Page 4
A p ril SO, 2014
25 Yearsa Name
continued
from front
returned to majority white. The
gentrification, how ever is even
deeper in some locales, like Alberta
Streetand Mississippi Avnue, a
sore spot for a population that faced
racism during the years around
World War II when shipbuilding
jobs brought a major influx of black
workers, but whom also faced racist
redlining in collaboration with real
estate, banking, and insurance com
panies.
Economic revitalization projects
in the North and Northeast corridor
over the years, headed by the City
and the Portland D evelopm ent
Commission, have been blamed for
benefiting more affluent whites over
blacks.
Economic elevation for poor
people, especially for black Ameri
cans was a key component to Mar
tin Luther King and the Civil Rights
Movement.
King is quoted as saying, “Many
white Americans of good will have
never connected bigotry with eco
nomic exploitation. They have de
plored prejudice but tolerated or
ignored economic injustice.”
The Portland Observer spoke to
King Neighborhood Association
Chair Alan Silver about the signifi
cance of the Martin Luther King
Boulevard naming.
As new residents arrive, particu
larly business owners, Silver who is
white, says there has been some
disdain shown toward the boule
vard.
“I think I have a sense, in some
way, in which folks wanna sani
tize the boulevard,” he says. “Per
haps they don ’ t think o f it as w e’re
erasing black history, and the lack
presence from MLK Boulevard,
but the neighborhood association
hears o ccasionally that [som e
businesses] struggle to make their
business work if they use an MLK
address. So perhaps the land has
low er value to businesses along
this boulevard.”
Silver says that events like the
celebration at the Boys and Girls
Club can help people who may not
understand the history of the neigh
borhood.
While acknowledging the com
plex racial realities of north and north
east Portland, Silver says it is also a
must to acknowledge the necessi
' ’l l
f *
V
4 W
ties and desires of the people who
reside there now.
“I think every time we have an
opportunity to invite folks into the
same space who might not see eye-
to-eye but who are living together
in the same neighborhood, in the
same community, and have them
talk about what their experiences
are, and their sense of what they
want for their neighborhood to feel
like, and what they want it to be, I
think that’s great,” he says.
Portland Community Reinvest
ment Initiative’s Maxine Fitzpatrick,
an African American leader for af
fordable housing, says since open
ing their doors in 1993, having their
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headquarters on Martin Luther King
Boulevard has been a priority.
The main offices for PCRI have
moved several times since its incep
tion, but every time maintained its
presence on the through way.
“This is where PCRI should be,”
says Fitzpatrick.
As eco n o m ic d e v elo p m e n t
projects continue to advance in the
neighborhoods, Fitzpatrick joins a
chorus of other activists calling at
tention to the need to insure that
black people of varied income brack
ets are able to remain in the neigh
borhood.
Ahjamu Umi, head of the black
advocacy group Occupy Northeast
and the All African Peoples Revolu
tionary Party of Portland, accuses
city government of being dominated
by corporate interests, and said that
creates a certain irony in naming the
street after King.
“I’m not one to care about the
street name,” Umi says. “But I care
if people are grasping the concepts
that MLK was talking about, and I
think the state of the neighborhood
is a reflection that we’re not.”
He goes on to ask if people of
African descent are “interested” in
grasping the concepts the civil rights
leader was talking about or simply
using him as a figurehead to further
individual agendas.
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THE
SPINACOLUMN
An ongoing series of questions and answers about America’s natural healing profession
Part 31. Treatment for Lower Back Injury
Dr. Billy R. Flowers
My low er back has bee
aching for months. B u tl’m afrai
hiropractors, so I haven’t seen
doctor. What should I do?
A • B ack pain is one o f th
1 Im ost common medical complaint
for people ages 45 to 65. It’s also on
o f the m ost com m on reasons peopl
m iss work. Fortunately, not man;
people need back surgery becausi
non-invasive treatm ents help control
m ost back pain. If you have recurring
back pain that m akes it difficult or un
com fortable to com plete your day-to-
day activities, experts suggest you see
a doctor who specializes in spine dis
eases and injuries, and who works
closely with other specialties re
lated to the spine. A chiropractor
will first rule out any serious condi
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Flowers' Chiropractic Office
2124 NE Hancock, Portland Oregon 97212 • P h o n e : ( 5 0 3 ) 2 8 7 5 5 0 4