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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 11, 2006)
M a r tin L u th e r K in g jR . and R o sa P a r k s Page A4 2 0 0 6 s /> e e t a i lanuary II. 2006 e d i í i o n ____ Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer O pinion Taking Stock in How We Treat C hildren America’s ideals for justice fall by M arian W right E delman At the beginning of a new year, many of us choose to take stock of where we are in our lives and compare it to where we hope to be. Some of us might count numbers on a scale or in a savings account. If our nation took stock by measuring how we treat our children, what would we find? W e’d learn that a child is abused or neglected every 35 seconds—906,000 a year— and dies from abuse or ne glect every 6 hours in America. The number of children abused and ne glected each year would fill the city of Detroit. A child is bom into poverty every 36 seconds in America; 12.9 million chil dren are poor and 5.6 million of them live in extreme poverty. The numbe: ofpoor children equals the population of the state of Ohio or the nation of tal care, enough to fill the city of Zimbabwe. The number of extremely Bridgeport, Conn. Every 19 minutes a poor children exceeds the population baby dies in the fust year of life; the of Maryland or the nation of Libya. U.S. ranks first among 30 industrial A baby is born with ized countries in health technology yet out health insurance ranks 25,h in infant mortality. And every 42 seconds. More than 9 million chil dren are uninsured; 85 percent of them have at least one working parent. Their number exceeds the popula tions of New Jersey or the nation of Haiti. A child is killed by a firearm about every 3 hours— almost 8 a day; 96,000 children have died from firearms in America since 1979. They would fill Boston’s Fenway Park nearly 3 times. every 22 hours a baby’s mother dies in Every 75 seconds a baby is born to childbirth. a teen mother. The 432,(XK) babies Millions of American children start born to teen mothers each year amount school not ready to learn and millions to more than the population of the city more lack safe, affordable, quality of Atlanta or the nation of Luxem childcare and early childhood educa bourg. Every 4 minutes a baby is born tion when their parents work. A ma to a mother who had late or no prena jority of all American fourth graders God has blessed the United States o f America with great wealth and power. Why do we choose to let children be the poorest age group in our nation. Alito Would Jeopardize Civil Rights Dislikes legal remedies for discrimination slavish allegiance to J ulian B ond a narrow and ex If Judge Samuel trem ely restrictive A. A lito is c o n firmed by the Sen view of our Constitu ate for a seat on the tion has prevailed. As a judge on the U .S. Suprem e 3rd Circuit Court of Court the civil rights Appeals, Alito hasdis- and civil liberties of all Americans will be in imme agreed with and dism issed diate jeopardy. widely agreed upon remedies The NAACP opposes the for racial discrimination, equal by In his 15 years on the federal bench, Judge Alito has almost never ruled for black plaintiff's in employment discrimination cases. confirmation of Alito because of his past indifference to the impact race and racism has on American society. Wher ever and whenever the rights of racial minorities have con flicted with his radical conser vative views. Judge Alito’s opportunity protections in the workplace, the universally ac cepted principle of one-person, one-vote, and valued protections long established in our criminal justice system. In his 15 years on the federal bench, Judge Alito has almost never ruled for black plaintiffs in employment discrimination cases. He has never written a majority decision for the Third Circuit in favor of an African American plaintiff on the mer its of a claim of race discrimi nation. If Samuel Alito's views had prevailed, I would never have beer elected to public office in Georgia in 1965, nor would thousands of other minority candidates have had a chance to offer to serve their commu nities. He has disagreement with a series of court rulings in the 1960s that enabled more African Americans to become successful candidates. All or any of these voting cases, so basic to the very foundations of our democracy, is reason alone to reject his nomination to the high court.” Alito's record taken whole or piecemeal, argues forcibly for his rejection. Julian Bond is chairman o f the N A A C P N a tio n a l Board o f Directors. H ealthy Birth Initiative can help. H ealthy B irth Initiative (H B I) is a pro g ram for African A m erican w om en and their families living in N /N E P ortland. HBI offers: someone you know pregnant • Transportation to m edical a n d social service a p p o in tm e n ts • H o m e Visits • Incentives • H ealth ed u catio n classes (free childcare and tra n sp o rta tio n w hen a tte n d in g any H BI gro u p or class) • Inform ation and referrals to co m m u n ity services For more inform ation contact: «Ht ■■■L COUNTY .«Kf tflH Health Department Hc.ilthy Birth Initiative 5329 NF. Marrin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Portland, Oregon 97211 503-988-3387 *22242 a:i’r P o rtlan d (Observer Established 1970 USPS 959-680 ___________,_________________________ Send address changes to Portland Observer, P0 Box 3 1 3 7 , Portland, OR 97 2 0 8 4 7 4 7 NE Martin Luther King. Jr. Blvd.. Portland. OR 97211 Subscriptions are $60.00 per year Charles H. Washington E d it o r . M ich a e l L eig h to n D i s t r iil iio h M anager : M ark W ashington C reative D irector : P aul N eu fe ld l O ff ic e M anager : K athy L in d e r E ditor - in - c h ie f , P ublisher : 503-288-0033 FAX 503-288-0015 The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and w ill be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope A ll created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or personal usage without the written consent o f the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition o f such ad © 1996 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER A L L RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION IN W HOLE OR IN PART W ITH O U T PERMISSION IS P R O H IBIIED The Portland tlbserver -Oregon's Oldest Multicultural Publication -is a member o f the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885. and The National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers. Inc. New York. NY. and The West Coast Black Publishers Association, Serving Portland and Vancouver I can’t read or do math at grade level including more than 5 in 6 Black and Latinochildren. Our educationally ill- prepared 4 th graders exceed the popu lation of Houston, Texas or the state of Nebraska. A child drops out of a school in America every 9 seconds of the school day. The almost half million children who dropped out of school in the 2003-2004 school year would out number all of the children in the state of New Mexico. More than 6 million children are home alone on a regular basis without adult supervision after school when they are at greatest risk of getting into trouble. Children in need of after school programs equal the population of Washington State. And if we were counting, we’d see that millions of poor children are hun gry, at risk of hunger, living in worst case housing, or homeless in America. Almost 7 in 10 poor children live in working families. What do these numbers tell us about whom we are and hope to be? God has blessed the United States of America with great wealth and power. Why do we choose to let children be the poorest age group in our nation and choose to let millions of children suffer preventable sickness, neglect, abuse, mis-education and violence? Why do we continue to mock God’s call for justice for the poor and our professed ideals of freedom and jus tice for all? Marian Wright Edelman is presi dent and founder o f the Children’s Defense Fund. Rosa Parks Tribute Her internal flame spread by M ichael H udson Many people are not aware that the most impor tant candle used in the Jew ish holiday celebration of Chanukah is the one used to light the eight other candles of the menorah. This candle is the Shamash. To me, Rosa Parks was the Shamash for the civil rights movement. In December 1995, when Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man in Montgomery, Ala., she ignited the heart and soul of America to react to the injustice of segre gation. This year as a Jew, as in every Chanukah season. I lit candles each night of the celebration. The first night, I lit one candle, two candles the second, three candles the third until Jan. 1 when 1 lit a total of eight candles. The first night one burning candle gives off a slight amount of heat and light while tin the final night eight candles bums a fire that is bright and warm. As the Shamash for the civil rights movement. Parks played a major part in reducing racial op pression in America. I sometimes think of what was going through her mind as she made her decision to keep her seat. Just as the single candle makes a difference, Parks as an indi vidual made a difference. Mother Theresa once spoke about why she took a stance to help the poor in India. She said. "What we do is nothing but one drop in the ocean. But if we didn’t do it, the ocean would be one drop less.” The Talmud, the Jewish sacred text of oral law and tradition, states “Save one life and you save the world.” In the same manner of thought, Rosa Parks inspires me to strive to make ethical decisions even in situations where 1 am acting as an individual. Our one drop in the ocean can inspire others to act in a positive manner. Parks was frequently asked why she made her fateful decision in 1955. She never boasted about the importance of her actions. However, when speaking to others, she spoke of the importance of leading an ethical life. She once was quoted as saying, “Each person must live their life as a model for others.” Even in the midst of despair, one can be inspired tn do good deeds. Although she feared capture by the Nazi’s, Anne Frank wrote in her diary, "How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Rosa Parks, faced with the oppression of life in the South, chose her moment in time to As a single candle can be used to ignite a Chanukah menorah, Rosa Parks ignited the heart and soul o f America to react to the injustice of segregation. improve the world. U.S. Rep. John Lewis of Georgia told the Cable News Network, "By sitting down, she was standing up for all Americans.” I will always remember Parks as a woman of courage, who whose action inspired a move ment that changed the world. May we be inspired to share her determination and realize the power of one person’s actions to make a difference. Michael Hudson works in labor relations from Los Angeles. His “Black and Jew ish” w ebpage can be rea ch ed at ww w .angelfire.com /ca/dorseydon. i 503-288-0033 Fill Out, Clip i Out & Send To: i i i (Dbserlier i i Attn: Subscriptions, PO Box 3137, Portland OR 97208 i i su b scrip tio n s are ju s t $60 p er year i (please include check with this subscription form) i i N ame :____________________________ T elephone : _______________ i i A DDRESS :____________________________________________________________________ or entail subscriptions® portlandobserver.com i J k Subscribe t
