Professor studies housework dilemma By Beth Hege Emerald Contribute* Zoo Baird paid an uncommonly high price for employing n domestic servant, los ing her bid to become U S attorney general But what Bnird did by hiring an undocu mented Ivlina to do her housework is hard ly uncommon. When women head into the paid work forte, they often find themselves still re sponsible for household chores, “Housework has beer, considered wom en's work simply because women have to do it.” said Mary Romero, a University stx i ologist and author of the book MAID in llw IJ.S.A. Romero will read from her book Tuesday at 4 p.m. in the Gerlirtger Lounge. Beginning in 19B3. Romero interviewed 25 Chicana domestic workers in Denver and conducted research on race, class and gen der in housework. "The interviews were not easy.” Romero said. “They were painful to do. Women did not want to talk about the most degrading area of their lives. “Housework is not inherently degrading.” she said. ”lt becomes degrading because of social relationships ” Because housework holds low status, whoever performs the task is given the low est status. Often that means women of out class or race oppressing women of another “None of us can claim not to be the oppressor.” Romero said. "Yes. white, mid dle-class women may he oppressed, but does that justify oppressing someone else, particularly women of color?" In her book. Romero addresses the rat ism and etas* discrimination In the hiring and treatment of ('hit ana domestii workers. She includes stories from her own life and work "1 am very conscious of segregation," she said. "I remember employers watching me ail the time, of children my own ag« going to play tennis while I pit Led up after them. In high school and college I spent my week ends and vacations working in homes of students who I otherwise would lx1 sitting next to in a classroom " Romero said she has not esi aped race and class differences in tIn* world of academia After spending five years teac hing anti working as an assistant dean at Yale Univer sity. Romero presented her research on do mestics at a sociology conference' "I was on the job market at the time, mid after my presentation a colleague asked how the job search was going," she said "I said I hadn't gotten an offer vet. and he said. 'Don’t worry, you can always t lean houses You know that work very well Romero said she grevs up in a working class neighborhood in Denver. "I grew up knowing what racism yyas about." she said. "The lessons of my iite have been hard " Kven though Romero, her mother and her sisters had worked as domestii laborers, it didn't occur to Romero to c hoose the expe riences of domestii s as a research topic un til she had completed her Ph D. and n« opt ed a teaching position at the University of Texas III Paso. In the Ixjrder town of Mi Paso. Mexican domestic workers are common. While visit ing in PI Paso lo search for housing. Romero witnessed the treatment of a voting Mexit an woman by tier colleague and his family ‘Housework is not inherently degrading. It becomes degrading because of social relationships.' Mary Romero, University sociology prolessor "I saw a IK-venrold undocumented work er who was sexually harassed. underpaid and mistreated It made me question the tak en-for-granted realitv of thn woman in mv life,” Romero said "I not on the plana and toors were running down mv fa< .0 It was shin king to realize that someone would treat another likti that, she said I thought of mv motlmr and how I would feel d someone had treated her like that ” Romero’s bonk has won ut < laim Its femi nisi and .mainstream publu at ions for lier an proai h to the tupii s of rat e. class anti gen der. ”1 wanted this Imok to lie easy tti read," she said "I have been happy about the re sponse from (dm aims and children of do (nestles. "So iiwtnv tunes after a talk a! a university or confereiK e. students will come to me and say. Mv mother was a domestii To me. that’s the validation, it's more important than getting published in a ma;or journal.'' Romero said People in our community are finally talking about the work of our moth ers and sisters " Spring ballot includes citywide restaurant tax By Meg Dedolph Emerald Repoctec Eugene voters will dec ide March 21 on a citvwide restaurant tax and two levies, one to continue a county extension service and one to maintain county law enforcement and jail serve os. The city restaurant tax is o charter amendment that, if passed, will impose a 3 percent tax on food and beverages sold to the pub lic for immediate consumption Included under this tax are hot foods, salads and dispensed suit drinks sold in grocery stores, as well as foods sold in restaurants push carts and athletic i oncession stands Whole c akes, pies or breads, like those sold in Iwkeries, are ex empt from the tax, as well as meals served to hospital patients and in si hoots. Also exempt are meals sold in conjum turn with ac < om modations, for example dormitories and fraternity houses Temporary establishments that do not sell food for more than seven days eac h year will not tie taxed 1'hese include, for example, a food iKMith specifically operated for the Eugene Celebration Restaurant owners will tie allowed to keep 5 pen cult of the tax collected to cover administrative costs. Also on the liallot cs a S5.HOH.H15 tax levy for the upcoming year to maintain Lane County law enforcement «n