Page 2, Portland Observer, October 17, 1984
MEDICARÉ, EXPORTS
ANO THE
hAIDÉAM
FAMILY ANO
THE DtFtciT, life AEMS RXfc
ANO CENTRAL
EDITORIAL/OPINION
Stop legalized slavery
the Internal Security Act which places invisible
and visible chains on his mobility in his own
country. He can be detained without charge or
trial, his organization outlawed, he cannot
meet or gather with a group and is subjected to
random police searches.
The way a farmer brands his cattle, Blacks
over the age of 16 are required to be finger
printed and to carry a passbook at all times. I f
he forgets or loses it, prison awaits him. In
South Africa 40 percent of the prison popula
tion consists o f people convicted o f pass law
violations.
Apartheid, the legal separation of the races,
is a crime against humanity. Its genocide goes
unreported and the current administration pol
icies of “ constructive engagement” amount to
destructive coddling of criminals.
The world rejoiced when Bishop Desmond
Tutu won the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize for ex
posing these statistics of slavery for 75 percent
o f the population. Last year in Portland,
Tutu (old us o f an encounter he had with a
child living on a homeland in poverty. Home
lands are fragmented, worthless pieces of land
where Blacks are forced to live. Tutu asked a
little girl what she did when her family ran out
of food. “ We drink water," the child replied.
Where was the press? Where was the head
line?
Last week the headlines blared with the
death of a white three-week-old infant in
South Africa. The infant was the first white
casually of more than six weeks of racial vio
lence.
However, the headlines don’t cry out when a
Black baby dies in a country where the infant
m ortality rate is 90 per 1,000 live births. For
rural Blacks it’s 200 per 1,000.
The headlines are silent when a Black child
dies of malnutrition. In one of the most indus
trialized countries in the world, 2.9 million
Black children under the age of 15 suffer from
malnutrition.
Where are the reporters when a Black child
becomes ill while grappling with a doctor-
patient ratio of one doctor per 19,000 Blacks
compared to one per 330 for whites.
Where are the investigative reports that cate
gorize the effects o f the unequal per capita
spending for education. For Blacks it ’s $170
while jfo r whites it’s $1,115.
If, by some miracle, the Black child in South
Africa survives the legalized racism to which it
is subjected, corporate slavery awaits him.
I f he works in a mine, his average monthly
wage is $260. For whites it’s $1,395. If his wife
works as a domestic servant (one of the few
employment areas opened to black women)
her monthly income is $40 to $80 a month.
The Black adult in South Africa lives under
Letters to theEditor
Hatfield record
questioned
I h 'iil I d lln l
Murk Hui livid has !•>«»« been con
iili iid .in niilsianding peace leader.
I Mundei Is he?
D iH c tc iii limes he lias east I he
I,me vine ug.nnsi an urinanenis bill
N o » , as «.liair o l the pow erful
Senaie Appropriations ( onimiilee,
, by could be noi influence a Tew
olbei Senalois lo join h im ?
I sen buck in 1979 when Senator
llem y luckson a leading war hawk
h.idls needed voles lor presidential
.landby
a u th o rity
lo
ration
l.i n liiie, H a ilie ld rounded up 10
soles Did ibis help Hailield lo later
become Senate A ppropriations
i oiniiniiee ( bait man?
Does Hailield really work for less
ludgenieni made the Social Security
and Medicate programs secure for
our futures, after he had inherited a
cruuibliiig program in 1980, but he
■as cut inllalion and unproved the
economy and made it belter for all
men and women in America today.
As a senior citizen and a voter, I
waul all oilier electors to know that
n was Piesideni Reagan who invited
democrats lo join hi a bi partisan
couiinissioii that led to a real
so I iiioii , noi (list a quick fix. Bene
Ills are now up 180 dollars a month
lot the average couple and more
ih.m 2100 dollars a year based on
the lower rale of in lla lio n since
1980 Spending lor programs for
oldei Americans has lumped 27 per
cent in the past three years
The overall picture is that 49
million elderly, poor and disabled
citizens, one in every five
Americans, will have health care
needs mcl through Medicare and
Medicaid in 1984 th a t’s a million
more this year and three m illion
more than 1980
The advantage that many years of
experience has dealt me makes it
imperative that I go with a proven
leader and winner and vote for and
recommend President Reagan on
November 6th
arms and negotiations to build
peace7 I hen why did be campaign
so vigorously igainsl S A L T II- -
w hnli binned nucleai arms emeu-
sum * And bad popular support ol
7S percent, according to national
polls
Many people asked "W h al alter
native is ibere?" lo S A I I II " Il will
go pari ol Ibe way?" lo restrain ihc
arms race and bold back n ulilary
spending
Hailield insisted we did nol need
SAI I II. bill could go on lo SALT
III Did we golo SAI I III? No, but
to ihc le m ly in g arms race with its
crushing Pentagon budget!
Now, what about H atfield ’s per
sonal cooperation with Reagan?
H a ilie ld M ( d his swearing in
( eremony H a ilie ld has endorsed
him for re-election.
Is Maik Hatfield really leader for
peace? D r iust a lo llo w er of the
nuclear lunatics who seek U S.
domination of the world.
VIOLET OKK
Reagan
praised
Deal L.ditor:
It is good lo be a senior citizen in
today’s United States, because there
are so many more people to share
our long pasts and to enjoy the
bright years ahead.
Much ol this lavorable situation
must be credited to President
Reagan and the leadership he has
provided to this country since 1980.
Not only has his vision and good
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^S' 0«»' '•»».
vi
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Winnie Mandela aw aits.. .
She is waiting for justifiable ma
jo rity rule in her country, South
A fric a , with a population of
Iwenty-two million Blacks and four
and one-half million whites.
Her husband. Nelson Mandela,
is 66 years old and has been a po
litical prisoner for 20 years. Nelson
M andela’ s leadership stems from
(he African National Congress.
If Winnie Mandela was living in a
free society, she probably would
be referred to as the "First Lady” in
her country because her husband
has been u n o fficially declared the
national leader in South A fric a ,
but she has yet lo acquire the right
vole.
The government does not allow
people with black skin political
rights.
She is waiting to vote in a country
that supports apartheid/legalized
racism under the suppression o f
white rule.
Come November, United States
citizens should think o f W innie
Mandela when they go to the polls.
She is waiting for the same rights
we strive for that bring about dig
nity to humanity. The right to vote,
to assemble, to own land, to choose
your w orkplace, to live together
with your fa m ily , and so on. The
rights of self-determination.
The name of this woman is W in
nie Mandela. Remember it.
Facts about Winnie Mandela are
probably not in school textbooks,
and are very seldom mentioned in
newspapers and magazines, but she
is a leader in South Africa
At SO, she is a social w orker,
m other, and is presently under
house arrest.
Winnie Mandela has been arrest
ed, tortured, banned and separated
from her husband for two decades,
but has yet the right to vote be
cause her skin is black.
A year ago officials entered her
home and removed a quilt from her
bed because the colors were wrong
They were yellow, black and green,
representing the African National
Congress’ efforts. The government
has stripped all human rights from
this banished woman, yet she con
tinues her struggle.
"If is only w hen all black groups jo in hands and speak
w ith one voice (bat we shall be a bargaining force w hich
w ill decide its ow n destiny. This is the only way in w hich we
shall m aintain o u r oneness. We know what we want, o u r
aspirations are dear to us. We are not asking fo r m ajority
rule; it is our right, we shall have it at any cost. We are aware
that the road be fo re us is u p h ill, but we shall fight to the
h itte r end fo r justice...
*
*
Street Beat
by LanitB D uke and Richard B rown
Although the M ariju ana in itia-.
live did not make it on the ballot
this election year, the Street Beat
team asked, “ Should Oregonians
have the right to grow their own
M arijuana for personal consump
tion?”
Welter Harrison
Student
I ho P ortlan d Observer rU S P S 959 6801 is published every
Thursday by 6 me Publishing Company, Inc . 2201 North Killings
worth, Portland, Oregon 97217, Post Office Bos 3137. Portland.
Oregon 97208 Second class postage paid at Portland Oregon
MEMBER
ON SOUTH AFRICA
Wilbur Bishop
Tigard, Oregon
Portland Observer
J>i M M I •
INTEREST RATES, HUNGER
ANO AGO
D a im
THF OtvMPVS
O r S
* 0
>
3)
Kerry Patrick
Student
“ Yes, a lot o f people live to
get high. I f they grew their own
they w o u ld n ’ t have to have
drug dealers. It would cut down
on crime."
“ I would support it for
adults, but not for minors.
Rather than go after people
growing pot, the police would
be free to go after m ajor drug
dealers.”
Melvin Brown
Trucker
“ Yes, I do, but I doubt if
there are enough people in Ore
gon who do to get it passed.”
n
<
p
Joyce Santos
Clerk
Chris Johnson
Priest
“ Yes, for their own personal
consumption. That way the po
lice could concentrate on more
dangerous substances.”
“ I think it’s up to each indi
vidual. Although I think it ’s a
waste o f money, but if they
were to legalize it, people won’t
have to do it illegally.**
Earl Jones
Machinist
I ’ m against it. I t ’s harmful. I
d o n ’ t think we should be a l
lowed to grow it.”
»