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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 2019)
letters UO GRAD EMPLOYEE INSURANCE “The UO works because we do!” This is a common cry at rallies for the Graduate Teaching Fellows Federation (GTFF), the graduate employees’ union at the University of Oregon, as we con- tinue to bargain for a new contract. It is also indisputable. We teach 17 percent of lectures, 83 percent of labs and 93 percent of discussion sections. Tuition has more than doubled since 2008. Employee wages and benefits of- ten get cited by the administration as the reason for these increases, as they were in President Michael Schill’s email to the UO community earlier this month. It is frustrating for proud UO em- ployees to feel like we are pitted against our students. This is especially true for graduate employees like me because 79 percent of us do not even earn a living wage in Eugene by the university’s own calculations. Our low salaries are somewhat bal- anced by stellar health insurance. Rec- ognizing the rising cost of our health in- surance to the university, we voluntarily made major changes to our insurance in both the last two years. This saved the UO more than $1 million. So it is hurtful when they propose in good faith bargaining to cut their con- tributions to our health insurance by more than 20 percent. Even with their proposed salary increase, this would re- sult in lower net take-home pay. Consider the price tag of having fac- ulty teach all of our coursework. We are inexpensive by comparison. UO works because we do. We are a bargain for the UO. It’s time they give us a good deal too. Michael Hudak UO graduate employee SEX POSITIVE hear ye, hear ye !! LEGAL NOTICES Place your legal notices in the Eugene Weekly! FAST, EFFICIENT SERVICE call: 541.484.0519 email: offi ce@eugeneweekly.com fax: 541.484.4044 Eugene Weekly qualifi es for posting legal ads 4 M A R C H 2 1 , 2 0 1 9 Recently Dove Medical, a self-pro- claimed faith-based and abstinence only group, presented in 4J schools (EW 3/14). Whereas holistic sex education pres- ents abstinence as an effective and valid option, Dove Medical thinks it’s the only way. One student stated that present- ers “conflated sex before marriage with shame.” Another said they passed out cards on which to write “good things you want to be remembered for,” then discussed “how these qualities are jeop- ardized once you have sex.” The law tells us we aren’t allowed to implement abstinence-only ed. Re- search (and common sense) tells us that a sex-negative atmosphere will do virtu- ally nothing to protect kids. 4J has issued a statement saying that Dove is simply presenting one facet of the sex topic, and without agenda. But mission groups with explicitly stated re- ligious agendas, such as “to end the per- ceived need for human abortion,” have no place in a public school health class- room. State Rep. Marty Wilde agrees. This spring, cast a vote for school board members (such as Dr. Martina Shabram), who recognize that many organizations, such as Planned Parent- hood, have apolitical, sex-positive views, and present unrestricted information and resources to students, no matter what their values may be. My ability to make healthy decisions for myself came from comprehensive, unbiased sex education — not from adults warning that it is shameful to have sex. Like every student who has signed our petition, I know what I am fighting for. I know the standard of edu- cation that I, and your children, deserve. Jane Brinkley, student South Eugene High School PUBLIC INTEREST HOUSING It’s time for the new Board of Di- rectors of Homes for Good (formerly HACSA) to move away from the for- mer board’s way of doing business and step up and make decisions that are in the public’s interest. The HFG board includes the five Lane County Com- missioners and two resident commis- sioners. Past boards have mostly rub- ber-stamped decisions of Jacob Fox, executive director. One of the decisions from the past needs to be revisited by the board at their meeting on March 27. The former board allowed a long- standing agreement with the River Road and Whiteaker neighborhoods to turn land along the Willamette Gre- enway into low income housing to be changed by Fox — with no discussion — into a sale for high-priced apartments with the out-of-state pave-and-run Evergreen Housing and Development Group, who have a deservedly poor lo- cal reputation. Fox put this crucial deci- sion on the board’s “consent calendar” which is designed for non-controversial items that receive automatic approval — with no discussion. Although Fox places items on this calendar — the board can refuse to allow it. This is especially im- portant now that HFG is less committed to building affordable housing at a time when it is most needed. HFG Board, we need you to vacate the Evergreen Lombard Apartment agreement, hold a public process for this precious Greenway public land — and include the neighborhoods in those discussions in order to make a decision that is in the public’s interest. It’s a new day — and a new way for this new board to operate. Rob Handy River Road resident Former county commissioner CONVENIENT TIMING, JEFF Quoting from an email I just received from Sen. Jeff Merkley: “The reality is that most LGBTQ Americans experience harassment or discrimination — unfair treatment that closes doors in housing, education, work, public accommodations and more. This is happening right here in America, the same country that prides itself in giving opportunity to anyone who is willing to work hard. That’s unacceptable. Con- gress needs to act right now to make sure every American is free of unfair discrimi- nation that rips away their opportunities to chase the American dream.” Commendable legislation. But why, Sen. Merkley, did you choose to intro- duce it when there is no chance of pas- sage? Were LGBTQ Americans like myself less discriminated against back in 2009 or 2010 when Democrats con- trolled the Presidency, the Senate and the House? Or were we just not on your political identity radar then? There’s a pattern here. Back in June 2018 you raised a ruckus over detention of immigrant children in a Texas gulag run by a private corporation. Again, commendable. But where you in 2014 when Presi- dent Obama dramatically expanded family detention space via private cor- porations and — according to a 2016 New York Times editorial — “… these privately run, unlicensed lockups are no place for children. Or mothers.” Apparently not on your radar back then, either. Trisha Driscoll Eugene WHO WILL SAVE US? I’d like to remind Milton Takei (Let- ters, March 14) that some people face more immediate problems than global warming. And who do they expect will bail them out? “Uncle Sam, our crops have failed!” “Uncle Sam, we have Ebola!” “Uncle Sam, our wells ran dry!” “Uncle Sam, we had a big storm!” “Uncle Sam, we’re dying from AIDS!” “Uncle Sam, they took our food!” “Uncle Sam, the Russians are coming!” “Uncle Sam, they kidnapped our girls!” “Uncle Sam, we had a big earthquake!” “Uncle Sam, hurry!” Before you say Americans are “con- suming more than their share” — what- ever that means — you better have a Plan B for all the wonderful, often cor- rupt, dysfunctional, over-populated non-electric light-bulb societies on the planet. And you can be sure that neither Mr. Takei nor any of his friends or colleagues are going to turn in their light bulbs or lower their standard of living one iota to accommodate the light-bulb-less. Greg Williams Noti THIS SHOULD GO OVER WELL I would like to point out the inexcus- able racist and xenophobic behavior of the Left. Their new attack on minorities comes in the form of a new hate term, “toxic masculinity” — the idea that men are too aggressive, disrespectful and violent. What they are really admonishing is the Latinization and integration of Af- rican culture in America. To our tradi- tional American view, the way Latinos E U G E N E W E E K LY . C O M
