age 2 - The Portland Observer
New Wings
Over Ethiopia;
Isaiah 1:18,1
Moving right a long (not me, the
human disease vectors), we find the
varmits busy again in Africa. The world’s
news services are reporting that medi­
cal researchers are injecting citizens of
Zaire (formerly the Congo) with LIVE
AIDS VIRUS; “ experimenting in an
effort to develop a vaccine against the
dread disease.”
a defmiation and a reminder. First,
some readers say they now appreciate
the import of the term “ VECTOR” -
ju st from the context of my last two
articles about the spread of European
diseases to the Third World (Tubercu­
losis, Syphilis, AIDS, etc.). Basically,
we refer to the CARRIER’S of those
plagues, and these include not only
such ‘human’ vectors as explorers,
colonialists, soldiers and suitors, re­
ligionists and tourists, but rats, birds,
insects and pets. It was the newman-
explorer duo of “ Stanley and Living­
ston” which early on cited this trans­
mission of syphillis to Africa!
The “ reminder “ is that over the
years I have written of the innovative
methods developed to separate Afri­
cans and African Americans from their
LAND. I have cited local applications
of the “ Urban Renewal” game of ‘land­
clearing’ for freeways, civic centers,
highrises and other “ enhancements of
the urban enviroment” (Coliseum
Complex, Emanuel Hospital site, and
that Portland School District caper where
March 13, 1991
land obstcnsibly acquired for a new ad­
ministrative building by ‘eminent
domain’, was instead sold to private
interests to cover a budget overrun).
I reported lhatoil-rich landsowned
by blacks in Louisiana were acquired
by the state for “ Drainage Districts” ,
with the owners receiving only a pit­
tance for properties worth millions. I
have not neglected to report similar
depredations in the “ old counfry” ,
Africa. These have included the lies of
white South Africans who still claim,
that the fabuously rich land was
“ VACANT” when they occupied it
(after bitter battles with the inhabi­
tants). If was only la te r, they say, that
they “ fortuitously” discovered the vast
deposits of gold and diamonds. Also
disclosed was that those pious Ameri­
can Sanctions against South Africa
EXCLUDED the 10 most valuable
minerals critical to modem warfare and
space exploration.
But, has it not occurrred to you
that the barbaric rascals of this planet
may have found even more efficient
methods o f ‘clearing land’ ? Whatabout
that which lies before our very
eyes...'CLEAR CUTTING’ POPULA­
TIONS WITH DISEASE VECTORS.
This is proving a far speedier tactic for
preparing the territory for occupation
by European political disidents, than
by present attempts at conversion to
nuclear waste dumps and as the termi­
nal destinations of ocean-going barges
of urban garbage and medical wastes.
We tremble for Africa.
It is also here in the “ Old Coun­
try” that we find African nations the
target of massive American and Euro­
pean campaigns to place large tracts of
their land ON HOLD; For use as “ Wild
Life Refuges” , safaris, and thousand
mile-long routes set aside for perform­
ance-testing “ Auto Rallys” . You do
remember my series, “ Africa The Zoo” !
Rampaging elephants trampling the
crops o f poor farmers-held back by
armed “ poacher patrols” .
When all of these shenanigans are
related in one comprehensive perspec­
tive, it is clearly seen that the compan­
ion piece of racist assaults and eco­
nomic disabilities inflicted upon Afri­
can Americans are an intetral part of
the overall scheme. The black popula­
tion of the United States is to be ren­
dered completely helpless and impo­
tent as a possible rallying point or po­
litical voice capable of any protest or
intervention in an obvious GENOCIDE.
The current vicious attacks upon black
elected officials is seen by many to be
part and parcel of the process.
My term, “ Travel Agency Anthro­
pology” described the insidious method
used to conceal from African Ameri­
cans (all Americans) any knowledge of
the African roots of those peoples scat­
tered throughout the world from Ha­
waii and South Sea Island, to India and
the more remote Japanese archipelago,
new and exotic names are now applied
to those whom W.E.B. Dubois prop­
erly characterized as NEGRO descen­
dants of the African Dispora. Remem­
ber my white student quoting his father
who owned a travel agency, ‘ ‘Give ‘em
exotic names. Who is going to pay
thousands of dollars to see a bunch of
niggers (sic), when they can do that at
home right down in the ghetto?”
Yes, there are “ new wings over
Ethiopia” , and again the message is
quite clear.
The War Ends but The Assault
On The Poor Continues At Home
The obscene U.S. led war in the
Persian Gulf is over. The Bush admini­
stration and the U.S. government ex­
pended 75-100 billion dollars for an
unnecessary war against Iraq. Now the
U.S. and its “ coalition partners” con­
sider the reconstruction of the feudal
kingdom of Kuwait a major priortiy.
The U.S. helped to rebuild Germany
and Western Europe under the Marshall
Plan after World War II. Japan was also
reconstructed with massive U.S. assis­
tance. The obvious question which
African Americans, Latinos and poor
and working people should raise is when
will the United States rebuild the ghet­
tos and barrios right here at home?
It is the height of contradiction,
callousness and immorality that the U.S.
can continue to ignore the desperate
plight of millions of African Ameri­
cans, minorities and poor and working
people who are forced to live in poverty
and misery in America’s desolate and
decaying urban inner city areas. In state
after state and city after city, Gover­
nors, legislators, Mayors, council mem­
bers and school board members arc
faced with huge budget deficits, cities
on the verge of toal collapse, schools
systems which are under-funded and
unworkable, health care systems which
are faltering and infra-structures which
are crumbling.
The U.S. flexed its awesome mili­
tary muscle in the Persian Gulf, but
does the government have the mind,
muscle and morality to wage an effec­
Can Help You
Bloom This Spring.
PCC has classes to help you grow!
Job training programs
College transfer courses
Help with basic skills
Or courses just for fun!
ELECTION
MARCH 26, 1991
Letter To The Editor
Anonymous Vet Speaks Out
PCC has them all.
Days, evenings or
weekends
Convenient locations,
affordable costs
Watch your mailbox for
PCC’s Spring Schedule
or call 244-6111 for
information
Classes begin
the week of March 25.
Bloom this
at PCC!
DISTRICT
spring
PORTL
ERVER
(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
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The Portland Observer - Oregon's Oldest African-American Publication - is a member
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ing Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc., New York, NY.
‘ ‘ I first went into the service in
1970.1 was 18 years of age. I chose the
United States Navy because my father
had served i n the arm y. He had recei ved
an honorable discharge, but didn ’ t want
his sons too close to the front line. So I
took his advice, because a lot of people
didn’t seem to make it back from the
army.
I was first stationed in San
Diego. It was called ‘ ‘ boot camp. "Y o u
trained for 18 weeks. The training
involved rifle skills along with everyday
discipline techniques that prepared you
to fight a war. Once the training was
completed, we were tested and given an
M.O.S (Military Occupational Skill).
We had 92 people in our
company. Only 65 made it through. The
others were either rejected or given an
assignement in an area that would be
useful to the Navy.
After training I was sent to
Westpac, the seventh fleet. We were
assigned to an anti-sub-marine squad.
A year later I was sent to the second
fleet on the East Coast with the same
duties.
During my four year tenure, I
met racism head on. In 1974,1 received
an honorable discharge and I went out
into the world to seek a job. This was in
Georgia. The only job that I could get
was that of a security guard. The pay
would have been minimum wage. I
couldn’t understand it. I was a specialist.
A trained aviation mechanic. While I
was securing the country, all the jobs
had been given to the draft dodgers that
President Nixon had pardoned! The
military answer was of course, the GI
Bill. They would pay $500 per month
for me to go to school.
Now remember I told you I
was in Georgia. I don’t think it would
have been so hard on me if I had been a
white male. That’s one of the reasons
why I don’t believe that African-
Americans should put their lives on the
front line. The war for us is here in
America. Vietnam/Kuwait, its all
economics for us. Wc need a way out. A
way to survive. Sure, they give us an
education through an honorable
discharge, that is if you make it back.
Once you achieve the education, you’re
still discriminated against. The system
will hire an under-qualified European-
American before they will hire an
African-American male.
Taxpayer dollars that could have gone
to end human misery is now being
allocated to bail out rich corporations,
institutions and individuals. Now it
appears that another 25 billion will be
required to rescue the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corp., again because of the
mismanagement and greed of wealthy
bankers. Taxpayer dollars go to subsi­
dize the wealthy, but no significant
amount of money can be found to
improve the quality of life for millions
who live in poverty in the United States.
Indeed as states and cities attempt
to cope with horrendous budget crises,
the trend is to follow the example of
former President Ronald Reagan - bal­
ance the budget on the backs of the
Black poor, minorities and poor and
working people. Confronting a huge
deficit in New Y a k State, Mario Cuomo,
a potential Democratic candidate for
President in 1992, is proposing major
cuts n social progrms while leaving the
weatlhy virtually untouched. In Ohio,
Governor George Voinovich, a rising
star within the Republican party is
proposing the total elimination of
General Welfare Relief and the cancel­
lation of state supported medical bene­
fits for more than 130,000 welfare re­
cipients.
The war in the Persian Gulf may be
over, but the deadly attack against the
Black poor, minorities and the disad­
vantaged continues without let up here
in the United States.
PGE Scholarship Deadline
SPECIAL
Portland Community College
tive war on poverty on the domestic
front Years ago Whitney Young, the
late President of the National Urban
League, called upon this nation to enact
a “ Domestic Marshall Plan’ ’ to rebuild
the cities and open up employment and
educational opportunities for Blacks,
minorities and the disadvantaged. Two
years ago John E. Jacob, the current
President of the National Urban League,
reissued the call for a Domestic Marshall
Plan and requested 50 billion dollars to
fund the program. The renewed call for
resources to rebuild the cities was an
urgent appeal to end the blatant neglect
of Blacks, poor people and minorities.
John E. Jacob received essentially
the same response that Whitney Young
received. The United States cannot afford
to invest billions to rebuild the cities
and wipe out poverty. The U.S. cannot
bail-out the poor, but the government
can consistently squander resources on
rich corporations, banks and individu­
als who mis-mange resources. And the
government continues to invest in a
bloated military budget in order to bomb
and baiter “ uppity” Third world na­
tions into submission.
Billions of dollars were ripped off
from H.U.D. by Reagan’s political pals
while offordable housing was on the
decline and homelessness was in the
increase. The 600 billion S & L scandal
is the result of gross mis-management
and reckless speculation by greedy
financiers, developers and their com­
pliant political pimps in congress.
For the fourth consecutive year,
Portland General Electric Co. (PGE)
and the Oregon Independent College
Foundations (OICF) is offering to keep
some of Oregon’s most promising high
school students from going away to
college.
Through the PGE Scholarship
Award, PGE presents eight of the state’s
top seniors with the opportunity to at­
tend college in Oregon after they gradu-
ate.
The award pays up to S9.000 (over
a four-year period) toward educational
costs at each of Oregon’s Eight inde­
pendent colleges. Students interested
in applying f a the scholarship can obtain
an entry form at their high school. The
dead line for turning in applications is
Friday, March 29, 1991.
Scholarships will be awarded to
students on the basis of merit; appli­
cants must demonstrate ouLstanding
personal and academic leadrsip quali­
ties. One scholarship will be awarded
at each of the eight OICF colleges
including Linfield Colelge, Lewis and
Clark College, Pacific University,
George Fox College, Willamette Um-
versity, Reed College, Warner Pacific
College, and the University of Port­
land.
»
Contacts: ROXANNE BAILEY,
Public Information representative, 464-
8466,
KATHY CARLSON, Corporate
Relations Specialist, 464-8535
AMALGAMATED PUBLISHERS, INC.
PORTLA
Are • The • Proud • Sponsors • Of
Reinvestments
Community
Lower northeast sector declares all
out war on illegal drugs in community
A number o f irate individuals
representing at least five A frica n
Am erican organizations from the
lower Northeast section o f the com ­
m unity have expressed their inten­
tion to intervene directly into some
o f the nagging problems caused by
illegal drugs. In their words they
have put together a m anifesto for
recapturing their neighborhoods
through targeted efforts.
T his week Ron Herndon said,
“ C rim e fueled by illegal drugs has
seriously eroded die quality o f life in
certain neighborhoods o f the lower
Northeast sector o f ou r com m unity.
Elderly citizens and young people
have become virtual prisoners be­
cause they arc afra id to go out o f their
homes at night. Because o f the seri­
ousness o f these problems, all out
war is hereby declared on all the
perpetrators o f these dastardly acts. ’ ’
So stated. M r. Herndon then out­
lined the fu ll battle plan that was
composed o f iw o elements. The first
part focused on law enforcement and
com m unity organizing. The main
thrust o f that section was a request to
the G overnor to declare an em er­
gency and to call the National Guard
to active duly. No matter how oner­
ous such a suggestion m ight sound,
Mr. Herndon and Charles Taylor insist
tint! such ti position represents a
m ajority view o f the affected com ­
m unity. The Guard would be used
for special surveillance, perimeter
security, transporting prisoners, foot
I
patrols, drug bouse raids and curfew
enforcement.
port in the screening o f tenants, de­
velopment o f effective rental con­
In this regard, M r. Herndon and
his supporters are going to have a
d iffic u lt time convincing Governor
N eil G oldschm idt, o f the need to
greater emphasis on property man­
u tilize the National guard in such a
manner. According to Robert Jackson,
m ilita ry advisor to the G overnor, the
National Guard w ill be provided only
in an advisory and adm inistrative
support capacity. There is no prece­
dent in Am erican history fo r em­
p lo yin g the local m ilitia in such a
manner. C ritics o f such an approach
point out that the guard docs not have
adequate training to deal effectively
in such matters. A t the same time,
experience the African American com­
m unity has had w ith the National
Guard during the c iv il rig ht distur­
bances o f the 1960’ s would suggest
that their interaction in Black com ­
m unities has had an egregious effect.
The death o f a single National Guards­
men in such an endeavor could pos­
sib ly fom ent real problems o f c iv il
disturbance.
Com paring this action to a forest
fire, M r. Herndon stated that it would
be the intention o f the attack force
first to dislodge crim e from the less
active “ brush fir e ” area in order to
establish an effective fire w a ll before
divertin g the main thrust to the in ­
ferno, itself. These efforts would be
coupled w ith the remedial input o f
the Gang Task Force.
Landlords would be given sup-
tracts and eviction procedures w ith a
agement and responsive neighbor­
hood concerns.
The daily media w ould be en­
couraged to list target areas where
drugs were sold.
The second part o f the program
would be devoted to youth diversion
and treatm e nt. A county residential
program was proposed in w hich a
mandatory 30-day m inim um de-pro­
gram m ing protocol w ould be estab­
lished fo r youths w ho e xh ib it assaul­
tive, disruptive behavior o r have been
identified as active members o f a
gang.
It also calls fo r the development
o f a professionai foster care provider
network. C urrently, nosuch program
exists. A specific gang-oriented serv­
ice package would be created in which
evidence w ould be accumulated and
after three years an analysis w ould
be made o f the root causes o f gang
a ctivity in the targeted area. Service
providers w ould then use this spe­
c ific inform ation to develop policies
and tailored programs fo r dealing
w ith the problem.
A final recom m endation is made
that adequate funds be made ava il­
able to support a House o f Um oja
concept which w ould then serve as a .
diversionary and rehabilitation pro­
gram for youths susceptible to o r d i­
rectly active in deleterious gang ac-
tiv itw
"Reinvestments in the Community" is a weekly column appearing
in API publications throughout the USA.