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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 5, 1983)
Portland Observer, October 5. 1983 Page 5 Between accommodation and liberation by Trevor W. Purcell Tw o campaigns occurring among Blacks these days should give every responsible member o f the Black community hope, but also cause for concern: one is Jesse Jackson's cam paign for president— undeclared though it is— and the other is the fair-share campaign by Operation PUSH and the N A A C P to secure agreements from major corpora tions to give more jobs and con tracts to Blacks at all levels. The benefits to the Black community (and indeed to the country as a whole) from both efforts are indis putable. Jesse Jackson fever Jackson's possible candidacy— though not the first by a Black — demonstrates that both psychologi cal and material limits imposed on Black progress for over four centur ies in this country can be overcome with sanguine political struggle. He may not win the Democratic nomin ation but there are important con tingency goals which, if achieved, will make his candidacy worthwhile: Black voters will participate more fully as a bloc, and the Democratic candidate will be forced to pay at tention to the collective demands of Blacks. In effect, the groundwork is being laid for a serious reckoning with Black political power in the fu ture. Fair share e ffo rt The fair-share effo rt w ill bear badly needed economic fruits imme diately, although the long-term re wards will depend on the general po litical direction o f the B’ack com munity. Nevertheless, the N A A C P has negotiated over $100 million in fair share agreements and P U S H , which initiated the effo rt, has also made significant strides. Aligned with the fair-share effo rt is the boy cott weapon which has been effec tively employed by both organiza tions. W ith an estimated $146.1 bil lion a year spending power among Blacks, corporations can no longer afford to ignore the Black hand with the green note. But lest we allow ourselves to be swept away by the excitement o f the moment and the apparent glitter o f the futue, we should pause and re flect on some of the less obvious but potentially troublesome aspects of these two efforts. There is no inten tion on my part to throw (he pro verbial wrench into the works; Blacks are in a historical rut and we have a moral obligation to extricate ourselves. The crucial question is by what method we shall achieve our goal. W e cannot assume the end jus tifies the means and therefore any means will do. In historical processes the means have a sneaky way o f becoming part o f the end We must therefore define our ends clearly and unambiguously so that we may select the most appropriate and dignified means. C o m m o n struggle Long term goals Jackson's candidacy and the fair- share campaign have several things in common, but there is one particu lar aspect I want to highlight: They both indicate, among other things, a willingness to struggle for Black lib eration within the confines and ac cording to the dictates o f the present socio-political system. Indications are that Blacks who enter the main stream political arena soon discover that possibilities for meaningful change are limited by the constraints within the system, become co-opted by the social and political demands inherent in trying to remain in o f fice, or become shackled by a touch o f both. A n incident involving M arion Barry, a former 1960s civil rights activist and current mayor o f Washington, D .C ., is illustrative. In a recent Public Broadcasting System documentary a young Black journ alist pointed out that when poor and desolate residents o f Southeast D .C . complained that they get little or no attention from the mayor, Barry's response was, "They don't vote.’ ’ The pressure to conform to the S tre e t B eat b y L a n it a D u k e a n d R i c h a r d B r o w n system weighs heavily on politi cians. Black or while. But the priori ties o f the Black politician must be different from those o f the uncriti cal white. T o put it figuratively, (he Black politician is a descendant of the slave while the white politician is a descendant o f the master. The slave cannot liberate himself or her self by conforming to the values of the master. Granted, we are no longer slaves but we are still op pressed— along with other poor sec tors o f the population Black politi cians must therefore be more con scious o f the plight o f the op pressed. It is only by liberating the oppressed that they can liberate themselves. They must not only ful fill the just functions of their office, they must also struggle to reform a society which has consistently failed to live up to its own humanitarian ideals. The goals o f Blacks as well as of the society at large, simply staled, should be peace and freedom. These goals must be achieved through a just distribution o f economic re wards regardless o f race, color or re ligion, along with respect for other cultures and societies, and for the environment. W e should ponder the question o f whether or not these goals can be achieved by struggling only within the confines of the pre sent political structure. In doing so we must never lose sight o f the un fortunate fact that this is the same society that is responsible for our enslavement, that rationalized our domination in terms o f natural in feriority, and that is responsible for our worsening economic position even after the bitter civil rights struggles o f the 1960s We must be aware that this country covertly but strongly supports the oppression of South African Blacks under apart heid, that it continues to support the overthrow o f left-wing or liberal re gimes dedicated to the alleviation of oppression in Latin America and the The success o f the Washington State Lottery was on the minds o f the S treet B eet team as they asked, “ Would you favor or oppose having a State Lottery in Oregon as a means of raising revenue?” Caribbean and imprudently props up right-wing regimes that violate human rights. These and other glaring atrocities are not simply the result o f freak in dividual or institutional deeds They have their roots in the very way the society is structured as well as in its injudicious desire to maintain, at all costs, its position o f dominance over the rest o f the world. A simple change of leadership will not change the nature of (his society. A w ssom s raaponalbility We as Blacks must ask ourselves whether our salvation lies in simply getting a piece o f the American pie or in recognizing that the recipe is not so good in the first place since one o f its essential ingredients is the oppression o f one group for the benefit of another. This country has built its highly flaunted "lib e rty ” on the blood o f Native Americans and the sweat o f Africans. Such considerations suggest that the responsibility in the hands o f a Black leader— Jackson or any other — would be awesome. W ould he/shc be allowed to put together a government which balances the de mands of big business with the growing desires o f the worker to have a greater share in decision making at the workplace? W ould he/she be permitted to create an economic atmosphere wherein a job is a human right? W ould the hawks in the society countenance the dis continuation of American militar ism abroad by a Black president, or would such discontinuation be viewed as a threat to the "lib e rty " o f (he mainstream? W ould a Black president be allowed to restore to Native Americans the land and dig nity taken from them with such brutality? Finally, would a Black president be effective in convincing Americans to consume less if we are not to deplete (he earth's natural re sources and thereby hasten the ter mination o f life on this planet? $146.1 billion is far more than the Gross National Product o f most Third W orld countries It is up to us to decide whether we want to use such leverage simply to gain a piece of an already infected pie or whe ther we might channel our efforts toward developing our own pie. We may not want to reject American so ciety; we are part of it. But we should recognize its inherent short comings and not depend on it for our salvation unless we are prepared to effect deep changes. W e should not seek a piece o f America simply because our oppressor controls it. By doing so we allow him to define the terms o f our self-worth and the conditions of our liberation. It might do us well to remember that during the colonial period there were a few Blacks who, when they got the opportunity, owned other Blacks as slaves. They thought they had arrived. We must choose be tween accommodation and libera tion. DR. BRADY’S ECONOMIC RECOVERY FOR SAVING TEETH FOR FAMILY DENTISTRY AT LOWER COSTS “SAVING TEETH 1983“ HIGH QUALITY PORCELAIN CROWNS A BRIDGES REINFORCED PORCELAIN CAPS PHONE IN FOR A FREE ESTIMATE REPLACE YOUR MISSING OR DECAYED TEETH WiTH PERMANENT CAPS “TWILIGHT SLEEP” & OTHER ANESTHETICS BY REGISTERED ANESTHETIST WHILE PREPARING YOUR CROWNS & BRIDGES COME IN FOR A FREE ESTIMATE Complete Cooperation on ALL DENTAL INSURANCE PLANS OPEN SATURDAYS NO ADVANCE APPOINTMENT NECESSARY • Hour«: W e e k d a y s 8 3 0 am to 5pm . S atu rd ay 8 30am to 1pm Park F re e — Any Perk n Shop Lot DR. JEFFREY BRADY, DENTIST SEMLER BLDG. S W 3rd A Yam hill Downtown-PORTLAND SALEM 110' i Commercial N E SB1 8699 228-7545 The Oregon Transportation Commission wants your opinion about highway improvements and repairs planned for this area. Attend a public meeting on the Six-Year Highway Improvement Program Location: Multnomah County Tim e: 7:30 p.m . Floretta Davldaon Housewife Dan Bauar Driver fa v o r! I live in Washington and it gives the people a chance to win some money or get some o f their money back. I favor a lottery in Oregon. I want people to be able to make some money. You have got to spend-money to make money. D ata: Tuesday, October 11 George Portwood Maintenance Address: Multnomah County Sheriff's Bldg. Auditorium 12240 N.E. Glisan Portland, OR I would oppose having one in Oregon. I feel the m ajority o f people who buy tickets can’t a f ford them. There is a big " I f ” either way. I w ouldn’ t want to see a lottery in Oregon. Phone: 653 3090 • Hear a report on the condition of the state highway system. 4 Leern whet improvement projects are scheduled for your erea. • Tell tranapo'tation officials what projects you think ere most important. A copy of the Preliminary Six-Year Highway Improvement Program la available from the Department of Tranaportation. Unde Tucker Housewife DeAnn Kamiah Billing Clerk fa v o r— for the fun o f it. And | people who can't afford to play shouldn't even buy the tickets. Favor! I think it is a good idea. People are going to gamble anyway so you might as well have the money going for a good cause. 104 Tranaportation Building, Salam, Oregon 9 7 3 1 0 . For Information Phone... Jackie Files Student I would love to have a lottery in Oregon. It gives you a chance o f having something new, I think Washington has benefited so why not Oregon?
