• 1 November 21,1990•••The Portland Observer • Page 5 Crisis In Education BY PROFESSOR MCKINLEY BURT he recent election in Ore gon held the possibility that a double whammy might bcinflicted upon the edu cation process in this state. This is not an exaggeration. Specific ref erence is to two extremely volatile propo sitions: Measure 5 (Property Tax L im i tation), and Measure 11 (School Choice). There should be no sighs o f re lie f among education activists because only one o f these volatile measures passed. That says more about the convulsive nature o f participatory government and the (In itia tive ) process than it reflects some conciliatory compromise reached by the citizenry, the (double) crunch w ould have seen on the one hand a mas sive reduction in school funds by tax lim itation and on the other, school choice w ould have brought about a logistical nightmare for the financilly drained school systems, and 5, the tax lim ita tio n did pass. So where does that leave us? W ell, for one thing, over the years the Oregon State Legislature has consistently refused to come forth w ith any structured pro gram to address the problem o f under financed school systems in this state - nor has it tackled the situation o f geo graphical inequities in educational re sources available. There have been, o f course, sporadic forays in the area o f the T taxpayer'sand consurmer’s pocketbook, vizaviz sales taxes — but these have been consistently defeated by the voters. Now, the defeat o f these “ revenue enhacing” measures may stem from the fact that disillusioned voters have only past performance upon which to evalu ate the 'good intentions’ their represen tatives in the legislature or administra tive bodies, they know from experience it is the case that funds designated fo r an announced purpose more often than not are diverted for “ emergcncys” , or used fo r hidden agendas, but more te llin gly, the voters have demanded, in a ‘ read- m y-lip s' style, an 'a d u lt’ approach to the solution o f a problem that can further devastate this p rim arily lumber-based economy. This state o f affairs does not bode w ell fo r the host o f public servants who are dashing about heller skelter in a media frenzy to see who can come up the fastest w ith New Tax Measures to plug the dike, again, based upon previous evalvations o f the voters, these produc tions may not getto’ Broadway ’ either, so what is the answer? can we, the citizens o f this state interact any more effectively with our representatives in the state house than we have been able to do w ith our congressional delegation - given the economic and social debucles we have at the national level? It was in the Oregonian fo r Septem ber 20, that w rite r B ill Graves furnished the fo llo w in g quote: “ Oregon public schools h it by a new round o f levy fa il ures Tuesday and facing a court chal lenge and initiatives to lim it property taxes andexpand school choice, are S lip ping Toward Chaos,” state leaders say. I f tw o thirds o f this dire forecast has come true - and it has - the creek has indeed risen over its banks, and the pro verbial alligators are right among us. Now where does a ll o f this leave the A frican Am erican parent and ch ild -- and the innercity school system, it is a situation fraught w ith even more dan gers than this newspaper has outlined in its years-long examination o f the Port land School System. How many o f the ‘disadvantaged’ and remedial programs in mathematics and reading w ill be can celed? What w ill be the im pact upon special programs like MESA? How much clandestine diversions and m anipulation w ill occur as bureaucrats scurry to save the ship? This is a time when more than ever A frican American parents must be ‘on top o f things ‘ (all parents o f course)’ and certainly they are going to need the spe cial im put that A frican Am erican teach ers, principals and administrators can provide, and we have got to expect/ demand the support o f our com m unity organizations - lest the educational level o f the m ajority o f the kids goes down ward rather than upward. It can be done. It ‘ has’ to be done! ;,;1 • ♦ • i Downtown Nike Branch Opens Nike Tow n is N ik e ’s prototype for the sporting goods store o f the fu ture: part Disneyland, claims N ike, and part sports and fitness center. The oft-changing downtown store opens today, Wednesday, at 11 a.m., after a prelim inary lour offered to the press, held Tuesday and conducted by the architect o f the building, Gordon Thompson, as w ell as N ik e ’ s VP/M ar- keter Tom Clarke and VP/Salesman Nick Kartalis. The new branch o f N ike, which for months has been attracting attention w ith its somewhat hidden television screens and taped athletic noises, re cently swapped the intriguing look for a more updated, industrial look in tim e fo r the opening. The branch is located on the comer o f Sixth and Salmon in down town Portland, across the street from the slop for bus #6, M artin Luther K ing, Jr. Boulevard, w ith parking available at the C ity Center garage next door. Parking passes for this garage are available through Nike. Further questions may be an swered at N ike town, 930 S.W. Sixth (telephone number 503-221-6453; F A X number 503-223-8577) or by calling (503) 671-3507 (N ik e ’ s public relations num ber) and asking fo r L iz Dolan or Barb Audiss. • ' from front page But I do not wish to see the pain and the he charged the Honorable Elijah Muham hatred continued. M a lc o lm ’ s children mad, charged him . And a vicious en have lost their father. M alcolm ’ s w idow emy, sitting back watching this, w ith has lost her husband. There is nothing agents on both sides feeding the fire anybody can say or do to bring M alcolm w ith fuel, culm inating in M alcolm 's as back, to ease the pain and the g rie f o f sassination. AS a M uslim -th ere were that fam ily. There is nothing we can do many M u s lim ’s who that didn’ t bother. to bring back M artin Luther K in g to his B u lfo r m e - it bothered me[pause]. And it bothers me to this day. fa m ily and to his people. B ut the least we can do is not pass on the generations Farrakhan removed his glasses the hatred, the pettiness, the things that and placed them on the table. He wiped a second round o f tears fro m his eyes. we did in our im m aturity that helped to He would later reveal that this was the create the climate in w hich he could be fir s t time he had ever cried in fro n t o f a assassinated, that hopefully we w ill leant reporter. a lesson from his life and his death. God Em erge: O bviously, this is s till a source is allow ing it, and M a lc o lm 's name is o f deep pain. Has it been w ith you the being heard again, and people are going whole w hile, a ll this time? back and studying M a lc o lm ’ s words and F a rra k h a n : I t ’s not just that. In the waking up all over again. It speeds up history o f religion, religious disputes the general rise in the consciousness o f have caused people to shed each other’ s our people. I hope that you w ill forg ive blood, k illin g one another over religion. me [for crying], but I feel this pain, not Some o f those disputes created d iv i only fo r the dead but also fo r the liv in g sions that are a thousand years old and and the unborn generations that have to hatreds that are a thousand years old. read the history and w ill be affected by And people are s till k illin g because o f the history. And so whatever wrongs the lack o f respect fo r life and our w ill have been done, the wrongs have to be ingness to settle our differences by tak corrected so that we give our children a ing the lives o f other human beings. So better legacy to build on than the legacy I ’ m looking a M alcolm ’ s assassination, o f hatred and hypocrisy and injustice and I see the pain in not ju s t those who that we perpetuate one against the other. love M alcolm but the painthat continues Em erge: I did n ’ t realize u ntil this m o from generation to generation, fueled by ment that they had tried to use M alcolm the enemy. The enemy sees Louis Far in that way. I knew there was a resur rakhan m ounting up on wings today, gence o f interest in M alcolm , but I didn *t rebuilding the Nation. There is no livin g realize that they were trying to p it you person they can bring against Louis against him. Farrakhan. F a rra k h a n : N ot only is it now, but So they say there is a resur M alcolm ’ s autobiography was made re gence o f m alcolm. But there is not a quired reading in colleges throughout resurgence. Somebody from the dead the United States because the last chap doesn’ tg e tu p fro m the dead; somebody ter o f his book denounces the Honorable liv in g has to raise somebody from the Elijah Muhammad. And anybody that dead. Kennedy is dead. There’s no re becomes aware o f M alcolm through his surgence o f Kennedy unless somebody book falls in love w ith M alcolm , and liv in g creates the resurgence. So there then when they close the book they are smart, wicked enemies who are trying dislike the Honorable E lijah M uham their best to bring M alcolm back to mad and the Black M uslim s because public attention, not because they want they feel that the Black M uslim s de people to honor M alcolm but [because] prived the w orld o f this giant. So when they want to bring M alcolm back to say you make that required reading, get subtly now things that they never said in everybody to read it, what are doing that ’65 when M alcolm was assassinated. for? You never made the w ritings o f M y name was never brought up [Marcus] Garvey required, the w ritings as a conspirator o r as one who may have o f [W .E .B .] D uBois required, the w rit kille d or hurt M alcolm X. But because ings o f any o f our great scholare re o f the crest o f p op u la rity--I’m riding quired. W hy Malcolm, when white folks this great wave o f popular support-now said he was a hater, he was this, he was the enemy wants to make Louis Farra that, he was a demogogue? That and all khan the jealous, wicked heir o f M a l the names that Playthell Benjamin at colm , since I took over the mosue. I tributed to me are the same names d id n ’ t lake over the mosque from M a l members o f the press attributed to M a l colm ; I was ordered there by Elijah colm , even at the time o f bis death. Muhammad. I didn’ t scheme against Em erge: The Playthell Benjamin ar my brother to get that position; I was ticle, which one are you referring to? given that position. N or did I scheme The one... aainsl W arilh Deen [Muhammad] to get F a rra k h a n : ...in Emerge [February where I am. I ’ m not that kind o f human 1990]. being. But here I am in this position, and Em erge: Let me ask you something. so the w ickedly wise devils want to This... bring M alcolm back, to use the growing F a rra k h a n : Man, I didn’ t expect m y popularity o f M alcolm against the rise emotions to be that strong. B ut I just o f Farrakhan. But no weapon formed want, in honesty-A s I said to Brother against the righteous w ill prosper. The Akbar, there are certain painful epi more they elevate M alcolm , they cannot sodes in my life that time doesn’ t heal, help but elevate the teachings o f the and every time I think that I ’ ve gotten Honorable Elijah Muhammad, which away from it, something w ill bring me were and are the base o f M alcolm X . back to it and let me know that the So we are a winner, regardless, " x a w l ih^r^ NOW' SAUSAGE Jimmy Dean ’ S A M Our Sp ecial Recipe JlJimmyDean l*OM SAuSACC • ROLLS »LINKS • PATTIES EACH SHRIMP MEAT Every m orning m illio n s o f children go to school on an $498 em pty stomach. They're more than just hungry. They're missing out on their chance to learn, to make the ir dreams com e true. Num erous studies have docum ented the vital link T T POUND between good nutrition and a child's a b ility to learn. That's M EDIUM OYSTERS w hy Kraft General Foods supports organizations across the FRESH PACIFIC t country that help meet the need. 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