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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 3, 1985)
P»0« 4. Portland Observer, April 3. 1985 EDITORIAL/OPINION ON SOUTH AFRICA Demand Affirmative Action It ’s lime to drop the dime on Multnomah County Commissioner Gretchen Kafoury’s side step o f Affirm ative Action as she continues to represent a section o f Multnomah County with the highest percentage o f Afro-Americans while only employing a Black secretary. This type o f window dressing mirrors the lily- white administration in the county. There are no staff persons of color in any significant role ad vising County Commissioners. And in 1985 Portlanders interested in the preservation and participation o f A ffirm ative Action should find this type o f A ffirm ative Action inactivity un acceptable. When she first took office, we publicly ques tioned her about her staff. When questioned directly by our political reporter, she said she was hiring her campaign manager and a close friend. Those are questionable credentials to represent a district in Multnomah County which is suffering from unemployment, poor housing, uncertain medical coverage and a host o f prob lems created by decades o f institutional racism. Kafoury is perpetuating a hiring trend that locks out community residents and people o f color from employment and participation as key ad visors to elected policy makers. As a white fe male, Kafoury has replaced the discriminatory ‘‘Old Boy” network with a regressive ‘ ‘Old G irl” network. Kafoury’s actions are inconsistent with her image and actions as an electoral champion of liberal causes. The re-districting that created District 18 was supported by Kafoury who will- Street eat ingly gave up her legislative district. Certainly, we commend and applaud her concern for low- income, women, and other progressive issues. But there is something paternalistic about liberal politicians who say they support A ffirm ative Action, yet they never show enough initiative to hire a person o f color in a policy-making position. For too long the Afro-American community has been pimped politically by so-called liberal politicians who knew wha, was best for us. Port land politics are filled with these liberals who reach a certain political plateau and the concerns o f our commuinity are the first to go. Kafoury is part o f a political clique who has historically enjoyed the electoral support o f the Afro-American community, but in times o f eco nomic contractions, biasis from the liberal com munity has favored those in the network and no, Affirm ative Action. The Afro-American community should not operate with politically short memories. The contradictions o f liberalism in America led M a l colm X to this observation 25 years ago: "T h e only difference between a Republican and a Democrat is the difference between a wolf and a fox.” We expected much more from Kafoury than political nepotism which is elitist, narrow and waves with racism. Our community has an in vestment in Multnomah County and we deserve members from our community to be employed to represent us, no, friends or political allies o f the commissioner. The M ayor and all four City Com missioners sponsored a resolution on April 3. endorsing a bill in the state legislature directing the state to divest funds from banks and corporations doing business in South Africa. “ The policy o f apartheid prac ticed in South Africa and Namibia is racist and contrary to American values.” according to the resolution. It further states that U.S. investment strengthens apartheid by support ing the economy and providing tax revenues to enable the South African government to buy the technological and military means to enforce apart heid laws. The bill, H .B .2 0 0 I, was introduced by State Representative Margaret Carter. It is supported by numerous community organizations, including the Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, the N A A C P , Democratic Party o f Oregon. Black United Front. Rainbow Coalition and the Oregon W om en’s Political Caucus. In March, 1983. the City passed a resolution encouraging the Public Employees Retirement System to divest funds in companies that con duct business in South Africa. CfTYOP PORTLAND, OREGON Proclamation WHEREAS, »any p eo p le b e lie v e c e r t a i n p o l i c i e s o f South A f r ic a n governm ents t o be r a c i a t In n a tu re and c o n t r a r y t o Am erican v a lu e a i and WHEREAS, a number o f P o rtla n d r e a id e n ta a re o r q a n lie d to p ro v id e in fo r m a tio n to t h e i r f e llo w r e a id e n t a re g a rd in g South A f r i c a ) and WHEREAS, th e F o r» la n d e rs O rg a n ize d t e r Soutt. \ f »car. 1 reed»m has d ev e lo p e d a a e r ie a o f a c t i v i t i e s t o p ro v id e o p p o r t u n it ie s P o rtla n d r e a id e n ta t o in c re a s e t h e i r know ledge re g a rd in g South A f r ic a n p o l i c i e s ) and fo r WHEREAS, th e Am erican Com m ittee on A f r ic a has d e s ig n a te d March 21 to A p r i l 6 , 1985 as South A f r ic a Weeks th ro u g h o u t th e U n ite d S ta te s as a method o f e d u c a tin g th e n a tio n abo ut South A f r ic a n p o l i c i e s ; and WHEREAS, i t is b e n e f t c i a l to a f u l l u n d e rs ta n lin g o f th e is s u e s re g a rd in g South A f r ic a fo r each c l t i r e n to s tu d y the m a tte r and d e te rm in e h is / h e r own p o s i t i o n ) NOW, THEREFORE, 1, J .E . Bud C l a r k , Mayor o f th e C i t y o f P o r t la n d , O regon, th e ’ C i t y o f Roses’ , do her« >y p r o - l a i r th e weeks o f March 21 to A p r i l ( , 1985, t o be SOUTH AFRICA WEEKS Police Chief Penny Harrington is inter ested in bringing back a curfew for youths 17 and under. The Street Beat team asked, “ How do you feel about a curfew?” In P o r t la n d , and c a l l upor. a l l c i t i z e n s o ’ P o r t ia n i’ »3 th e issues and to d e te rm in e » h o it .•»•••eoi.a' p r i n t t i - - . it v. by Lanita Duke and Richard J. Brown i Patrick Cleney 10 Year» Old Beyond “ neo-liberalism” " I t ’s a gtxxl idea. It will protect kids from muggers and others.” Darrell Eldridge Marketing Repreeentatlve " I t ’s a good idea, the long er kids slay on the streets, the more trouble they get into. I ’ll support a curfew.” Along the C olor Line by Dr. M anning M arable E. Carmichael Broker " I don’t know if I can sup port that. A 10:30 p.m. curfew is not very realistic. Judy Ceatrepel Production Line Worker " I would support it. People aren’t safe on the street. We even need a curfew for older people.” Mr». Clarine Smith Retired “ I think it’s a gtxxl idea. It will help young people accept rules and regulations and elim inate some street problems.” Mike Futch 1214 “ I t ’s good. Kids won't get into trouble and parents won't worry about their kids.” X Portland Observer M M «, • Tha Portland O b ierver rltS P S 959 680! ispublishad «vary Thursday by E i« Publishing Company. Inc . 2201 North Killings worth. Portland. Oregon 97217. Post Office Boi 3137. Portland. Oregon 97208 Second class postage patd at Portland Oregon I«eI t«ei The Portland Obierver was estab, ned rn 1970 M ÍMBÍR Subscriptions »15 00 per year in tha I f County area Poet m aster Send address changes to the Portland Obierver. P O Bos 3137, Portland, Oregon 97208 NHWA per Associttion ■ Founded i t t i I I ! A lfre d L. Henderson, Editor/Publisher A ! Williams, Ge.ieral Manager 283 2486 National Advertising Representative A m algam ated Publishers. Inc N ew York There is a pronounced lendency among Black elected officials and civil rights leaders io blame most of our current woes on the Reagan ad ministration. Undeniably, the Rea gannes are conducting an uncondi tional war against Black people's interests, manipulating clowns like Clarence Pendleton lo hoist the ban ner of "reverse discrimination.” Yet few Afro-American leaders have begun to reassess the limitations o f their own political practice and theo retical orientation, in the midst o f our fight for racial equality and demo cratic rights. "Neoliberalism ," or Reaganism with a human face, repre sents no real solutions to the national drift to the right over the past decade. Nor does a simplistic revival o f the policies o f the New Deal or the Great Society. Most Black politicians and civil rights spokespersons are liberals. Obviously, some tend toward more leftist or social democratic defini tions o f what comprises liberalism, such as Georgia State Senator Julian Bond. Others are more moderate by temperament or inclination— Charles Rangel. Andrew Young, and Bill G ray— but are nevertheless liberals by any standard. Liberalism still retains many fine qualities: a desire to imple ment public programs which reduce poverty and unemployment, expand public health facilities, reduce taxes on low-to-middlc income households, and to reduce the bloated Pentagon budget Liberals comprise the ma jority o f Americans who want an end to the illegal U.S. war against Nica ragua; they are the core o f the freeze movement; and they advocate the abandonment o f the Reagan -apartheid axis, better known as "constructive engagement” with South Africa. But liberals and liberalism are not in vogue, at least among the majority of the white electorate Why? Unlike many conservatives, liberals lack any theoretical orientation, beyhond a well meaning pragmatism. Liberals believe that all views, no matter how controversial, merit serious discus sion. They dwell within an endless se nes o f paradoxes — no blacks, no whites, just greys in slightly different hues. They feel at home within am biguity, and find something meaning ful in vagueness. Liberals simply don't like to make distinct choices. And more than anything else, they do not wish to be considered "extrem ists.” Jesse Helms and other ultra- rightists in politics are held in con tempt not so much for what they ad vance within the government, but for their vitriol, their extreme be havior and unwillingness to compro mise. And at last a basic reality of Amer ican political culture emerges: a small band o f dedicated, hardworking "ex tremists," when properly organized, can implement their program within the political system and ultimately svin over a majority to their views. To do this, the “ extremists" must have a cause, a reason for mobilizing peo ple; and they must be willing to suffer short-run losses and defections from their own ranks in order to achieve their goals. White liberals have al most no causes, beyond a collection o f platitudes. In contrast, the New Right has a cause and a clear-cut vi sion o f the future. Liberals like M o n dale vacilate in critical moments: re actionaries like Reagan virtually never retreat. This is precisely why the Democratic "neoliberals” and con servatives will fail to overtake the next generation o f conservatives, such as Jack Kemp and Lew Lehrman. A lukewarm version o f fiscal austerity will alternate progressives from the Democratic Party’s ranks, and will be insufficient to attract conservative Democrats from Reagan's constituency. Nearly 150 years ago, the abolition ists were an isolated band o f "ex tremists.” The cause seemed utopian — the abolition o f slavery. Yet on this issue, they refused to compromise, and ultimately they achieved a na tional majority to destroy an immoral system. Tw o decades ago, many whiles attached M artin Luther King, Jr„ as an “ extremist.” He had a dream — the destruction o f racial segregation, and ihe achievement o f Blacks' po litical and civil rights. On this ques tion, M artin could not compromise. What should our political visuon be in the mid-1980s? We must advance politics in the abolitionist and civil rights Iraditi ins, going beyond tra ditional liberalism. Our first goal is the abolition of racism, root and branch, in any form; the destruction o f South Africa's system o f apartheid, the achievement o f full employment, free public medical care, and univer sal education. Poverty, in every form, must be abolished; women’s inequal ity. and especially the severe economic and social oppression o f Black wo men, must be ended. Liberals may find these goals utopian. But until the Black movement clarifies its vision of a just, democratic stxial order, and is willing to become as "extreme” as the New Right for its own cause, the trend toward Reaganism will con tinue Dr. M anning M arab le teaches p o litical sociology at Colgate University, H a m ilto n , N e w York. " A lo n g the Color I m e " appears in over 140 news papers internutionallv : ; ; : •
