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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 9, 1985)
Page 2, Portland Observer, January 9, 1906 NOTARY Voter turnout high in new Black district by l.um ia Duke GRASSROOT NEW S. N .W .- A legislative d istrict w ith one o f the highest voter turnouts just happens to he one of Oregon’s newest — District 18. In (he special election fo r C ity Commissioner, Post ion 4, six out of 28 precincts went for candidate Dick Bogle, the rest voted for Herb Caw- thorne. But city-wide, the majority of the precincts ra llied behind Bogle. W h ile the c ity -w id e voter tu rn ou t edged toward 24 percent, 13 precincts in District 18 had voter turnout be tween 25 and 32 percent. In the p rim ary election (M a y IS, 1984) for m ayor, Bud C lark won in all 28 precincts w ith voter turnout between 40 and 62 percent. Robert Phillips, president o f the Black Social W orkers o f O reg o n , designed and fought for the district. " W e made the d iffe ren ce in the mayoral race. W e have come a long way and we are more active as voters. District 18 has received several visits by politicians who in the past ignored the district,'* he added. Phillips said the purpose o f draw ing a d istrict w ith a heavy concen tration o f Afro-Am erican voters was to give them a voice in the legisla ture. " W e wanted to ensure proper representation and accountability. In the past, this was not the case. Now, posure. And that is why Reagan is in the W h ite House and Bogle is on the Council,” he said. H erndon also criticized M ay o r C la rk ’s staff composition. "T h e re is no excuse in 1985 not to have an A fro -A m e ric a n on s ta ff. H e was elected because o f Biack support and on Jesse Jackson’s coattails. In terms o f h irin g , we are getting the same message we got from Ivancie's administration." Ross Danielson, a former precinct captain, said D istric t 18 cannot be taken for granted because it has de livered the most votes. " W e have good rank and file involvement with a unit of purpose," he added. it is difficult to find someone in Dis trict 18 who is not aware o f who their representative is." Ronnie H ern do n , co-chair o f the Black United Front and an unpledged delegate for Jesse Jackson, said prior to redistricting the A lb in a area had one o f the lowest voter turnouts. “ Now, we have one o f the highest. It shows a tremendous am ount o f po litical m aturity." H erndon questioned the selection of Dick Bogle as City Commissioner. "M ost o f Portland felt Jordan's scat was a Black one. The Black commun ity (D istrict 18) felt C aw thornc was more q u a lifie d . But the C ity made their decision based on television ex Gail Washington, a precinct person who observed the redistricting proc ess, predicted the election o f a white candidate in 1982 because loo many Blacks ran for the seal. She added, " I ’ m delighted to know that trend was reversed. W e are really and truly becoming politically aware. W e are not helpless. People now understand (hat (hey can make change." M argaret C a rte r w ill represent District 18 as the first Afro-American female in the Legislature. "T he voting jsattern in District 18 is behind people who are involved in the community. Voters want an elected o ffic ia l who will go to bat for them ." BONOED J A M TAYLOR A ASSOCIATED BOOKKEEPING 4 INCOME TAX SERVICE LICENSED TAX CONSULTANT • TAX PL A N N IN G • • PROFESSIONAL TYPING JOE TAYLOR Tax ( oawllaal (M 3 ) 24S-OO23 by appomtmanl M21 N.E. J«di A»« Portillad. OR «7211 Announcing wide area paging coverage without the wide area price. The paging people who have 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 coverage without a premium price. Because at RAM. we believe your pager Is only as good as the area It reaches. 2 2 6 -1 5 0 7 RAM Broadcasting of Oregon. Inc., 713 S W 12th Avenue Volunteers learn about South Africa by Robert Lothian Peace Corps veterans from the Port land area were filled in on South A fri ca Sunday. Mark Cheatham, of Portlanders Or- yinizcd for Southern Africa Freedom, addressed about 20 ex-Peace Corps volunteers at a meeting of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers o f Oregon. They were gathered at the Willamette Center downtown. M arie Herm anson, founder and form er chairw om an o f the Peace profit aid groups. “ It was that kind of work which propelled me to jo in PO SAF,” he said Cheatham found " a resurgence o f racism" in tht U.S. when he returned. The racism was evident in racial stereo typing in T V and in attitudes of whites on the street, he said. One woman he tried to talk to recently outside the South African consulate in Portland, for instance, said C heatham , told him that A frican s " c a n ’ t even feed themselves,” let alone govern a coun M a rk C h eath am fro m P ortlanders O rganized for South A frican Freedom addresses a group of Corps group, said about h a lf o f all Peace Corps veterans served in Africa, including about 200 from Portland. Hermanson, who has been picketing outside P o rtlan d 's South A fric an consulate on Wednesdays and F ri days, said the invitation to P O S A F was extended so her group could be come better inform ed. " O u r primary purpose right now is to educate our selves," she said. Hermanson served with the Peace Corps in the African country o f Cameroun. Although not a Peace Corps vol unteer, Cheatham said he did spend five years in Kenya working with non up only about 16 percent o f the popu lation own 86 percent o f the land. “ They control 10 percent o f the econ omy — every productive resource is owned by whites. And white wages are five times that of Blacks.” "Everybody has servants among the whites. If you are white it’s practically a crime to be poor. Whites reap tre mendous benefits from this system," a system that is driven by the exploita tion of Black labor, he said. Another essential prop for the apart approximately 20 ex-Psace Corps volunteers. (Photo: Richard J. Brown) try. When he offered other info rm a tion, " I don’t care” was all he got in response, he said. " I think it’s real important to break through the ’desire not to know* that people have,” said Cheatham. "R a c ism in the U.S. and South Africa are two examples o f the same phenome- non. In South A frica, he told the Peace Corps veterans. Blacks representing over 80 percent of the population have been restricted to reservations that am ount to about 13 percent o f the total land, "la n d that is absolutely barren," he said. But whites who make heid regime is the trade and other support it gets from the U.S. and Eu rope, said Cheatham. Over 50 percent o f South A fric a ’s G N P comes from foreign trade, similar to third world countries, and one-fifth o f that comes from the U.S. America is the number one supplier of goods to South Africa, he continued, and total U .S . invest ment in the country adds up to 15 bil lion dollars. Also, said Cheatham , " W e are increasing our m ilitary ex ports to South Africa,” from one-half million in 1980 to over $18 million in 1983. And just as the U.S. says that Cen tral America is its backyard, so does South Africa consider the Black-ruled states o f M o zam b iq u e, Botswana, Angola and Z am b ia to be its back yard, not hesitating to invade across their borders in (he interest o f " n a tional security.” Cheatham then outlined fo r the Peace Corps people the three main U.S. campaigns to pressure the South African government: divestment, re moving South A frican consuls, and banning the sale o f kruggerands. " It worries the South A fricans greatly that Americans are talking about cut ting economic ties with South Africa," he said. One o f the ex-Peace Corps volun teers listening was Stewart Bentley from Portland. He spent two years in Botswana developing solar energy projects. Botswana, an independent country the size of Texas with a popu lation o f one m illion, borders South A frica to the north. "T h e re was al ways a possibility o f South A fric a coming across the border," under the guise of hunting down anti-apartheid guerillas, said Bentley Botswana is dependent on South A fric a econom ically and in other ways, he said. "Everything that was m anufactured, fru its, vegetables, everything like that came out o f South Africa.’’ Bentley said that bringing small solar hot water projects to rural vil lages and solar electric systems to health clinics left him with a sense of satisfaction, although the program he worked on had some bugs. " I liked working there,” he said. "T he people were very frien d ly tow ard A m e ri cans." Support our advertisers Say You Saw It in The PORTLAND OBSER VER LEW WILLIAMS CADILLAC 633N .E. 12th Portland, Oregon 97200 233-6451 C ad illac A Recognized Leader in the Automotive Industry """ FIRST IN Quality Comfort £ Prestige Performance Value Oon I M ills lor lo ts when you dSMrve ths b««t Abdirahman A. Hassan, president of the Association of African Stu dents at P.S.U.; Dr. William Little. P.S.U. professor and Omar Issahak (far right) are briefed by attorneys prior to their attempt to see Calvin Van Pah, Honorary Consul to South Africa. As with previous attempts, the trio wes arrested and cited for trespass. (Photo Richard J. Brown) Slop 6y »nd v it'l our »howroom or call Ctoophas Smith 233 8461 I can pul you in lha drivers Mai today Are You Tired of the Scary Curl, the Four Day Curl or the N ow You See It, N ow You Don't Curl? TRY US W HIPS AND WAVES 4043 N.E. Union Ph. 2403800 A N D GET YOUR HAIR TOGETHER Curl.................................. 36.00 Cuts.................................. 10.00 Press & Curls.................. 15.00 Facial................................ 15.00 ACR N d .........................30.00 Makeup.......................... 15.00 Colors................................25.00 Tnts.................................. 17.00 LAW ANDA BJ
