N ovember 20, 1996 • T he P or eland O bserver
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Local poet reads
C arlo s Reyes and other local poets w ill read from their work from 7 00
to 10:00 pm Thursday N o ve m b er 21 at A c a n th u s G a lle r y , 120 N W 9th
Ave T h is event celebrates the the publication o f T ake Out Press' second
edition
"Aumento Ya” film shown
On Thursday, N o ve m b er 21 at 7:30 p in ., the F ifth A venue C inem a
at 5 I0 S W H all St near P S U w ill feature "A u m e n to V a! A R aise N o w !",
a film docum enting the June 1995 farm w orker strikes in the strawberry
fields o f the W illam ette V a lle y. Film m aker Tom Cham berlain and P C U N
organizers w ill be on hand. T icke t information: 228-8866.
Latino March on Capitol
discussed
C e c ilia G iron w ill give an eyewitness account o f the October 12 Latino
C iv il Rights March on the nation's C ap ito l on Thursday, N ovem ber 21,
at the Northwest Se rvice Center, 1819 N W Everett, Room 201 at 7:00
pm The meeting is free and open ot the public. A Latin Am erican supper
w ill be provided at 6:30 for a donation For information: 228-3090.
Performance at Miracle Theater
"R e g re so a M is S u e n o s" , an o riginal play by Vicente G uzm an-
O rozco opens N o ve m b er 21 at the M ira c le T h e a te r, 525 SF, Stark
Street For information call 236-7253.
Flamenco at Cafe Sol
Sueno Flam enco, featuring Rafaela de C a d iz and guitarist V icto r "el
A gu a"w ill perform from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm Friday, N ovem ber22 at
Cafe So l, 620 S W 9th A ve . C a ll 243-2181 for information
Hispanic orphans need parents
N orthw est A d o p tio n F a m ilie s A sso cia tio n ( N A F A ) w ill conduct an
Adult Adoptee panel discussion at Em anuel Hospital's Conference Room
on Saturday, N o ve m b er 23rd, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm T h is event is in
support ofN ational Adoption Awareness Month. Contact Peggy Lindquist
at 621-9776
Manuel Izquierdo Sculpture
Recent sculpture by Manuel Izquierdo w ill be shown at the L a u r a
R u sso G a lle r y , 805 N W 21st Street, through N ovem ber 30 Born in
M adrid, Mr. Izquierdo has gained nationwide stature as a sculptor, and
received the Oregon G overnor's A w ard in 1971. C a ll 226-2754 for
information.
Pre-Columbian art & jewelry
exhibit opens in Portland
An exhibition o f Pre-Colum bian art and jew elry from M exico, Central
and South Am erica w ill be shown in Portland through N ovem ber at
A b an te Fin e A r t, a private art galle ry located on the corner o f Second
Street and Y a m h ill, adjacent to the M A X line. For information, call Rudi
M ilpacher at (503) 295-2508.
Bones Flowers Sugars-Altars
for the Dead
Coininunifg newspaper seeking inclusive solutions
tn St vx C hi
z
T h is issue m arks the sixth printing
o f the biw eekly Portland O bse rva
dor, and is probably as good a time as
any to pause, and reflect on what we
have done and not done, and what we
are trying to do Fundam entally, we
are ( I ) p ro vid in g an informational
resource for our readers, and (2 ) de
livering an advertising service for
area businesses and other o rgan iza
tions.
We cannot accom plish either task
without the support o f the other and.
since each group is increasingly d i
verse, one should not be too sur
prised to find increasingly diverse
content in the O bserver; hence, the
birth o f the O bservador
A multi-cultural model
In the absence o f a m ulti-cultural
newspaper model to follow or emu
late, we are in the process o f creating
an original design from our humble
offices on M artin Luther K in g , Jr.
Boulevard. In short, we don’t expect
everything we do or print to please
ourselves, let alone a diverse and
highly-opinionated readership as is
ours.
Committed to Reflect Our
Cultural Diversity
We hope that you w ill agree that
we must all strive to get on the same
page to forge solutions that w ork for
all o f us. H ow can we do that if we all
narrowly read different newspapers?
I low can we w ork together if we read
apart?
Strategies that fail to ackno w l
edge and respect each ethnicity that
makes up our com m unity w ill alw ays
fall short.
porting is reflecting our growth geo
graphically.
The owners o f these businesses
are as diverse as the comm unities
they serve. The Association o f K o re
an G rocers wants your business; the
E & M Com m unity Market wants
your business; A -B o y Plum bing and
E lectrical Sup ply wants your busi
ness; M e r r ill L y n c h ’s M a u rice
V a ld ivie so wants your business, to
name a few.
These businesses are owned and
operated by A sian -A m ericans, A fr i
can-A m ericans, A n glo -A m erican s,
Latino-A m ericans and Native A m er
icans. The y are both our advertisers
and our readers, and we encourage
you to call them and find out for
yo u rself what you have in common.
mids in M exico and Central Am erica
or the cultures that brought them into
being. Most importantly, we were
taught nothing about the people who
are descended from those Aztec and
Mayan and other indigenous societies
who populate our communities today,
whose native words now form part o f
the Am erican vocabulary.
The subject was com pletely ig
nored except for a brief look at the
Spanish conquistadores. The aver
age Am erican assumes that names
such as Cortez, and Balboa—15th cen
tury Spanish and Portuguese names-
-are all that is significant about the
history- o f this continent. The O bser
vador hopes to correct those im pres
sions in its own sm all way.
Nature abhors a vacuum-
and so do our readers
T o those who offer criticism d i
rected at the circum stance o f B la ck
ownership o f a newspaper serving
Latino-Am erican interests, consider
these several points:
The content o f the O bservador is
rarely duplicated in local H isp anic-
owned papers and almost never in
E n g lish ; many H ispanics are not flu
ent Spanish-language readers, and
thus the O bservador prints m ainly in
E n glish for their benefit; there is no
com parable alternative resource for
non-Spanish-speaking non-H ispan
ics who wish to obtain information
about H ispanic issues; the spotty dis
tribution and coverage o f the Span
ish-language newspapers makes it
d ifficu lt for any reader to have regu
lar access to Latino issues through
local print media.
There is no single H ispanic com
m unity here or anywhere else, and it
is beyond the scope o f any single
daily or w eekly paper to represent
“the H ispanic view .”
I don't think that the Observador
plus the 4 or 5 Spanish-language
papers currently circulating around
the Metro area added up together
would represent "the H ispanic view
or voice," but we do each in our own
w ays provide significant and vital
forum s for Latino issues.
The Portland O bserver has many
readers who read the paper closely
and regularly, and the O bservador--
and H ispanic causes-are a direct ben
eficiary o f that relationship. It is im
mensely gratifying to receive the dai
ly feedback from you that we do, and
to find so many people throughout
the city who are w illin g to offer opin
ions about something that we did last
week or last month. The Observador
is proving itse lf to be an effective
vehicle in dissem inating information
o f importance to H ispanics through
out the community.
The racial breakdown
A community paper
A year or so ago, a general survey
o f our readership showed that 4 5 %
o f the O bserver’s readers were B lack.
4 0 % were White, 10 % were H isp an
ic, 2 .5 % were A s ia n , and 2 .5 %
marked Other, indicating diversity
along broad racial lines. It’s fair to
say that 100% o f our readers are
interested in issues and view points
pertaining to m inority or B la c k pop
ulations, or to people o f co lor gener
ally, however the labels might fall,
and our business is to put that infor
mation on the table.
The O bservador’s role, as is the
Portland O bserver’s, is not to reach
any single ethnic group, but to reach
our “community” , offering a minority
perspective and an inc lusi ve approach.
The O bservador w ill strive to pro
vide slices o f what is happening in
the local H isp anic com m unities and
also -e q u a lly importantly--try to whet
our reader’s appetites for more infor
mation regarding H isp anic culture
and history.
After all, it is safe to say that none o f
us really knows a great deal about the
subject. For the three generations that
I can safely speak about: mine, my
parents’ and my children's, none o f us
ever had a full hour o f studies about
M eso-Am erican history or cultures
offered in our schools. (See the O C H A
article at the front o f this section)
Diversity in business
The businesses that advertise in
our pages want to encourage your
patronage without regard to the color
o f your skin or the language that your
grandparents speak (T h is must be
why T e xaco hasn't called us). They
generally do business in the heart o f
Portland, although as demand for the
paper is increasing in suburban com
m unities, our advertising and our re
Look to the pyramids
Through our schools we all learned
something about the pyramids in Egypt,
but virtually nothing about the pyra
A word to our critics
We all have so very much to
learn about ourselves.
First and foremost. The Portland
O bserver/Observador is a com m uni
ty newspaper in the most elemental
sense, rising in response to needs
unfulfilled by B ig Media. It came
into being as a pioneer in Oregon
publishing, and remains the oldest
and largest m inority-owned newspa
rural altar displays. Contact 221-0569.
El Vez, the Latino Elvis coming
E l V e z w ill perform in Portland on Decem ber 6 at L a Luna, presenting
a Latino interpretation ot E l Rey de R o c k and R o ll. For tickets, call 224-
4400
Jefferson High Club
Hispano Toy Drive
Please help a child enjoy and celebrate this Christm as by donating to
Jefferson H igh School's T h ird Annual C lu b H isp a n o T o y D riv e . I he
club is seeking assistance so that they can purchase toys priced at about
$5.00 each The club w ill have a F ie sta N avid e n a on D ecem ber H I at
O c k le y G ree n M id d le Sch o o l, where one o f the club members w ill dress
up as Santa C lau s and deliver toys to needy children. For information,
call 916-5180.
Kids need Spanish Books
A ld e r E le m e n ta ry Sch o o l needs donations o f Spanish-language
books suitable for children aged 5 to 12 for its dual language program,
w hich promotes native language literacy w hile im m ersing students in a
second language (either E n glish or Spanish). Contact E v a at 255-4673.
Program de Mujeres crisis line
P ro g ra m s de M u je re s is a program for H isp anic women victim s o f
domestic violence that operates a bilin gu al crisis line M -F 8-12 and 1-5
pm C a li 232-4448 i f you or someone you know is in need o f services.
The C ris is Lin e for the Latina W om an and Program a de M ujeres is
seeking bilingual volunteers who are interested in supporting survivors
o f domestic violence. C a ll 2 3 8 -7 8 3 1 tor volunteer information.
Portland Observador
seeks youth writers
The Portland O bservador is seeking essays by young writers for our In
O ur O w n Words (E n Nuestras Proprias Palabras) feature We would like
to publish your thoughts, feelings and experiences from a H ispanic
perspective. Contact Editor. Th e Portland Observador, 4747 N E Martin
Luther K in g Jr B lv d , Portland O R 97211 Please include the name o f the
school you attend and a daytime phone number
Ci/// (503) 2SS-OO33 now to cu/vertise in
PORTLAND ®BSEI^WAE>©I&
On the plus side
The O bse rve r/O b servad o r has
made a committment to serve the
youth o f our comm unity regardless
o f ethnic background. We believe
that the development o f a youth read-
ership is vital to our success and,
hence, yours. We take their view
points, whether expressed in words
and deeds or through the lens o f a
camera, very seriously.
The eyes have it
In every issue o f the O bservador
we print a photograph taken by one
or another o f the hugely talented
young photographers developed by
the Oregon Com m ission on C hildren
and Fa m ilie s’ “ Straight Shooting” :
project. We hope to encourage these
teenagers and others I ike them to find
a path to success through a career in
photographyor photojournalism. We
named this feature “ Por Nuestros
Proprios O jo s” , or “Through O ur
Ow n Eye s.”
Read! Learn! Act!
(Léalo! Apréndalo! Hazlo!)
We also print youthessaysinbo th,
the O bserver and O bservador. W e,
call this feature “ En Nuestras Proprias;
Palabras” , or “ In O ur Own W ords ” .
O ver the course o f the past six issues,
we have printed some rem arkably
insightful and striking essays written
by M e x ica n , A fric a n -A m e ric a n ,
Cam bodian, Anglo-European-Am er-
ican, Laotian, Filip in o , Puerto Rican
and M exican-Am erican youth.
One can learn a great deal from
these youngsters, and we are grateful
to the A lb in a Youth Opportunity
School and Latin-A m erica/A sia-Pa-
c ific Youth Program for providing us
with such wonderful material. I have
personally read each o f these essays
at least a dozen times and every day
I look forward to what the m ail might
bring from these and other young
writers
In Observando next time...
A look at the ways the languages
o f M eso-Am erica have become as
similated into E nglish, and perhaps a
continuation o f the role o fT h e Port
land Observador.
Regreso a mis suenos plays in Portland
D ay o f the Dead (D ia de los M uertos) exhibit continues through
N ovem ber at A r t o f the People, 8 18 S W First Ave., featuring urban and
ext. 213.
per in the area
The Observer continued its pio-
neering tradition when Joyce W ash
ington became its publisher Mrs
Washington was the only B la ck fe
male newspaper publisher on the
West Coast The Portland O bserva
dor sim ply reflects our recognition
o f the changing dem ographics with
in the O bserver’s distribution area,
and our committment to be part ofthe
solution rather than part o f the prob
lem as we all strive together to build
a comm unity that works.
Teatro M ilagro, M iracle Theater's
touringcom pany, closes its acclaimed
international tour o f “ Regreso a mis
suenos" with a short run beginning
N ovem ber 22.
Regreso is an original bilingual
m usical play by Vicente Guzm an-
O ro zco , M iracle Theater’s resident
playw right. “ Regreso” received its
w orld premiere in M e xico C ity earli
er this year, and is a collaborative
effort with M ila g ro ’s actors and the
Do you want to buy a home?
Desea usted comprar una casa?
Are you confused about how to buy a house? If your income is
close to $1,500 per month or more. The Portland Housing Center
has Home Buying Classes (Translator available).
Esta usted confundido sobre como comprar una casa? Si sus
ingresos mensuales son cerca de $1500, o mas, per mes, The
Portland Housing Center tiene clases en español sobre como
comprar una casa (Hay traductores disponibles).
Donde: PCC Cascade Campus, 705 N. Killingsworth, Terrell
Hall Sala #122, cuando: Sabado Noviembre 16 de 9:00am a
4:00pm.
cre ative support o f A cto re s del
Método o f M exico C ity.
Regreso a m is Suenos continues
E l Sueno Am ericano, the story o f a
fam ily who left a war-tom Chiapas to
settle in the Northwest, \time has
passed, and they have grown home
sick. Promise o f peace talks and
letters from friends bring memories
o f their village and a desire to make
the journey home. In their travels,
they encounter the diversity o f hu
man nature and experience a land
scape o f emotions.
T h e ir arrival in M exico and their
final trek to Chiapas returns them to
the dreams o f a more hopeful future
for their homeland.
Teatro M ilagro is the largest arts
and culture organization in the North
west region o f the United States.
Tw o original, bilingual musical plays
are created every year addressing
important issues o f Latin A m erica
and its people
T icke t prices are $ 8.00, with dis
counts available for students and se
niors. M iracle Theatre also offers a
season subscription plan. Regreso a
M is Suenos w ill run from Novem ber
22-24 with performances on Frid ay
and Saturday at 8:00 pm and Sunday
at 2:00 pm at the M iracle Theater,
located at 525 S E Stark Street. A
silent auction w ill take place after the
Sunday performance For inform a
tion, call 236-7253.
MIRACLE THEAT RE PRESENTS
REGRESO A MIS
SUENOS
NOV. 22 - 24
AN EXCITING BILINGUAL
MUSICAL!
EES 77 VA L DE NA 1 IDA D
DEC 6 - IS
A Mi l III 1 I II R i l CHRISTMAS
CELEBRATION EOR i l l AGES!
O
«
M ilagro
<
l i
Iwl
M iracle - X
RESERVE YOUR
TICKETS NOW!
525 SE STARK
236-7253