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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (June 25, 2008)
lune 25, 2008 Page A4 O pinion Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views o f the Portland Observer. W? welcome reader essays, photos and story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com. AM S5ÍM G IN A C T IO N ... Black Women Can’t Remain Invisible Americans must treasure female achievement M arc M oriai . This year’sS tateof Black A m erica report shines a m uch-needed spotlight on the struggles and triumphs o f black women. Too often invisible in m ainstream society or depicted by dem eaning stereotypes in "popu lar” cu ltu re, A frican -A m erican women are at once the m ost op pressed and m ost resilient group in America. M illions o f them work harder, earn less and shoulder the b u rd e n s o f b r e a d w in n e r an d caregiver in their families. At the sam e time, many step up and stand out as leaders in their churches, schools, businesses and local com m unities. Lest we forget, it was H arriet Tubm an who led us out o f slavery and Rosa Parks who m ortally w ounded Jim C row . Dorothy H eight has spent most o f her 96 years on this earth stand ing on the front lines o f freedom, not only for black women, but for us all. C urrently the Chair and Presi dent E m eritao f the National C oun cil of N egro W om en, H eight has been com m itted to equality and justice for all since 1933. A sayoung woman, she becam e a civil rights w orker with the U nited Christian Youth M ovement of North America. D orothy Height has been active in every stage o f the modern civil rig h ts a n d w o m e n 's rig h ts struggles. She has taken her m es by End Weight Discrimination Now by J udge G reg M athis Body-type bias dangerously on the rise ju st plain foolish and needs to end. T w o recent studies report dis crim ination based on body size has increased more than 60 percent in the last ten years and has becom e as nearly as com m on as prejudice based on race or gender. T he studies report that the dis to overcome, since 60 percent o f our men and 78 percent o f our women are overweight. Whether in a profes sional or social setting, blacks not only have to deal with the assump tions people make based on their race, but also because o f their weight. Like other forms o f discrimina America has far too many excluded classes; we do not need to create another one. Nearly two thirds o f Am ericans are o v erw eig h t o r obese. Y ou w ouldn’t know this, how ever, by skim m ing through the pages o f a fashion m agazine or watching tele vision on any given night. Popular culture prom otes a thin, som etim es dangerously so, body crim ination experienced is varied: image that most A m ericans do not Some overweight people say they live up to. The "thin is in" m entality are m ade to feel a sh a m e d in has made its way into the nation's healthcare settings or were fired or workplaces and overw eight indi not prom oted becau se o f th eir viduals are experiencing discrim i weight. In their personal lives, they nation now more than ever before. reported that they are subjected to Discrim ination of any kind is un insults and harassment from strang just and intolerable. But weight dis ers and loved ones. For African Americans, this new crim ination in a nation that super sizes and autom ates everything is inequity presents another obstacle tion, this type o f bias is destructive. It m ay n e g a tiv e ly a ffe c t an individual's self-esteem , causing them to eat more, do less and, possi bly, gain weight. To be fair, being overweight is unhealthy and can lead to a host of health problems, including diabetes, high blood pres sure and heart disease. That aside, a person's physical size should have no bearing on whether or not they get ajo b or a promotion and should not subject them to taunts and rude stares. Currently, there is no federal law that protects overweight people from workplace discrimination. Ad ditionally, healthcare providers should be held accountable for their rude treatment of heavier patients; sensitivity trainings are one way to address such behavior. The gov ernment should increase access to healthcare so the overweight can receive solid advice on diet and ex e rc ise p lan s; m any o f this country's obese people are poor. Just like the battle against race and gender bias, the fight against weight discrimination cannot be won overnight. And legislation is only a tiny piece o f the pie. As individuals, we have to take a look at our behavior. America has far too many excluded classes; we do not need to create another one. Judge Greg M athis is vice presi dent o f Rainbow PUSH and a board m em ber o f the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. N O W D E L IV E R IN G Y o u r fa v o r ite n e ig h b o r h o o d g r o c e r y s to r e n o w d e liv e r s g r o c e r ie s r ig h t to y o u r h o m e o r o ffic e . sage o f human rights and w om en's em pow erm ent to places like India, M exico and Africa. In 1947 she was elected National President o f Delta Sigm a T h eta S orority and for a decade, led the organization into a new era o f activism. She was one o f a few w omen w ho stood with men like Martin Luther King, Jr. and W hitney M. Y oung, Jr. at the height o f the civil rights m ovem ent and she was on the platform when Dr. King delivered his historic “I H ave a D ream ” speech. For her many outstanding achievem ents, Dorothy Height has been honored by presidents and peers. She is the recipient of the Presidential Medal o f Freedom, the NA A C PSpringam M edal and the C ongressional G old M edal, ju st to nam e a few. At the tender age o f 96, Dorothy Height is still a pow erful voice for black women. As she writes in the forew ord to the State o f Black A m erica 2(X)8, "W ho better than us understand and em pathize with the very real challenges that our broth ers, fathers, husbands and sons fa c e .. .and who better than us can understand the very real bound aries that all women face in navigat ing a cultural dynam ic that still as signs roles and oftentim es lim ita tions based on g en d er...W ith no apologies, the time is now to finally focus on us.” Dorothy H eight is an A m erican treasure and I am proud to call her my friend. M arc M oriai is president and c h ie f executive officer o f the N a tional Urban League. Voting Restrictions replacing lost docum ents. W hat do all these people have in com m on? Senior citizens, the dis abled, students and low -incom e w orkers all tend to vote for D em o by T anya C lay H ouse On the heels of the Supreme crats. And that fact m akes voter ID C ourt’s recent decision upholding legislation very attractive to Re Indiana's restrictive voter ID law, publican officeholders in state af lawm akers in three states— M is ter state—ju st look at who is intro souri, Kansas and Oklahom a— have ducing the bills. A dvocates o f v o ter ID bills wisely rejected sim ilar voter ID leg islation. But d o n 't think this is the would have you believe that th ey ’re fighting fraud. Nonsense. There is last word. L et’s be clear. This is not about no evidence o f w idespread voter election reform . This is a partisan fraud in this country. In fact, even with the record- light about access to the ballot box— who gets in, and who does shattering voter turnout in the presi not— and the voting rights o f hun dential primaries, all across the na dreds o f thousands o f Americans tion this year, supporters o f voter ID cannot point to any significant are at stake. On the surface, a voter ID law instances o f voter impersonation doesn’t sound like a big deal to fraud at the polls. D ead people are not voting. those o f us who have a driver’s license or a passport. Look deeper, U ndocum ented im m igrants are not and it's clear that voter ID laws voting. But innocent, eligible vot pose a significant barrier to the ers are being caught up in the mess. ballot box for all kinds o f people— During the primary election in Indi and that discouraging those people ana this year, 12 nuns were turned from voting gives a clear partisan aw ay from the polls because they d id n 't have photo ID. Som ething advantage to Republicans. W ho are the people who might tells me they w eren’t trying to pull find it difficult tocom ply with voter a fast one. Sim ply put, voter ID legislation ID laws? Folks who d o n ’t drive or is partisan politics at its w orst— travel abroad, or who have lost piling up barriers for people who their birth certificates. Senior citi have every right to vote, in order to zens w ho hav en ’t had a current gain political advantage. It’s wrong. d riv er's license in years, or dis W e should be passing laws that abled voters. Victim s o f natural di make it easier for citizens to vote, sasters like Hurricane Katrina, who not harder. lose all their personal papers. Stu Tanya Clay H ouse is the People dents w ho drive in one state, but vote in another. Low-incom e w ork F or the A m erican Way director o f ers who ca n ’t afford the costs of public policy. Laws don’t target cheaters “W c are ab o u t n eig h b o rs helping n eig h b o rs im prove th e ir com m unity.” M ary Harrell nt Friendx rtf 7> w a 507 ¿Hl 8846 far more inform ation, visit www EriendsotTrees.org w w w .n e w s e a s o n s m a r k e t.c o m you click; we deliver, (or pull up for pick up) Friend» «/T ree»