I nni - 21,
1995 • T he
P ori land O bserver
Editorial Articles Do Not Necessarily
Reflect Or Represent The Views O f
The JJnrtlanb ODhscruvr
“HIGH-TECH LYNCHING"
THOMAS HANGS
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
w
e fear those in white
sheets, but those in
black robes truly
ireaten us.
fhreatei
In what could be considered the
ultimate statement in self-hatred. Jus­
tice Thomas joined the majority in
two 5-,o-4 Supreme Court decisions,
involving affirm ative action and
equal opportunity in education, that
will set back our struggle for justice
under the law. In effect, Thomas
voted against his mother, his grand­
mother and any children he may have
in the future He even voted against
himself.
If Sandra Day O ’Connor and
Clarence Thomas truly believe what
they wrote in Adarand, both should
resign. Both were affirmative action
appointments: Reagan sought to put
the first woman on the Court, and
Bush looked to replace Thurgood
Marshall with another Black. Under
the majority opinion both are on the
R
( '
a A i n I . b
o
I l l
( )
S te v e n s
G in s b u r K
Court Illegally; both are expressions
o f “racial (and gender) paternalism"
(Thom as’ words); and both should
be sham ed and stigm atized. O f
course, Justice Thomas HAS devel­
oped a dependency syndrome to
Anton Scalia.
In M issouri’s equal education
case, the Court strongly implied that
the lower courts had acted improper­
ly by ordering remedies requiring
B rev er
In a 27-page concurring o p in ­
ion, T hom as m ade an I 896 Plessy
"sep a ra te but eq u al" argum ent:
"It never ceases to am aze me that
the co u rts are so w illing to a s­
sum e that anything th at is p re ­
dom inantly black m ust be in fe ri­
or. [The theory that) seg reg atio n
injures black s because blacks,
when left on th e ir ow n, cannot
achieve [is the result of] a ju r is ­
prudence based upon a theory o f
black in fe rio rity ...T h e point o f
the Equal P ro tectio n C lause is
not to enforce strict race m ixing,
but to insure th at b la c k s and
w hites are treated eq ually by the
state w ithout regard to th e ir skin
c o lo r.” U nbelievable!
T hom as (w ith his vote) and
m any D em ocrats (w ith th e ir si­
lence) are tra ito rs to the civil
rights tra d itio n from w hich they
b en efitted.
Brace your self, things can (and
likely will) get worse. The Shaw v.
Reno majority-minority districts case
is due within three weeks.
W
O
ix j
S o u te r
two standards: ( I ) students "to reach
their potential." and (2) the school
system to achieve equality “to the
extent practicable." The Court ac­
knowledged that neitherofthese stan­
dards had y et been met. and strongly
suggested that these "equal protec­
tion" standards need not be met. The
Court is chipping away at the 1954
Brown decision and ieinterpreting
the 14th Amendment.
Civil Right Journal; Chained To The Past
m B erm cf Pown
T
1
i
J \< ksox
ppermosf in the mind
of most Americans is
the issue of crime and
safety.
Americans living in the inner
cities o f our nation feel like they are
under siege, their children in danger
o f dying on the playground or the
front yard from stray bullets. Amer­
icans in the suburbs are frightened
enough to spend thousands o f dollars
on sophisticated burglar alarm sys­
tems and private guard services.
Americans in rural areas now lock
their doors and worry about the in­
crease ofviolence in their communi­
ties.
Even First Lady Hillary Clinton
reminisced recently about how as a
child she got on herbike inthem orn-
ing with her friends and was not
expected hom e again until the
evening. There are few mothers in
America today who could trust their
children out o f their sight for so long
- too many kidnapping, too many
drive-by shootings, too many ways a
child can be hurt.
Unfortunately, this quest for a
safe society has resulted all too often
only in a frenzy of building prisons
and a (lurry o f get-tough talk by poli­
ticians playing to the masses. Lost in
the debate is the concept of rehabilita­
tion. Lost in the debate is an analysis
ofthe true causes o f crime in America.
Into all o f this comes the state o f
Alabama’s new policy ofputting pris­
oners into chain gangs. A new policy
which has haunting connections to
the past. An ugly, racially polarized
and inhuman past. A past which con-
jures up the ghosts o f slavery, white
supremacy and black pain A new
policy which alreadx has spread to
the state o f Arizona.
Ron Jones. A labama's C orrec­
tions Commissioner, has given dif­
ferent rationales for using chain
gangs, from an efficiency move and
money -sax mg tactic to a way o f send­
ing a message to would-be criminals
that prison is a bad place to be. But
others argue that chain gangs will not
solve the problem o f burgeoning pris­
ons. which can only really be solved
by alternatives to prison for non­
violent offenders and community
punishment centers which enable the
prisoners to earn money to pay resti­
tution to their victims and support
their own families. By one estimate,
Alabama w ill have to spend $60 mil­
lion a year on new prisons if current
trends continue.
I must admit that even the thought
o f men shackled together at their
ankles by three pound chains for
twelve hour shifts, having to eat to­
gether and go to the bathroom to­
gether. makes my stomach turn and
awakens in me, perhaps four genera­
tions from slavery, an uneasy memo­
ry o f the inhumanity o f a system
which we as a nation have sought to
overcome.
Indeed, the convict lease system
prevalent in the south up until thirty
years ago was a form o f slavery that
was allowed to linger after the Civil
War. And the magazine stories o f
w hites in Alabama pulling their cars
over to sm i le approvingly at the chain
gangs, 70 percent o f which are black,
makes me wonder just how far w e’ve
come.
V a n ta g e P o in t: Jackson keeps Rainbow’s Options Open For ‘96
by
R on D aniels
("Yl
'l l
*
esse Jackson’s Rain­
bow Coalition held its
Annual Policy Confer­
ence in Atlanta recently and
the 1996 presidential election
was very much on the minds of
the participants.
President Clinton and the Dem­
ocratic Party’s weak opposition to
the Republican Contract on America
is clearly producing frustration in the
ranks o f Rainbow activists. Many o f
the conference participants were ea­
ger to explore alternatives to the two
establishment parties. This sentiment
was very much in evidence at the
plenary session on Multi-Party Poli­
tics: Choice for Change which was
one o f the highlights o f the confer­
ence.
I was invited to participant as a
panelist in this session along with
some outstanding scholars and polit­
ical activists. The majority o f the
presenters felt that a break with the
Democrats was in order. Veteran
scholar activist Bill Strickland said
that the Rainbow should demand that
President Clinton "veto the Contract”
to keep faith with the core constitu­
encies within the Democratic Party.
Skeptical that the Democrats are re­
deemable, Strickland suggested a two
track approach o f pressing the Party
to move to the left while simulta­
neously developing a progressive
alternative to the Democrats and
Republicans.
Gwen Patton o f the Southern
Rainbow Education Project indicat­
ed that many people in the South,
particularly in her home state o f Al­
abama, are fed up with the stampede
to the right within the Democratic
Party and the contempt with which
the Party treats Black people. Gwen
noted that many Black elected offi­
cials within the Democratic Party are
looking for an alternative. Siting the
historic role o f the Black Panther
Party o f Lowdnes County and the
National Democratic Party o f Ala­
bama as independent Black political
organizations, she pushed the idea o f
building a progressive independent
political party nationally. A passion­
ate advocate o f ballot access reform
and election finance reform. Gwen
believes that these critical issues must
be at the top o f the agenda o f an
independent political party.
In offering my views on the sub­
ject, I reiterated the call for Rev.
Jackson to run for President in 1996
as an independent. In my view the
difference between the Democrats
and Republicans is increasingly in­
cremental not fundamental. A vision­
ary independent Jackson for Presi­
dent crusade could inspire millions
o f voters to rally around a progres­
sive alternative. Such a campaign
would change political equations
currently operative within the elec­
toral arena in this country . Patricia
Ireland, President o f the National
Organization o f Women, took the
position that there are real differenc­
es between the Democrats and Re­
publicans which should not be ig­
nored.
Ron W alters, considered by
many to be the preeminent Black
political scientist in America today,
contended that the Democratic Party
has failed to meet its obligations to
Blacks as Party's most loyal constit­
uency. According to Walters, the
politics o f leverage did not produce
acceptable outcomes for Blacks in
the presidential elections o f 1984,
1988 and 1992. In each o f these
elections, Blacks were unable to gain
meaningful concessions from the
Democratic Party in exchange for a
solid block o f Black votes.
Rev. Jackson stopped short o f
signaling an intent to run for Presi­
dent as an independent in ’96. How­
ever, he has previously stated that
running independent might be the
most productive option. Rev. Jack-
son pledged to expand the Commis­
sion on Political Options, chaired by
H.T. Smith, President o f the Nation­
al Bar Association, with a mandate to
report back to the RainbowCoalition
by August.
Holding political options open is
nothing new for Rev. Jesse Louis Jack-
son nor is the threat to run indepen­
dent. With pressure mounting within
Black America and in the ranks of the
Rainbow activists for an independent
party and an independent presidential
campaign, however, it remains to be
seen whether Rev. Jackson will finally
make good on his threats in "96
better Co TNie (SJditcr
Send your letters to the Editor to:
Editor, PO Box 3 137, Portland, OR 97208
To The Editor;
On May 30th, the Legislature
voted down a bill to put a repeal o f
Measure 18 on the next bal lot. Hope­
fully, this decision has finally laid to
rest an unprecedented effort by cer­
tain lawmakers to overturn a popular
election. Measure 18, which prevents
trophy hunters from using bait or
dogs to hunt bears, and from using
dogs to hunt cougars, has been the
target o f no fewer than I0 bills de­
signed to delay, damage or overturn
it. All o f those bills have shared the
same basic premise: a lack o f respect
for the voters' judgment.
To refer a repeal to the ballot,
for instance, within a few months of
Measure 18's passage is to say that
the voters didn't know what they
were doing the first time. Represen­
tative Norris went so far as to claim
that the film “The Lion King" must
have confused voters into thinking
that Oregon cougars were the same
thing as African lions.
I lappily, the majority o f the Leg­
islature has refused to hold the vot­
ers’ decision in such contempt. No
reason exists to do so. Claims that the
voters lacked information, or that
they were unduly influenced by out
o f state funds become ludicrous in
light o f the money which Measure
18 ’s opponents spent during the cam­
paign. Opponents outspent support­
ers ofthe initiative by more than two
to one, and ninety percent o f oppo­
nents' money came from out o f state
sources. Contributions from just two
o f those groups, the National Rifle
Association and the Wildlife Legis­
lative Fund, far exceeded the entire
budget o f the Yes on 18 campaign.
The reason voters passed Mea-
sure 18 was not that they were con­
fused. nor that they failed to under­
stand the issue. They passed it be­
cause they wanted Oregon’s bears
and cougars to have a sporting chance
in a hunt, andshooting a bear with its
head in a bait barrel, or a cougar treed
by dogs, does not give them that
chance. The Legislature was right to
refuse to second-guess thexvillofthe
voters, and those who opposed the
effort to overturn our vote deserve
our profound thanks.
Sincerely,
Glen Tarr
To The Editor:
Democracy is not a spectator
sport -- for it to survive and flourish,
we all must become involved. This is
the message I heard from 456 high
school students representing 38 Ore­
gon high schools who recently par­
ticipated in the Close Up Foundation
g overnm ent studies program in
W ashington, D C.
For a full week the students had
the opportunity to develop a better
understanding o f our democratic pro­
cess. By observing Congressional
proceedings, questioning journalists
and meeting with government ex­
perts, the abstracts o f history and the
process o f governing were trans­
formed into concert experiences. In
addition, students xvere able to share
their views with their peers from
other areas o f (he country.
Participants returned home with
a deeper awareness o f their responsi­
bilities as citizens and the realization
that a single individual can make a
difference. I heir enthusiasm for in­
volvement in the democratic process
is to be admired.
The Close Up experience was
made possible through the strong
support o f parents, teachers, and
schools Also, various companies and
organizations helped make Close Up
fellowships available to students in
financial need. These sponsors in­
clude a number o f local individuals
and businesses which support Close
U p’s work in civic education.
On behalf o f all o f us at Close
Up. I would like to thank all who
made the experience possible
Sincerely, Kathy M cG nigan,
Oregon Outreach Coordinator
/
p e r s p e c tiv e
Who Would You Rather Have
For A “Founding Father”?
hat is, if there were a
f 1 choice between the
VLx two gentlemen dis­
cussed last week in this
column; Thomas Jefferson,
first Secretary of State (1789)
and later, President -- and
Benjamin Banneker, the free
black surveyor, astronomer,
mathematician and almanac
publisher.
The first
man denied to
the end the full
humanity of the
second, though
recom m ending
him to President
George Washington for the team to
design Washington, D C.
It is just such a dichotomy in
spirit and purpose that incapacitates
the good works of v'ell-meaning per­
sons even unto today. We could fur­
ther evidence the schizophrenia of
Jefferson’s racism by citing the works
of expatriate (Paris) African Ameri­
can author, Barbara Chase-Riboud.
“History is legitimacy” she explains,
‘but that history has been written on
one side. Black people were the only
people who could not invent them­
selves as Americans.”
Ms Chase-Riboud is, of course,
the author of “Sally Hemmings”, the
novel that fifteen years ago-stirred up
a nationwide controversy when it
detailed so much of Thomas Jeffer­
son’s liaison with his black mistress.
As detailed in Ebony Magazine the '
A frican American descendants of th is
union years ago formed a cohesive
family organization that passes down
documents and artifacts from gener­
ation to generation and schedules
family reunions. (Viking Press-A von
pb.)
How interesting it is that our
author, Barbara Chase-Ribaud lives
in the Paris countryside and that her
home overlooks the placid lake where
homas Jefferson often rowed his
black lover, according to Paris news-
papersof the time. Chase-Ribaud did
much of her research in the archives
o f the French Press; According to
their reports, Jefferson not only in­
sisted that Sally Hennings accompa­
ny the family on their excursions
abroad, but took her on expensive
shopping trips (a fascinated public
scanned the tabloids for descriptions
of the elegant haute couture).
But let us return to the story of
Benjamin Banneker, the first black
presidential appointee -- and ‘our’
choice for a “founding father”. Rob­
ert, Benjamin’s father and a Native
of Ghana, West Africa, was awarded
his freedom after converting to the
Christian religion in Maryland, de
spite the state’s law prohibiting free
dom for blacks on such grounds
Robert married a Mary “Banneker
and took her name, having none of
his own to give her.
They developed a 102 acre farm
about 10 miles out
side B altim ore
Bought for 17,000
Sy
pounds o f tobacco,
Professor the farm became
Mckinley well know for its
Burt
vegetables, fruits
poultry and honey
Benjamin inherited the family land
and planted wheat for the Revolu
tionary Army. Later he sold all but
his house so that he might devote full
time to his astronomy and mathemat
ics. On the basis of such calculations
Banneker correctly predicted that a
solar eclipse would take place on
April 14, 1789 - contradicting the
forecasts of prominent mathemati
cians and astronomers ofthe day.
Have you ever seen a more pe
culiar preface than this one which the
publisher inserted in the front of
Banneker’s Almanac:
“To whom do you think that you
are indebted to for this entertain­
ment? Why, to a Black Man—Strange
Is a Black capable of compiling an
almanac? Indeed, it is no less strange
than true; and a clever, wise and long­
headed Black he is.
The labours o f the justly cele
brated Banneker will likewise fur­
nish you with a very important les­
son. Courteous reader, which you
will not find in any other almanac,
name[y that the Maker o fth e Uni­
verse is no respecter o f colours; that
the colour o f the skin is no way
connected with the strength o f mind
or intellectual powers; that although
the God of Nature has marked the
face ofthe African with a darker hue
than his brethren,. He has given him
a soul equally capable o f refine­
ment.”
Perhaps the final say on the
dichotomy in America’s peculiar
institution o f racism should be giv­
en to the Rev. Jesse Jackson who
had this comment on the recent de­
cision by the U.S. Supreme Court;
“if justices Thomas and O ’Connor
thought Affirmative Action was such
a bad idea, they should resign their
courtseats-since race and gender
had been factors in their appoint­
ments.” Amen!
(Ebe JjJortlattif (JDbsevuer
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