EDITORIAL/OPINION
MT POLICIES ARE NOT RAO S I !
THE FACT TWAT \ HI REP
AS
A TOKEN BLACK ADMINISTRATOR
PROGNES TWAT.I NOW 6ET BACK
TD 3NORK IMPLEMENTING mOSE
POLICIES... ORTOORE F lR E O ’
Bring back Doonsberry
Portland’s only daily newspaper — Pie Ore­
gonian - is censoring a national opinion dissem­
inated by opinion cartoonist Gary Trudeau be­
cause the subject matter might defame Frank
Sinatra.
This decision is pure censorship and is an ex­
ample o f the double standard employed by this
Newhouse paper. There was no deletion when
their educational reporter libeled and journalis­
tically assassinated the educational achieve­
ments o f Black children. Their last-minute con­
cern for others is hypocritical when, on a daily
basis, they perpetrate racism by reinforcing ster­
eotypes by calling low-income children o f color
"p o o r” and a Black youth running up a basket­
ball court a "w ild Jamaican."
This branch o f Newhouse publication con­
tinues to misrepresent and misinform Portland­
ers as they bore us to tear with the homogene­
ous, status-quo journalism. Portland is part o f a
nation. Therefore, Portlanders deserve a nation­
al view and not one that trickles out o f a narrow
group o f white males (this includes their editor
who is Black) who runs The Oregonian.
Phil Donahue was right. They are a bunch o f
wimps!
ON SOUTH AFRICA
by Rhys Schotes
" A while person is safer in Souih
A frica . than in A lb in a ," according
to Representative John Minnts, the
newest member o f the Oregon Stale
legislature. M innis’ remarks came
as he spoke on the floor o f the O re­
gon House o f Representatives in op­
position to House Bill 2001 to divest
Oregon funds from banks and cor­
porations doing business in South
A frica.
Minnis was appointed to his seat
to fill the vacancy created when Pat
Gillis was recalled by the voters o f
District 20. G illis had defeated Minnis
in the 1984 Republican primary but
lost his seat be cause o f evidence that
he lied in his campaign literature and
in the state voters’ pamphlet.
Minnis* appointment was also
marked by controversy. State law
calls fo r vacancies to be filled by
County Commissioners from a list o f
five candidates submitted by the ap­
propriate party organization. District
20 Republicans submitted only M in ­
nis’ name rather than a list o f five.
County Commissioners reluctantly
approved Minnis when it appeared
that they had no other recourse.
M innis’ remarks on South Africa
produced visible outrage on the floor
the United States and the United Na­
tions have denied recognition to these
so-called “ countries." Minnis praised
these "co u n trie s" and suggested that
the lack o f recognition resulted be­
cause they “ did not game their inde­
pendence through a bloody co u p ."
o f the House. Immediately after his
speech, the Democratic leadership
moved to end debate, preventing
angry responses to M innis’ comments
by other legislators.
In his speech, Minnis quoted exten­
sively from an article by Don Mc-
Alvery, editor o f M cAlvery In te lli­
gence Advisor, which is a monthly
analysis o f global economics, mone­
tary and geopolitical trends which
impact the gold and precious metals
markets. “ A frica has advanced more
in five years than the U.S. did in 25 or
3 0 years," he said.
"T he Blacks in South A frica pay
no income la*. The Whites subsidize
the Black housing, medicine, and
tchools. A Black can have open heart
surgery for I Rand, and a White pays
IS thousand Rand More Black ch il­
dren attend schixil in South A lnca —
80 percent versus 44 percent in N i­
geria. 68 percent in Namibia, and 43
percent in Tarzama (sic).”
The Representative also discussed
the five new "nations” started by
South A frica. These areas are gen
erally known as "homelands.” They
are the arid, desolate reservations
where the South A frican government
has forcibly relixaicd Blacks in order
to deny their citizenship in their own
country. Most o f the world, including
Minnis attributed the unrest in
South A frica to "C om m unists,”
who are seeking to overthrow South
A frica in order to control ” 80 per­
cent o f the precious metals in the
w o rld ." He said that Blacks are now
eating side by side with Whiles in
South A frican restaurants and “ slay­
ing in the finest, formerly White,
hotels."
Again, referring to McAlvery's
publication, he stated, "H e actually
proposes that a W hite person is safer
in South A frica than he is in New
York, or I might propose, in Albina,
since I ’ ve worked there as a police
o ffice r.”
Portlanders Organized f o r Southern
A fric a n Freedom 1POSAF). a lo c a l
m u lti-ra c ia l citizens a c tio n g ro u p
that supports M ack m a jo rity rule in
Southern A fric a and an end to U.S.
support f o r apurtheid. F o r m ore in ­
fo rm ation call 230-9427.
Letters to the Editor
The Observer welcomes letters to
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 a n d address (a d ­
dresses are n o t p u b lish e d ). We re ­
serve the right Io edit f o r length. M a il
to : P o rtla n d Observer. P. O. B ox
3137, Portland. OR 972OB
Ptooso
dwest
operating m South Africa '• those
corporations are not m compfcdrxa
with the expended SuAvan Pnrxsplas
and than recent modification These
Prwxipfes ara nxnmval and do not
piece undue raatnctiona on corporate
oparatxjns aapacsalty whan tuxta
poaad to tha intolerable and bar
banc system of racial saparat«*' m
South Africa
I am awara. Mr Governor. that you
ara contemplating th apoasabUity of
vetexng this vary »grxfxant layeda
non As President and Chief Execu
trva Officer of tha Portland Urban
league. an organization which has
kjught for civil nyhts m this country
for 75 years. I strongly urge you NOT
to veto this leg«latx*>
ft « so important tor Oeyooxans,
indeed a* Americans. to urxterstand
that tha only way to avoid vx4ent
revolution m South Africa « throuyh
concerted afforts to use economre
pressure to bring about social reform
The HurxxaMe Victor Atiyeh
Goverrxjr State of O eycxi
State Capitol Burkkny
Salem. Oregon 97330
Dear GOvemor Atiyeh
I cannot te* you bow proud I waa
of the Oregon House and Sanata for
the* foraa^htad passage of House
BA 2001 I ant hj#y m support of the
m portant measure whrçh would ban
stata funds from bamy invested m
any corporation or deposited in any
bank wfxcb ifcractty supports or lands
to tba government of South Africa.
Tba measure would also raqxara Ore­
gon to dvaat funds from corporations
Amenca can ba a great fnand to
South Africa - both in its praaant cir­
cumstances. and m the transition
Let Portland Observer
classifieds
work for you I
call 283-0090
r PORTLAND OBSERVER
B o . 3D7
i
i
»15 tor one v « i'
S7*i for tw o yx«n
Portlxnil OR 97708
toward eq u ality m society Amenca
can onfy provide such leadership if
each of us takes the opportunity,
when given. to express our outrage
over the inhuman and unthinkable
condmons created by the outrageous
system of apartheid m South Africa
Mr Govern«.* I feel comfortable in
saymy these things to you and I feel
as ttxxiyh you may understand It
seems to rue that a veto of th« ex
tremeh important and h«torx ley«
lation would contradct your own
pubke mags and starve ayaeet racism
with*» our own state
I have never forgotten your sen»
tivity for example to the Raymond
Richardson family when they suf
fared a terrible ordeal several years
ago *i the city of Milwaukie
Your firm and aggressive actxxi at
that time reflected a commitment to
the effort to eratbeate the uyfy scars
of racism m our state and in our na
tion House BA 2W1 « another oppor
txxxty for you to continue the leader
ship you have provided m the past
Ayam. on behalf of human nyhts
and human tbynity on behalf of the
spirit of freedom and independence
which eprtomtres Oeycwxar«.
I
stronyly urge you to support House
BA 2001
HERB I CAW THORNE
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Ebony says racism thriving
Despiic affirm ative action and
civil rights gains in employment, edu­
cation, and other areas, housing dis­
crimination is still rampant in most
metropolitan areas, f ixusing on this
lingering — and devastating — prob­
lem, the cover story in the May issue
ol Black Enterprise examines the in­
sidious ways in which racial steering,
as well as outright violence, are keep­
ing Blacks ftom moving into predom­
inately white neighborhoods or sub­
urbs throughout the country.
According to Otis Thorpe, presi­
dent o f the National Assixiation o f
Real Estate Brokers in Washington
ton, D .C ., changes can't be made
until private industry assumes the bur­
den o f desegregation "Realtors, the
National Home Builders Assixia-
lion, private insurance agencies and
mortgage lenders all must have a
commitment to open housing and
that would have a greater impact than
any government program or series of
court cases,” Thorpe told Black En­
terprise.
Many realtors in all sections o f the
country automatically direct Blacks
toward Black netghborhixids and
away from white areas to satisfy white
homeowners who “ don't want to
sell to Blacks." if Black home buyers
are persistent about a house in a
middle- or upper-income commun­
ity, they are often denied mortgages
or forced to accept less favorable
mortgage terms.
Even i f Blacks do move into a white
neighborhood, they arc still not safe
from the very real threat o f violence
directed against them or their prop­
erty. Indeed, according to Black
Enterprise, violence against Blacks
moving in io white communities is on
the upswing In 1984 the Justice De­
partment prosecuted 36 cases filed
against whites for racially motivated
violence In 1978, only three cases
were prosecuted.
"T he incidents (o f violence) we
hase seen in the past year are more
numerous and mokre serious than
any we have seen in the past ten
years,” says Kayle Williams, director
o f Chicago’s 1 eadership Council for
Metropolitan Open Communities.
"W e think there is an indication o f a
worsening climate concerning respect
for people's rights in the current A d ­
ministration's seeming retreat from
civil rights enforcement.”
The Department o f Housing and
Development, which is supposed to
enforce the Eair Housing Act, has
little enforcement authority and re­
lies heavily on education and volun­
teerism. It may also have a distorted
view o f the racial situation, accord­
ing to Black Enterprise.
A H U D study in 1978 showed that
there was a 72 percent chance o f dis­
crimination in a rental situation and
only a 48 percent chance when a
Black family wanted to purchase a
private home. Most experts disagree
with these findings and claim that the
opposite is true: there is more dis­
crimination against buyers than rent­
ers.
M artin Sloane o f the National
Committee Against Discrimination in
Housing conducted the H U D tests,
but agrees with the experts. “ (H U D )
regarded racial steering as positive
treatment o f Blacks,” Sloane told
Black Enterprise "S o their results
were skewed.”
Many private groups are organizing
f air Housing Councils in metropoli­
tan areas, such as Milwaukee, Atlan­
ta, and Northern New Jersey, to guide
minority house hunters to reputable
realtors who w ill help (hem find a
house in the desired price range and
area.
" I t w ill he a long lime before this
ends," says Catherine Harris o f the
Atlanta Metropolitan Fair Housing
Council. " I don’ t see integration
happening anytime soon, but I wish
it w ould.”
Learn to deal well with aging
by Mamie Erank
As I write this, I have learned that
my 67-year-old father has had a stroke
and is in the intensive care unit. It is
timely that I should be thinking about
the issues o f aging as they affect people
generally and now me, personalis
Those o f us w ho live long enough
w ill need to deal with the aging proc­
ess, our own and that o f people whom
we love. There is so much that we can
do right now to make our aging an
experience o f growth and resolution,
but many o f us deal with issue o f
aging through denial and avoidance.
Examine your attitude« toward
older people. Attitudes toward aging
begin in childhood. Those people who
have negative attitudes tow ard the
elderly now w ill regard themselves
negatively whenever they cross the
threshold o f old age
Ml M»l »
Get u n b ia s e d c lin ic a l in fo r m a ­
tio n a b o u t th a a g in g procaaa and
com pare It to your beliefs You may
find that much o f what you believe is
not based on fact. Their quickness o f
response and recall slow dow n but
their intelligence does not change.
C hech o u t y o u r in s u ra n c e c o v ­
erage O ur society refers to the later
years as the golden years, but for many
people* UlCxe jlx u i o r c n o t g o a u c n
all. The physical and physiological
changes that occur result in medical
expenses that can be a financial drain.
Medicare coverage is limited and there
are many exclusions including o u t­
patient drugs, eye glasses, denture,
blood transfusions and routine physi­
cal exams.
C o n c e n tra te on h e a lth l M any
people believe there is nothing they can
do to affect the quality o f their older
age. T h is is not tru e ! W hat you do
ngh, now — whatever your age — can
affect your body’s physical health. I f
you smoke, q u it. Eat healthy, b a l­
anced meals so your body gets the nu­
trition it needs to keep it strong. If you
don’t exercise at all now, begin slowly
and build up. If you do exercise, keep
it up. I f you drink alcohol take a long
hard look at your drinking habits. You
may be over-drinking. Wha your body
could tolerate at age 30 has a much
harder tim e assim ilating at age 60.
Many people who d idn’t have trouble
earlier become alcoholics in their later
years.
There are many other aspects o f
one's life that affect the aging process
and contribute to positive or negative
expeiences. B rie fly , some o f these
are a va ila b ility and q u a lity o f in te r­
action w ith fa m ily and friends, the
presence o f m eaningful activities in
one's life, a sense o f purpose in being
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