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Page 2, Portland Observer, February 4, 1987
A n O pen Letter to Julian Bond and John Lewis
Along the Color Line
Dear Julian and John
Black A m e n ta rejoiced w ith glee when the tw o o f you
announced your candidacy for the Congressional seat in
the district encompassing Atlanta. Georgia
The
thought o f representation by a candidate whose popu
lanty is over shadowed only by his humanitariam efforts
seemed God sent And for the first time in the history
o f this country, the deep South was showcasing for
all of America a new direction birthed by the Civil Rights
movem ent the tw o of you helped launch
We were inspired by you bravery and courage wtien
confronted by the Bull Conners. George Wallaces. Las
ter M addox*. the cattle prods, the dogs, the water
hoses, and every single obstacle the racists and bigots
could muster in their attem pts to defeat Black Amen
ca’s quest for equality
We were inspired by your leadership in advocating
voting rights for our people during a period when the
mere mention o f such w ords created chaos and turm oil
We were inspired by your articulation during public
appearances in denouncing attem pts by some to dese
crate the C onstitutional rights of the poor
Yes. indeed, you helped create an environment w ith
in this society, heightening an image for Black youth,
making it possible for some of today's highly visible
success stories in education, employment and family
lifestyle You were tieros then and remain so today
But. then, the both of you had an excellent teacher
Or Martin Luther King, Jr
Embracing the w orld as his classroom. Dr King
taught us tfiat though we may differ philosophically, all
people, especially Blacks, must share one com m on
goal: peaceful co existance
Dr King, embarking on his theme of non violence
and racial equality, make it possible for your recent
candidacy, and. w eie he alive today, undoubtedly he
w ould tiave fieen proud of your accomplishments in the
jxilitica l arena As mentor, he had graduated tw o stu
dents b oth capable of continuing his captivating philo
sophy o f w orld wide human decency Instead, given
recent publicity, one can probably envision him tunng
over in fits grave heartbroken, disillusioned, and. like
most Blacks, confused
The same media, w hich publicized your trail blazing
exploits as respecter) Black leaders and follow ed your
rise to prominence, now writes of your bitter differences
tow ards each other, the strained relations between your
families, the inuendoes hurled during the cam paign,
and the possible ineffectiveness o f Congressman John
Lewis (the eventual w inner) due to the split among
political allies in the A tlanta Democratic Party
This could not have happened at a more inopportune
tune Eor example, the Democratic Party, staggering
from massive political blunders com m itted during the
84 campaign, is attem pting io restructure its political
ideology
They ho(>e to accomplish tins through an appearance
of party cohesiveness while dow n playing Rev Jesse
Jackson as a serious candidate for President in 1988
This restructuring of political ideologies proposes dra
Stic changes in Democratic platform strategy, w hich
w ould nut only
iilute the Black agenda for 88. but
w ould also tie any candidate running as a Presidential
hopeful in d ie Democratic Party to its (the Party's) ow n
agenda Jess»!, of course, w ill have nothing to do w ith
it Neither will the Congressional Black Caucus
So. John and Julian. Jesse needs you Blacks need
you all of America needs you The surfacing of your
personal differences was both untim ely and unwise
One can only assume that most jieople in Atlanta. Geor
gia. had they b e e n able to crystal ball the fall out as a
result of the campaign, w ould have sponsored other
candidates
Subsequently on tiehalf of Black America, on be
half of Jesse Jackson, on behalf of the Democratic
party, and last but not least, on t>ehalf of Dr M artin
Luther King, w e beg of you to resolve your differences
and tiring us together
H um an Rights In A frica
by Norman Hill
In general, discussions in this country on human
rights have focused mainly on Central America. Eastern
Europe, the Soviet Union and other areas deemed to
be o f particular strategic or polical importance to the
United States Eor a number of reasons, rights abuses
lor advances) in Africa, w ith the possible exception of
Ethiopia and S outfi A frica, have been largely ignored
Some have argued that this indifference is tied to the
perception that most of Africa is of little economic or
strategic value to the United States
A more cynical
(and innately racist) view is that democracy and civil
liberties are alien to the continent, and that the prolifera
bon of totalitarian regimes is an indication that Africans
are "n o t ready ' for democracy
For black leaders in America, the issue o f human
rights in Africa presents something of a conundrum
Their relative inattention to serious rights abuses in a
number of nations is partly rooted in a reluctance to
acknowledge the political, social and economic repres
siveness of some black African countries, even if many
of these conditions are the direct by product o f colonial
oppression and the arbitrary drawing of boundaries
w ith o u t regarrl to tribal and linguistic realities
W hen discussing human rights in Africa, several
major historical factors must lie taken into account
First, the slave trade and colonialism disrupted A frican's
independent evolution Economic progress, education
and individual rights were made subservient to the
needs o, the colonial powers Second, many of Africa's
leaders spent the colonial period in exile or jail, where
they embraced anti democratic notions and Marxist
ideologies irrelevant to African conditions And third,
m any newly independent nations were defined by arbi
trary borders, drawn in Europe w ithout regard to tribal
and language considerations
These factors, coupled w ith desperate economic
conditions, often led to the development of systems of
governm ent tfiat put a premium on strident state con
trol of all facets of social and economic development at
the expense of civil liberties and individual rights
Of late, a number of African nations have been ex
t perimenbng w ith economic decentralization and other
reform s that may contribute to greater freedoms in poll
tics and social life Zaire, Zambia. Somalia, Mali, Gui
nea, Senegal, Kenya and others have adopted changes
that take market forces into greater account, and the re
suiting economic grow th is encouraging
Increased sensitivity to the issue of human rights and
political freedoms has been demonstrated lately in
Nigeria, the Sudan. Uganda, and Liberia, although
there is certainly more room for im provement
Bots
wana is a country w ith a rei ord of democracy and hu
man rights tfiat is unrivaled in Africa
Gambia and
Senegal have vigorous parliamentary systems and Ken
ya is r om m itted to dem ocratic prim iples and economic
reform
Yet. continued progress in human rights and econo
mic g ro w th depends on continued Western involve
merit and assistance that hefp alleviate ttie causes of
abuse W estern funds have been used to assist in law
codification, to prom ote fair elections to upgrade legal
facilities, to educate people about civil and jxilibcal
rights
Economic aid has also been used to com bat
hunger and disease and to help refugees.
But financial assistance must tie offered m ro n ju n c
tion w ith diplomatic efforts to prom ote human rights
U nfortunately, the Reagan administration has sharply
curtailed our economic involvement in Africa and our
ability to help African countries make the difficu lt eco
nom ic and political transitions they are attem pting
Congressional cuts in foreign aid and other far tors w ill
dramatically reduce our economic assistance for Africa
to $705 m illion this fisr al year Tfiat is 35 percent less
than in 1985 and 18 percent less than in 1986 As a se
nior State Department official ret ently observed these
cuts w ill seriously damage our interests in Africa and
could lead to a reversal of recent African e fforts to
undertake the critical economic reforms that are so vital
as underpinning to human rights reform
For those of us concerned w ith democracy and the
fundam ental issues of human dignity, individual rights
and civil liberties, this co u n try's grow ing indifference to
developments in Africa is a disturbing development
Freedom of the press, religious tolerance and free elec
lions are not exclusively Western rights, they are vital
human rights But the impoverished nations of A frica
will be unable to foster these rights w ithout resources
to meet the basic needs of existence America cannot
ignore Africa, and then point accusing fingers at human
ngfits abuses or the rise of Marxist regimes
If our
human rights policies are to have moral consistency,
then we must tie realty to aid the aspirations o, Africans
ttie way we help those in Haiti, the Philippines and Latin
America And black leaders in America must help send
this message w ith the same urgency and force as calls
for punitive measures to press for the abolition of apar
theid in South Africa
Norman Mill IS PmsiOrml o l tha A Philip Randolph Institute
Portland Observer!
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E conom ic O u tlo o k For 1987:
Conventional economists are predicting slower but
still steady econom ic grow th this new year M ost ob
servers point out that the com bination o f factors w hich
produced the 400 point boost in the Dow Jones indus
trial average last year the low inflation rate, low oil
prices, an expansive monetary policy should help
stocks m ove even higher
But beyond the financial
markets' euphoria, it w ould be wise to notice several
signs of trouble ahead Beneath the calm investment
waters, sharks are lurking just below the surface
One especially threatening economic shark is the
sharp decline o f real wages for most American workers,
w hich w ill continue to retard consum ption and thus
stall the rate of economic grow th
According to the
Census Bureau, the income levels of 40 year old males
between 1973 and 1983 adjusted for inflation, declined
by 14 percent from $29.131 to $24.957 In the past 15
years, overall real wages have fallen
Reaganite econom ists m ight respond, "h o w do you
then explain this unprecedented rise in consumer spen
ding throughout the 1983 1987 period, w hich has help
ed to push the stock market higher7" True enough,
statistics from the Commerse Department show that
inflation adjusted consumer spending rates have in
creased by 15 percent between 1973 and 1984
Last
November, retail sales rose by 0 5 percent during the
m onth, totalling $122 billion But this jump in consumer
spending doesn't mean that wages are getting higher
The basic explanation is that most people have become
heavily addicted to credit, and they are forced to spend
money they d o n 't have
The personal savings rate las a proportion o f the
gross national product) dropped from 5 2 percent in
,973 to 3 4 percent in 1986
In Puerto Rico, for
instance, there is actually a negative savings rate As
people save less, they rely more and more on plastic
money credit cards
Seventy percent of credit card
users pay only a small portion of their regular m onthly
bills, and there was over $150 billion outstanding debt
on all credit cards at the end of last m onth M ore than
half o f all American adults. 105 m illion people, own
credit cards; the typical card user has about seven
cards
As families rely heavily on credit to cover day to day
expenses, they can easily fall behind Until last year, at
least the interest payments for consumer loans were de
Trouble Ahead
ductible on income tax returns Since the recent tax
reform bill, however, consumer interest w ill not be de
ductible Home equity loan interest is still deductible,
and millions of people will soon start to use these loans
to cover their credit card debts and other purchases
Consequently, the overall amount of household debt
could soar out of control, making thousands o f addi
tional bankruptcies inevitable
The fear of bankruptcies is also behind the Reagan
adm inistration’s recent proposal to require larger down
payments and higher mortgage fees from people seek
ing loans from the Federal Housing Adm inistration and
Veterans Adm inistration Despite the opposition of the
Department of Housing and Urban Development, the
Reagan administration has suggested that home mort
gages should fie more d ifficu lt and more costly to ob
tain
Another potential shark in the economic waters is
the rising failure rate o, American businesses Despite
the highly publicized successes of entrepreneurs in the
1980s, the current rate of business bankruptcies is high­
er today than at any time since the Great Depression
Back in 1980, the failure rate annually was 12 firm s per
10,000
Three years later, the rate reached 32 per
10,000, today, over 55 per 10.000
Las, year, about
57,000 businesses failed; 16,600 of them had liabilities
in excess of one m illion dollars, and most were under
five years old Several key sectors were hardest hi, by
failures M anufacturing firm s recorded more than 110
bankruptcies per 10,000, and the business services sec
tor had 210 failures per 10,000
Another shark w hich continues to devour millions is
unem ploym ent and "underem ploym ent” , or the inabi
lity of workers to obtain full time em ploym ent, or jobs
a, levels equal to their education or skills Throughout
this year, projected jobless rates will be 7 percent for
whites, 14 percent for Blacks.
Despite Democratic
majorities in both houses of Congress, there w ill be no
major legislation to revive CETA or other necessary
em ployment initiatives More families will slide deeper
into the abyss of poverty; others will have to accept
lower wages in service sector, M acDonald's type |obs.
So the general economic clim ate for 1987 may no, cul
minate in a severe recession. Bu, it is surely more pes
simistic than either the Reagan adm inistration or Wall
Street claims
Bill of Rights Key to Progress
by Stephen Ponder
The emergence o f the Bill of Rights, especially the
First Amendment as a bulwark of constitutional liberty
in modern America illustrates how the C onstitution has
been adopted as a living docum ent, to meet the needs
of a nation fundam entally different from that of 1 787
Im portant as the Bill of Rights may seem 200 years
later its affirm ations of individual liberties were not part
of tire original C onstitution Tfie first 10 amendments
w e r e somewhat of an afterthought
Even after their
ratification in ,791. these guarantees, including key
First Amendm ent freedoms of individual speech and of
ttie press, were not widely applied by the United States
Supreme Court until well into the tw entieth century,
nearly 130 years after they were approved by Congress
and ratified by the states
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for a bill of rights diminished, and congressional debate
on the amendments in 1 789 lacked urgency
The package of proposed constitutional amendments'
Congress eventually sent to the states contained 1Z
amendments, rather than the 10 eventually ratified '
W ha, is know n in 1987 as the "F irs t" Am endm ent,
w hich contains guarantee of speech, religion and the
press, was actually the third adopted by Congress The
firs, tw o. w hich failed to win ratification by the states,
deal w ith congressional elections and pay
The 10 amendments of the Bill of Rights were ratified
w ithin four years o f the Constitutional Convention, bu,
«heir application by interpretation o f the United States
Supreme Court came slowly Seven years after ratifica
tion of the Bill of Rights, the ruling Federalists in Con
gress passed the repressive Allen and Sedition A cts of
1 798 Jeffersonian opponents complained tha, these
wide restrictions on speech and the press violated the
Firs, Am endm ent Bu, the Supreme Court had no, be
gun to assume the power of judicial review over con
gressional actions, and none o f the prosecutions under
the Allen and Sedition A cts reached the court
I, was no, until W orld War I. follow ing widespread
arrests o f political dissenters under the Espionage A c, of
1918, that the Supreme Court applied the First Amend
men, in evaluating the constitutionality of federal re
stnctions on free expression
In 1925, in the case of
Socialist Party member Benjamin Gitlow, the Supreme
Court ruled tha, the Bill of Rights could be applied to
state restraints on free speech as well It was no, until
decisions in these cases, as well as the 1932 ruling tha,
declared unconstitutional a Minnesota statue aimed a,
suppressing local newspapers, that the Supreme Court
began to interpre, the Bill of Rights in ways familiar to
Americans in 1987
C onstitutional freedom of expression in 1987 then, is
much a creation of the Supreme Court in the tw entieth
century as that of the framers o f the basic docum ent in
1787 or the Bill of Rights in 1789 This should not be
considered a reflection on the inability o, the farmers to
foresee the size and com plexity of the nation formed
around their constitutional structure 200 years later In
stead, i, illustrates their remarkable vision in establishing
a se, of principles tha, each generation can interpre, as
a living docum ent.
Ponder 1» »11 assistant p rolasaor o f J o urn a lism at th e U niva rsdy o t
O regon
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The story of how tfie First Amendment became cen
tral to modern American free expression is particularly
interesting in view of suggestions in 1986 by United
States A ttorney General Edwin Meese II that interpre
ters ot ttie C onstitution should try to follow the intent of
its framers From a distance of 200 years the intentions
of the delegates 'at the Constitutional Convention of
1787 and the congressioAal authors of the Bill of
Rights in 1789 remain a subject o f disagreement
among historians and constitutional scholars
Historian Catherine Drinker Bowen, author of Miracle
at Philadelphia, writes that the question of a bill of rights
did not come up at the Constitutional Convention until
three days before the end of its four m onth delibera
tions
The issue was briefly considered and quickly
dropped Eight states had already adopted their ow n
bills of rights, and the federal government to be created
by the C onstitution was one of lim ited powers
The
delegates couldn't see how the new Congress w ould
have sufficient a u th o rity to lim it the press, because
most governing power w ould remain w ith the states
and the citizens
It was only after the C onstitutional Convention ad
journed that the absence of a bill o f rights became a
rallying cry of opponents of the new C onstitution His
torian Robert Rutland, author of The Birth of the Bill
of Rights, suggests this may have been more of a politi
cal ploy than a demand for stronger constitutional sup
port o f individual freedoms In order to be elected for
the first Congress from Virginia, for example. James
Madison had to promise that he w ould sponsor the
legislation that became the Bill of Rights Rutland notes
that once the C onstitution itself was ratified, the clamor
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