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C oer E d it o
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Charles H. Washington
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sentative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers
Association • Serving Portland and Vancouver.
Gross Injustices Galvanized Human Rights Offensive
by
half-brother, J. W. Milam, did what they thought
V ictor E. B i ksbazen
The nation’s reaction to the O.J. Simpson
verdict of Oct. 3,1995 seemed to fall along racial
lines. Whites thought he was guilty and an
injustice was done, while African-Americans
overwhelmingly supported his innocence.
To comprehend fully this response, one
must understand what happened on Aug. 28,
1955, 40 years earlier. That episode and its
aftermath probably galvanized the last great
human rights offensive, which reached its cli
max eight years later, on Aug 28, 1963, with the
March on Washington. I was a high school
senior and, as is typical at that age, care-free and
girl-crazy.
Aug 28,1955 was the day that 14-year-old
Emmett Till was abducted at gunpoint from his
uncle’s home, beaten, shot in the head and
thrown into the Tallahatchie River, with a 70-
pound cotton gin fan tied around his neck with
barbed wire. His mutilated body was found three
days later. The whole criminal act, from start to
finish, was the result of having said— on a bet
with other black teens— “Hey, baby!” to Carol
Bryant, a 21-year old white woman.
Roy Bryant, Carol’s husband, and his
any honorable, self-respecting, red-necked white
man would have done. They killed Emmett Till.
Emmett had been bom and raised in Chi
cago. He did not understand Southern racial
“etiquette” (Jim Crow) and their customs, which
were rooted in slavery and exploitation. On Sept.
3 1955, the defendants were acquitted in Sumner
been out long enough to have a cola.
Dan Wakefield, a reporter for the Nation
magazine, wrote: “When the people first realized
that there was national, even worldwide public
ity coming to Sumner and the murder trial, they
wondered why the incident had caused such a
stir. At the lunch recess on the first day of the
trial, a county health office worker who had
Part o f growing up black in the South 50 years
ago was hearing tales o f black men who simply
went for a walk one day and were never seen or
heard from again.
— Victor E. Buksbazen
County, Miss, on the murder charge. They were
subsequently acquitted on the kidnapping charge
in Leflore County— even though they readily
admitted abducting Emmett, but said they re
leased him when they realized that he was the
wrong person! After being out for an hour and
seven minutes, the jury returned a verdict of not
guilty. One juror casually remarked that they had
stopped by to watch the excitement asked a
visiting reporter where he was from, and shook
his head when the answer was ‘New York.’
“’New York, Chicago, everywhere,’ he
said, ‘I never heard of making such a mountain
out of a molehill,” ’ he quipped. Over the past
three centuries or so, there have been a vast
number of similar cases. The only ones we know
about, though, are those that received wide
spread publicity, for one reason or another.
The Till case was the one which galva
nized African-Americans and the world human-
rights community to action. For these kind of
stories are a part of the black mythos, an
aggragate of attitudes which form the African-
American mindset. Those gross injustices are
the warp and woof of the collective black ge
netic memory, a consciousness shared by all
members of the race, even those ancestors who
where never themselves enslaved.
You see, part of growing up black in the
South 50 years ago was hearing tales of black
men who simply went for a walk one day and
were never seen or heard from again. So, to
understand fully why African-American and
white perceptions of justice and police actions
are so different, one must first comprehend this
background.
It helps to explain why so many blacks
applauded when the Simpson verdict was read.
Victor E. Buksbazen is a form er Free
dom Rider who lives in Spokane, Wash. He
was a Human Rights Commissioner from 1997-
2000.
Vote to Restore Parks and Recreation—Again
by
S cott M ontgomery
The November levy will restore and con
tinue to maintain our local parks, play fields and
recreation programs. It will restore services like
In the May primary of this year, about 70
percent of Portland voters approved the Parks
Levy that would restore basic park maintenance
and recreation programs. Why are we voting
again? Because not enough Portlanders re
turned their ballots to reach the required 50
litter removal, restroom cleaning and mowing;
restore basic upkeep and safety of parks, natural
areas and recreation facilities; Restore recre
ation programs for youth, seniors and families;
percent turnout.
As a result, our parks suffered additional
cuts in services this summer, on top of cuts of the
replace unsafe, out-dated play equipment and
play fields - in parks and around schools; and
restore after-school programs to provide safe,
past several years.
But we can restore our vote and restore
our parks.
constructive places for kids to go.
Many of our parks’ buildings are over 70
years old, with an average age of 60. They have
[S3
safety issues, deferred maintenance and cannot
meet the needs of our growing population. Funds
from the parks levy will address urgent safety
issues like outdated electrical systems, crum
bling walls, pest infestations and water problems
in swimming pools, community centers, and
maintenance facilities.
Parks and recreation are an essential part
of ourquality of life— especially in an uncertain
economy. It is critical that parks and recreation
facilities stay open and provide affordable family
and community gathering places in neighbor
hoods all across the city.
The parks levy will help protect our
investment in both parks and recreation facili
ties, and continue the services we have come
to rely on.
The Portland Parks Levy will mean the
difference between preserving and restoring an
essential feature of our neighborhoods and our
city, or letting it decline into even greater disre
pair. It will keep our parks clean, open and safe.
And that’s important, because without parks, it
wouldn’t be Portland.
Scott M ontgom ery is a m em ber and
vice chair o f the Parks and Recreation Board.
Young
Turkey Breast
Bone-In. 5 to 9-lb. frozen.
SAVE up to 99c lb.
Giving our best.
Fresh Pork Top
Loin Chops
Great
Meat
Säle!
Boneless. O r Roast. All Natural.
SAVE up to $2.49 lb.
B eef
New York Steak
Bone-In. Valu P ack
Broil or grill.
SAVE up to $3.79 lb.
SAFEWAY CLUB PRICE
Meat’s The
Buy This Week
at Safeway!
Captain’s Choice
Cooked Shrimp
Tail-Off. 91 to 1 K M .
Sold frozen in a 2-lb. bag for $8.00 ea.
SAVE up to $4.49 lb.
lb
SAFEWAY CLUB PRICE
Visit Safeways
Web site at
www Safeway com
I
Available at
Safeway:
W IS T IR N
U N IO N
O IM IR O
C M N N IM U T O «
PRICES EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 2002
Post Cereals
Golden Ripe
Bananas
Great source of Potassium.
Selected varieties.
13 to 16-oz. Honey Bunches of
Oats. 17.2 to 20-oz Shredded
Wheat. Limit 6 (Includes 3 Free).
SAVE up to $1.76 on 4 lbs.
SAVE up to $3.79 on 2
4J1
BUY ONE GET ONE
FREg
Safeway Club Price
Safeway Club Price
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p n m n ihn ad are a v afa l* «t your local Safeway store,
No win to dealers retiaurann or mtMuMn,
<wm d son* aero, may he bmaed and «RRert to «raRabUy
Noi rmponuW» lor typographicP or piclonal m o n
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Now the savings are in the Card!
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A U , LIMITS ARE PER
HOUSEHOLD PER DAY!
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