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Page 2, Portland Observer, August 10, 1988
EDITORIAL
P O R T L A N D 'OBSERVER
OREGON S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION
Gary Ann Garnett
Nyewusi Askari
News Editor/Staft Writer
Joyce Washington
Mattie Ann Callier-Spears
Sales/Marketing Director
Danny Bell
Sales Representative
Ruby Reuben
Religion Editor
Richard Medina
P hotocom position
Lonnie Wells
Sales Representative
Circulation Manager
Rosemarie Davis
B. Gayle Jackson
Sales Representative
Comptroller
PORTLAND OBSERVER
is published weekly by Exie Publishing Company In c
525 N E Killingsw orth St • Portland. Oregon 97211
P O Box 3137 • Portland Oregon 97208
Phone Numbers: (5 03 ) 288 0 03 3 (Office)
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The PORTLANP OBSERVER — Oregon's oldest African-American Publication — is a member of
The National Newspaper Association — Founded in 1885. The Oregon Newspaper Publishers
Association, and Tha National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers. Inc . New
York.
Low-Income People
Victimized Again!
- Vote NO On Measure #5 -
nce again, the lower income people in Oregon have been
singled out as easy tax targets.
Once again, those who can least afford it are asked to pay the
bill for those who could afford it.
This time, the jab is more cynical and arrogant than ever - and
it’s called Measure #5 on the Oregon November Ballot. Measure #5
-remember it and vote against it.
What Measure #5 pretends to accomplish is to save Oregon
intercollegiate sports. It even infers that Rose Bowl winners and big
time PAC-10 success will be made possible it this sales tax measure
passes.
None of these promises can be accomplished with this unfair
and misguided excise sales tax bill on beer and cigarettes. What it
will accomplish is higher profits for some retailers and wholesalers
: and an economic benefit for a handful of State System of Higher
Education campus towns (Corvallis, Eugene, etc.)
Here are the facts:
Measure #5 would more than double the state tax on beer,
jumping it from $2.60 per barrel to $5.70 per barrel - an increase of
120%! A companion increase on cigarettes of one-cent per pack
would raise Oregonian cigarette smokers' tax to 28-cents per pack.
The huge beer increase would make Oregon the highest taxed of all
neighboring states and in the top third nationally.
This punitive tax - aimed squarely at one small segment of
Oregonians - would raise about $8.5-million to underwrite varsity, big
league sports on the seven state campuses. But consumers would
pay more than $18-million per year in order to reach that tax goal - and
the $18-million-plus would come from big mark-ups in beer and
cigarette retail prices.
Every statistical study proves that beer drinkers represent the
middle and lower income segment of the population - working people
- the usual targets when the rich want someone else to bankroll their
fun and games.
Notice this: those who propose soaking the beer drinkers are
not asking anything of martini drinkers, pipe & cigar smokers, or wine
drinkers. Only the beer people will foot the bill for the entire state.
Only one part of the Oregon population will be forced to pay for the
Big Games - games they can’t afford to attend.
Measure #5 is flying under false pretenses. It won’t buy big
winning teams. In the PAC-10 now, five schools receive state tax sup­
port for sports and five do not. In the past 30 years, the five teams
with no tax support have been to the Rose Bowl 23 times; the five
teams with tax support have gone only seven times.
And another thing: remember that this new tax money would
not help student sports programs, intramural activities, or community
| colleges. The whole $8.5 million would go to the Big Show sports -the
varsity action - for the benefit of athletes who are mostly pre­
professionals already on sports scholarships - and to the fans of the
Big Game, who will not be asked to pay anything additional to support
their enthusiasms.
It is amazing that a bill so ill-conceived, so lop-sided could ever
have reached the ballot. And it wouldn’t have, except for the huge
| amount of money its backers spent to hire professional initiative
petition peddlers to come up with the required signatures.
This bill is unfair to all Oregonians because it punishes the few
| for the benefit of the many.
Measure #5 is punitive, regressive, discriminatory, unfair - and
it won't accomplish what it promises! Vote NO ON MEASURE #5!
O
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PORTLAND OBSERVER
OREGON'S AWARD WINNING BLACK NEWSPAPER
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Creed Of The Black Press
he Black Press believes that America
can best lead the world away from
social and national antagonisms when it
accords to every person, regardless of race,
color, or creed, full human and legal |
¡rights. Hating no person, fearing no per­
son, the Black Press strives to help every
person in the firm belief that all are hurt as'
| long as anyone is held back.
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1
committee probe into the case
and recommended impeachment.
The special investigation took
three-and-one-half years to com­
plete, utilized 151 FBI agents and
cost $1.5 million dollars
Leon Harris/Gen Mgr
Business Manager
O P IN IO N
Judge Alcee Hasting: A Man Of Principle
E s ta b lis h e d in 1970
Alfred L. Henderson/Pubhsher
/
Hastings and his supporters
contend that impeachment would
constitute “ double jeopardy,” try­
ing him again on a case that he
was found innocent of. I'm inclin­
ed to believe, this case shows you
how far Institutional RACISM will
go. He feels that he’s legally and
morally correct. Principle dictates
that he preserve what he perceive
as his integrity and fight this bat­
tle and win. I believe, Brother
Hastings is being targeted be­
oncering: Justice For Judge
cause of his outspokenness on is­
Hastings? 8/27/88. When I sues affecting the poor. In 1981,
was in Chicago last week — for
a example he stopped an effort
fight was going on to resist the
by immigration officials to deport
impeachment of a Black federal
Haitians. The Commission on
judge on the Miami district court.
Racial Justice of the United
There is a national steering com­ Church of Christ, headed by Rev.
mittee of lawyers and civil rights
Ben Chavis, is also coming to
activists. The committee is rais­ Brother Hastings' aid. The UCC
ing money and the awareness of
has made the judge’s case a
third world people for Judge
priority issue on its agenda
Hastings, whose case is being
because it believes: Brother
reviewed by the Congressional
Hastings was singled out; the
House Committee of the Judici­ case is a continuation of the at­
ary. They have initiate a lobbying
tack on Black leadership; and a
campaign to talk about the real
victory for Brother Hastings can
RACIST points of the case. Con­
be a positive shot in the arm for
gress realizes the case is really
the ongoing struggle to clear
shaky. It involves a constitutional
Blacks of unwarranted attacks by
issue. Double jeopardy is a very
the federal government. They
real issue here.
can’t afford for a Black man in
Judge Hastings, the first Black
person ever appointed to the fed­ Amerika to stand up and tell the
truth. Brother Hastings refuses to
eral district bench in Florida, was
compromise.
He could be out of it
acquitted in 1983 of conspiring to
easily
by
making
a deal. But that’s
accept a $150,000 bribe from an
not
in
his
nature.
I'm inclined to
undercover FBI agent, a charge
believe,
although
the Judiciary
brought against him in 1981.
Committee is reviewing the case,
Another attorney, W illiam A.
the Congress is not likely to han­
Borders, a friend of Hastings, was
dle the case until after the 1988
convicted and sentenced to five
elections for fear of a reprisal by
years in prison.
Black voters if the decision
One month after returning to
the bench, two caucasoid south­ against Brother Hastings is
ern judges initiated a 14-judge
negative.
As quiet as it’s k$pt, there is an
ill wind blowing across Amerika
and it smells a lot like fascism.
But make no mistake about it, this
fascism that shocked the world a
half century ago, today's fascism
may come to power through dem­
ocratic channels with a friendly,
popular, patriotic and irresistable
appeal.
Because fascism is an ever
evolving phenomenon, it does not
necessarily have an exact or com­
plete definition suitable for all oc­
Introducing A New Column:
‘The Other Side”
if
C
A
by Harold Williams
ortheast Portland is the
heartbeat of the Portland
Metropolitan area.
You can easily reach any place
in the City of Portland within
fifte e n m in u te s — s h o p p in g
centers, the airport, recreational
facilities, the river and downtown
Portland. So, it is natural that a lot
N
I
by Professor McKinley Burt
n one sense I was delighted —
_ that in Monday’s Oregonian
(Black Males, page 2) William
Raspberry is quoted in para­
phrase of what I have been say­
ing for years: “ WE DON'T TALK
TO OUR CHILDREN ABOUT
OWNING BUSINESSES ... Only
about getting a job." For the
past few months many of my ar­
ticles have emphasized just this
point.
I was ‘not’ delighted when, in
retrospect, I thought of the years
I spent at the university teaching
an Urban Economics Class, us­
ing successful enterprises as
models — firms of my own or of
others. In ad d itio n to text
material, students were taught
to set-up fu n c tio n in g busi­
nesses as real-time exercises in
e n tre p re n e u rs h ip . C e rta in ly,
many of my students 'went
South', where a number are do­
ing quite well in their own enter­
prise. But, today, I am very dis­
appointed in the level of re­
sponse from either 'l-want-to-do-
it' types, or from urban agencies
w h ich should be in volving
experienced-based elem ents
rather than textbook theorists
who never operated even a lem­
onade stand Track records are
needed.
Last week's article detailed a
business in which I serviced
of attention is placed on N.E.
Portland, better known in some
circles as the Black Community.
In the past, a lot of negatives
have been said and written about
our community. Particularly about
our youth. A very negative picture
has been painted about our youth
and it is important that we change
the focus of that picture, for they
are our future.
My weekly articles, “ The Other
Side’’ will try and cast a positive
side on our youth and other areas
of interest in our community. I will
deal with the interests and con­
cerns of Black men as they relate
to our most precious asset — The
Black women and the Black
family.
“ The Other Side” means just
that - whatever is said about
us — there is another side.
I look forward to telling the
story of the other side. We are the
heartbeat and the soul of the
Portland Metropolitan area.
Peace and Love to you all until
next week.
PORTLAND OBSERVER
"The Eyes and Ears of the Com m unity”
288-0033
CIVIL RIGHTS JOURNAL
Perspectives
Do It
Or Perish
casions. Fascist systems differ
from each other in exact detail
because the principles of fascism
are randomly chosen to solve
specific problems as they arise.
One cla ssica l d e fin itio n of
fascism in power is the “ open ter­
roristic dictatorship of the most
reactionary, most chauvinistic
elements of finance capital. In
foreign policy, fascism is jingo­
ism in its most brutal form,
fomenting bestial hatred of other
nations.
Jesse Jackson:
auto dealers, loggers, farmers,
supermarkets and others. You
will note that most of my models
are businesses with an immed­
iate CASH FLOW, an an easily
perceived NEED. These are two
timeless success modes, appli­
cable any place and at any time.
In illustration let me describe a
very early on personal service I
developed im m ediately after
World War II.
Long before H&R Block came
up with their m ultiple-site opera­
tion, my innovation was going
strong on N. W illiams Avenue ...
in 1946. I had established an Ac­
counting and Income Tax Office
whose first client was the Neigh­
borhood Grocery. The operating
mode was that of a trained group
of ‘Tax Interviewers' who, fo l­
lowing up on telephone re­
sponses to ads, fanned out over
the city, equipped with forms to
collect relevant information and
W-2 forms. These commission-
paid a g e n ts b ro u g h t th is
'p a c k a g e ' to the W illia m s
Avenue headquarters for pro­
cessing. The finished tax forms
were returned to the clients
within 48 hours.
In nearby Vanport City, soon
to be destroyed by flood, branch
offices were set up for im ­
m e d ia te s e rv ic e . PA C IFIC
BUSINESS SERVICE did very
well until a flood destroyed the
city and until many larger firms
adopted my techniques. I would
again point out that this type of
low-capital, quick cashflow en­
terprise is successfully launch­
ed almost every week by local
whites and Asians and in a
number of different fields.
Another consideration — for
our social sector oriented M id­
dle Class — their positions are
just as AT-RISK as those of the
‘Underclass’ in this era of fast
TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE.
Next week, ‘a technology in­
novation in Los Angeles'.
Where Do We Go
From Here?
by Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr.
I
listened intently to the great
_ oratory of the Rev. Jesse
Jackson as he made his speech
to the Democratic National Con­
vention recently in Atlanta,
Georgia. Inside of the hall of the
Omni Convention Center the at­
mosphere was electrified with
Jackson’s speech and passion.
Millions of people around the
world sat on the edge of their
chairs listening carefully to every
phrase. This was the speech of
the decade and it provided a
challenge to the Democratic Par­
ty, to all African-Americans, and
to millions of others who will be
effected by the outcome of the
upcoming presidential election.
Presidential politics in the
United States is more than a
question of primary elections and
a national convention. It is in addi­
tion, a question of clarifying the
political vision and future of the
nation. This is important to the
entire global community because
of the role the United States con­
tinues to play in world affairs, par­
ticularly in the affairs of the Third
World. Will there be a greater
degree of justice and peace in the
world as a result of the November
elections in the United States? Or
will the poor and oppressed
masses of the world's population
continue to have their destinies
determined by a conservative,
right-wing Republican administra­
tion? Jackson’s challenge to the
Democratic Party set the stage
for these and other questions to
be answered.
Jesse Jackson’s call for the
Democratic Party to find a "com ­
mon ground" and a new political
commitment to transform the
United States into a nation that
stands for justice and freedom for
all of the people of the world, was
a laudible challenge. The problem
is whether or not Michael Dukakis
and the leadership of the Demo­
cratic Party will be responsive to
Jackson’s invitation. Jackson
stated “Tonight there is a sense
of celebration because we have
moved, fundamentally, from racial
battlegrounds by law, to econom­
ic common ground, with the
challenge to move to moral higher
ground.” After witnessing the au­
dience burst into applause in
response to Jackson’s plea, I
wondered if the euphoria of that
moment will later translate into a
real new direction by the Demo­
cratic Party.
Now that the dust has settled
in the aftermath of the Democra­
tic National Convention, millions
of African-Am ericans, Latino-
Americans, Asian-Americans, Na­
tive Americans, and progressive
white Americans are looking for
specific marching orders. Among
the Rainbow Coalition, it is a
given that there is very little if any
sentiment of support for George
Bush to be the next president.
Yet, it will be a gross over­
statement for anyone to conclude
th a t m illio n s o f A fric a n -
Americans and others will auto­
m a tic a lly s u p p o rt M ic h a e l
Dukakis.
The truth is Jesse Jackson still
has the support of the millions of
voters who cast their votes for
him. While there is a general ap­
preciation for the role that Jack-
son played at the convention,
there is still in the minds of many
a feeling of disgust and dismay at
the way Jackson was finally treat­
ed. Where do we go from here?
We must go to the polls in record
numbers if not just to vote for
Dukakis, but just as importantly
to vote against George Bush and
to vote against the devastating
legacy of the Reagan years.
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