Page 2...The Portland Observer...January 15, 1992
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BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT UNE
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What We Need To Get
Ready To Take Advantage
Of The Many Opportunities
In Construction: Part I
>
by James Posey
> by Professor McKinley Burt
Peer Group Dynamics
A t the top o f our agendas today are
the problem s o f our youth. You may
w ish to argue that the disintegration of
the econom y offers a greater threat, but
in either case the losses can be cata­
strophic.
If you notice, the ream s o f material
w ritten or aired on the subject o f gangs,
juvenile delinquency and educational
failure tend to em brace a common
approach; a problem is being A T­
TACKED! A war is being waged against
“ this insidious cancer that is eating
aw ay at the very fabric o f our society.”
If we are fighting a disease then we
obv iously have concluded that we have
a p a tien t and that it is he who must be
cured.
An unfortunate consequence of
either position is that we are found
com ing AT an enem y in the one case,
and the disabled in the other. Under;
these circum stances one should not
expect favorable (friendly) responses
from the target groups, and to date their
certainly has not been that much. The
one fact that has stood out nationwide
is that this population develops and
functions around PEER GROUP PRES-
SURE. Then, it seems not unlikely that
real time solutions could be built around
the very same dynamic.
Those o f you who read my recent
series, “ N ostalgia, D on’t Leave Home
W ithout It” , are aware that I frequently
cited the num ber o f cooperative, appar­
ently self-starting activities that went
on am ong the youth. I had written
before about this interaction between
PEERS that encompassed a host o f
positive activities ranging from the in­
vention of games to sophisticated o r ­
ganizations: Bicycle clubs, science
clubs, boat excursions, sports contests
between neighborhoods, dances and
picnics, benefits for the disadvantaged,
you name it! And so many years ago!
W hat 1 would draw attention to,
here, is not so much what may seem to
the modem reader a fascinatingly high
level o f sophistication - as important
as that is - but the fact that these social
structures had a LIFE OF THEIR OW N
THAT WAS TRANSM ITTED FROM
GENERATION TO GENERATION.
First, older siblings transmitted the know­
how to the younger, and then there
were always neighborhood oldsters who
were a fountain o f information and
guidance.
The conclusion I have reached after
exam ination of the dynam ics of youth
social structures within the timeframes
o f both yesterday and today is that the
CONTINUITY HAS BEEN LOST -
that we have been severed from our his­
tory and tradition in such a way that we
no longer know what “ we are supposed
to do, can do and should do." The
approach that is needed is one that will
restore among our \ outh a PEER GROUP
STRUCTURE based upon universally
accepted rules of behavior and conduct
that lead to mutual love and re sp e c t-a
type o f consaguinity that enhances
support and discourages violence.
Carefully selected films and docum en­
taries can be o f tremendous help.
It follows from this that if we are to
restore the former level o f admirable
social interaction among our youth,
then we must intervene in a structured
m anner-an approach that assures this
population they have a lot to offer and
always have, vis a vis not only a docu­
mented past, but contem porary achiev­
ers from astronauts to business people.
I, o f course, concentrate on inventors
and technology which leads to an op­
portunity for practical experim ents and
building models. And it is here that we
can develop the techniques of PEER
GROUP ASSISTANCE. Kids love to
teach each other and, further, they will
enthusiastically RECRUIT from a
population o f their peers.
I had concrete proof o f this in
anumber of the youth programs I con­
ceived and developed over the years:
Several U.S. Forest Service supported
programs; Providence Medical Center
program for health-related occupations
and so forth. A principal criterion
would seem to be that the activities be
interesting, structured and relevant to
the contemporary world. And of course
the program must lend itself to a great
deal o f self-study and goal-seeking.
Above all the youth must be reintro­
duced to the idea of respecting and sup­
porting p eers-an d relying on them for
reciprocal considerations. And WE
must be there, again, for counsel and
guidance.
Inner-City Kid Makes Good: Spears
Receives UNCF Scholarship
Continued from front page
rican American woman must rise up,
stand her ground and be strong.
Ms. Spears has excelled in many
ways and on many occasions; but, re­
cently her hard work and academic
achievem ents received national recog­
nition. Velma is currently enrolled at
Prairie View A & M University in Prai­
rie View, Texas as an Electrical Engi­
neering major. The United Negro Col­
lege Fund o f America awarded Ms.
Velma M aria Spears a $5,000 scholor-
ship in recognition of her achievem ents
in the field of engineering. During the
UNCF Telethon, Ms. Spears, who was
introduced by Ms. Sharon M itchell, was
seen on television by thousands as her
excellence was heralded. This achieve­
ment should end the myth that says,
“ All inner-city kids are at-risk o f fail­
ure and are not going to am ount to
anything. So why should anyone waste
their efforts to help these kids...?”
Number one and foremost, society should
stop labeling and lumping our children
in one big heap of nothingness. Society
feels that if you com e from a one parent
home, you’re African American, you
live in the inner city, you are on w el­
fare, you’re earning below the m ar­
ginal level and skimming poverty, you
arc automatically a failure. WRONG!
Congratulations Ms. Spears! May
you continue to excel and ride the winds
of success. You are one o f Portland’s
babies and we are proud o f you.
Alberta Learning Center Receives $2,500.00
Bank o f America, although num ­
bered am ong the largest banking con­
cerns in the United States, has taken the
time to dem onstrate its willingness to
become active partners in community
service in Northeast Portland. Mr.
Stanley Emerson, Manager of the Walnut
Park Branch on Northeast Martin Lu­
ther King Jr. Blvd, recently presented a
check for $2,500.00 to Oregon O ut­
reach, Inc. to assist in the efforts o f the
A lberta Learning Center.
The A lberta Learning Center is
located at the Yaun adm inistrative of­
fices at 3010 NE A lberta St. This pro­
gram is a joint effort of the Alfred Y aun
program, the Oregon National Guard
and Oregon Outreach. Through the
Aberta Learning Center, youth and adults
can study for their high school diploma,
prepare for their GED , or receive tutor­
ing in any academic area. Addition­
ally, the Oregon National Guard pro­
vides to assist NE Portland residents
who want to prepare for the ASVAB
exam. The Alberta Learning Center
(Efjt
Observer
(USPS 959-680)
OREGON’S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBUCATION
Established in 1970
also offers a classroom for students
who are temporarily suspended or
expelled from public schools. There is
no charge to anyone desiring to im­
prove their basic skills. More informa­
tion on this program may be obtained
by contacting the center at 281-9597,
or by contacting Oregon Outreach at
287-6112.
The donation from Bank of Amer­
ica will enable the center to provide
both day and evening classes to inter­
ested community participants.
Contributing Writers
McKinley Burt
Bill Barber
Sharon Camarda
Mattie Ann Callier-Spears
Operations Manager
Joyce Washington
Accounting Manager
Gary Ann Garnett
Production Staff
Dean Babb
Sharon Camarda
Gary Ann Garnett
Jennifer Johnson
Public Relations
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from these programs are slow to hire
other minorites and women.
As if this situation was not bad enough
there is also the notorious infighting
among minority contractors and preda­
tor quasi-contractor com panies and or­
ganizations which purport to represent
minority contractors but in effect are in
business only to line their own pockets
even at the expense o f the minority
contractors they’re supposed to serve or
represent. In the old post civil w ar south
they used to call these scoundrels carpet­
baggers, who lived o ff the slaves’ m is­
fortune and took advantage o f programs
to help displace slaves. Also, today as in
those post civil war slavery days, those
who are reponsible for today’s programs
seem indifferent to the abuse or at least
impudent to correct the misuse and abuse.
So in many ways the programs are de­
signed to fail with many o f the program
dollars never reaching the individuals
who are supposed benefactors.
Another very negative consequence
o f years o f squandering these resources,
if we tell the truth, is the fact that as an
African American community we have
developed chronic deficiencies more
correctly inefficiencies, are so pronounced
that existing programs and resources no
m atter how well intended are totally
inadequate and don’teven come close to
addressing the problem.
Now what to do about all this? The
first thing we must do is tell the truth.
W e must next assess what our strengths
and weakness are in real world terms and
systematically gather and employ the
neccessary resources to guarantee our
survival as people not only in construc­
tion but throughtout the economic fabric
o f the country. Make no mistake about
it, this is clearly an issue o f ethnic sur­
vival. In doing so we must become
fanatically knowledgeable and hold
ourselves, agencies, organizations, busi­
nesses, and yes, individual community
leaders accountable.
In the next article we will discuss
from a very biased point o f view, a
number o f various programs, their pur­
pose and intent and how effective or
ineffective they have been specifically
as they relate to construction opportuni­
ties.
Albina Academy
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W hat m ust one do to get ready to
answ er the call and take advantage of
the many opportuniites in construc­
tion? In our last article we discussed
the basic need to get involved and explore
the possibilities o f entering the con­
struction field based on what appears to
be unlimited future opportunities. If it
could only just be that simple. The
truth o f the matter is that it is a very
complex endeavor latent with pitfalls
and potential discouraging prospects.
Conversely, if you are successful, it is
one of the very few areas where you can
make some money and end up with a
sense of accomplishment. It may take
a few years to get into it, but the finan­
cial rewards are definitely there. Maybe
what is more important in a personal
sense is the fact that you can visually
point to distinct accom plishm ents long
after the work is completed. I don’t
know of anything more psychologi­
cally important the the African A m eri­
can community than to establish refer­
ence points o f accom plishm ent. The
construction industry provides “ con­
crete” examples o f accomplishments.
But before we get all hyped, let’s
talk somewhat historically about the
pitfalls. It’s not as if Black folks have
not previously tried to get into various
construction arenas as business owners
and workers. Il is just that a com bina­
tion of factors and circum stances have
effectively kept them out. The primary
limiting factor has been our own lack of
understanding and preparedness in
entering the industry and adhering to
its prerequisites for success. In many
ways we exemplify the biblical w arn­
ing: * ‘O ur people parish for the lack of
knowledge.” W e have also had a strong
tendency to self-destruct based on our
unwillingness to trust one another and
share among ourselves. In many ways
we have not learned the lessons o f our
m ost recent history.
Like many m ajor cities in the coun­
try, black Portlanders experienced the
benefits o f the Model Cities programs
of the sixties and early seventies opened
on President Johnson’s “ war on pov­
erty.” We also know during that period
a lot of money was spend that went into
the hands of unscrupulous community
leaders, both black and white who basi­
cally heisted the money. We know that
many o f these programs were strongly
politically motivated and designed to
institute a quick fix to keep the natives
from becoming more restless in the
quake of nationwide riots and discon­
tent. Many o f these programs sprung
up overnight and were all touted in
general as m echanisms to eliminate
poverty. Some programs akind to this
era like Head Start have proven very
successful over the years, but others
were “ D O A ,” dead on arrival.
Today in Portland, revised versions
o f the above scenario continue. The
same devious schemes are resurrected.
For example, especially in construc­
tion, would be minority and women
contractors using the benefits o f gov­
ernm ent programs designed to assist
m inoritites and women to enter the
construction industry, have taken con­
tracts both prime and subcontracts os-
tensively to perform work but have in
reality functioned primarily as fronts
for majority culture contractors. This
one major misuse and abuse of the
program has had devastating effects.
W hile there is a litany of negative con­
sequences, the most destructive is the
denial o f accruing certificable experi­
ence by black contractors and the ca­
pacity to perform real commercially
useful work in the industry. In selling
out for the quick dollars many o f these
so called contractors have in fact sold
our birth right to the industry. In doing
so it has had a dom ino effect in closing
doors and extinguishing other opportu­
nities in such areas as building a viable
minority workforce capacity and de­
veloping technical knowledge and
experience within the industry (qualifi­
cation prerequisites).
Another shameful consequence is
the fact that minority contractors who
have historically and currently benefit
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