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P age B 2
F ebruary
7,1996 • T ue
P ortland O bserver
Your Niche In The Workforce III:
Black Inventors Com e Right Out Of History
■v P rof . M c K inley
B urt
I spent a great deal of time in the
1970s and 1980s conducting work­
shops around the Northwest for the
personnel managers and adm inistra­
tors of federal agencies. The purpose
was to enhance the acceptance of
African Americans intoa highly tech­
nical workforce by documenting their
proven capabilities as inventors and
innovators.
The process worked very well in­
deed, with many o f those hired still
employed; here and in other parts of
the country (a goodly number were my
students at Portland State University). In­
terestingly, one could always expect
two key questions: 1. “How did you
know that all those inventors you cite
in your book were black? 2. In re­
spect to the very early patents, how in
the world could people a generation
from slavery conceive, design and
build so much of the sophisticated
equipment that made the industrial
revolution possible?” (“Black Inven­
tors of America", 1969, National Book)
The answer to the first question is
that the Examiner o f Patents in W ash­
ington, D.C. at the turn of the century
was Howard E. Baker, a black man.
At a time when many leery inventors
insisted on bringing their inventions
and/or applications to the Patent O f­
fice in person — sometimes travel­
ing thousands of miles — Baker saw
that many o f the inventors were Afri­
can Americans. In addition, some
patent illustrators would use a rather
obvious African figure to depict the
use o f the device.
So it was that Mr. Baker sent out
standard questionnaires to every
patent attorney in America: “Have
you ever registered a patent for a
black person? He received thousands
o f replies in the affirmative. At the
“Moreland Library” at Howard Uni­
versity, W ashington, D.C., I was able
to tap into this gold mine of docu­
mentation which had been preserved
by the perceptive examiner. It was
1969 and the occasion easi ly the most
memorable that I can remember.
Now the answer to the second
question — “how were former slaves
Author Explores
Lives And Loves
She'd read an article in the news­
paper during Black History Month
about how Black women should treat
their men. We should treat them with
the utmost respect, love, kindness,
and recognition. .. We should encour­
age them to seek brighter horizons
beyond merely being athletes, to
stri ve to become scientists, attorneys,
and congressm en, the article had told
her. But w hat o f our hopes and
dreams?, G inger wondered. Were
they insignificant? W ho would help
the women?...
Rosalyn McMillan, an exciting
new voice in contemporary fiction,
will touch, thrill and tantalize read­
ers with her powerful, poignant and
provocative debut. Knowing (Warner
Books Hardcover; January 22,1996).
Exploring the lives and loves o f a
middle-class African-American fam­
ily, McMillan cuts to the heart of
challenges facing all women and men
today: how to balance the bonds,
burdens and demands of family with
the need to nurture the self.
At the center o f Knowing stands
Ginger Montgomery, 36, an attrac­
tive and intelligent woman suffocat­
ed by material trappings and self­
doubt. On the surface. Ginger seems
to have it all: a comfortable home in
the Detroit suburbs, a lucrative fac­
tory job at Champion Motors, four
beautiful children, and plenty of pas­
sion with Jackson, her intoxicatingly-
sexy second husband. Ginger knows
she should be happy, yet she’s rest­
less and troubled: all the perfect parts
o f her life add up to an aching em p­
tiness. Through M cM illan’sdetailed,
true-to-life depiction, readers come
to know the real Ginger — and expe­
rience her confusion, her frustration,
and her pain.
As Knowing soon reveals, beneath
his suave facade Jackson is spoiled,
jealous man, who seizes every op­
portunity tosabotagc his wife’sdream
of breaking free from the factory
tedium to pursue a career in real-
estate. Ginger also realizes that, de­
spite their ever-burning desire, the
only place she and her husband truly
connect is in bed. To complicate
matters. Ginger suffers from alopecia
areata, a disease that causes recur­
ring hair loss, each time shaking her
sense of sexuality and self-esteem.
Torn apart by conflicting impulses
— to give everything to her man and
fami ly, to preserve something for her
own unique identity and fulfillment
— Ginger grapples with life’s most
difficult choices, unaware of the irre­
vocable changes to come.
B rim m ing w ith h e a rtfe lt e m o ­
tio n s, sc in tilla tin g d ia lo g u e , su r­
p rise re v e la tio n s and steam y sex,
K no w in g is above all a novel rich
in c h a ra c te r.
or their children and grandchildren
able to contribute such sophisticated
technology to the world?” — always
provided me the opportunity to
present a ' real ’ history of slavery and
o f indigenous technology on the A f­
rican mainland; That is, details of
those documented accounts which
Bill Cosby described in his famous
tape as “Black history, lost strayed or
stolen.” Facts that are usually omit­
ted in schools and text, and usually
ignored by media.
For instance, ranging from Saugus,
Massachusetts and south to the Ches ­
apeake Bay area, there were over
230“iron plantations” operated solely
with complements of African men,
women and children” — so went the
sales advertising for these profitable
American enterprises in the 18th cen­
tury. I called the British embassy in
Washington and they verified that
the Colonial O ffice’ kept meticu­
lous records of the daily ingot pro­
duction of every slave. Funny, they
only told us’ of “Cotton Plantations
— with a workforce of happy, igno-
Widmer
IJoins Beer
Quarrel
Regional and local brew ers
joined with the w orld’s largest
brewer recently in requesting new
federal rules that would make sure
consumers are honestly informed
about who actually produces the
beers that they drink.
This step is necessary because
o f claims by some companies that
their products are “brewed in small
batches” or “created one batch at a
time” when in fact they are con-
tract-brewed by large brewers who
have under-utilized production ca­
pacity.
Two examples cited in the re­
quest, which was filed with the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms are the Boston Beer Co.,
which sells various brands under
the Samuel Adams name, and
Pete’s Brewing Co., which sells
Pete s Wicked Ale and other prod­
ucts.
rant, spiritual singers.
For research purposes, the former
“Colonial Office” is now the “For­
eign Office”. Also see such authors
in the slave genre as Genovese, (Roll,
Jordan, Roll), Mier & Rudwick(From
Plantation to Ghetto); and see W E B.
Dubois, J.A. Rogers, John G. Jack-
son and Lerone Bennett. The Nation­
al Geographic Index (1888-1988)
will cite a series on “Colonial Amer­
ica" which describes this type of
slave enterprise. I have misplaced
my notes, but will supply the infor­
mation soon.
Next week I will describe the his­
torical background of technology on
the West Coast of Africa. The forg­
ing of iron and “steel” was such a
sophisticated operation that the arti­
sans were divided into three distinct
groups. There were those who made
agricultural implements, those who
produced pots, pans and other cook­
ing utensils, and there were the forg­
ers o f weapons of war. “You don’t
learn that in school” as the old song
by Louis Jordan went. Are there those
who don’t want some o f us to find a
“niche” in the scheme of things?
According to the group’s re­
quest, both companies fail to “dis­
close on their labels that brewers
such as the Stroh Brewery Co., G.
Heileman BrewingCo., Pittsburgh
Brewing Co. and others actually
have been hired to brew, bottle
and package their products...”
Those seeking the new rules
are A n h e u se r-B u sc h , In c.;
Widmer Brothers Brewing Co. of
Portland; Hart Brewing Inc. of
Seattle; Full Sail Brewing Co. of
Hood River; Redhook Ale Brew­
ing Co. of Seattle and the Oregon
Brewers Guild of Portland.
Their request seeks the adop­
tion of rules requiring companies
to inform potential purchasers on
the label of their products if some­
one else has actually produced
th e ir
beer.
The requested rules would also
reqúire that advertising materials
be consistent with label informa­
tion.
“As someone who takes pride
in our products, I am offended by
people who claim to be something
they a r e n ’t,” sa id Jerom e
Chicvara, director of marketing
and sales for Full Sail.
Motivation and a sense of self-worth
is required.
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