Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 20, 1985)
Portland Observer, February 20, 1985, Page 7 Anne Frank's diary remains relevant by Hubert I olhum There is probably no more poignani account o f life during the Nazi terror than the D ia ry o f A nne Prank The young Jewish girl and her family hid from the Nazis for two years in A m sterdam, but they were eventually discovered and Anne and most of her family died in concentration camps. Anne Trank left behind her famous diary, and she has become a symbol o f the holocaust and efforts to make sure it never happens again. An exhibit o f two collections from the Anne Frank House in A m ster dam, “ Anne Frank and her D ia ry ,” and “ Fascism, Racism and Anti-Semi tism: Recent Developments,” is now on display at the U .S Rank Plaza. S.W Fifth and Oak. 9 a m. - 5 p.m ., M onday through Saturday, during February . The exhibit is free and open to the public Neo-Nazis say that the diary is a fake and that stories of the horrors of the death camps are communist propa ganda, according to the Dutch human rights expert. “ A lth ou gh they are small, they are v io le n t,” and even more violent than left-wing terrorists, he said. « Unem ployed young people who have no idea o f "the cruelty.. .the hor ror” o f the N a/is are attracted to the growing neo-Nazi movements in E u rope, said van der Val. They want to blame their economic hardships on somebody, o ften im m igrants and "B lack people from the co lo n ies." The neo-Nazis share the belief in bask' racial inequalities with their Nazi fore- bearer,, he said B lack H istory M onth. Feb. Anne Frank's diary is so appealing because she was a “ perfectly ordinary g irl” w riting about ordinary things, said Bauco van der W a l, director of the Anne Frank House. “ I f you life in Chippewa Falls or Tokyo, Anne Frank is somebody you could understand,” said van der W al, who was in P o rt land to open the exhibit. Irvington School (Continued fro m Page I, Column 6) threc-year period, it has been spent on computer literacy, bringing in people from O .M .S .I. and trips to the Oregon Symphony. I, might be belter spent on development o f inter-personnel and inter-cultural relationships," said Miller Ayers said although com plaints about Chadwick centered around his dealings with Black mothers, his ac tions were not racist. “ He docs not in tend to treat them as they perceive. It's his leadership style — a style we are going to have Io discuss," he noted Ayers also said C h ad w ick's style might have caused a physical a lte r cation on the school's playground February 13, as students witnessed a confrontation between Chadwick and two female adults who came to pick up a child. " I t was a m isunderstanding,” Chadwick said the night o f the 13th. “ Permission came from the parents, but we did not receive it. fin e woman kicked me in the groin I apologized to the parent and explained our pro cedure for having a student picked up. It was a regrettable in c id en t,” he said. Patty C o x c ff, who first brought the situation at Irvington to the public {P o rtlan d Observer, January 30), said (h a d w ic k has retaliated against her by barring her from the school. " I saw this little boy run o ff the school ground and he did not come back for 15 minutes. I asked another child whom I knew what the hild's name was. ( hadwick turned it mound and said I was asking children for their phone numbers,” she said Cox- e ll said her child w ill rem ain home with an ample supply of homework. " I f I ’ m not able to go on the school ground, my child will not go either." ( hadwick called the public exposure initiated by A ir ' American Mothers Against In s titu tion al Racism “ in- fammatory.” Mathis said he plans to conclude his assessment ol these complaints some time in March PSU opens doors Hundreds o f O regon high school juniors and seniors who are Black, Hispanic, American Indian and Asian arc expected to attend Portland Slate University’s special “ on-campus field trip” scheduled for Wednesday, Feb ruary 27. The event, which includes lunch and entertainment at no cost, will feature a wide variety of speakers and activi ties to provide encouragement lo r these students to pursue their higher education goals. For further in fo rm a tio n , contact P S U ’s A ffirm a tiv e Action O ffic e at 229-4417. Even though they are responsible ■ such laws, in his opinion. "This is not for an alarming number of anti-Semi a matter o f freedom o f speech," he tic and rafially-m otivatcd bombings said and attacks, the general public appar D r Syglvia F ran kel, director o f ently perceives the neo-Nazis as only a the Oregon Holocaust Center in Port “ few weirdo« walking around wearing land. said that the exhibit is " a ll swastikas" and not a threat, he con ( booked u p " with scheduled visits by Portland school children. " I t ’ a im - tinued. i " I n Europe it is no longer fro n t poriani to teach these kids so they’ll be page news when a hand grenade is ready tor it," she said about the racism thrown into a group of Jewish children and anti-Semitism fomented by neo- on their way to camp. Now it is page Nazis three." In addition to the Anne Frank and " It is important to uncover them, to neo-Nazi exhibits, the Anne Frank make clear what they really stand fo r," House in Amsterdam has sponsored sax! van der W al. referring to the neo- exhibits on apartheid and discrimina Nazis. European countries have laws tion against European immigrants. It which make stirring up racial hatred a also exerts pressure on governments punishable offense, and the U.S. needs that violate human nghts. How many Black Americans are you familiar with in the history of our country? Chances are, not that many because you won 7 find them in most history books. But Black History Month gives us a chance to become aware of the contribu tions many Black Americans have made in science, medicine, industry, agriculture, literature and more. Join us in the observation of Black History Month and broaden your knowledge of how we, collectively, as a people have made this country what it is today. Fight illiteracy W r it t e n D e s ig n e d x P ro d u c e d b y D errick t Thousands of adults in our r.cigh- borhood are struggling to get by in this “ info rm ation age" without the ability to read The N o rlh /N o rth e a s t Portland Literacy Project provides free tutor ing in reading skills, and we are try ing to expand their program A community information meeting will be held Thursday, February 28, at 7:30 p .m . in the Irvin g to n School Auditorium, I32O N I Brazcc Street D.m sby SAFEWAY I or more information, call 28) 2541, •«tension 351 I . jbe . -r . • . • >s- I • i •< ‘ ’ • »‘I - 4 ‘ »’
