ia
P age B2
1007 •
T up P orti and O bserver
Where are ou r buffalo? Closure
by
P rof . M c K inley B crt
W e find it necessary to reassure
several readers that (here w ere some
very progressive and forw ard-look
ing A frican A m erican businessm en
in the 1950 and I960 econom ic fer
ment in Los A ngeles. T hey simply
were outnum bered by an am bitious
and narrow ly-focused m ajority who
occupied and controlled center stage
in the black com m unity (m ore later
on the "progressive” ).
C ertainly, this is not a bad situa
tion in itself, since, typically, this is
the econom ic engine w hich drives
urban developm ent But, it is also the
case that in the institutionalized ra
cial structure o f A m erica the very
same situation may give rise to a
black power structure with some very
unusual (and restrictive) powers.
T oo often this group, as in Los
A ngeles, has a relationship to the
white establishm ent that is very sim i
lar to the “advise and consent" role
o f the U S. Senate in respect to the
President.
T o d ay ’s establishm ent may not be
as brutally frank and direct as in the
days when Booker T. W ashington
fielded the inquiries preceding the
appointm ent or prom otion of an A f
rican A m erican to an im portant posi
tion, "Is he/she a good, safe nigger
(sic)?" H ow ever, the d a n c e ’ is much
the same.
I believe that I m ade an incisive
and revealing assessm ent o f this prob
lem in my M ay 1997 series ofarticles
in T he Portland O bserver, "W ho
should interpret A m erica’s N eigh
borhoods " But, nevertheless, we
m ust ask “how can there be a return
o f the buffalo” - that is the logical and
prosperous developm ent o f A frican
A m erican resources-w hen we are
constrained by the social and eco
nom ic co n tro ls d escrib ed above?
(Sheepherders?).
In the April 2, 1997 edition o f The
Portland O bserver, there appeared,
to my delight, a very relevant article
by Cathy G albraith. D irector o f the
Bosco-M illigan Foundation: "N orth
east Portland and Light R ail-U rban
Renew al or R em o v al.” Particularly
cogen t w as her o bservation that,
" peo p le’s hom es and businesses
should not be clinically exam ined as
"under-developed real estate "
My neighbor cam e over to q u es
tion, "w hat have o u r usually effusive
leaders and black spin-doctors had
to say about this? I’ve neither seen
nor heard anything at a l l I asked my
senior citizen friend, "and exactly
how m uch did you hear from this
fraternity in opposition to th e " Model
c itie s’ w ipe-out o f the black business
com m unity-or to the later Em anuel
H o s p ita l’s su p e r-a m b itio u s , but
aborted plans for the rem aining real
estate w hich w ould have been a natu
ral extension (or rep lacem en t) o f the
black business d istrict."
T his question, o f course, was rhe
torical and we w ent on to discuss
contem porary im plicationsand m od
els o f that ‘y u p p ie-o rien ted ’ ec o
nom ic developm ent caper, high rises
and all. The properties were acquired
by ‘em inent d o m a in ’ fo ra fraction of
their real econom ic value, and then
left standing vacant for years, unpro-
ducti ve in terms o f com m erce or taxes
for the city-hut very productive in
term s rats, vermin and drug pushers.
L ooked like the w ar-torn areas o f
Lebanon.
In respect to the m ore “p ro g res
siv e” A frican A m erican business
people o f that frenetic area o f Los
angeles econom ic activity, I p articu
larly like tocite the sag ao f the “Spikes
F am ily” w ho established the "M ecca
M ortgage C om pany” in the 1920’s.
T hrough the years this rem arkable
group m ade many great co ntribu
tions to the entire com m unity, fi
nancing thousands o f hom es, p ro
m oting plays and concerts and su p
porting charities.
A ccounting clients o f m ine (late
1950’s), they show ed me new spaper
reports where, to publicize a concert
in the 1930’s they had a black woman
to parachute into an outdoor arena to
begin the program . And it was the
eldest brother, Richard B. Spikes,
w hom I featured in my book, “Black
Inventors o f A m erica” : Invented an
A utom atic G ear shift in 1932 (Patent
1,889,814), a related transm ission
the next year, and m uch else. T w o o f
his granddaughters reside here in
Portland.
T his was but one o f the “progres
siv e’ groups at the tim e, but, u nfortu
nately as happens in many cities,
they w ere greatly out num bered by
the gate-keepers. T here will be m ore
soon in a later series on “ M inority
Econom ic D evelopm ent”-depending
on read er’s responses These are c ru
cial tim es and we need to be as alert
and vigilant as ever.
ENTERTAINMENT
Ouitars &
Sax Tour
Peter W hite perform s At The
Mt. Hood Jazz Festival on Sunday.
A ugust 3, 1997. along W ith Rich
ard Elliot. Rick Braun & Craig
Chaquico.
P eter’s latest album C aravan ol
D re a m s, is c u r r e n tly #1 I on
B illboard’s C ontem porary Jazz A l
bum Chart
Caravan of D ream s continues in
the R&B vein o f his previous two
d isc s ( 1 9 9 3 ’s P ro m e n a d e and
I9 9 4 ’s R eflections). To better a c
centuate the urban sensibilities his
previous album s only hinted at. he
chose to collaborate with veteran
producer Paul Brow n, w hose street
vibe with Boney Jam es has helped
make the saxm an one o f rhythm
and jazz’s prem iere perform ers
And just when you think it can t
get any better. Jam es tops it by
featuring B a sia o n his latest single
“Just A nother D ay” ...put it all to
gether, and you have a street-sm art
grove with a free-spirited breeze.
Peter brings to the album and the
stage a care-free, infectious energy.
For more information please con
tact VMG (310) 275-9697
Peter White
lues Fest success
Food Bank
Free Summer Heritage School
A lim ited num ber o f spots, for
youngsters age II to 15, are still
available in V ancouver’s free,eight-
day S um m er H eritage School. The
program is presented w eekdays, be
tween July 14 and 23. from I to 4
p.m., at G rant H ouse, 1101 O fficers
Row.
their choice.
T his Sum m er o f Service project
is a partnership o f the C ultural D i
vision o f the V ancouver-Clark Parks
and R ecreation D epartm ent, the
H um an Services C ouncil, the G rant
H ouse Folk A rt C enter and W ash
ington State U niversity.
S um m er H eritage Schixil features
field trips through V ancouver’s N a
tional Historic Reserve, w hich in
cludes Fort V ancouver N ational H is
toric Site, O fficers Row, V ancouver
B arracks and Pearson Field.
Students will also w ork on a spe
cial project on the historical topic of
in traditional & contemporary jazz, blues, and much, much more!
• K in g E le m e n ta r y S c h o o l. 4801
• (* * )R o o s e v e lt
Idaho Street, noon - I pm
S c h o o l. 2921 Falk. I lam -noon
• V a n c o u v e r H o u s in g A u th o rity
• F ru it V a lley E lem en ta ry S ch o o l.
E le m e n t a r y
S c h o o l . 8 1 0 0 N E 2 8 th S tre e t.
I 1:20am- 12:20pm
• H o u g h E lem en ta ry S c h o o l, 1900
D aniels. 12:45pm -1:45pm
• W a sh in g to n E lem en ta ry S ch o o l.
2908 "S ” Street, noon-1 pm
• ( ’ )I m a g e E le m e n ta r y S c h o o l.
4 4 0 0 N E 122nd A ve., 12:25pm-
1:25pm
• ( ’ )M in n e h a h a
E le m e n t a r y
S c h o o l. 2 8 0 0 N E 5 4 th S tre e t.
I 1:45am- 12:45pm
• H a rn ey E lem en ta ry S ch ool .3 2 1 2
E ast E v erg reen B lvd., 12:20pm -
Day camps entertain
Day cam ps for preschool kids ages 2 - 1Z2 to 5-1/2 years
are running at Marshall Center, I(X)9 E. M cLoughlin and
Bagley Center, 4 1 (X) Plom ondon. Day cam ps operate from
9 a m to ntxin M onday through T hursday. Parents can sign
up for two, threeor four d aysa week. C hildren must be toilet
trained to participate. W eek ly th em es a r e a s follow s:
• S essio n 5. July 2 1 to 24 Puppet Pals and P aper M achc
• S e s s io n 6, July 28 to 3 1 Rainbow s, Ribbon and Rhym es
• S essio n 7, Aug 4 to 7 Stam ps, R ocks and Stickers
• S e ssio n 8. Aug. 11 to 14 K oolaid. C am ping and Kids
Activities include arts and crafts; nature walks, water
play, recycling activities, cixiking, dram a, music and sci
ence experiments. Children should bring a lunch. Fees
range according to how many days are chosen. Limited
scholarships are available. Call Pattie Am ann, 696-8065
for details
E le m e n t a r y
(M eal O nly). 500 O m aha W ay,
11:45am- 12:45pm
P a ren t P erm issio n Slip: Perm is
sion slip must be com pleted the first
day the child is in the program. Per
mission slips can be obtained from
Bagley Com m unity Center, or from
the site leader at the playground site.
’ E lig ib ility F o rm s: M innehaha
and Im age E lem entary School re
quire an incom e eligibility form to
be com pleted.
’ ’ H ea rin g Im p a ired : Roosevelt
E lem entary School will have sign-
skilled staff for hearing-im paired
youth.
3301 Fruit V alley Road, lpm -2pm
• P ete r S . O gd en
Rail service, operated under con
tract by Amtrak, w ill be available
between Vancouver and Portland
for the duration o f the 2 1 -day clo
sure o f the northbound structure o f
the Interstate bridge during its re
pairs, beginning Sept. 16.
Oregon and W ashington Depart
ments o f Transportation approved
the contracted service as part o f the
project’s Traffic M anagement Plan.
I
I L«
The V ancouver-Clark Parks and Recreation D epart
ment has several children ’ s coed sports cam ps and classes
scheduled in July. They include the following classes:
S o c c e r clin ic: Learn soccer skills. Session I: ages 4-
5, from 9-10 a.m. Session II, ages 6-8, from 10:30-
11:30 a.m. both sessions take place on Saturdays, July
I2-A ug. 9 (no class Aug. 2) M eet at the w est end of
D avid D ouglas Park, or in M arshall C en ter gym in case
o f rain. Fee is $15 ($13 for city resident).
A ll sp o r ts y o u th cla ss: For ages 4- 7. Try a variety o f
sports, learn the basics o fT -b all, soccer and basketball
M eets Saturdays, July I2-A ug. 2, from 9 -1 0 a m. at
Bagley C enter Fee is $15 ($13 for city resident).
Y o u th b a sk e tb a ll cla ss: For ages 4-7. Learn basic
skills, play gam es. M eets on Saturdays, July 12-Aug. 2,
from 10:30-11:30 a.m. at Bagley C enter. Fee is $15
($18 city resident).
day, only.
Amtrak will be using Amfleet cars,
accom modating approximately 700
passengers per trip.
Trips between the tw o cities are
estimated to last between 20 and 30
minutes.
Parking w ill be available near the
Vancouver Amtrak station and on
Fourth Plain, with shuttle service
provided by C-Tran.
In Portland, additional parking
near U nion Station w ill also be avail
able along with direct access to Tri-
M et’s transit mall, downtown.
The train w ill be offered free o f
charge to commuters traveling be
tween Vancouver and Portland dur
ing the bridge repair project.
From Vancouver, three morning
trains w ill be offered to commute™
tr a v e lin g from the V a n c o u v e r
Amtrak Station located on West 1 1th
St., south to Portland’s Union Sta
tion on N W 6th A venue, at 5:30,
6:45 and 8:00 a.m.
Evening trains w ill leave Port
land at 4:00, 5:15 a.m., returning at
4:30 and 5:45 p.m. all train service
w ill be offered Monday through Fri-
I
: -.¿•je*. •• .
A
A A
’W l
__
A
presented by
f f « îfflq u ity Group Inc., Realtors
■ ■
9eor9e$ M ^
V
*
Kids learn sports basics
Amtrak answers 1-5 bridge closure
Added rail runs to
ease bottleneck
ere Jcttzliïsiival o f the Pacific Northwest...
1:20pm
Lunches are provided at these sites:
dance tor the weekend is estimated
at more than 100,000, with tens of
thousands of spectators overflowing
the bow l in Waterfront Park to watch
the July 4th fireworks.
I lie Oregon Potters Association
sold enough handmade pottery at
the festival to earn $12,000 for Or
egon Food Bank through theirEmpty
Bowls project In only live years the
project lias gleaned $50,000 and has
already helped the food bank pur
chase a truck.
MT. HOOD COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Summer Playground Program
The V ancouver-C lark Parks and
R ecreation S um m er P lay g ro u n d
Program runs M onday through Fri
day, from 10 a m. to 2 p in. at nine
elem entary schools.
The program features arts, m u
sic, sports, and field trips designed
around a w eekly them e for children
from kindergarten to sixth grade. A
one-tim e fee o f $3 helps buy sup
plies for the sum m er, although no
child will be denied participation if
the family cannot afford the fee.
Lunches are available to all chil
dren attending the program and to
others under the age o f 19. Children
who are mem bers o f Rxxl stam p
households or Aid to Fam ilies with
Dependent Children (A F D C ) are au
tomatically eligible for the free lunch.
ger-relief agencies. Food Bank
officials estimate that the Water
front Blues Festival covers ap
proximately five percent of its
annual operating costs.
Organizers had worried that cut
ting the festival from five days in
1995 and 1996 to four days this
years would heavily impact dona
tions. Despite the change, cash do
nations increased by $5,000 and the
totals for food donations dropped by
less than 10 percent. Total atten
O regon Food Bank an hunger-
relief agencies across O regon and
C lark C ounty, W ashington are cel
ebrating the Fourth o f July a few
days late, as staff finish w eighing
food and counting cash donations
from the IOth A nnual M iller Genu
ine Draft W aterfront B lues Festival.
G ate d o n atio n s o f $ 16 0 .0 0 0 anil
nearly 7 0 ,0 0 0 p o u n d s w ill en ab le
O reg o n Food B ank to p ro v id e a p
p ro x im ately one m illio n p o unds
o f food to local and reg io n a l hun-
* ™
featuring: G e o r g e
Benson • DIZZY™: The M an & The Music,
an all-star tribute to Dizzy Gillespie featuring Randy Brecker,
Jon Faddis, Ignacio Berroa, Billy Childs, Paquito D'Rivera & John Lee • The Rippingtons
featuring Russ Freeman • KKJZ 'Smooth Jazz' All-Stars featuring Rick Braun, Brian
Culbertson, Boney James & Peter W hite • Diane Schuur with Art Abrams Swing Machine
• Bela Fleck & The Flecktones with special guest Paquito D'Rivera • McCoy Tyner • Earl Klugh
• Jean Luc Ponty • Eddie Palmieri • The Heath Brothers featuring Jimmy, Percy, and Albert
Heath • Diana Krall • Boney James • Kevin M ahogany • Randy Brecker & Denis
DiBlasio • Billy Childs • Heads Up Superband featuring Kenny Blake, Joe McBride
&
G e r a ld
V e a s le y
) V
•
and
m u ch ,
m uch
m o re !
y a s e p a r a te F r id a y N ig h t Blues e v e n t w ill p re s e n t B u d d y
G u y , R o b e r t C r a y B a n d a n d P a u l D e L a y B a n d o n F rid a y , A u g u s t 1.
FESTIVAL* OF
Daily general admission tickets, as w e ll as a special 3 -D a y Pass fo r $ 6 0 , are available
at all
locations, including G l Joe's and Meier & Frank outlets, or by calling
503-224-4400
S p ir it r>l l i l t ’
X o r tliic e s t
K A I II
S
P O R T L A N D
I/o/f(?JízPc?/Z7
BOYD COFFEE COMPANY
O
call (5 0 3 ) 2 3 2 9 1 6 2
A*A
V
A fre r r K i .ri,t i
fiî;s
AmencanAtrlines
JazzTimes
• BEARD FRAME SHOP
For furth er inform ation,
106.7
• COLUMBIA SPORTSWEAR
M U SIC lA N D / SAM GOODY RECORDS • PEPSI • P02W
k kj z
• ODWALLA
•
• SOKOL BLOSSER WINERY • TAZO TEA