Page 2 Portland Observer OCTOBER
19, 1989
ÉDÎTÔfilAL/ OPINION
Civil Rights Journal
MAYNARD JACKSON:
VICTORY IN ATLANTA
by Henjamin F. Chavis, Jr.
M aynard Jackson's recent victory to be
the next M ayor o f the city o f Atlanta,
Georgia is a testimony to the strength
o f A frica n Am erican political devel
opm ent in the South. Jackson's re-elec
tion w ith nearly 80% o f the vote in his
favor exem plifies the importance o f
electoral p olitics at the municpal level
fo r all com m unities that have histori
ca lly been m arginalized from fu ll par
ticipation in the electoral process.
Jackson's tremdous re-election comes
at a tune when the rest o f the nation still
views the South w ith much speculation
as to the ongoing empowerment o f the
A frica n American and other facial and
ethnic communities. Outgoing M ayor
Andrew Young has enjoyed d istin
guished terms o f service as M ayor o f
Atlanta during a period o f unprece
dented economic grow th and develop
ment. Given Jackson's already-proven
record o f expertise in the economic
development arena, we are expecting
to see Atlanta continue to evolve as a
model Am erican city.
This is not to suggest, however, that
there are not serious problems in A t
lanta concerning homelessness, drugs,
and a reticent degree o f abject poverty
for many Atlanta residents. These prob
lems unfortunately are common to most
urban metropolises in the United States.
It is our b lie f though that the political
leadership o f Atlanta under Maynard
Jackson's direction should begin to make
considerable use o f the expansion o f
Atlanta’s economy to help provide re
sources to solve some o f the very real
social and economic ills o f the poor
and downtrodden in this city.
Jackson, at the age o f 51, has the en
ergy and the experience to provide the
kind o f leadership that w ill be demanded
o f Atlanta as the 21st century approaches.
Mayor-elect Jackson stated, "1 see my
election as a mandate from the people
to
continue to move Atlanta forward."
We recall that back in 1973 at the age
o f 35, Jackson was first elected Mayor
o f Atlanta and although there were
racial overtones in the mayoral race.
Jackson was successful in pulling A t
lanta together.
We are sure that the legacy o f Dr.
M artin Luther K ing, Jr., particularly in
the city o f Atlanta, Georgia, is w ell
served by the contributions o f persons
like Andrew Young and Jackson as
being representative o f the "Black Elite"
o f Atlanta. This may be true, but what
is o f more importance is how they and
others from the African American
middle class can utilize their status to
help all o f those who are caught in the
increasing ranks o f the underclass. The
reality o f class differences in the A fr i
can American com m unity should not
be used to ju s tify class contradictions.
In other words, we all should work to
elim inate all forms o f social and eco
nomic discrim ination and dis-empow
erment. Many African American com-
munites as w ell as other racial and
ethnic communities throughout the
United States can draw from the hard
lessons learned in Atlanta.
It is only when persons o f different and
diverse backgrounds can find in their
mutual life experiences the common
goal o f justice and freedom for every
one is when the possibility o f social
and racial equality is realized. We sa
lute Maynard Jackson on his victory
and may this be a victory fo r all o f the
people o f Atlanta.
This Wav for Black Empowerment
by Dr. Lenora Fulani
Congratulations To CALM
'
Last Thursday evening Mobutu Sese
Scko, the brutal dictator o f Zaire, was
the featured (and only) speaker at at
forum sponsored by Harvard U niver
sity’s prestigious Kennedy School o f
Government. The title o f the forum was
Peace and Progress in Southern A f
rica." No one could be less qualified to
speak on this topic than Mobutu, a
murderous tyrant who years ago sold
his soul to the tw in devils o f apartheid
and American neo-colonialism.
Having grown monstrously rich over
the dead bodies o f our sisters and broth
ers in South A frica, in Angola, and in
Zaire itself, M obutu is now being mar
keted as an African statesman and peace
maker by his patrons in the Bush ad
m inistration and by his friends - Black
as w ell as white, Democrat as w ell as
Republican - in Congress. But not
everyone is buying what these con-
science-less apologists fo r fascism are
selling.
The C oalition Against L e g itim iz
ing M obuto (C A L M ) brought more than
800 people to a demonstration outside
the Kennedy School w hile Mobutu lied
his way through a 45 minute address.
Chanting 'M O -B U -T U , M O -B U -T U ,
Who elected you?" to the accompani
ment o f A frican drums, the demonstra
tors were there to let the dictator know
he is not welcome here.
The C oalition Against L e g itim iz
ing Mobutu represented a broad cross-
section o f the Boston com m unity -- a
m ulti-racial grouping o f students, lesbi
ans and gays, human rights and anti
apartheid activists and community folks
who don't o rd inarily "travel in the same
circles" but who joined w ith one an
other to take a stand against a brutal
abuser o f human rights.
It was a fantastic coming together
o f people who wanted to say 'No' to
Mobutu's record," said Lynne Jones, a
first year graduate student in Public
Adm inistration at the Kennedy School.
"A number o f students took issue w ith
having legitim acy bestowed on the
M obutu government, when it doesn't
seem like he hasthe support o f his own
people."
Sean Gonzales, o f the Northeast
Lesbian and Gay Student Union, ex
plained that he joined the protest be
cause "even though this didn't relate
directly to our organization, it is a human
rights issue. This is definitely a change
from what we have been involved w ith,
but it is a showing o f solidarity."
Professor Yves Isidore, a member
ofthc Roxbhury C om m unity College
Z
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faculty and a w riter, is a Haitian p o liti
cal activist who works w ith the C om
mittee in Solidarity w ith Haiti. "T rying
to fig ht Baby Doc and the Tontons
Macoutes is like trying to fight Mobutu,"
he explained. "I said I am w illin g to
give my support because it's like Baby
Doc coming."
The A frican American Society o f
Tufts University issued a statement which
read, "W e in Boston prepare our assault
on the hallowed grounds o f Harvard
U niversity to protest M obutu and eve
rything he stands for in Southern A f
rica. For the Zairian students who must
risk their lives to fig ht for free speech,
let us fight to let our feelings be known
and tell all who w ill listen about the
injustice and atrocities perpetrated in
our name by this villa in, Mobutu, who
our own government supports."
Jenny Green, a Harvard Law School
student who endorsed the protest, was
in the audience for Mobutu's charade.
"Students and activists asked some
pointed questions about his p ilfering o f
billions o f dollars and the human rights
abuses. A t one point he referred to c riti
cisms by Amnesty International as "smut
and propaganda.' And when he said he'd
be w illin g to come back, the students
hissed."
Afterw ard Greg Hunter, a Tufts
student who helped to organize C A L M ,
said that the protest showed that "H ar
vard and its students and people from
the community are concerned about who
speaks here. I understand all about free
speech, but I can't understand why at a
forum on peace and progress in South
ern A frica someone who could only lie
about it should be allowed to speak. We
showed that they couldn't just slip a
murderer in the door."
As Professor Isidore said, "I think
Mobutu got the message." Sooner or
later, he - and his friends in high places
- w ill. The M obutu Watch - initiated
earlier this year to derail the tyrant's
public relations junket to Los Angeles -
- is seeing to that. The job o f the Mobutu
Watch, begun by the Washington, D.C.-
based Rainbow Lobby, the US-Congo
Friendship Committee, the New A lli
ance Party, the International People's
Law Institution, the Patrice Lumumba
C oalition, and the Southern A frica Re
source Center o f the Souther n Christian
Leadership Conference in Los Angeles
and since endorsed by dozens o f other
organizations - is to dog the dictator
and scream bloody murder whenever
and wherever he shows his fascist face
Good work, C A L M !
' •» fell lb * •> *■ 9 -* *
The African-American
Defense Legal Defense
Fund: Judge Hastings
Tim e is o f the Essence!!!
Judgte Alcee Hastings, the first
African American Federal Judge, in South
Florida is currently facing impeach
ment proceedings in the U.S. Senate.
There has been fourteen other judges
that have gone through the impeach
ment process seven were impeached
and seven were not. However, they were
all previously found guilty o f crim inal
charges. W ithin the next 30 days the
U.s. Senate w ill vote on whether or not
Judge Hastings w ill be impeached,even
though he was found innocent o f all
charges in a trial by a ju ry o f his peers in
1983. It is worth noting that from 1981
to 1989 the U.S. govemament has spent
over tw enty-five m illion dollars o f tax
payers money to conduct this follish
inquiry.
In a recent article by James J. Kilpa
trick entitled, "D O N 'T R E M O V E
JUDGE H AS TIN G S" K ilpatrick wrote:
. . . "When the clerk called the
ro ll in the House on August 3,
the vote was 413 to 3 to im
peach Judge Alcee Hastings.
I f I had been present and vot
ing, the count would have been
413 to 4. The House has done
a most regrettable thing. The
Senate w ill have to turn its
back upon a principle embed
ded in the B ill o f Rights. No
person, says the Constitution,
"shall . . . be subject for the
same offense to be tw ice put
in jeopardy o f life or lim b .. . "
The A frican American Legal De
fense (A A L D F ) was established to as
sist Judge Hastings in his p light o f
impeachment. George Pope the Execu
tive D irector o f the A A L D F stated that
we needto raise approximately S600.000
before October 28th in order to get the
sotry out about the circumstantial e vi
dence inolved, the historical aspects o f
Judge Hastings case, and how it relates
to the increase in racism and racial
incidents that are occurring around the
United States.
The A A L D F is intensifying its
lobbying efforts by requesting that lead
ers in their respective communities and
elective/appointed public officials around
the country to write a statement or reso
lution in support o f Judge Hastings, and
to call your Senator NO W . . . not
TO M O R R O W , because tomorrow may
be to late! Please send your response
directly to the A A L D F to the Attention
o f George Pope, located at 141 Ken
nedy Street, N.W ., Washington, D.C.
20011.
The process o f vindication is con
tinuing to push forward and Judge
Hastings has reason to be optim istic
about the outcome o f his impeachment
proceedings. Last week an invigorating
and inspirational "Rally for Justice" took
place on the U niversity o f the D istrict o f
Columbia campus, where student lead
ers discussed the recent racial incident
that occurred in V irgin ia Beach. Stu
dent leader Parris proclaimed, "W e are
holding court here tonight involving the
case o f the United States o f Am erica vs.
33 m illio n African-Am ericans, on the
charges o f . . . discrim ination, racism,
and sexism." Mr. Parris asked the house-
packed audience "how do you plea",
they responded in a loud r o a r. . . guilty
. . . g uilty . . . g u ilty !!! Also, at Howard
University's Blackburn Center in Wash
ington, D.C., a reception convenced in
Judge Hastings honor. These events were
a clear indication o f solidarity that this
grassroots movement in Judge Hastings'
defense is paramount and gaining
momentum.
Each day lobbying efforts continue.
Thus far, the A A L D F has reached and
conferred w ith over eighty senators’
offices on Capitol H ill. On September
26, 1989, a goal was set to secure 2
m illio n signatures on petitions in de
fense o f Judge Hastaings. However,
according to M r. Pope this process is
not m oving fast enough to date the
A A L D F have approximately 10,(X)0
signatures. The signature drive received
a shot in the arm at the HOUSING
NOW M AR C H ON W A S H IN G TO N .
Coordinators from several states took
copies o f our petitions back home with
them and plcdgedto work vigorously to
meet the October 25th deadline for the
two m illio n signautres.
George Pope also indicatcdthat there
arc some discrepancies how the Senate
is logging mail and phone calls concer-
niang Judge Hastings Defense. George
Pope believes that an independent non
governmental investigation should be
conducted.
Vantage Point
W
by Ron Daniels
ECHOES FROM V IR G IN IA BEAC H : A YO U N G G E N E R A TIO N W A KE S UP!
.
"It all started on a beach called Croalan. And now its known all over the land. They came from near and tar just
to have a little fun, enjoying themselves under the September sun. But as the years went by many problems arose,
and the people o f Croalan began to turn up their nose. So they got w ith the city to devise a plan o f how to keep
our black feet o ff their snow w hite sand..."
,
V irgin ia Beach, Labor Day weekend, 1989. These arc the words to a spontaneous rap/poem created by shocked
and dismayed African-Am erican students as they were repulsed by a city that had make up its m ind that they were
unwelcome. The rap goes on "...I've never seen so many cops just hanging around, when my house was being
robbed, they just couldn't be found. Harassing the masses fo r no reason at a ll, w ith their crooked grins...oh they
were having a ball..." Racial antagonism was clearly in the air, and it w ould soon be made manifest when the
national guard was railed in to keep the unwanted vistors under control. Outraged, the students erupted.
By some estimates there were 100,000 African-Am erican students at V irgin ia Beach. For many o f them this was
a rude awakening, a live on site baptism in the new tide o f racism and racial oppression which is surging across
America. Here were the sons and daughters o f upper w orking class, middle Cass and upper class A frica n-
Americans, aspiring young doctors, lawyers, engineers, computer analysts, account exeutives, entrepreneurs,
the "talented tenth" being treated like second-class citizens in Am erica in 1989.
A t a memorable conference on independent black politics at Sacramento State U niversity in 1980, veteran
scholar activist B ill Strickland observed that this was the first generation o f young African-Am ercans who had
not experienced overt racism-no white only signs, seats at the back o f the bus or segregated lunch counters. It
was therefore more d iffic u lt, Strickland reasoned, fo r young African-Am ericans to see and experience racism.
Hence a kind o f lu ll or apathy had gripped the movement, despite the obvious need fo r continued struggle,
besides, the "successes" and "gains" o f the sixites were such that parents o f students were admonishing them not
to go to college and mess w ith that "B lack stuff."
How times have changed during this decade. The B lack m iddle class and its progeny have been forced to W A K E
UP in the face o f the m ounting instances o f facist violence in the society at large and on college campuses in
particular. None o f the pending dgerees, the pockets fu ll o f plastic, or the new found werew ithall to have fun in
the sun made any difference at V irgin ia Beach. As the rap/poem put it... "They called us vandals, out on the take,
but where were their kids 'funning' on their spring break? T ell me the difference as you check this situation. Its
not the location, it the pigmentation."
The sound o f this message raced across the nation as the thousands o f students returned to their respective homes
a nd campuses. The rude awakening at V irgina Beach was very much on the minds o f young African-Am ericans.
The experience at V irg in ia Beach was shared w ith other students and the com m unity at forums and workshops.
A t Akron U niversity in O hio, I had the pleasure o f participating in a forum sponsored by Alpha Phi Alpha
Fraternity. The topic was "A Resurgence o f Racism: The V irg in ia Beach Story". A t the Congressional Black
Caucus Weekend, where hundreds o f Afican-Am erican youth gathered fo r a Youth Summit, V irg in ia Beach was
the word that rev ¡berated throughout the corridors. The echoes from V irg in ia Beach spread throughout the land.
When the sons and daughters o f the middle class move, change is not far behind. Y outhful intellectuals, activists,
and scholars more often than not spark significant movements fo r change in the condition o f their people. The
masses intervene and are ultim ately decisive, but it is the young who generally provide the spark which ignites
a people to move. From the student revolts at Howard U niversity and the C ity U niversliy system in New Y o rk
to the outrage at V irgin ia Beach, a new generation o f leadership is being born. A new found consciousness o f
our history, o f self and kind, and a sense o f mission is fueling a determination ot engage in the vital struggle to
rescue and restore our people.
As the rap/poem created at V irg in ia Beach concludes, "Its my skin, friends-don't let them tell you its not. they’re
just trying to lake away the d ig nity I got. This ain't no (Birm ingham ) o f 1963, and ain t no brothers and sisters
going to hang from no tree.We've got to stop this none-sense..at the drop o f a dime, because its the tim e...in
'89.. the bottom line...you know the tim e...Its a B L A C K T H IN G . Thank God, a new generation is waking up!
PERSPECTIVES
DuSable H igh School, supervised
student teachers for the U nversity o f
Chicago’s Graduate Department o f
Education, and served as research
director for the American Federation
o f teachers (This school is named for
Baptiste Point DuSable, who founded
the city o f Chicago in
By McKinley Burt
I had intended to begin this article
w ith an advice o f a switch this week
from history to education-but I know
better than that. H istory is education.
In any case let me comment on the
widespread media attention being
given the C hicago School System
this past month. Taking place there is
a lest o f the nation's most amibitious
school reform effort, whereby 17,000
parents, com m unity representatives
and teachers have filed as candidates
for positions on new, pow erful edu-
caiton councils that w ill absolutley
control the schools (Ten members
each School: Six parents, tw o com
m unity reps and tw o teachers).
These groups w ill approve budgets,
design c u rric u la ; choose books, and
hire or fire principals; the latter w ill
lose life tim e tenure but w ill gain the
power to hire or fire teachers (re
member my 9/28 comment that ur
ban schools reflect the le a d e rsh ip
role furnished by the principal). This
certainly, and favorably, impacts upon
me since 1 have several A fric a n
Lesson Plan designs which are in
their final year o f a two-year trial
before adoption and contract approval.
I have tw o nieces in the Chicago
school system who serve as m y rep-
resentatives-one a teacher and the
other an administrator.
Interestingly, the most revealing book
ever w ritten concerning the develop
ment o f the current crisis in urban
schools is based upon this very city;
The Chicago Schools: A Social and
P o litic a l H is to ry (M ary J. Herick,
Sage Publications, 1971). For 25 years
Ms. Herrick taught at the 95% Black
1779. Friendly w ith the Indians w ith
whom he traded furs, this Black man
used their name for the site o f his
cabin, Eschicagou).
This book is a masterful recapitula
tion o f the development o f our urban
systems o f education, w ith a con-
com m itant evalution o f the relateed
social and economic factors. The
author never loses sight o f the fact
that the pupils are what it is a ll about.
Sometimes, those o f us who are so
involved in this traumatic process,
and so self-sure o f our comm itment,
need to back up and remember that
the struggle is about the children and
not about our egos and our quests for
power and community acclaim. Point
edly, Ms. H errick underscores the
fact that n o th in g ever changes b u t
the name o f the game by including
this excerpt from the 1897 d octo ra l
dissertation o f Hannah Belle Clark
(The Chicago Schools: A Sociologi
cal study).
"The schools have a double problem
in training children from homes o f
poverty and ignorance, i f not o f vice,
to be honest, industrious and in te lli
gent; And to adapt aliens to become
active citizens in a country whose
institutions, ideas and customs are in
many cases radically different from
those they learn from their fathers.
The burden reslson the schools".
Well now, how can it be that a hundred
years later our degree-laden and well
paid educational establishment has
yet to evolve an effective process fo r
dealing w ith the urban poor and the
new im m ig ra n ts (Hispanic and
Asian)? We gain a great deal o f in
sight as this gifted educator follow s
OREGON'S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION
Established in 1970
Leon Harrle/Gonerai Manager
A lfre d L. Hendereon/Pubiisher
Gary Ann Garnett
Joyce Washington
Business Manager
Sales Marketing Director
on in her 500 page book w ith a de
tailed account o f over a centruy o f
developing and structuring the ad
m inistration and polices o f a typical
large metropolitan learning machine.
The revealing descriptions o f power
struggles between administrators,
board's o f education, parents and
com m unity could have been w ritten
yesterday. And we see that nothing
has
changed in respect to the racism o f
the urban power structure and its
ugly immersion into the greed and
politics o f m anipulating a city's land
values through the vehicle o f the
urban education precess (and funds).
Her book, w ith its invaluable appen
dixes, begins w ith the founding o f
Chicago's school system and early
d ifficu ltie s in financing public edu
cation, a problem that 200 years later
remains far from being solved. It
seems so strange to many young
teachers that I, like H errick, learned
in high school that w ith the estab
lishment o f the Northwest T e rrito
ries as part o f the public domain o f
the United States, Congress stipu
lated in the ordinacne o f 1785 that in
each o f the six-m ile Square "C on
gressional Townships" the surveyors
must mar!; o ff one square m ile to be
set aside fo r a school. O f the billions
o f acres o f the federal lands in these
79 states (taken from the Indians),
hundreds o f m illion s o f acres were
donated to the states for educational
support (tim ber harvest, o f which
much was stolen- today the spotted
owl).
The book also presents an excellent
history and examination o f the teacher
tra in in g process, including a d is
cussion o f early teacher colleges or
N o rm a l Schools. M y mother and
aunt received their teacher training
at one o f these institutions (Stowe's
Teachers College, St.Louis, M o.).
This phase o f education w ill be con
tinued next wcek-be sure to save this
article.
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