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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 13, 1993)
Page MLK-6...The Portland Observer...January 13, 1993 Local Electricians King’s Goal To “Redeem The Soul Of America” E xcerpts fro m 1991 speech by N orm an H ill, form er associate o f Dr. M a rtin Luther K in g and N ational Presi dent o f he labor union-based A P h ilip hum anity, regardless o f their social class o r position o r race o r creed T h is eg a li ta ria n and dem ocratic s p irit is o u r ideal, and in a very real sense is also the soul R andolph Institute. ..How can we understand K in g ’ s assertion that the goal o f his life w o rk w as to “ re d e e m th e s o u l o f that must be redeemed. We need a new view o f hum an existence; we need to reassert the value o f w ork. It is false and m isleading to im p ly that w h ile you w o rk w ith your hands, your soul is not also nourished and exercised. We need a concept o f A m e rica ” . W hat does it mean to re deem the soul o f a nation? W hat is the soul o f our nation'.’ Does it have certain specific creed or co lo r to it? A nd, w hat does redem ption have' to do w ith the hu m a n ity that emphasizes the holiness and uniqueness o f the entire hum an personality, the physical as w e ll as the B la ck-la b o r alliance? Let us first co n fro n t dire ctly certain Keith Edwards Ricky Brame Terry Tims sp iritu a l. It is precisely such separations — m ental versus m anual w o rk, blue- c o lla r versus w h ite -co lla r, B la ck versus w h ite -- that oppress us as a society. It is th is sp iritu a l b lin d spot in our w o rk unreal stereotypes about the labor m ove ment. I f labor — allegedly -- only helps b lu e -co lla r w orkers, and i f labor —a l legedly - only exists to be co rru p t and raise the wages o f our ow n members at the expense o f everyone else, then one could say that labor is interested o n ly in grease and in greed, and ce rta in ly not in a n yth in g as noble as hum an sp iritu a lity places, our im aginations, and o u r souls, that keep us as a nation fro m do in g the more concrete, the more practical things that we need to do to honor the fu ll d ig n ity o f a ll our citizens -- to feed our o r redem ption. K in g ’ s speech to sanitation w o rk ers in M em phis, given on the day before his assassination, comes to m in d to combat these tw isted and m isleading anti-labor stereoty pes: “ you are demand in g that th is c ity respect the d ig n ity o f labor. So often we overlook the w o rk and the significance o f those w ho are not in the so-called b ig jobs. B ut let me Bobby Cason Clifton Edwards The Electrical Workers Minority Caucus Third Anual National Conference January 16 & 17 M ore than 125 delegates fro m across the U S. and Canada w ill be attending the E le ctrica l W orkers M i n o rity Caucus (E W M C ) 3rd annual N a tio n al Conference, January 16th and 17th at the Benson Hotel. The conference theme is “ Im p le m e n ting the Plan.” The purpose o f the E W M C is to prom ote and support A fric a n - H e rita g e and o th e r m in o ritie s in a tta in in g leadership positions w ith in the In te rn a tio n a l B rotherhood o f E lec tric a l W orkers (IB E W ). N o rm H ill, N a tio n al President o f the A P h ilip Randolph Institute (A P R I) w il l be the guest speaker fo r the Saturday luncheon. The A P R I is an a rm o f th e N a tio n a l A F L - C I O , garet C arter w ill give the delegates a w a rm w elcom e to the P acific N o rth west and lead the B la c k N a tio n a l A n th e m , L ift Every V oice and Sing! IB E W is an A F L -C IO a ffilia te d u n io n w ith a p p ro x im a te ly 700,000 members in the U S. and Canada. F or a com plete agenda o f w o rk dedicated to em powerm ent and leader s h ip tra in in g for A frican-H eritage w o rk sh o p s a n d s p e a k e rs c a ll D o n n a H a m m o n d a t 2 4 1 -4 6 4 4 o r K e ith ers. Edwards at 284-4805. Oregon State Representative, M a r- and give jobs and jo b tra in in g to our unem ployed, our underemployed, our u n skille d , to o u r w orkers put perm a nently, callously, and system atically our o f w o rk by the excesses o f the Reagan- Bush laissez-faire econom ic policies... W hen K in g accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, he said: “ I refuse to accept the idea that hu m a n ity is mere flotsam and jetsam in the riv e r o f life say to y ou to n ig h t that w henever y ou are engaged in w o rk that senes hu m a n ity and is fo r the b u ild in g o f hum anity, it Donna Hammond hungry, educate our ch ild re n , house our homeless, give m edical care to our ill, has d ig n ity and it has w o rth !” In fact, throughout our long and proud history, the labor m ovem ent has sought to honor the d ig n ity o f the in d i v id u a l, and respect the w o rth o f a ll w h ic h surrounds us. I refuse to accept the idea that the “ isness’ o f h u m a n ity ’ s present nature makes us m o ra lly inca pable o f reaching up fo r the eternal ‘ oughtness’ that forever confronts us.” B u t is n ’ t that w hat we are always The Portland A. Philip Randolph Institute Welcomes Norman Hill National President of APRI To A . P h ilip R andolph and Bayard Lustin, A P R I’ sco-founders, the fig h t fo r and social freedom and econom ic ju s workers’ rights and c iv il rig h ts were T h is B la ck-L a bo r A llia n c e helped the c iv il rig h ts movement achieve one o f its greatest victories - passage o f the V o tin g R ights A c t’ , w hich removed the last re m aining legal barriers to broad tice. »separable. R a n d o lp h (1 8 8 9 -1 9 7 9 ) was the .reatest a black labor leader in A m erican listory and the father o f the modern American c iv il rig h ts movement. R ustin 1912-1987), a leading c iv il rig h ts and abor a ctivist and strategist, was the c h ie f organizer o f the h isto ric 1963 M a rch on V ashington fo r Jobs and Freedom and Randolph’ s greatest protege’ . Randolph and R ustin forged an a ll i- ince between the c iv il rig h ts movem ent ind the labor m ovem ent They recog- tized that blacks and w o rk in g people o f n A n lr rsi-xl 11 » I 11 z>r\1zxrc' choro tlvr» b lack p o litic a l participation. Inspired by th is success, Randolph, and R ustin founded APRI in 1965 to continue the struggle for social, p o litic a l and econom ic ju stice for a ll w o rk in g A m ericans. Today, AP R I is led by Presi dent N orm an H ill, w h o served as Execu tive D ire cto r under the tw o founders, and C hairm an Leon Lynch, International V ice President fo r the U nited Steelw o rk- A.P.R.I. Portland Chapter Itinenary to ld when we propose new program s to meet pressing social needs in th is coun try? That there is n ’ t enough money, that we are being too idealistic, that A m erica could nev er really hope to take care o f a ll those things that we ought to?... There is an unforgettable and tragic poignancy to a person or a nation that gives up, that turns its back on its dream settling fo r less than it really deserves. Because we kn o w in our hearts that we can w in this battle. Sure, there are tough budget choices - but w hen p o ll after p o ll shows that A m ericans are w illin g to raise taxes to meet specific, pressing social needs, only the conservative . can fa il to believe in the innate goodness o f hum anity, or at least in the pote n tia l fo r goodness that we a ll have, the potential o f hum an sp irit to achieve and earn redem ption... For, in the fin a l analysis, w hen we are asked to account fo r out choices and our action s, we shall be rem inded o f the words o f our founder and namesake, A. P h ilip Randolph: “ S alvation fo r a race, nation or class must come fro m w ith in . Freedom is never granted; it is won. Justice is never given; it is exacted. Freedom and ju stice must be struggled fo r by the oppressed o f a ll lands and races, and the struggle must be co n tin u ous, fo r freedom is never a fin a l fact, but a co n tin u in g e vo lvin g process to higher and h ig h er levels o f human, social, economic, p o litic a l and re lig io u s rela tionships.” ... (The Portland Chapter o f the A. P h ilip Randolph Institute Meets the 2nd Thursday o f each m onth, 7 P M at the K in g N eighborhood F a cility, 4815 N.E. 7th, Portland.O R. King, on speaking: " Un fortunately, when hope di minishes, the hate is often turned most bitterly toward those who originally built up the hope...the only time that I have been booed...I went home that night with an ugly feeling...I finally came to myself, and I could not for the life of me have less than patience and un derstanding for those young people...their hopes had soared. They were now booing because they felt that we were unable to deliver on our promises [of equality]." Friday 1115193 8:00 am 12:00 noon Labor Breakfast Kirkland Union Manor Portland Bldg. Saturday 1116193 9:30-12:00 12:30 PORTLAND OBSERVER 'The Eyes and Ears ol the Community Summit Benson Hotel Electrical Workers Minority Caucus Conference Luncheon Benson Hotel Office: (503)280-0033 Fax#: (503)288-0015 “J have the audacity to believe that people everyrvhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits” Martin Luther King. Jr. — Acceptance speech , Nobel Peace Prize, Dec. 10. 1964 C e e fre a m is one ofayuality ofopportunity, o f privilege a n d prop erty widely distributed; a dream ofa landwhere man w ill no! ta le necessities from Martin Luther the many to give luxuries to the few- a dream o fa landwhere men do not agree that K in g 1929-196« the color o f a man's shin determines the content ofhis character; a dream o f a place "I where a l l our gifts a n d resources are h e ld n o t fo r ourselves alone but as instruments o f service fo r the rest o f humanity; the dream o fa country where every man w ill respect the dignity a n d worth o fa lt human personality, andm en w ill dare to live together as brothers... ” M a rlin Lu th e r King. Jr. -I9 6 0 This message courtesy o f — --------------------------— METRO ELECTRICAL TRAINING TRUST Apprenticeship and Journeyman Training 6600 NE 42nd Portland. OR 67218 (603) 287-0766 W h at b eg in s w ith a g re a t id e a so m etim es takes a d re a m to see it th rough. W e're p r o u d to h o n o r the m a n w h o gave A m ericans, b o th b lack a n d w h ite , a sh are of his dream . SAFECO S A F E C O Insurance Company 4101 S.W . Kruse W ay Lake Oswego, OR 97035 i J Lhave a dream that one day the nation will rise up and live out the true mean ing of its creed...all men are created equal, tf