cin g the Invisible Tracks TPart 1When I received a call inviting me to be part of theNational Underground Railroad Familiarization Tour, Iinitially viewed it with conflicted skepticism. Was it_ substantive enough to clear a crowded week of appoint-ments? Or was this a subliminal excuse for a half-hearted opportunity to oget away � under the guise ofwriting about culture and heritage? Upon returning fromthe trip, I found it more than substantive, I found it soul-searching, evensoul-touching in terms of reminding me (and us) of the ravages of the timeand the difficulties and risks our oimmediate � ancestors endured tobecome the creature they were created to be, free.In atime when conveniences undermine our desire to struggle, and ourvision (and children Ts vision) to see beyond restricted social acceptanceand material pleasures, this tour that is being formalized in several partsof the country (Michigan, Ohio, Missouri, Maryland, Canada) in such away as state or federally funded ohistorical � tour sites (many run by whiteshat resisted but now see the economic benefit to heritage tourism) that itnot only helps you understand the historical significance of the sites, butalso what struggle and sacrifice was. It would provide a true cultural oreconnection � for most of us, if not all of us.Even the oblackest of the black (philosophically) � would gain invalu-able insights to the psyche of the man or woman who had the courage torisk what they risked to leave the plantation in search of freedom. We needto get away and experience the hardships of the oinvisible tracks � first-hand. See what they saw and try to fee! what they felt. It wouldn't be hard.Like visiting Egypt or Goree Island in Senegal, visiting the safe housesand tunnel sites (many just discovered recently), the ancestors are so closeto you, you feel their spirits tapping you on the shoulder.Even if we have to osteal away � from work for a week, itis well worthit. And this is an absolute must for our children, and anybody who claims othey know our suffering. � National Underground Railroad Tours are ourMuseums of Tolerance for those who have such great desires formulticultural exchange of painful experiences and cultural dialogue.The latest new phenomena sweeping the East Coast, Southern, andMidwest states are called oHeritage Tours. �black is back � around the rest of the country. TheWest and Northwest, *While black is out in thelatest area of study is the demise of 19th century political economy in theSouth.The tool that broke down the South's primary economy, slavery, andthe politics that went along with it after the Civil War, was the under-ground rail; a system so sophisticated that much of its mechanics are onlycoming to light 140 years later. In the historical context of how Africanpeople in their desire to remove themselves from the wrath of slavery, theUnderground Railroad is just a footnote. Historical discussion, in bothAmerican and so-called oblack � history, are limited in acclaim andaccount. Escape from slavery was by and large viewed as an anomaly.But it was a deeply spiritual endeavor, a burning desire to reconnectwith the creator on human terms and go beyond the subhuman realitiescreated by oppressors of man. And just as the civil rights movement hasbeen secularized in history to evolve around one personality, MartinLuther King Jr., so has the Underground Railroad attributes been secular-ized to one personality, Harriet Tubman.In a recentconversationabout the upcoming political (orsilly) season, John Hill, chief ofstaff for Supervisor YvonneBrathwaite Burke, and former headof affirmative action for Los Ange-les County, struck a chord that hasbeen reverberating for days.Hill, a very thoughtful, intelli-gent and intense gentleman, pointedto some issues which seem to havebeen overlooked by far too manyAfrican American people.He pointed out that the current(Clinton) administration has cre-ated a climate in this country thatno chief executive of the countryhas equaled or has even come closeto equaling.As he talked, it became clearthat during this administration, moreminorities have been placed inpolicy-making positions than everbefore in history.Beginning with the late RonBrown, who was named secretaryof commerce of the United States.Then there was Hazel O'Leary, whowas secretary of energy. Ron Espy,who headed the agriculture depart-ment.Anattemptto smear Espy woundup in defeat, but Espy was seriouslydamaged in the fray. Sull he hadbeen appointed to the post and did adamned good job while he held theoffice.Clinton had the nerve to name ablack woman, Dr. Jocelyn Elders,as surgeon general, and when shecame under fire from his opponents,he had no choice but to accept herresignation. 4Still, he was undeterred. He onamed Dr, David Satcher as herteplacement. Satcher has some lo-cal ties since he once headed theDrew Medical School here in theSouthland. He stole Satcher fromthe presidency of Meharry MedicalCollege in Nashville. These are justa few of his appointees.The real issue here is simple:For the first time in history, thecabinet of the President of theUnited States began to take on thecole:, if you will, of the nation it-self. This was, and is, the legacy ofthe Clinton administration.Today, there are blacks, Hispan-ics, and women, all in positions ofreal, not imagined, power. Otherpresidents, including JohnKennedy, could have done it, butthey didn Tt. Lyndon Johnson couldhave done it. He certainly had thepower, but he did not use it for us.The list goes on ad infinitum.This brings us to the next point.Hill pointed out a survey, whichindicated a number of AfricanAmericans are supporting the can-didacy of George W. Bush on theRepublicanticket. Hill asks a simplequestion and we concur. Why?The economy of this nation hasnever been better. There are blackpeople making more money thanever before. What could be changedor made better by electing a GeorgeW. Bush, ora Pat Buchanan? Wouldeither of them do more for minori-ties than Clinton has done? We thinknot. Yet we seem to have an inordi-nate number of black people run-URBAN PERSPECTIVEA Hard Look at Clinton Ts Initiative on RacePart 2The final report of the advisoryboard to the president's Initiative on Race 1sentitled, One America in the 21st Century: Forg-ing a New Future. The report is important be-cause it is supposed to shape the race relationsdebate in the United States in the near term.hearings and meetings concentrated on deci-phering the role race plays in a wide array ofinstitutions and cultural practices and publicpolicy, including civil rights enforcement, edu-cation, poverty, employment, housing, stereo-typing and the administration of justice, healthcare and immigration.t Broke, Please Don't Fix itning tothe Republican Party to sup-port one or another of their candi-dates. Again, why?The whole intent of the variousCivil Rights Movements in thiscountry since the end of the CivilWar has been to achieve racialequality and to be a viable and func-tional part of the rules-makinggroup. It is finally a reality.For the first time since we werebrought to this country in chains in the17thcentury, we are there. Why wouldor should we want to go back to theway things were 100 years ago?It makes no sense.This is not a political endorse-ment for any candidate. It is justsome statements of fact that cannotbe refuted or even argued. Thethings, which have taken place inthis country within the past sevenyears, are things we longed for,begged for, marched for and diedfor.There is another issue, which mustbe seen for what it is. Within ourranks, we have those men and womenwhose only concern is themselves.So, if they align themselves withcertain political figures, it bodes wellfor them. But it does not necessarilybode well for the rest of the AfricanAmerican people. They don Tt give atinker Ts damn about the plight of therace. They are concerned primarilywith their own greed.They can boast of their affilia-tion with the oother � group withsome degree of selfish pride. Theyhave helped themselves and per-haps to some degree, have beenable to help a few others. But those~The Minority Voice: Oct 14 - Oct 21, 1999 |few others they have helped are nota drop in the proverbial bucket,when we have had to look at all ofthe others who are still in need.The steps that have been made inour behalf since the inception of theClinton administration are unparal-leled. We need to recognize thatwithout a lot of hoopla and fanfare,he has gone about his mission withclarity and determination.There are some among us whowill lambaste his personal life. Thatis their individual prerogative. Inthe meantime, those detractors needto look at the strides made by Afri-can Americans since he took office.None of the things for which hehas been charged had anything todo with how he handled his officeand how he made sure that his cabi-net was reflective of the Americahe swore to serve and uphold.Factually, it is time we pulledour collective head from the sandand realized what has been done inour behalf these past seven yearsand than ask ourselves what thefuture will hold?Clearly, all is not right with theworld just yet. We are, however, onthe right track. When we are facedwith the choices we have, we needto look closely at the track recordsof those people who seek our sup-port and our votes.Even with the remaining prob-lems, it appears we are on the righttrack. If that is tha case, why shouldwe attempt to force the wheels ofprogress to move backward?If it ain Tt broke, the best thing todo is leave it aldne.see 1s more and more companies investing intheir workers ...grams to provide them upward mobility. � Pro-fessor Hine says this seems like a reasonablerequest. If only these minorities be made tomirror the larger white ideals, they could escapeon training and education pro-their problems growing out of oracial disparity. �Recounting the escapades of the most successful conductor, HarrietTubman (who freed 300 out of bondage) trivializes the impact and trueeffect of those who collaborated in a sophisticated system of escape thatbranched 23 states and freed 40,000 (that they could account for). Thatdoesn Tt account for the half-million that left and were caught and/or killedtrying to escape slavery. So many were escaping, and being aided by freeblacks, abolitionists, Northern business people (who couldn't competeagainst the South Ts free labor) that it broke down the system. It wasn Ttabout Lincoln altogether, and it Ts a puzzle now being put together. As thepieces have begun to fall in place in great volume, the picture is clearernow.What makes this exploration of the Underground Railroad such anintriguing proposition is that it offers the opportunity to expand historyand, in some cases, correct history as it relates to our transition intoAmerican society. It wasn't like there were four million of our ancestorsjust standing around just waiting for somebody to free them. It was aconstant engagement of how to escape versus how to keep them enslaved.It was the creation of codes and unwritten systems, many of which are stillin effect today (on both sides of the color line), whereby two races forcedlo interface under the most horrendous circumstances, yet could notcommunicate their sincerest thoughts to the other.Life for the enslaved and the enslaver was a constant gamesmanship(much like it is today). Who can manipulate whom? One with the force ofman Ts law, the other with the force of God Ts law. The UndergroundRailroad is a testament that man Ts law didn't always prevail uver God'slaw, no matter how history tries to represent it. And for the Africanap T in study to focus on our experience atits highest point (when we were kings and queens) instead of during ourlowest points (when the truest test of our God-centered nature was calledto bare). We focus on our oancient � ancestry versus our oimmediate � (orAmerican, there has been a ognot so ancient) ancestryThe first generations of Africans in slavery in America, as well as theAccordingly, assessments of the report of theadvisory panel provide instructive analysis and,hopefully, public discourse on race relationsissues.This week Ts (and last week's) column pro-vide two views of the One America report. Thefirst was Professor Howard Winant's RacialFormation in the United States "from the 1960sto the 1990s. Today Ts column summarizes Raceand Class in the 21st Century by Dr. DarleneClark Hine, professor of American History atMichigan State University.W.E.B. DuBois accurately prophesied in theSouls of Black Folk (1903) that the problem ofthe 20th century would be that of the color line.In later writings, he elaborated on the color linemetaphor and added a class analysis. DuBois Tkeen insights into the contours of divisions andtensions between the predominantly white im-perial master capitalists and the internationallaboring groups of all colors bequeathed to us,among other things, a powerful, indeed sober-ing, paradigm.Allconversations about race, racism and racerelations require a simultaneous class analysisand sustained consideration of gender. But it 1swithin the framework of race and class intersec-tion that Professoy Hine offers reflections onOne America in the 2]st Century: Forging aNew future, The President's Initiative on Race TsAdvisory Board Report to the president.Executive Order #13050 created the Initia-Any review of the One America report 1slikely to raise troubling questions. The assertionthat as a country we are more ounited thandivided � obscures the deep historical and con-temporary divisions that characterize the basicfabric of American society. Moreover, one mustponder whether the report advances our under-standing and ultimate goal of resolving the crisisof color and class. In other words, should theobjective have been to break new ground ratherthan to find common ground? Did the conun-drum of race and political expediency preventthe advisory board from calling outright for atransformation of American capitalism?One of the strengths of the One Americareport is its discussion of the changing nature of orace � in America. For too long, the terms ofrace analyses have focused on the easy dichotomyof white and black. The report offers five cat-egories for race in contemporary America:American Indian or Alaska Native; black orAfrican American; Native Hawaiian or otherPacific Islander, white or non-Hispanic white;Hispanic or Latino. These underscore the nu-anced complexity of racial taxonomy to a degreeheretofore unmatched in the history of race rela-tions in the United States. We desperately neednew paradigms that honor and accept and, in-.deed, deity difference.A major reservation of Professor Hine Ts iswhat she calls the problem of an oinvisiblehand. � The One America report does not makeexplicit who or what is doing whatever to whichMinorities, while willing to embrace a core ofshared American values, are nonetheless loatheto relinquish their distinct traditions, history andcultural productions as payment for a fully as-similated American identity.As America has become the world Ts pre-eminent post-industrial superpower, its myriadminorities continue to press for greater partici-pation in arational economy and equal access tothe social and educational systems and makeincessant demands for a more equitable share ofpolitical power.Racial discourse is now so convoluted that itmust have been a welcome respite, as someboard members implied, to listen to ordinary,everyday people talk about their perceptions andunderstandings of race. Anecdotal recollectionsand poignant testimony, however, while cer-tainly cathartic for some, do little to extricate usfrom the difficulties and disparities of race,conjoined with class, sexuality and gender. Itbears repeating that racial discrimination doesviolence to human dignity and personality anddevalues the culture and lifestyle of those marked oother. �We must collectively inculcate in the nextgeneration a deep appreciation for those mo-ments and times. when differences are irrelevantand even retrograde. As the advisory board cor-rectly posits, all Americans share core valuesand beliefs in justice, dignity, respect, equalityand opportunity and inclusion. To this extent,we are one America, but we are not a perfectlast generation of enslaved Africans, had to be as learned, as disciplined,as calculating as any European scholar and without the benefit of formaleducation; following the rivers and. lakes, reading the sun, moon and stars,communicating by rhythms and sounds, reading body language andattitudinal behaviors to discern friend or foe in life or death situations. Thefruit of their sophistication and their struggle was, in part, the success ofthe Underground Railroad.Over the next three installments of this series, you will be able towitness how complex this system was in its timing, in its collaboration andin its geographical breath. The route we took was considered the mosttraveled (and most dangerous) route, through Kentucky, Ohio, and Michi-tive on Race and an advisory hoard charged withthe task Of advising the president on issues ofrace and racism. The advisory board held aseries of conversations and forums with privatecitizens and corporate, religious and local lead-ers over a period of 15 months. The board'sgroup(s) and who will implement or enforce itsrecommendations should any of them becomepublic policy.Advisory board member Linda Chavez Th-ompson declared, oOne of the things we'd like tounion. The most pressing challenge is to identifythe forces, make visible the underlying systemicfactors and mount a concerted relentless move-ment to traverse and eradicate the barriers thatdivide us.STANLEY CUTCHINS,retired from NewYork City HealthDepartment " WeGreenville Ts New BeginningKERNA HILTSk & MAYOR xgan to Canada (Harriet Tubman escaped from Maryland and took, the East must encourageCoast route through Rochester, New York). ownership ofThose of us who went on the tour had to go through a deprogramming Black businessesof our own, given by the tour operator, a sister, named Angela deSilva, by contracting cor-porate companies for sponsor-ship. Hold seminars in schools,churches and civic organiza-tions to give advice about start-ing your own business and toencourage keeping Black dol-lars in the Black community.Forget about getting richthrough lotto.RALPH G. COOK, presi-dent, the GilGroup " We mustrequire from theBlack consumerrespect, and youas the vendormust respect thepeople that we deal with and| the pleasant and thoughtful{ _ salesperson that makes yourday and gets your business onthe right track. We must seri- P enemasously admit that goodwill alone will not close the gaps in incomebetween Black and white house-holds. Closing the wealth gap issomething we African-Ameri-cans can do more about on ourconsidered one of the foremost modern day scholars on the UndergroundRailroad (she Ts identified several sites on the tour undiscovered before hercontact with them). First, what is the Underground Railroad?You wouldn't believe how many people thought (and still think) it wasan actual railroad. Most people thought it was a singular route traveledback and forth. All of that was incorrect, The Underground Railroad wasa coordinated system that had literally hundreds of routes, and the routeschanged frequently by day or night, and by state and jurisdiction. Thuscoining the term, oInvisible Tracks. � If you knew where it was, you couldclose it down. It never happened. Slavery closed down first.(FIRST OF A FOUR-PART SERIES, PUBLISHED FIRST WEEK OVER THENEXT FOUR MONTHS.)« wdPaid for by the committee to elect Kerna Hilts : edNe LAREN IT GO SE CSA AMR A SRE BSS SPECIE. Mee mam PATER HEE PCRS: a ma sot ate