Page 4, Portland ObMrver, May 22, 1966
EDITORIAL/OPINION
McCoy: Listen to the voters
continues to avoid and fight independent health
and environmental studies, the concern and call
for action is being compromised by politicians.
Let’s assist M cCoy in rectifying his mistake.
We understand sthe pressure a large corporation
such as Teledyne Wah Chang or its supporters
can level on a politician, and it's easy for McCoy
to become isolated since he visits his constitu­
ency infrequently. W rite M cCoy and urge him
to vote positively in the wishes o f those who
voteo ‘ Yes’ on ballot Measure 9. I f not, the ef­
forts o f Ballot Measure 9 would have to be re­
peated.
Voters in District 2 deserve a much more pro­
gressive representation since McCoy survived
the 1984 primary on the increase in voter turn­
out due to the presidential campaign o f Jesse
Jackson.
The wishes o f our district should no, be com­
promised or ignored. Urge McCoy to reconsider
his vote on SB624:
Senator W illiam McCoy
State Capitol Building, Rm. S-209
Salem, Oregon 97304
The community deserves an explanation from
State Senator Bill McCoy as to why he voted
down Senate Bill 624 and 625 which would have
closed a loophole preventing Teledyne Wah
Chang from dumping radioactive waste on the
floodplain o f the Willamette River.
The rhyme and reason for Ballot Measure 9,
which passed by 62 percent in Multnomah
County, placed strict requirements on the dis­
posal o f radioactive waste. Senate Bill 624 re­
inforced it and M cCoy and other State Senators
ignored it.
Three weeks ago, the State Senate had an op­
portunity to close this loophole. A tie occurred
and in the event o f a tie the bill fails and SB624
takes a dive, along with the wishes o f the m ajor­
ity in District 2. M cCoy’s vote was decisive in
side-stepping the grassroot call for restraint and
reason when it comes to the disposal o f radio­
active waste.
While the Oregon Energy and Facility Siting
Council wastes time arguing about how radio­
active waste is, and as Teledyne Wah Chang
The Church o f Scientology is converging
on Portland to protest a $39 million verdict
by a Multnomah County jury. The Street
Beat team asked, “ Did you feel the verdict
awarded las, week was excessive?”
Street Beat
by Lam,a Duke and Richard J Brown
NfckiWWto
Bookka
The money award is too
much. You don't get that much
when you kill someone."
Craifl W M m
Unemployed
Danny Oabome
M ukden
"They charged up the church
on just one case. It sounds as if
the judgment was way o ff."
"Seems like the verdict was
right, but I question (he $39
m illion judgment.’ ’
ITS A REAGAN APVANCE 7FAM... HE WANTS TO MAKE
AN OFFICIAL VISIT TO PATCH UP RELAT/OHS,
Apartheid: Black responsibility
A long I he C o lo r Line by Dr. M anning M arable
Two weeks ago. hundreds o f thou­
sands o f students seized administra­
tion buildings, boycotted classes and
held rallies demanding ihai their uni­
versities hall investments in corpora
tions doing business in South Africa.
At the University o f Wisconsin at
Madison, several hundred protestors
occupied a conference center at the
State Capitol; A t the University o f
California at l.os Angeles, ai leasi 200
protestors look over a campus build­
ing, following a demonstration o f
2,(XX) students. Rallies and protests
occurerd at over 75 campuses nation­
wide.
At my own university, about 400
students met on our campus yard to
protest investments in South Africa
Subsequently students marched to the
main administration buiding and
spontané«,usly conducted a sit-in
which lasted several days. Anii-
apartheid faculty held lectures and
discussions on the moral, political and
economic reasons justifying total
divestment Some Black students were
in the leadership o f these protests, hut
the majority simply disappeared. Had
they been studying for exams, which
are si ill three weeks away, there mighi
have been a valid excuse for inactiv­
ity. But some were clearly alraid to
"gel involved"; others d idn’t under
stand "w hat apartheid was"; and
still others, a tiny m inority openly
supported U.S. investments inside
apartheid.
This incident, albeit insignificant in
the general trend o f anti-apartheid
struggles, raised for me several con­
cerns. We may jx»ini to reams o f
statistics which illustrate that co lieges
which have divested hase not suffered;
we may cite evidence that virtually
every legitimate trade union, religious
and jx,lineal leader o f Black South
Africa favors sanctions agains the
regime; we may even repeat, fo r the
thousandth time, the cases where
U.S. firms have provided technical
and material support to the mecha­
nisms o f violence which maim and
murder African people. But we can­
not mobilize effectively to aid in the
liberation o f South A frica so long as
Black Americans themselves are con­
fused, divided and disoriented about
our stake in the worldwide struggle
against racism.
T im , many Afro-Am erican yinith
have not been educated or motivated
to comprehend the direct connection
between racial oppression in South
A frica with the Reaganite racism in­
side the U.S. Defenders o f the status
quo may say that agitation has no
place inside educational institutions.
But education without a social con­
science and a political orientation is
no education at all. Students involved
in ihe "s it-in ” movement aertns the
South a quarter century ago learned
more about racism and politics than
in any course on contemporary gov­
ernment. A il education for Blacks
which provides technical abilities
without a sense o f racial heritage and
political commitment creates a gener­
ation o f Clarence Pendletons.
Bui perhaps the larger quest!«,n is
whether we can expect the battle
against racial inequality to include all
Black people. Some Blacks, fo r vari­
ous reasons, clearly identify with
systems o f exploitation. A few have
even convinced themselves that fu n ­
damental, denKxratic change isn’t
possible in the short run, hence ac­
commodation is now the name o f the
game. Given the growth o f the "B lack
Anglo-Saxons" in corp«,rate circles
and effective offices since the late
1960s, we can anticipate even more
defections from the ranks o f the civil
rights movement; Blacks who pay
lip-service to racial justice but whose
actions demonstrate a commitment to
aparttieid and Reagamsm.
Our struggle along the color line
must include all people — including
many whiles — who have acted in
concert with us lo destroy apartheid,
poverty, and social injustice. Reform
and democracy .11 require a broad
coal ii ion o f progressive forces. But we
cannot expect all Alro-Americans to
rally for divestment, affirm ative ac­
tion, or for fu ll employment, in an
environment which rewards capitula­
tion and subservience. As thousands
o f white students illustrated Iasi
month, the fight to abolish racism is
not fundamentally a black-while
a ,n flic t. Nor are our opjx,nents solely
while.
Dr. Manning Marable teaches po­
litical sociology at Colgate University,
Hamilton, New York. "A long the
Color L in e " appears in over HO news­
papers internationally.
Letters to the Editor
The Observer welcomes letters lo
the e d ito r Letters sh o u ld be typed
or neatly printed and signed with the
a u th o r's name and address la d
dresses are n o t p u b lis h e d / We re ­
serve the right to edit fo r length. M ail
to : P o rtla n d Observer, P. O. Pox
3137, Portland. OP 972OH
Cert Sm ith
Musician
To the Editor,
"1 don't think it ’s a free­
dom o f religion issue. They
frauded that woman. I think
they’ll appeal that $39 m illion
verdict and it will come down."
Sandy Korpenfeh
Bartender
Rebel Owings
Housewife
" , don't know the issue but
the cash award did seem c sees­
aw. Makes me wonder how
far people can go.”
"T he verdict might be cor­
rect, but the money judgment
was outrageous.’ ’
P O R T M N D OBSERVER
I
So far. 12 P«,rtland Police officers
have been "reprim anded" f«,r buying
T-shirts that said, " D o n 't ch ke 'em.
smoke 'e m ." As reported by The
Oregonian, their names cannot he re­
leased, because the agreement the
Police Bureau has with the union
representing the officers prevents it.
What kind o f trust is that supptwed to
inspire? I believe the names should be
published for the whole city io see, so
the residents o l Portland w ill know
who these officers are. Their pur­
chase o f these T-shirts exposes a racist
mentality, and not exposing their
names hides them from the reaction
they rightly deserve from the Black
commumiy. Are Black residents o f
Portland supp«>scd to live in fear, not
knowing i f the officer standing in
from o f ihem is a racist or not?
One o f the officers inv«,lvcd in the
ileath o f M r. Stevenson was involved
in the ojxnsum incident a few years
ago. I ’m sure he was “ reprimanded,”
too. Sec where he ended up? Repri
mands in the file arc worthless. On
the other hand, s«, was the whole in­
quest process, so what’s new? The in­
quest was mainly a public coroner’s
rept,rt, deciding who died, when and
how. We knew that already! A ll the
inquest turned out to he was a gigantic
public relations gesture toward the
Black community. The Black resi­
dents in this town are angry and
scared, and should be. Attempts by
the authorities to calm things down
and gloss things over should be seen
f«x what they are: attempts by ner-
v«>us public officials trying to main­
tain p«,wer.
I am white, but not one o f those
whiles who deny racism in P«,rtland
because they have never experienced
it firsthand. That's sticking one’s
head in (he sand. T ru th fu lly, isn’t
that really what the auth«,rities want
us to do — trust them totally and
stick our heads in the sand? Well,
we’ re not going to behave exactly the
way they want us to anymore.
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