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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (June 30, 1993)
J une 30, 1993 • T he P ortland O bserver P age A? p e r s p e c t i V More Good Summer Reading -Or Anytime First, let me remind you that life is fu ll o f little disappointments ( and big ones too) That new black book store I told sou about last week has closed almost before it opened. A t the "Tw o G Shopping Center" on M artin Luther King Blvd . across fro m the Cable Access F a c ility The C om m unity s till has a great need for such an institution, and I hope this objectiv e w ill be attained in the near future I w ill earn on by listing several African-American C atalog B ookstores' th a t have excellent selections o f both current and tim e-tested classics in our literature, movies and videos Be sure to see last week’ s observer N ew spaper (P erspectives, p.2) for the in itia l listing o f books and sources. W rite or call: African American Images, 1909 W 95th street. Dept MC. Chicago. Ill 6064T (312) 445- 0322: Also. A & B Book Distributors. Inc . 149 Lawrence Street. Brooklyn. New York 11201, (718) 596-3369. Now, for a most useful general catalog covering all subjects under the sun from ethnic to science, fiction to his tory. self-help to medicine, music to b ib lio g ra p h ie s , write. Edward R H am ilton, Book seller. Falls V il lage. Ct 06031- 5000 & Barnes And Noble. Book sellers. 126 Fifth Ave., N Y . N Y. 10011 There follows some more o f the best in my personal library , out o f a thousand or more (always ask for the latest edition and the paper back if available) Now . we all have our fa vorite local sources and mine is the Looking Glass Bookstore at 318 S W. Taylor (227-4760). Very excellent personal service, and i f item is no, in stock, they w ill promptly locate a source and order it foryou O f course, thereis Powell's on West Burnside and there is Dalton's I do not know i f Barnes <Jt Noble has opened the planned Port land Store yet "Secrets O f The Great Pyramid" by Peter Tompkins (Harper & Row). This is the best o f the books on the great py ranuds built by the Africans in Egypt, accurate, detailed and thor oughly documented—well illustrated and supported by mathematics and much factual history without racial bias This is a must! Whether you are interested in science or you have y oungsters headed in that direction, the following two books w ill be very helpful and enlight ening You can all grow w ith them through the years as you begin to understand more and more w ith these two easy -reading books: easy reading, plain language "UndcrstandingPhys- ics” by Isaac Asimov (Dorset Press) y ou may still be able to get this 700 page. 3-part book for only $9.95 from The Scholars Bookshelf. 110 M elrich Road. Cranbury. N.J. 08512. ship- pmg $400 If no,, order locally The other science book is "The World o f Measurements" by H Arthur K le in (S im o n <& S ch u ste r--g ct latest edition) This wonderful book should be a companion to every o ne - student. the curious, historian or just general interest How. why and when did man begin measuring things, and how does he do it yet today Distance, objects, temperature, light, atoms, ra diation. speed, electricity , time, age o f fossils, sound, pressure, gravity or whatever. It's hard to put this one down Order the follow ing three little paperback gems from that local Look ing Glass Bookstore. "The Mismeasure O f Man." by Steven Gould This book tells how all those racist attacks on the minority I Q. and intellect developed and the manner in which so-called science aided and a betted this trav esty - u n til this day Both historic base and current thinking—refutations. The other two books are for those with strong science interests and w ho won der about where modem physics is going (like that Super C ollide r' they’ re going to tax you for) Get "Dancing Wu L i Masters" and/or “ The Tao o f Phy sics” So many readers keep asking for this citation that I am going to repeat it for every body "Stay ing Power The History o f Black People in Britain” by Peter Freyer (Humanities Press) The book is fu ll o f exciting rev elations o f African presence and contributions in England, from the Scottish'bands to the pensioned American slave veter ans w ho fo u g h t against the slaveholders like Washington and Jefferson in Revolutionary War (or der from that "Barnes & Noble Book store” , $12.95). There has been a lot o f discussion across America by both blacks and whites concerning "Black Athena" by M artin Bernal (Rutgers V Press). Volume I. "The Fabrication o f A n cient Greece 1785-1985", was pub lished in 1987. Volume II, “ The A r cheological and Documentary E vi dence". was published in 1991 These critical w ritings about the Afroasiatic roots o f Classical C ivilization’ (so- called Greco-Roman) rev eal how rac ist historians o f the 18th and 19th centurv rew rote and distorted history in order to hide the African origin. Order through "Looking Glass Book store” . This erudite professor o f Govern ment Studies at Cornell University and formerly a Fellow o f K in g ’s Col lege, Cambridge England, has under standably incurred the wrath o f every racist scholar, historian and educator in the U.S.. and the world F in a lly , a world-class w hite scholar has come forward and thor oughly established and documented that the pioneering black historians w ere right about the seminal and origi nal African contribution to the world culture, philosophy , science and reli gion. The detractors o f "P ortland’s Baseline Essays" and national detrac tors o f "M ulticultural Curriculum and Education" w ere sent reeling by these publications More good reading next week. The Tax Law That Can Confiscate Up To 70% Portland Takes Initial Steps To Improve Per Cent Of Your Assets When You Die Minority Contracting BY OMARI KENYATTA, J. D. D id you know there is a federal tax law that gives the I R S the right to confiscate up to 70% per cent o f your assets when you die’’ This federal tax legislation was formulated w ith the help o f a wealthy Senator from Oklahoma, by the name o f Robert S Kerr However, the Sena tor died in 1978. he left an estate o f worth $20,000,000 dollars After his death, it was discov ered that this Sena tor died interstate, in other words he died without a w ill His heirs received a b ill from the IR S on his estate for $9,000,000 dollars, this money had to be paid in fu ll w ithin 9 months from the date o f the letter, from the I R S You are probably say ing to your self good he got what he deserv ed But. this w riter wants you to know it 's not his intention to castigate the Sena tor for not having a w ill but. to show you what can happen ifyou do not get the proper information about your es tate w hen you prepare your w ill or i f you don’t have a w ill I f this can happened toa Senatoras wealthy as he was, it can happen to you. even i f you have a much smaller estate I f your estate exceeds $600,000 dollars, fed eral estate taxes w ill be lev ied upon it right after your death The rate o f the taxes w ill quickly rise from 37% per cent to 55% per cent There is a solution for the above Problem: What one can do. is buy an inex pensive Insurance policy, the name o f this policy is called (joint and last surv iv or) or second to die policy . It w ill cost you about 1 % per cent o f your net worth each year This kind o f policy can save your heirs from many problems after your death One thing this policy would do is keep the heirs from having to come up with large sums o f cash to pay the federal estate BY JAMES POSEY After years o f floundering, the city finally follows through on its com- mitincnt to level the contracting play- ing field. In a recent City Council informal hearing, council members unanimously approved a 12-poin,plan that should improve contracting op portunitics for m inorities throughout the city and the state Mayor Vera Katz outlined the work o f staff, which was lead prima- rily by Assistant C ity Attorney Madelyn Wcsscll and Sam Adams, the mayor's executive assistant. Scv- eral policy and procedural changes were proposed that arc intended to open access to minority contractors and ensure a greaterdegree ofequality in the contracting process. Much o f the proposal included recommcnda- tions made by N A M C O and other minority contractors to improve the system. The most critical clement o f the city's proposal was the agreement to move ahead on funding a disparity study. This study has long been pro posed by many tocstablish a firm legal Send your letters to the Editor to: foundation for the implementation o f a goals program The most significant Editor, PO Box 3137, Portland, OR 972108 aspect o f the proposal is the w illin g former African American employees to conduct a comprehensiv e national ness to move forward in making posi without stating that both complaints survey o f m inority organizations. tive changes in the absence o f a were dismissed due to lack o f grounds IM PACT identified 678 minority or "Croson-type" disparity study This for a claim ganizations, 3.1 percent out o f 22.000 The article also mentions sev eral total since 1987, a sim ilar number. 3 successful African American conv en 5 percent o f PO VA's total bookings tions that were put together with the has been minority groups. hard work o f local African American POVA also has an aggressive representatives POVA booked each M in o rity Business E n te rp rise s one o f those conventions with the purchasing program. Last year. 9.4 make this selection process include invaluable help o f local representa percent o f POVA's total MERC pur more community input than ever be tives. chase went to minority businesses fore. F in a lly . M r M oore accuses POVA also has exceeded its affirm a “ I am pleased to report that this POVA o f a "lack o f sincere commit tive action hiring objects v iews at all nationw tdc recruitment and the com ment and inv olv ement as it relates to levels w ithin the association Cur parisons it made possible showed African American convention mar rently. 42 percent o f PO VA's Con clearly that both o f our internal can keting. delegate servicing and espe vention Sales Department is minority didates—Charles Moose and David cially hiring practices for marketing status W illia m s —were o f unsurpassable and top management positions " In Sincerely quality. 1990. POVA contracted with IMPACT W.Gary Grimmer “ Assistant C hief W illiam s is a Business Consultants, a minontv firm. Executive Director superb public servant and an out tier Letter To The Editor: I am w riting in response to the article by Stephen Moore which ap peared in the June 2 edition o f The Portland Observer entitled “ Metro Calls For Review O f Recommenda tion Excluding Blacks ’’ A few points brought out it the article need to be clarified M r Moore states that POVA's M inority Intern Program was never implemented Actually , the program was implemented and continues to successfully p ro vid e in d u s try exposure to minority students Since the program's inception in 1988, 11 minority students out o f 54 total have completed internships at POVA That is 20 percent M r Moore goes on to mention two discrimination complaints filed against POVA by taxes w ithin 9 months The Insurance policy would protect the surviving spouse, in other words the entire es- tate would be pass on to the surv iving spouse without paying federal estate taxes. What would happen when the last surv iv ing spouse dies is; the in- surance company would be required to pay the federal estate taxes, for this estate. I hope the readers o f this article w ill take this educational information and talk to someone that understands estate taxes and planning before they have their w ill drafted Even if you have a small estate you should still look into how you can protect your surv iving spouse and your heirs, from such a large loss o f your estate. You arc probably not aware o f the fact there arc people who have lost their entire estate Because o f federal estate taxes and other fees. 1 think you know what other fees I'm referring to '"Che (SLditór factor demonstrates real courage and commitment on the part o f the City Council and. especially, the Mayor to do the right thing We give the Mayor an A + for leadership in the matter W hile the council w ill not take formal action on Katz's Fair Con tracting and Employment Initiative until June 30, they should be applauded for their actions thus far. We encour age all N AM C O members and friends to call or write council members and commend them for their efforts In contrast to other media repre sentations. this development may not be headline grabbing or sensational news But the progress the city is making in its m inority contracting policy is the kind o f change that w ill make a difference. Cautious optimism is shared by most who view this action by the city as the first real attempt to practice true economic diversity and inclusion We can t give Mayor Katz enough credit for leadership in the matter, but it obvious that every council member was anxious to contribute to the solu tion. Council members may recognize how important their actions are in terms o f silencing the many criticisms o f minority contractor groups But they also may not fu lly realize how their actions w ill serve to psychologi cally lift community spirits and pro mote economic healing. In the face o f so many problems confronting the African-Am erican community, this action w ill hopefully set an example o f how local govern ments can work w ith communities in good faith to bring about economic reforms But make no mistake about it, this is just the first step. The city must understand that the problem o f discrimination in contracting is in sidious and w ill not be easily extin guished The other solemn question is now that there are serious attempts to open up the process, w ill minorities be ready, or get ready, to take advantage o f the opportunities? W hile what the city is attempting to do is fair and right, it is not a give away. M inority contractors must be not only capable o f perform ing. but must spend some time going the extra mile to ensure that their business house is in order. Take it from someone who knows, after years o f try ing to knock down barriers, this may be as big a hurdle to clear as racial discrimination itself Because when it is all said and done, regardless o f racism and discrimination, contract ing is a tough competitive business that takes no prisoners. James Posey is a local, small busi ness ow ner w ith a background in so cial work and community activism. Mayor Vera Katz Selects Charles Moose To Be Portland’s Chief Of Police © je ^ o rfla n it © bscruer S ubscribe © je ^ o r tla n b © b s e ru e r j (USPS 959-680) OREGON'S OLDEST AFRICAN AMERICAN PUBLICATION Established In 1970 by Alfred L. Henderson Joyce Washington Publisher T he P ortland j O bserver can be sent DIRECTLY TO YOUR HOME FOR ONLY $30.00 PER I J | YEAR. The PORTLAND OBSERVER Is located at 4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Portland, Oregon 97211 503-288-0033 • Fax 286-0015 Deadline for all submitted materials: Articles: Monday, 5:00 pm—Ads: Tuesday, noon POSTMASTER: Send A ddress Changes to: P ortland Observer, P.O. Box 3137, P ortland, OR 97208 Second class postage paid at Portland Oregon. The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned If accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and can nol be used In other publications or personal usage, without the written eynsent of the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad © 1993 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED. Subscription!.$30.00 p e r year The Portland O bserver-Oregon's Oldest African-American Publlcatlon- 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 * Serving Portland and Vancouver P lease fill out , ing and realigning patrol districts to neighborhoods We are. indeed, blessed to have the services o f these two fine officers and I look forward to continuing to work with both o f them “ The outside candidates were also in the first rank among law enforce ment executives "C h ie f Brann has had an exem plary record o f fighting crime, first in Santa Ana, C a lif, and more recently in Hayward where he turned a tradi tion-bound police department into a national model o f community polic ing “ C hief Mangan o f Spokane of fers remarkable intellectual capacity and an exceptional ability to translate theory into practice "In the end. however, my deci sion was made not just on the basis o f the intrinsic strengths each o f the candidates offered—and each offered a great many more than I have enu- merated-but also, finally, on how I judged each would perform in This city, at This time, in the face o f the particular challenges we face today. Clearly, the name o f Charles Moose rose to the top “ Unquestionably, C hief Moose has his work cut out for him. I have high expectations I share the frustra tions the community feels at the in tractability o f crime in the city. It must be brought undercontrol through a community-based process that re duces crime and the fear o f crime. Like all Portlanders. I want results. It w ill take all o f us working together to get them It is now may pleasure to intro duce to the people o f this great city, our new C hief o f Police, Charles Moose.” Black lssue....Big Concern Metro Tells Visitors Association To Wait ENCLOSE CHECK OR MONEY ORDER, and standing law enforcement officer w ho commands the respect o f the commu nity, the Police Bureau and law en forcement colleagues across the coun try. He managed production o f the Bureau s five-year transition plan and has managed its transition to commu nity policing as the number-two o ffi cial in the Bureau He developed the B u re a u s n eighborhood-based patrol deployment plan for rcdistrict- ( Continued from front page M ail to : ( 'ont inuedfrom front page S ubscriptions T ic P ohtland O bserver PO Box 3 1 3 7 j P ortland , O regon 9 7 2 0 8 j I I I Name Marees j ofy, State rip-code 1 I I I ! j T hank Y ou F or R eading ¡ T he P ortland O bserver ■ to believe that tax funding is vital to theircfforts. they have failed lob rin g to light a companion entity. the POVA Foundation which isa new non profit operation that is receiving funds from undisclosed sources The Foundation is supposedly for educational pur poses. but has the ability to receive m illions o f dollars without having to answer to anyone other than their board o f directors PO VA's most recent proposition to include job training programs in the hotel industry was viewed as be ing insulting "Everyone knows that blacks, htspames and poor w lutes arc the ones that arc cleaning the rooms. m aking the beds, sweeping the floors and parking the cars, so I am not sure what type o f job training programs that they re referring to” , said another black business profes sional that has been follow ing the recent revelations “ I f these POVA hotels arc really interested, then why aren't they talking about man agem ent. sales and m a rk e tin g positions that arc in the range o f $35,(XX) and up and not the ones of $17,(XX) and down'.’" Il w ill now be up to the specially selected committee to developed a plan for the minority marketing project as w ell as a substantial budget. " I f PO VA professes to sec a real and sincere need for the inclusion o f the Black vendor in the industry, one would be curious as to w hy they arc resisting the redis tribution o f the METRO contract dol lars .'' U hilc POVA continues to claim that they aredoingan outstandingjob in the area o f Black and ethnic mar keting. more recent information from individual as well as an article in a national magazine indicates a con tinual number o f Black conv entions and conferences that have not se lected Portland, prim arily due to this pending issue