Page 2...The Portland ()bserver...June 17, 1992
The "Ciubbing Of Justice” Continues In Los Angeles
By Benjamin F Chavis, Jr.
The v ideo sight last year o f a "gang”
o f Los Angeles police officers m erci
lessly beating Rodney King is still fresh
in the minds o f m illion s o f persons
throughout the w orld. In the aftermath
o f the Los Angeles “ rebellion” in re
sponse to the unjust verdict o f “ not
g u ilty ” given to the police officers re
sponsible fo r the unjust beating, the
residents o f Los Angeles are still being
threatened w ith new blows o f disre-
spectfonn Police C hief Daryle F. Gates.
The latest blow to the system o f
justice in Los Angeles was Gates’ an
nouncement that he was reconsidering
the promise he had publicly made to the
L .A . Police commission that he would
retire at the end o f June 1992. This act
by Gates would serve as an attempt to
block and prevent the city from hiring
its first A frican american police chief.
In fact, form er Philadelphia Com m is
sioner o f Police, C hief W illie L. W il
liams, is already in the process o f m ov
ing his fam ily to Los Angeles to hope
fu lly began work as the new L .A . C hief
o f Police prior to July 1, 1992.
We would be the last to suggest
that Gates should be treated unfairly.
The problem is that once again C hief
Gates has put his own personal arro
gance as a higher value above the inter
ests o f a city already tom by unprec
edented racial strife and injustice, one
o f the manifestations o f contemporary
racism in the United States is the racist
arrogance o f o fficials like C hief Gates
who acting under the color o f the law
breaks the law to satisfy the hysteria o f
racial hatred and prejudice.
No resident o f Los Angeles can be
treated “ fa irly ” by a police system led
by such an “ u n fa ir" and “ bigoted" po
lice chief. Gates reportedly stated to the
Los Angeles Times: “ 1 said I was going
to retire at the end o f June and my
feeling is now .... Screw you, I ’ ll retire
when I want.”
Is Gates the C hief “ B u ll” Connor
o f the 1990’ s not in Alabama, but in the
C ity o f Angels? Can the nation as a
whole afford to allow this police chief
to put him self above the law and every
one else? W hat do you think the impact
o f Gates’ recent remarks w ill be on the
tens o f thousands o f young people in
Los Angeles and in other urban centers
as they contemplate the call fo r “ law
and order” ?
Los Angeles M ayor Tom Bradley
aptly responded, “ I think the people
have had enough o f Daryl Gates jerking
them around.” Ironically as Gates was
striking another blow to the people o f
L .A ., a group o f w hite supremacists o f
the N ationalist M ovem ent based in
Mississippi were in C alifornia to show
their support for Gates and the police
officers who had “ clubbed” Rodney
King. The threat to justice in Los Ange
les is a threat to justice everywhere.
It also is evident that Gates does
not want the thousands o f young men
who have joined one o f L. A .’ s notori
ous gangs to stop k illin g each other.
D uring the “ rebellion” a truce was de
clared between the “ Bloods” and the
“ Crips” and thus far the historic truce
has held. Yet, on several occasions, the
L .A . police have disrupted “ truce meet
ings” between some o f L.S .’ s gangs.
Why do the police want these young
people to resume fratricide?
Something is s till fundamentally
wrong in Los Angeles. Rather than
blame the victim s o f oppression and
racism for their victim ization, it is im
portant fo r acts o f solidarity and sup
port to be made in the interest o f ensur
ing equal justice for all peoples.
The justice system in Los Angeles
continues to be “ clubbed” by a ruthless
police ch ie f and police officers who are
agentsof institutionalized racism. When
the so-called Watts Riots (Rebellion) in
L .A . happened 27 years ago, the
McCone Commission was mandated to
investigate the causative factors that
led up to the rebellion. Reviewing the
McCone Commission Report, one w ill
fin d a g la rin g absence o f the re
cognition that racism, racial exploita
tion and physical abuse jo in tly have
played as prim a;y factors that fuel
the ig n itin g o f ra c ia l and so cial
unrest in Los Angeles and in the entire
nation.
But justiceand truth w ill ultim ately
prevail in Los Angeles provided the
people nor “ clubbing” the pursuit o f
justice w ill not stop the unbeatable
force o f human history that w ill not rest
until justice and freedom are a realiza
tion for every ch ild on earth.
p e r s p e c tiv e s
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Education Update:
Where as it is a fact of life that the
economic vitality of any state depends
heavily upon the strength of its edu
cational system and therefore its abil
ity to facilitate the growth of its in
dustry and work force, and particu
larly the ability to attract new com
panies and investments, it would seem
only logical to prioritize lottery in
come to replace the 152 million short
fall in the education budget.
Having said that, I would again
draw attention to the message I re
peated so many times during the past
tw o years: That the “ Year 2000” date so
enthusiastically projected for America
to achieve parity in technological edu
cation among the nations o f the world
was no more than a poorly structured
dream. Can there be any doubt now,
with the financial position o f most states
on a par w ith Oregon, or, in some cases,
even worse.
This is not an I-told-you-so article,
so much as an attempt to prepare for a
search for solutions-after, first, accu
rately identifying the problems. O b vi
ously, we cannot depend upon the same
educationists and organizationists that
so grossly misled us; just as they did
several decades ago w ith their b illio n
dollar boondoggles that were to have
led us to technological superiority
among the nations i.e. The New Math,
M etric System.
Just last month I interviewed in
these
pages, Dr. M yles Brand, presi
abstinent at treatment’ s end, 33 percent
improve their em ployability and 25
percent are adding to their education.
Consider how that boosts the hu
man return on investment.
Sherrell, mother o f three children,
BY DR. WILLIAM F. GIBSON
was referred fo r alcohol treatment by
Chairm an Of The Board NAACP
the state C hildren’ s Services Division.
Investment Pays Big Dividends
BY JEFFREY N. KUSHNER
Here’ s the problem: Doyle, son o f
an alcoholic, drank heavily for 13 o f his
42 years. He had extensive financial
and legal problems, he was incarcer
ated fo r a felony, and he was divorced.
Doyle, his form er w ife and their four
children were a ll on welfare.
Here’ s what happened: Doyle en
tered a three-month alcohol-treatment
program in Portland, and his downward
spiral began to revere. Today, he is an
insurance-company officer. He has paid
his child support, his taxes and restitu
tion for his crime in excess o f $20,000.
Here’ s why: Treatment for alco
holism works. We figure that every
dollar invested in treatment returns $4
to $10 in savings.
Most o f Oregon’s 36 counties op
erate programs to prevent and treat
abuse o f alcohol and othei drugs, an
e ffo rt coordinated by the state O ffice o f
A lcohol and Drug Abuse Programs in
Salem. We manage federal and state
dollars and set indicators for measuring
programs’ success or failure.
This e ffo rt is intended to help the
estimated 201,200 adult Oregonians
w ith alcohol problems, a number greater
than the population o f Clackamas
County, and 148,200 w ith drug prob
lems.
The state program administers a
two-year budget o f which nearly 60
percen- is federal money.
H a lf o f the tax that Oregonians pay
on beer and wine goes directly to pre-
vention, intervention and treatment pro
grams, mostly in local cities and coun
ties, w hile the rest goes to c ity, county
and state general-fund budgets for other
purposes.
Fines that intoxicated drivers pay
help to support treatment programs for
indigent offenders.
What are the dollar payoffs? Here’s
what the payback on treatment looks
like:
Individuals benefit by increasing
achievement at work or school, im
proving their psychological outlook,
and reducing crime and other negative
behaviors such as driving w hile in to x i
cated.
Insurance ratepayers and taxpay
ers benefit. We know that, before treat
ment, health-care costs (often paid by
in su ra n ce o r M e d ic a id ) fo r an
a lcoholic’s fam ily are about eight times
greater than for other families.
Employers and consumers benefit
from treatment programs because em
ployees increase productivity by suf
fering fewer injuries, using less sick
leave and reducing their use o f accident
benefits.
We measure the success o f treat
ment programs on nine specific mea
sures such as employment improve
ment, education improvement, absti
nence from alcohol and drugs, and not
being arrested fo r substance-related
crimes.
Statewide, for example, 86 percent
o f people who receive treatment are
Publisher
Alfred Henderson
Contributing Writers
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Gary Ann Garnett
Rea Washington
Operations Manager
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Joyce Washington
Accounting Manager
Gary Ann Garnett
Public Relations
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Sales & Promotions
Tony Washington
The PORTLAND OBSERVER is
published weekly by
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She was receiving public assistance
and a daughter had been placed in
foster care to protect her from abuse.
Fearful o f losing her other children,
Sherrell enrolled in chemical-depen
dency treatment and in classes to help
her be a better parent and to manage her
anger.
W ith in a year, w ith the help o f
CSD and A d u lt and Fam ily Services
worker, Sherrell was o ff welfare. She
has maintained custody o f her children
and is successfully resolving fam ily
conflicts. She is a part-time college
student and a fu ll-tim e employee for a
computer company.
People interested in inform ation
about prevention, intervention and treat
ment may call their local alcohol and
drug-services program, listed in the
white pages under county government.
In addition, we operate the Oregon
Prevention ResourceCcnter(378-8000)
in Salem where we provide inform a
tion and referral, videotapes, pamphlets
and trainers.
The dollar payoffs o f treatment for
chemical dependency are impressive.
But they pale beside the human pay
offs.
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As we watch the unfolding tragedy
o f thousands o f Haitians who are des
perately fleeing oppression, one shame
ful fact has become crystal clear; the
Bush A d m in istra tio n has chosen a
course o f moral bankruptcy, fueled by
a consistent supply o f brutal and inten
tional racism. The President maintains
that the vast m ajority o f Haitian refu
gees are trying to escape poverty. He
asserts that very few have any w ell-
founded fear o f persecution or physical
harm. In fact, the opposite is true. Many
Haitians who have endured abject pov-
Oregon State U niversity’ s Veterinar
ian and Pharmacy Schools. There is
also a plant to elim inate the latter
school’ College o f Veterinary M edi
cine. Though the School o f Dentistry
at Oregon Health Sciences University
seems temporarily to have been spared,
tuition is projected to increase by $825
a year, or 13%
The School o f M edicine antici
pates a 40% increase in tuition rising
$3,300 a year from the current level o f
$7,800a year. Unbelievably, this would
rank the school among the fo ur most
expensive public medical schools in
the nation. As stated in the introduc
tory paragraph, “ the economic via b il
ity o f any state depends heavily upon
the strength o f its educational sys
tem..” We may wonder i f Oregons
leaders in government and education
are going to rise to the challenge.
Certainly, we haven’ t been shown too
much to date.
A ll o f this leads us to again exam
ine the role o f black leaders, parents
and even the students themselves. Do
the minorities need an Education Sum
m it o f their own? It is obvious that this
constantly changing education scenario
requires new tools and approaches. It
is not getting any cheaper to send kids
out o f state to traditionally black col-
leges-or to any other kind, since, as
stated, Every State is experiencing the
same economic crunch.
This analysis continued next week.
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erty for generations would never con
sider the dangerous ocean voyage. But
they now choose to risk death in a small
boat instead o f facing the brutality o f an
arm y death squad.
Since the legitimate government
o f Father Jean Bertrand Aristide was
overthrown on September 30, the army
has turned terrorizing civilians into a
recreational a ctivity. Every morning,
bullet-riddled bodies are found on the
streets o f Port-Au-Prince. M r. Bush’s
executive order, which repatriates all
Haitian refugees w ithout even attempt
ing to interview them, has the same
effect as sentencing many o f them to
torture and even death. How could the
leader o f the free w orld be so grossly
insensitive?
Recently, an unidentified Haitian
man who was part o f a group being
returned to H aiti on a U.S. Coast Guard
cutter jum ped overboard. When rescu
ers reached him, he tried to fig h t them
o ff w hile screaming, “ I prefer to die.”
Clearly, this man knew what kind o f
reception the army and police would
give him when he returned to H aiti. A:
the violence continues, the body coun
is sure to rise and the waves o f refugee;
w ill grow. C ontinued O n P a ge 3
1 yANTAGEro... 2L
by Ron Daniels
1992 “Just Might Be The Year Of The Ballot Or The Bullet
In 1964, a Presidential election
year, M alcolm X , in commenting on
the options available to the Black L ib
eration Movement proclaimed, that “ this
just m ight be the year o f the ballot or the
r —' — —
—— — — — — i
b ullct.” Tohisdcath M alcolm remained
convinced that the liberation o f the
Black masses and other oppressed
people required a revolution. His read
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^ r r r lla r t h © b s e rU c r
ing o f history suggested that revolu
tions arc always turn ultuous and bloody.
Therefore, M alcolm was skeptical o f
the prospects o f a “ non-violent” revolu
IT he P ortland O bserver
tion. Nonetheless, in 1964 M alcolm
was w illin g to suggest that perhaps the
CAN BE SENT DIRECTLY TO
ballot could be used by Black people
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and the oppressed to achieve a peaceful
revolution. However, M alcolm never
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PER YEAR,
retreated from his position that in the
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final analysis it was “ freedom by any
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ENCLOSE CHECK OR
means necessary.”
In 1992, another Presidential elec
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MONEY ORDER,
tion year, 38 years after M alcolm ’ s
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and M ail to :
famous “ Ballots or Bullets” speech, the
question o." which path/road to libera
tion for the masses o f Black people and
ubscriptions
the oppressed is still an open question.
W
hat is absolutely certain is that a
■ T he P ortland O bserver
revolution
- a radical redirection o f
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PO Box 3137
values and a radical reorganization and
I P ortland , O regon 97208
restructuring o f this nation is required if
the masses o f oppressed people arc to
breath
free. The insurrection/rebellion
Name
in Los Angeles brought the question o f
the ballot or the bullet into stark relief.
For far too long the people o f South
Central L.A and the hundreds o f south
Address_____________________ ¡ centrals across the U.S. have suffered
peacefully. The uprising in L A was a
city, State___________________■ long overdue response to a long season
o f intolerable acts heaped upon Black
zip-code_____________________« people and oppressed people in this
country.
T hank Y ou F or R eading [
To allow the top 1% o f the people
T he P ortland O bserver ] in the U.S. to control more worth than
the bottom 90% is intolerable. To allow
S
Deadline for all submitted materials:
Articles: Monday, 5:00 pm -A ds' Tuesday, noon
dent o f the U niversity o f Oregon. He
was in Portland w ith the prexys o f the
other Oregon institutions o f higher learn
ing to discuss the future o f Oregon
higher education w ith business leaders
and the public. He brought a message o f
particular interest to m inority parents
and low-income fam ilies in particular.
“ The related programs we have in
place [ for m inorities] w ill not only con
tinue but shall be enhanced... The school
w ill work hard at recruiting and retain
ing both m inority staff and faculty..
There shall be a special e ffo rt to secure
the most important out come o f all, to
see that they Graduate.”
This month, Dr. Brand has a new
message, somewhat ominous. “ We
w ill be down sizing this institution at a
time when we should be m oving in just
the opposite d ire c tio n . I f we continue at
this rate, by the year 2000 one out o f
every tw o Oregonians who want and
need a college education w ill not be
served.”
Now, we have it that good inten
tions are in danger o f a quick death. The
system w ill dram atically restructure
programs by consolidating and coordi
nating business, nursing, engineering,
continuing education, and teacher edu
cation programs. And that is just the
beginning.
Further, campus leaders have been
asked to consider the closing o f high-
cost professional schools, including the
U niversity o f Oregon’ s law school and
President George Bush’s Policy On
Haitians is Indefensible, Cruel Racism
5pnrllanh (©bseriicr I
(USPS 959-680)
OREGON’S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION
Established in 1970
by Professor M cK inley Burt
a small band o f wealthy bandits to loot
the savings and loan industry to the tune
o f $600 b illio n , a trillio n dollars over
the next th irty years w ith interest,
thereby depriving innocent people o f
desperately needed resources fo r hous
ing, health care, education and jobs is a
crim e w hich is intolerable, to squander
.50 cents o f every federal tax dollar on
the m ilitary/defense/war budget w hile
the masses o f poor and w orking people,
women and m inorities have little or no
“ defense” against poverty, unemploy
ment, underemployment, disease, infe
rio r education, illite ra cy, drugs, v io
lence and a poll uted and poisoned envi
ronment is intolerable. To continue to
promote an anti-labor climate where
unions and their workers (from PATCO
to the U A W at C aterpillar) are threat
ened intimidated and broken by the
government and the corporations is in
tolerable. These and a m ultitude o f
other intolerable acts must no longer be
tolerated.
U. S. society must be radically
changcd/transformcd,and Black people,
people o f color, women and poor and
w orking people, the oppressed must be
in the vanguard o f the struggle to create
a new society. It is the charge o f pro
gressive political leadership in this pe
riod to stand firm on the principle that
there arc certain “ inalienable rights”
which must not be violated by any
government. This principle was a f
firmed by no lesser document than the
Declaration o f Independence o f this
nation, and so there can be no apologies
for the insurrection/rebellion which was
erupted in Los Angeles and spread to
more than thirty cities across this land.
Il was/is a rebellion against massive
inequality, neglect, abuse,and they ty r
anny or the corporations, a revolt for a
new, more humane and democratic so
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ciety.
The insurrection/rebellion must
continue at the ballot box and in the
streets. A t the ballot box the oppressed
must declare independence from the
establishment parties and the pro-cor
porate candidates. Neither the Demo
crats or the Republicans or pseudo-inde
pendents, neither Bushism, C lintonism
or Perotism w ill save us. The progres
sive movement must forge an electoral
force rooted among the masses o f the
oppressed, committed to the proposi
tion that we w ill save ourselves. The
oppressed must fig ht for power.
And that Fight fo r power cannot not
be confined to ballots alone. Those who
would seek to promote the vision and
values essential to create a new society
must also engage the fig h t for power in
the streets. Picket 1 ines, demonstrations,
boycotts, c iv il disobedience and gen
era! strikes are instruments which the
masses o f Black people, Naive People,
Latinos, Asian Pacific People, Arab
Americans, other m inorities .women and
poor and w orking people must use to
bring down the “ walls o f Jericho.”
In this year it must be clear that
sim ply rotating presidents w ith in a
flawed and failing racist and capitalist
system w ill not liberate the masses who
suffer in this country. What we must
fashion is a movement that w ill accept
nothing less than a new future w ithin a
new society. And in the crusade to cre
ate a new society, it must be equally
clear that it w ill cither be “ freedom for
every body o f freedom fo r nobody.” The
oppressed must become ungovernable
if necessary to defeat the tyranny o f
corporate die tatorship. The lesson o f the
insurrection/rebellion in Los Angeles is
that 1992 “ just m ight be the year o f the
ballot or the b ullet’” or both - “ freedom
by any means necessary.”