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co u rse; no b ru s q u e orders o r c o m ­
m an d s, on ly a no d o r raised eyebrow .
Y et, it w as a w o n d ro u s tim e, and you
k n ew that, g en erally , it w as b eing
etal fabric ripped a su n d e r’ by c h il­
dren, n o less.”
L eaving asid e for a m o m en t the
C o n tr ib u tin g W riters:
P ro fe s s o r M c K in le y B u rt,
s o y o u ,th e c h ild ,
p r o j e c te d th is
th ro u g h o u t th e
Joy Ramos
an o p p o rtu n ity to m a k e an im portant
point. 1 h av e not been alo n e in m y
day, abroad o r in the n eighborhood. A
visitor w as as w elco m e as the plague.
POSTMASTER: Send Address Changes To: Portland Observer,
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c o n ten tio n that m an y o f th e physical
a ssau lts an d m uch o f th e vandalism is
d u e to a lack o f u n d e rstan d in g o f the
valu e an d u se o f perso n al sp ace and
In a w o rld w ith a g reat deal o f o rd er
and a fair d e g ree o f certain ty , this
s itu a tio n p re v a ile d at th e m a g ic
P e r io d ic a ls p o s ta g e p a i d a t P o rtla n d . O regon .
S u b sc r ip tio n s: $ 6 0 .0 0 p e r y e a r
The P o rtlan d O b s e rv e r w e lc o m e s fre e la n c e su b m issio n s. M a n u ­
sc rip ts a n d p h o to g ra p h s s h o u ld b e c le a rly lab eled an d w ill b e re tu rn e d
ev en in g hour: A n a ssig n ed p lace for
co n se q u e n tly , the p erso n al nature o f
p ro p erty w ithin it. M an y d are not ow n
ev ery perso n an d a u n ifo rm seq u en ce
if ac c o m p a n ie d b y a s e l f a d d re s s e d e n v e lo p e . A ll c re a te d d e sig n d is p la y
ads b e c o m e th e so le p ro p e rty o f th e n e w s p a p e r an d c a n n o t b e u sed in
o th e r p u b lic a tio n s o r p e rs o n a l u s a g e w ith o u t th e w ritte n c o n se n t o f th e
g e n e ra l m a n a g e r, u n le s s th e c lie n t h a s p u rc h a s e d th e c o m p o s itio n o f
su ch ad. © 1996 T H E P O R T L A N D O B S E R V E R . A L L R IG H T S
R E S E R V E D , R E P R O D U C T IO N IN W H O L E O R IN P A R T W IT H ­
O U T P E R M IS S IO N IS P R O H IB IT E D .
Bv
The brutal m urderofJam es Bynd Jr.,of
Jasper, Texas allegedly by three whitemen
w asam odem -day lynching that recallsthe
A sso c ia tio n • S e rv in g P o rtla n d a n d V a n c o u v e r.
worst atrocities o f the ugly era when racial
discrimination ruled American society.
Today, racial discrimination no longer
rules American society.
(Hlje ^ o r t i a n b (O b s e ru e i-
But the slaying o f Jam es Byrd Jr.-y et
another episode o f racism taken to the
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P u b lish e rs, In c, N ew Y o rk , N Y , a n d T h e W est C o a st B lack P u b lish ers
P ortland , O regon 97208
extremes of deadly violence—underscores
the fact that racism remains a significant
factor in American life.
For women as a group, and for blacks
and other people o f color, the substantial
progress made in expanding opportunity
has not eliminated the barriers they face in
thew orkplaee-norinjust living theirlives
free o f racist and sexist violence.
City, State:_________ _________
Z ip -C o d e :
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Data on incidents ofracist violence and
l
_ a .
better
Send your letters to the Editor to:
Editor, PO Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208
D e a r N o rth P o r tla n d N e ig h b o r,
w i l T ^ k X 18 “ n d e rt“k m 8 a P a n n in g p ro c e s s fo r im p ro v e m e n ts at th e P o rtla n d In te rn a tio n a l R a c e w a y (P IR ) that
t
iJ ? "
the B u r e X o f P
In
,nfr f
t0
r i
“ T h en , c o n tem p late ify o u w ill, the
rich n ess an d variety o f the co n v ersa­
tions an d in fo rm atio n that w ould flow
back an d forth acro ss this ‘su p p er
ta b le .”
T h e b ro ad k n o w led g e an d
aunt com ing from their
respective room s (no
w ay those tw o could
share a space).
e x p e rie n c e o f m an y ag e g ro u p s an d
o c c u p a tio n s reach the ears o f adult
an d ch ild alike. A p artm en ts, public
h o u sin g an d urban b o u n d aries have
N e x t, I w o u ld
b ounce in from m y
ch a n g e d th e c u ltu re.”
w as o vercrow ed with
balls, bats, gloves, ‘toy
g u n s’, erector sets, etc. Fifth and sixth
w ould b e m y gran d fath er’s tw o old
m aid cousins, the retired seam stresses.
T hey w ould have had a lot to do w ith
the preparation o f the m eal and their
contribution w ould co ntinue w ith the
serving, They shared a room so m e­
w here in the house, a m ysterious place
that w as o f f limits.
P erhaps now , th ere w ill be g reater
understanding and com prehension for
som e in resp ect to w hat I d escrib ed as
“o ne of civ ilizatio n s m ost im portant
hours." Those "personal sp in s"p laced
on fam ily ch an n el new s w as an early
O n e s n eig h b o rs, b ein g part o f the
"It tak es a w h o le village to raise a
c h ild " scen e; saw to it that th ere w ere
no ‘latch k ey te rro rist’ in the n eig h ­
b o rh o o d . A w o m an at a co ffee sh o p
said, “y o u r city m ust hav e been like
m ine. W e had a ‘M arian W right
E d elm an ” in ev ery block, w eall cared-
w e ‘w e r e ’ th e social a g en cy .”
S everal y o u n g fathers said, “no
w o n d er y o u r youth could plan and
o rg an ize so w ell as teenager,; the inter­
n eig h b o rh o o d ball gam es and bicycle
races funded and structured w ithout
adult superv ision in m any cases, the
m o o nlight excu rsio n s dow n the M is­
sissippi co n tracted by y o u rse n io rh ig h
school class. O u r genes co u ld n ’t have
ch an g ed so fats. W h a t’s g o in g o n ?
•
. _
hate crimes gathered by the anti-Defama-
knowledge the decency and courage o f
tion League and other organizations show
that organized white-supremacist hate
tribution-of those conservative and so-
Ronald L. King, whose son is one o f the
called centrist media commentators, poli­
accused. The open letter o f “apology” he
issued this week w asa sel fless act from one
who, from the depths o f his ow n sorrow',
ticians, professors, and think-tank fellows
w ho’ve spent the past year disparaging the
Clinton Race Initiative.
urges us all to follow the path toward
redemption.
I’ve looked for them these past few
days.
"It hurts m e deeply," Mr. King wrote
with obvious anguish, “to know that a boy
Instead, I found that profound silence
from them which signals their retreat be­
hind walls of blindness and denial to wait
for the shock ofthe m urderofJam es Byrd
Jr. to fade away, to wait for us to forget.
It's up to those o f us w ho are not blind
groups still constitute a serious threat.
But, even m ore worrisome, those w ho
closely track hate crimes say that hate
groups actually commit less than 5 pereent
o f them. The rest are the work ofindividu-
als.
“W e’re in the era o f freelance hate,”
Brian Lev in,” an expert on hate crimes,
told USA Today this week. "You may
have people w ho go to a Kian rally, or tap
onto a web site, but they’re their ow n
franchise.”
Thosewoids,chillingastheyare,should
not dismay us. They should energize us to
do the work that needs to be done.
Mr. Byrd’s murder, occurring as it did
near the first anniversary o f President
Clinton’s much-maligned race relations
initiative, also underscores something veiy
noticeable-andpem icious-aboutthedis-
n J s ,b 1
ing purposefully from his room to the
head of the table. M y m other and my
and im p o rtan t ‘N E T .’ I believe I put
it as follow s.
O n T h e M u rd er O f J a m e s B y r d Jr.
The P o rtla n d O b s e r v e r - O r e g o n ’s O ld e s t M u ltic u ltu ra l P u b lica-
t i o n - i s a m e m b e r o f th e N a tio n a l N e w s p a p e r A s s o c ia tio n - F o u n d e d in
T he
from the w ings, stage right, o r stage
left.. M y dignified grandfather strid­
sm all cubicle w hich
tion at school, M ay 30, "T h e C o lo red
O rp h an s H om e").
It is to be n oted h e re that the d in ers
usually c a m e to th e table directly from
‘th e ir ro o m s ,’ a n d this fact p ro v id es
traction of television, and the radio w as
turned off. A strident hectic w orld for
m edia w as not allo w ed to intrude-the
‘co m m u n ican ts’ at the table placed
their personal spin on the ev ents o f the
Deadline for all submitted materials:
Articles .Friday, 5:00 pm Ads: Monday. 12:00pm
O u r su p p er table (and others) w as
I ike a stage set, with ‘a c to rs’ appearing
! Bi
c o u n try (except
fo r th o se ‘p o o r fo lk s’ fo r w hom you
b ro u g h t can n ed g o o d s fo r th e c o llec­
and, of course, there w as not the d is­
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Portland, Oregon 97211
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anything.
P rofessor
M c k in le y
c it y
and
th ro u g h o u t th e
are w oven into th e w h o le fabric.
I had to reassem ble that universal 6
PM ‘S upper T a b le ’ o f those earlier
days. N o telephones w ere answ ered
L e e P e rlm a n ,
N eil H e ilp e m
S ubscriptions
P ortland O bserver ; PO B ox 3137
t
r e p e a te d
th ro u g h o u t the
n e ig h b o r h o o d ,
q u estio n as to w h eth er w e can ju s tifi­
ab ly incite o u r c h ild ren fo r these
grievious circum stances, I did get c o n ­
sistent requests fo ra recitation o fth o se
“little th in g s" y o u ’ve alw ay s insisted
G ra p h ic D esig n
SUBSC RIBE TO
c
d ep artu re. O u r ta b le w as par for the
say, “y o u w ere rig h t on target th is past
m o n th w ith y o u r an aly sis o f a ‘so c i­
le s h a W illiam s
A s s is ta n t E d ito r
p
of activity from seatin g , to reciting the
b lessin g , serv ice, co n v ersatio n and
p laces again. A n d g en ero u s readers
M ark W ash in g to n
T o n y W a sh in g to n
s
I ’m m aking the ro u n d s o f th e c o f­
fee shops and o th e r n eig h b o rh o o d
(U S P S 9 5 9 -6 8 0 ) E stab lish ed in 1970
L arry J. Ja c k so n , Sr.
D ire c to r o f O p era tio n
r
m P rof . Mt K inley B urt
^îortlanh ©bsewer
G a ry A n n T a y lo r
B u s in e s s M a n a g e r
e
It's The Little Things That Mean (Meant) So Much
,0: Ed>tor, Reader Response, P.Q. Bos 3137, Portland, OR 97208,
D istsrib u tio n M a n a g e r
(Elje Portland ffibseruer
p
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kg 3 7 R
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S’tC A ® P3rt ° f th e im Pro v em en t p la n n in g p ro c e s s, I re q u ested
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^ r e a t t o n to e x p lo re th e fe a s ib ility a n d c o m m u n .ty in terest o f an a m p h ith e a te r at PIR
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m e e t' n 8 s c o n v e n e d w ith lo cal re sid e n ts, n e ig h b o rh o o d g ro u p s, e n v iro n m e n ta l g ro u p s activ ists
*
yt H8” ? , ; " 10 b u s ,n ®s s 8 ro u PS- w e e x p lo re d a d v a n ta g e s, d is a d v a n ta g e s an d affe c ts o n th e q u a lity o f life
■ a te d w ith an a m p h ith e a te r ad d itio n . E n v iro n m e n ta l im p a c ts, n o is e lev els, traffic an d p a rk in g w e re so m e o f
the is su e s a n d c o n c e rn s raised . S o m e o p p o rtu n itie s th at c o u ld b rin g s ig n ific a n t b e n e fits to N o rth P o rtla n d w ere also
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cussion o f race in America.
That is, that w henever an outrageous
incident ofoveit racism suchasthisoccurs,
a deep silence seems to blanket part o f the
nation’s racial landscape.
No, I am not faulting those whites, in
Texas and elsewhere w ho have forth-
rightlycondemnaltherepreheiisibledeed.
State and local officials in Texas appear
to have acted with dispatch to arrest the
men responsible for this act o f horrific
savagery, and they have pledged to inves­
tigate the crim e fully and prosecute it
vigorously.
And, as our sympathies surround Mr.
B yrd’s family and friends, w e also ac-
I raised and considered to be the most
loved boy I knew could find it in himselfto
takealife. This deed cannot be undone,but
I hope w eean go forward in peace and with
loveforall. L etusfindinourheartslovefor
our fellow man. Hate can only destroy."
W ho can deny the troth o f that state­
ment? W e have seen and continue to see
hatred’s destructive force acted out time
and again in this country and around the
world.
The kximing question is: Will we go
forward?
That challenge-has been posed in many
different words this past week by those
to reality to not foiget the work that must be
done.
That is w hy theNational Utban League
has joined with six other organizations to
fight bigotry. O ur partners are: the Anti-
Defamation leag u e, Leadership Educa­
tion for Asian Pacifies, the National C on­
ference for Com m unity and Justice, the
National Congress o f American Indians,
the National Council o f La Raza, and the
National Italian American Foundation.
w ho have been urging the nation toward
W e must rem em ber that if w e A m eri­
such adiscussion-am ongthem , President
Clinton, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, in­
vited by Mr. B yrd’s family to Jasper,
leaders o f the Congressional Black Cau­
cans don tuniteagainstallform sofracism ,
bias and bigotry, intergroup violence will
continue to spread.
I n that regard, it’s not too late to improve
theeflbrt the President’s initiativeon Race
cus, Kweisi M tum e, PresidentandCEOof
theNational Association fbrthe Advance­
has m ade to encourage a frank, positive
ment o f Colored People.
But one group has been noticeably
silent:
discussion o f A m erica’s racial di fficulties.
M r.aintonhim selfshoulddevotem ore
personal attention to it in order to sharpen
its focus and tackle the really tough issues.
W here is the comm ent from those
w ho ve been saying so vociferously that
That is one w ay America can “go for­
w ard,''and in so doing, redeem thesuffer-
w e should not pay attention to race, that we
should be "blind” to color?
Now, w here is the com m ent-the con-
ing Jam es Byrd endured and repudiate the
intent o f his killers.
In te rn a tio n a l R a c e w a y c o m p le x , c o m m u n ity e v e n ts a n d e n h a n c e d o p p o rtu n itie s for a re a y o u th
n e o f th e stro n g e st a d v a n ta g e s to th e p ro je c t id e a at th is tim e is th e p o ssib ility o f p riv a te d ev elo p e rs
c o lla b o ra tin g w ith th e C ity o n th is p ro je c t, sa v in g m illio n s o f d o lla r s in d e v e lo p m e n t a n d c o n stru c tio n c o sts to the
p u b lic a n d in fu sin g m u ch n e e d e d ca p ita l in to th e R a c e w a y P a rk co m p lex .
n r J , ^ rf CM OUvtO g e t ' " V0,Ved in th e p |a n n i" g p ro c e ss. I w a n t to h e a r y o u r id eas a n d c o n c e rn s a b o u t th is p ro p o sed
P J“
kCr 803 18 t0 aSSUre y ° U th a t ,m P ro v e m e n ts a t
P o rtla n d In te rn a tio n a l R a c e w a y w ill w h erev er
p o ss ib le , c o m p lim e n t c o m m u n ity n e e d s a n d p ro v id e lo c a l, as w ell a s c ity w id e , b en efits.
S in c e r e ly
J im F ra n c e sc o n i,
C o m m is s io n e r
I f Y ou H a v e A n y Q u e stio n s A b o u t:
I m p r o v e m e n ts o r P la n D is tr ic t d e v e lo p m e n t
B ry a n t E n g e ft2 3 -6 8 75
P u b lic In v o lv e m e n t
V a u g h n B ro w n 2 3 5 -5 8 8 !
Civil Rights Journal
People O f Color and Disabilities
B y B e r n ic e P o w e l l J a c k -
son
W h e n R a lp h E l l i s o n 's b o o k .
T h e I n v i s ib l e M a n , w a s p u b ­
lis h e d s o m e 5 0 o r s o y e a r s a g o ,
it c r e a t e d a n u p r o a r b e c a u s e it
n o h a r d - h i t t i n g n o v e l to te ll th e i r
in g in C a l i f o r n i a a n d I to ld th e
s t o r y . T h e in v i s i b l e p e o p le a re
th o s e w ith d is a b i l i t i e s .
s t o r y o f a fe d e r a l j u d g e w h o s e
m o t h e r h a d ta u g h t h im an im ­
E ig h t y e a r s a g o th e A m e r ic a n s
p o r t a n t le s s o n a s a c h il d g r o w ­
in g u p in th e S o u th . W h e n h is
w ith D is a b i li ti e s A c t w a s s ig n e d
a n d w e n t in to e f f e c t , p r o h i b it in g
d i s c r im in a t io n o n th e b a s is o f d i s ­
a b i l i t y . A n d w h ile it h a s m a d e a
Honoring tradition and celebrating community. That’s
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that’s why PGE is proud to be the largest corporate sponsor
of this annual festival of music, dance, art and fun slated for
m o t h e r s a w b u s s e s p a s s in g by an
e ld e r ly b la c k w o m a n a t th e b u s
August 15-16 in Cathedral Park. We’re also helping sponsor
invite you to call now about enrollment: 288-3025. See you
e ty . A h a l f a c e n tu r y la te r th e r e
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in o u r s o c i e ty , in c lu d in g in c o m -
s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r e n c e in th e liv e s
o f m a n y p e o p le , th e 5 4 m illio n
s to p in fr o n t o f th e i r h o u s e , h is
m o t h e r w e n t a n d s to o d w ith th e
b la c k w o m a n s o th a t th e b u s
A m e r i c a n s w ith d i s a b i l i t i e s s till
f a c e a ll k in d s o f d is c r im in a t io n .
w o u ld s to p .
m u n i ti e s o f c o l o r , b u t t h e r e is
A fe w w e e k s a g o I w a s s p e a k -
p o in t e d to th e f a c t th a t m i ll io n s
o f A f r ic a n A m e r i c a n s w e r e all
b u t in v i s i b l e to th e la r g e r s o c i ­
y
<$>
Homowo’s African Arts Day Camp for Children in July and
at the festival in August!
C
o n n e c t in g
Portland General Electric
P
e o p l e
,
P
ow er
and
P
o s s ib il it ie s