February 19. 2003
W Fortiani» ©baeruer celebrates Black History Month
Meek Future in Doubt
continued
from Front
“W e know our kids, this is
lik e a fa m ily ,” said L u cia
Scoggin. a fifth and sixth grade
teacher at Meek. “ I think you
get a better picture o f each kid.
You know what their situations
are. The more you know about
your students the m ore you can
help them .”
She points to the schools im
pressive record of reaching aca
demic benchmarks and does not
see the point in sending 150 stu
dents to a school that is in crisis.
“Why send them to an under
perform ing school?” Scoggin
said.
The school had been perform
ing well and teachers and admin
istrators were working on a school
improvement plan for next year
when news o f the potential clo
sure arrived.
Jackie Wallace has three chil
dren enrolled at Meek. She told
Jim Scherzingerand Bettencourt
that the funding crisis is forcing
parents to move out of the dis
trict.
“We have no choice,” she said.
“If we stay, w e’ re going to punish
their education.”
Vigil to Memorialize
Shooting Death
His tory
Mont
Charles Drew
perfected the techniques fo r separating
and preserving blood. His techniques
helped save thousands o f American and
Allied soldiers’ lives during the Second
World War.
K u KIux K ian F oraged
D eep R oots in O regon
Early residents
bore witness to
lynching, murder
and intimidation
by R on W ebber
T he P ortland O bserver
Byron Hammick Jr.
A candle light vigil is planned in memory o f the man
shot and killed by Portland police during a disturbance
last February at the Motel 6 on Southeast Powell.
Byron C. Hammick Sr. and Lynnettta Jones, the
parents of Byron C. “Bumpper” Hammick Jr. said they
would love to have the support of the community
during a peaceful memorial at the motel on Saturday at
5:30 p.m. The motel is located at 3104 S.E. Powell.
The memorial will mark the one-year anniversary of
their son’s death.
Black people have lived under
discriminatory conditions for most
of Oregon’s history as well as in the
rest o f the nation.
In the past, social discrimination
was common; black people were
regularly refused admission to res
taurants, theaters and hotels. Medi
cal care was difficult to obtain,
unions barred blacks from member
ship, employment practices con
fined them to certain jobs and inte
grated housing was resisted.
H
Passing a state public accommo
dations law to make discrimination
illegal was a long and difficult
struggle. It began in 1919 and d e The former Williams Avenue YWCA was managed by black women and became a community
spite repeated attempts was not center. It was built in l9 2 6 despite an effort by white racists to stop the project because they
successful until 1953. Whenanearly didn't want black people to build on the site. During its early years, the YWCA had classes in
Oregonian was asked what it was Spanish, sewing, hat making, Bible studies, exhibits featuring black artists and activities celebrat
ing black history.
like living in Oregon, his response
was simple and direct;
“Oregon was a Kian state...a now, as far as that is concerned, but man: A Historical Romance of the
banned and shown again. In 1931,
southern state transplanted to the nothing like it used to be.”
Ku Klux Kian," written by Thomas the American Legion brought the
North... a hell-hole when I grew up.
Shortly after the 19T5 release of Dixon. By 1916, the film had worked film to P ortland as part o f a
It has always been a very preju •‘Birth o f a Nation,” The Ku Klux its way to Portland.
fundraiser. Sound had now been
diced state. It is today, believe it or Kian was reorganized. The movie
For the next two decades “ Birth
not. There’s a lot o f prejudice even was based on a novel, “The Clans of a Nation” would be shown.
continued
on page A 5
Colonel Roberts'
service record is a credit
to the country
and the community.
In the spirit of Black History, Wells Fargo honors Colonel George
"Spanky" Roberts. His impressive military career began as a Tuskegee
Airman and he was one of the first African American pilots to fly in the
U.S. Army Air Corps. During WWII, Colonel Roberts fought in North Africa
and Italy, flew over 100 combat missions and commanded the 99th
Fighter Squadron. After his distinguished military career, he continued
to serve his community as a Wells Fargo credit officer. Wells Fargo
salutes Colonel Roberts'commitment to helping people reach the next
stage of success.
Wells Fargo honors Black History.
C 2003 Wells Fargo Banks. All rights reserved. Members FOIC.
wellsfargo.com
A