M ay 12, 1993 • T ue P orti . ano O bserver
P
A2
Time Life To Publish African Americans:
Voices Of Triumph Time Warner To
Underwrite Widespread Donation
exclusively com m issioned artw ork,
and unparalleled research Readers
w ill discover fascinating characters
like "Stagecoach” M ary Fields, the
cigar-sm oking form er slave w ho de­
livered the U.S. m a il jn M ontana, and
110 year-old Jones M organ, the oldest
liv ing B uffalo Soldier, w hoenlisted in
the U.S. A rm y in 1890, at the age o f
15 (B u ffa lo soldiers w ere members o f
A frica n A m crican regiments estab­
lished after Reconstruction, w ho were
stationed on the western fro n tie r to
protect settlers, tra ils, and telegraph
1 une L ife 1 lie . a div ision o f T u n c
\ \ arner headquartered in alexandria,
V irm n ia , has announced the publica­
tio n o f A F R IC A N A M E R IC A N S :
V O IC E S OF T R IU M P H , a rich ly il-
lusiiated three volum e historical sur-
vev o f the A frica n Am erican men and
w o m e n w ho shaped o u r society.
V O IC E S OF T R IU M P H marks the
„g u ra l foray into the m u ltic u ltu ra l
u k u for T im e L ife Inc. Volum es
are kited for publication at six m onth
in tc n a ls , w ith V olum e One, Perse­
verance, on sale for $29.95 in book­
stores nalionw ide m September. T ime
yy
icr Inc. is donating the three-
volume set to every public secondary
school and prim ary-branch public l i ­
lines). A nd the series showcases rare
documents such as the tu rn -o f-th e
century photographs o f survivors o f
the W anderer, one o f the last ille g a l
slave ships, that arrive d in the U nited
brary in the nation
Dr. Henry Louis Gates, ch a ir o f
H a rva rd 's A fro -A m e ric a n Studies
Departm ent, is the Senior E d ito ria l
\d v isor for V O ICES OF T R IU M P H
The other members o f the advisory
board are
Dr. M aya A ngelou, Inaugural
poet. author and professor
Hie Reverend C a lvin O. Butts,
pastor o f Abyssinian Baptist church in
New Y o rk M r. W illia m H. Gray III.
president o fth c U n itc d Negro College
Fund and form er Congressman from
P hiladelphia
D r Dorothy Height, President o f
i he N ational council o f Negro Women
D i Ruth Love, Educational C onsult­
ant and form er Superintendent o f Pub­
lic Schools fo r the C ities o f Chicago
showcases A fric a n A m crican accom­
plishm ent in such areas as film and
theater, the visual arts, literature and
a panoram ic overview o f A fric a n
americans, fu ll o f v iv id detail, rare
photographs, and fresh perspectives
that w ill appeal to a ll generations.”
music.
rosalyn A ndrew s, D ire c to r o f
M u ltic u ltu ra l Markets, T im e L ife cus­
tom Publishing, said, "V O IC E S OF
T R I U M PH is a w onderful opportunity
to tap in to the vast network o f talented
F o u r years in d e v e lo p m e n t,
VOICES OF T R IU M P H was the brain­
ch ild o f three A fric a n am crican Tim e
L ife employees: series co-directors
and O akland
M r. Gordon Parks, p riz e -w in n in g . ’ Roxie F rance-N uriddin and M yrna
photographer for L ife magazine, au­ Traylor-H erndon, and scries design
th o r and film m a ke r
T he R everend D r D eForest
Soaries, Pastor o f the First Baptist
Im rch o fL in co ln Gardens, Somerset,
New Jersey.
John Fahey, CEO o f T im e L ife
said, "T h e A fric a n Am erican market
represents a rich and grow ing seg­
ment o f the U.S. book p u blishing in ­
dustry. W h ile some A fric a n A m e ri­
can history titles have an academic
K its. V O IC E S OF T R IU M P H offers
A fric a n amcrican w riters, illustrators,
agencies and vendors By using the
resources o f the A fric a n A m erican
creative and business com m unities,
we ensure the development o f an au­
thentic product that w ill enlighten
and educate diverse audiences.”
im pact o f the c iv il rights movement
D ra w in g from the n a tio n 's fore­
Available in 1994, Volum e Two, Lead­
ership, focuses on tw o-hundred and most archives o f A frica n A m erican
fifty years o f achievement by A frica n h is to ry , V O IC E S O F T R IU M P H
Am ericans in business, science, edu­ weaves a rich ly textured po rtra it o f the
cation, re lig io n and politics. Creative A fric a n A m crican experience, w ith
Fire, the th ird volum e in the scries, rare photographs, archival m aterial.
director, C ynthia Richardson.
V o lu m e O n e , P erseverance,
ch ro n ic le s the v ita l role A fric a n
Am ericans have played in Am erican
society, from the slavery era to the
States in 1858
V O IC E S O F T R IU M P H also
featurcscontemporary A frica n -A m e ri­
can personalities such as physicist
George C arruthers, w ho designed
the F a r-U ltra vio le t Camera/Spectro-
graph aboard A p o llo 16 that was
placed on the lu n a r surface in 1972.
As senior astrophysicist at the Naval
Research Laboratory in W ashington,
DC, C arruthers received a N A S A
Exceptional S cie n tific A chievem ent
Medal fo r his w o rk on this instrum ent
w hich photographs distant objects
and re co rd s ra d ia tio n in space.
A nd V O IC E S OF T R IU M P H readers
w ill learn o f aerospace technologist
K atherine Johnson w ho, in 1959, p io ­
neered in developing the m athem atic
computations fo r la u n chin g space ve­
hicles into o rb it, tra ckin g th e ir posi­
tions, and safely re trie vin g them from
Parties To Urban
Service District Dispute
Agree To Mediation
Representatives o f the cities o f
Beaverton and Portland, along w ith
o fficia ls from W ashington County,
notified M etro this week that they
want to enter into m ediation to resolve
the dispute over the urban services
boundary for the unincorporated sub­
urban area o f cast Washi ngton C ounty
The agreement allows M etro to
in itia te the second phase o f discus­
sions or m ediation to seek a resolution
o f the disagreement residents and other
fa cilitie s in the unincorporated area.
Representatives o f the three C om m u­
n ity Planning Organizations (C P O ’ s)
w h ich represent citizens in the af­
fected neighborhoods indicated their
willingness to go forward to seek settle­
ment at the last jo in t meeting o f the
government and citizen representa­
tives in late A p ril.
O ne o f th e key issues was
P ortland’ s earlier action toward in ­
cluding the area in Washington County
in the urban services boundary o f the
City’ o f Portland. As a result o f the case
assessment phase o f the dispute reso­
lu tio n , Portland o fficia ls have now
postponed action on the service bound­
CEO, N BC C , cautioned members not
to be misled by recent announcements
made by a fle d g lin g organization c a ll­
ing its e lf “ N ational C onvention o f
Black Chambers” that claim s it w ill
host a convention in Indiana th is June.
“ T h is new organization is not
a ffilia te d in any way w ith the N ational
B lack Chamber o f Commerce head­
quartered in Oakland, C a lifo rn ia and
founded in 1983,” said Coffey.
Coffey said that many N BC C
Oscar J. Coffey, Jr.
members m ig h t be confused because
President, CEO National Black
N BC C had o rig in a lly scheduled its
Chamber of Commerce
convention to be held in Indiana. Pre­
(N B C C O ffic ia l Warns Members lim inary talks were held w ith a pro­
N c To Be M isled By O ffshoot In d i­ spective host organization, the Hoo­
sier M in o rity Chamber o f Commerce.
ana Group)
The N ational Black Chamber o f These negotiations were not success­
i mmerce (N B C C ) w ill hold its Sixth ful.
Coffey said that the o fficia l NBCC
A nnual N ational Conference in D a l-
Conference
in Texas w ill be hosted by
1 T exas,attheR adissonH otcl.2330
the
Dallas
B
lack Chamber o f C om ­
\ \ - t Northwest H ighw ay, August 25-
"B ack to the Future: A C om m itted
P a s t-A Prepared T om orrow .” Coffey
said the focus w ill be “ to recom m it
ourselves to the historic B lack busi­
ness pioneers’ principles o f service,
ca rin g and sharing, as vvc prepare
educationally, spiritually and economi­
Joyce Washington
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cited many o f the contem porary ob­
servances and ceremonies that give
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the past Her, we speak o f the entire
spectrum o f the cultural heritage, from
song and dance to the costume and
dress o f various eras; from poetry and
oral histories to sculptures and re li­
gious icons Do not om it science, math,
architecture and language
And. quite p roperly. we note that
scores o f oth e r e th n ic groups in
A m erica (W hite and A sian) pay the
same tribute to th e ir ancestors and
ancestral Linds. Here in Portland, we
see these people observ tug th e ir tra d i­
tions all over the placc--in the Park
Blocks, on the W ater Front, in ethnic
districts or dedicated places o f assem­
bly, wherever I f anything, most o f
these races demonstrate more un­
abashed public display o f price and
respect for their roots than do the
m ajority o f blacks (fortunately things
On the other hand, I put it in
opposition to this purely cultural ap­
proach, that there exists in some parts
o f the country a fast grow in g com m u­
nity o f blacks whose interest and com ­
m itm ent to A frica is d rive n by eco­
nomics. T h is is to be expected in a fast-
sh rip kin g w orld that is now described
as a "G lobal V illa g e ” and w h ich af­
by
Professor
McKinley
Burt
*. > t
4
one does not have the proper frame o f
reference to in te llig e n tly process it.
M e a n in g fu l knowledge requires the
relating o f th in g s -th e extraction o f
sim ilars Consider the fo llo w in g
In that “ Gales Encyclopedia o f
Associations" at the main public l i ­
brary’, w ill be found listings fo r all o f
the m ajor “ e th n ic’ organizations in
th is country: B ritis h , Greek, Chinese,
Japanese, F re n c h , E a st In d ia ,
Yugoslav, German, South Seas, Rus­
sian, German, N orw egian, Iranian,
N igerian, Greek, Ethiopian, Kenyan,
Arabian, Austrians, etc There are hun­
dreds upon hundreds o f such organiza­
tions o f "hyphenated Am ericans” who
fords relatively cheap transportation
and instant com m unication. A nd this
is not to o m it the
I in fo rm a tio n e x ­
plo sio n ’ w hich is
prov id in g more rel­
evant data on in ­
te rn a tio n a l trade
each day, banks, have h ighly structured connections
v e n d o rs . U n ite d w ith th e ir overseas roots A n d who
N a tio n s , W o rld m aintain year-round social and com ­
B a n k , s h ip p in g m ercial intercourse w ith th e ir Foreign
lines, embassies, libraries, seminars, brethren
On each side o f the A tla n tic or
universities.
It is my experience w ith th is latter Pacific, they m aintain offices, lib ra r­
group o f black Americans, driv en by a ies, cu ltu ra l and language centers,
vision o f huge economic gain for the p u blishing houses, trade bureaus. Lob­
race, w hich led me lo cite th e ir posi­ byists, travel bureaus, etc.
tio n as "an opposing view point in need
On any given day the skies above
o f reconciliation w ith the tra d itio n a l­ the nations arc fille d w ith commuters
ists." It is my observation that too who arc pursuing the related business
many o f the ‘ entrepreneurs’ have o f these in stitutions Hundreds o f jobs
adopted a rather sim p listic posture in are generated in consequence o f this
respect to the tra d itio n a lists’ ‘ Do tra ffic T h is is real power and m uch o f
away w ith a ll that singing, dancing the po litics and other affairs o f nations
and ritu a l.” they say. "G e l down to arc shaped w ith in this context C U L ­
dollars and cents, and m arketing”
TU R E A N D C O M M E R C E ARE IN ­
And I fin d that u nderlying the T E G R A T E D !’
m ain difference in the approaches o f
I f A frica n Am ericans arc to sur­
ihe two groups is a recurrent theme o f vive and progress in this modern w orld,
our "disadvantaged" status in this it is a given that they must understand
country T hrough no fault o f their where th e ir future lies in this "G lobal
own. most blacks have a respective V illa g e " It is my hope that this attempt
developed by life on the fringe o f this in reconciling two opposing schools o f
society T hisugly and demeaning con­ thought on our relations w ith the mother
straint lim it perception, expectations, continent w ill reveal that they arc not
am bitions and the capacity o f critica l in opposition at all I believe the tw o
analy sis It does little good to have vast preceding paragraphs w ill take us a
amounts o f inform ation available i f long way in that direction
• 1 •
J t *
• ». -
»‘ "»»We '•
plans.
M etro o fficia ls expect the m edia­
weeks in M ay.
Line
arc improv ing)
><•*-»*' * * * * *
m ediation process as a affected party
due to its statutory responsibility fo r
regional co o rd in a tio n o f land use
look at other alternatives.
PLACES O N E A R T H
S ubscribe
PROHIBITED.
The Portland O bserver-O regon s Oldest African-American Publication-
is a member of the National Newspaper Association-Founded In 1885,
and The National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers.
Inc , New York, NY. and The West Coast Black Publishers Association •
lished to reduce litig a tio n in disagree­
ments in v o lv in g p u b lic agencies.
M etro has obtained and administered
the grant and is a participant in the
Africa Revisited II: Integrating
Culture With Commerce
YEAR.
The PORTLAND OBSERVER Is located at
4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.
Portland, Oregon 97211
503-288-0033 • Fax 288-0015
expert in land use law.
The process is funded by the O r­
ego n
D is p u te
R e s o lu tio n
C om m ission’ s Public Policy Dispute
Resolution Program w hich was estab­
tio n process to begin the last tw o
space.
V O IC E S OF T R IU M P H is a pub­
lica tio n o f T im e L ife Custom Publish­
ing, w h ich publishes, markets, and
distributes wherever books are sold.
C urrent releases include the national
bestseller MRS. F IE L D S ’ C O O K IE
B O O K , T H E W IL L IA M S S O N O M A
K IT C H E N L IB R A R Y , the soon to be
published L A M B C H O P 'S F A B LE S ,
and Jim F o w le r’ s T H E W IL D E S T
c a lly fo r a b rig h t tom orrow .”
“ The N ational Black Chamber o f
Commerce w ill continue to pursue its
g o a lso n yo u rb e h a lf,” Coffey said in a
promise to N BC C members. “ W ith
the continued support o f our mem­
Last week I introduced some as­
bers, corporations and elected o ffi­
pects o f two decisive themes that would
cials, we arc confident that our Sixth
seem to place a num ber o f A frica n
A nnual conference w ill be productive
Am ericans poles apart in th e ir th in k ­
fo r all.
ing about the A frica n continent. T h is
“ I look forw ard to seeing you in
was done w ith the expectation that a
D a lla s!”
v igorous dialogue w ould be created:
The N ational B lack Chamber o f
one w hich could lead to a reconcilia­
Commerce was organized in 1983 to
tio n -e ve n a sv n th e s is -o f tw o key view ­
promote the grow th and development
points, both w ith a vid pa rtisa n s
o f Black-owned businesses nationwide
"V igor” we’ve got, not doubt about it.
and also to support statewide Black
Thanks
fo r your
chambers o f commerce. It is head­
1993, N B C C o fficia ls have an­ merce.
calls.
The Conference theme w ill be quartered in Oakland, C alifornia.
nounced.
O n the one
hand it was put
th a t (as th e re
should be) many
blacks have a deep
jjjlu rilu n b (D lie c rtic r
cu ltu ra l apprecia­
(USPS 959-680)
tion fo r the conti-
T he P ortland
|
OREGON’S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION
Established In 1970 by Alfred L. Henderson
n u itv o f ‘ ro o ts ’
O bserver can be sent I
extending to that other seminal co n ti­
I
©bscruer
resentatives. L a rry Epstein, an attor­
ney and planner who specializes in
land use cases, was com plim ented by
the participants for his fa cilita tio n o f
the case assessment meetings The
meetings identified issues w hich m ight
be resolved through m ediation rather
than litig a tio n . The second round o f
discussions w ill be led by an experi­
enced m ediator who may not be a
ary and indicated th e ir w illingness to
Sixth Annual Conference Of 1-800-322-8715
Black Chamber Of Commerce
Set For August In Texas
’Literacy
Oscar J. Coffey, President and
M etro w ill contract w ith an ex­
pert in dispute resolution to facilitate
this next phase o f the discussions after
consultation w ith Beaverton, Portland,
W ashington County and the CPO rep­