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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 27, 1985)
Page 2. Portland Observer, February 27, 1965 of loaast * * Act rctrACio T> AZifcfT lOUC flOVXeNNiNT-. BUT ONcy IF v o u TB tA TY W ith w mpmsdcs EDITORIAL/OPINION * f t AZ* w J» st dio BUT n n SM>NA1l/WS NOT VAC IP IT JtAAV T S*V SoMbSA WUA1 ? \ / District should use community As the Desegregation M o n ito rin g and A d visory Com m ittee (D eM ac) makes its quarterly report to the school board, we are rem inded that the inequalities, discrepancies and in e ffi ciencies which faced children o f color in the Portland public Schools 15 years ago still exist. But the crack o f an open door that forced a halt to an educational policy that penalized Black children may be the district's saving grace. the previous adm inistration. The com m unity asked the district to dismantle the “ Schools o f the 70s** plan and the district delegated this task to the people who advocated the elimination o f upper grades and the scattering o f Black chil dren with a punitive bussing program . These elements were tradem arks o f the “ Schools o f the 70s” plan. D eM ac sited the disproportion in the n u m ber o f Black students receiving a m odified d i plom a, being suspended from school and the pattern o f low achievement in Early Childhood E d u catio n al Centers in N o rth and Northeast Portland. W e see a ray o f hope in this presenta tion and in the soon to be implemented African- American curriculum. The residual damage fro m this plan con tributes to the disp ro p o rtio n ate num ber o f Blacks in the crim in al justice system, on the unemployment rolls and on public assistance. The disappointing small num ber o f Black certified teachers and adm inistrators at Early Childhood Educational Centers is the aftermath of past and present poor recruitment by the Dis trict’s personnel office. The problems contin uing to plague Black children result fro m the continued employment o f archaic policies and the individuals who created them. The architects o f the African-A m erican cur riculum were not the district's employees, but local consultants with a wide range of expertise. Also, the talents o f the nation were tapped to educate an institution in the most effective way to teach children o f color. Another example o f citizen outreach is the H O S T program where citizens are asked to spend 30 minutes a week helping a child to read. Both items o f success were b u ilt upon citizen p articip atio n and re sources. One reason for the current inequalities in the school system is that the designers o f the p ro grams which perpetrate these disproportions are still operating with the authority they enjoyed in The district should undergo some self-analysis and consider re-structuring its staff. One solu tion that demands immediate consideration is the successful utilization o f community and out side resources to tackle the district's structural limitations. There is nothing wrong in admitting that you need help. W ith a declining tax base and questionable results from the current struc ture the district might better serve our children if they solicit, incorporate and fund the com munity and outside resources to serve the District. ON SOUTH AFRICA Tina Turner condemns So. Africa Unify in Action has received a copy of a letter o f agreement from singer Tina Turner pledging that she will not p erfo rm again in A p a rth e id South A fric a “ w hile the present circ u m stances there p rev ail.” W e welcome Ms. Turner's promise to honor United Nations cultural sanctions. This agreement was preceded by a succession o f expanding protest dem onstrations against the singer's con certs in many cities including New Y o rk , T o ro n to , and Los Angeles. Unity in Action gratelully acknowledges other activist p ro -lib eratio n forces whose concerted, very visible, and embarassing protests and confronta tions with Tina Turner were the major effort which brought about this vic tory — rather than anyone's co n structive engagement. Immediately prior to receiving the copy o f Tina Turner's letter Unity in Action had notified the Roger Davies Managem ent Firm o f its determ ina tion to picket her presence at the February 26 G ram m y Awards cere mony at Los Angeles' Shrine A u d i torium. This would have been in keep ing with the action o f last July when T u rn e r perfo rm ed at the F orum . W h ile she was not a target o f the G ram m y d em o n stra tio n , u n fo r tunately Ms. Turner’s statement did not come in time to prevent Unity in Action's bringing pressure against the N A C P 's Image Awards program in December As a result, all three Turn er nom inations for “ Best Female A r tis t," “ Best Song o f the Y e a r," and "Best Album o f the Year" were withdrawn. A spokesperson for Unity in Action stated, “ A lth o u g h her prom ise is welcomed and accepted, it is regret table that Ms. Turner was so badly in form ed as to South A fric a 's reality that her letter referred to “ South Africa” and the so-called "Republic” of Bophutatswana as separate coun tries. O nly the fascist South African government recognizes the false " in dependence" o f this forced resettle ment area where Black South A f r i cans, stripped o f their birthright by law, are dum ped as denationalized and disenfranchised aliens. " I t should be noted that undoubt edly Ms. Turner, as with other Black persons who enter South A frica, i.e. Jesse Jackson, did so under the con dition that she renounce her African (Black) identity and submitted to the o ffic ia l ap artheid designation o f "honorary white." Tina Turner's letter o f January 15 signals a m a jo r b reakth ro ug h fo r local and n ation al an ti-ap arth eid forces who are continuing the cam paign here to keep U .S . artists and athletes out o f South Africa. The Cultural Boycott barring artis tic collaboration with the racist apart heid state is part o f United Nations and O rg an izatio n o f A fric a n U n ity imposed sanctions intended to iso late the inhuman regime. The U .N . has termed South A fr ic a ’ s system o f forced racial separation and o p pression “ a crime against humanity.” Who profits from apartheid? Street eat The G o vern o r has an idea o f how he wants to allocate the lottery revenue but the Street Beat team asked, “ H ow would you like to see the lottery income spent?” by Lenita Duke and Richard J. Brown John Simmons Unemployed " I hope toward jobs. A lot ot people are unemployed and they can see a return on money they would spend on the lo t tery." Irene Finley Clerical Elaine Rockwood Housewife "S ch o o ls! T hey need it. I know property taxes are not enough for schools. W ith the lo tte ry , 1 hope my property taxes will drop.” " T h e y should spend it on education. They could use it to purchase eq u ip m ent, te x t books and special programs." T. T. Jermany Retired "T h e y need to spend it on state and property tax relief. But w e've got to watch the politicians to see that they spend it on what they say they will spend it o n ." Toni Schlinkmeier Carrier " I would like to win the lot tery and see the state pul the money in road im provem ent and tax relief." Christine Pennington Packer " I don’ t believe in the lo t tery. I did not vote for it. Peo ple shouldn't spend their little money on gambling." Portland Observer i «i i The P ortlan d Observer ZUSPS 959 6801 i t published every Thursday by Esie Publishing Company. Inc 2201 North Killings worth. Portland. Oregon 97217. Post OMice B om 3137. Portland. Oregon 97208 Second class postage paid at Portland Oregon M «*••»<« k « i o t L MNI » The Portland Observar was estab, ned in 1970 MEMBER Subscriptions 115 00 per year in tbs f r County sres Post m aster Sand address changes to the Portlcnd O h ftrvtr, P O Bow 3137. Portland, Oregon 97708 NÊWA per Atiociatioo - founded 1885 w «TT?? A lfre d L. Henderson. Editor/Publisher A ! Williams, General Manager 283 2486 National Advertising Representative A m algam ated Publishers Inc N ew Y octi Along ihe C o lor Line by D r. M anning M arable South A fric a is unquestionably the most im m o ra l and repressive stage on the face of the earth. Despite the Reagan administration's cozy and supportive relations with apartheid, dubbed "constructive engagement,” the reality of its tyranny is too monu mental to obscure. Since 1967 over six and o n e -h a lf m illio n citizens have been arrested and tried for pass law violations; hundreds o f opposition leaders have been crippled, tortured and even murdered by apartheid po lice; over one hundred laws restrict and censor the press; and since June 1961 1,500 people have been "banned" by the g o vern m en t’ s M in iste r o f Law and Order, the continuing non violent protests throughout the U .S . led by civil rights and religious leaders, has helped to highlight these brutal ities, and has made President Reagan's support fo r this N a z i-lik e regime more difficult to justify. But larger questions remain. W ho benefits m a teria lly fro m the exist ence and perpetuation of a state whose legal justification is white supremacy? Does the investment o f U.S. corpora tions in the regime help or hurt Am er ican taxpayers and workers? A n y analysis o f the p o litic a l economy o f South A fric a illustrates that the U .S . is decisive in the running o f the racist government. Am erican corporations control 70 percent of the South A frica computer market — in fact, an IB M computer runs the stock exchange in Johannesburg. G o o d year and Firestore sell tires to the regim e, which are used fo r police forces. Several multinational oil com panies, including Exxon. Caltex and M o b il, have sold oil to South A frica in direct violation o f the 1979 O P E C embargo. In all, about 20 percent o f all foreign direct investment in South Africa comes from U .S. firms. As o f 1983, fo r exam ple, M o b il O il had $426 million invested inside the coun try , w ith 3,577 w orkers; G eneral Motors, $243 million and 5,038 work ers; Newmont, $127 million and 13,535 workers; Union C arbide, $54.5 m il lion and 2,465 workers. Control Data had $17.8 million in sales in 1983 in side South A fric a , a p au ltry figure I I I com pared to I B M ’s sales o f $262 m illio n and w o rk fo rc e o f 1,800. American banks, led by Chase M an h attan , C h em ic al, Bankers T ru s t, First Boston and M an u factu re rs Hanover, had outstanding loans total ing nearly $4 billion as o f 1984. The reasons for U.S. corporate in terest in South A fric a are easy to explain. Despite the union m ember ship o f about 350,000 African labor ers, the vast majority o f the nonwhite labor force is unorganized. Strikes are illegal, and nonwhite union activism is viciously repressed. The m ajority of Black workers live in poverty. Even according to the biased statistics o f the apartheid governm ent, A fric an households below the official poverty Ivel include 62 percent in Johannes burg, 65 percent in D u rb an , and 70 percent in Port Elizabeth. Racial seg regation lowers nonwhite labor costs, using M ay 1983 figures, the average monthly wages in all manufacturing firms was $1,290 for whites, $460 for Ind ian s, $365 fo r C o lo u re d s , and $320 for Africans. According to the Survey o f C u rre n t Business. U .S . companies averaged 18.7 percent an nual rates o f return on capital invest ment between 1979 to 1982. A p a rt heid laws and the rigid regimentation of nonwhite labor reap their rewards. H o w does this investm ent affect Americans? Researchers for the Wash ington O ffice on Africa and the Civil Rights Department of the United Steel workers o f A m erica recently pre pared a brief study on this issue. For several years, the U.S. steel industry has experienced a state o f rapid col lapse Between 1974 and 1982 d o mestic steel production declined by 50 percent. In 1983, the seven largest steel producers reported losses o f $2.7 billion that year alone. M ajo r in dustrial towns dependent upon steel producers reported losses o f $2.7 billion that year alone. M a jo r indus trial towns dependent upon steel pro ductivity to generate jobs have had staggeringly high rates o f jobless ness. Simultaneously, the U .S . steel industry has ciphoned domestic prof its and reinvested them in T h ird W o rld nations where au th o rita rian PORTLAND OBSERVER regimes guarantee a low wage, non- unionized labor force. Imports from foreign nations producing steel now exceed one fifth of the domestic mar ket. And since 1975, U.S. imports of apartheid's steel have increased 5,000 percent. South African steel is largely pro duced by a state-owned firm , the Iron and Steel Corporation (ISC O R ) A ll o f Ihe m a jo r U .S . companies which have experienced d ifficu lties producing steel at home — A R M C O , Allegheny Ludlum, U.S. Steel, Phelps Dodge, and others — have invested millions into apartheid's industries. Recently, C h icag o ’ s Southw orks steel plant, owned by U .S. Steel, laid o ff several thousand workers, on the rationale that U .S . workers weren’t sufficiently productive and that the plant w asn't m aking p ro fits . Then local steelw orkers learned that the steel beams used to build a new stale office building in Chicago had been imported from South Africa, despite the fact that Southw orks produces the identical steel beams. Even more outrageous was the fact that C o n ti nental Illinois Bank has loaned money to ISCO R, which had produced these beams. In short, C h icag o laborers were giving their hard-earned wages to a local bank, which in turn financed a competitor which was stealing their jobs! There are dozens o f similar exam ples. The Phelps Dodge copper m in ing corporation has a poor record on domestic labor relation s, and has called for wage cuts from its workers. But in its mine in South Africa, Blacks earn under 40 cents an h ou r, and labor 60 hours per week. Investment in apartheid not only buoys the racist regime, and oppresses African w ork ers, it also destroys jobs and neigh borhoods inside the U.S. Wage labor cannot compete with slave labor. We have a direct m oral and econom ic interest in cutting the corporate cords between the U.S. and apartheid. Dr. M anning M arable teaches p o litical sociology at Colgate University. H a m ilto n , N ew York. "A lo n g the Color L in e“ appears in over 140 news papers internationally S16 lor one year ♦26 lor tw o years Bon 3137 Portland OR 97208 Wl $ m m x Ap| STATE Z IP T O © 5 -I -I < O Co O I O 3 2 g * " i (p < Î2 x; * -s -i X 3j b tí
