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Talent Sought
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Doug Williams: Portland
Observer's "M an of the Year"
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"The Eyes and Ears of the Community"
Volume XVIII, Number 12
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Black Press — White Advertisers
by Nyewusi Askari
Recently, in a major metropolitan
city, a Black newspaper editor took
white advertisers to task for not ad
vertising in a local African-American
newspaper. In response, many of
the ad departments said they didn't
advertise in Black newspapers be
cause they were of the opinion that
Black newspapers didn't reflect the
views and perceptions of white
buisinesses and their patrons.
On the local scene, it appears
that some of Portland's major busi
ness establishments have also cho
sen to adopt the same attitude to
wards Oregon's two African-Ameri
can newspapers.
One does not have to come up
with a reason in order to understand
the inequity of such business prac
tices, especially when one takes
note of the fact that a large majority
of Black Oregonians spend their
money with these businesses. It's
a problem that needs to be addres
sed, and, in order to do so, it is
necessary to define what a Black
newspaper is.
Historically, the Black press has
performed an important function in
Black communities throughout the
country.
Black historian, John
Hope Franklin, gives a vivid picture
of this role:
"Black newspapers of the twen
tieth century took up the cudgel
Iheavy club] in behalf of the under
privileged. They became the me
dium through which the yearnings
of the race were expressed, the plat
form from which the Black leaders
could speak, the coordinator of
mass action which Blacks felt com
pelled to take, and a major instru
ment by which many Blacks were
educated with respect to public af
fairs.
"In the decades following World
War I, the number of Black news
papers increased steadily.
Every
Black community apparently felt the
need for its own newspaper to per
form the services that few white
newspapers could or would under
take to perform. Here and there a
white paper devoted a part of a
page to B'ack news, while most of
them reported a generous share of
news of crimes committed by
Blacks.
"B y 1973 there were more than
350 Black newspapers, magazines,
and bulletins that were issued on a
regular weekly, monthly, or quar
terly basis," Dr. Franklin concluded.
Traditionally, Black newspapers
have served as the "eyes and ears
of the Black com m unity." They
have also kept white America in
formed about "the policies and
views with regard to the important
issues
affecting
African-Ameri
cans," said Franklin.
The lack of support for Oregon's
two major Black newspapers by
major businesses and corporate
establishments points to an almost
total disregard of the purchasing
and spending power of Black Ore
gonians. The pattern is repeated
throughout the nation. Yet, the
Black Enterprise Board of Econo
mists estimates that the total in
come of the Black community
nationwide will grow to $238 billion
this year, roughly a 7% growth
rate for per capita income.
The majority of Oregon's 37,060
Black citizens reside in Inner North
east Portland. Residing in a neigh
borhood whose median household
income is $13,450 and whose mean
household income is $16,270, these
Black residents are frequent partons
of corporate/business tenants like
the Lloyd Center, Safeway, Fred
Meyers, Albertsons, First Interstate
Bank and others too numerous to
name.
The money they spend
allows those establishments to re
main healthy and financially secure.
However, Black America, like the
rest of America, is in transition.
Dr. Bernard Anderson, Philadelphia
Urban Partnership, estimates that
"Black women will make up the lar
gest share of the increase in the
non-white labor force during the
next decade and will outnumber
Black men in the workforce — a
contract to the pattern among white
workers, where men outnumber
women almost three to tw o ." Black
women, for example, control appro
ximately $180 billion dollars, over
75% of the total Black dollars avail
able to profit America's economy.
It is a shame that data on Blacks
is always focused on the negative
side: how many Blacks commit
crimes, how many Blacks are on
welfare. Why doesn't white corpor
ate America keep track of the con
tributions Black make to American
society and economy?
Without
the Black communities' financial
stability and buying power, the
American economy and businesses
woula be out $238 billion dollars.
In response to these corporate
and business attitudes and prac
tices, Black communities across the
country have placed Black econo
mic development at the top of the
agenda. Already a "B uy Black"
campaign is underway. The cam
paign is designed to encourage
African-Americans to spend more
of their money with Black busi
nesses. At the same time, some
major white corporate and busi
ness establishments are supporting
the movement by employing A fri
can-America. .s, establishing scho
"Triage." The term brings to
mind scenes from the television
series M .A.S.H. — scenes of doc
tors and nurses examining the
wounded as they arrived from the
Korean
battlefields.
Medically
speaking, the term "triage" refers
to the assigning of priorities for
treatment of patients, but the word
was used in an entirely different
context Tuesday, Jan. 26, when
former sheriff and county executive
Don Clark urged the county to
adopt a strategy for fighting a dif
ferent kind of battle — the battle
against crime.
Clark had been asked to take a
long, hard look at the problem of
crime by County Chair Gladys Mc
Coy back in August of 1987. Spe
cifically, McCoy wanted to know
Clark's views on how the county
could reorganize its services to tack
le the roots of crime instead of its
symptoms. His conclusion: the
county should integrate its human
services and criminal justice system
into a coordinated system offering
a "continuum of services" to per
sons at risk of entering a life of
crime. Clark also urged the com
missioners to heed the recommen
dations of a think-tank of county
professionals which he had called
together for the purpose of develop
ing a program to implement the
continuum concept. It was the re
port of that think-tank which ex
plained what "triage" is all about.
According to the think-tank re
port, the triage system would work
something like this: On first coming
in contact with police, offenders
who presented no immediate threat
of violence to others would be refer
red to a Triage Center for evalua
within and influence the attitude
towards to Black community
"W hat's good for the goose is good
for the gander." If Black Oregon
ians are to continue to spend their
money with such establishments,
it is in the best interest of these
establishments to reciprocate.
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drian Anderson, an unem ployed ja n ito ria l w o rke r, joined the
) or 40 "J u s tic e For J a n ito rs " dem onstrators at the W ilcox
uilding Thursday, Jan. 28th. In 1986 median ja n ito ria l wages
o w n to w n fell $ .91 an hour w ith m ost non-union w o rke rs now
tarting at $4.00 per hour w ith no health care or other benefits.
Fhese wages q u a lify m any w o rke rs fo r food stam ps, public
ealth care and other form s o f tax-supported re lie f," said Tom
unningham , spokesperson fo r the "J u s tic e For Ja nito rs
T z ?*®
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8
and over again" in the families of
needs;
• Job readiness training, to ad
convicted criminals, he said, con
dress the lack of skills which so
stitutes a "clear mandate" for the
often leads to chronic unemploy
county to become a "change
agent" in their lives.
ment;
• Treatment of mental illness for
When confronted by Commis
those who do not qualify for treat
sioner Polly Casterline with the
ment in the community health sys
question of whether rehabilitation
tem:
really works, Clark responded with
• Victim compensation, to pro
conviction borne of personal ex
mote restitution to crime victims as
perience. Referring to former drug
a part of the "treatment/sanction
and alcohol abusers now employed
plan".
at Central City Concern, the social
Harley Leiber, the county's Direc
service agency he now heads, Clark
tor of Community Corrections, de
said many of his employees had
scribed the plan as an attempt to
been repeat offenders. After get
"create a separate track" for offen
ting
treatment for their illnesses,
ders
who
repeatedly
recycle
however,
those same individuals
through the system. Clark too re
had
proven
themselves to be "hard
ferred to the burden placed on the
working,
reliable
employees" and
criminal justice system by repeat
"law-abiding,
tax-paying,
voting
offenders. With the cost of new
citizens"
as
well.
jails and prisons ranging from
Will the county adopt the triage/
$25,000 per bed for minimum secu
continuum
of services approach to
rity to $100,000 per bed or more
dealing
with
repeat offenders? If
for maximum security, he said o ffi
the
response
of the commissioners
cials of city, county and state
is
any
indication,
the answer is yes.
government are searching for cost
the battle against crim e.
on Clark recom m ends a strategy to the M u ltn o -
McCoy
and
several
of the other
Photo by Richard J. B row n
effective alternatives to incarcera
ah C ounty Board o f C om m issioners fo r fig h tin g
commissioners expressed enthu
tio n."
to terms with their problems or re
and be enrolled in programs which
siasm for the concept, with McCoy
tion. At that point, the suspect
Clark's report outlined the rea
entering
the
criminal
justice
system.
help
them
deal
with
the
habits
expressing me consensus view
would be interrogated by an exami
sons he believes a "w holistic" ap
Clark used the expression "womb-
which
led
them
down
the
road
to
when
she said, "more jail space is
ner who would pose a number of
proach offers the best hope of stem
to-tom b" in describing the range of
crime.
If
not,
they
would
be
treated
part
of
the answer, but not the
questions: Does this offender have
ming the rising tide of crime in the
services that would be offered un
in
much
the
same
way
that
the
sys
a history of drug or alcohol abuse?
whole answer."
county.
Describing the county's
der the program. The think-tank
tem now handles the vast majority
Neither Clark nor any of the com
Is he or she likely to benefit from
justice
system
as
"fragmented,
ex
report lists 14 different "treatment
of criminals, that is, booked and
missioners ventured a guess as to
treatment? Will the offender pro
pensive,
overcrowded,
and
not
ade
approaches," including the follow
sent to jail or cited and released,
what a triage system would cost the
bably continue to break the law,
quately linked with human ser
ing:
depending on the seriousness of the
county. Nor was a timetable men
clogging the criminal justice system
vices," he concluded that "the sys
• Drug and alcohol treatment for
crime.
tioned for the implementation of the
and occupying jail space that ought
tern isn’t working to reduce crime.
adolescents and adults;
Deputy District Attorney Frede
new program. However, informed
to be reserved for dangerous crimi
Repeatedly, he stressed the need to
• Family assessment and referral,
rick Lenzser, think-tank participant,
sources indicated that a schedule
nals? And most important of all,
intervene in family situations where
to intervene against substance
emphasized that the examination of
for adopting the triage strategy
can this offender be released back
drug abuse and child abuse are
abuse, domestic violence and child
offenders would be "intense," and
would be a decision for the new
into the community without on
documented facts. Eighty percent
abuse or molestation;
that offenders entering rehabilita
director of Justice Services — who
dangering the lives ofothers?
of inmates at Oregon penitentiaries
• Prenatal care with emphasis on
tion would suffer 'swift and imme
If the answer to all of these ques
has yet to be hired — in conjunc
have a history of involvement with
childbirth education, health and nu
diate consequences" for not adher
tions is yes, persons charged with
tion with McCoy and the other
drugs, he noted, and a large major
trition, and drug treatment for ex
ing strictly to the treatment regi
Class C felonies or less — including
board members.
ity have also been victims of child
pectant mothers;
men. In other words, the new sys
such crimes as prostitution, forgery,
abuse. The fact that these "com
• Housing referral, to address
tem would offer habitual criminals
See "Clark Reports", Page 2
possession of drugs or theft —
mon denominators" appear over
emergency and permanent housing
the stark choice of either coming
could be assigned a case manager
• . ► i
t
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ammissioners
Don Clark Reports to County
by Ian MacCrae
larship funds, moving more Blacks
into management positions, grant
ing franchises and supporting Black
newspapers by advertising.
Business and corporate establish
ments, and the broadcast and print
media, must be held accountable
for the way they wheel and deal
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