<El.
Page A6
1
r t la ttò ® b « e m r
August I. 2007
A Source of Pride
continued
Portland R&B legend Liv Warfield sings with her band at a well-
attended event at Dawson Park that included tables from various
neighborhood and city-based organizations.
from Front
in the refinement of the park,” says
George Lozovoy, Dawson Park’s
lead planner.
The park's had a small upgrade
about six years ago after a spike in
criminal activity. Amenities like
permanent checkers tables were
added. Seeingathreat still looming,
park officials are keeping an eye on
safety.
“There are some security con­
cerns because of the large and
dense trees, so we still need to get
a better sense of the neighborhood,
but one option is to essentially
redo the area with new landscaping
that’s just more visible,” Lozovoy
says.
Many local activists expressed
satisfaction that Dawson was get­
ting some much-needed attention.
“W e’ve tried to piecemeal a lot
of these things, but now they’re all
going to happen," says Gary Hamp­
ton, co-chair of the Eliot Neighbor­
hood Association.
O th er re sid e n ts qu estio n ed
whether the city’s emphasis on
safety wouldencroach on the park’s
natural beauty and usability.
“To me it’s never been a gang
park, but the police try to make it
that way,” says Lee Roberts, who
photos by R aymond R endi . eman /T he P ortland O bserver
Portland Parks and Recreation planner George Lozovoy (right) discusses the freshly unveiled
diagrams o f Dawson Park's new look.
met with friends in the park as a
teenager in the 1960s and has
walked through it regularly ever
since.
Roberts wishes that the city
would bring back barbeque pits,
which he claimed fostered commu­
M
NMHMMMMMHMMMMMMM
Dear Deanna!
My boyfriend is very overbear­
ing and condescending. He al­
ways has som ething to say about
everything and seems as if he
waits to pounce on me when I
make a m istake. I am becoming
stressed because I have to con­
centrate on everything that 1 do
and everything that 1 say. The
only time things are good is when
he's not around or watching tele­
vision. 1 want to talk to him about
this problem but I feel it will cause
problems. Is it me or is he just
rude? --Anonymous; Dallas,
Texas
Dear Anonymous:
Ask ö
Real People, Real Advice
An advice column known for
its fearless approach to
reality-based subjects!
Your boyfriend is a rude, inse­
cure bully. If he has your best
interests at heart, he w ouldn’t
talk to you like a dog. The next
time he tries to call you out, you
need to stand up for yourself and
let him know where y o u 're com ­
ing from. If you h av en 't slipped,
made a m istake or done anything
to deserve his lip service, let him
have it full force. You then need
to let him know that you will not
tolerate anymore disrespect and
if he continues, then walk and
keep it moving.
serious and you can clean your
car and get over it.
Dear Deanna!
I am fresh out of a long term rela­
tionship and I really enjoy my
single life and freedom. My girl­
friends all envy me and now their
boyfriends are accusing them of
cheating and looking for men
when they hang out with me. I am
not going to w ater dow n my
lifestyle right now and my friends
are having a hard time with this.
They say that 1 am acting loose
and as if I do n ’t have any morals.
I think th ey ’re tied down to balls
and chains and are jealous. Am I
wrong? —Happy and Free; On­
An Officer and a Beauty Queen
continued
from Front
Goodwin is trying for the crown and
banner again for the 2008 title. This
time she is preparing by sculpting
her body with the help of a personal
trainer and honing her interview
skills through a membership with
Toastmasters International.
Toastmasters, acl ub where you
make speeches to be critiqued by
fel low members. Goodwin and her
Goodwin has another reason to
husband joined the UO branch in
January, where she’s been working aspire for the domestic and interna­
on limiting the “uh” factor in her tional titles.
“T m not sure there has ever been
speeches.
“I feel even more confident this a woman of color to win Mrs. O r­
egon, and I don’t think there's ever
year,” she said.
If she succeeds in winning the been an African American Mrs.
Mrs. Oregon title. Goodwin will then America,” she said. " I’d love to be
take an expenses-paid trip to Na­ the first.”
This y e a r's Mrs. O regon pag­
tionals. After that, she may get to
represent married women through­ eant takes place Saturday, Oct. 6
at C lackam as High School.
out the world.
line Reader
I hear them pull the seatbelts out
for the car seat. Each time I go Dear Happy:
with one of my friends, 1 have to The men o f your friends are inse­
go to the car wash because of cure and obviously don't know their
fingerprints, trash and garbage women as well as they think. If your
from the kids. How do I tell my behavior is affecting them, you need
friends I don’t want their kids in to cool off and slow it down a bit
when you’re around them. These
my car? —Joyce; Tampa, Fla.
are your friends and you need to
Dear Joyce:
still show some respect and regard
Your situation is sensitive but for the differences in your relation­
not as uncommon as you think. ships, or lack thereof. At the end of
You have to decide if y o u ’re go­ the day, enjoy your life and realize
ing to choose friends w ithout
that everyone is responsible for
kids or be mature and handle this their choices. Yours just appears
Dear Deanna!
like an adult. All you have to do more fun right now.
I have a few girlfriends and they is tell your friends that you prefer
all have small kids. I d o n ’t mind they drive because y o u ’re un­ Ask Deanna is written by Deanna
their kids and I love them. How­ com fortable with the situation. M. Write Ask Deanna! Email:
ever, I have a problem when it It's going to be alm ost offensive askdeanna! @ yahoo.com or 264
comes to our car arrangem ents. 1 but you have the right to care for S. IxiCieneya Hlvd. Suite ¡283
just purchased a new car and it your vehicle however you choose. Beverly Hills, CA 9021!. Website:
isn’tchild friendly. I cringe when On another note, it’s not that t t w , askdeanna. com
Elvis’ Legacy Mixed in Black Community
As the 30th anniversary of
Elvis P re sle y ’s death a p ­
proaches, an expert on black
popular culture says that Elvis’
enduring legacy among fans both
black and white has more to do
with his display of “unbridled
white male sexuality” than his
music.
Mark Anthony Neal, an au­
thor and associate professor at
Duke University, says some in
the black community resented
Elvis because he made his for­
tune populari/ing black musical
forms and because of a myth
that he thought blacks were in­
ferior.
“Elvis, in his own way, at­
tempted to show some sort of
respect for the musical forms
that he was essentially exploit­
ing," Neal says. “There is no
concrete evidence of him being
a racist."
Elvis, whodied Aug. 16,1977,
nity cohesiveness many years ago. be a key source of African-Ameri­
Lozovoy says, “We discussed can pride and connectivity.
“If you want to see someone you
having barbeque pits, but it just
haven’t seen for a long time, you
becomes unruly.”
Regardless of what the city ac­ just have to sit around here, and
complishes in restoring the park, eventually they will come,” Rob­
Roberts declares that it will always erts says.
Mark Anthony Neal
enjoyed and was influenced by
black music, Neal says.
“He emerged at a time when
the practice of covers was very
prominent. The black version ot
a song was marketed to black
audiences and the white version
was marketed to white audi­
ences.
“Take ‘Hound Dog.’ Every­
one knows that Big Mama
Thornton recorded the song
before Elvis did. What Elvis
showed was that you could have
a white artist who could record
black music and be successful
with it.
“He was simply the person
that helped popularize rhythm
and blues, as well as rock-a-
billy and country.”
Neal says Elvis' popularity,
including the proliferation of im­
personators and the suggestion
that he may still be alive, are
about Elvis “the package and
the icon” rather than his work
as a musician.
“ He did n 't change the mu­
sical landscape. Elvis w asn’t
an innovator. He didn't bring
anything musical to the table.
He simply popularized deriva­
tives of R&B and country,"
Neal says.
é
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