January 13, 1988, Portland Observer, Page 3
NATIONAL NEWS UPDATE
Happy Birthday Delta Sigma
Theta Sorority, Inc.!
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority celebrates its Diamond Jubilee birthday
January 13, 1988. For 75 years women of this predominantly Black organi
zation have carried out the mission set by its 22 Founders on the campus of
Howard University in Washington, D.C., January 13, 1913. The then infant
Sorority set out on a course of "public service'' and has not waivered from
that course in its colorful 75-year history.
The Sorority's ranks have grown to over 125,000 women in over 750
chapters throughout the U.S.A., Liberia, West Germany, and the Carib-
beans.
The local chapter, Portland Alumnae, was chartered in 1945. It has
evolved into over 100 members who still strive to carry out the lofty ideals of
those 22 Founders.
National celebrations will begin the weekend of January 29, in Washing
ton, D.C., with gala celebrities including Honorary Members Lena Horne
and Ruby Dee. A visit to the Howard University campus will be included.
This Diamond Jubilee year will culminate with a Gran Celebration during
Deltas National Convention in San Francisco, California, July 8-14, 1988.
Locally, Portland Deltas will hold birthday celebrations during their Feb
ruary 6 meeting.
$861 Million Lewis
Amendment Signed Into Law
— Representative John Lewis (D-5th-GA) won a major
legislative victory when President Reagan signed into law H.R. 2310, the
Airport Improvement Act. This legislation contains the Lewis Amendment
which mandates the issuance of not less than ten percent of contracts under
the $8.6 billion Airport Improvement Program to Disadvantaged Business
Enterprises (DBEs). A total of $861 million is set aside under this Act for
W a s h in g t o n , o .c .
disadvantaged businesses over the next five years.
, "I believe we must open the doors of opportunity to everyone and this
legislation guarantees that disadvantaged businesses will receive a fair share
of federal contracts for improvement work at our nation's airports. I am
particularly proud that my colleagues and the President supported this
amendment. I feel this is one of the most significant pieces of legislation
for small and minority businesses approved in the 100th Congress, said
AIDS prevention efforts must
reach U.S. communities poorly ser
ved, if at all, by information and
health care systems and who, there
fore, are particularly vulnerable, the
American Friends Service Commit
tee said December 17, 1987.
"These groups include poor com
munities, men and women of color,
prisoners, undocumented immi
grants, farmworkers, and many
young people," the Quaker organi
zation's Board of Directors said in a
formal statement entitled:
"The
AIDS Crisis, Education and Policy
Issues." The AFSC said Contin
ued and intensified efforts to reach
gay and bisexual men are impera
tive."
Stressing the importance of pre
vention education, the statement
said "Evidence suggests that inci
dence of the disease is growing
throughout the U.S. population. It
has become increasingly clear that
the issue is not risk groups, but risk
behaviors.
"Education efforts will have to be
tailored to the particular needs of
each group if they are to be heard
and acted upon."
Asia A. Bennett, AFSC Executive
Secretary, said some of the worst
tendencies in U.S. society, e.g.,
homophobia, racism and sexism, pit
affected groups against each other.
"AIDS has intensified these ten
dencies," she added.
Rep. Lewis.
"In my hometown of Atlanta, Hartsfield International Airport, now the
nation's busiest airport, stands as a model for the nation to show that small
and disadvantaged businesses can make major contributions to the develop
ment of our nation's airports. I am confident that DBE project contractors
participating under this Act will prove to be as successful as those who
participated in the Hartsfield project," concluded Congressman John Lewis.
King Announces Radio Coverage of
Tyson vs Holmes Fight
Don King Productions announced
today that National 8lack Network
sports will have the exclusive En
glish language radio rights to broad
cast the world heavyweight cham
pionship bout between reigning
champ Mike Tyson and former
heavyweight
champion
Larry
Holmes.
The fight will be broadcast on
January 22, live from Atlantic City's
Convention Center, and will be
beamed by staellite to NBN's 125
affiliates across the country.
In making the announcement,
promoter Don King said, The time
has arrived for radio to reclaim the
glory of yesteryear. I am totally
committed and dedicated to being a
part of the return of the fascinating,
informative, exciting, and entertain
ing medium of radio.
Who knows the unparalleled ex
citement, the drama, the suspense
that reveals itself to the sports and
entertainment fan . . . listen to the
radio and find o u t!!!"
National Black Network was the
nation's first Black owned and ope
rated line-connected radio network
in the U.S. and has its head
quarters at 10 Columbus Circle in
New York City.
Xavier University to
Build Model Student
Community Service Program
The Xavier Univer
sity Office of Student Service has
received a $45,800 grant to establish
a student community service organ
ization that will be a model for his
torically Black institutions through
out the U.S.
The grant, awarded by ACTION,
agency, will enable Xavier to create
a campus service organization and
set up a coalition among New Or
leans schools that will pool resour
NEW ORLEANS —
ces and provide student volunteers
for a range of community projects.
" It is our hope that this demon
stration program will be replicated
in communities around the nation,
says ACTION Director Donna M.
Alvarado. The program will provide
numerous leadership opportunities
for students. Results of the pro
ject's year-long acitivities will be dis
seminated nationally.
1988 Transamerica
Bicyclists W anted
Bicyclists from Oregon are gearing up now to take part in the Trans
america Bicycle Trek, the largest coast-to-coast, non-competit.ve bicycling
event ever held in the United States.
'
Next summer more than 300 enthusiastic cyclists will ride in
second
annual event which leaves Seattle in June of 1988 and arrives July 22 in
Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The route will take adventurous cyclists from Seattle through the rugged
Cascade Mountains to Spokane, then northest across the panhandle of
Idaho to Montana. Going-to-the-Sun Highway in Glacier National Park wi,
be one of the highlights of the trip
Heading east across the■
snaces of the Great Plains, cyclists will ride through Montana, North Dakota
and Minnesota, stopping for a midwest welcome at many of the small towns
U
have .¡me to be Inend.y Continuing east, they will r o a n , t h r o u g h
Minneapolis, Wisconsin's rolling hills, Milwaukie, Chicago and the farmlands
of Indiana and Ohio. In Pennsylvania, the challenge of the Appalachian
Mountains awaits, then cyclists will head for the finish in Atlantic City with
a very special welcome, seven weeks and 3500 miles from Seattle.
For information on how you can become a part of this cross-country
bicycling adventure, contact the American Lung Association of Oregon
The Christmas Seal People at 224 5145 in Portland
Los Angeles Couple Gives
Black Waitress
Their Restaurant
AIDS Prevention Must Reach
Poorly Served Communities
The Quaker organization said it
opposes mandatory testing in which
whole groups of people are singled
out; however, it does not oppose
testing in certain circumstances
such as donations of blood, organs
for transplant, and semen.
NEW YORK -
waitress in the 1950's, have now given her their restaurant business as a gi
"Nobody in this day and age gives somebody else a business, Barbar
Knox, the waitress, told a reporter for this week's Parade magazine, but
that is exactly what the Shulkins have done.
Mrs Shulkin explained, "Lou had thought about retiring for a while but
he worried about Barbara. After all, she had spent her entire life here. Both
of our kids were taken care of. Barbara was a daughter to us. He wanted
to make sure that she was taken care of. He had talked about what he was
qoing to do, but I don't think she thought he would really do it.
The Shulkins, who are white, hired Mrs. Knox in 1955, when civil rights
was just beginning to be talked about. "T h e y just took me in,' she recalled.
The Committee said each propo
sal for mandatory testing should be
evaluated separately for its impact
on the principles of (1) respect for
persons; (2) harm to individuals
weighed against benefits to others,
and (3) justice, particularly avoid
ance of invidious discrimination and
assurance of fairness.
The AFSC emphasized that so
ciety's responses to the AIDS epi
demic must be based on the univer
sal values of compassion, respect
for the dignity of individuals, and
equal treatment for all individuals
and groups.
The AFSC said the Committee's
concern with AIDS grew out of
both the organization's spiritual
values and its program experience.
The Committee plans to share the
statement widely with sister organi
zations and policy makers.
"These principles alone cannot
rid society of AIDS," the Commit
tee declared, "but they can assure
that the disease does not attack the
bonds of humanity and commu
nity."
Paul Douglas
Teacher
Scholarship
Program
The program used to be called the
Congressional Teacher Scholarship
program, but was renamed by the
U.S. Congress.
This is a federally funded pro-
Black Scholars to
Analyze Key
Issues
John E. Jacob, President and
Chief Executive Officer of the
National Urban League will lead a
panel of distinguished Black scho
lars in an analysis of key issues con
fronting Black America during the
release of "The State of Black Ame
rica 1988" at 10 a.m. Thursday,
January 14 at the National Press
Club in Washington, D.C.
The authors and articles are:
Dr. Niara Sudarkasa, "Black En
rollment in Higher Education: The
Unfulfilled Promise of Equality";
Dr. Bernard C. Watson with Fasaha
M. Traylor, "Tomorrow's Teachers:
Who Will They Be, What Will They
Know"; Dr. Dianne M. Pinder-
hughes, "Civil Rights and the Fu
ture of the American Presidency";
Dr. Price M. Cobbs, "Critical Per
spectives on the Psychology of
Race"; Dr. Charles V. Willie, "The
Black Family: Striving Toward Free
dom "; Dr. Bruce R. Hare, "Black
Youth At Risk"; Dr. Lee P. Brown,
"Crime in the Black Community";
Dr. Alvin J. Schexnider, "Blacks in
the Military: The Victory and the
Challenge"; Dr. David H. Swinton,
"Economic Status of Blacks 1987";
Dr. Billy J. Tidwell, "Black Wealth:
Facts and Fiction"; and Dr. Garry A.
Mendez, "Crime is Not a Part of Our
Black Heritage."
"The State of Black America
1988” will also be telecast via The
Howard University Black College
Satellite Telecommunications Net
work in cooperation with the Lea
gue's Office of External Affairs and
its affiliate network, to more than a
million people across the nation.
"The State of Black America
1988" addresses some of the dis
parities existing in the country and is
the most authoritative document
examining the current status and
conditions of Blacks in America.
The report also gives insight into
issues that need to be addressed
and the work that must be done
towards making a just and equitable
society. The 1988 report is the thir
teenth annual edition.
The book will be availalbe to the
general public through the National
Urban League for $18.00.
Lou and Anita Shulkin of Los Angeles, who hired a Black
gram to encourage and enable aca
demically excellent students to pur
sue teaching careers. Applicants
must graduate in the top 10% of
the class from an Oregon high
school, or obtain a GED which is
equivalent to the above require
ment. Applications must be en
rolled or plan to enroll in an under
graduate course of study which will
lead to a career in teaching. Reci
pients who do not teach must repay
the funds at a substantial interest
rate.
For more information, contact the
Grants and Administration Depart
ment, State Scholarship Commis
sion, 686-4166.
"They treated me like one of their own."
Describing the relationship, Knox said, "W e re family. We have been
through a lot of ups and downs together. They have tried to help me with
mine, and I have tried to help them with theirs."
Through the years, Knox, who is a devout Baptist, regularly invited the
Shulkins to gatherings at her church, as well as family parties. The Shulkins
who are Jewish, invited Barbara and her husband, Warren, to religious feasts
and family holidays. "W e were as uncomfortable in an all-Black situation as
she was in an all-white situation, until we got to know each other, Mrs.
ShUTheSmdstaurant, which had been called "Lou's Quickie Grill " is now
known as "Barb's Quickie Grill." Explaining his action, Shulkin said, We re
all brothers and sisters under the skin. We need to love one another.
We're all under one Lord, you know."
U.V.A. Joins Consortium For Black
Engineering Graduate Students
— The Uni
versity of Virginia has been selected
for admission to the National Con
sortium of Graduate Degrees for
Minorities in Engineering, Inc.,
known as GEM, by a vote of the
group's current members.
The consortium is a network of 50
corporations and 53 comprehensive
research universities that provide
academic and financial support for
minority students interested in gra
duate school.
American Indian,
Black and Hispanic students are eli
gible to apply, based on traditional
underrepresentation of those ethnic
groups in graduate programs.
Students may apply in their third
and fourth years as undergraduates.
Third-year participants are eligible
for summer employment with one
of the consortium's member corpor
ations, and fourth-year participants
may also be employed in the sum
mer before the first year of graduate
CHARLOTTESVILLE,
va
school and each summer they re-
main in school.
Additionally, entering graduate
students receive from the consor
tium a $5,000 stipend plus funds
covering a portion of their tuition
charges. GEM accepts each year
125 students who must also apply
and be accepted to specific member
universities. In recent years, the
GEM program has provided support
to more than half of the Black, His
panic and American Indian graduate
engineering students in the country.
For more information on the GEM
program and how minority students
can take advantage of U.Va.’s parti
cipation in it, call Ron W. Simmons,
assistant dean of the School of En
gineering and Applied Science, at
(804) 924-6425, or Ralph Lowry,
associate dean of graduate studies
in the engineering school, at (804)
924-3050.
An Educator’s Opinion
The Urban Challenge
est urban districts make a mockery of funding
In communities across America, lights of this
equalization formulas. In these districts, less
special season sparkle. But in America s cities,
than $61,000 in taxable property value supports
hopes dim. The accident of geography deprives
the education of each student. Statewide, by
millions of children of their brightest source of
contrast, communities draw from over $213,000
hope, education.
in property value per student. The Urban Chal
Analysts trace this development to tne
lenge initiative aims to redress this disparity—to
1970s, a decade during which the population
make access to quality education less depen
drain from urban centers was swift and dramat
dent on the accident of geography.
ic Those who fled were those who had the
The legal logic that supports this effort
means of mobility—in short, the affluent. They
emerged from the landmark
left behind a trapped people—
1971 decision of the California
the poor, the destitute, the de
Supreme Court. In Serrano v.
prived and the desperate
Priest, California’s highest
They also left behind, many
court found the state’s school
analysts believed, school sys
finance system unconstitution
tems that would die slow
al on the grounds that it made
deaths, systems that would
the quality of education a func
wither as the poverty rate spi
tion of local taxable wealth.
raled and crime sprawled
This system, the Court ruled,
The analysts were right—
introduced massive funding in
and wrong.
equities that clearly violated
We in NEA know well the
the equal protection provisions
adversity that confronts urban
of the C alifornia State
school employees But we also
Constitution.
know that in the nation s most
Ironically, the New Jersey
urbanized state—New Jer-
Supreme Court issued a simi
sey—NEA members are break
lar ruling in 1973 (Robinson v.
ing new ground in the attempt
Cahill). But today, 14 years lat
to rescue urban schools from
Mary Hatwood Futrell
er, inequities persist. And
the pulverizing impact of
President. NEA
NJEA’s urban initiative may
best
be
understood
as an attempt to end the
P° VRoughly 40,000 of our 126,000 New Jersey
violation of the equal protection clause that is
members work in urban districts that rank
the heart of Article I of the New Jersey State
among the most disadvantaged in the United
Constitution.
States. Among cities with populations exceed
In short, NJEA is demanding nothing more
ing 100,000, for instance, Newark is the na
and nothing less than fidelity to the principles of
tion’s poorest.
fairness and equality that the New Jersey Con
But NEA members in New Jersey are resist
stitution articulates. Toward this end, NJEA for
ing despair. The Urban Challenge, a project
mally recommended that the governor and the
launched by our New Jersey affiliate (NJEA),
legislature move away from over-reliance on lo
aims to halt the callous pattern of neglect that
cal property taxes. That action had impact: New
has for so long victimized children who attend
Jersey s State and Local Expenditure and Reve
inner-city schools
nue Commission is soon expected to make a
NJEA began the Urban Challenge proiect
similar recommendation to the state legislature.
last year by sponsoring a statewide series of
NJEA’s campaign is as much ethical as le
hearings on the problems besetting New Jer
gal. The ideal that animates the Urban Chal
sey’s urban schools The results made it clear
lenge program is the ideal of sharing. And the
that underlying all other problems within city
understanding that sustains the NJEA initiative
schools—underlying the unmanageably large
is the understanding that no state can for long
class sizes, the antiquated textbooks, the rat-
prosper if a third of its young people are denied
infested buildings, the cycle of drug use. vio
the gift of education.
lence, and despair-are the stark funding dis
In this season of gift-giving, we would all do
parities between urban and non-urban school
well to heed that message
districts.
,
, ,
The local tax bases of New Jersey s six larg
nea
National Education Association
NEA
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