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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 14, 1994)
P age B5 T he P ortland O bserver • D ecember 14, 1994 What Is Acting Black? Part II by N yewusi A skari Thank you Readers! Y our re sponse to last w eek’s article, "W hat is acting B lack?” w as right on the m o-N EE! I received a num ber o f c a lls ' n ’ questions w hich has prom pt ed me to com pose Part II. M ost o f the calls cam e from parents o f bi-racial teenagers. So, I will attem pt to ad dress som e o f their concerns and com e back next w eek w ith som e follow ups to some other questions that w ere asked. Also, I will continue to ease in som e popular Black speech, since m any o f you seem to think th a t’s one o f my tradem arks. BLACK IS TO DA BONE Let it be understood that A frican A m ericans have their own spiritual, scientific, and cultural understand ing o f genetics. M ost understand w here our ancestral gene pool origi nated, as well as why and how it got to A m erica. In b la c k a n c e s tra l la n g u a g e , th e te rm s " W e are o f th e sa m e b lo o d ” B la c k to da b o n e ” " B lo o d is th ic k e r th a n w a te r ” ‘ B la c k is fo re v e r” an d “ Y ou m ay k n o w how I fe e l b u t y o u ca n n e v e r k n o w w h a t it m e an s to be b la c k ” a re all re f e r e n c e s to th e liq u id M e la n in - th e d a rk p ig m e n t fo u n d in o u r sk in , r e tin a an d h a ir M e la n in is tr a n s m itte d by o u r g e n e s , fro m p a r e n ts to c h ild re n a n d is r e s p o n s ib le fo r th e d if fe r e n t d e g r e e s o f d a r k n e s s /b la c k n e s s in o u r sk in . T ake note. The language is not talking about behavior o r a w ay o f acting. N or is it talking about the red blood that flows thru ou r bodies. It is talking about M ean ing - know n down hom e as "B lack blood." As true as that is, E uropeans w ho saw dark- sk in n e d A fric an s, c e n tu rie s ago, co u ld n ’t figure out w hy their skin w as black. In the end, they m anufac tured reasons w hich becam e the c o r nerstones o f the institution o f slavery in A m erica. T he m ost pop u lar? T hat the A frican ’s d ark skin represented a curse from G od. A curse w hich reg ulated him and his people to the will o f C aucasians. N ow lets back up for a m inute. T he im plication is that G od, by p u t ting M elanin in the genes o f A fri cans, cursed them all, and thus, c re ated inferior hum an beings. Said anotha w ay, " Ify o u have any am ount o f M elanin in y o u r genes, you are inferior!” Did A m erican C aucasians take the E uropean exp lan atio n s to heart? Y ou bet they did. M any S tates w rote and im plem ented laws that defined and segregated persons w ith M ela nin from persons w ith no M elanin. L ets look at a few State laws on race and color. FLORIDA: (SEC. 1.0 DEFINITION) "T h e w ords N egro, colored, co l ored persons, m ulatto or persons o f color, w hen ap p lied to persons, in clude every person having one-eight o r m ore o f A frican or N eg ro blood. KENTUCKY: C o lo re d ch ild ren , w ith in th e m eaning o f Section 187 o r K entucky C o n stitu tio n , include all ch ild ren w holly o r in part o f N eg ro b lood or having any ap p reciab le adm ixture thereof; and a child h a v in g o n e - s ix te e n th n e g ro blood m ay not attend a school for w hite children. GEORGIA: SEC. 79- 103. (2177) P e rs o n s o f c o lo r w h o a re : A ll N e g ro e s , m u la tto e s , m e s tiz o s a n d t h e ir d e s c e n d a n ts , h a v in g a n y a s c e r ta in a b le tra c e o f e ith e r n e g ro o r A fric a n , W e st I n d ia n o r A s ia tic I n d ia n b lo o d in t h e ir v e in s , an d a ll d e s c e n d a n ts o f an y p e rs o n h a v in g e ith e r N e g ro o r A fric a n . W e st In d ia n o r A s ia tic In d ia n b lo o d in h is o r h e r v e in s sh a ll b e k n o w in th is S ta te as p e r s o n s o f c o lo r. ( A c ts 1 8 6 5 -6 P ) 2 3 9 ; 1 9 2 7 , P. 2 7 2 ). SEC. 53-312 “WHITE PERSON DEFINED”: T he term w hite person shall in clude only p ersons o f the w hite or C a u c a s ia n r a c e w h o h a v e n o ascertain ab le trace o f either N egro, A frican, W est Indian, A siatic, Indi an, M ongolian, Jap an ese o r C hinese blood in th eir veins. N o person, any one o f w hose ancestors had been duly registered w ith the S tate B ureau o f V ital S tatistics as a co lo red person or person o f co lo r shall be d eem ed to be a w hite person. (A cts 1927, P. 277). OKLAHOMA: ART. XXIII,, SEC. II, COLORED RACE - NEGRO RACE - WHITE RACE. W herever in this Constitution and laws o f this State, the word or words “colored” or “colored race,” “N egro” or “N egro race,” are used, the same shall be construed to mean or apply to all persons o f A frican descent. The term “w hite race” shall include all other persons. (Const. 1907 as am end ed Stat. 1931, sec. 13724) MISSISSIPPI: A rt. 14, S e c tio n 2 6 3 o f th e C o n s titu tio n o f M is sissip p i w h ich Leadership; Tabasco Sauce And Jobs p r o h ib its m a rr ia g e o f a w h ite p e rso n w ith a N e g ro o r m u la tto , o r a p e rs o n h a v in g o n e - e ig h th o r m o re N e g ro b lo o d , d o e s n o t d e te rm in e th e s ta tu s o f a p e rs o n as to w h e th e r he is w h ite o r c o lo re d u n d e r A rt. 8 S e c tio n 2 0 7 o f th e c o n s titu tio n , w h ic h p ro v id e s fo r s e p a r a te s c h o o ls fo r c h ild re n o f th e w h ite a n d c o lo re d ra c e s . T h e w o rd “ w h ite ” u n d e r S e c tio n 2 0 7 m e a n s a m e m b e r o f C a u ca sia n ra c e a n d th e w o rd “ c o l o r e d ” in c lu d e s n o t o n ly N e g r o e s b u t p e r so n s o f m ix e d b lo o d h a v in g an y a p p r e c ia b le a m o u n t o f N e g r o b lo o d . ABOUT DA TERM “PEOPLE OF COLOR”: Being from the deep south, I advise people in social services, the w orkplace and schools to refrain from using the term “ P eo p le o f color. “ W hy? B ecause it is racist. It was created for no oth er reason than g e netic segregation. W hen used, it sets up a “ W e” vs. “T h em ” situation. ABOUT DA TERM “RACE”: In a r a c is t s o c ie ty , th e te rm “ R a c e ” is u s e d as a w a y o f le ttin g o th e rs k n o w h o w m u c h M e la n in you a re c a r ry in g a n d w h e re y o u fit in th e o v e ra ll sc h e m e o f th in g s. E x a m in e p a p e r s fo r e m p lo y m e n t a n d /o r o th e r s e r v ic e s a n d bam ! T h e fill-in b o x e s a r e th e re . A re y o u (B la c k ) , ( H is p a n ic ) , (N a tiv e A m e ric a n ), (A s ia n ) o r ( o th e r) I t ’s im p o rta n t to u n d e r s ta n d th a t, on its b a s ic le v e l, B la c k sk in b la c k n ess is a b o u t g e n e tic s . I t ’s n o t an a c t o r so m e f a r - o u t, in v e n te d b e h a v io r o r a ttitu d e . N o r is it a c u rse . T alk to y a next tim e. Portland NAACP Elects New Officers Continued from Front the press, the petition, the ballot, and the courts, and is persistent in the use o f legal and moral persuasion even in the face o f overt and violent racial hostility. TheBednockstrengthoftheNAACP lies in its more than 500,000 members who belong to the Association's 2,200 branch es, youth councils and college chapters. There is hardly an area within the United States in which African Americans reside inanx numbers where there isnotaN AACP. It may be difficult in today’s climate for some to realize that at one point in its history, membership in the NAACP in some areas o f the countiy was a coura geous act. The rolls o f the Association are marked with the names o f individuals such as Hany' Moore, Medgar Evers and others who. becauseoftheir involvement with the NAACP. paid with their lives. W e reco g n ize th at “d iv e-b y ” shootings equal o r surpass the m ur ders generated by K K K lynchings. We still have racism and discrimination in education; landlords still denying decent housing to minority tenants; well-trained corporate executives who experience the frustration o f a “glass ceiling" in employ ment and banking institution that continues to subtly practice redlining. Overthepast 80 years our branch at times has flourished with members, volun teers and supporters. At times we have survived with only a few that understood that the struggle continues... Many o f our branch’s greatest leaders were not Presi dents but volunteers who keep the branch together. Our challenges are just as great today as there were in the past o f battles fought and won. The NAACP membership has, and continues to be, the most powerful voice speaking out on behalf o f African- Americans. Membership in the NAACP provides a wealth o f opportunities to con tribute to the welfare o f the African-Amer ican community through a wide variety of activities, programs and projects. Membership is open to everyone who subscribes to the basic philosophy and purposes ofthe NAACP. Please join us as the struggle continues..... For m em bership inform ation call 503-284-7722 or w rite Bea Anderson: A Legacy to Her Community Continued from Metro from all over the w orld. T o visit her home was to visita"community museum" with her collection o f artifacts from Ha waii. Japan, and her home state o f North Carolina. She regularly entertained visitors from Japan and Hawaii and periodically from all over the globe. Not surprisingly . PDX Set Records In October P ortland International airport (P D X ) achieved a m onthly record for passengers and its best ever month for cargo in O ctober 1994. O c t o b e r ’s p a s s e n g e r c o u n t th ro u g h P D X w as 8 5 0 ,4 5 2 , a 15.5 p e r c e n t in c re a s e o v e r O c to b e r 1 9 9 3 ’s 7 3 6 ,6 3 1 , w h ic h w as th e a i r p o r t ’s p r e v io u s r e c o r d fo r O c to b e r . T h is m a rk e d th e 3 0 th c o n s e c u t i v e m o n th o f r e c o r d g ro w th fo r P D X . F or 1994, PD X h as to ta le d 8 ,1 83,446 passengers, putting it 16 p ercent above 19 9 3 ’s record pace. PD X is operated by the Port o f P ort land. A ir cargo through PD X scored an even greater achievem ent as the airport handled 19,240 to n s-th e high est m onthly tonnage total in the air p o rt’s history and the first tim e it has surpassed the 19,000-ton level. O cto b e r's air cargo record for 40 consecutive m onths. Internation al cargo fueled the record m onth as it clim bed 60 percent over O ctober her friendliness andgentlehumanity would melt any language barriers. “She was al ways having international dinners. You could never turn down one o f there invita tions." said friend and educator Joseph Thomas. She was as sure as she was friendly, and as serious as she was gentle. It may be that Bea Anderson's great est achievement was in raising two sons to manhood in a modem world. Both sons, the elder Marty the Younger Tony Ander son achieved the rank o f Eagle Scout. Both are college grads and now work as professionals. Marty is a sound engineer in California and Tony, who gave “Bea" her first grandchild just a few weeks before her death, is a graduate o f Oregon State University and works as a pharma- o f m inority w orkers is that if there is an econom ic d isru p tio n - layoffs, “ W e (blacks) are in the same position as Bosnia, not getting help and not allow ed to help ourselves,” So stated a w ell-know n A frican A m erican last w eek in his 150th (at least) speech T he last part o f that com plaint rings especially true, con sidering w hat I have been recently saying about the constraints on eco nom ic opportunity specifically im posed by banks and real estate in terests, and, in general, by other elem ents o f the urban infrastruc ture. A reader w as deeply disturbed by my description o f huge concen trations ofhighly skilled black w ork ers in central city m anufacturing plants who, unlike w hites in sim ilar situations, could not get financing for businesses to w hich they w ere m ost suited; it being a given that the m ost successful am ong the ranks o f new entrepreneurs are those ex p eri enced in the particular enterprise through either em ploym ent o r fam ily. The ow ners o f these firm s, na tive b o m or im m igrants from E u rope, Israel, South A frican or Latin A m erican, enjoyed tw o huge b en e fits; an artificially stable labor force, and freedom from the com petition that m ost frequently com es from form er em ployees who have spun o ff (V iola! W e have the m odem colony). T h is r e a d e r , an A f r ic a n A m e ric a n fro m C h ic a g o , se n t m e a c lip p in g fro m a N o v e m b e r e d itio n o f th e P o rtla n d O r e g o n ia n . U n d e r th e h e a d lin e , “ T o y C o m p a n y R e a l ly U n d e r th e G u n ” ( c u te h u h ? ) w as th e s to ry o f “ S tro m b e c k e r C o rp .,” a c c o m p a n ie d b y a p ic tu r e o f a b la c k fe m a le w o rk e r. M y c o r r e s p o n d e n t h a d w o rk e d fo r th is c o m p a n y a n d w as v e ry fa m ilia r w ith its r e c u rrin g p ro b le m s; b u t m o re im p o rta n tly , he w o u ld r e c ite th e fa m ily h is to ry , E u ro p e a n b e g in n in g s a n d s o u rc e s o f f in a n c in g . “ M r. B u rt, th e d y n a m ic s o f th e s itu a tio n a re j u s t as y o u d e s c rib e d in L o s A n g e le s - o r a n y w h e re fo r th a t m a tte r .” T he tragedy o f this and sim ilar situations across the country w here there is an “unreal” concentration cutbacks, sale o f the com pany, etc. - then th ere is a d isp ro p o rtio n ate econom ic and cultural injury to the African A m erican com m unity which is g h etto ized and im m obile relative to other m em bers o f the w ork force. I have pro tested and railed against som e o f o u r leadership for years, like the U rban L eague in both Los A ngeles and Portland. B ecause o f my ex p erien ce and asso ciatio n s in both industry and public ag encies, I have alw ays been able to b ecom e aw are o f or antici pate w o rk fo rce o p p o rtu n ities b e fore anyone o u tsid e o f th e system , no m atter how m any deg rees they m ight have in sociology, adm inis tration, labor statistics, w hatever. Even if the acco u n tan t or co m p tro l ler d id n 't sit in m an ag em en t’s p lan ning co n feren ces w here new lines, m odels, p roduction m achines and even space have lead tim es o f six m onths to a year, he w ould only have to look at the en su in g purchase orders to know that a m ajo r change in the work force w as com ing. S om e body is going to be hired to use the additional nuts, bolts, punch p ress es, shears, ovens, jan ito rial supplies, w hatever. F or years, I’ve called black o r g anizations only to find th e leaders o f the flock “at lunch, in a m eeting, in a sem inar, at a retreat, convention or o th er buffalo w ing gala. Since th ey d o n ’t retu rn c a lls (I a in ’t “ heavy” enough), I ju s t round up people and use my inside contacts to place them on the hiring track. I w as looking o ver tw o d ecad es o f placem ents, U .S . F o re s t S e rv ic e , C o rp s o f E n g in e e rs , B o n n e v ille , S ta te o f O re g o n , C ity o f P o rt la n d , U n ite d P a rc e l, F re ig h tlin e r , p lu s f o u n d rie s an d in n u m e ra b le sm a ll c o m p a n ie s . B u t o u r s o c ia l o r g a n iz a tio n s are rig h t o n tim e w ith s o lic ita tio n s an d m e m b e r s h ip d r iv e s . S e n d m e so m e o f th a t m o n e y ! I d id n ’t have room for that “T ab asco S auce" m odel o f S outh ern failures in A frican A m erican econom ic planning. See you next w eek. Perhaps our leaders and “we the p eo p le” can get to g eth er som e day.” cist in Federal Way Washington. It is quite possible that we will miss Bea’s gifts so much that every J une 3rd will be “Bea” Anderson Day as Mayor "Bud" Clark declared it in 1992 for her work as a teacher, parent, and special friend o f chil dren. “Bea” Anderson will be with us, through her legacy o f excellence and car ing, for a very' long time. H a p p y H o lid a y s j _____ Prices effective December 14 through December 20,1994 at your nearby Safeway store. Tender Bone-In Smoked Ham Cook’s Shank Portion SAVE UP TO 911 PER LB Sunkist, Seedless a Navel Oranges 1993. For 1994. the a irp o rt’s cargo tonnage is 163,261, a 12.6 percent ju m p over 1993. O p e r a t io n s ( t a k e - o f f s a n d la n d in g s ) at th e P o r t 's g e n e ra l a v ia tio n a ir p o r ts h ad m ix e d r e s u lts in O c to b e r. O p e r a tio n s in c r e a s e d b y 2 .7 p e r c e n t a t H ills b o ro A irp o rt fro m 16 ,4 8 4 in O c to b e r. O p e ra tio n s in c re a s e d by 2 .7 p e r c e n t at H ills b o ro A irp o rt fro m 16 .4 8 4 in O c to b e r 1993 to 1 6 ,9 3 7 in O c to b e r 1 9 9 4 , w h ile Look In Your This Week Magazine lor our weekly Safeway Savings Guide! ThisWeek th e y d e c lin e d s lig h tly (0 6 p e r c e n t at T ro u td a le A irp o rt fo rm 9 ,8 3 2 to 9 ,7 7 4 . i P rof . 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