Portland Observer April 25,1990, Page 3
N ews A round T own
This Week in History
Recently, I went to see ‘ ‘The H and­
maid ’ s Tale ” , a mo vie that is conceptu­
ally rem iniscent o f G eorge O rw ell’s
1984. It depicts a com pletely male-
dom inated society. The female charac­
ters were uproarious and rebellious,
and could not be “ whipped into shape” .
A com m ent from a nearby audience
m em ber was to the effect that this as­
pect o f the m ovie was unrealistic, as
one could presum e this society of male-
dom ination was highly advanced (in
that it was m eticulously organized and
orderly) and by that time, the women
would’ve been more subdued and would
m ostly have accepted their role as the
repressed.
This is a sensible argum ent. H ow ­
ever, history has proven it is not appli­
cable. Just as cream in milk, many
fighters o f the status quo have risen up
in protest and helped to fight inequality
for us all.
Many o f these people receive ju st
recognition: M alcolm X, M artin L u ­
ther King Jr., Nelson M andella, G loria
Steinem; the list goes on and on. Many
o f the fighters, though, go unnoticed.
You m ight even be one o f them.
W e, as a people, can rem edy this
with education. (It would be better, o f
course, to-instead of applying the band-
aid o f education to the w ound o f ine-
q u a lity -to heal the scar entirely, but
this is idealistic to the point o f unreal­
ism. Until we can w ipe out the w hole
problem, education is the greatest step
we can make.) As Janet Jackson—a
fighter in her own w a y -sa id , “ W e’re
in a race between education and catas­
trophe.”
A p ril 3 0 ,1958-Defying a 700-year-old
C
o m m u n it y
C
alender
Parents Without Partners
Family Memorial Day
Picnic
All Portland area single fam i­
lies, and especially PWP Alumni,
are Invited to a family Memorial
Day picnic on M onday, May
28th from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
a t Laurelhurst Park, SE 39th and
Ankeny, in Portland. PWP will
provide hotdogs, hamburgers,
tablew ear and beverages. Par­
ticipants are requested to bring
side dishes and desserts. There
will be games, camaraderie, and
fun for everyone. This event is
ope n to the public. For more in­
by Angelique Sanders
tradition (well, restriction), Queen Eliza­
beth passes a la w that perm its women to
have voting power in the House of
Lords. Previous to this ruling, women
could not obtain m em berships to this
upper house o f parliament.
April 2 5 ,1 9 5 9-A masked lynch mob in
Poplarville, M ississippi decides to de­
vise their own system o f justice: they
shot and killed a Black man. Mack
Charles Parker, accused o f raping a
w hite woman.
Parker was in jail aw aiting trial, but
the mob m em bers didn’t feel like hold­
ing o ff until the verdict. Tow nspeople
added to the hysteria, making it clear
they did not want a Black m an-Parker’s
law yer-q u estioning a white woman (of
course, the tow nspeople saw nothing
w rong w ith the fact that no African
A m ericans were on the jury).
M ack Charles Parker’s body was
found in Pearl River by a boatman.
Though the F.B.I. investigated the
case and subsequently subm itted a re­
port, which allegedly detailed who the
m em bers o f the mob were, the Justice
D epartm ent said no federal laws were
violated (then it’s time to change the
laws!) and resigned to inaction. The
m atter was passed on to a Pearl River
County jury, and next to federal grand
jury (w ho looked into possible civil
rights’ violations): both saw nothing
wrong o r imm oral about the m ob’s
actions; both failed to indict.A pril 25,
1960-A report on the problem s of aging
illustrates the problem s the elderly are
having finding work. The 4% unem ­
ploym ent rate o f the time included a
disproportionate num ber of elderly.
Louis H. Ravin o f the D epartm ent of
form ation, call 257-3649.
The Jefferson Acting
Ensemble Performances
The Jefferson Acting Ensemble
presents premier perform ances
of three one acts. La Pisca (the
Harvest), So Much Water So Close
To Home and TheThree Little Pigs,
A British Panto are ea ch the cul­
m ination of the ensemble's ef­
forts with renow ned guest play­
wrights, choreographers, c o m ­
posers and performers. The Jef­
ferson Acting Ensemble's perform­
a n ce is th e result of a m ulti-ethnic
co m p a n y of 12 actors and one
American Score D+
On Retirement IQ Quiz
M ost American d o n ’t know how
much incom e they’ll need to retire,
according to a national “ Retirem ent
IQ Q uiz” conducted by The G allup
O rganization for Fidelity Investm ents
earlier this year.
“ The average score on the ten ques­
tion test was 67 percent—a D + ,” said
Leonard Nelson, vice president and
m anager o f Fidelity’s Portland Inves­
tor Center. “ It tells us there is a
dangerous gap in A m ericans’ under­
standing of the financial realities of
retirem ent.”
O ne-half o f Americans expect to
live as well in retirem ent as they do
now, Nelson pointed out, but they
d o n ’t know the price o f m aintaining
their lifestyle. Almost tw o-thirds o f
those taking the quiz either underesti­
mated or d id n ’t know how much in­
come they will need when theyr ctired.
Portland residents who want to check
their retirem ent IQs can contact the
local Fidelity office at 503/222-5717
to receive a free copy o f the R etire­
m ent IQ Quiz.
Financial planners saw we need 60
to 80 percent o f our income a u h e time
Health, Education, and W elfare co n ­
ceded that " o ld m en...find alm ost in­
surm ountable com petition from oung
m en and y o ung an d a ttra c tiv e
w om en...this is the result in large m eas­
ure o f a negative attitude [toward the
elderly] in society.”
A p ril 27, 1960-Police and soldiers in
Johannesburg, South A frica raided the
W est bank African settlem ent and a r -
rested 312 Blacks on charges of...WORK
SHIRKING AND LACK O F PA SS­
BOOKS. In the ten days preceding this,
the total arrests in similar circumstances
num bered over 3,000. (I w onder what
happened to a Black man w ho ja y ­
w alked...?)
A p ril 25, 1965-One thousand racist
whites m arched in dow ntow n Atlanta,
G eorgia, led by Lester M addox, a man
known for his bigotry. A w hite non­
racist threw a smoke bomb on the crowd,
and police re-routed the m arch (though
did not term inate it, despite the fact that
the park they used to speak and m arch
at had been turned dow n as a possible
m arching sight).
Lester M addox, during the previous
week, was found innocent o f chasing
African Americans out o f his restaurant
with a pistol. The Blacks w ere attem pt­
ing to desegregate the diner.
A p ril 3 0 ,1968-In response to Dr. C har­
les Spray’s offer to establish a m edical
clinic for social dropouts, then-com ­
m issioner Francis Ivancie states: “ I’m
not interested in helping create any hip­
pie heaven here in P ortland.” IN Port­
land, Ivancie-according to the O rego-
n i a n - ” cracked down on long-hairs in
the Lovejoy Fountain.”
by Ullysses Tucker, Jr.
You know, it’s not often when
I’m around friends, office mates, or
family m em bers where the topic of
love does not arise. Everyone wants
love in their life and that special
person/m ate/or significant other to
be by o n e ’s side during those dark
moments (the good ones too), and
periods o f doubt. It has almost be­
come an obsession with people.
W hat people do not realize is that
falling in love is the easy part. It is so
easy to fall in love. Sometimes, it
can even be for all the wrong rea­
sons. Becoming that significant other/
mate/special person is tougher than
falling in love. It takes considerable
reflection, thought, and time to de­
cide whether or not a person is the
one you would like to spend your life
with. Some of my friends have known
as quick as 90 days that he or she
was/is theone and unfortunately, there
are those who spent many years to­
gether before concluding that he or
she was not the one.
For lack of a better analogy, se­
lecting a mate is like buying an auto­
mobile. You check the m arketplace,
the history or track record of the car,
and more im portantly, does it serve
all your needs One can purchase a
“ used” car (involve themselves in a
‘ ‘ short term ’ ’ affair) and get the most
miles as possible out o f the situation.
In doing so, the encounter is de­
signed not for the long term, but for
a short period o f time. On the other
hand, if one thinks in terms o f having
an automobile around for a very long
time, it is worth * ‘every dollar’ ’ spent
or the “ amount o f tim e” it takes to
technician ages 15-18.
The ensemble performs a t The
Portland Center for the Perfor-
m aing Arts, April 28, 8:00 p.m.
and Sunday, April 29, 7:00 p.m.
Tickets available a t the Portland
Center, Gl Joe's a n d all Ticket
Master Outlets. Students $5.00,
Adults $8.00. For inform ation call
280-5180.
cle an-up will start a t the old Fred
Meyer parking lot, NE 7th Ave.
and Emerson St. There will be lots
of work, fun, fo o d a n d neighbor­
liness, b e there a t 10:00 a.m.
C leanup will last until 3:00 p.m.
There will be dum p boxes for yard
debris, tires (preferably w ithout
rims, limit o f 5 per household)
Please no garbage or toxic chemi­
cals.
King Neighborhood
Clean-Up Day
AMA Banquet
The King N eighborhood Asso­
ciation discussed a t its last m eet­
ing, April 24, the clean-up sched­
uled for May 12. The King annual
cultivate a decent relationship with an­
other person.
O nce the car is purchased or the re­
lationship established, there is a strong
need for m aintenance or proper care.
Like the autom obile, relationships need
regular “ oil changes” and proper care.
Relationships also need tune ups and
em otional, spiritual, and psychological
check ups. If you allow your relation­
ship to go an extended period of time
without an oil change, like the car, the
engine will die on you.
So many relationships die because
they need an “ oil change or a new
tire. ’ ’ People need to ask their potential
mate/special person/significant other
w hat love means to them and vice versa.
People have different perceptions about
what love is or is not. These things need
to be clarified up front as opposed to
when the engine goes bad.
Selecting a mate is important be­
cause we are talking “ til death do us”
part, not the new way of terminating
marriages, “ til divorce do us part.”
We are talking about sharing personal
space, values, habits, and lifestyles. Does
he leave the top off the toothpaste? Is
she a “ junky” person? Though trivial
exam ples, sharing your life means a
com m ittm ent to accepting another in­
dividual for who they are and not what
you want him or her to be. It’s not about
changing someone or ones attitude af­
ter the mate selection process.
W e all have family members or good
friends in our lives who we know that
we can not share the same environm ent
with. How many tim es have you told
your brother or sister that you love
them, but you would find it difficult to
live with them? You know their
habits, ways, how responsible they
are, and w hat you do not like about
them. The same scrutiny you put
your brothers and sisters through in
terms o f developm ent o f a solid rela­
tionship should apply, in my opinion,
when selecting a mate. It is so im por­
tant to know who you are going to
spend the rest o f your life with.
There is no greater feeling than
mutual love. Loving som eone that
loves you just as much, but can you
spend the rest o f your life with that
person. Does that person w ant what
you w ant when you w ant it? R ela­
tionships or the mate selection proc­
ess not only m ust be in the same
page. You can not make an individ­
ual want what you want. They must
desire what you want. Sure, a person
m ight want the same thing you want
in days to come, but do you have the
patience or desire to w ait it out? Do
you move on to som eone with your
same desires? Again, you can not
change a person or make them want
what you want.
Once you and your special person/
maie/significant other have established
the tone you desire for positive em o­
tional, intellectual, and psychologi­
cal g ro w th -th en you are on the path
to healthy interaction. It is important
that you listen, support the goals/
dreams, and respect your partner also.
G et the love you want. Do not fall
victim to the quick fix or ‘ ‘ used car’ ’
prem ise. Be patient and keep the
faith. Rem em ber, the bonds of m at­
rimony aren’t worth much unless the
interest is kept up . . .
27, 7:00 p.m. a t the Holiday Inn-
Airport (John Q. Hammond Trade
Center).
Mr. Charles Jordan, Superin­
tendent of Portland Bureau of
Parks and Recreation will be the
speaker. Ticket price is $29.95
a nd can be purchased by call­
ing the AMA office at 285-0493.
If your club, church, school or
non-profit organizattion has an
event you want community
support for, please call 288-
0033 or drop by the Portland
Observer office at M.L.King Jr.
Blvd and N. Wygant to give us
the where, when and who.
The Portland Observer
reserves the right to edit for
space and style
The Albina Ministerial Alliance
will hold its 11th Annual banquet
“ C o m m ittm e n t w ith A ction-
Agenda For The 90's", Friday, April
They're hot!
A Wake Up Call To A Pledge
of retirem ent. T herefore, a couple
with an annual income of $50,000 would
need betw een $30,000 and $40,000
annually to have a com fortable retire­
ment. W ith the m axim um Social Se­
curity benefit for a single-income couple
today at $17,550, there is an annual
gap o f at least $ 12,450 that will have to
be filled.
O ther findings from the Fiedelity/
G allup research:
Scores on the quiz im proved with
age. The oldest group taking the quiz,
55 to 64, were the most know ledgeable
about the am ount o f income they will
need to retire.
Regional differences were pro­
nounced, with M idwesterners answ er­
ing the most questions correctly. Knowl­
edge levels tended to be lower in the
South and W est.
The majority o f Americans (57 per­
cent) arc w orried about w hether the
governm ent will have adequate re­
sources to m eet the needs o f retired
citizens after the year 2000, com pared
to 49 percent who arc worried about
health care costs, and 45 percent about
inflation.
Say You Saw It In The
Selecting A Mate For Life
Takes Patience And Faith .
by U llysses Tucker, Jr.
Recently, I was “ faxed” some information from a ms. Peggy Ross of
Beaverton, Oregon. She read a story that I wrote several weeks ago (“ Enjoy
Y our Parents W hile They A re Still In This W orld” ) and later sent me the fol­
lowing poem by M aya Angelou. Not only did Ms. Ross suggest, as I did, that
we enjoy our parents, but everyone in our family. W ithout my editorializing
or sharing additional insight, let me suggest to all those reading this poem to
cut it out, put it where your fam ily can see, and make a pledge to get back to
basics. Thanks, Ms. Ross.
Black Fam ily Reunion Pledge
BECA U SE we have forgotten our ancestors, our children no longer give us
honor.
BECA U SE we have lost the path our ancestors cleared, kneeling in perilous
undergrow th, our children cannot find their way.
BECA U SE we have banished the God o f our ancestors, our children cannot
pray-
BECA U SE the old wails o f our ancestors have faded beyond our hearing, our
children cannot hear us crying.
BECA U SE we have abandoned our wisdom o f mothering and fathering, our
befuddled chidlren give birth to children they neither want nor understand.
BECA U SE we have forgotten.how to love, the adversary is within our gates,
and holds up to the m irror o f the world, shouting “ Regard the Loveless. ”
TH EREFO RE, we pledge to bind ourselves again to one another,
TO em brace our lowliest,
TO keep com pany with out loneliest,
TO educate our illiterate,
TO feed our starving
TO clothe our ragged,
TO do all good things, know ing that we are more than keepers o f our brothers
and sisters. W e are our brothers and sisters.
- 1 * ’*•*> ,y
Portland Observer!
May 1 - 6
8 p.m.
Intermediate Theatre
Portland Center for the Performing Arts
Tickets: $5, $9, $11
PCPA Box Office:
248-4496
Maya Angelou
'tî
.
The ^ 7
Jefferson
. Dancers
Electrifying! Don't miss theip.