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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 1984)
Portland Observer, August 29, 1984, Page 3 Cascade Coins METROPOLITAN Rare and collectible coma for the collector or investor Also bullion, baseball cards and supplies W e buy mdividuet coins, collections or estates Textile union leader joins Nicaragua tour by Kobert Lolbia-i Nit» Brueggeman worked her way up fro m a seamstress to become N o rth w est b oard m anager o f the Associated C lo th in g and T e x tile Workers Union. ACTW U has been in the fo re fro n t o f struggles fo r peace, justice and hum an rights since its beginnings as one o f the founding unions of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, the C IO . Hrueggeman's own involvem ent reflects the tenor of her union. She campaigned for JFK as a teenager, she was active in her u n io n ’ s protests o f U S. involvement in Viet N am , she lobbied for plant closure legislation in O regon to make c o r porations more socially responsible, and last m o n th , she atte n d ed the D e m o c ra tic co n ve n tio n in San Francisco. In Septem ber, she w ill take her first long trip outside the country to visit Nicaragua with a delegation of labor leaders from the West Coast. It is not without some trepidation that she em barks on the tr ip , she said, because the war being waged by CIA-financed “ contras” — coun terrevolutionaries— is escalating A frie n d w ho visited the co u n try recently witnessed a h arb o r b o m bing. “ It's scary," she said. But in spite o f the d an g e r, Brueggem an s till feels the tr ip is necessary so that the labor leaders can investigate the facts and report to u n io n m em bers and the p ub lic when they return. ’ ’ I ’ m just interested in going dow n there and fin d in g out s o m e th in g ,” she said. “ I ’ m not w illing to believe everything I read in the newspapers.” Brueggeman said the members of her u nio n are aw a re o f the ex plo itation and violence suffered by w orkers in L a tin A m e ric a , and N ic a ra g u a under the d ic ta to r Somoza. Regarding what she called Reagan's “ commie p lo t" theory of the cause o f revolutions in Central Am erica. " T h e y ’ re not buying into that o n e ," she said o f A C T W U members. “ T hey're not supporting d ic ta tin g to an o th e r g overnm ent and they feel that our government is doing that in Nicaragua." M a n y u n io n m em bers are c o n cerned that their draft-age sons might N lta B ru a g g am an (P h oto : Krla A ltu c h a rl be sent to Central Am erica, she ad ded. " W h a t A C T W U is saying is that we d o n 't want any more Viet N am s," she said. A M o nd ale supporter like many union p eo ple, Brueggem an feels a d a m a n tly th at " W e need to do everything we can to make sure (hat Reagan isn ’ t re-elected I th in k Reagan needs an o ther G ran a d a ...a n d I d o n ’ t w ant it to be Nicaragua or El Salvador.” Brueggeman hopes that the labor leaders who participate in the tour will contribute to a groundswell that can move the national leadership of the A F L - C IO to tak e a stand on U .S . in volvem ent in N ic a ra g u a , which it hasn't done yet, she said. " T h e re 's not a clear-cut policy tow ards N ic a ra g u a rig ht now among organized labor— it's a little flakey," she said. The la b o r leaders w ill to u r N icarag u a fo r nine days, visiting prisons, hospitals, factories, com m unity o rg an izatio n s and church and elections officials. The unions involved are the U n ite d Farm W o rk e rs , the C o m m u n ic a tio n W orkers o f A m eric a. M achin ists, the A m erican F e d e ra tio n of Teachers, the American Federation of Slate County and Municipal E m ployees, the U n ite d Food and Com m ercial W orkers, Longshore men. and the Service Employees In ternational Union. Brueggeman said besides "getting home safely,” her concerns on the tour w ill be to learn about the in volvement o f Nicaraguan women's o rg an iza tio n s in the trade union m o vem en t, and to look in to the issues surrounding Nicaragua's up coming elections. 3228 N. Lombard St. 285-6331 Announcing wide area paging coverage without the wide area price. The paging p oplc who haw always brought you selection and service now bring you one of the widest coverage areas in Portland Plus one big advantage Our competitors charge you for "extended coverage" RAM Includes It as standard bill of fare Premium cowrage without a premium price Because at RAM. we believe your pager Is only as gtxxl as the area It reaches 2 2 6 -1 5 0 7 ?«A« R AM B ro a d c a s tin g o l O re g o n Inc . 713 S W 12th A ven ue Herndon makes Libya trip by N alhum el Scot I Ron Herndon, one o f O regon's delegates to the N atio n al Democratic Convention, has been invited to participate in the fifteenth anniversary celebration o f Libya's revolution. The invitation to the conference, which will be held in T rip o li, was extended by the International Preparatory Committee, H ern don said. The International Preparatory Comm ittee invited different Am erican Blacks, peace groups and anti-nuclear represen tatives, Native Americans, and other groups to participate in the four-day conference, Herndon said. Four areas o f con cern w ill be addressed. O ne, we w ill be looking at L ib ya 's progress; the strides and accomplishments it has made during the past 15 years; tw o , its n o n -allia n c e p o licy, the N o rth African nation's firm commitment to remain an independant nation; three, the problems that exist between Libya and the United States; and fo u r, what can be done to resolve those problems. The conference is scheduled to be held the 28th through the 31st of this month, he said. Herndon is the founding father o f Oregon's chapter o f the national Black United Front (B U F ). He shares the local chap ter’ s chairm anship w ith Rev. John H . Jackson, minister o f the M ount Olivet Baptist Church. In 1979, when the local chapter was formed, Herndon said, "Rev. Jackson and I were commissioned co-chairmen ” Since, the two have served as spokespersons for the local B U F chap ter But what about Herndon? W hat about the man from C o ffee ville , Kansas; the im m igrant who came to Oregon to complete the last two years of a bachelors degree in history at Reed College? W hat about the man w ho set up (th e now defunct) Black Student Union at Reed College? W hat about the often called activist, radical, non-printable name person, who among other things has been accused o f "creating a con fro n tation between the BUF organization and the Portland School Board? What about the man? "W h e n I left C o ffee ville in 1965, I was not aware o f the contributions Blacks had made towards A m erica’s h is to ry," H erndon said A t that tim e, he had no knowledge o f the tremendous role Africa played in the civilization o f man; nor the legacy o f A fr ic a w hich can be traced to the d aw n o f history Herndon's knowledge and perspective o f the world began to change when he migrated to the New Jersey and New York C ity area, he said He began to read and learn about M arcus G arvey, W E B D u B o is, M alco m b X , and many more Blacks who were, and had been, scholars and leaders. But even in Coffeeville, before he migrated to the East Coast, Herndon said, " I had no illusion about what America had to offer Black people.” Eventually, Coffeeville, that Southeastern Kansas farming and light in d u s tria l to w n , was le ft behind and P o rtla n d became H e rn d o n ’ s city o f the fu tu re . It became the b a t tleground where he would wage the fight for dignity, equality, and honor for Black people, he said. The instigation o f the BUF in Portland grew out o f a need The prim ary purpose was " to try to resolve some of the m ajor problems co n fro n ting Black people in P o rtlan d ," he said. H ern do n recollects th a t, at that tim e, he was concerned about division in the Black community; that different splinter groups were unsuccessfully trying to make " a dent” in the philosophy and attitudes o f the local white power structure. “ We had to get together and develop a community strategy,” he said The ch u rch , w hich has h is to ric a lly been Black America's rallying point, was singled out as the place " to get a quality of leadership that would attract various segments of the com m unity," he said. Herndon’s praise for Rev. Jackson, a man of the cloth, and co-chairman o f the local BUF chapter, is vehemently respect ful. “ I have learned a lot from Rev. Jackson," he said " H e is the kind o f person that young people should learn fro m .” Lockstep together, Herndon and Rev. Jackson waved the banner for dignity and pride. Together they fought the fight that precipitated change w ithin the Black com m unity, H e rn don said " W e addressed issues about jobs, education, police b ru ta lity , p o litic s , and p o litic a l is s u e s ." H o w e v e r, he cautioned, he fu lly understood the im plications o f a Black person’ s struggle to gain freed om , eq u ality and justice in America. I f a Black person stands up fo r his rights, " T h a t can be d a n g e ro u s ," H e rn d o n said. " W h e n I see kids not being autom atically bussed, that makes me feel g o o d ." 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