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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 18, 2020)
Page 8 March 18, 2020 Arts & ENTERTAINMENT First Black Forest Supervisor Writes Memoir Portland woman tells story of her historic journey b y b everly C orbell T he P orTland o bserver When Gloria Brown was just 30 years old and the mother of three small children, her hus- band was killed by a drunk driv- er. Her future looked bleak, but through perseverance, hard work and smarts, she ascended and became the first African Ameri- can woman to be named a Forest Supervisor with the U.S. Forest Service. Brown has written a book along with history professor Donna Sinclair, about her expe- riences in the Forest Service ti- tled “”Black Woman in Green,” recently published by Oregon State University Press. Brown recently sat down PhoTo by b everly C orbell / with the Portland Observer to T he P orTland o bserver talk about her journey. She said she was working for the For- Gloria Brown, the first African American woman to attain the rank of Forest Supervisor at the est Service as a clerical work- U.S. Forest Service, has written a book about her experiences, ‘Black Woman in Green,” recently er in Washington, D.C. when published by Oregon State University Press. Subscribe ! 503-288-0033 Fill Out & Send To: Attn: Subscriptions, PO Box 3137, Portland OR 97208 $45.00 for 3 months • $80.00 for 6 mo. • $125.00 for 1 year (please include check with this subscription form) Name: Telephone: Address: or email subscriptions@portlandobserver.com her husband was killed and she knew she had to work hard to make ends meet. People of color didn’t have great opportunities for advancement in D.C., so she asked for a transfer so she could move up and make more mon- ey to support her children. She was hoping to go to Atlanta, but instead was sent to Missoula, Mont. where she ran into blatant racism. She had been in Montana for several years when her daugh- ter, Nicki, who was in high school, was attacked and called the N-word by a white girl, the captain of the basketball team. Her daughter fought back and both girls were suspended, but Brown soon learned that the white girl was continuing to go to basketball practice. When she asked the assistant princi- pal why, she was told that the school “didn’t have these prob- lems” until her children came into the school system. Outraged, she contacted C onTinued on P age 11 Actors from Portland’s PassinArt production of “Seven Guitars.” The dramatic play about African American life in the 20th Century was cancelled Monday just as it was scheduled to begin because of concerns over the coronavirus epidemic. ‘Seven Guitars’ Canceled Passinart, the theater group grounded to Portland’s African American community, announced Monday the cancelation of its lat- est production “Seven Guitars.” The dramatic play by August Wil- son was scheduled to begin a one month run this week at the Inter- state Firehouse Cultural Center in north Portland. Passinart said they made the decision to cancel the production to ensure the safety and health of the public, artists, staff and volun- teers in light of recommendations by public health officials to limit group events to fight the spread of the coronavirus epidemic. If you have already purchased a ticket, you can request a refund by emailing passinart@yahoo.com or you can donate your ticket(s) back to Passinart and receive a donation receipt.