Page AG
ll1'' P o rtla u b (Jí)bsvrtier
O pinion
February 27, 2008
Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer
Troubling Way to Elect a President
Dream Big
Perhaps our
system needs
some fixing
Presidential contest shows
progress being made
B entley de B ardelaben
As a boy, I coukl be w hatever I imagined for m yself when I grew
up. 1 could even be the President o f the USA.
I grew up in the 1960s. the firstborn son o f a retail salesm an in
M ichigan in a m odest hom e that my parents owned. W ithin that
dw elling also lived my two siblings. My m om 's primary responsibility
was caring for her fam ily. Life as I understood it was "norm al.’
by
on my younger brother who frequently shadowed me. I went to the local
public school, played baseball with my friends and axle my bicycle without
a care. All in all, I thought of myself as an "all American boy.”
Looking back, 1 realize that although I have heartw arm ing m em o
ries, my upbringing was not necessarily the "norm .” The m ere tact that
1 believed that Santa C laus would always grant my wishes, my
grandparents would alw ays be excited to see me during sum m er visits
and 1 could be anything that I wanted to be w hen 1 grew up is not
necessarily consistent with the experience o f others.
Nevertheless, becom ing anything that I desired was w hat 1 had
been taught and shown. My teachers reinforced that. My parents told
my siblings and me this as we did hom ework and went on family
outings. H ow ever once 1 graduated from college and becam e an adult,
I learned that professional life for me was not so easily accessible.
Despite my sense o f integrity, strong w ork ethic and optim ism ,
there are times that I have been random ly judged by the mere color of
my skin. This was a curve ball for w hich I had not been prepared. At
home. I had been taught to believe that character was more important.
My dad was determ ined to teach his children that our skin color did
not define us. He em phasized that we were human beings created in
the divine image o f God, as G enesis inform s us. Additionally, he
fostered that we w ere A m ericans; within our society we had a voice
and ongoing opportunities for our dream s to be m ade real.
Today. I find m yself looking back over my life as an Am erican as
well as looking ahead to a new future for me and the nation. My life
did not go exactly as 1 had imagined. 1 did not enter the political
landscape, at least not yet. I am not likely to becom e President. Yet
to recognize that my dream may com e true for another, either an
African American male or European American female, is unparalleled.
The good news is that our nation is also dream ing b ig .. .evolving
and overcom ing the prejudices of our past. No one can know the
outcom e of the 2008 race for President o f the United States; how ever
the reality is that one o f these candidates may well becom e our next
com m ander in chief. Certainly, I do not pretend to personally know the
childhoods o f the candidates. But. like me. I imagine they were told
to “dream big...anything was possible.”
Bentley tie Bardelaben is an African-American minister in the
United Church o f Christ.
Cl’r JJnrtlaub Afliscvuvr Established 1970
USPS 959-680 ___________________________________
4 7 4 7 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland. OR 97211
in h iis h ir : Charles H. Washington
ich a el L eig h to n
D is tk ir i tion M anac . eh : M urk W ashington
C u m in Duo< tor : P aul N e u fe ld t
A ih e r iis in h : K athy L in d e r
Oinci M a n a c i . r : Sharon Sperry
K i p o r ii h : R aym ond R endlem an
L dito k - in -C h ik t .
E d iio h . M
The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions Manuscripts and photographs should he clearly
labeled and w ill be relurned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope A ll created design display ads
become the sole property o f the newspaper anti cannot be used in other publications o r personal usage without
the written consent o f the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad (') 2(M>K
F ill P O R TLA N D OBSERVER A l l R K illT S RESERVED. Rl PRODI ('H O N IN W H O LE OR IN PART
W IT H O U T PI RM ISSIO N IS P R O H IB ITE D The Portland Observer -Oregon's Oldest M ulticu ltural
Publication r a member o f the National Newspaper Association -Founded in IXK5. and The National
Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers. Inc. New York. N Y . and The West Coast Black
Publishers Assriciation
P ostmaster : Send address changes to Portland Observer,
POBox3 1 3 7 , Portland, OR9 7 2 0 8
CALL 503-288-0033
Black History Month
LAX 503-288-0015
news® Dvrtlandobserver.com
ads @ pvrtlandobserver. com
udiscriinionte portlandobserver.com
by J udge
G reg M athis
For g e n e ra tio n s the U n ited
States governm ent has prided it
self on its dem ocratic system , so
much so that is has criticized and
invaded other countries, imposing
an A m erican-like system that rep
resents all people equally.
But given past troubles w ith
o u r c o u n try 's electio n s p ro cess,
p erhaps the U nited States should
review and co rrect its ow n e le c
tio n s sy stem s b efo re p o lic in g
that o f others.
In the 2000 presid en tial e le c
tions. Vice President A1 G ore w on
the p o p u lar vote. Y et, an o u t
d a te d v o tin g p r o c e s s , b e tte r
know n as the E lectoral C o lleg e,
aw arded the presidency to G eorge
Bush and began eig h t y ears o f
increased public d issatisfactio n
w ith our n a tio n ’s p olitical p ro
ce ss.
The Electoral College is com
prised o f delegates from each state.
As a candidate w ins a state, those
delegates are
a w a rd e d to
him (and her).
Bigger states
have more del
egates. W ins
in those del-
e g a te -ric h
d eleg a tes p ro p o rtio n ate to the
popular vote in that state. T hat
said, “super-delegates", who co m
prise nearly one-fifth of the parties
delegate count, may cast a vote
that goes against the desires o f the
voters they serve.
D em o crats created the “su p e r
d e le g a te ” in the 1980s, believ in g
these individuals, all o f w hom are
In a true democracy, the
voice o f the people is all
that matters.
v
states give a candidate the upper
hand, no m atter how low voter turn
out in that state may have been.
Though the public supported Gore,
Bush got the push he needed from
the delegates.
Political insiders worry our po
litical system is set to once again
ignore the will o f the people. In the
Republican presidential prim aries,
it’s w inner takes a ll... delegates
that is. In the Democratic primaries,
how ever, candidates are awarded
party and public o fficials, knew
the can d id ates b etter and could
co u n te r ‘m ista k e s’ m ade by the
v o tin g p u b lic . T h o u g h h ig h ly
unlikely, it is very possible D em o
cratic voters co u ld select one ca n
d id a te say, Sen. B arack O bam a,
but "su p er-d e leg a te s” co uld su p
p o rt, and e le c t, an o th er. C u r
ren tly , Sen. H illary C lin to n has a
few m ore “ su p er-d eleg ates” in
h er co rn er than O bam a.
It is very hypocritical that the
D em ocrats, who claim to be the
most concerned about equal repre
sentation and honoring the voice
o f the people, would use such a
system to elect their leaders. If
enough behind-the-scene prom
ises are made, a prom ising candi
date, one the public stands behind,
could be stopped in their tracks.
The way we elect national lead
ers in this country is troubling. From
the Electoral College to the “super
delegates,” the United States has
chosen a very com plicated way to,
in effect, silence majority. How then,
is this country any different from
those we criticize?
In a true dem ocracy, the voice of
the people is all that matters. C an
didates win not because of their
political alliancesortheirdeep pock
ets, but because they touched vot
ers. A nd if the people make a mis
take?
So be it. We cannot do any worse
than the Electoral College did in
2000.
Judge Greg Mathis is national
vice president o f Rainbow PUSH
and a national board member of
the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference.
KMHMMMMMMMM
Mayor Visits and Now What?
Jefferson must
appeal to kids
that live nearby
D on J ohnson
A s a form er Jefferso n H igh
School student and teacher, I can
offer some o f my feelings and o pin
ions about the school.
I think it was great that the o ut
going mayor, m em bers of the city
council and other city officials co n
ducted its business from Jefferson
during a w eeklong stay. But I w on
der how this really helps the high
school and more im portantly its
current and future students?
What inform ation could school
district adm inistrators learn that
they didn’t already know? From my
point of view, very little.
From 2000-2007, there have been
eight principals at Jefferson. D ur
ing their respective tenures, these
adm inistrators have adopted and
implemented numerous educational
m odels, moving from a four-block
program to small schools, back to a
traditional school model and now
its current schtMil academies.
All o f these changes were aim ed
at im proving the quality o f educa
tion and im proving student scores
and literacy. Have they been suc
cessful? Have any o f these plans or
designs w orked? A ccording to all
o f the data and inform ation the dis
trict has shared with the com m u
nity, I d o n ’t think so. So w hat has
been the problem !s)?
by
How does a school with one-
quarter o f its student body on lEPs
( Individual Educational Programs)
or w ho have been identified as stu
dents with special needs, meet dis
trict and state benchm arks when its
leadership and educational infra
structure has been in a constant
state o f chaos?
Ponder this, how does a school
that every year loses at least one-
half o f the students from its feeder
schools to other high schools via
the d istrict’s transfer policy, be
expected to show more than mar-
schools.
How do we begin to correct this
problem ? I agree it does begin with
a strong and caring adm inistrative
leadership team. But more im por
tantly Jefferson must begin by over
hauling its current curriculum and
class offerings to m ake the school
m ore appealing to the students
w ithin its com m unity.
I also find it quite interesting that
a school that has a strong m ajority
A frican-A m erican student body
do esn ’t offer elective classes in
A frican-A m erican literature and
If the mayor, city council
and JHS administrative
team walked the halls and
visited classes with their
‘eyes wide open ’ then how
can they not agree that
something is missing?
ginal academ ic gains when the lost
students are the best and bright
est? If we closely exam ine data per
taining to student achievem ent and
academ ic success we discover that
most o f these ex-Jefferson students
are doing quite well at their new
NEW S E A S O N S
M AR K
Pkarmacu
AT A R B O R L O D G E /
yfef / /<?£ art a r u lla r pkarrnaaj!
W e fill p r e s c r ip tio n s — in c lu d in g a n tib io tic s ,
h ig h b lo o d p r e s s u r e m e d ic a tio n s ,
a n ti- d e p re s s a n ts , b irth c o n tro l, a n d m o re .
✓
W e h a v e k n o w le d g e a b le , frie n d ly p h a r m a c is ts
w h o h a v e th e tim e to s h a re in fo r m a tio n .
✓
O u r p r ic e s a re c o m p e titiv e . W e a c c e p t m o s t
in s u r a n c e p la n s a n d a re a d d in g o th e r s a s
re q u e s te d .
W e s p e c ia liz e in c u s t o m c o m p o u n d in g .
F4 le r m a c s t.
lu tle r
Y O U R L O C A L L Y O W N E D , N E IG H B O R H O O D P H A R M A C Y A T A R B O R L O D G E
N IN T E R S T A T E A V E N U E & P O R T L A N D B L V D • 5 0 3 .4 6 7 .4 8 4 8
w w w .n e w s e a s o n s m a r k e t.c o m • M O N -F R I 9 a m - 7 p m • S A T 9 a m - 6 p m • S U N 1 0 a m - 4 p m
history. If I were an A frican-A m eri
can parent, I w ould definitely ques
tion this oversight. Speaking o f
parents, they too must realize that
they are the most important and
influential stakeholders in the edu
cation of their children.
Learning begins at home and
m ust be reinforced on a daily basis.
School should not be viewed as a
glorified baby-sitting and daycare
service or as an athletic factory.
Parents should also stop enabling
their children by accepting and
oftentim es condoning inappropri
ate and anti-social behaviors.
Teachers rely on parents to make
sure that their children arrive to
school on tim e with the necessary
b o o k s an d m a teria ls fo r th e ir
classes. O ver the years I have o b
served students w ho have becom e
confrontational and verbally ab u
sive toward teachers when ques
tioned about their unpreparedness.
Q uite often students w ho re
peatedly challenge authority and
disrupt the learning environm ent
force teachers to devote more time
addressing and correcting these
behaviors than teaching those stu
dents who cam e to school to learn.
Veteran or experienced teachers
in most cases are capable o f han
dling these situations without es
calating inappropriate behaviors
from students. Unfortunately d u r
ing my stay at “J e f f ' the staff turn
over on a yearly basis was so great
that we found ourselves with too
many new or inexperienced teach
ers.
When I say inexperienced, I mean
teachers who had little or limited
contact and interaction with chil
dren o f color and children lacking
the “ social skill set" that we expect
from high-school students. If un
checked this situation can culti
vate a “ status quo attitude” where
teachers accept these questionable
behaviors as being the norm for a
specific group or race o f people
instead o f working to eradicate these
inappropriate behaviors.
O ne h elp fu l and p o sitiv e way
to a c c o m p lis h th is w o u ld be
through ex p an d in g the cu rric u
lum to include classes in “E ffec
tive C o m m u n icatio n Skills, H u
m an In teractio n s, S o ciology, and
P sy ch o lo g y .” Instead o f assu m
ing o r rely in g solely on others to
p ro v id e the cure paren ts, teach
ers, and adm inistrators m ust work
to g eth er in dev elo p in g a "h o lis
tic ed u catio n al p arad ig m ” th a t's
p rev en tiv e and th erapeutic.
Next and some may take excep
tion to this particular suggestion;
the current teaching staff at JHS
needs to be re-evaluated. T his
should begin with an introspective
self-evaluation by those teachers
w ho d o n ’t want to be at Jefferson.
If unhappy, then they should ex
plore other career options rather
than continue to perpetuate m edi
ocrity and com placency.
F or th o se w ho elect to stay in
sp ite o f th e ir ap p aren t lack of
co m m itm en t to ex c ellen c e, the
Jefferson adm inistration, its co m
m unity m em bers and union lead
ers m ust w ork to g e th er to c o n
vince the school d istrict to im ple
m ent th ese ch anges. T h ese are
tough d ecisio n s but we have to
begin som ew here.
The playing field has been un
even for eight years, and now its
tim e to do som ething about it. II
this means that some feelings are
hurt, then so be it, because far too
many young African-American stu
dents as well as other students are
not receiving a quality education at
Jefferson High School.
It was great that the mayor, his
staff, and others spent a week at
Jefferson. But w hat did they truly
accom plish? W ere more hollow or
em pty prom ises m ade or were new
guarantees made that may go un
fulfilled?
If the mayor, city council and
J HS admini st rat i ve team wal ked t he
halls and visited classes with their
“eyes w ide open," then how can
they not agree that som ething is
m issing?
I pose this question to everyone
who is fam iliar with the current situ
ation at " J e ff' under its current
design: W ould you allow your child
to attend this school for four years'?
Don Johnson is a retired Afri
can-American educator and the
chief executive officer for Kids N'
Tennis. Inc., a youth tennis pro
gram.