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Page 4 • Portland Observer
Black History Month
February 14,1990
3-7-10-13
The Glory of Black History
by John E. Jacob
B lack H istory M onth is here again, and
this y ear i t ’s receiv ed a big boost by the
w id esp read atten tio n g iven the film . Glory.
G lo ry is the heroic story o f the 54th
M assach u setts V olunteer Infantry, an all­
black unit m the U nion Arm y that fought its
w ay in to history.
B ut that history has been too long n e ­
g lected . Few A m ericans know that blacks
fo u g h t in the C ivil War. T he conventional,
and m istaken, view has alw ays been that
the N orth w ent to war to free the slaves.
In fact, the N orth w ent to w ar to p re ­
serve the U nion. It w as w illing to tolerate
slavery but not to accept the right o f states
to secede. O nly after the war was well
under way, did P resident Lincoln in co rp o ­
rate abolition as a war aim.
That s why AfhcanAmericans were excluded
from the arm ed forces w hen the war began
— because, as historian Jam es M. M cP her­
son w rote: "it w ould have sent a signal that
this w as to be an abolition war.“
It becam e an abolition war because o f
the actionsof African Americans, who marched
across southern lines at the approach o f the
U nion arm ies in the south, and who cla m ­
ored for the opportunity to fight for free­
dom in the north.
G reat A frican A m erican leaders such as
Frederick D ouglass correctly saw black p ar­
ticipation in fighting as a route to freedom ,
and it w asn 't until late 1862 that the first
black fighting units w ere form ed.
T he 54th M assachusetts w asn ’t am ong
them ; it was organized at the direction o f
the governor o f M assachusetts. T he first
units w ere organized by the U nion arm ies
from am ong the ranks o f escaped slaves.
T hose units fought bravely and co n ­
vinced the top brass not only that A frican
A m ericans could fight, but that they could
be an im portant w eapon in the war.
The 54th M assachusetts, like other black
units in A m erican w ars u p to the 1940’s,
had w hite com m anders. A nd the A frican
A m erican troops w ere paid at low er rates
than w hite soldiers, leading to a "pay strike“
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FEBRUARY
GOLULM
. GLOBE
' AWARDS
S53
MATINEES SATUH0AV A SUNDAY
THURS. 15
j
248-8979
MATINEES DAILY *
FRI.- SAT. 1 6 - 1 7
CriftOOEON
I
E 8 2 N ClN
D A V E C IN E .( ¿ B & g
CURTIS SALGADO
AND THE STILLETTOS
774-7731
1
SUN. 18
NORTON BUFFALO
MON. 19
TESSERACT
great consum m ation; w hile, I fear, there
w ill be som e w hite ones, unable to forget
that, w ith m alignant heart and deceitful
speech, they have strove to hinder it."
W hatever m inor historical truth that all
A m ericans should know about.
W e've com e a long way in the 127 years
since the 54th M assachusetts was formed,
and every forw ard step along that way was
m ade by strong people determ ined to be
respected as equals and w illing to put up
w ith slurs and indignities to m ake their way
and achieve their goal.
This is the month to celebrate their achieve­
m ents, and to note that w hile the black
troops who helped preserve the Union in
the 1860 s w ere at first deem ed incapable,
the arm ed forces o f today’s U nited States
arc led by an A frican A m erican com m ander.
G eneral C olin Pow ell.
.......»rt by
TUES. 20
A M E R IC A N PLAYHOUSE
R O ISIN DUBH
These are my people.
T heir lives are m y stories.
WED. 21
BIG HOUSE
C a m u y F m A m C o rp
"Ron Silver gives a subtle, fiercely
contained performance...
Anjelica Huston is wry, stirring
and powerful.. .Stein la both
touching and funny, and Lena
Olin is astonishing here...
It's not like any other movie."
ZORA IS MY NAME
-D a v id Ansen. NEWSWEEK
Starring: Ruby Dee as
Zora N eale H u rsto n .
W ednesday, F ebruary 14 • 9:30PM
—Siskel & Eben & THE MOVIES
Two thumbs up."
MATINEES DAILY
The kindly word that falls today may
bear its fruit tomorrow.
~
LLOYD CINEMAS
I ra x
248 ^938
A C U II I
OREGON BALLET THEATRE
- PRESENTS -
DANCEWRE
c
A m a n m u s t m a ke his o p p o r­
tunity a s o ft a s f i n d it.
Arthur
Mitchell,
DIRECTOR
BLACK STARS IN O RBIT
S e c u r ity P a c ific
Bank is proud to
sponsor the Portland
performances of Dance
Theatre of Harlem. Feb. 20,
21 and 23,1990,8.00 p.m.
Portland Civic Auditorium.
Tickets $55 to $20. Call
Oregon Ballet Theatre,
227-6867, Portland Cen­
ter for the Performing
Arts, 248-4496, or visit
any GI Joe'sTlcket-
m aster o u tle t
Reaching new h eig h ts in
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Saturday, February 17 • 8PM
6720 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
...ON OPB
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LLO Y D C IN E M A S
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Being professional is what Unity o f Love is all
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THE
STRUGGLE
CONTINUES..
in w hich black fighting m en refused to
accept their second-class pay checks and
dem anded equal pay, som ething C ongress
d id n 't get around to doing until 1864
Ironically, the 54th M assach u setts g reat­
est ordeal cam e in the crucial battle o f Fort
Wagner, ju st days after w hites in New York
rioted in protest against the draft.
It suffered terrible casualties, but achieved
the goal o f its brave volunteers — to win
respect for black people and to play a lead ­
ing role in the fight to overthrow slavery.
The m ilitary authorities at first thought
A frican A m erican units w ould be useful as
behind-the-scenes labor battalions, b u tth ey
proved themselves in battle and helped preserve
the Union.
Lincoln said as much, as Professor McPherson
points out, w hen the President w rote that
when the w ar w ould end in a rebirth o f
freedom in a re u nited nation:
"there will be som e black m en who can
remem ber that, with silent tongue, andclenched
teeth, and steady eye, and w ell-poised bayo­
net, they have helped m ankind on to this
*7#
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Program
Swan Lake A rt 0 Tchaiktn-sk}
The Fireb ird Stravinsky
Concerne tn F G ersh w in
S e C U R fT Y
♦ ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ ♦
♦
PACIFIC
BANK
The Chase Manhattan Corporation is
the 1989 90 Worldwide Tbur Sponsor
of Dance Theatre of Harlem.
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