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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 1997)
P age A4 N ovember Attention Readers! p e r (I S P S 959-680) Established in 1970 That supplement to the title for this series may suggest nourishment'. (ia rv A nn l ay lor K us in ess 3 tun uger Larry J Jackson, Sr Director o j Operation but you w ill see that to be quite in keeping w ith last week's promise to Iesha W illia m s (iriip liic Design M ike Leighton Copy Editor evaluate the earlier economic possi b ilitie s o f the N .W corner o f NE ( 'ontrihuting II riters: Professor M c K in le y Burt. Lee Perlman, Neil Neilpern 4747 NF. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland,Oregon 97211 503-288-0(133 • Fax 503-288-0015 Email: Pdvohservfn aol.com Deadline fo r all s uhmitted materials: Articles Friday. 5 :0 0 pm Ads: Monday. 12:00pm POSTMASTER: Send Address Changes To: Portland Observer. P.O. Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208. P eriodicals postage p a id at P ortland. ( Iregon S ubscriptions $30.00 p e r y e a r The Portland O bserver w elcom es freelance submissions. M anu scripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and w ill be returned it accompanied by a self addressed envelope. A ll created design display ads become the sole property o f the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications o r personal usage w ith o u t the w ritten consent o f the general manager, unless the client has purchased the com position o f such ad ( 1996 f i l l P O R T L A N D O B S E R V E R . A L L R IG H TS R ES E R V E D . R E P R O D U C T IO N IN W H O L E OR IN P A R T W IT H OUT! P E R M IS S IO N IS PROHIBITED The Portland O bserver—O regon's Oldest M u ltic u ltu ra l Publica tio n —is a mem ber o f the N ational Newspaper A ssociation—Founded in 1885, and Ih e N ational A d ve rtisin g Representative Am algamated Publishers, Inc. New Y o rk, N Y . and The West Coast Black Publishers A ssociation • S erving Portland and Vancouver. Si BSCRIBE TO (Tin'|Jortl;iiib (Ohseruer I he Portland Observer can be sent directly to your home for only $3000 per year Please fill out. enclose check or money order, and mail to Si list rimions T he P oru \ ni > O bserver ; PO Box 3137 P or i i and , O regon 97208 Name: Address: C ity, State: Zip-Code: T hank V oi F or R eading T he P ori land O bserv er Davis rises to new challenge Continued from Front c a lle d , b u t w e d id n ’ t g e t the chance to im p le m e n t it. T he ru g was p u lle d fro m u n d e r u s !” P o rtla n d S c h o o l s u p e rin te n dent Jack B ie r w ith a n n o u n c e d s ta ffin g changes. " I t was v e ry ro u g h , lik e a slap in the face o r a p u n c h in the stom ach -- p re tty p a in f u l, ” she sig h e d. “ He n e v e r cam e o v e r to ta lk to us o r g iv e us a g o o d re a so n " she said. Judy B ry a n t g o t h e r s lo t at H u m b o ld t D a v is ta u g h t fo r 12 y e a rs — grades F irs t. T J iird , F ifth and S ix th -- b e fo re b e c o m in g a u n it le a d er at M a rtin L u th e r K in g E l e m e n ta ry S c h o o l, w h e re she w o rk e d fo r 20 years. A s a u n it le a d er, she c o o r d i nated c u rr ic u lu m fo r p r e - k in d e r g a rte n th ro u g h second grades, w h a t she c a lls “ a s c h o o l w ith in a s c h o o l." That firs t taste o f s c h o o l a d m in is tra tio n in v o lv e d 3 5 0 c h i l dren in 16 classes. D a v is beam s w ith p rid e abo u t her part in d e v e lo p in g a v o lu n ta ry d e s e g re g a tio n p ro g ra m at M L K . r e c a llin g a v is it to C h i ca g o d u rin g the 1970s to re v ie w a m o d e l p ro g ra m th e re . W h ile at M L K . she w as nam ed w o m a n o f th e y e a r b y th e w o m e n 's e d u c tio n s o ro r ity , re c e iv e d an e x c e lle n c e in e d u c a tio n a lu m n i a w a rd fro m O re g o n C o lle g e o f E d u c a tio n and was in c lu d e d in th e 199 0 W h o ’ s W ho She h a sn ’ t put the p la q u e s on her o ffic e w a ll at A p p le g a te ye t. “ I 'v e been to o busy tr y in g to le a rn A p p le g a te and its p r o g ra m s ,” she to ld the P o rtla n d O b s e rv e r. “ T he a e sth e tics w ill co m e la te r.” E ven w ith a new s c h o o l, D a v is s t ill has c h a lle n g e s . W ith 271 stu d e n ts at a s c h o o l in a lo v e ly F a rra g u t P ark s e ttin g , she has 12 c e r tifie d te a ch e rs and o n ly th re e e d u c a tio n a l assista n ts fo r tu to r in g and o th e r tasks. “ T he teachers are d e te rm in e d to h e lp me m ake it s u c c e s s fu l,” she said, n o tin g s c h o o l-w id e in v o lv e m e n t in the 90 m in u te d a ily re a d in g b lo c k s , and 60 m in u te b lo c k s fo r b o th w r it in g and a r ith m e tic . A p p le g a te ’s th ir d g ra d e test scores are the lo w e s t in the d is t r ic t . “ We s t ill have a b ig c h a lle n g e , b u t we w il l rise to the o c c a s io n ," D a v is said. I he firs t re g io n a l assessm ent tests w e re g iv e n last m o n th and the s c h o o l is a w a itin g its fir s t s c o re s . " A f t e r p a re n t-te a c h e r c o n fe r e n ce s th is “ scores w il l m o n t h ,” she s a id , be e v a lu a te d and c u r r ic u lu m g o a ls w i l l be re vam ped to re fle c t the c h ild r e n 's n e e d s ." “ M y h u sband R a lp h has been m y ro c k , g ro u n d in g me in a ll these c h a n g e s ," said D a v is . “ B e 19th and Alberta. The sturdy, stone form er-M asonic Temple has seen quite a number o f players on its state: from fraternal a ffilia tio n , to health spa, church, sec ond-hand store, you name it. We begin here w ith the year 1982. when I became aware that both the build ing and the equipm ent o f the current operator were fo r sale. This enterprise proved to be an "In stitu tio n a l Food S upplier" and its customers were c ity , state and fed eral facilities ranging from army bases to correctional facilities. In fact, that supplement to the title is taken from a U.S. A rm y supply bulletin I have before me, “ Master Menu for Febru ary 1983" (planned; published and mailed to interested institutional sup pliers August 1982). Several restau- fie skeptics scoffed when Reverend Jackson first announced a second match to "Save the Dream, "arguing that Sacramento is just not a march ing town. Gov. W ilson's flunkies scoffed, too. saying it was “ too little, ! to late." But is was not too little, as thou- : sands and thousands o f marchers converged on the Capitol last M o n day m o rn in g , to oppose the resegregation o f higher education in I the once-golden state o f California. And it is definitely not too large, as Reverend Jackson hascalled fora j third “ Save the Dream" march in Los Angeles next February. This j struggle is far from over-as Dr. King said, the arc o f history is long, but it bends toward justice. Pete W ilson is only the latest in a ’ long and tragic series o f mean-spir ited politicians who have divided Americans by race, as a means o f advancement to higher political o f fice. Gov Wilson was onee regarded as a mixlerate Republican (a species Eugene McCarthy defined as those p e e t i r e s The North Will Rise Aflain Master Mem > V M ark W ashington D is trib u tio n M anager O bserver JJnrtlanh © hscruer s ' ^Invthuth (ObscrUv Charles W ashington Publisher A Editor and Editorial articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f DITOFIAL Please take a minute to send us your comments. W e’re always trying to give you a better paper and we can't do it without your help. Tell us what you like and what needs improvement... any suggestions are welcomed and appreci ated. We take criticism well! (jet your powerful pens out NOW and address your letters to: Editor, Reader Response, l*.(). Bos 3137, Portland, OK 97208. 5, 1997 • T he P or u rant chains were also served by this N.E. A lberta St. Operation W hen I met the o w n e rs, m y firs t th o u g h t was " I m ust be in a S c a n d in a v ia n S e n io r C itiz e n s C e n te r". Each fr ie n d ly e n tre p re n eur seem ed Io be w e ll o ve r six le e t, b lo n d e , b lu e -e ye d and o ve r se ve n ty years o f age' A n d that la tte r c h a ra c te ris tic seemed to he no p ro b le m as th e y to o k me on a b ris k to u r o f the huge, tw o -s to ry p la n t; fo llo w e d on w ith le is u re ly in s p e c tio n s . M y second thought was that "th is reminds me o f my first encounter w ith the middle-aged and elderly black men o f the "A cm e Business C lu b ." I became the accountant for this group in 1947. learning that their cooperative e ffo rt and com m itm ent to com m unity had created the W ill iams A ve. business district -- and much else that was wiped out by Urban R e n e w a l'. Of course. 1 was aware that an economic reprise o f that magnitude was beyond reach, nevertheless this were m aking any num berol declara tions ami promises o f support in re operation, il handled properly, could be the Key U n it fo ra Northeast Busi ness Renaissance. I he owners, w ell past retirement age, were quite w ill i ng to cooperate i n a n u m be r o f he I p- ful ways to expedite a sale. (M a in ly the bu ilding for$80.(K)0). You heard prise that could revive the economic state o f the nation's mnercities. And right! O w n in g e v e ry th in g free and clear and under no fin a n c ia l pres sures, the operators were quite w il l ing to w o rk w ith an A fric a n A m e ri can g roup in a project that w ould not o n ly transfer o w n e rsh ip but w o u ld also m aintain the e xistin g custom er base. I he youngest ow ner and tw o key em ployees w o u ld stay on fo r advice and counsel lo r a period to be negotiated. Several things are to be kept in mind at this point. First, the Federal M in o rity Business oriented agencies RAINBOW PU$H C O A L IT IO N S a v e T T ie D r e a m #3 w ho "come dow n out of the lulls after the battle, to shoot the wounded"). However, that was before Wilson began to use race as a wedge issue to prove his right-w ing credentials; be fore he pushed Prop. 187. attempting to blame C alifornia's economic woes on Hispanic immigrants; before he tried to lim it Native American tribal sovereignty; before he joined the Faubus/Wallace side o f history, by sponsoring Prop. 209, which is now resegregating California's professional schools. This battle is not over. The mere fact that a small m ajority o f voters approved a well-funded and mis-la- beled initiative which lim its equal op portunity for Blacks & Browns in C alifornia does not mean it was right; nor does it mean that Prop. 209 w ill ultimately pass constitutional muster. A fte r all, even Bakke allowed consul eration o f race and gender. Besides, most C alifornians voting on Prop. 209 last year only heard one side ol the story on T V -G o v . W ilson's lim itin g equal opportunity in higher education, and because o f Rex. Jackson’ s intense effo rts to keep lig h tin g to save Dr. K in g 's dream. C a lifo rn ia voters are hearing another spect to w ell-structured new enter in respect to w holesale/industrial lood vending the S .B.A. had backed several m in o rity airline food opera tions that were proving successful. It was also the case that not only was I bringing my ow n business back ground and accounting experience to the tale in negotiations w ith the ow n ers. but I brought in as consultants, an experienced food manager o f long acquaintance and a senior faculty member o f the business department o f a local university. A t this point, I should mention that the owners (not cash-strapped) were w illin g to go along w ith a rea sonable o ffe r - not governm ent - backed - from a group that would develop its own financial plan. C o n t’ d. next week side. Notice that noone who supported Prop. 209 last year is out there brag ging about the results this year. No tice that none o f the outspoken right w ¡tigers who argued that affirm ative action should be replaced w ith a broader assistance program based on need or class, has yet stepped forward to introduce such a replace ment program to the state legislature. Notice that Gov. W ilson has not yet brought forward Ins equal funding/ Head Start/pre-natal plan, to start all our schoolchildren on a level play ing field. They never intended to; their ar guments last year were just cover for dividing Californians by race. These were promises they never intended to keep. Jesse Jackson made a promise he w ill keep. He promised Dr. King that he would keep his dream alive. He promised Dr. K ing he w ould keep fighting for justice. He promised Dr. King he would keep on inarching. Save the Dream March #3. Los Angeles. February. W e ’ ll be back. Civil Rights Journal Teaching Children Survival Skills B y B ernice P owell J ackson I remember when I first heard a parent talking about it. It was right after the Bernard Goetz, incident in the New Y ork C ity subways where several black youth were shot by a man who claimed they were menac ing him. The mother was talking about teaching her teenaged sons how to survive in New Y o rk C ity - how not to look "threatening," how to dress, what to look at on the subway. But now. according to a recent New York Tunes article, parents o f children o f co lo r are feeling the need to teach their children, especially their sons, how to act when they are stopped by the police. A new kind o f survival s k ill fo r children o f color. One A frica n Am erican parent, a banker, had tostrategize w ith his son p rio r to buying him a new car. They planned what to do when a police o ffic e r stopped the son because he was d riv in g a nice car. They decided that the son w ould carry his father’ s business card and o ffe r to let the police o ffic e r call his father. A H is panic parent told how her child, de spite much coaching from his par c le a rly it happens too ofte n , across class, education and p o litic a l lines. C h ild re n o f m id d le class fa m ilie s ents, already had been stopped three times at gunpoint by the police. Each tim e he was in a car that the police suspected o f carrying drugs, but no charges were ever brought. are ju s t as subject to be stopped as ch ild re n o f the poor. A n d g irls are v ic tim s as w e ll as boys. One A fr i can A m e rica n m other to ld how her tw o daughters. 17 and 18 years Some agencies w hich w ork w ith young people are teaching them sur vival skills in dealing w ith police officers. One Bronx-based youth pro gram is beginning lessons in legal and c iv il rights issues fo ryo u th and a old , were co m in g out o f a subway station w ith th e ir b o yfrie n d s when they heard gunshots A ll fo u r found Harlem agency already is teaching a course called C onflicts w ith Cops to help young people in their encounter w ith police officers. Even m in o rity police officers associations counsel youth on how to deal w ith police. The piesident o f the Latino O ffice r Association, for example, tells the young people to note the o ffic e r’ s name and to use it throughout their them selves pushed against a w all w ith guns to th e ir heads by police A nd her son. a cham pion fencer, was stopped in a subw ay station in a w h ite co m m u n ity and asked what he was d o in g there. W hen he re p lie d he was g o ing to a fencing club dow n the street, he was taunted and not believed by p o lice . And make no mistake about it. this is not just a New Y o rk C ity phenom enon. Parents o f color in cities across encounter. T a rg e tin g youth o f c o lo r is not a the nation are f inding they must teach their children these new survival ta ctic o f every p o lice o ffic e r, but skills. Polls show that people o fc o lo r believe that police officers do not treat people o f c o lo r and whites w ith equal fairness. Indeed, that is one o f the greatest chasms between w hile Americans and people o fc o lo r - their b e lie f in the justice o f the crim inal justice system. I he fact that many police officers do not live in the com m unities they serve aggravates many o f the stereo types th;il some o f them have about youth o f color. Thus, they scoff at the story by the black youngster that he is a fencer or they believe that only a drug dealer could be d rivin g a nice car. It's a sad comm entary fo rch ild re n o fc o lo r It's a sail comm entary for our nation. As long as parents o f co lo r find themselves having to teach their children how to survive an en counter w ith police, we w ill know that racism is alive and w ell in this country. In the words o f one parent. “ I s depressing. I f I had not told my son to be cool and respectful, he w ould probably be dead.” Big Economic Gains Lift Very Few Children N u m b e rs o f U n in s u re d C h il- ilrc n and W o rk in g P oor F a m ilie s H it R ecord H ig h s The C h ild r e n 's D efense Fund tw e e n m y h u sband and m y L o rd , I m ade it . " exp re ss d is a p p o in tm e n t in the v ir tu a lly u n ch a n g e d c h ild p o v "W e a re g o in g to put A p p le g a te on the m ap in s p ite o f the o d d s !" e rty rates fo r 1996. even w h ile m edian in c o m e rose. The rate o f c h ild p o v e rty d e c lin e d by o n ly th re e -te n th s o f one p e rc e n t fro m 1995 to 1996, and rose s lig h tly fo r c h ild re n in w o r k in g fa m ilie s . " M a n y cla im s have been made ing to rise out o f p o v e rty , and even w orse, some are lo s in g th e ir h e a lth co ve ra g e as w e ll. ” about fa m ilie s w ho have le ft w e l :In the f i f t h year o f e c o n o m ic fa re ," said C D F P resident M a ria n W rig h t E d e lm a n “W h ile fa r too re c o v e ry , o u r c h ild re n deserve a fa ir share o f the fr u its o f e co p e rce n t in 1996, c o m p a re d to I 3.8 p e rce n t fo r a ll A m e ric a n s ). L ik e w is e , m ore than tw o -th ird s o f a ll A m e ric a n s lo s in g h e a lth lit tle n o m ic g ro w th , but th e y are being co ve ra g e in 1996 w ere c h ild re n . is know n about th e ir c h ild r e n ’ s w e ll-b e in g , to d a y ’ s data w a rn us that m any are f a i l d e n ie d it . " said E d e lm a n The c h ild p o v e rty rate is h ig h e r than that o f any o th e r age g ro u p (ih e c h ild p o v e rty rate was 20.5
