fric a had disappeared.
Y o u 'll recall this was the message
o f the Springboks rugby team which
recently toured several parts o f the
w orld Including parts o f the U nited
States.
Even in S outh A fr ic a th ere is
room for controversy and the d iffe r
ence between w hat was being said
and w h a t was a c tu a lly h a p p en in g
caused governm ent critics to state
that the racially m ixed sport which
does exist is sim ply w in do w dress
ing. Some sim ilar clubs agreed with
views. Do you think this will have a
negative impact on the conference?
A . I sincerely hope n o,. I think it ’s
nothing short o f a tragedy that this
Public Notice
HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT/(HCD)
NEIGHBORHOOD NEED WORKSHOPS
|The Bureau of Community Development will host a series of workshops
rhich will be held in low and moderate income (H C D I neighborhoods to
Idiscuss neighborhood needs and priorities, and the potential use of federal
ICommunity Development Block Gran, funds to meet some of those needs.
I City Bureau representatives will be at these workshops to discuss your im
Iprovem en, needs in more detail. You will have an opportunity to express
I your ideas and concerns. If you live in a neighborhood listed below, you are
|encouraged to attend your HCD neighborhood workshop.
NORTHEAST:
(King, Vernon, Sabin, Boise, Eliot, Humboldt,
Concordia, Tuesday, November 3, King Facility,
4815 NE 7th Avenue, 7:30 p.m.
NORTH:
(NPCC, St. Johns, Portsmouth, Kenton) Thursday,
November 5, Kenton Firehouse, 8105 N. Brandon,
7:30p.m .
SOUTHEAST:
(Buckman, Kerns, Brooklyn, Richmond, Sunnyside,
Hosford Abernathy, Sellwood Moreland, Creston
Kenilworth, Foster Powell, Lents, Tuesday,
November 17, St. Ignatius Church Cafeteria, 3400
SE43rd, 7:30p.m .
ZEST:
(Downtown, Burnside, Northwest, Goose Hollow,
Lair Hill, Thursday, November 19, First
Congregational Church, 1126 S W Park Avenue.
7:30p.m .
| For more information call Connie Lively-Trudeau at 248 5353.
Charles E. Olson
HCD Program Manager
the Royal Cape club saying if Blacks
were allowed as members, the clubs
would be breaking the law.
H o w e v e r, the c h a irm a n
of
a n o th e r g o lf c lu b in C a p e T o w n ,
R aym ond
A c k e rm a n ,
charged
R oyal C ape was h id in g behind the
law to keep the c lu b a ll w h ite. H is
club has had Blacks as full members
fo r th ree years and he says there
never has been any problem with the
law.
Then D r. G errit V i,je o n , minister
o f national education who is also re
sponsible fo r sporting m atters said
there was no reason for clubs not to
accept Black members. H e indicated
th a , the clubs should regard th e m
selves as exempt from the race laws
that prevent race m ix in g . W h a t's
m o re, he prom ised th a , these laws
would be changed anyway.
South A fric a also has a policy o f
sep aration o f the races in higher
e d ucatio n . T here are separate c o l
leges fo r Blacks, W h ite s , In d ia n s
and C oloreds. But university o f f i
tra d itio n a lly b ip a rtis a n e ffo rt has
become a political football.
The W h ite House Conference on
A g in g o n ly com es a ro u n d once
every 10 years. I t ’s intended to serve
as a fo ru m in w h ic h p a rtic ip a n ts
from all over the country can come
up w ith cost-effective and in n o v a t
ive solutions to the problems o f the
aged. It has always been conducted
in the best spirit o f bipartisanship—
and m u tu a l concern fo r the p ro b
lems and needs o f the aged.
W ith programs fo r the aged still
reeling fro m the severe blows dealt
them during the budget cutting pro
cess, the need for this kind o f a non
p o litic a l b ra in s to rm in g session is
greater than ever before. I think it's
critical that we do all in our power
to put this shameful a ffa ir behind us
and get on with the business o f put
tin g to g e th e r a b ip a rtis a n fo ru m
th at w ill com e up w ith in n o v a tiv e
solutions that w ill stand us in good
stead for the next decade.
Q. This week you introduced a
bill which you said would reduce
costs and cut paperwork fo r cities
and other recipients o f federal
grants. How does this bill work?
A. In essence wha, it does is limit
the number o f audits state and local
governments and other federal grant
re c ip ie n ts are su b je c te d to each
year. It also streamlines the process
for those audits.
C u rre n tly , local entities arc sub
jected to audits annually from each
agency from which they gel federal
assistance. For example, the C ity o f
Portland expects to undergo 25 sep
ara te au dits d u rin g the upcom ing
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a n tiq u e s c lo th e s
f u r n it u r e a n d o f f ic e s u p p lie s
th a n e v e r b e fo re
C o lis e u m E x h ib it H a lls
u» r 2 2 4 - 8 * 01
I
P B °
S H
° P e u 'W
P e ' ' nc^ & " c ? ' i t o > ' ' 1» C u r t
Coupon Special - - - - - - - - -
DICK BOGLE
Some strange inconsistencies are
coming to light from the country o f
South A fric a . T h e re ’ s even a fa in ,
g lim m er o f h o p e . . . very f a i n ,. . . in
the areas o f sports and ed ucatio n .
R a c ia lly m ixed sporting events are
gradually creeping onto some o f the
playing Fields.
U n til only recently, mixed play in
south A fric a usually m eant an a ll-
B lack team p la y in g against an all
w h ite te a m , bu, there are a few
teams which include whites. Blacks
and C o lo re d s (p e o p le o f m ixed
race).
T h is m ix in g is going on despite
the o ffic ia l governm ent line against
mixing.
Som e g o lf clubs allo w Blacks to
p lay re g u la rly as visito rs b u , deny
them full membership.
One group o f Colored golfers has
been playing regularly at the exclu
sive Royal Cape G o lf C lub in C ape
town for a long tim e. They challen
ged government policy, demanding
full membership.
y
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*5°° o ff
Skin Salon Service
cials have in c re a s in g ly urged less
g o v e rn m e n t-fo rc e d segregation at
the college level.
The numbers o f Blacks attending
non-B lack universities doubled be
tween 1977 and 1980. But the prac
tice rem ains subject to governm ent
discretion. The o ffic ia l criteria fo r
allowing a Black into a white univer
sity is the in ab ility o f the student to
find classes necessary fo r a particu
la r fie ld o f v u d y at th e u n iv e rs ity
ca te rin g to his o r her ow n ra c ia l
group.
T h e D e p a rtm e n t o f E d u c a tio n
and T ra in in g is opening a new u ni
versity for Black urban youth called
Vista.
C ritic s o f V is ta say B lacks need
g re a tly expanded e d u c a tio n a l o p
portunities, bu, they say those needs
could be e ffe c tiv e ly m e, at a much
lower cos, by existing institutions i f
racial barriers were removed.
So, who knows, maybe budgetary
considerations m ay lead to college
integration. Strange country, South
A frica.
*2°° o ff
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*5“ o ff p„m !
Pacific Citizen
Power o f the Week
fiscal year.
T h e im pact in term s o f cos, and
s ta ff tim e is astonishing. Since last
January, Portland has expended 361
m an d ays, o r a b o u t 2 ,8 8 8 h o u rs ,
working on audits for various feder
al grants. The city expects to spend
some S I2 0 ,0 0 0 this year on federal
audits.
I think this is an idea whose tim e
has come; in fact, I'm d u m b fo u n d
ed that no one has pushed it sooner.
At a time when we're having a hard
tim e m a k in g ends m e e t, we ju s ,
can’ , to lerate regulations which re
sult in such blatant waste.
Q. You also announced the re
sults o f a three- vear study in Oregon
which you said shows it is possible
to improve health care delivery fo r
the elderly and still save money. Can
you explain?
A. This study, conducted by Blue
Cross o f O re g o n , lo o k e d in to the
im p lic a tio n s o f re m o v in g the c u r
rent requirement that Medicare ben
e fic ia rie s spend th ree days in the
h o s p ita l b e fo re becom ing e lig ib le
for skilled nursing facility benefits.
I introduced a bill earlier this year
to elim in a te that req u irem ent, and
I'm delighted to announce th a, the
study’s results supported that move.
T h e stu d y show ed a savings o f
$182,000.
But beyond that, removing the re
q uirem en t may lite ra lly save lives.
It is a well-known fact that unneces
sary m oves m ay lead to tra n s fe r
traum a and death am ong w eak, el
derly patients. W ith the elim ination
o f this requirem ent, at least some o f
these unnecessary moves m ay be
elim inated.
¿
Mrs. Ann W oods is manager of the housekeeping
departm ent at the Newberg C om m unity Hospital in
Newberg, heading a staff of ten.
M rs. W oods is a fo rm e r pre-school teacher and
served as com munity coordinator for Santa Rosa City
Schools, where she was liaison between parents and
the school system.
Her hobbies include sewing and working w ith pre
school education, as well as church work. She attends
Marnatha Church.
Mrs. Woods is the mother of six children.
A native of Milan, Tennessee, she moved to the West
19 years ago. She also is a licensed beautician.
The Observer w elcom es Mrs. W oods to the
community.
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