June 7, 2017 The Skanner Page 3
News
cont’d from pg 1
Black congregations, lo-
cal briefs, and a section
called “Salem Notes,”
which includes African
American
community
events in the state capi-
tal.
At the time of its publi-
cation, it was still illegal
for Black people to even
move to Oregon. That law
would hold until 1926.
“
a lot of ways it was really
dependent on individu-
als to maintain materi-
als.”
What Jensen does
know is that “The Peo-
ple’s Bulletin” was pub-
lished by the Portland
branch of the Oregon
Colored Women’s Coun-
cil — formed in 1912
— with Ruth Flowers
‘My hope is that if we find
some additional newspa-
pers, we’ll discover even
more about what these wom-
en were doing’
Dr. Kimberly Jensen –
history and gender stud-
ies professor at West-
ern Oregon University
– discovered the news-
paper while researching
for an upcoming article
for the Oregon Historical
Quarterly about citizen-
ship and civil liberties of
Oregon women during
the First World War.
Yet tracing the paper’s
back story — and the
whereabouts of addition-
al issues – has been chal-
lenging for Jensen, to say
the least.
“The People’s Bulletin”
is not referenced at the
research library of the
Oregon Historical Soci-
ety; nor is it among the
Rutherford Family Col-
lection at PSU Library’s
Special
Collections,
which includes a number
of newspapers such as
Beatrice Morrow Can-
nady’s “The Advocate,”
pertaining to the Black
community. Special Col-
lections received a grant
last year to preserve Ore-
gon’s Black newspapers.
“In general, a lot of that
ephemeral history in
Portland just sadly dis-
appeared,” said Cris Pas-
child, PSU archivist and
head of Special Collec-
tions. “It wasn’t actively
collected by repositories
and it wasn’t recognized
as historically signifi-
cant for a long time, so in
Jackson
listed as the paper’s asso-
ciate editor. Her husband
Ralph Flowers was one of
Portland’s first African
American civil service
employees, according to
Jensen.
The Oregon Colored
Women’s Council would
later grow into the Or-
egon Federation of Col-
ored Women’s Clubs, a
conglomerate of as many
as 17 different civic and
political groups estab-
lished in Oregon at the
turn the twentieth cen-
tury.
According to records,
“The People’s Bulle-
tin” became the official
mouthpiece of the fed-
eration, whose mem-
bers included Hattie
Redmond, head of the
Colored Women’s Equal
Suffrage League, and
Katherine Gray, who be-
come its first president.
The bulletin was also
adopted by the Colored
Women’s
Republican
Club, founded by Lizzy
Weeks.
While women’s social
clubs and civic organi-
zations were considered
pillars of community
building in early Black
Portland, little has been
uncovered about the
council’s publishing ac-
tivities.
Read the rest of this story at
TheSkanner.com
Miss Black Oregon
Talent Teen
Grant High School Student Skylar Pierce-Smith, Class of 2018,
is the reigning Miss Black Oregon Talent Teen. Skylar will be
going to Washington, DC on July 1 to represent Oregon and
compete for the National title of Miss Black USA Talent Teen
2017. Skylar’s talent is dance, her athletic showcase is cheer,
and her platform is anti-bullying.
If people want to support Skylar, they can visit http://www.
missblackusatalentedteen.org/contestants to cast their vote.
VOTE for Oregon Skylar P. Votes are $1.00 ea. $1.00 = 1 vote;
$5.00 = 5 votes; $10 = 10 votes etc. There are no maximum
number of votes a contestant may receive, and each dollar
spent supports the scholarship program. The People's Choice
winner will be announced the night of the pageant on July 1,
2017. Online voting ends 11:59 p.m. on June 30.
Skylar will participate in the Juneteenth” Parade and
Celebration Clara Peoples Freedom Trail Parade June 17 and
the 25th annual Good in the Hood multicultural music and art
festival and parade June 24.
Paratroopers
more airborne units, in peace and
war, than any other parachute
group in history.”
On June 3, Oregon officially
commemorated the heroism of
the 555th at the Siskiyou Smoke-
jumper Museum, located at the
Illinois Valley Airport in Cave
Junction.
The commemoration was spear-
headed by the Illinois Valley Com-
munity Development Organiza-
tion, which has worked to boost
local business, develop tourism,
and propose a number of historic
markers.
In 2015, the IVCDO partnered
with the National Park Service to
commemorate the invention of
the Viewmaster by Oregon inven-
tors William B. Gruber and Har-
old J., with a historical marker at
the Oregon Caves National Monu-
ment and Preserve.
This month, its efforts have
brought the Triple Nickles (the
spelling derives from old English)
out of the clandestine corners of
Oregon history. The 555th “have
never been recognized all these
years, so this is really Oregon’s
official recognition of the Triple
PHOTO COURTESY OF D. LEONIDAS PHOTOGRAPHY
Bulletin
cont’d from pg 1
Nickle story,” Roger Brandt, chair
of the IVCDO, told The Skanner.
A fight on two fronts
In 1942, with the U.S. military
still segregated, most African
American soldiers were rele-
gated to menial jobs with little
“
wards the end of 1942 through
a recommendation by the Advi-
sory Committee on Negro Troop
Policies. Constituted in Febru-
ary 1943, the 555th was initially
formed as a company.
After several months of train-
The Triple Nickles served in more air-
borne units, in peace and war, than any
other parachute group in history
expectation of achieving higher
skilled posts. Between 1942 and
1943, some 5,000 Black troops
were sent north to help build the
Alaska Highway and install the
companion Canol pipeline.
Even a Black lieutenant or ser-
geant was forced to live, eat and
sleep in separate quarters from
his White counterpart. The reali-
ty was a fight on two fronts — one
against the enemy aboard and the
other for civil rights at home.
At first largely an experiment
— as the racist opinion of the time
suggested African American sol-
diers lacked the courage to jump
out of planes, said Brandt — the
paratroop unit was formed to-
ing in Fort Benning, Georgia and
later in North Carolina, the unit
was activated on November 25,
1944 as the 555th Parachute In-
fantry Battalion – all members
were Black, from the command-
ing officer down to the privates.
Operation Firefly
At the open of 1945, the battal-
ion was sent to the West Coast on
a secret mission, known as Op-
eration Firefly. The dangerous
assignment was to exterminate
some 9,000 balloons released by
the Japanese, each carrying four
to five bombs designed to ignite
forest fires on the coast.
Read full story at TheSkanner.com
cont’d from pg 1
Fletcher was injured.
“It was their Samaritan spirit that
showed just who we really are,” Jackson
said to a small gathering of reporters
and faith and community leaders in
Augustana’s sanctuary Friday morn-
ing.
He also said there have always been
“counter-cultural” reactionary forces
determined to fight racial progress,
and that when oppressive structures
are changed, hearts and minds will fol-
low.
And he urged community members
opposed to racism and not to “fight fire
with fire” or give racists an audience.
“We’ll have our own day to march,
and we’ll not be afraid,” Jackson said.
“We’ll show our faces, and we’ll tell the
world, ‘This is who we really are.’”
The press conference came two days
before a well-publicized Patriot Prayer
gathering of far-right militia groups
in downtown Portland — and three
planned counter-demonstrations in
“
‘We’ll show our fac-
es, and we’ll tell the
world, “This is who
we really are”’
the same area, the largest of which was
organized by a coalition of dozens of
progressive organizations.
Asked if he was specifically urging
activists not to counter-demonstrate
the following Sunday, Jackson said, “If
you plant two seeds in the ground of
equal strength, the plant that grows
will be the one with more light.” He also
said Americans need to contend with
a complex, unique racial history and
work together to fight hate.
Ultimately, counter-demonstrators
at the June 4 event outnumbered far-
right demonstrators by approximately
10 to one, surrounding Terry Schrunk
Plaza on three sides in downtown Port-
land. Fourteen people were arrested
Sunday afternoon and police shot tear
gas and stun grenades at counter-dem-
onstrators after reports of projectiles
being shot into the street.
Reporters from Oregon Public Broad-
casting and The Oregonian also cap-
tured video and photos of Oath Keepers
— a militia group participating in the
Patriot Prayer demonstration — assist-
ing with Sunday arrests.
At 4:30 p.m. after permits for at least
two of the demonstrations had expired
and protesters began filtering into the
street, police detained 200 to 300 dem-
onstrators and at least seven report-
ers for both local and national media
downtown. Both demonstrators and
reporters wrote on social media that
police photographed their IDs before
releasing them from the kettle and told
them they may be charged with a crime
later.
Tuesday Portland Police Chief Mike
Marshman said on Oregon Public
Broadcasting’s “Think Out Loud” that
such demands aren’t consistent with
PPB policy and hinted one of the other
jurisdictions present may have asked
for IDs. Immediately after the inter-
view, OPB reported Marshman had
contacted the station again to confirm
PPB had in fact demanded and photo-
graphed ID evidence.
