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M arch 02, 1994 » T he P ortland O bserver
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Black Business “Fronts”: Undermining
The Economic Fabric Of The Community
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by
ÏÏtye ÿartlanh <©b«mr
........
The Breakup Of Neighborhoods (Phase I)
A fter our chaotic emergence
from reconstruction. The people of
color that had been freed from the
shackles o f bondage, plus some of
the free-bom citizens o f that bygone
era, banded together in tight little
com m unities in most towns, cities,
and rural settings. This making to
b lack n eig h b o rh o o d s w as done
mostly for their personal feeling of
com fort, and the existing attitude of
the majority of the ante-bellum south,
north, east, and west...
M any black n eig h b o rh o o d s
flourished, and at one time even
surpassed in grandeur, their white
c o n te m p o ra r
ies.
The black
a r tis a n s a n d
craftm enofthat
tim e b e c a m e
w e a lth y . B ut
according tore-
corded history; there is no way that
the guns o f war, nor the guns o f a
privileged few, or even a neighbor
hood, are able to kill hate, animosity,
fear, prejudice, or the festering can
cer o f ignorance.
The black m an’s dilem m a, has
always been his intense desire to
coexist with his determ ined d e
stroyer...
The envious applause o f his sud-
den a c a d e m ic o r te c h n o lo g ic a l
achievem ent, or the grin, but with
chagrin at the discovery of genius or
prodigy in our midst, has constantly
been there to affront the upward mo
bile.
The planned demise or piece
meal destruction o f our very fabric of
1 ife, has al way s been there as a blatant
and then sometimes subtle rem inder
to us.
Som ew here in the legislative
bodies that controls the very sentient
life of our neighborhoods, there came
a stroke o f genius how to reduce the
black neighborhoods back to their
place. By reducing
their aggregation of
w ealth, they can
summarily be sub
ordinated. Once the
plan was initiated,
the black bread win
ner began to lose
his lucrative place in the world of
prestige and finance. Many lost their
businesses. And had to become em
ployees.
Incomes were reduced, causing
mild cutbacks in living levels and
living styles. Many black employees
began losing their only means o f live
lihood. This caused many to sell off
precious property to survive. Finally
many o f their homes were sold, and
they began to rent. Enough jobs were
given back to them to maintain the
status Quo. Sublimation o f self-es
teem and family pride, allowed us to
survive and continue on.
But inadequately supplied school
materials, aides, under-represented
at power-meetings o f the board-of-
education, underminded the educa
tion of our children. These were our
progeny. Our future hope, the very
fabric o f the continuation o f our race.
They suffered.
Concerned parents,church lead
ers, civic leaders, screamed!
They cried, harangued, pleaded,
and finally after years o f this, re
ceived a response. Busing.
Yes, buses were the answer. Why
we could get the kids up at 4 a.m ., bus
them miles from home to a viable
academic institution, break up nec
essary extra-play time, friendships,
and family time. Create animosity
on each street, suspicion and en
emies in every neighborhood because
o f the com petitive spirit in us. So we
leaped on our buses o f educational
salvation, lost every ability to com
m unicate sanely with one another,
and rode the buses to and from an
other hostile camp.
We smugly rode these buses to a
large rut in the road called; measure
5 .....
Lawrence J. Dark Named
Urban League President
• LAWRENCE J. DARK HAS BEEN
NAMED PRESIDENT AND CHIEF
EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE
URBAN LEAGUE OF PORTLAND,
ACCORDING TO GINA WOOD,
CHAIR OF THE URBAN LEAGUE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
D ark rep laces D r. D arryl S.
Tukufu, who left the Urban League in
O ctober 1993 to accept a position at
Lorain County Community College
outside Cleveland, Ohio.
Mr. Dark is currently Executive
A ssistant to the President for Equal
Opportunity Program sandaResearch
Fellow at the Institute o f Public A f
fairs at the University of South Carolina.
“W e are excited to announce
Law rence’s appointm ent,” said Gina
Wood. “His professional experience
with the V irginia Council on Human
Rights and the N ational Institute
Against Prejudice and Violence will
enhance our advocacy efforts and help
us achieve the League’s mission of
providing an equal opportunity to all
O regonians.”
The Urban League o f Portland
was organized in 1945. The League is
a non-profit, com m unity-
based human service agency
at-risk youth, students, job
seekers, and seniors in the
metro area.
Lawrence J. Dark
J am es P osey
• (THIS IS THE FIRST IN A
SERIES OF ARTICLES INTENDED
TO INFORM THE COMMUNITY
ABOUT THE NATURE OF
“FRONTS” AND HOW THEY ARE
DESTROYING THE BLACK
BUSINESS COMMUNITY.)
Over the history o f minority busi
ness program s, there has probably
been nothing more detrim ental to the
growth and developm ent o f African-
A m erican enterprise than the prob
lem o f a Black business willing to act
as a “ front” for white folks. In many
ways, it is the economic version of
Black-on-Black crim e and operates
in the same sleazy fashion as prostitu
tion. There are other m inorities that
have also fronted for whites. But this
activity is particularly offensive when
Blacks do it. T hat’s because the other
m inorities have rarely had to shed
blood in the establishm ent o f any
affirm ative action programs.
W hen the federal disadvantage
business programs were initiated, they
were based in part on the assum ption
that minority-owned businesses who
benefitted from the program s would
exercise social responsibility and con
tribute (give back) to the economic
structures o f their respective com m u
nities. A fter more than tw o decades,
the fact is the Black com m unity has
not seen much in the way o f signifi
cant results. Black fronts are literally
robbed the community o f real jobs,
business skills, developm ent oppor
tunities and the overall econom ic ca
pacity to sustain itself.
O ne o f th e m o st a g g ra v a tin g
and o u tra g e o u s v e rsio n s o f a fro n t
in v o lv e s a B la c k b u sin e ss o b ta in
ing c o n tra c ts b a se d on its m in o r
ity sta tu s an d sim p ly p a ssin g the
m a jo rity o f the d o lla rs to w h ite s.
A t the o th e r e x tre m e is th e b u s i
ness th a t is 51 % o w n e d by a B lack
b u t m a rk e ts its e lf as b e in g e n
tire ly d isa d v a n ta g e d an d o b ta in s
c o n tra c ts u n d e r th a t g u ise . W h ile
it m ay be p e rfe c tly leg al to o p e r
a te a b u sin e ss in th is fa sh io n , the
n e t e ffe c t is th a t th e m ix e d b u s i
ness d im in ish e s o p p o rtu n itie s fo r
th o se w h o lly -o w n e d B lack b u s i
nesses w hich are focused on b u ild
ing the e c o n o m ic c a p a c ity o f the
co m m u n ity . In e ffe c t, the B lack
p a rtn e rs in th e se in te rra c ia l b u s i
n e sse s are e sse n tia lly se llin g th e ir
c u ltu ra l h e rita g e as e ffe c tiv e ly as
an y p ro stitu te se llin g se x u a l f a
v o rs to g a in fin a n c ia l b e n e fit. T he
sa m e w ay a s tre e t w a lk e r d im in
ish th e o v e r a ll v ir tu e s o f a ll
w om en, a B la c k fro n t fa lse ly r e p
re se n ts the im age o f a su c c e ssfu l
B lack b u sin e ss.
T h e re a re se v e ra l d is tin c tiv e
c h a r a c te r is tic s o f a fro n t. T h e
m o st strik in g is the lack o f s ig
n ific a n t te c h n ic a l k n o w le d g e and
in v o lv e m e n t on the p a rt o f the
B lack o w n er in the e v e ry d a y a c
tiv itie s o f the b u sin e ss. In c o n
tra st, the w h ite s in the b u sin e ss
u su ally run e v e ry th in g . T he B lack
p a r tn e r ’s o n ly fu n c tio n is to p r o
m o te the m in o rity im a g e . O n e
re s u lt is the b u sin e ss ra re ly h ire s
p e o p le w ho look lik e the B lack
o w n e r. O fte n , th e re is a w e ll-re -
h e a rse d a lib i se t up to a n sw e r
c h a lle n g e s in th is a re a , in c lu d in g
th e sta n d a rd re s p o n s e th a t th e re
a re few B la c k s q u a lifie d to fill
th ese p o sitio n s. C o n se q u e n tly , the
p ro fits an d b e n e fits o f the b u s i
n e ss do n o t su b s ta n tia lly b e n e fit
B lack fam ilies and the B lack c o m
m u n ity .
A lth o u g h th e p r a c tic e o f
fronting is prevalent in Black com
munities across the country, it seems
to flourish particularly well in O r
egon. It may thrive for essentially the
same reasons interracial relationships
and m arriages prosper. There is clear
evidence that Blacks in business are
not seen as successful and viable un
less they arc linked with a white prin
cipal. As in nther B lack/w hite en
counters, the underlining worth and
value of the Black business is predi
cated on white involvem ent and con
trol.
A sad iro n y in th is s itu a tio n
is th a t B la c k s w h o a re o fte n h ire d
to m o n ito r th e se p ro g ra m s ju s tif y
th e e x is te n c e o f fro n ts an d sh am s
a s, “ I t ’s b e tte r th a n h a v in g no
B la c k b u s in e s s e s a t a ll.” A nd,
w h en le g itim a te B lack b u sin e sse s
c o m p la in , th e y a re la b e le d as b it
te r b e c a u se th ey w ere n o t c h o se n
fo r th e c o m p e tin g c o n tra c ts . B u t
w h at is p ro b ab ly c lo se r to the truth
is the fa c t th a t m any B la c k b u
re a u c ra ts a re m o re c lo se ly a lig n e d
in p h ilo so p h y w ith the fro n ts. L ik e
th e B la c k fro n ts , th ey a re n o t
g e n u in e ly c o m m itte d to the B lack
c o m m u n ity c o n c e rn s, w h ic h are
o u tsid e th e ir ow n s e lf in te re st.
T hey o fte n o p e ra te u n d e r the illu
sio n th a t the c o m m u n ity p r o b
lem s can not be so lv e d w ith o u t
the stro n g in te rv e n tio n o f w h ite s.
Black community leaders have
not always been well informed about
the issuesandconsequently are reluc
tant to challenge public officials, as
well as the offenders and abusers of
these programs. Locally, nearly all
the disadvantage business program s
are infected with these scam busi
nesses. The Oregon D epartm ent of
Transportation, the Port o f Portland,
the City o f Portland, Tri-M et and
other agencies have been extrem ely
tolerant o f these businesses. And,
w hile the Oregon Arena Project em
ploys some legitimate Black busi
nesses, there is strong evidence that a
num ber o f its minority contractors
are being used to pass work on to
w hite contractors.
P rim e w h ite c o n tra c to rs c o n
tin u e to use th e se le s s -th a n -s o -
c ia lly -re s p o n s ib le m in o rity c o n
tra c to rs b e c a u se i t ’s c o n v e n ie n t
to do so. T h e re is v irtu a lly no
d iffe re n c e in d e a lin g w ith th e se
s o - c a lle d m in o rity b u s in e s s e s .
T h is is p a rtic u la rly tru e in te rm s
o f the ra c ia l c o m p o sitio n o f th e ir
w o rk c re w s and the e a se o f e v e r y
day in te ra c tio n s and tra n sa c tio n s.
T h e y a re the k n o w n q u a n tity th a t
fit w ell into the sch em e to re ta in
p ro fits , s k ills , b e n e fits and c o n
tro l in th e h an d s o f w h ite s. T h e re
a re no in c e n tiv e s to d o b u sin e ss
in any o th e r fa sh io n .
T h e se situ a tio n c o n tin u e s to
e x is t b e c a u se th ere is very little
p o litic a l w ill to c h a n g e . A nd in
sp ite o f o u trig h t fra u d u le n t a c tiv
ity , few are w illin g to ro c k the
b o a t. A s a re s u lt, th e se p ro g ra m s
ra re ly h e lp th o se th ey w ere in
te n d e d to a s s is t. T he fa ilu re o f
th e se p ro g ra m s re in fo rc e s the s te
re o ty p e s th a t B la c k s are in fe rio r
a n d in c a p a b le o f a c tin g on th e ir
ow n b e h a lf. T h e y fu rth e r e ro d e
the p u b lic su p p o rt fo r p ro g ra m s
a im e d a t a d d re ssin g th e se issu e s.
Jam es Posey is a small business
ow ner with a background in social
work and com m unity activism.
To: Oregon Association Of Colored Womens' Club
fr o m T iie R everend A lcena E. B o o z e r : I've learned a great deal over the pst 38 years, but one o f
the most important lessons was the message that just as the com m unity lifts you up, you must reach back
and try to lift up others. In essence one must give something back to the com m unity. I am grateful for
your support and it is my prayer that the Lord will continue to guide all of us as we make decisions about the
causes that we choose to support financially.
Black History On The Russian Stage
And Other European Arenas
by
P rofessor M c K inley B urt
As a rule when people speak o f
the men who shaped the modern pro
file o f that vast land, they nam e revo
lutionists like M arx, Lenin or Engels.
But those who know arc quick to point
out that it was the black poet and
polemicist, Alexander Pushkin, whose
philosophical inspirations first moved
the Russian people to seek freedom
from a suffocating serfdom.
Though this 19th-century giant
o f Russian letters died in 1837, his
huge statue still stands in “Pushkin
Square” across the street, now, from
the busy M cD onald’s Fast Food C en
ter. Pushkin is the man who first put
Russian writings at thccentcrof world
literature, creating masterpieces that
arc still an important part o f a ’proper’
ed u c a tio n -n o t only in Russia, but
throughout Europe. You may obtain
his novels, plays and poems at librar
ies throughout the world, but only in
special instances will there be any men
tion that he was black (Try Portland).
His passionate prose and poetry
drove the early Russian freedom fight
ers to successfully challenge their
oppressors in the middle o f last cen
tury. W e have the following from
C larence L. Holte, p.271-273, Jour-
nalofA fricanC ivilization, 1985 (Ivan
Van Sertima): “ In December, 1857
Czar A lexander II published a decla
ration o f intent for abolition o f serf
dom (sharecropper). On Feb. 19,1861
the declaration was im plemented and
some 22.5 million serfs were freed.
Interestingly, at this very time
Ira Frederick Aldridge (1807-67), a
noted Shakespearean actor, arrived
in Russia am idst all the excitem ent.
(
Since he was a free black man from
America and a symbol o f liberation
from slavery, the serfs and radical
intelligentsia were eager to support
him. This highly acclaim ed actor was
educated at the African Free School
in New York, but his meteorc dra
matic career was launched at the Roy
alty Theatre o f London when he ap
peared in the role o f O thello in 1826.
His abilities and versatility led to such
leading roles as King Lear, Shylock,
Mungo, Oroono Ka and others, played
through out Europe. But as noted, it
was in Russia that the dramatic life
lines of two great interpreters o f the
human existence m etand intertwined.
Aldridge, riding the tide of “lib
eratio n p h ilo so p h y ’ au th o red by
Pushkin, found extraordinary success
in Russia, receiving the highest of
honors and monetary awards. “The
first to show that a black man could
scale any heights in theatrical art
reached by a w hite man [in modem
times] and recreate with equal art
istry the greatest characters in word
dram a”: that is how Herbert Marshall
and Mildred Stock sum up the subject
o f their biography, Ira Aldridge: The
Negro Tragedian (1958).
This great actor was born July
24, 1807 in New York, the son o f a
clerk and lay preacher, was attracted
to the theatre very early on, and at a
time when the city’s free black com
munity had just launched its own
African Theatre. Though inspired by
such noted black actors as James
Hewlett, Aldridge realized that the
only way for a serious and ambitious
young black actor to succeed was to
emigrate. Accordingly, when he was
I
17 or 18, Aldridge worked
h is passage to Liverpool as a
ship’s steward.
His early years were
made very difficult by a rac
ist London m edia-they even
suggested that his lips were
too thick to pronounce many
words distinctly. However,
he eventually won the ac
claim o f the countryside (like
“offBroadw ay” intheU .S.),
and went on from there to
win over audiences and crit
ics throughout continental
Europe. There were enthu
siastic ovations in Brussels
Cologne, Frankfurt, Basle,
Leipzig, Berlin, D resdin,
Ham burg, Vienna, B uda
pest, ETC. By the time he
retu rn ed to L o ndon, he
could no longer be denied
the respect due him; inter
nationally recognized, he
had been knighted among
other honors.
It was in 1858 that he
was invited to Russia, to
give 12 perform ances at St.
Peterburg’s Imperial T he
atre. He ended up playing
31 nights, 21 of which were
devoted to Othello. His suc
cesses in this land lasted
until his death. His oldest
daughter, by his second wife,
a Sw edish O pera singer,
gave elocution lessons to
young Paul Robeson in 1930
when preparing for his own
role o f “O thello” . She died
in 1956 at age 89.
Y o u ' re his
role model,
mentor,
friend
master
chef.
"
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