Are Black Problems our Nation’s “Elephant in the Living Room?”

This will be the featured article in the Social Issues Category of http://www.articlewarehouse.com/ in August

I’ve recently awakened to a creepy question: Why don’t I read or see
news about the horrible state of affairs for black people in Portland
Oregon, and on a national level? I should hear about it all the time-
it’s a crazy problem!

I grew up with an average of 2 black students in school at any given
time who had a little bit of celebrity status, and a slightly harder
time breaking in as the new kids. I lived in the border between
Suburbia & The Country that was connected by Seven-Eleven stores.
High School was half of my life ago and then, Portland Oregon didn't
have gangs yet. We were just starting to get black neighborhoods in bad
areas. I never saw any of it happen because NE Portland had no relation
to Middle Class Country Suburbia (MCCS I'll call it) where the few
black kids seemed just like everyone else. My biggest whispering around
them was that we secretly wanted to figure out their hair.

I know there are a lot of black people who grew up like those kids in
my school. They have no ties to slums, not much to Africa, and they'll
stay the hell out of NE Portland too. But unless they went right into
MCCS as adults, they might have made connections in the military, at
Portland State University, or at a community church, even listening to
R&B stations ... and suddenly NE Portland has a connection to them,
and MCCS feels a little less comfortable.

Most of our gangs aren't black here. And most of the shootings on
blacks seem to be cop errors. Our cops used to have to go to college,
but now its pretty easy to be a stereotypical bully and get a gun with
a license to shoot at human beings and make up a cover story with no
consequences. I bet it makes good cops want to leave Portland. Still,
even with all that going on I am quite removed. And I just realized how
weird that is.

I wondered how in the heck it was possible that all this is going on
with the bad police shootings, the slums, the gangs, the
socio-economical traps set up in the hearts of cities... and its all so
quiet from out over here in MCCS. It's been a long time since blacks
couldn't vote. (Amendment 15, 1870: The right of citizens of the United
States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or
by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of
servitude.) That came 50 years before women's turn (Amendment 19, 1920:
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied
or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.)
Shouldn't black males be 50 years ahead of white women in the pursuit
of equality? They are not. (Don't think pay rates, think prisons,
shootings and lack of media coverage)

I've heard reason after reason as to why there are bad black
neighborhoods in cities or rather, why we can't fix it. Any reason a
person can give me is just part of the history of learned excuses for
why we haven't even tried to fix this. These "reasons" aren't any
different than "reasons" for spousal abuse. There is no good reason for
black people to be more at risk of having a horrid life. So please
encourage your friends not to feel a need to justify it. Who are we
protecting by not thinking its ridiculous?

We've heard blanket statements from our parents/teachers/role-models
that it's nearly impossible to change. Of course it's possible! There
is no natural or genetic significant difference separating us. It's
just groups and who is in power. They are we, save culture and some
pigment. And you can break the cycle by just not saying it anymore. Try
saying: "Its an abomination that we have a discernable disadvantage to
black people in America in 2004 and its hardly mentioned in our main
media."

I can at least say we don't try in Portland-metro Oregon. You'll know
when we try when you see it as a regular topic on the front page of the
local papers.... % prisoners are black, % black people were detained
but not charged with a crime, % college students are black, % soldiers
are black, % business owners are black. Nationally "107 African
Americans in total have taken their place in United States history as
Congressional leaders" according to the Congressional Black Caucus
Foundation site http://cbcfinc.org/History.html. In Oregon where I live
we have Jim Hill who has been in the House and Senate and is our
Treasurer... but I found Mr. Hill as the only Black Congressman ever in
Oregon. Can that really be true?
http://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/OR/black.html had the most direct
answer to that question I found. Can someone validate/invalidate that
for me please?

So here's the solution to having this elephant in the living room: See
it and talk about it, don't ignore it. Think of it, like I said, like
spousal abuse. We had to talk about THAT and get it out of the open
first before it became socially unacceptable. We used to be afraid to
do that but that was because we got ahead of ourselves and denied the
problem simply because we didn't want to face a change or serious
challenge. We are not ready to solve this problem until we call it out.
The easiest thing to do is expect your local news to mention
significant things relating to black neighborhoods and to not just
ignore them. Once you see the elephant, you'll see how creepily ignored
it is.