P age A?
J une 11, 1997 • T he P ortland O bserver
Editorial articles do not necessarily
reflect or represent the views of
1IAL
“I Thought You Knew,
But I See You Don’t!”
t f ^ í í feel something needs
to be said and done
* concerning the sup­
*11
posed "proposed budget” that
was in the Oregonian on Mon­
day, May 5, 1 9 9 7 .
I know my N ortheast brother
and sister will read the O bserver
and Skanner, I d o n ’t know about
the O regonian Did N ortheast
Portland see the proposed bud­
get cuts, w inners vs losers? All
the w inners I saw d id n ’t live
over here in N ortheast Portland
where I'm from, I h aven’t seen a
m ounted patrol, horses and all
that good stu ff like dow ntow n
Portland and north, northw est
with the Auto Theft Task Force.
All I see is “ L osers” over in
N ortheast Portland. The head­
line read “ G ang en fo rcem en t
faces personnel cutbacks, what
does that m ean? AH we have
over here in N ortheast Portland
is gangs, gangs that sell drugs,
crack houses and at the same
time N ortheast Portland is grow ­
ing. We have new businesses
co m in g up e v e ry w h e re, new
housing units com ing. Have you
seen M artin Luther King Blvd.
lately?
Northeast Portland is portrayed
as a mostly black community, I
m usttellyou we areG ods rainbow,
everyone over here is trying to
make it. I would like to ask Mayor
Katz where did she get the statis­
tics or how did she know what to
eliminate when she decided what
has to be taken away? Because
crime is not down over here in
Northeast Portland, 1 d o n 't know
what reports you are looking at,
but I see everyday with my two
own eyes drug exchanges going to
and from work and dropping my
kids off at school in broad day­
light. How can Northeast Portland
survive without the neighborhood
Response Team, Gang Enforce­
ment, and Crime Prevention? Of­
fic e rs R ico, C ash , Ja c k so n ,
Kirkland and Foxworth are the
backbones o f Northeast Portland.
Ifit hadn’tbeen for now Sgt Harry
Jackson and others we would still
have heavy prostitution on the
streets o f MLK and its starting to
pick back up. And I must give
props to the Drug Unit at the North­
east Precinct they give it their all,
you can call in and communicate
with the officers one on one, but
how am I going to do that if every­
one is going on the streets at North­
east Precinct? How do you merge
and cut at the same time? We think
you for not having to lay o ff the
officers but what about the units
that were changing Northeast Port­
land?
If I have my issues mixed up
here 1 wish Mayor Katz would
make things clearer. It just looks
bad when I see a quote from our
own Chief Moose saying “ It kind
o f makes sense to stay with a win­
ner.” Well Chief you stay in the
hood too and you should be just as
concerned as a northeast resident
as I am, you’re the one staying by
the new apartments coming up on
MLK. Just wanted Northeast Port­
land to know we are being left out
when it comes to making deci­
sions for our own community. Just
remember only certain people hold
elective positions only so long.
Thank you,
—T hought You Know
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T hank Y ou F or R eading T he P ortland O bserver
everend
everent Jesse Jackson
J T ^ a n d the
the Ralnbow /Push
A T w C o Coalition
a lltio i m et with Presl-
dent Clinton In i the
1 W hite House,
In an effort to put adequate en­
forcement of civil rights laws
back on the public policy agenda.
The meeting was held after Rev.
Jackson sent the President a
letter raising numerous concerns
about the lack of proper atten ­
tion to Dr. King's legacy.
Excerpts from the letter are given
below:
—Dear Mr. President,
I have sought, unsuccessfully, to
meet with you over the past several
months, along with other civil rights
leaders, to discuss the ominous as­
sault on equality o f opportunity and
equal protection under the law that
is taking place across this nation.
The attacks now threaten to under­
mine the civil rights laws which so
many sacrificed so much to create.
Yet in the fa ce o f this crisis, the basic
structure o f federal civil right law
enforcement is in a shameful disre­
pair that renders it weak and inef­
fective.
Today, the laws guaranteeing
equal opportunity are not being ad-
p e r
(Tl{e JJortlarth (©bserlier
RAINBOW PUSH
C O A L IT IO N
Dear Mr. President
equately enforced. The US Civil
rights Comm reports critical civil
rights agencies are understaffed,
under-funded, and unable to en­
force the law..
There is no Assistant Attorney
General fo r Civil Rights in the Jus­
tice Department This key leader­
ship position in civil rights enforce­
ment remains vacant, with no ap­
pointee yet named. The Office o f
Federal Contract Compliance is fr o ­
zen and ineffective...
The federal courts are hamstrung
by numerous vacancies, many with
no nominee even suggested.
Federal courts in California, were
the fallout o f Prop. 209 will be liti­
gated, have eight vacancies. These
positions, so essential to the justice
struggle, lie dormant, apparently a
low priority, fo r reasons that those
s
p
e
o f us com m itted to equal justice
under law simply cannot fathom
There is no civil rights liaison in
the White House. Christopher Edley,
Jr., who served in your administra­
tion until recently, notes in Not All
Black and White: "For all the great
success the Clinton Administration
has had in achieving racial diver­
sity in the cabinet, the subcabinet,
and the judiciary, the situation has
been lame when it comes to the
P r e s id e n t's ow n W hite H ouse
staff..."
At a time when civil rights are
under attack across the county, when
fundam ental issues o f social justice
are at stake, the absence o f a strong
administration response raises ques­
tions about the views represented in
the inner policy circles.
Who is there at the White House
e
t
i
to insist that funding and staffing o f
the civil rights agencies must be a
priority? Who is charged with insur­
ing that strong judges, com m itted to
enforcing equal opportunity under
the law, are nominated with dis­
patch?
Who is there to rem ind political
advisors that fin e rhetoric is not a
substitute fo r strong policy?
Who is there to ramrod a strategy
to counter those working to gut civil
rights laws across the county?
Who is charged to insure that
work is available fo r the young moth­
ers now required to move fro m wel­
fa re to work ? Who is there to rem ind
the political advisors that moving
people o ff o f welfare is easy, the
challenge is to lift them out o f pov­
erty?
The crisis is now urgent. The need
fo r a coordinated, strong policy re­
sponse is clear..
-R espectfully, Rev. Jesse Jack-
son
The P re sid e n t did re sp o n d
quickly, meeting with Rev. Jackson
& Wade Henderson, and promising
another one next week The ques­
tion that remains is, what will be the
policy response?
v
e
s
Science, medicine and ethics, conclusion
z ^ J w ^ h is , of course, is a dis
c u s s io n t h a t sh o u ld
never be concluded - not
as long as human beings and
their frailties cavort about the
world's stage. No m atter how
lofty the profession nor how sac­
rosanct we hold the calling, it
must be remembered th a t as
with “liberty", vigilance is es­
sential to your good health.
/1
We begin today with a concession
to those o f our readers who w on­
dered how we could omit the names
o f famed physical scientists -espe­
cially since it seems that no signifi­
cant negative aspects have beeniit-
tached to these savants. I think tnat
the answer is self-evident. We were
mostly about the healing sciences
and the relevant delivery systems,
this being the area o f most critical
concern to the public. If for no other
reason than to demonstrate at least a
passing acquaintance with the venue
we list the following cast o f charac­
ter; from an earlier time to a fairly
late period.
Max Planck, 1900 (quantum hy­
pothesis); Albert Einstein, 1905 (spe­
cial theory o f relativity); Max Bom,
1926 (Probability interpretation o f
wave function); John Von Neuman
1932 (q u a n tu m lo g ic ); R ich ard
Feyman 1949 (Feyman diagrams);
David Bohm 1970 (implicate or­
der); and during this period we could
cite the unattributed discoveries:
Positron, Neutron, Meson, Quasars,
Etc.
It is not that these were other than
good men, decent human beings
pursuing a quest into the ‘nature o f
things’, questions that have intrigued
man kind from the beginning. Again,
our assessment and critiques were
directed at that element o f the scien­
tific community that quite obviously
had ‘gone w rong’, that no longer
honored the sacred oaths o f their
professions or their promises to “do
no harm.”
There are, o f course, many who
will say that the collective efforts o f
the physical scientists I named led
directly to “the splitting o f the atom
and the resulting horrors unleashed
upon an unsuspecting mankind.”
We may acknowledge that, along
with the fact that science is a seren­
dipity affair at best, but will defer
such a discussion until a later date.
For now we shall honor the request
o f those parents and guardians who
requested more citations o f major
minority achievers in science that
could motivate their charges.
Some o f these magnificent con­
tributors may have been listed be­
fore in these pages but we have a new
generation now that in many cases is
receiving less such relevant knowl­
edge than the preceding. This fact
must be corrected because motiva­
tion and role models are the key. We
begin with Dr. Ben Carson, the gifted
young black neuro surgeon, a gifted
talent from the inner-city who is
known throughout the world as the
best at separating Siamese Twins.
“Gifted Hands,” The Ben Carson
Story. Zondervan Publishing House,
1990.
A Dr. Lloyd A. Hall, perhaps the
greatest food chem ist who ever lived;
the modem method o f preserving
meats (flashdrying); his introduc­
tion o f sterilized spices (ethylene
oxide) and antioxidants revolution­
ized the meat packing and other
food industries; among this African
American’s 105 U.S. and foreign
patents are scores o f other innova­
tions that render our food supply as
safe and healthful as it is today.
B. Dr. Louis Tompkins Wright, a
pioneer in clinical antibiotic research
faced and overcame the same racism
and bigotry as did the other strong
blackmen we honor here. In 1917, a
Lieutenant in the Medical Corps, he
introduced the intradermal method
o f vaccination for smallpox which
became standard in the U.S. Army
Medical Corp, and eventually around
the world. In 1928, Tompkins be­
came the first black police surgeon
in New Yorkhistory. His many other
contributions to the health and com­
fort o f the peoples o f the world are
too lengthy to list here.
An excellent book citing such
contributors as above is “ Black Pio­
neers o f Science and Invention,”
Louis Haber, Harcourt, Brace &
World, Inc., 1970. Ask for latest
edition. This book has detailed ac­
counts and excellent pictures and
diagrams. 7 scientists, 7 inventors
and bibliography.
Just Thinking...
Black American Struggle-The Black Press & Dorothy Leavell
orn at the beginning of
the 1 9 th Century, the
Black Press is 1 7 0 years
The pioneer publishers included
Frederick Douglas, John Russwarm
and W.E.B. Dubois. Early struggles
for freedom in America found Black
Editors on the front line o f the battle.
Chicago has long been producing
militant black writers and editors
who have carried on the tradition
and continued the legacy, campaign­
ing for justice and equality for Black
America and liberation for African
nations. Names like Etta Moten
B a rn e tt, John Jo h n so n , John
Sengstack and Louis Martin come to
mind. Chuck Stone, Be Holman,
Eddie W illiam s passed through
Chicago on their way to national
prominence.
Now in 1997, this legacy is pro­
tected and projected by another Chi­
cagoan, a militant Black Women
Publisher of the Chicago and Gary
Crusader newspapers, our own Dor­
othy Leavell, President o f the Na­
tional Newspaper Publishers Asso­
ciation since 1995. She is a fierce
defender, a fearless fighting cru­
sader for the Black Press and a cham­
pion for justice for Black People.
Dorothy has made an outstand­
ing contribution to the growth and
development o f the influence of the
Black press on the American Gov­
ernment policies that affect the life
and destiny o f Black Americans.
She has opened doors and tom down
walls in the private sector to secure
a fair share o f corporate advertising
in Black newspapers She has con­
fronted the economic power struc­
ture and powerful political figures
whenever unfair and unjust actions
against the Black Community are
discovered. She has earned the con­
fidence and support o f her col leagues
in the 200 publications strong NN PA
with its eleven million readership.
So I Was Just Thinking. Who else
had the courage to mobilize nation­
wide support for the million-man
march when the majority media and
“go along to get along" Blacks were
against it? Who else had the intesti­
nal fortitude todefy the white power
structure and the hostility o f anti
Muslim activists and pay tribute to
M inister Farrakhan as the Black
Press Newsmaker o f the Year at the
National Press Club in Washington,
DC? Who else took a stand behind
Congressional Black Caucus Chair,
Maxine Waters and the legendary
civil rights activist Dick Gregory
when they challenged the CIA on
the Cocaine in the Black Ghetto
issue? Who else would take the moral
high ground and stand on principle
to turn down an invitation to meet
with the President o f the United
States because he would not include
her Board Members in the meet­
ing...? The answer is No One Else!
Nobody but Dorothy. No Black
Leader but the leader o f the Black
Press has stepped up to the plate and
hit home run after home run on
behalfof Black America. NoNNPA
leader has matched the militancy o f
the late Carlton Goodlett, going
against the odds on a “ High Risk,
high gain” strategy. No one else has
stood tall when it was unpopular to
support a Doctrine o f Fairness for
Sub Saharan Africa and protest (he
racist double standard that would
give Most Favored Nation Status to
Red China while seeking economic
sanctions against a Black Nigeria.
Yes, this female fighter for free­
dom isaconsum m ate practitionerof
confrontation politics and anti es­
tablishment strategies needed by an
oppressed and disadvantaged people.
The power o f her pen, the opinion
making power o f her Black Press
C olleagues, the voice o f Black
A merica is thrown behind other
Black leaders likeC. Delores Tucker
ofthe Black W omen’s Political Cau­
cus, Dorothy Height o f the National
Council o f Negro Women, Rev. Jo­
seph Lowery o f Martin Luther King’s
Southern Christian Leadership Con­
ference, Merle Evers and Kwesi
Mfume o f the NAACP, High Price
ofthe National Urban League, Presi­
dential Candidate Jesse Jackson of
Operation Push, Coretta King of the
Martin Luther King Center, Minis­
ter Ben Chavis, head o f the Black
L e a d e r’s S u m m it, Rev. Leon
better 'bd 'bhe (3LÚt¿r
Send your Idlers lo lhe Fdilor lo:
Fdilor PO Bo*. 3137, Portland, OR 97208
Sullivan o f OIC o f America and th
African Afrixan - American Sum
mit.
Across this nation if you find
battle going on against racism
against poverty, against injustice an
inequality anywhere, anytime yoi
will find Dorothy Leavell on th
firing line at the cutting edge o
history. So when she goes to Corpo
rate America to seek advertising fo
Black Newspapers they see the ad
vantage o f saying “Yes!” to her re
quests. When she asks Coca-Cola
General Motors, Anheuser-Busch
Texaco, Philip Morris and othe
Fortune Five Hundred Companie:
to listen, they listen!
W hen she petitions the Whitt
House in the Battle for the Mind oi
President Clinton and urges Blacl
Americans to do for Africa wha1
Jewish Americans do for Israel. The
president is more than willing tc
respond positively and the masses ol
Black American prepare for a sec­
ond m illio n -m a n m arch. W ith
Women!
Surely we need to keep this lady
on the case! She not only talks thal
talk, but she walks that walk. And
she has only just begun! She has a
plan that needs more time to com ­
plete. She needs to continue what
has been started.
The NNPA 1997 election in Nor­
folk Virginia should give her a man­
date to go forward together with her
Board and constituents against the
odds o f government and corporate
downsizing and the resurgence of
racism in America as the struggle
continues.