This is the last issue of the
summer Emerald. We will resume
publication Sept. 22 with our an
nual Fall Orientation Issue. Daily
publication begins Monday,
Sept. 26.
Vol. 79, No. 15
Eugene, Oregon 97403
Tuesday, August 9, 1977
Eight hundred arrested Monday
Peaceful protest descends on Trojan
By JOCK HATFIELD
Of the Emerald
A line of 80 protestors, waving and
carrying four days' provisions marched
up the long road to the Trojan Nuclear
Power Plant. Four hundred people, pro
testing at the visitor’s center outside the
plant, cheered them on. “No nukes! No
nukes!”
"It was one of the most exciting events
of my life," recalled Rhys Schols, one of
the marchers. “There was a tremendous
power; a power that comes from people
using themselves to oppose the things
they find unjust.”
The group marched on, past its sup
porters, to the gates of the plant itself.
Here they halted, and as the steam
spewed from the giant nuclear cooling
tower behind them, set up camp. The
non-violent blocking off of Trojan had
begun.
The planning of the demonstration
took over four months. Set to begin on
Hiroshima Day, August 6, the protest
was backed by various anti-nuclear
power and weapons groups, including
the Energy Conservation Organization
in Eugene. Together these groups
formed the Trojan Decommissioning al
liance.
Persons ranging in age from 15 to 60
volunteered to participate in the two Tro
jan demonstrations. The first was legal,
conducted on the visitors parking lot with
the consent of Trojan authorities. Here a
festive atmosphere prevailed. Children
fed ducks at the water’s edge, while
others played guitars on the lawn. A yel
low Trojan horse, with an empty belly,
occupied center stage. Occasionally this
group of some 400 persons would wave
and sing to the other group of demon
strators far up the road
“O Trojan horse you’re beautiful
And promise us great gifts
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While the estimated 400 protesters gathered outside the Tro
jan Nuclear Power Plant near Rainier, Ore., the
Family Mime Circus, a comedy group, added light entertain
Photo by Ken Shin
merit for the afternoon rally. More than 80 members of various
anti-nuclear groups held earlier training sessions in tactics of
non-violent demonstration.
But the stuff inside of you it kills
Won’t you stop to think again before
You start to rain
Great God
Death all over these hills
Death all over these hills," they sang
happily.
The Family Mime Circus, donating
their time to the demonstration, helped
to set the spirit. "We have a news update
on that 3000 pounds of misplaced
plutonium," said one performer. “The
government has decided to start a lost
and found department! Anyone finding
plutonium around the house is re
quested to send it to the government in a
leak-proof envelope.’’
The civil disobedience group, mean
while sat on their knap sacks and sleep
ing bags drinking water. One member
read a book, “Gandhi on Non-Violence.”
The 25 members of the Eugene group
had taken control of the main gate. “I
haven’t seen this kind of organization
since the civil liberties movement,” said
Peter Burdel of the Eugene group.
“We’ve welded ourselves into affinity
groups. We think about others, not just
ourselves.”
All members of this group had been
required to participate in a non-violence
training session prior to the demonstra
tion. Charles Gray, a graduate of the
peace movement, explained non
violence to his 10 member affinity
group. “Non-violence is a process of
taking suffering of someone else upon
yourself,” he said. “It is an active, not a
(Continued on page 6)
L
J
Amazon tenants, University come to terms
Residents given voice in governance
but Sheasby warns struggle not over
By MELODY WARD
Of the Emerald
Amazon representatives and
University administrators alike
breathed a sigh of relief Monday
morning when Amazon tenants
voted overwhelmingly in favor of a
project governance proposal.
“I'm delighted by the develop
ment of the agreement and the
ending of the rent strike,” Univer
sity Pres. William Boyd told media
from as far away as Portland dur
ing a post ballot counting press
conference. “The balance of
power is achieved when both par
ties are satisfied.
And satisfaction was evident in
the faces of Amazon Community
Tenants (ACT) representatives
David Mason and Walt Sheasby,
who spent most of last week
negotiating with University legal
counsel David Frohnmayer and
housing official Donald Lee over
the terms for “co-governance” of
Amazon.
ACT distributed ballots to every
member of their organization over
the weekend, along with ques
tionnaires to non-strikers. ACT
members voted 121 to 47 in favor
of the governance agreement,
which grants tenants a full role in
co-determining the governance of
the Amazon project.
The turnout represents over 90
per cent of ACT’s membership.
Non-strikers responded 105 to
23 in support of the agreement
and 93 to 27 in favor of having
ACT represent the entire project.
The agreement includes estab
lishment of an Amazon Commun
ity Tenants Council, a body which
will be recognized by the Univer
sity as the official voice of the pro
ject.
The proposal will apply only to
Amazon and provides for a sys
tem of project government that in
sures tenant participation.
Under the proposal, an Amazon
Family Housing Board, composed
of three Amazon tenants, one
member from the housing de
partment, the Project Director, an
ASUO representative and two fa
culty members, will be formed.
ACT negotiator Sheasby says
interim elections for board and
council positions will be held later
this month.
The board will have the power
to reject housing department
proposals and may initiate its own
proposal for changes in the opera
tion of the project.
Sheasby also warns that the
struggle is not over. “The inves
tigation into housing office opera
tions by the Oregon Accountants
For the Public Interest'will con
tinue and the secretary of state’s
audit is coming. The state board is
looking into the debt service and
demolition fund.” And although he
hadn’t read the proposal yet,
Donald Lee said “I hope to give
the Policy Board all the informa
tion they need. If they feel the
need to go to consulting firms
that’s fine too, and I would wel
come a state audit."
Lee says he is looking forward
to getting strarted on the co
governance right away because
he needs to begin the search for
new project directors for family
housing.
Amazon’s future seems more
secure than it has in earlier
months, when talk of demolishing
the project to save maintenance
expenses was often heard. Refer
ring to what he termed as a “throw
away” mentality, Boyd said Ama
zon is to be kept indefinitely be
cause it is no longer feasible to
build new low cost housing.