Page 2 Portland Observer, June 15,1983
Police report w ar on Johns'
Grassroots Nows, N . IK — Sur
rounded by a blitz o f publicity,
Portland Police Bureau Public In
formation officer Dave Simpeon
announced the results o f the Bureau
campaign against prostitution. “ O n
Juneteenth
" . . .Th at on the 1st day o f Janu
ary, A .D . I K ) , all persons held as
slaves within any State or designated
part o f a S U U , the people whereof
shall then be in rebellion against the
United Sutes shall be then, thence
forward, and forever free----- "
(The Emancipation Proclamation,
January I , I K ) )
G RASSR O O TS N EW S, N .W . -
Due to historical circumstances be
yond President Abraham Lincoln's
control, he was forced to free
human beings who were stolen from
Africa with the assisunce and con
sent o f his government. This event is
recognized by the descendants o f
former slaves as “ Juneteenth." In
Portland, at Bethel A .M .E . Church,
a committee was formed to educate
the public on Juneteenth. Ms.
M arion Jacobs says the premise o f
Juneteenth is to celebrate the Em an
cipation Proclamation.
It was
issued officially on January I , I K ) .
President Lincoln was reluctant
about passing this Proclamation
because some o f the officers in the
Union Arm y did not want blacks to
serve, while others needed th em ."
Ms. Jacobs suted that this reluc
tance displayed itself as many o ffi
cials refused to read the Emancipa
tion Proclamation. " In Virginia,
seventeen blacks were hung because
they read the Proclamation to their
fellow blacks.”
The name Juneteenth comes from
June 19. This is the day the word
that they were free reached some of
the slaves. “ This date is not univer
sal among blacks. In Washington,
D .C . it is celebrated in January.
In other parts o f the country it is
celebrated in February. Juneteenth
is our Fourth o f Ju ly."
Clara Peoples provides an addi
tional thought to the celebration of
Juneteenth. "1 feel it is about time
that we as black people stand up and
be counted for our own freedom, as
well as enjoying the freedom o f the
Fourth o f J u ly." W hat should June
teenth mean to the youth o f 19837
"T h a t they should stand up with
pride and be proud to be black as we
were taught. Whatever you are, just
be the best. Have pride in your own
race. That is what Juneteenth should
m ean."
Ed M itchell, another member o f
the Juneteenth committee, answers
this question another way. "June
teenth means freedom and responsi
bility. Oftentimes we take our free
dom for granted and forget that
there has been some dues paid. W e
are still paying. Just look at the un
employment figures for our young
people. W e hope this weekend to try
and drive home the point that even
though we have come a long way,
we have still got a long way to g o ."
H .H . Nukes believes Juneteenth
should be an observation rather
than a celebration. " A t the end o f
the Civl W ar black people in the
slave states were faced with the
question, 'W h at does this piece o f
paper mean to us?' Newspaper ac
counts related to when black people
heard o f the issuance o f the Emanci
pation Proclamation. They went to
the streets and they danced and they
marched a id made speeches. The
theme o f most o f the speech making
was that although we were no longer
slaves, we are not yet free. W hile we
observe Juneteenth in its colloquial
form, it is a period o f time when we
need to rededicate and continue
fighting that Civil W ar that still
keeps us in a posture o f servitude
and bondage."
(W riter's note: Junteenth will be
celebrated at Bethel A .M .E . Church
as an outdoor street festival starting
Friday, June 17-19. Happy June
teenth!)
Court sets
theater price
Testimony in a condemnation
trail to set a price for the Paramount
Theater began Tuesday. Owners o f
the 3,000 seat theater on Southwest
Broadway want S9.3 million for
their facility while the City has
offered $2.2 million.
The building is to be renovated
for use as a public performing arts
center.
✓
M a y 29. we launched some intensive
enforcement having to do with pros
titution in various areas o f the com
munity where it has grown intoler
able. We hive arrested 112 men and
72 w om en." H e stated that 41 o f the
men were not Uken into custody al
though there remain outstanding
warrants for them.
“ The emphasis has been against
the 'Jo hn .' the 'tric k ,' the customer
who has created the problem by
being here. W e think it has been suc
cessful to a limited degree. The rest
o f the system has to support the
arrest. It has to be meaningful if we
are arresting the same people over
and over again. W e are going to
have to have some place to put
them. Fines are good up to a certain
point but we run into the same prob
lems with the lack o f jail space."
Simpson defines the campaign as
being successful in the area o f the
'Johns.*
M ark Tcppola, Vice President of
the Central Eastside Industrial
Council, agrees with O fficer Simp
son that the sweep to mop up the
'tricks* has been successful. “ This is
probably the most effective pro
gram that we have had. It has re
duced the problem in terms of
visible street prostitution."
Teppola says the problem created
by prostitution in an established
business area is one o f harassment.
" I t creates a very unhealthy busi
ness situation. You have the prob
lem with pimps and fighting. N o
one really knows the answer to solv
ing the problem o f prostitution.
Education is an important area and
these billboards assist in that
process o f educating.” Teppola
believes the three billboards that are
up around the city have been effec
tive. " A lot o f 'Johns' might not
have been aware that this was a
crime situation."
The billboard sutes, " I f you arc
looking for a prostitute plan on
getting arrested.” The ironic thing
about the billboard that was picked
by the Police's PR department as
the stage for their announcement, is
that someone browned oui the *ar*
in arrested, so the billboard reads.
" I f you are looking for a prostitute
plan on getting 'R ested'."
Dave Simpson, public Information officer for
the Portland Pollen Bureau, reports on the
Burnau'a campaign to atop prostitution,
(Photo: Richard J. Brown)
TEST DRIVE OUR EXCITING
NEW CAR LOANS FIRST.
Right now a First Interstate Bank
loan is as economical as a subcom
pact. As fast as a turkxharged
sports car. And as powerful as a
heavy-duty pickup.
Our new auto loan interest
rates are the best in years. And with
the right credit information, we'll
normally process your application
in one day. Once you've arranged l
your financing, you’ll have
more leverage to negotiate
the price of your new car.
Come in soon or call.
You’ll spend hours comparing new
cars. Tike a few minutes now to find
the best loan possible. You could
save enough to buy gas
o
fcg fta . n
f
tU J IU
f ° r a y e a r. O r
e v e n |o n ge r .
Bank
Mr-stie» FO»C