Page 8 Portland Observer May 18,1989
THE AFRICAN AMERICAN SUMMIT
we must
to task when he said.
choose interdependency, and the ca
pacity to act, to unite fo r the greater
good o f the A frican Am erican com
m unity. We must seek Common
SUBMITTED BY WAVERLY
DAVIS
Attending the A frican Am erican
Sum m it ’89 in New Orleans was like
watching a bridge being rebuilt, and
I was just one o f the priviledged links
in the construction o f that bridge,
w hich transcended the superficial phi
losophies and focused on the sub
stance o f the struggle w ithin the
A fric a n A m erican C om m un ity.
Thousands upon thousands o f dreams,
aspirations, goals and strategies to
accomplish those goals, came together
during those three days seeking the
"C o m m o n G round’ ’ that Jesse
Jackson frequently addresses. There
was a massive appeal for unity and
economic grow th and development
w ith in the A frica n Am erican com
m unity at this conference. An im
pressive agenda had been organized,
but topics on unity and economic
grow th and development were key
subjects fo r me. Although the media
utilize d a devisive tool by reporting
in the local newspaper who did not
attend the summ it, I was impressed
and encouraged by the presccnce o f
such distinguished national leaders
and activists such as: M rs. Coretta
Scott K ing, Rev. Jesse Jackson. Ron
Brown (DN C ) Hon. Richard Hatcher,
Hon. Ron Dellums, Rev. Henry Hardy,
Hon. Delores Tucker, Hon. Maxine
Waters, Ms. Angela Davis, and many
other articulate, brilliant, professional
leaders both p o litica l, medical, le
gal, and business.
It is these national leaders and ac
tivists, along w ith others, that must
devise an economic and p olitical
agenda fo r the 1990’s. Someone
m ight say, " w e ’ re doing better eco
nom ically and are more unified now
than ever” , but I conquer w ith a
statement made by Mrs. Coretta Scott
K ing which is as follow s: “ We have
more o f what we fought for, more
A frica n Am erican elected officials,
More educational opportunities and
more access to public accomodations,
yet we have less unity than we had
during the c iv il rights movement” .
She stated that unity is the key to our
realizing our long held dreams. The
conclusion to be drawn; is that what
ever we as an African American people
have accomplished thus tar, such as
better housing, education, more A f
rican Am erican p olitical leaders, and
better paying jobs, was accomplished
through unity, and whatever we hope
to accomplish now, and in the future
must be done through unity. We
must become a true fam ily which
shares responsibilities, has common
goals, and strategies for reaching those
goals. The conditions which support
the social and economic failure o f
members o f our A frica n American
fa m ily are urgent, because those who
suffer at the hands o f poverty are a
part o f the whole. W hat is our re
sponsibility? T o maintain the life
line which keeps a ll fam ily members
viable. How can we accomplish this?
Through U nity and Economic Em
powerment. Lack o f i nity leads to
self destruction and influences every
facet o f our lives w ithin the A frican
American Community. Lack o f unity
allows the poison o f jealousy, con
tempt, insensitivity and distrust to
erode the very m oral fiber o f our
com m unity and helps to create a
vehicle through which destructive
influences such as alcohol, drug ad
diction and gang violence enter our
com m unity and metastasize like a
cancer. U nity however, gives us
economic and p o litica l v ia b ility . It
can restore the social lustre back to
our com m unity such as, fa m ily con
sciousness, spiritual conviction and
com m itm ent, and returning to the
moral values that are the foundation
o f our rich heritage. U nity re-estab
lishes oureconom ic and political p ri
orities, i.e., keeping the dollars within
the black com m unity (buying from
black businesses), and elect p olitical
o fficials who are sensitive to our
needs and not allow those persons
including o ffic ia ls in the broader
com m unity, to define those needs for
us. U nity also helps to alleviate the
"m e , m yself and I ” syndrome that
has permeated our com m unity espe
c ia lly amongst the middle and upper
class black professionals and p o liti
cal leaders. I fe lt that Jesse called us
JOBS & CLASSIFIED
INVITATION FOR BIDS
Sealed bids fo r the remodeling o f 16 public housing units w ill be ac
cepted by the U m atilla County Housing A u th ority, P.O> Box 107,155
S.W. 10th Street, Hermiston, Oregon 97838 until 3:00 P.M. PDT on
Thursday, June 15,1989 at which time and place a ll bids w ill be
p ub licly opened and read aloud.
Proposed form s o f contract documents including plans and specifications
are available at the o ffice o f the Housing A uthority and at the fo llo w in g
Plan Centers:
Blue M ountain Plan Center, W alla W alla, W A
Builders Exchange, Portland, OR
Central Oregon Builders Exchange, Bend, OR
Construction Data Plan Center, Portland, OR
Dodgc/Scan, Seattle, W A
Intermountain Contractors, Boise,ID
Pendleton Builder Trades C ouncil, Pendleton, OR
T ri-C ity Construction C ouncil, Kennewick, W A
Copies o f the documents are available at the Housing A uthority s o il ice
for a fee o f S20.00 each, refundable upon submission o f bid.
A pre-bid conference and tour o f the project site is scheduled for 1:30
P.M. Thursday, June 1,1989. Conference attendance by representa
tives fo r prospective Prime Bidders is recom m ended.
A certified check or bank draft, payable to the Housing A u th ority, U.S.
Government bonds, or a satisfactory bid bond executed by the bidder
and acceptable sureties in an amount equal to five percent (5% ) ot the
bid shall be submitted w ith each bid.
The successful bidder w ill be required to furnish and pay for a pcrlorm -
ance and payment bond in the amount o f 100% o f contract price and
provide evidence o f W orker’ s Compensation and Contractor insur
ance.
Attention is called to the provision for equal em ploym ent opportunity,
and the requirement that not less than the H U D determined m inim um
salaries and wages as setforth in the specifications must be paid on
this project.
The Housing A uthority reserves the right to reject any and all bids or to
waive any inform alities in the bidding.
N o bid shall be withdrawn for a period o f 90 days after the date o f bid
opening w ithout the p rior consent o f the Housing Authority.
The Housing A uthority O f The County O f
U m atilla, Oregon
M erw in W. Parker, Executive Director
HAP AND SHER PERSPECTIVES
IFF’S OFFICE
“ YOUR
TEAM UP
DADDY’S RICH,
B uilding a safe environment at
C olum bia V illa ... that’s what the
new Safety A ction Team is hard at
w ork doing w ith Housing A uthority
o f Portland (H A P ) residents. The
team, developed through a jo in t e f
fo rt o f HAP, C hief Deputy Bob Skip
per o f the S h e riffs O ffice , and
M ultnom ah County C hair Gladys
M cCoy, is com m itted to stopping
gang and drug a c tivity in public
housing. Its main targets are the C o
lum bia V illa and Tamarack develop
ments in North Portland, which house
more than 1,000 people.
Chief Deputy Skipper has assigned
one lieutenant, three deputies, and
tw o C om m unity Service O fficers to
the Safety A ction Team.
Each shift o f the Safety Action
Team w ill Knock on at least 10 doors
to talk to people, fin d out what is
happening in the area, and help d i
rect residents toward services that
for each State Chairman who came
could help strengthen their fam ilies
to the summit to make an analysis o f
and improve their liv in g conditions.
all public money known to exist in
A training program planned for H AP’s
their communities, and that we should
Resident Aides w ill also help detect
carefully m onitor the growth and
and prevent crime. The Safety A c
distribution o f those funds. We should
tion Team w ill act as a support to the
immediately investigate with the State
Portland police officers, who are still
Chairman the use o f pension funds
the firs t responders to 911 calls.
stored in labor unions and state g ov
“ N orth Portland is a sector o f the
ernment as a source o f investment
C ity that’ s been hard h it by the crime
capital for com m unity development
wave o f crack and gang a c tiv ity ,”
projects. The leadership talked about
C hie f Deputy Bob Skipper says. " I
change in black entrepeneurship.
want to respond to its need fo r help.
Joshua Smith, an entrepeneur, stated
The Safety A ction Team is ju s t one
that he was disappointed in the de
step in our support o f this com m u
gree in which economic develop
nity.
ment is treated w ith in our com m u
The team w ill be stationed at 8920
nity. "L e ss than 5% emphasis is
North Woolsey Avenue in Colum bia
placed on economic development,
V illa by late May. Shifts w ill be set
which is where we need to be now. ”
according
to the times o f day that
That is going to require a new kind o f
have
the
most
a c tivity, such as late
leadership w ith a new direction that
afternoon into the evening. The Safety
encourages A frican Americans to
A ction Team w ill also be available
make a choice fo r change. "E m p h a
to respond as needed to trouble spots
sis should be placed on black owned
businesses rather than on ju s t secur in other H AP developments around
M ultnom ah County.
ing a job. Black leaders should ac
quaint themselves w ith the rules o f “ The safety o f our residents is our
the market-place that restricts black lop concern,” H A P Executive D i
entrepeneurship. W e cannot afford rector Donald E. C lark says. “ The
to build an economic future entirely success o f the team has already started.
upon the principals o f 25 years ago. “ W e ’ ve seen a number o f crimes
For w hile we are marching on Wash prevented, order is being restored
ington, other ethnic groups arc march
and the confidence o f residents is
ing to the bank. The fuel to change is
steadily rising.
not just talking about the jobs we
should have, but about the jobs we
should create. Entrepeneurship has
fueled this economy from the begin
ning and it ’ s entrepeneurship that
Ground” .
The African American leadership
that attended this summit have fe lt
throughout history, economic devel
opment has been a necessity fo r so
cial progress for any group o f people
in Am erica. We however, have been
kept and have participated in keep
ing ourselves economically deprived.
The leadership in attendance called
for the support o f A frican Am erican
businesses and for economic devel
opment projects such as the U.S.
Investment Corporation, Buy Free
dom campaigns, the Power program,
and other programs w hich arc based
on the principle o f mutual economic
support as the prim ary foundation
for generating community capital and
as the most basic step o f securing
large amounts o f capital from others
outside o f the African American com
m unity. The leadership also called
How many o f you readers ever
caught on to this subtle theme o f
’ ra ce -m ixin g that George Gersh
w in parodied in his Famous musical
com position. Sum m er Tim e? The
fo llo w in g three men o f notable ac
complishment were the legitimate
offspring o f Black mothers, and white
fathers, It is an ugly irony that, today
each w ould need a M in o r ity G ra n t
o r Business C e rtific a tio n in order to
pursue their careers in Am erica(The
anthropologists now say that a p ri
meval A frican Lucy is the mother o f
the human race).
John James Audubon: This great
naturalist and renowned illustrator
o f birds (orinthologist) was bom in
1784 on the West Indies island o f
Santos Dom ingo-now The D o m in i
can R epublic, the source o f so many
great Black baseball players. The
son o f a French sea captain and an
emancipated African mother who died
shortly alter his birth, Audubon was
raised in Nantes, France in the life
style o f the ric h and famous.
Though his father remarried in
Europe, the A frican connection was
maintained when captain Audubon
brought a beautiful Haitian nanny
from the islands to oversee his son’ s
upbringing (The nations o f The D o
minican Republic and H aiti share the
same island base). The young
Audubon dodged his tutors as much
as possible and spent most o f h is time
prow ling the forests and drawing
woodland creatures, m ostly birds.
A fte r a b rie f and boring stint at a
naval academy, he persuaded his father
to enroll him at a school o f art in
Paris. Even here he found academics
too rig id and structured fo r his inven
tive mind.
It was only after com in0 to A m er
ica in 1803 that Audubon’ s’s real
genius took flower. W ith a New
England farm owned by his father as
a base, the young man spent years
traveling the length and breadth o f
w ill fuel it in the future.
Economic Empowerment has got
to be the number agenda item, not
ju s t an item sliced up between a ll the
other programs. We have got to turn
wealth into assets and assets into
businesses, so that we set the eco
nomic policy for the future.
ALLEN TEMPLE
Allen Temple Church, located at 4236
NE 8th Avenue (comer o f 8th and
Skidmore), w ill present the movie,
" A T h ie f in the N ig h t” on F ri
day, May 26, 1989 at 7:15 pm.
“ A T h ie f in the N ig h t” is about
Bible prophecy. It shows whal
could happen when Jesus Christ
returns fo r His church. I l is the
first in a series o f film s which
dram atically depicts Bible proph
ecy about the end times.
Adm ission to the film is free. Re
freshments w ill be served at no
cost.
PCC
INTERPRETER
PROGRAM IN
VITES PUBLIC
TO OPEN
HOUSE
The Interpreter training program
o f Portland C om m unity College in
vites the public to an open house
May 23 and 24 at the PCC Cascade
Campus, 705 N. K illin g sw o rth St.
The program trains interpreters
for hearing-impaired people. The open
house w ill feature demonstrations o f
American Sign Language and include
visits to the program’s regular classes.
A schedule o f events may be ob
tained by ca lling PCC, 244-6111,
N ew W ay to W IN on The Show!
» Send in ANY five nonwinning Oregon Lottery instant
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Every Saturday at 7:30 PM
KOIN (6) Portland
KVAL (13) Eugene
KPIC (4) Roseburg
KTVZ(21) Bend
KOBI (5) Medford
KCBY (11) Coos Bay
KOTI (2) Klamath Falls
ext. 5288 or ext. 5209.
PORTLAND OBSERVER
The Housing A uthority o f U m atilla County is an equal opportunity
employer and request bids form small disadvantage, women and
AND YOUR
MAMA’S GOOD
LOOKING”
Part I
the country developing his innova
tive and beautiful style o f rendering
bird life on canvas. He dismissed the
stylized techniques o f his contempo
raries and when forced to use the
stuffed bird o f a taxiderm ist for a
model, prom ptly removed the pins
and posed the bird in a realistic manner.
Today, Audubon is known through
out the w orld fo r his m agnificent
paintings and informational journals.
The most famous work is his B ird s
o f Am erica, a collection o f 435 water
colors finished in 1838. His pioneer
ing contributions to the fie ld o f
orinthology arc the model fo r the
tens o f thousands o f members o f the
prestigious N atio na l A u du b on So
ciety. Few this side o f the A tlantic
know his A frican origins.
Norbert Rillicux: This great chemi
cal engineer, inventor and Egyptolo
gist was the discoverer o f the Vacumn
Pan C entrifugal Process which revo
lutionized the making o f sugar (Pat
ent No. 4879, Dec. 10.1846). The
son o f a Frecnh planter and engineer
and a Black mother, he was bom in
New Orleans at a time when several
hundred thousand free Blacks lived
in the South. Sent by his wealthy
father to France to study, R illieu x
taught applied mechanics in Paris
and published many scientific pa
pers by the time he was tw enty-four.
The US Department o f A g ric u l
ture cited his invention a s” the great
est in the history o f chemical engi
neering” . R illie u x ’ s specialty was
thermodynamics; the transformations
o f heat into mechanical w ork and the
opposite transformation back to
heat.Threc w orld-fam ed physicists
(Lord Kelvin, Carnot and R.J. Mayer)
arc credited with theories which quite
probably were developed by the Black
man, R illieux. By age 25 this genius
had become head o f the famed Acad
emy where earlier he had been a
student, then instructor (The E ’cole
centrale in Paris).
Returning to Am erica, R illie u x
became the most sought after engi
neer in Louisiana. But because o f his
color sugar plantation owners who
sought his advice could not entertain
him in their homes. It became the
custom to b u ild s ta ff and fu rn is h a
special house ju s t fo r R illie u x (sev
eral s till exist today). He died in Paris
in 1894 and the sugar industry hon
ored him w ith a bronze plaque in the
Louisiana State Museum; No scien
tific literature in America mentions
him.
• The Eyes and Ears of the Community'
288-0033
m in o rity owned business enterprises.
»