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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 1984)
Page 2 Portland Observer. August 29, 1984 Reagan deserves KKK endorsement EDITORIAL/OPINION Portland will miss Jordan P o rtla n d ’ s loss is A u s tin , Texas’ s gain as C o m m issioner Charles Jordan accepted the position as Commissioner o f Austin’s City park bureau. Besides leaving a vacant C ouncil seat, Jo r d a n ’ s p o litic a l presence was one o f a progressive, responsible politician whose door was never closed to issues that were relevant to the Black community. The racial composition o f his staff was tru ly “ ra in bo w ” . It reflected a com m itm ent to A f firm ative A ction in deeds and not just words. They represented Portlanders with synchronized compassion, action and accountability. When the C ity ’ s p itifu lly poor A ffirm a tiv e A ctio n record was uncovered, Jordan was the o n ly commissioner who accepted blame rather than pass the buck to his bureau managers. In his most d iffic u lt moments as Police Commissioner, Jordan put the Police Bureau first as he tried to reach a balance between the complaints from the community and the excuses fro m the police. However, his actions during this period did not overcome the narrowness o f Ivancie who reshuffled the bureau away from Jordan who brought the bureau in to the 20th century. The co m m ission e r’ s vote on C ity C o u n c il reflected the needs and concerns o f low- to mid dle-income Oregonians. His m onthly forum s were an asset to Portland because they brought together a diversity o f people, ideas and in fo r mation. As much as we would like Jordan to stay, he feels his move to Austin is the right one for him and his family and his say should be the last. His performance there w ill hopefully m irror his ac complishments here. Whoever the voters choose to fill his seat will be challenged by Jordan’s past performance o f action , a c co u n ta b ility, concern and progres siveness. J o rd a n ’ s p o litic a l tr a d itio n w ill leave an indelible mark on city politics, forever. Make nuclear transport safer The way in which radioactive materials are casually carted around (his world would make a person think no real danger exists should a spill or other accident occur. That’s because no mat ter how much “ hot” material is released into the environm ent, o ffic ia ls never fail to proclaim that no threa t to the environm ent has been unleashed. As a recent spill o f PCB’s along Interstate 84 shows, being used to such transportation has not led to greater precautions being taken to insure the public safety. The P C B ’ s leaked onto the Irccway for miles from transformers tied slop pily on a flatbed truck u ntil a motorist noticed and called it to the driver’s attention. Hundreds o f cars may have passed throu g h the h ig hly dangerous material in the meantime. When a French cargo vessel sank, Saturday, o f f the Belgian coast, w ith 30 containers o f ura niu m h e xa flu o rid e w eighing 450 tons aboard, the same proclamation was heard. The Street Beat b y L a m ta D u k e a n d R ic h a r d B r o w n radioactive material was on its way to the Soviet Union for use in manufacturing nuclear reactor fuel when the ship carrying it collided w ith a ferry. I t ’s remarkable that more frequent accidents o f this type d o n ’ , happen. H ig h ly radioactive elements such as plutonium and nuclear plant fuel rods are routinely shipped from the U.S. to Japan and other countries, and residents o f the Pacific Northwest are getting used to trucks and trains transporting radioactive and hazardous m aterials throu g h the ir cities to the federal storage site at Hanford, Washington. Federal, state and local o ffic ia ls lack c o o r dination when m ajor accidents o f this type oc cur. Waiting for a really massive disaster before getting th e ir act together is too much like ra d ioa ctive Russian ro u le tte and does the trusting public a disservice. Luck w o n ’ t sub stitute for planning. The City Club o f Portland is pro posing a zone where p ro s titu tio n would be legal. The Street Beat team asked, “ How do you feel about es tablishing a legalized zone fo r pro stitution?” by D r Manning Marable "From The Grassroots " justice. In some instances, this has meant the personal reversal of one's prior commitment to racial equality. T ake the sad case o f Com m ission Vice C h airm an M o rris B. A b ram . Once the president o f the American Jewish C o m m itte e , A b ra m had a long history o f strong support for the socioeconom ic and p o litic a l rights of Blacks. Now in his reincar n atio n as a R e ag an ite , A b ra m claims that the old Commission was a “ J o h n n ie -O n e -N o te ," in re fe r ence to its constant support for racial quotas and school desegregation policies. A b ram and the new C o m mission have stopped the traditional policy o f reviewing federal budgets fo r th eir d is c rim in a to ry im p ac t. "B u d g e ts are a m a tte r o f social p o lic y , not c iv il rights as s u c h ," states A b ra m . " T h e y d o n ’ t come under o ur ju r is d ic tio n .” M e a n while. Reagan's budget reductions have contributed to a sharp rise in national in fa n t m o rta lity , massive unem ploym ent, and m ental health disorders— all o f which are "racist” in th eir a ffe c t, because they h it Blacks more severely than whites. In the June 10th issue o f Tim e magazine. Abram cynically outlined his narrow definition o f civil rights. In the wake of the Democratic Na tional Convention last month, some disappointed Jackson supporters warned that they might not support th eir p a rty 's lac klu s ter nom inee. Walter Mondale, in the general elec tion. Undeniably, M ondale is a poor representative o f Black. Latino and poor people's interests. But we might well remember w hat’s at stake this Novem ber, and what kinds o f racists are now aligning themselves behind Ronald Reagan Several months ago, Bill W ilk in son, leader o f the Invisible Empire fa c tio n o f the K K K , openly en dorsed Reagan fo r re elec tio n . "A nytim e you see all the Blacks and minorities in this country opposing, strongly, one man, you know he has got to be doing something good for the white race," W ilkinson told the press. M a n y elem ents o f the R epu b lican p la tfo rm are " p u r e K ia n ," he observed. W ilk in s o n 's Klansm en prom ised to w ork hard for Reagan this fall. One of the major reasons (hat the Kian is so aggressively pro-Reagan is the A d m in is tra tio n ’ s civil rights policies. The Reaganite C ivil Rights Commission has all but repudiated the goal o f ra cial e q u a lity and Margaret Brown Clark “ I think ii would create a lot of problems. Il would be dangerous fo r all involved. People will do what they want and there would be a little bit of everything." " I would like a zone where I could work. I got (wo kids to support and I c a n 't fin d a square jo b I f they establish a zone, the crime and disease rale would d ro p ." Howard Pulliam Electrician " I 'm against p rostitution because it's lim ite d to the Black communities all across the slates." (Please turn to page 6, Column !) Opinion: Republicans move U.S. back in time by Lanita Duke condone this type o f suppression of individual freedoms. The platform (he Republicans will run on reads like it was w ritten by the M o ra l M a jo r it y . R ev. Jerry F a lw e ll q u ip p e d , " I f they had allo w ed us to w rite it, we w ould have d iffic u lty im p ro v in g on the content.” T h e p la tfo rm calls fo r a c o n s titu tio n a l am en dm en t to o u tlaw abortion while urging (he President not to a p p o in t judges to the Suprem e C o u rt w ho support the right to choose. In light o f this fac t, i t ’ s hard to sw allow G ov. V ic A tiy e h 's reasoning when he says Democrats in te rfe re in p e o p le ’ s lives. I f this proposed am en dm en t is n 't in te r- ferring, I don't know what is. T h e vast a rra y o f R epu b lican speakers conveniently used bits and pieces o f h isto ry w ith th eir own n arro w in te rp re ta tio n and the d o u b le ta lk o f G eo rg e O r w e ll’ s A m erica to the rig h t, backw ard march! seemed to be the tone of the Republican National Convention. Their delegates, mainly white and upper incom e, sang, " H a i l to the C h ie f " and " L e t ’ s beat the pants o ff the Democrats." During the convention, many un settling themes arose out o f the boredom. Sen Barry Goldwater sent chills up and dow n the spines o f many A m erican s when he said, "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice.” Flashbacks of the C O IN T E L P R O years w hich included illeg al w iretaps, bugging and p la n tin g agents to m a n ip u la te jealo usies, power struggles and ideological con flicts to prevent the rise o f progressive o rg an iza tio n s and leaders fell under the category of ex tremism. You can't help but wonder if the sentiments expressed during the Republican convention w ould " 1 9 8 4 " , "Peace through Strength" as a campaign slogans. The supply side economic theories are the R e p u b lic a n ’ s crow n and creed but its b en efits have yet to trick le dow n to the p o o r, aged or vulnerable in society. The question they ask in 1984 is, "w h e re is the trickle in the trickle-down theory?” As we look for the silver lining in the dark cloud of Tighter than right politics, the m oderate wing o f the Republican p arty holds the glow . I t ’ s refresh in g that a few R epublicans in O reg o n openly dem onstrated their preference for p ro -ch oice and the Eq ual Rights A m en dm en t on the floor. I f the R epu b licans w in re- election, we hope the demands of the people will am plify the voice of moderation in the party. I f not the extremism o f the right, it may create an extrem e re ac tio n am ong those who the Republican party does not represent. Letters to the Editor Supports Cawthorne the School Board. He has worked hard inside the system to m ake education m ore responsive to the concerns o f citizen s. I f H e rb C a w th o rn e had not been on the School B oard, it is q uite possible M a tth e w P ro p het w ou ld not be Superintendent of Portland Schools today. H e rb has done much m ore. His o ral h istory p ro gram s have been superb in m akin g Black h istory come alive for so many o f us. Herb is always available to us. He speaks at our functions and challenges our young people to p e rfo rm w ell in school. W hen the D is tric t 18 L ead ersh ip F o ru m needed to be organized. Herb helped develop the project, w rite the plan, and insure the process was fa ir . T h is led to Margaret Carter's eventual victory. H erb C aw th o rn e has earned (he chance to run, and has proven his ability to win a city-wide race. Most people in this city know his School To the Editor: Jana Doa Proatltuta " E c o n o m ic c la im s ,” he now argues, a re n 't " c iv il rig hts. A 'right* to shelter, a 'right* to health care, a 'rig h t* to day care fo r children" are not civil rights. Blacks and other m inority groups have ab solutely no " c iv il" rights " t o a cer tain level of food stamp spending," Abram lectures sternly A fte r such dem agoguery, is it surprising that A la b a m a K K K Jim B lair recently applauded A b ra m and other co n servatives on the C ivil Rights C o m mission? In B lair’ s words, the new Commission "has opened the door to allow true democracy" by taking a position " t o free Am erica o f a f firm ative action, rampant giveaway programs, and forced busing . . . " Beneath the black robes o f the U .S . Supreme C o u rt justices, civil rights proponents are finding more than a few white sheets. The C o u rt’s June 12th decision upholding "last hired, first fire d " policies by a 6-3 vote essentially states that workers with more seniority cannot be laid o f f to protect the jobs o f Blacks, Latinos and women who are hired under affirm ative actions programs. Reagan’s chief of the Justice Depart ment’s civil rights division, W illiam Herb Cawthorne is our choice for the C ity C o u n c il seat vacated by Commissioner Charles Jordan We regret Charles has decided to leave P o rtla n d , we wish him the best in his new position. Herb is best qualified to run for and win the seat because o f his years o f service to o ur c o m m u n ity , ex perience, and intelligence. Herb has served this com m unity since 1976, when he came from the U niversity o f O regon to teach and administer educational programs at Portland State U n iversity. He im m ediately began helping organize the com m unity around the issue o f quality education fo r all children. He was instrumental in stopping the u nfair busing o f Black children in Portland Public Schools. Because o f his co m m itm en t to eq u ity fo r all children he was selected to serve on Board campaign was one of the best o rg an ized we have seen. T his resulted in his decisive victory. He is prepared and can win again. W e hope o ur c o m m u n ity w ill support Herb now, spread the word to our friends all over the city, and commit ourselves to give money and hard labor. Herb can win. He deserves to win. A nd, each one of us should be committed to making sure that he does. ffev £ j £ d wards Henry Scott Jerry Payne Rev John H Jackson Tern ( batman t'esia Loving Gale Castillo Pay Leary Bishop J. C. Foster A vel Mayfield Harry Ward Halim Pahsaan Henna Stroughter P ev.O .B Williams Pon Herndon Pev. John Garlington Paul Cook Tht Observer welcomes l etters to the Editor Letters should be short, and must contain the writer's name and address (addresses are not print ed) The Observer reserves the right to edit fo r length Portland Observer ■At MHi ■ The P o rtla n d O b se rv er <U SPS 959 680» is pu blished ever> Thursdey by E mis Publishin^Com pany. Inc . 2201 North Killings worth. Portland, Oregon 97217 Post Office Box 3137. Portland. Oregon 97206 Second class postage paid at Portland Oregon SI « u m » The Portland Observar was established m 1970 MEMBER Subscriptions 115 00 per year in tha Tri County area P ost m a s ta r Sand address changes to the P o rtla n d Observer, P 0 Box 3137. Portland Oregon 97208 A llo c u tio n • Founded T M 5 IS PORTLAND OBSERVER Dorla Flower« Unemployed Dawayne Laubockar Warehouseman " I t sounds like a good idea to get it in one area instead of having it all over the place. There is no way they can ever stop it .” “ I don't think that's a good idea. I t ’ s a bad exam ple for our kids. They should not be exposed to it ." * ♦ 15 lo t on« □ Y—’ »26 lor tw o year« Bor 3137 Portland OB 97028 Victor Jeckaon Baker " I wouldn't like it. I live in an area where there is a lot of p ro s titu tio n . I d o n 't lik e it around my kids." B Alfred L. Henderson, Editor/Publisher A l Williams, General Manager I 283 2486 N atio n a l A d v ertis in g R ep re s e n ta tiv e A m a lg a m a te d Publishers. Inc N e w York StUliP $ H O O 5 ~I ~ I m < g t * <5 I o J Street C it y Apt STATE ZIP ( a ; 5« ■ . 5 ïï 2 ft < 2 2 ° 3 > * i* * 3 X * ö tn -I > 31 A * f * » . .• • 1 ‘
