r ity or nûora I It's Here! "The Colored Museum" museum IFCC (243-7930 or 2438- »-4496) This Friday thru Sunday - Review Next Week! Don't Miss ... This Exciting Show! Volume XIX • Number 4 ËËfll ---- öS ■ ■ M ERVER PORTLAND January 26, 1989 The Eyes and Ears of the com m unity Portland State University Blames Langston Hughes Play For Deficit bv Garland Lee Thompson Linda King Library Clerk N. Portland Branch Danier Coppedge Markham Middle School “ A deficit of over $20,000 was posted by the 1988 Sum m er Pro gram, according to a Dec. 1, 1988 memorandum from Education Activi ties Director Nina Lowry to Robert Vieira, acting vice provost for student affairs. This opening quote in Tuesday's Jan. 18,1988, issue of the Vanguard, Portland State University’s student newspaper, that ran below the “mega points” black caption, “ Play Blamed For Deficit.” The alleged play “ culprit,” PSU’s newspaper is referring to is Langston Hughes' classic 1958 musical, “ Sim ply Heavenly,” which played the Lin coln Hall Theatre at PSU during the Summer Session, “ 88 at the Univer sity. Langston would have loved it! “ According to Lowry, the budget for the 1988 Summer Program was approximately $7,000. Administrated by E.A. (Educational Activities), the program usually presents “ mini-ver sions” of student group programs, such as the Film Com m ittee’s free movie screenings, the Music Com m ittee’s Brown Bag concerts in the park, and exhibits in the cam pus art galleries With the 1988 Sum m er Program, however, Lowry attempted to estab lish a link with the Black com m unity in Portland by “presenting a fully-staged production of a work by a Black play wright, with an all-Black cast and a professional Black director.” A key point the Vanguard is quoted; “ The Sum m er Session Theater Pro gram (“ The Sum m er Theatre Festi val") was canceled due to previous deficits (that right, it is reported to be $40,000 and the Jack Featheringill com pany was expected to lose $25,000 in 1988 which is the as sumed reason it was canceled), leav ing the theaters available for this project. The Lincoln Hall theatre was to be dark all sum m er if no project are brought in. “ So where is the Beef?" It was “Simple, according to Thompson!” “ The University had been under fire for not reaching out to the Black com m unity,” Lowry said. “ It was a big risk to do it right." “ Innovation re quires risk,” so I’ve read somewhere. "Lowry was hoping the risk would pay off-to the tune of $30,000, enough to pay the costs of the show with a profit to put toward future projects (such as a annual Black Theatre Festival or project). The Vanguard states: “ She con tacted Garland (Lee) Thompson (founder of the Frank Silvera W riters' W orkshop), a New York-based direc tor who had worked with PSU Up ward Bound Program. THE FIRST TIME IN PORTLAND FOR PLAY’S 30TH ANNIVERSARY “ Thompson proposed “ Simply Heavenly,” a play with music by Langston Hughes that he had suc cessfully mounted in New York (it was Philadelphia's New Freedom Theatre) with his own theater com pany. They began production in early May (it was actually July) and opened the doors of the Lincoln Auditorium the last weekend of August for a three-week run.” This was the first time, “ Simply Heavenly,” had ever played in this City and the thirtieth anniversary since it last played the W est Coast (1958 in Los Angeles, which Thompson was a actor, the kid newsboy). “The show was wonderful,” said Sue Busby, director of the Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, a publicly- supported ethnic cultural center and theater. “ It was a special treat for everbody in the co m m u n ity... It was sad that seats were em pty.” "Low attendance was responsible for large part of the Sum m er Program deficit, according to Lowry. But opin ion is divided on who was responsible for the empty seats." BLACK COMMUNITY LET US DOWN “In her memo to Vieira, Lowry stated Black community leaders and the Black PSU faculty members she and Th ompson had assumed would help fill the auditorium, let us dow n.” (The truth of the matter is that Dr. Darrell Millner, PSU’s Chairman of the Black Studies Dept. did attend and sup ported the production). There are only a hand full of Black teachers at the University to begin with, so who are they talking about? What leaders and who in the community were asked to assist? The article goes on to state: “To make $30,000, the show would have to draw 209 people paying the full $12 ticket price each night of the 12 show run. According to Busby, special pro motion is required to fill a hall, espe cially for an ethnic show. Block ticket sales to church groups, sororities, and community organizations must be lined up months in advance. She said she begins six months before a show's opening, just to line up an audience." “ Radio and newspaper advertising, and posters in the com munity are fine for a big market like New York, she said, but in a small market like Portland, a producer must have key people committed to bring ing in an audience. The gross receipts from the door amounted to approximately $5,000. She estimates that EA spent approxi mately $24,000 on the play, including $12,600 in salaries for actors, musi cians and production (PSU) em ploy ees. In her m emo to Vieira, Lowry requested that the deficit of the Summer Program be covered by the year-end balance from the combined Educational Activity programs, which are funded by student incidental fees. Her request was approved by Vieira and Lee Shissler, chairman of the Incidental Fees Committee. Does PSU want the Black community to repay the debt? What do you think? Write us at the Observer office. Are we to blame or what? W ho is under attack here? Retrogressive Journalism Invades Portland by Stephen E. McPherson Michelle Knight W hitaker Middle School Aneer Lomax Kenton Elementary ANNOUNCEMENT I have been offered the op portunity to take on special writing assignm ents for the Portland Observer. Because of this, I w ill be on leave as News Editor for approxim ately two months. During those months, in addition to writing assign ments, I will finish a major stage play, a series of chil dren stories and produce other work relating to the performing arts and African- American Culture. Nyewusi Askari A scurrilous scandal sheet recently oozed from the primeval muck to emerge in Portland wreaking with yellow journalism, racism and unm iti gated hatred. At first glance, one’s inclination is to dismiss this rubbish as the rambling of a very sick mind. But then again this was exactly what was said more than fifty years ago when a house painter from Germany initiated his particular brand of politi cal ranting. Since this new publication has such strong political overtones, we cannot ignore it because our re cent experience has taught us that an impaired mind is not a strong impedi ment against gaining a high political office, not only at the local level but especially in the state house and on more than one occasion entree to the oval office, itself. It is too often that the Constitution of the United States has been em ployed as a subterfuge to cam ou flage the evil intent of some mis guided miscreant. In this case it cloaks itself in the questionable respectabil ity of the Northeast Reformer and then launches an unbridled attack against the community, its represen tatives and individual citizens. It is very conceivable that one could have a very legitimate criticism of anyone of the persons m entioned in the ar ticle, but when one shoots into a crowd with a double barreled shotgun in order to get just one culprit, then it is the veracity of the assailant that is called into question together with the legitimacy o f their accusations. It is particularly distressing to note the manner in which the writer pres ents its story. Any one with the least amount of sensitivity to the Black com m unity and it’s concerns would not have portrayed the Northeast com m unity as “ possum hood.” Even when these words are spoken through Pogo, the comic strip character, the insult remains. Professional ethics prevent this w riter from repeating the perjorative characterizations that were employed to describe key persons at the King Neighborhood Facility. This mean little missile of hate received wide distribution throughout the city. It is interesting to note that a person with a similar name as the N.E. Reform er’s authoralso receives public assistance. Certainly the ex penses involved in this effort were not trivial. The question arises as to (Continued To Page 2) CITY OF Dick Bogle. Commissioner 1220 S.W Fifth Avenue Portland. Oregon 97204 (503) 248 4682 PORTLAND, OREGON DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY January 19, 1989 National Urban League Releases “ The State of Black America 1989;” Panel Of Black Scholars Analyze Key Issues John E. Jacob, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Urban League will lead a panel of distinguished Black scholars in an analysis of key issues confronting Black America during the release of The State of Black America 1989 at 10 a.m., Tuesday, January 24 at the National Press Club in Washington, D C. The authors and articles are: Dr. John O. Calmore, “ To Make W rong Right: The Necessary and Proper Aspirations of Fairi-lousing;” Dr. Price M. Cobbs, “ Valuing Diver sity: The Myth and the Challenge;" Marian W right Edelman, “ black C hil dren in Am erica;” Dr. Charles Hamilton, "O n Parity and Political Em pow erm ent;” Dr. Robert B. Hill, “ Critical Issues for Black Families by the Year 2000;" Dr. C. Eric Lincoln, "Knowing the Black Church: W hat It Is and W hy;” Dr. W ade W. Nobles along with Dr. Lawford L. Goddard, “ Drugs in the African-American Community: A Clear and Present Danger;” Dr. David Swinton, “ Economic Status of Black Am ericans;” and Dr. Reginald C. W ilson, “ Black Higher Education: Crisis and Promise.” The State of Black America 1989 will also be telecast via The Howard University Black College Satellite Telecom m unications Net work and its affiliate network to more than a million people across the nation. The State of Black Am erica 1989 addresses some of the dispari ties existing in the country and is the most authoritative docum ent 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 tow ards making a just and equitable society. The 1989 report is the fourteenth annual edition. NOTE: The Portland Observer will print summaries Qf„fliajQt papers in the State of Black America in next w eek’s editorial. Newsletter: An Affront To Portland's African-American Community The N ortheast Reform er, a newsletter of the worst kind, defines itself as “ A solid expression of the truth, justice, the American way and the editor's personal opinions.” The newsletter is supposedly published by a faceless, obscure group called “The Northeast Reform Com m ittee,” chaired by Joyce Boles. Boles also takes credit as the newsletter’s editor. The newsletter claims it is “ about, by, and for reformers in inner-North- east Portland.” It's targets? The NE Coalition of Neighborhoods, and the welfare system. However, once a reader has stumbled through the hog wash of stated objectives, it becomes clear that Ms. Boles and com pany should be called "The Northeast De- Formers.” Case in Point: In the January 1989 issue of the Reformer, Mr. Ronnie Herndon is referred to as “ "Alron Hernigator,” Ms. Edna Robertson as “ Miss Boombah Robertson,” and Mr. Charles Ford as “ Model C. Ford." In a story entitled “The Front Page," Pogo, the Possum from the Walt Kelly Comic Strip, is found at the Tippin’ Inn, drinking and talking a language found only in Ms. Boles imagination. First, Ms. Boles and com pany is outta step, outta pocket, outta mind and outta tim e with Portland’s largest African-American community. The attack on Mr. Herndon, Ms. Robertson and Mr. Ford is intolerable, unacceptable and de-filing. Our community does not share or support the Reformer’s bold and tacky attempt to defam e respected m em bers of O re g o n ’s A fric a n -A m e ric a n leadership. Secondly, the Reform er’s use of the comic strip character, Pogo, as a so-called dumb-witted, Black language talkin’ possum, is a serious affront to the entire African-Am erican com m u nity. This is not satire or caustic wit. This is blatant degradation parading itself as satire. Like any American citizen, Ms. Botes and com pany is protected by free speech and those so-called other good things guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. However, when those rights are abused and when the Afri can-American community is the stage upon which the abuses are enacted or played out, the community is obli gated to respond in its own behalf. W e don’t need Ms. Boles brand of yellow journalism nor do we need her as a self-appointed prosecutor, Judge and Jury on African-American lead ership and affairs. And ... If Ms. Bole’s newsletter is an indication of reform, we all are in tro u b le .... S enior of the W eek Dear Readers of The Portland Observer: Earlier this month, 1 was sworn into office for my second four-year term as your City Commissioner. I want to thank every one of you who voted for me and supported me. My roots run deep in this community. I take your support to my heart, and never for granted. In addition to representing all the people of Portland, I feel a deep and everlasting responsibility to all people of color. X never forget who I am, or where I sprang from. These are perhaps the most difficult times in history for parts of North and Northeast Portland. constantly aware of this. My staff and I are Our Job is finding solutions that work to break the grip of fear existing in many neighborhoods, and to create an equality of livability throughout the city. My mind, and my door, are always open. Remember, I am here at City Hall for you, so please don't hesitate to call me with your questions or concerns. If I am tied up, someone in my office will get back to you, just as soon as possible. Sincerely, Dick Bogle, Commissioner Department of Public Safety Mr. V.L. Bush resides in N.E. Portland. Came to Portland, January 9, 1943 from Huntsville, Ala., to work in the shipyards. He has held many jobs since. Montgom ery Ward Nabisco - 241/2 years; Multnomah Hotel - 5 years. Retired January 31,1975. Mr. Bush is Meniker of Vancouver Ave. Baptist Church. Pastor (Rev. O.B. Williams) where he serves on Deacon Board. He is a m em ber o f Enterprise #1, W illam ette Construction #23, Potluck Comm. Urban League of Portland. Past m em ber of the Urban League of Portland Advisory Board. He is married to the lovely Mrs. Cealo Bush, w ho also works every 2nd W ednesday, with Potluck Comm. Urban League of Port land. Hobbies are fishing and hunting (33 years). Mr. Bush will celebrate his birthday January 20. His hobbies include reading, public speaking, and basketball.