M a r tin L u t h e r K in g J r .
January 14, 2 0 0 9
Page B9
2009 special edition
Partners in the Civil Rights Struggle
Martin Luther
King Jr. had
strong allies
by
M ichael H udson
A s w e celeb rate the b irth ­
day o f R ev. Dr. M artin L uther
K ing Jr., it is fitting to reco g ­
nize the effo rts o f o th e r groups
an d in d iv id u a ls w h o h av e
w orked to ensu re the freedom
o f all A m ericans.
A s in th e c a s e o f S en .
B arack O b a m a ’s electio n as
the first A fric a n -A m e ric a n
p r e s id e n t, th e h is to r ic a l
progress in the battle for eq u al­
ity w as m ade possib le only
becau se p eople o f different
races and faiths cam e together
to support a cause.
In O regon for exam ple, ap ­
proxim ately 60 percent o f vot­
ers cast their ballot for O bam a
in a state w ith less than a 2
p e r c e n t A f r ic a n - A m e ric a n
population.
O n e relig io u s group fam il­
iar w ith the fight for freedom
is Jew ish A m ericans. A ccord­
ing to e x it polls nationw ide, 78
p e rc e n t o f Je w s v o te d fo r
O b am a.
In A pril, Jew ish A m ericans
w ill p articipate in the holiday
o f P asso v er, w hich celebrates
th e fre e d o m o f Je w s a fte r
being slaves in Egypt.
Abraham Joshua Heschel
T here are sim ilarities in the
Je w ish e x p e rie n c e and the
A fric a n A m e ric a n e x p e r i­
ence. As an A m erican w ho is
both B lack and Jew ish, I am
proud o f both histories and 1
easily see the link betw een
A frican A m ericans and Jew s.
“L et M y People G o ” is a
Spiritual originally sung by
B lack slaves in A m erica as
they began to identify w ith the
Israelite slaves in the H ebrew
Bible and developed faith that
they too w ould som eday e x ­
perience freedom .
T his song is also a part o f
the P assover Seder, the tradi­
tional m eal c e leb rated b y Jew s
during the first and second
evenings o f Passover.
Four questions are asked
during the holiday m eal and
each answ er begins w ith the
phrase, A vadim H ayinu, the ing the m odern C ivil R ights
H ebrew w ords for, "W e w ere m ovem ent. Jew s w ere m ajor
slaves."
p a rtic ip a n ts. M o st
T he fam ous poet
n o ta b le
w as
Rabbi A braham
M a y a A n g e lo u
w rote about the
J o s h u a
concept
of
*
H eschel w ho
freedom in her
m a rc h e d
poem , “I K now
a r m - in - a r m
with Dr. M ar­
W hy the C aged
B ird S i n g s .”
tin L u th e r
T h e e n s la v e d
K ing in his
person, like the
1965 M arch
caged
b ir d ,
on Selm a.
longs to learn
J u liu s
Julius Rosenwald
m ore about the
R o s e n w a ld ,
hidden w orld. Both Jew s and another w hite m an o f the Jew ­
A frican A m ericans can relate ish faith w as part-ow ner and
to the im portance o f freedom .
continued y f on page M 2
It is not surprising that d u r­
MLK Weekend Celebration through Service
Join the fun and help your community!
January 17-19
Learn more about projects and
Register at www.unitedway-pdx.org
Volunteerwith your friends, family, children or co-workers and
This is the Rosenwald Center at Tuskegee University in Alabama. The college's
African American founder Booker T. Washington and white businessman Julius
Rosenwald, president o f Sears, got to be good friends, and Rosenwald served
on the board o f directors from 1912 until he died.
His voice has not faded.
His light has not dimmed,
Martin Luther King, Jr. stood up for the dignity of each individual and demonstrated
the power of many individuals working together.
He spoke to our better selves with words of hope and encouragement.
When the journey was hard, he led us further down the road and invited all to join in.
Many years ago, this one man brightened the future for generations to come.
His message still calls out to us, and his actions live on.
The City of Portland and Multnomah County honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
by striving to promote equality and opportunity for all people. Our goal is to foster employee
diversity through workforce training and hiring and to support economic development for
minority-owned, women-owned, and emerging small businesses. Please contact the staff
members identified below about contracting and consulting opportunities.
City of Portland
Multnomah County
Greg Wolley, Bureau of Purchases
Teresa Mary Bliven
(503) 823-6860
(503) 988-5111 X26106
gwolley@ci. Portland .or. us
teresamary. biiven@co. multnomah .or. us
w w w .portlandonline.com /om f/purchasing
www. m ultcopurch. org
Richard Gray, Bureau of Transportation
(503) 823-3028
Richard.Gray@trans.ci.Portland.or.us
www.portlandonline.com /transportation
Andrew Urdahl, Portland W ater Bureau
503-823-7490
Andrew.UrdahlOci.Portland.or.us
www. port landonline. com /w ater
jtm ».
PORILANI)
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ater
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PORTLAND
T ransportation
LIVE UNITED.