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Page 2 The Skanner August 17, 2016 ® Challenging People to Shape a Better Future Now Bernie Foster Founder/Publisher Bobbie Dore Foster Executive Editor Jerry Foster Advertising Manager Christen McCurdy News Editor Patricia Irvin Graphic Designer Arashi Young Reporter Monica J. Foster Seattle Oice Coordinator Susan Fried Photographer 2016 MERIT AWARD WINNER The Skanner Newspaper, es- tablished in October 1975, is a weekly publication, published every Wednesday by IMM Publi- cations Inc. 415 N. Killingsworth St. P.O. Box 5455 Portland, OR 97228 Telephone (503) 285-5555 Fax: (503) 285-2900 info@theskanner.com Opinion Shirley Chisholm and the Fight for Equal Rights for All Women W ith a woman heading the ticket of the Dem- ocratic Party, it may be challenging for us to remember that women have had the right to vote for less than a century (and Black folks less that). But the 19th Amendment that gave women the right to vote was ratiied on August 18, 1920, just 96 years ago. At Congresswom- an Bella Abzug’s (D-N.Y.) in- sistence Congress designated August 26 as Women’s Equal- ity Day in 1971. The irst part of the joint resolution of Congress reads, “Where- as the women of the United States have been treated as second class citizens and have not been entitled to the full rights and privileges, public or private, legal or intention- al, which are available to male citizens.” Reading the words reminds me how far women have come, how far we still have to go, and how little the status of women of color is in- cluded when we speak of the status of women. How far have we come? Few would have predicted that an African American would win an election and efective- ly lead the United States for eight years, few would have predicted that a women would have more than a ighting chance of winning the United States presidency. And yet the Julianne Malveaux NNPA Columnist very campaign that signals progress is also one that illus- trates how much more work needs to be done before wom- en’s equality is attained. Too much of the rhetoric around Secretary Clinton’s candida- cy is downright sexist. She should be judged by her po- “ is a clear case of where there’s smoke, there’s ire. One won- ders how many other com- panies have similarly hostile work environments and how oten women, simply attempt- ing to earn a living, are placed in the position of having to manage unlattering com- ments, downright harass- ment, coerced sex, and even rape. There are documented cases of women being raped in the military then being discharged because they can’t work with their rapists. And let’s not get started on some of what happens on some cam- run for president has been all but ignored in much of the media frenzy about candidate Hillary Clinton. However, it does not surprise me given the many ways African Amer- ican women’s contributions are sidelined, marginalized or simply ignored. African American women earn less their White counterparts do, but head more households and have more economic re- sponsibility. African Amer- ican women are far less likely than their White coun- terparts to be found in the “C” suite in corporate leadership, and far more likely to be further down the ladder in every as- pect of life in our na- tion. While people say they saw the glass ceil- ing shatter with Hillary Clinton’s nomination, others saw the millions stand- ing at the sticky loor with few opportunities to climb up to that glass ceiling. Those standing on the sticky loor are disproportionately wom- en of color, especially those who earn low wages and have fewer opportunities than oth- ers. Maybe Hillary Clinton will bridge the gap when she pursues a progressive eco- nomic agenda that includes fair and equal pay, afordable childcare, and other beneits for working women. The very campaign that signals prog- ress is also one that illustrates how much more work needs to be done be- fore women’s equality is attained sitions and there should be absolutely no talk about her looks, hairstyle, attire, or tone of voice. No man could stand the kind of scrutiny that she has had to endure. No man has ever been subject to such scrutiny. The continuing saga of sex- ual harassment at Fox News is another example of the dis- tance we must travel to reach women’s equality. The compa- ny’s former CEO, Roger Ailes, is accused of multiple counts of sexual harassment, and this puses. That a Palo Alto judge sentenced a Stanford student to a scant six months in a rape witnessed by another student is amazing. That his father actually decried the sentence as too high a price to pay for a few minutes of “action” speaks to how much work we have to do to reach women’s equality. And ain’t I a woman. What about Black women’s equal- ity? It chagrins me that Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm’s (D-N.Y.) historic www.TheSkanner.com The Skanner is a member of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Association and West Coast Black Pub lishers Association. All photos submitted become the property of The Skanner. We are not re spon sible for lost or damaged photos either solicited or unsolicited. ©2016 The Skanner. All rights re served. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission prohibited. Local News Paciic NW News World News Opinions Jobs, Bids Entertainment Community Calendar RSS feeds BE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION #SkNews Can We Rebuild Black Wall Street? “T here are [Blacks] who are willing to worship the pyramids of 4,000 years ago, but will not build pyramids in the pres- ent so their children may see what they let behind as well. We have a leadership who rallies the people to look at past glories, but leave their children neglected, who will make great analytical and oratorical dissertations on the inadequacies of Eurocen- tric education and yet will not contribute one penny of their money or their time to the construction of their own schools.” — Dr. Amos Wilson, Afrikan Centered Conscious- ness versus the New World Order. Montoya Smith, host of the Atlanta talk show, “Mental Dialogue,” asked, “Can we re- build ‘Black Wall Street?’” “No, really,” he added, recog- nizing the depth of his ques- tion and assuring folks he was not kidding or just being rhetorical. So, what was Black Wall Street? Most of what I have learned about it was obtained from a book by John Sibley Butler titled, “Entrepreneur- ship and Self-Help Among Black Americans, A Recon- sideration of Race and Eco- nomics,” which contains an exhaustive section on Tulsa, Oklahoma’s history and a de- James Clingman NNPA Columnist tailed account of what took place in its Greenwood Dis- trict. Some of the information below comes from Dr. Butler’s book. I also learned from face to face conversations with six “ Despite hundreds of Black lives lost in the riot and all of Greenwood’s businesses destroyed, the story of that economic enclave during the ensuing seventeen years was one of triumph over tragedy. By 1923, as a result of Blacks pooling their money to cap- italize new enterprises, the Black business district was even larger than before, and Greenwood was completely restored by Black people by 1938. Ultimately, urban re- is based on the fact that we have done it before under far worse circumstances than we are under today. But as I listened to the other guest on Montoya’s show, Mr. Jay West, entrepreneur and president of the Lithonia Small Business and Merchants Association located on the outskirts of At- lanta, Georgia, I became even more convinced. Immediately impressed by Mr. West and the work his group is doing in a city that is approximately 85 per- cent Black, I sought him out to learn more. Jay West understands and promotes local business support. “I do 95 percent of my shopping right here in Li- thonia,” West said, “because I know that one dollar spent here has the multiplier efect of three dollars, as our busi- nesses support one another.” West is absolutely correct, and the Lithonia merchants association will beneit col- lectively and individually from circulating their dollars. They will grow their busi- nesses and create more jobs. This nascent organization can be the model from which new Black Wall Streets can be built across this nation. ‘I know that one dollar spent here has the multiplier efect of three dollars, as our businesses support one another’ of the survivors of the Tulsa Riot. Black Wall Street was burned to the ground in 1921 by a White mob. The Green- wood District, located in the northern section of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was once called “Negro Wall Street,” and “Little Africa.” It was home to hundreds of Black owned businesses and sat on valu- able land desired by White oil speculators, who even tried to buy parcels of that land from Blacks for ten cents on the dollar immediately following the Tulsa riot. Fortunately and wisely, Blacks refused to sell. newal and integration, which allowed Blacks to shop at non- Black stores, led to the demise of “Black Wall Street.” To Amos Wilson’s point, Greenwood was a pyramid built by Blacks in the ear- ly 1900’s. Instead of looking back and merely reveling in the successes of Mound Bay- ou, Mississippi, and other en- claves that came before them, Black people in Greenwood built upon those legacies. Thus, my answer to the ques- tion posed by Montoya Smith, (Can we rebuild Black Wall Street?) was and is an emphat- ic and unequivocal, “Yes!” My answer to that question Read the rest of this story at TheSkanner.com
