JA N . 13, 1999 Page A4 ï l j e ¡Portlanò (JDbsertier Editorial Articles Do Not Necessarily Reflect Or Represent The Views O f 3Ilje art lattò Qftbseruer f A tte ntio n Readers! Please take a minute to sen J us your comments. We 're always trying to give you a better paper and we cun't do it without your kelp. TeU us what you like and what needs improvement... any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. We take criticism well! Get you r powerful pens out NOW and address your letters to: Editor. Re a d e r R espons e. P.O. B oa J I F . P o rtla n d OR F 2 Q& (L Hr parttani» (DHserUer Business Manager Mark Washington Distribution Manager Lany J. Jackson, Sr. Editor Laphael Knight Graphic Designer Iesha Williams Graphic Designer Publisher Gary Ann Taylor Joy Ramos Copy Editor Contributing Writers: Professor McKinley Burt Lee Pearlman Yema Measho 4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. BLvd., Portland, Oregon 97211 563-288-0033 • Fax 503-288-0015 Email: Pdxobservfiaol.eom Deadline fo r all submitted materials.’ Articles:Friday, 5:00pm Ads: Monday, 12:00pm POSTMASTER: Send Address Changes To: Portland Observer, P.O. Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208. Periodicals postage paid at Portland, Oregon. Subscriptions: S30.00per year The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manu­ scripts and photographs shou Id be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used m other publications or personal usage without the written consent of the ad. © 1996 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER. ALL RIGHTS RE­ SERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED, The Portland O bserver-O regon’s Oldest Multicultural Publica- tio n -ts a member o f the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885,and The National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Pub­ lishers, Inc, New York, N Y, and The West Coast Black Publishers Association - Serving Portland and Vancouver. SUBSCRIBE TO W $ortianh (Pharrurr ^ » P o rtla n d Observer can be sent directly to your home for only $30.00 per year Please fill out, enclose check or money order, and mail to: S ubscriptions b h ; PO Box 3137 , O regon 97208 C IV IL K l L n l 3 1Î- “The ultimate measure o f a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Martin Luther King Jr. We quote a man from the ranks of those whose vision and impact were a vital force in the world, even, be­ fore they were bom - if you can conceive that. Gifted with a formi­ dable and vigorous capacity for pressing the cause o f mankind, lead­ ers like Dr. King have, more often than not, been labeled as prophets or charismatic precursors o f change. But, also, they have been called “troublemakers,” and have paid the ultimate price for having dared to address the collective conscience o f mankind. How often have I heard it asked, “W ouldn’t it seem that there could be no less controversial message than a universal call (from the moun­ tain top) for equal rights, justice, A few w eeks ago I was listen­ ing to T alk o f the N ation on N a­ tional Public Radio and they were talking about heroes. M any o f the people who called in were lam enting that there are so few heroes today or that our heroes are often found to be flawed. W ell, all hum an beings are less than perfect but at tfiis time o f celebrating one A m erican hero, Dr. M artin Luther King, Jr., I am rem inded that I have been privi­ leged to know and work with some real heroes in my lifetime. O ne o f them we lost in the past few days. Like Dr. King he was an im portant part o f the struggle o f A frican A m ericans to be free. But, alas, his name is not as well known. But he was a hero ju st the same. His name was Charles Earl Cobb, Sr. Dr. Cobb was the first Execu­ tive D irector o f the C om m is­ sion for Racial Justice o f the U nited C hurch o f C hrist, the position which I now hold. But that title only begins to tell the story o f Charles Cobb. Bom in Durham, North Carolina, he saw h is p a re n ts , p a rtic u la rly his m other, fight for ju stice as a sm all child. Indeed, he often told how she fought Duke U niversity as it bought up the land o f the black folks nearby when it was expanding. He attended North C arolina C ollege for N egroes (now N orth C arolina Central I believe) and then Howard Uni­ versity D ivinity School and Bos­ ton U niversity School o f Theol­ ogy. He pastored small churches in K entucky and M assachusetts and then went to St. John’s Con­ gregational in Springfield, MA & and acceptance for 'all o f G od’s children’?” right! And through the ages, nothing seems more certain than such a spiritual message will assure the prophet become a martyr. Returning to the pages o f “Show­ ing My Color” by Clarence Page, the African American columnist whose up front’ book on race was cited here last week, I consider several ch oice quotes to relate in particular to those whose stance is not supportive oP ’chal- lenge and controversy.” (Harper Collins, 1996) We have it from Deborah Tannen, a specialist in gender communica­ tions gaps. “The biggest Tragedy that has happened between the races since the 1960’s its our loss o f hon­ est conversation across racial lines. In contrast to the 1990’s, when ev­ ery crackpot you hear on a call-in radio show talks as if he or she has a lock on the answers, we seemed in the 1960’s to be much more con­ cerned with the questions,” (P.17) Is that ever true as we seem to have more folks than ever tripping a light over the eloquent but naive rhetoric of, “our color-blind democ­ racy ” and “we must do more to ap p re c ia te our diversity- w e’re like the rainbow.” T hat’ll get you through the per­ sonnel agency,or past the registrar or pay a justice system- induced hospital bill the size o f Rodney King’s. Try it. All o f those who would pursue that pitiful little query o f Rodney King- “Why can’t we all just get along?” - could very well avoid the celebration o f Dr. Kings birthday or honors bestowed upon Rosa Parks. Much too controversial. But we need not go so far afield to look for men (or women) to whom we may apply that “ultimate mea­ sure... not where he stands in mo­ ments o f comfort and convenience but where he stands at times o f chal­ lenge and controversy.” We can as­ sess our condition, actions, and rhetoric right here in Northeast and North, can’t we? Certainly, there are a multitude of controversial subjects that are not being explored by leaders or eager throngs. We speak of areas of educa­ tion, real estate ownership and devel­ opment patterns. 1, o f all people, can attest to a pervasive dichotomy in our readership as 1 field calls across gen­ erations and from a spectrum of back­ grounds; parents, students,profession­ als, housepersons, employers, crafts­ men, officials, racists and liberals. If some thought I have been very controversial at times, it is because the truth has always been o f that nature. Sit back and relax for the 1999 trip - if you can! Let’s encourage students to achieve academic excellence in the New Year! As an incentive, tell them about the Independence Essay competition, which will award up to $5,000 to Oregon high school students for the best essays on the foundations ot freedom. Organized by Cascade Policy Institute, the fifth annual Essay Competition is open to all Oregon public, private, and homeschool students o f high school-age (winners to date include sophomores and juniors, as well as seniors). Students compete only against their in-state peers. To receive the guidelines interested persons should call (503) 224-1737, or review them at www.CascadePohcy.org/essay/ essay99.htm. The deadline for entering is March 16. The Independence Essay Competition is an opportunity for Oregon students to be recognized—and rew arded-for extracurricular academic excellence. Please spread the word. Sincerely Ms. Tracie Sharp Executive Director \d \e rtis e In lie jJnvtLinH (Db evu r r Call 5O3-2SS-(H)33 JL7U1V1NZM - in the 1950’s. There he took on the police departm ent because o f its treatment o f black citizens and the education departm ent because o f its treatm ent o f black children and finally challenged the power structure by running for mayor himself. He lost that race but the black community won by virtue o f its new-found political clout and its new ly-organized people. In d e e d , s tr a te g ic p o litic a l skills and organizational capabili­ ties were two o f the gifts that Charles Cobb used on b ehalf o f his people throughout his life. Not long after he ran for m ayor, he was called to the position which he held for 20 years at the Com ­ mission for Racial Justice. There he confronted the churches, par­ ticularly the U nited C hurch o f Christ, w ith their participation in racism and challenged them to work to end all forms o f injus­ tice. He challenged the crim inal ju stice system ’s inequities and promoted program s for the A fri­ can American family. He started a scholarship fund which resulted in th o u sa n d s o f young b lack people receiving a college edu­ cation. The Com m ission for Ra­ cial Justice hired com m unity or­ ganizers who worked in com m u­ nities across the country, helping people to challenge all kinds o f racism . One o f these organizers was a young man in North Carolina, Ben­ jam in Chavis, who along w ith nine others was falsely accused o f set­ ting fire to a store in W ilmington. They became the W ilmington Ten, recognized by Amnesty Interna­ tional as political prisoners. Charles Cobb stood by these young people, urging the church to provide bail for them and then