* age 2 " 'l he Hurtland Observer--Decernber 19, 1990
A Parent Speaks
P E R
BY LULU R. STROUD-JOHNSON
applications w ith in the basic concept,
i.e. “ O ffice A t Home-Electronic H om e” .
Once More
You All!
M a n y o f our readers seem re
lu c ta n t to le t th is series go aw ay q u ie tly ,
so here are a fe w notes prom pted by your
ca lls. I ’ d lik e to believe that this atten
tio n indicates a m uch-desired interest in
econom ic betterment on the pan o f north
east residents.
You have indicated that for some
o f yo u I need to c la rify and classify
som e o f the in fo rm a tio n and te rm in o l
og y put fo rth here the past fo u r weeks.
A g a in , keep in m in d that yo u can stop by
the O b se rve r o ffic e s and p ic k up o lder
issues (4747 N .E . M a rtin L u th e r K in g ,
Jr. B lv d .). B e g in n in g N ovem ber 28, the
N o w , s p e c ific a lly and in a nar
row sense, “ O ffic e A t H o m e " is an
a c tiv ity o f ju s t the son the name im p lie s;
cle rica l-a cco u n tin g w o rk is perform ed.
T h is a c tiv ity m ay a. be in support o f
yo u r personal a ffa irs; b. fa c ilita te yo u r
conduct o f an e m p lo y e r’ s a ffa irs where
most o f yo u r w o rk is “ in the fie ld (see
the January issue o f ‘ ‘ B la ck E nterprise”
magazine fo r a very e xce lle n t article on
the subject) c. serve as the a d m in is tra
tive headquarters o f yo u r o w n business
enterprise w h ic h is engaged in the sale
o f merchandise, sevice o r in fo rm a tio n .
In an e a rlie rc o lu m n l described
the " D ro p S h ip m e n t” m e th o d o fs e llin g
merchandise o r equipm ent by the m a il
order process ( “ D ire c t M a rk e tin g ” ). In
this system you establish a relationship
w ith the o rig in a l m anufacturer (O .M .)
such that w hen your custom er answers
your p rin t o r television ad fo r the p ro d
uct, you c o lle c t from the custom er an
swers yo u r p rin t or television ad fo r the
a rticle s you w ant a re 1 ‘ W hen is A t Home
N o t A t H o m e ” , “ T here’ s No Place L ik e
H o m e , The E le ctro n ic Hom e C o n
product, you co lle c t fro m the custom er
and then n o tify the “ O .M .” to ship the
item d ire c tly to the custom er. T h is
c lu d e d ” .
There is a q uaint term used in
advice was given to those readers w ho
queried, “ H ow can I a ffo rd to finance,
the econom ic literature o f the western
countries, “ C O T T A G E IN D U S T R Y ” .
ship, o r even manage to space to store
the m erchandise?” Y o u d o n ’ t!
T he reference is to an e a rlie r system
w hereby an urban corporation w o u ld
p ro vid e scattered households w ith raw
A n d , o f course, the answer to
“ how can I a ffo rd to carry a ll these
unknow n, unseen people on cre d it? ’ ’ O r
m aterials and tools fo r the home m anu
facture o f various goods and appliances.
The corporation w o u ld p e rio d ic a lly
c o lle c t the finished goods, paying the
w o rke rs (usually w om en) at piece w o rk
rates. There was ram pant e x p lo ita tio n
“ The C .O .D . process is ju s t too cum ber
some to be bothered w ith .” - i s arrange
w ith your bank fo r the acceptance o f
under this system and both governm ent
and union have w orked at b rin g in g an
end to the inequities that abounded in
the system.
T oday, an in n o v a tiv e
w o rkfo rce has found new and p ro fita b le
c re d it cards. Y o u ’ ve seen a ll those t.v.
ads fo r various merchandise g iv in g an
“ 800 num ber” o r post o ffic e box to
expedite the sale by c re d it card; proba
b ly you have made purchases in this
manner. C a ll A T & T , 1-800-222-0300,
o r advertise yo u r wares in p rin t media,
maga/ines-newspapers.
Census Bureau to Survey
Area Households
L o ca l representatives o f the U.S.
Census Bureau w ill re v is it selected area
households beginning D ecem ber 1 to
con d u ct its Survey o f Incom e and P ro
gram P a rticip a tion (S IP P ), L e o C.
S c h illin g , d ire c to r o f the bureau’ s Se
attle regional o ffic e , announced.
SIPP is a n a tionw ide c o n tin u in g
survey introduced in the fa ll o f 1983. It is
one o f the n a tio n ’ s largest, w ith about
20,000 households p a rticip a tin g . The
Census Bureau publishes p e riodic re
ports w ith in fo rm a tio n fro m the survey.
Subjects covered include the fo llo w in g ;
*Jobs
♦The
p lo ym e n t,
*H o w
and earnings.
econom ic effects o f unem
d is a b ility , and retirem ent.
taxes a ffe c t personal spend
ing.
♦P a rticip a tio n in program s such as
Social Security, Medicare, m edicaid, and
fo o d stamps.
In fo rm a tio n from SIPP helps p o lic y
makers and administrators determine how
w e ll governm ent program s are serving
the p u b lic and ho w changes in program s
and p o lic ie s w ill a ffe c t the p u b lic.
Here are some facts on health in su r
ance based upon a 28-month survey period
ending in M a y 1987 (the sample size
lim its accurate re p o rtin g to n ational fig
ures o n ly);
♦ A b o u t 28 percent o f U.S. residents
lacked health insurance fo r a least a
m onth d u rin g the period.
♦The survey showed that 7 percent
o f the po p u la tio n was covered fo r six
months o r less.
♦ T h irty percent o f men lacked con
tinuous health insurance d u rin g the pe
riod compared w ith 27 percent to women.
♦Some 52 percent o f Hispanics lacked
insurance fo r at least a m onth. O th e r p ro
portions were 38 percent fo r blacks and
26 percent fo r W hites. P rivate health
insurance covered 90 percent o f whites
and about 75 percent o f B lacks and H is
panics fo r at least one m onth.
♦ O n e -h a lf o f persons aged 18 to 24
had no insurance fo r a m onth o r more,
and 12 percent were covered fo r under
seven months.
A ll o f this is real lim e qu ite
practical business a c tiv ity being con
ducted fro m th e ir home by m illio n s o f
A m ericans. I have detailed in this c o l
um n and in m y “ Baseline Essay” a r
ticles on the fro n t pages how I have been
using this m e thodology to m arket m y
C u rric u lu m and Lesson Plan designs on
a n a tio n w id e bases. There is no lim it to
w hat can be accom plished w ith the
“ e le ctro n ic in te rfa ce ” . L ittle people
are fin d in g a vehicle fo r in n o va tio n and
fo r ideas they have nursed fo r years
before fin d in g an avenue fo r expression.
W hereas in 1 9 6 9 1 invested $47,000 in a
s im ila r operation, I have gotten this far
w ith cash payments out o f m y social
security check (O b v io u s ly , there is a
p o in t at w h ic h one w ill have to buy
advanced equipment to handle large busi
ness). B y then you can a ffo rd it!
A n anecdote fro m
m y past
O n 5 D ecem ber 1 attended Sabin
E lem entary S ch o o l’ s Parent-Teacher
A ssociation (P T A ) m eeting. The parent
attendance was belter than e a rlie r m eet
ings; how ever, there rem ains a great deal
o f room fo r in vo lve m e n t on o u r part so as
to have th is body better re fle ct the Sabin
student p o pulation.
W e are fortunate to have M r. R ic h
ard Bunch as V ice-P resident o f the Sabin
P T A . He is a serious man w ho has the
w ell-being and educational developm ent
o f o u r ch ild re n at heart. He is tru ly a man
o f action.
A t the 5 D ecem ber Sabin m eeting it
was agreed that the P T A w o u ld take care
o f p ro v id in g gloves fo r o u r safety patrol.
The Sabin student safely pa tro l had been
w o rk in g w ith o u t gloves and there had
been m any co m p la in ts o f co ld hands and
fingers fro m o u r p a tro l ch ild re n . Some
ch ild re n had to leave th e ir street posts
experience in industry m ay th ro w m ore
lig h t on the m odem version o f ‘ ‘ Cottage
that covered the eleven western sta te s-
se lling e v e ryth in g fro m je w e lry to sport
ing goods and silverw are to appliances,
you name it. T hat year, e ig h t days
before X m as we were ru n n in g o u t o f
merchandise o f a ll kin d s and even the
executives were d riv in g a ll o ver Los
A ngeles co u n ty to scrounge up m e r
chandise to f i l l the orders.
A t 8 p.m . one n ig h t I drove up
to an indicated street nubm er in East
L .A . lo o k in g fo r the fa cto ry o f the
“ W estern H ig h w a y Flare K it C orpora
tio n ” . H e sita n tly, I was adm itted and
inside found 12 members o f a H ispanic
fa m ily -m e n , women, and ch ild re n -b u sy
assem bling flare k its on the flo o r o f
every dow nstairs room . C h ild re n ke p t a
steady stream o f parts co m in g fro m a
backyard garage. IT C A N B E D O N E !
Girls And Bovs
IVÎ
Equally Affected
By Reading
Disability
C o n tra ry to the p re v a ilin g b e lie f that
m ore boys than g irls have reading d is
a b ility , the results o f a new study in d i
cate that both sexes are affected in equal
numbers. In a study o f 445 ch ild re n from
kindergarten to th ird grade, H IC H D -
patrol ch ildren are p ro v id in g a safety
coldness to their hands. A t tim es our
c h ild re n 's hands had been made num b
service and they need to be comm ended
and supported by us. O u r Sabin P T A ’ s
by the c o ld and th e ir sticks had been
decision to provide gloves was ignored
and usurped by the Sabin P T A P resident
dropped.
M y concern is that the President o f
the Sabin P T A a rb itra rily decided to
ignore the P T A ’ s consensus to provide
1 expressed m y concern and anger to
Sabin P T A V ice-President Bunch and he
personally secured a lim ite d num ber o f
that she d id not feel the P T A body meant
to re a lly p ro vid e o u r safety pa tro l c h il
pair o f gloves that same day! I t is both
fru stra tin g and tim e consum ing that this
m ailer was not handled in the manner
agreed upon by the Sabin P T A . It is
equally sad that the Sabin P T A President
fa ile d to do the rig h t th in g . The ca llo u s
dren w ith gloves. She fu rth e r stated that
our ch ild re n should drop out o f safety
ness expressed by her tow ards o u r Sabin
populace needs to be confronted and
patrol i f they d id not kn o w to wear gloves
dealt w ith .
Parents, it is so im p o rta n t fo r us to
gel in vo lve d and to stay in vo lve d w ith
gloves fo r o u r young patrol. W hen ques
tioned about her refusal, she firs t tried
“ passing the b u ck’ ’ -b la m in g another fo r
her decision. A fte r fu rth e r ta lk, she stated
or i f they d id not have gloves to wear
du rin g the co ld weather, etc.
T hat k in d o f callous attitude is both
very distressing and troubling. 1 am angry
and I hope that every parent feels lik e
wise. O u r ch ild re n need encouragem ent-
not discouragem ent! The Sabin safety
our P TA s and schools. R em em ber that
our ch ild re n are o u r fu tu re . W e a ll need
to be there fo r our ch ild re n ! The address
to Sabin Elem entary School is 4013 N.E.
18th here in Pordand.
Bills Kwik Mart
In d u s try ” . In 1 9 5 9 ,1 v/as the in ve n to ry
accountant fo r the Stanley Law rence
C o., a huge Los A ngeles m a il order firm
and return to school early because o f the
I fin d it hard to be lieve that so called
“ B la ck Lea d e rsh ip ” in P ortland, O re
gon has chosen to rem ain sile n t regarding
the brutal and unnecessary death o f brother
Charles W illia m s , age 28. W illia m s was
k ille d Saturday, D ecem ber 1st, 1990 by
em ployees o f B i l l ’ s K w ik M a rt, located
at 3510 N E M a rtin L u th e r K in g , Jr. B lvd .
It has been rum ored that em ployees
o f K w ik M a rt have, on num erous occa
sions, beaten and assaulted w ith sticks
and clubs innocent persons, and have
threatened them w ith firearm s.
The ow n e r o f K w ik M a rt claim s that
W illia m s was s h o p liftin g ( d iffic u lt to
believe, since it is kn o w n that W illia m s ’
w a lle t contained in excess o f S300 at the
tim e ); but, even i f that w ere the case, is
that reason enough to take a life ? I th in k
not. T h is type o f abuse cannot, and w ill
not, be tolerated. N o w is the tim e to put a
stop to this total disregard fo r human
life .
Since D ecem ber 3rd, members o f
both the bla ck and w h ile com m unities
have voiced their great dissatisfaction
w ith the actions o f the s ta ff o f B i l l ’ s
K w ik M a rt. A p icke t lin e has been in
force since this date and w ill continue
u n til ju s tic e is served.
W h y has “ B la ck Lea d e rsh ip ” in
P ortland been so ve ry, so noticeably
quiet in this matter. What are Ron Herndon
and the B la c k U nited F ro n t doing about
the h o m icid e o f brother W illia m s ? R ev
erend Green, Reverend M artin (o f PUSH,
People U n ite d to Save H u m a n ity), where
arc you? I th in k that a human life is
w o rth m ore than a damned p a ir o f tennis
shoes. 1 th in k , som ehow , that it should
w hat does it take to get you to respond?
H arold W illia m s ( o f the B la ck M e n ’ s
Coalition), another brother has died need
lessly, w h y are you now silent?
1 know that there is not a m u ltitu d e
o f press and television cameras covering
this “ e ve n t.” I hope that this is not the
reason fo r the current silences o f our
leaders.”
In the m eantim e, the members o f
the c o m m u n ity-rich and poor, black and
w hite-those whose faces aren’ t seen in
fro n t o f the w eekly m edia, these are the
people whose faces can be seen m a in
ta in in g the v ig il in fro n t o f the K w ik
M a rt store. B lack Leaders, lead, stand up
and be counted among us. W e m ust stop
the violence. We m ust stop the k illin g in
o u r com m unity.
Sincerely,
F rederick Douglass W ashington, Jr.
count m ore. D r. T u k u fu o f the Urban
League, R obert P h illip s o f the N A A C P ,
rem
J#
From the Staff at the Portland Observer
■.-¿•.'.«l+KrX-.vv.vvfc;*.*:
supported researchers at Y a le U n ive rsity
School o f M e d icin e in N e w Haven,
C onnecticut and the U n iv e rs ity o f Texas
at A u s tin found no s ig n ific a n t d iffe r
ences in the num ber o f g irls w ith reading
d is a b ility com pared to the num ber o f
FACTORY STORE.
boys. T h is fin d in g , how ever, o n ly ap
p lie d to those c h ild re n whose reading
im p a irm e n t was diagnosed by a special
test designed to measure reading achieve
ment. In contrast, w hen ch ild re n were
id e n tifie d by th e ir schools as being read
NO SHOPPING CONSULTANTS.
NO SHUTTLE SERVICE.
NO LINGERIE.
ing im paired, 13.6 percent o f the boys
and 3.2 percent o f the g irls in the study
were said to have reading d iffic u ltie s .
F rom these results, investigators have
concluded that school identification alone
is not alw ays a re liable w ay o f measuring
reading d is a b ility in c h ild re n .
¡¡is -Li? J l L
i
IT*
PORTLAND OBSERVER
POfmflWjfcteKYK
(USPS 959-680)
OREGON'S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION
Established in 1970
Alfred L. Henderson
Publisher
Joyce Washington
Operations Manager
Gary Ann Garnett
Business Manager
Leon Harris
Editorial Manager
The PORTLAND OBSERVER Is
published weekly by
Exie Publishing Com pany, Inc.
4747 N.E. M.L.K., Jr. Blvd.
Portland, Oregon 97211
P.O. Box 3137
Portland, Oregon 97208
(503) 288-0033 (Office)
FAX#: (503) 288-0015
The Portland Observer can be
sent directly to your home for
only $25.00 per year.
Please fill out, enclose check or
money ordr, and Mail to:
Subscriptions
Portland Observer
PO Box 3137
Portland, Oregon 97208
Name
address
Deadlines for all submitted materials:
Articles: Monday, 5p.m. - Ads: Tuesday, 5p.m.
dty, state
POSTMASTER: Send Address Chsnges to: P ortland Observer, P.O. Box 3137,
P ordsnd, OR 97208. Second-ctass postage paid at Portland. Oregon
The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photo
graphs should be clearly labled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed
envelope All created design display ads become the sole property o, this newspaper and
can no, be used in other publications or personal usage, without the written consent of the
general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad 1990
PORTLAND OBSERVER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE
OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED
Subscriptions $20 00 per year in the Tri-County area, $25 00 all other areas.
The Portland O bserver--Oregon's Oldest African-American Publication - is a member
of The National Newspaper Association - Founded m 1885, and The National Advertis
ing Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc., New York, NY.
zip-code
FACTORY STORE
Thank You For Reading the
Portland Observer
PORTLAND OBSERVER
"The Eyes and Ears ol the Community
Office: (503)200-0033
Fax#: (503)200-0015
Just discontinued and irregular athletic shoes, apparel and accessories.
3044 NE Martin Luther King Blvd., Portland, OR 97212, (503) 281-5901
I
t
ÉÊÎ'«'ifî
* . i . » *■ ' V5Í
•;
-V .,« , •