s .
A Call To Sister Mother
and Da Mayor. .
The Wise Ones
by Ullysses Tucker, Jr.
Do you remember "S ister M other,"
the eyes of the community and “ Da Mayor,"
the streetwise neighborhood drunk in Spike
Lee's critically acclaimed Do The Right
Thing?
As a youth, it was proper protocol for a
"S ister M other" or “ Da M ayor" to keep a
watchful eye on all they could survey in the
community. I ’d break a window or commit
some type of decadent act and the informa
tion beat me home. “ Boy, take your pants
off and go to your room. Ouch! This type of
networking use to be very common in the
Black community. Some say that we as
Black people have lost our sense of commu
nity and control. If I was unfortunate enough,
“ sister M other" or "D a M ayor" whipped
me all the way home and then hand me over
to my aunt, grandmother, uncle, or parents
for another one. Ouch again!
It was difficult to date, shoot craps in
the alley, hook school or church, or commit
some stupid act without the “ watchful eye’ ’
or the pipeline "fax in g " the info to the
home front. I can recall many days where
my mother stood on the porch, patting her
foot softly, waiting for me to walk around
the comer. Furthermore, telling the truth
could make the difference between an open
hand slap, dinner that evening, or an exten
sion cord. “ Sister Mother” and “ Da Mavor"
would never make up such a story.
“ Sister M other" and "D a Mayor,”
where have you gone with your watchful
eyes? Have you fell victims to the senseless
crimes that rots our neighborhoods like cancer?
Is it apathy? Is it the pain from losing your
puree, on the first of the month, to to kid
across the street? Or is it that our family
structure, neighborhood watch dog system
died with crack cocaine, gang violence, or
inadequate housing? Where have you gone?
Could it be that you’re afraid to show
your face because 98% of all killed last year
were by other Blacks? Or is it the fact that
we now have more Black males in prison
than enrolled in college (43% of the total
prison population is Black)? “ Sister Mother/
Da M ayor,” please come back. We need
you now. We need you to keep an eye on our
future, our youth and babies. We need your
values, insight, wisdom, strength, leader
ship, and direction more than ever before.
W edon’tneedany "M urderC apitols” like
D.C., or Howard Beaches, drive by shoot
ings, or Ray-Ray W inston’s, and more re
cently, Authur Davis. We need your eyes,
not the end of a night stick or the results
from a shotgun blast. Please look out your
window. We know that you are in there. We
need you now.
"S ister Mother/Da M ayor," we need to
leant, again, from your example and for you
to help get our communities back on track.
We know that you have been tty ¡ng to make
ends meet since Ronald Reagan did you
wrong, but George said that he would be
"K inder and gentler,” and anything else
has to be better than "R o n n ie." Ycst, we
know that H.U.D. failed to provide you will
senior citizen housing, that you could possi
bly be homeless and we not even know
where you are. We know that you are barely
getting by on your Social Security check,
but we need your model of consistency
back. We know that you're watching the
demise o f our neighborhoods through your
window and our young people killing each
other in the streets. Ma Bell/US West
Communications has nothing on you. Turn
on your system and let's get back to the
fundamentals.
You were my mother/father when they
were not around. You made us think before
we acted because your eyes were ubiqui
tous. We know that integration took your
children to nine different cities and we
understand that you haven't seen 15 of your
18 grandchildren. We understand that your
very own children act if though they do not
know you.
"S ister Mother/Da M ayor,” you have
been resting a very long time behind those
locked doors and drawn curtains. You are a
vital part of our guest We need your support
in the continuing efforts to regain control of
our communities and neighborhoods. We
need you now. We can’t afford you to rest.
March 7, 1990 • Portland Observer • Page 7
You Can Help
Others Through
IRS Program
PUBLIC NOTICE
If you enjoy helping people and work
ing with them to make a difficult task easier,
VITA may be for you. VITA (Volunteer
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for assisting people who need help prepar
ing their income tax returns.
"W e are seeking a group of volunteers
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communities o f Oregon,” said Steve M at
thews, Taxpayer Education Coordinator for
IRS in Oregon.
VITA assistance is available for sen
iors, disabled persons, low income and non-
English speaking individuals. The VITA
volunteers help these people fill our Form
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including Schedule A for itemizing deduc
tions and taking advantage of such benefits
as Child Care Credit, Earned Income Credit,
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with preparation of Slate of Oregon forms.
Matthews advises that as a volunteer
you are not considered a professional tax
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sible for the return. The volunteer income
tax assistance is provided free at community
centers, libraries, churches and schools that
set aside rooms for this purpose. In Oregon,
VITA is especially in need of bilingual
volunteers, particularly those who can speak
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If you would like to volunteer, or if your
organization would like to be involved, contact
the IRS for more detailed information. The
statewide IRS toll free telephone number is
1(800)424-1040. In Portland, the number is
326-6565. Or write to: IRS, P.O. Box 2709,
Portland, OR 97208. Helping others is what
VITA is all about.
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