Page 4 Portland Observer, March 18, 1982
EDITQRIAL/OPINION
Letters to the Editor
NAACP leader breaks promise to prisoners
To the editor:
Your vote is important!
Oregon and the nation face a crucial election
year. In Oregon the day is M ay 18th.
Members o f Congress, a G overnor, members
o f the state legislature, along w ith local candi
dates, all w ill be elected this year. D istrict 18—
the “ Black district” — w ill elect its first represen
tative.
In recent years the A m e ric a n people have
been fo re g o in g th e ir h a rd -w o n rig h t to vote.
M any say the choices are few, the candidates o f
poor q u a lity , the issues irre le v a n t. O thers are
too lazy to study the candidates and the issues
and then get to the polls to vote. O thers th in k
their votes d o n ’ t count. In O regon, and in A l
bina, the record is not much better.
Every vote does count. Last year a governor
o f New Jersey was elected by eleven votes. M any
races in O regon have been so close th a t a few
families could have made the difference.
Just as im portant as voting is correctly assess
ing the candidates. Take tim e to read their litera
ture; go to forum s and candidates’ fairs and ask
questions. D o n’ t vote fo r a handsome face o r a
fa m ilia r name. Vote fo r a record o f service to
the com m unity.
Any candidate who asks fo r your vote should
have a specific program to o ffe r— at least a few
answers— and a record o f e ffo rt to m ake posi
tive changes. W ords are not enough.
A nd I lo o ke d , and behold a
pale horse: and his name that
sat on him was D eath, and
H ell fo llo w e d w ith him . And
pow er was given u n to them
over the fo u rth part o f the
earth, to k ill w ith sword, and
w ith hunger, and w ith death,
and w ith the beasts o f the
earth.
—Revelations
I am a living witness that one o f
the Negro’ s most respected organi
zations has, at least here in Oregon,
divorced itself from the concerns o f
those at the bottom o f the ladder.
Those who weren’ t just laid o ff, but
are perennially underemployed or
rarely em ployed. Those who have
come to the conclusion that it is fair
to tu rn to p ro s titu tio n , drugs, and
thievery to survive. Those in the
streets and in the prisons. Unless it
is true that we are innately lazy and
criminal-minded, sooner or later we
are going to have to come to grips
w ith this p ro b le m . Do we as a
people steal 10 tim es m ore than
w hite fo lk ? A re Blacks in this
Northwest corner so terrible we de
serve to be caged at a higher rate
than anywhere in the U .S., and in
deed the world, with the possible ex
ception o f South Africa?
We still have a long way to go as a
people, but have we made it this far
w ith “ fat ca t” leadership and o r
ganizations that were too big and
busy to deal w ith the problem s o f
the people on the bottom ? I do n ’ t
th in k any o f us have gotten so big
that we can now a ffo rd to turn our
backs on the people whose hope is
the ancestral s p irit th a t has sus
tained us a s a people through all the
H ell and Death we have suffered.
No, you can’ t get that big, sir and
m adam . I f you cannot feel that
spirit still burning in you, then quit
using the good name o f our organi
zations and the good fa ith o f the
people. Those lives and organiza
tio n s d o n ’ t belong to you. I f the
spirit is dead in you, then move out
o f the way so that the ultim ate and
irre trie va b le investm ent our fo re
parents made— their lives— w ill go
towards realizing our potential as a
people.
People on the bottom are hungry
and gettin hungrier. O ur potential
strength— our strong, v irile young
men and nubile young women are
tu rn in g to thievery, p ro s titu tio n ,
and drugs, because we have become
selfish.
“ Sorry, but my schedule is com
pletely f u l l , ” you say. O ur young
men and women are being caged like
anim als by the hundreds in this
Northwest corner, yet the leadership
and their organizations say: “ We’ re
sorry, but our schedule w on’ t per
m it us to be concerned w ith your
problem.”
P roverbs says: A good man
leaveth an inheritance to his c h il
dren’ s children.
The Bible Revelations does not
paint a pretty picture o f the happen-
ings o f the last days. It talks about
H e ll and D eath. M a n y welcome
those things that are prophesied be
cause they have been ca tching so
much H e ll and seeing so much
Death, that they want to say to God
and His Angels, “ Just bring it on.”
“ We know we must suffer too, but
we know that in the end you have
prom ised to raise us w ith Y o u r
‘ Master G rip .’ As long as You take
care o f that rich man, that m ighty
man that has refused to listen to our
s u ffe rin g , b rin g it on. Just make
sure you get that fat cat.”
The Urban League’ s Freddye Pet-
te tt and the Black U n ite d F ro n t,
particularly brother Ron Herndon,
have offered their organizations’ aid
and their personal assistance on so
m any occasions th a t the 50 miles
and one h o u r separating us
obviously have no w eight whatso
ever when balanced against th e ir
commitment, love, and concern.
“ It was a privilege fo r me to be
w ith you prisoners today. A n d i f I
am ever in Oregon and receive an in
vitation to return, it w ill be my high
est p r io r it y . ” (B e n ja m in H ooks,
July 3, 1978, Oregon State Peniten
tiary).
D r. H ooks, none o f o u r great
leaders o f the past that we know o f
have become loved by our people
and great by fa ilin g to keep th e ir
prom ises to those at the very
bottom.
L arry Baker
Teacher supports Tubman decision
To the editor:
It makes me very uncom fortable
to disagree w ith such a large group
o f friends and respected representa
tives o f organizations in the Black
c o m m u n ity over the sitin g o f
Harriet Tubman Middle School, but
when I consider the youngsters with
whom I have spent m any years, I
feel that I would like to speak out on
their behalf. 1 believe that the Boise
site fo r Tubm an w ould be a better
choice than E lio t because it w ould
a ffo rd a better chance that Boise
students w o u ld attend a m iddle
school. I would like to see my young
friends have a truly complete educa
tional experience.
Black Capitalism: Profile in Poverty
Part II
“ From The Grassroots”
by Manning Marable
Over eighty per cent o f all Black-
owned businesses fa ll w ith in tw o
years a fte r th e ir in itia tio n . Those
fortunate or lucky enough to survive
become part o f what can be termed
the “ intermediate level o f Black en
trepreneurship.”
These Black businesses to ta l
roughly 38,990 firm s, 16.9 per cent
o f all Black enterprises. The com
mon traits they share are the follow
ing: 1) a ll retain paid personnel,
with an annual workforce between 1
to 19 employees; 2) average gross re
ceipts are between $30,000 to
$300,000; 3) almost all employers
work fu ll-tim e in their enterprises;
4) alm ost a ll firm s receive loans
from banks and savings and loan es
tablishm ents to continue business
expansion; and 5) a substantial m i
nority number o f these firms are in
volved in real estate, finance, manu
fa c tu rin g , and other tra d itio n a lly
a ll-w h ite sectors o f private enter
prise.
The corporate core o f Black Capi
talism is the 1060 Black businesses
with a workforce o f 20 or more em
ployees, led by B lack E nterprise
magazine’ s top 100 firm s. Number
one is M otown Industries o f H o lly
w ood, producers o f soul records,
film s and tapes, with 1979 gross re
ceipts o f $64.8 m illio n . Num bers
two through five are Johnson Pub
lishers ($61 m illio n ), Fedco Foods
superm arkets ($45 m illio n ), H .J .
Fussell Construction o f Atlanta ($41
m illion), and Johnson cosmetics o f
Chicago ($35.4 m illion). This select
group also includes Independence
Bank o f Chicago ($98.3 m illio n in
1979 assets); Seaway National Bank
o f Chicago ($80.9 m illion in assets);
In d u s tria l Bank o f W ashington,
D.C., ($59.9 m illion in assets); Free-
dan N a tio n a l Bank o f New Y o rk
City ($57.9 m illion in assets); United
N a tio n a l Bank o f W ashington,
D.C. ($56.2 m illion in assets); North
C a ro lin a M u tu a l L ife Insurance
C om pany ($5.1 b illio n insurance
policies in force); and Golden State
M u tu a l L ife o f Los Angeles ($2.7.
b illio n insurance policies in force).
Although these figures seem impres
sive, all o f these m ajor Black c o r
porations com bined could be p u r
chased. fo r instance, by M o b il O il
Corporation with its liquid assets!
W hite co rp o ra tio n s a llo w these
Black companies to exist f o r sym
bolic value alone. John H. Johnson
o f Johnson Publishers is also a
member o f the Boards o f Directors
of
T w entieth
C e n tu ry
Fox,
G reyhound C o rp o ra tio n . Z enith
R adio C o rp o ra tio n , and M a rin a
C ity Bank. H .G . Parks, Jr., Black
m illionaire, owner o f Parks' Saus
age Company o f Baltim ore, sits on
the boards o f F irst Pennsylvania
Banking and Trust C om pany and
W .R. Grace and Company. Former
Tuskegee Institute President Luther
H. Foster, the modern representa
tive o f W ashington’ s conservative
p h ilo so p h y, was elected to the
Boards o f Directors o f Sears, Roe
buck and Company and N orton Si
mon, Inc. The modern proponent o f
Black Capitalism, Black Enterprise
publisher E arl Graves, was re
warded with posts on the boards o f
International Telephone and Tele
graph C orporation and the Liggett
G roup. Black m illio n a ire and A t
lanta Chamber o f Commerce Presi
dent Jesse H ill Jr. serves on the
boards o f Delta Airlines and Sperry
and H u tch in so n C om pany. The
num ber o f executives who tru ly
dominate the Black corporate core
w ithin the A fro-A m erican political
economy amount to less than 200 in
d iv id u a ls . They have earned the
confidence o f the w hite corporate
hierarchy and the governm ent by
keeping alive the bogus illusion o f
Black Capitalism.
Black people w ill not have real
political equality in this country un
til and unless we also have economic
justice A dem ocratic reorganiza
tion o f America’ s economic system,
from top to bottom , is our only sol
ution.
Portland Observer
NM MR I b
For the past several years Boise
has been geared to serve the part o f
its student p o p u la tio n that has
shown need o f concentration in the
basic skills. According to Fall, 1981,
To the editor:
I ’m sure I can voice the sentiment
o f countless thousands, throughout
the entire N orthw est, in congratu
la ting you, and your s ta ff, on the
magnificent job you’ve done, on the
recent issues o f your paper; especial
ly d u rin g the m onth o f February
(Black History Month).
I cannot possibly fin d adequate
words, w ith in my lim ite d vocabu
lary, to express my personally, sin
cere thanks and gra titu d e , fo r the
tremendously successful e ffo rt you
have e xe m p lifie d , in the “ special
issues.”
Through the reading o f these la t
est issues, and through the outstand
ing "p ic to ria l la y-o u ts," one could
easily comprehend and visualize the
tremendously painstaking e ffo rt on
the part o f both you and your staff.
It seems that the entire paper has
been given a “ media type o f face
l i f t , ” and has taken on an aura o f
new proficiency, and a new special
interest and concern. You have been
most e x p lic it and in fo rm a tiv e , in
both a contemporary and historical
manner.
The special e d itio n p rin te d the
week before last, can easily be con
sidered an education w ith in itse lf.
»•
1M1 I 9*1
283 2486
MEMBER
A Lee Henderson. Publisher
A l McGilberrv, Managing Editor
4 e e
l AM
f/r , I ; A i rrjrt
I Z ’
a jm c
X ax »
# A A tt
A l Williams, Advertising Manager
less than i f it were at Boise, simply
because o f the tendency o f most to
utilize the closest facility.
A re the supporters o f the E lio t
site doing so because it was p ro m
ised or because it is a better site? I
respect, and to a ce rta in degree,
share, the d is illu s io n m e n t over a
broken promise, but i f it is not edu
ca tionally the better lo ca tio n , why
should we support it? The needs o f
students in the Black c o m m u n ity
ought to have p rio rity over our feel
ings, justified though they may be.
M y identification w ith Boise stu
dents makes me care not so much
about promises as about opportun
ity fo r some w onderful youngsters
to get the best education possible. 1
would like to see a first rate middle
school brought right into the heart
o f the community.
Beth Nance
Librarian, Boise school
Children need news of Black contributions
The P ortland O bserver IUSPS 859 ft « 0 l 1« published every
Thursday by E»ie Publishing Company. Inc . 2201 North Killing«
worth. Portland. Oregon 97217. Poet Office Bo« 3137, Portland
O regon 9/708 Second class postage |>aid et Portlend Oregon
Subscriptions »10 00 per yeer in the Tri County eree Poet
m aster Send address changes to the Portland Observer. P O
B o . 11 31 Portlend. Oregon 9/208
test scores, this represents approxi
mately 57 per cent o f the students in
grades 5, 6 and 7. To accommodate
this special need, the other 43 per
cent (who scored average or higher)
have not had the o p p o rtu n ity to
have Home Economics, Shop, A rt,
Music. The allotted tim e fo r Social
Studies has been m inim al; tim e fo r
Health and Science is even less ade
quate.
I f the building at 620 N. Fremont
should become the site fo r Tubman
there would be space enough for ex
tra programs in basic skills as well as
for the larger curriculum that a m id
dle school affords—which most stu
dents in Portland have available to
them. As I understand it, the E liot
site would not accommodate such a
large program.
Even i f Boise students were “ al
low ed" at E liot, (despite the tiltin g
o f the racial balance), the number
who would actually attend would be
fo r th ro u g h your presentations,
many persons, both young and old,
as well as Black and white, were able
to gain a greater in sig h t and per
spective o f many o f the c o n trib u
tions made by the Black Man.
As older Blacks, we grew up w ith
in a most lim ited and biased white
culture, possessing very little know
ledge o f our own. Yes, we heard a
great deal about George W ash
ington Carver, and his outstanding
and unique accomplishments w ith
the peanut. We heard o f the great
singers, M arion Anderson and Paul
Robeson and a few others.
But fo r the most part, our actual
knowledge o f the countless th o u
sands o f contributions and achieve
ments made by Blacks, throughout
the w o rld , and especially here in
A m erica, where we reside, were
very c a re fu lly and in te n tio n a lly
buried, deep, in the (supposedly
non-existent) “ dark past.” Never
once, being put in to the h isto ry
books o f this country.
In essence, we were led to believe
that we were a c tu a lly likened to
“ the man without a country.” What
a shame! In essence this situ a tio n
can also be likened to an adopted
child, always wondering, “ W ho are
my real parents? W hat do I know
about them? A nd what do I know
about my past?”
,
•
M ary Jean Berry
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I cannot help but w onder, as to
what a difference it just might have
made w ith in the lives o f the little
Black boy and g ir l “ in days o f
yo re ,” had we know n o f our peo
ple’ s greatness. What kind o f a d if
ference or im pact, could this same
in fo rm a tio n have made, where
white society is concerned. I ’ m cer
tain that this available knowledge,
could so easily have been used as
leverage, to have bridged the gap be
tween our tw o societies and c u l
tures.
But th a n k G od, due to the u n
ceasing and tireless e ffo rts , on the
part o f m any Black educators,
books, and the Black news media
(lik e the P o rtla n d O bserver) our
young people o f today have, at last,
been given the o p p o rtu n ity to be
come “ tuned in ” to our long, de
layed, mislaid and betrayed cultural
past.
Again, words simply elude me, to
express my personal and sincere
thanks to you, fo r a jo b most su
perbly done.
I sent copies o f your last issues to
friends in various parts o f the coun
try, with the express purpose and in
tention o f a ffo rd in g them the o p
p o rtu n ity o f reading a tru ly great
paper
1
Portland Observer
Box 3137
Portland, OR 97208