VIEWS OPINIONS
..--:-
What do Leroy Carr, Mer-
line Johnson ("the Yas Yas Girl")
and Tampa Red have in com
mon?
In w ich state of the US is it
believed there is only one AME
church?
NOVEMijER 6, 1946 -
JeweU K. n, educator,
was born. 19 - Coleman
y 0WlI was elected mayor of
Detroit.
What was the important in
vention of Lewis Temple?
-
NOVEMBER 7, 1746 -
bsalomJo , founder, BI ck
Episcopal Church, w born.
1837 - Elijah P. Lovejoy,
abolitionist, died. 1989 - David
Dlnldns was elected first BI ck
Mayor of New York, .Y.
Which Black American na
val hero shot down four or five
Japanese Zeros during World
: War II?
NOVEMBER 8, 1914 -
� T.Johl18On, educator, was
born. 1966 - Edward W.
Brooke became the first Black
U.S. Senator since Reconstruc-
tion.
. Who was the first Black
professor to teach at the Bar- ..
vard Medical School?
NOVEMBER 9, 1731
Benjamin Banneker, scientist,
wasbom.
the first Black pitcher
in the major leagues to get a !W
hitter?
ANSWERS TO SLACK
HISTORY QUESTIONS
,
3rd - Tree branches with
forked ends which held together
. �ve'slaves by the neck. Later,
coffies werre simply metal chains
which served the same purpose.
4th - All were very popu
I .. blues singers in the 1930s.
5th - Vermont. r
611- Louis temple invented
speci . harpoons for ecuring
the catc of whales.
7th - Dorie Miller, a mess
man aboard the Arizona at Pearl
Harbor. He later went down with
the Liscombe Bay - still 'a
rnessman.
8th - Dr. William A. Hin-
ton.
9th - Sam "Toothpick"
Jones of the Chicago Cub ,May
17, 1955.
Send all news and
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Michigan Citizen
P.O. Box 03560
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48203
Or Call
869-0033
n gotia-
xist re
into th
Blacks, Uni
.
By NORMAN HILL
Much has been made ct the chang
ing nature of the American wotface
and population over the coming en
to one hundred years. Perhaps too
much, because the unstated implica
tionoften is that all American Blacks
need to do is sit b ck and w it for the
numbers to be in our favor, and vic
tory (r cial equality and the end of
de facto greg lion and economic
hardship) will be ours.
The question i , however, not
one merely of numbers. but one of
power. While the majority of new
entrants into the AmErican workface
by the year 2000 will be minority
and female, we must also pre
cisely what arts of jobs, wages,
working conditions and bargaining
power. will those minorities and
women have in those new jobs?
ennore, while the non-white
population of the U.S., given current
birth rates, could well surpass the
white population by the year 2080,
e must ask in what sort of society,
nomy. and world will we inherit
such electoral and political influ
ence?
Continued pot.izalioo d the-races
in America's society and economy
will never be in the interests of
American Blacks, no m tter how
numerous we are, because of how
power is distributed currently.
The best, if not the only 'way to
chanse the cUrrent distribution of
economic and political power in
America is fbr us to build a multi
racial coalition that will have ts
core the alliance between the Ameri
can labor movement and the Black
community .
iv of
waiting for gnfitti
�& '-'Wo 611hy trains in wine-s1erICJlE�
(
WE'QE �OLD'N6 JUDGE nlOMA\S
vP It) AN UNFf,.1 STA.N��D.
�SHOULDBLACKSc.e
.about unions, and why hould un
ions care about Blacks? Much of our
e.lier history, and even present-day
experience, seems to imply that our
interests collide: competition over
scarce jobs, seniority ystems, the
.J
Dr. Monnin Marabl is Profi -
or of Political Scienc History,
University of Colorado, Build r.
"Along the Color Li "app rs in
over 200 publicatio internation
allY, and is broadcast over radio sta
tions throughout the United State. .
•
1 WoNDER If: TllE SA� TEST
,
OF S£)(.VAL. WA.RASS�T WERE
A�PLIEO it) -mE. Sf.N,\TORS tiERE,
HOW MA\NV WOClL.D PASS.
�
/
ns, and America'
fu ur
of Blacks 1riIcebre ers, rac-
ist union constitutions, te. We must
are served
by the hard-hat, blue-collar, r . t
white union ranIc-and-file.
The fact is that Blacks dispropor
tionately benefit from strong unions,
and that the union movement needs
BI in order to have a strong
future. Ever ince the I gely suc
cessful activism c:l Black labor
A. Phillip Randolph and his efforts
to de gregate the American labor CONVER L Y, Blacks offer a
movement, lab<r has been the sIroI\g- great many things to the labor move-
supporter d civil rights for BI ment. First off. Black orkers are
outside of the traditional civil rights generally the most solid pro-union
organizations themselv . vo e in union organizing cawnp . gn .
Strengthening ounlly will obvi- Second, Black workers e ov -rep-
ously help us well. I"aIEIUed in tIree wxIer-unioni2J3d
More b icaJly, BI ton of the American economy: th
from unions because of service ector, the Southern
do for their members, ause workforce, and public employees.
union membership is disptoportlo - Furthermore, the projected fu-
ately' Black. Union membership is/, ture demography of the American'
the ingle gre test factor in increas- workforce has led heightened inter
ing�lack wages, greater by far than est in educa 'on and �Is training
education, experience, or job train- for Black workers. And ina-easing
ing. Furthermore, Blacks are 15.7 number of white collar workers in
percent of the total union workforce, the future will corne from the Black
and 22.2 percent of all Black work- community, and white collar organ-:
ers belong to unions. izing efforts are another significant
Low-income workers, who are potential growth area for American
predorriinantly Blacks are ten times unions.
as likely to have healthcare benefits The most basic reason why Black ""
if they belong to unions. supp<Xt is essential to American I ...
remains the same as It was decades
FAR FROM the stereotype, the ago: to overcome the divide and
American labor movement is quite conquer trategy used by the privi
simply perhaps the most integrated Jeged 10 weaken popular movements
institution in American life. Blacks for change.
must also ask ourselves: who. else is In conclusion, theprogressiveal
going to dvocate the necessary liance between BI cks and unions is
economic policies that will elimi- r necessary to stop the continued pau
nate Black poverty, eliminate urban perizIIioo cl the Anieric.t waicface,
ghettos? to continue the progress Blades have
Anti-union managem�t entire made towards equality in America,
American economy, improving liv- and to ensure that the American th t
ing standards and increasing con- current "minorities" will inherit over
swners' purchasing power. By their the next century will be a more just,
very nature, Unions represent the . ,and prosperous society.
interests of working people and the
economically disenfranchised. Norman Hill is President of the
Unions are also the strongest in- A Phillip Randolph Institute.
·tution ad'vocabng-for wm1kf1"S'
and and freedom of iation
abroad. Without ch rights, non- ,
white populations around th orld,
will continue to be denied basic free- :
dom, prosperity, and dignity, while .
American orker, predominantly
minority orkers, will continue to
I their jo and lower their livi rg
standards bec of unfair interna-
tional competition.
READERS WRITE
msplratlons for
Justice
For the last few weeks the main
topic in th media has been Judge
Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill.
Before Anita Hill' allegation,
Thomas wasn't high on the popu
larity vote. There still was the
doubt of what opinions he would
bring the Suprem Court.
When the si1uatioo hit the media
there • "buzz" in the air about
Thorn. A I.ge run of
ially Black WOl'l�
on ' ide.Itm
think thai if all th
country on his ide, it j
might be poetic justice.
Throu
Thomas and Hill never twitched, they
both had a purpose that seemed more
important that the actual· ue. The
speech that Thomas gave during the
debates oudined the injustices that
BI cks have h� and abo the injus
tices he endured. Until then, you
never he .. d him say anything to in
fluence you of his struggle as a Black
m�r a struggle of a man in the
system.
All the hard denial and Tbom ,
Wi SIo4OULD
TR"1 nus ... 11-E
LABEL SA"tS IT'S
FAT· FREE,
SODIUM-FREE,
AND�HO
�R'lATIVES.
RA Y E. DEFILS JR.
Poop like MII1in � Kin&
Jr. or Malcolm X inspire people
not to give up their dreams or con
victions. ThoriJ tood us:! to an
injustice and won. That is the ul
timate inspiration. Thomas al
ready is part of an elite crowd: the
Supreme Court Justices.
In due time he will be among
the most inspirational persons of
our time. He's no Thurgood
Marshall, but with time, who
kno s1
This is just one incident. It :
could blow ov in a � w
It and his name won't be ardagain.
Then again he could run with his
own inspiration and be an inspira
tion.