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December 16, 1987, Portland Observer, Page 3
NATIONAL NEWS UPDATE
More Than Half of Black Business Owners
Work at Home, Census Bureau Reports
Fifty-four percent of Black busi
ness owners reported that their
businesses were based at home in
1982, according to a first-tim e sur
vey report released September 16,
1987, by the Commerce Depart
ment's Census Bureau.
The survey, which excluded large
corporations, was conducted by the
Census Buearu and funded by the
Commerce Department's Minority
Business Development Agency and
the Small Business Administration.
CHART 1 .
firms and receipts in 1982, and for
owners: age, marital status, educa
tion, veteran status, work exper
ience, hours worked, percentage of
income derived from the business,
year and method in which the busi
ness was acquired, year the busi
ness was started, home-based busi
nesses, starting capital, sources of
borrowed and equity capital, net
income, percent of women and
minority employees, percent of
minority customers, and exports.
PERCENTAGE OF BUSINESS OWNERS OPERATING
IN S ID E
OR OUTSIDE HOME:
1982
Bi
BLACK
IN S ID E
O U T S ID E
HOME
Here are additional highlights
from the report:
• Nine percent of Black owners
had never worked a full- or part-
time job prior to owning their busi
ness compared w ith 11 percent of
Asian and other racial minority ow n
ers, 10 percent of Hispanic owners,
8 percent of women owners, and 5
percent of W hite male owners.
• Fifty-three percent of Black
business owners reported that at
least half of their customers were
minority compared with 40 percent
of Hispanic owners, 36 percent of
Asian and other racial m inority ow n
ers, 18 percent of women owners,
and 15 percent of W hite male ow n
ers.
HOME
2 ] NOT R EPO R TED
W H IT E
A S IA N
MALE
AND O TH ER
HISPANIC
WOMEN
SOURCE
U S .
BUREAU OF THE CENSUS
The data are shown for owners of
nearly 6.9 million W hite male-
owned firms; almost 2.9 million
women-owned firms; over 339,000
Black-owned firms; some 256,000
Asian and other racial minority-
owned firms; and more than
248,000 Hispanic-owned firms.
The report says about 56 percent
of women business owners operat
ed out o f the home compared with
51 percent of W hite male owners,
47 percent of Hispanic owners, and
43 percent of Asian and other racial
minority owners.
The report covers the number of
Monthly Income of Blacks
Lower Than Whites
The average m onthly income of Blacks lagged significantly behind that
of W hites at most levels of educational attainment, according to a report
by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau.
The report says the m onthly income of Black high school graduates
averaged $765 in 1984 compared w ith $1,080 for W hite graduates, a ratio
of about 7 to 10.
The ratio of Black m onthly income to W hite monthly income was also
around 7 to 10 for persons w ho were not high school graduates, for persons
w ith some college education, for those w ith vocational training, and for
those having a bachelor's degree. (Income includes wages and salary as
well as other money income, such as pensions, paid benefits, interest, divi
dends, etc.)
, ..
„
For persons w ith associate degrees, the ratio was somewhat larger than
7 to 10, while at the master's degree level there was no statistically signifi
cant difference between the m onthly incomes of Blacks and Whites. (The
ratios fo r the associate and m aster's degree levels are not statistically dib
ferent from each other.)
According to the report, com
parisons at the doctorate and pro
fessional degree levels cannot be
made because of insufficient sample
CH&AT f
AVERAGE MONTHLY INCOME AND EDUCATIONAL
ATTAINMENT,
BY RACE.
1984
size.
Here are additional highlights
from the report:
• Blacks with a bachelor's de
gree had average m onthly incomes . n* «www «W
MY nows « or ■
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sibh 'I mwu ’ onrtwwt
W
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of $1,388 in 1984, nearly double 50U
the income of Blacks w ith only a high school diploma and one and one -half
times greater than for those w ho had some college training.
• About an equal proportion o f Black men and women hold master s,
bachelor's, and associate degrees; however, a higher proportion of women
hold degrees in vocational training.
• The largest major degree fields among Blacks were business and edu
cation, each at about 20 percent; social science and vocational-technical
studies, each at about 10 percent; and liberal arts/hum anities and nursing/
pharm acy/technical health, both at 7 percent.
• As high school students. Blacks are less likely than Whites to have
taken advanced math, algebra or tw o or more years of foreign language;
as likely to have taken chem istry or physics, three or more years of English,
or tw o or more years of business; and more likely to have taken industrial
arts, shop, or home economics.
As in all surveys, the data are subject to sampling variability and re
sponse errors.
Copies of the report, "W h a t's It W orth? Educational Background and
Economic Status: Spring 1984," Series P-70, No. 11, are available from
the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Wash
ington, D.C. 20402.
.
The chart shows average m onthly income by educational attainment.
Dymally Hails
House Speaker
Peace Role
From Congressman Mervyn M.
Dymally, (31st District, California)
Chairman of the Congressional
Black Caucus:
"F or almost seven years, the Rea
gan Administration has had an op
portunity to bring peace to Central
America and they failed.
First they secretly funded the
Contras and almost plunged this na
tion into a crisis w ith Contragate.
Then they underminded the Contra
ft I
• One-third of Black owners de
rived at least half of their incomes
from their business, and one out of
five depended entirely on their busi
ness for income.
• Eleven percent of Black busi
ness owners had operated a busi
ness prior to the one owned in 1982.
The proportion for the other groups
ranged from 22 percent for White
male owners to 14 percent for w o
men owners.
• Twenty-one percent of Black
owners had a close relative who also
owned a business or was self-em
ployed, a proportion smaller than
that for women and W hite male
owners (about 40 percent), Asian
and other racial minority owners
dora peace process.
Now they are reluctant to support
the Arias Peace Plan which has
major support in the United States
and Central America. That is why
Speaker W right's effort to expedite
the peace process in Central Am er
ica is so commendable.
The Speaker ought to be con
gratulated for doing whatever is
necessary to save lives and bring
peace to Central America.
Last year and again this year the
Congressional Black Caucus sup
ported all major efforts to bring
peace to this embattled region and
will continue to do so in the future."
Fifty-three percent of Black business
owners reported that at least half of
their customers were minority.
• Only one-fifth of Black owners
began with more than $5,000 in
starting capital compared w ith 43
percent of Asian and other racial
minority owners, 35 percent of
W hite male owners, 30 percent of
Hispanic owners, and 22 percent of
women owners.
• About 11 percent of Black busi
ness owners had to borrow more
than half of their start-up capital
compared w ith 18 percent of W hite
male owners, 16 percent of Asian
and other racial m inority owners,
15 percent of Hispanic owners, and
12 percent of women owners.
• Half of Black business owners
were over 44 years old compared
with 48 percent of W hite male ow n
ers, 44 percent of women owners,
42 percent of Hispanic owners, and
37 percent of Asian and other racial
minority owners.
(33 percent), and Hispanic owners
(28 percent).
• Thirty-one percent of Black
business owners worked more than
40 hours a week. The proportions
for other owners ranged from 48
percent for W hite males owners to
29 percent for women owners.
This report supplements data pre
viously published in four reports
form the 1982 Survey of Minority-
Owned Business Enterprises and
Survey of Women-Owned Busi
nesses.
Copies of "Characteristics of
Business Owners: 1982," CB082-1,
are available from the Superinten
dent of Documents, U.S. Govern
ment Printing Office, Washington,
D .C .20402.
The chart shows the percent of
Black business owners operating at
home.
Two-Thirds of
Black Mothers
Not Awarded
Child Support
Payments
AFSC Calls
For Regional
Initiatives, Not
U.S. Military in
Haiti
About 1.5 million Black mothers,
tw o-thirds of the 2.3 million Black
women w ith children from absent
fathers, were not awarded child
support payments as of 1986, ac
cording to a survey by the Com
merce Department's Census Bu
reau. By contrast, only about 30
percent of the 6.3 million W hite
mothers w ith children from absent
fathers did not have child support
awards.
Of the 1.5 million Black mothers
not awarded child support, about
six out of 10 wanted support but
could not get it, primarily because
the father could not be located.
About one-third said they did not
want child support. For the remain
der, awards were pending or some
other arrangement had been made,
such as property settlement or joint
custody.
Although 660,000 Black mothers
were due child support in 1985, only
72 percent actually received support
payments. This recipiency rate was
not signficantly different from that
of the 3.6 million W hite women due
payments (75 percent). Payments
to Black mothers in 1985 averaged
$1,750, showing no signficant
change from the 1983 level after ad
justing for inflation. Payments to
W hite mothers in 1985 were higher
than for Black mothers, averaging
$2,290.
The survey also showed that
health insurance was included in
about one-fourth of the child sup
port awards to Black mothers, com
pared with inclusion in 48 percent of
awards to W hite mothers.
As all surveys, the data in this re
port are subject to sampling varia
bility and response errors.
P hiladelphia — The American
Friends Service Committee spoke
out December 7, 1987, against U.S.
military intervention in Haiti, urging
that instead this country support re
gional initiatives to promote third
party mediation and internal dialo
gue that Caribbean leaders are de
veloping.
"These appear to hold the great
est promise for resolving the crisis,"
Asia A. Bennett, executive secre
tary of the Quaker organization, said
in a cable to President Reagan.
She said the AFSC supports Rea
gan's cutoff of m ilitary aid to Haiti,
but added that "a t this time of tu r
moil and tragic violence . . . there is
a strong tem ptation, and there are
calls from various quarters, to inter
vene militarily in order to impose
stability and save lives.
"W e strongly discourage any
United States military role in this
crisis or beyond."
The AFSC added that "The his
tory of U.S. intervention in Haitian
affairs w ould make such a role un
acceptable in the eyes of most Hai
tians and others in the hemisphere.
"A n y United States military role
would inevitably become aligned
with one or another of the parties
in c o n flict." The cable to Reagan
continued that "O ur first-hand
knowledge of Haiti indicates that
outside military intervention would
be repudiated by the vast majority
of Haitians. It would most likely
prolong, rather than alleviate the
current crisis."
The cable also went to Secretary
of State George Shultz and key
members of Congress.
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Fact Sheet
The student drop-out rate in the
United States is larger than ever
before. It is currently projected that
25% of the students that start high
school will not finish. One of the
main reasons for this situation, ac
cording to the International Reading
Association, is that the vast majority
of the students w ho dropped out
were several grade levels behind in
reading and w riting skills.
The Portland Trail Blazers and
AVIA Athletic Footwear believe that
a lot can be done to correct this
situation if students are given an
incentive. They also believe that
business should support their com
munity. Because of this, they intro
duced the "Blazer-AVI A Scholastic
Improvement Concepts' (BASIC)
program in 1984.
Initially, the program included a
"w ritin g " segment and an "im
provem ent" segment. A "reading
segment was added in 1986.
Both Blazer players and manage
ment personnel are active in this
program. School systems (grades
one through twelve) throughout
Multnomah, W ashington, Clack
amas, Columbia and Yamhill Coun
ties in Oregon and Clark County,
Washington are invited to partici
pate.
Program materials are mailed
directly to the individual teachers
at each grade level. The program
kicks off in September and runs
through the Spring. Mailings are
distributed to more than 6,000
teachers in 528 schools.
All phases of the program have
received excellent response from
teachers, principals, school super
intendents, parents and students.
To date, more than 44,000 students
have received special recognition
throughout the "student improve
m ent" segment and more than
47,000 students have submitted
essays in the "w ritin g " competition.
The Reading Fitness segment has
been equally successful in reaching
students; approximately 5,000 fifth
and sixth grade students partici
pated last year. All total, this viva
cious group read 4,884,710 pages.
To date, more than 120,000 stu
dents have participated in one or
more segments of the BASIC pro
gram.
An Educator's Opinion
A Message Long Overdue
when Hillside teachers had determined their
Thinking, reasoning, problem-solving, creating.
students are the most alert — every teacher in
Developing these skills is key to the learning
every Hillside classroom worked with students
process.
on projects and exercises to strengthen thinking
But schools today, note a number of recent
skills. At the end of the two months, the Hillside
reports, aren't doing enough to foster these ba
students took the CAP. The results were sub
sic abilities. One reason, these reports explain,
stantial. Hillside student test scores went from
is bureaucratic obstacles that limit teachers’ op
the bottom of the district to the top.
portunities to exercise their best professional
But the faculty at Hillside didn’t stop there.
judgment on their students' behalf.
Building upon what they had learned through
We in NEA are doing our best to break down
the Zap the CAP program,
the bureaucratic obstacles so
teachers set aside an “ advise
rightfully lamented by studies
ment period” every day to give
such as the recent American
students the opportunity to
Memory: A Report on the Hu
work with faculty advisers on
manities in the Nation's Public
honing basic study skills. Stu
Schools from the National En
dents in this program now work
dowment for the Humanities.
with a single faculty adviser for
We're particularly proud of
the entire academic year, and
one of our efforts, the NEA
this continuity helps students
Mastery In Learning Project.
make an easier transition from
Through this initiative, teach
the elementary grades, where
ers in 27 pilot schools across
students have one teacher all
the nation are developing new
day long, to the multi-teacher
approaches to learning that
junior high curriculum.
emphasize the true mastery of
Hillside teachers are taking
subject matter. Faculties in
seriously the National Endow
Mastery In Learning schools
ment for the Humanities re
are beginning to break the con
port’s recommendations. They
fines of the traditionally struc
Mary Hatwood Futrell
are building on their students'
tured school day, moving their
newly developed thinking skills
President. NEA
classes beyond rote memoriza
by increasing depth in subject matter. During
tion, helping their students grasp the critical
the next two months, in an "Integrated Studies
thinking skills so essential to meaningful
Project." a control group of students will have
learning.
science, history, and art integrated into their En
Hillside Junior High, outside Los Angeles, is
glish curriculum. This group will be pre- and
one of the schools in the NEA Mastery In Learn
post-t6sted with other classes that have not tak
ing network. A few years ago, Hillside was hard
en integrated subjects. If the results are posi
ly a candidate for model school status. The
tive, the program will be expanded
scores of Hillside students on the standardized
What do Hillside teachers think about their
California Assessment of Progress (CAP) test
NEA Mastery In Learning Project experiences?
were the lowest in the school's district.
"There are a lot of great programs out there,
NEA members at Hillside Junior High, work
but every school has its own learning needs,”
ing through the Mastery In Learning project, set
says Hillside teacher Deni Byrnes. "The Mas
out to change that. But Hillside teachers didn't
tery In Learning Project gives teachers the re
want to “ teach to the test." They didn’t want
search and other resources they need to devel
their students to merely parrot back a piece of
op and choose programs that are valuable for
information to questions on the CAP test, infor
their students and their schools "
mation that would be forgotten as soon as the
Sums up Byrnes: "I used to think of myself
exam was over. Instead, Hillside teachers want
as a teacher in just my own discipline, arts and
ed their students to learn how to analyze test
crafts. Now I see myself as a total teacher and
questions and reason their way to thoughtful
the kids as total students — not just arts and
answers The Hillside teachers called their plan
crafts students as they are in my class, but stu
to develop these critical thinking skills Zap the
dents studying English, science, math, and
CAP.
history."
For the next two months, at the start of the
That unity is what real learning is all about.
second period of each school day — the time
nea
National Education Association
NEA
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