w - Y * :v « ESC * ¿*£ J ru ti^y S ô E fr vS-SS^nt;-. •'•*:• Minority usiness: Where are our u ff alo? Il The boss Readers respond to issues of African American economy By Prof. McKinley Burt Last week’s article certainly got a resounding response from some o f the readers: First, I was pointedly reminded that in my book, “ Black Inventors o f America,” I devoted a chapter to a discussion o f so-called “ Black Capitalism” and an optim is­ tic forecast that even give the cited economic and social disabilities ot the times (1969), there appeared to be enough movement to spark a f i­ nancial “ Renaissance.” (B uffalo re­ turning?) And almost an equal number have asked i f I saw the Associated Press article last week stating that the buy­ ing power o f L a tin o consum ers “ is s lo w ly g a in in g on A fric a n A m e ric a n p u rc h a s in g p o w e r: $348 b illio n th is year fo r an I I percent sector o f the p o p u la ­ tio n ." We had cite d blacks at $450 b illio n fo r 12 percent o f the p o p u la tio n . T h is in fo rm a tio n from the S elig C enter fo r Eco­ nom ic G ro w th ’ defines purchas­ ing power as "the total personal in­ come available after taxes for spend­ ing on goods and services." I did indeed and was as impressed as the readers who noted “ the phe­ nomenal rate o f growth o f the Latino economy” and the fact that Hispan­ ics have a national “ chamber o f com­ merce in Washington, D.C.” These comments centered around our reader’s concerns about “ a lack ot structure and direction in today’s African American thrust to gain eco­ nomic parity in Am erica,” - which took many back to an earlier query in these pages: “ So just what was the 'M illio n -M a n -M a rc h ' a ll about, where are the returns on the invest­ ment o f all that social capital’ ?” There were several references to the international “ G-7 Economic Conference” held in Denver this past weekend, w ith one black business­ woman saying: "Y ou would think by this time. African Americans would be holding regional economic con­ ferences around the county, assem­ bling and making available for our own use’ the incredible talent and wisdom o f the black technological geniuses you cite d last week. Shouldn’t that have been what the ’ M arch’ was about...a determ ¡nation and commitment to return home and develop /implement our abundance o f resources, from Neighborhood C apital’ on up?” A woman w ith two sons in col­ lege asks “ are we not still educating our children for sale to the highest bidder, industry or new black mar­ ket men?'...ratherthan designing and fin a n c in g co m m un ity econom ic structures whereby their talent and vigor can be channeled into enter­ prises to enrich our lives. She cites the church/food market connection featured in a recent edition o f the Portland Observer. Others point out that governmen­ tal support o f 'M in o rity Business' and Set-aside' contracts are under heavy fire and phenomenal attrition - paralleling the attacks on "race- based structures” in the educational sector And some point out. sensi­ bly, “ it may all very well be our own fault” - an African American view ­ p o in t being in cre a sin g ly heard around the country Among other cities, the Reader Columns’ in Atlanta and Milwaukee com m unity newspapers have re­ flected a growing admission ot a naivete that permitted politicians to play a'race hand” from singing along w ith the Freedom Marches - to the Great Society - to Model Cities - and finally to Urban Renewal (Re­ moval) and the death throes o f any hopes o f a functional African A m eri­ can business comm unity that would be uncontrolled and directed by the Federal Government. Last week’ s report o f a Native American CEO and his tribe's in­ dustrial conglomerate (casino -fi­ nanced) prompted such inquiries as “ Why d id n ’t we continue or resume the real estate development suc­ cesses o f earlier black Portlanders0 - their financing came from com­ m unity-ow ned investment clubs, monies pooled from their salaries to provide housing and business. " Next week we continue our search for the buffalo AirTouch Paging is doing some­ thing it has never done before... selling pagers for only 99C! These are all top quality pagers from Motorola and we’re selling them for for less than a buck. We can only extend this offer through the end of June. So hurry, even though we’d like to, we can’t keep the boss tied up forever. Package includes: 994 Pager (selected models) 300 pages per month 1 month o f free voicemail Pager maintenance Details: $20 Activation fee and 3 months o f service at $9.95/mo. required Annual contract Offer expires June 30, 1997 M M O TO RO LA Pagers O reg on h o m e lo a n ra te s c o m e d o w n Interest rates on R esidential Mortgage Loans w ill be reduced from 7.25 to 7 percent effective immediately, according to Baruti L. Artharee, Director o f Oregon Hous­ ing and Com m unity Services De- 0Ci