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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 12, 1978)
I ’ *“#»' 2 Portland Observer Thursday. January 12. I97f> The importance of economic growth We see the world through Black eyes A Band-aid on a Cancer? "T h e y p ut a b a n d -a id on o c a n c e r" w as the o p in io n o f o ne spectator a fte r the M o n d a y nigh? School Board m e e tin g Using the school district's o w n statistics the C o m m u n ity C o a litio n fo r School In te g ra tio n had d em on strate d th a t fo rce d busing o f Boise and King students proposed by th e Board w as not necessary. N e ith e r w as m uch o f the m a n d a to ry busing o u t o f Black h ig h school students that has bee n ta k in g p la ce fo r several years. The a nsw er to the question o f "ra c ia l is o la tio n " a t Jefferson is q u ite sim ple. Just e nfo rce cu rren t a tte n d a n ce p o licie s because if the w h ite students liv in g in th e Je ffe rso n district a tte n d e d Jefferson, the school w o u ld be o v e rw h e lm in g ly w h ite . The C o a litio n m ad e th re e re co m m e n d a tio n s . The C o a litio n said "e n fo rc e the a tte n d a n ce a re a b o u n d a rie s ." S u p e rin te n d e n t Robert B lanchard re p lie d th a t the in v e s tig a tio n necessary to check addresses w o u ld cost to o m uch so this ca n n o t be don e. The C o a litio n asked that since m ore Benson students co m e fro m Je ffe rso n th e n a n y o th e r school, adm issio n to Benson be lim ite d to a rea son ab le n u m b e r o f " q u a lif ie d " students. Dr. B lanchard re p lie d th a t odm ission ca nn ot be lim ite d because o f oddress w ith o u t causing leg al p ro ble m s. If a dm issio n o f m in o rity students to Benson d o not reach 15 p ercen t he w ill reserve 15 p e rce n t o f the vacancies u n til S eptem ber to g iv e m o re tim e to re c ru it m in o ritie s This can h e lp o n ly if th e re is an e ffe c tiv e e ffo rt to re c ru it m in o ritie s to Benson, b ut it is a sm all concession to the C o a litio n p o sitio n . Parents say students a t Benson ra n g e fro m th e very b rig h t, d e d ica te d students, that th e school professes to re cru it to the slow le a rn e r. A fra n k discussion o f the q u a lific a tio n s fo r a nd p ro gram s o ffe re d at Benson w o u ld shed som e lig h t on this aspect c f the d e se g re g a tio n issue. The C o a litio n asked th a t Je ffe rso n's m agnets be b ro a d e n e d a nd h ig h ly p u b lic iz e d so they w ill d ra w m ore students. Dr. B lanchard reco m m e n d e d th a t the p e rfo rm in g arts m a g n e t be e n la rg e d to in clu d e instru m e ntal m usic. He advised that a strong re cru itin g p ro g ra m is u n d e rw a y - a id e d by a ta b lo id N o bussing ntxT year son i t c a m t to late. -For you, but maybe your othtrj b ro th e rs W on't 1 have to Fight so h a rd For a good e d u c a tio n I I I new spaper d e scrib in g m ag ne t program s g o in g to e very e ig h th g ra de r. The o n ly p ro b le m w ith this is that besides p ro m o tin g the m agnets at Je ffe rso n, C leveland, Lincoln and A dam s, it also prom otes Benson a nd M on ro e. As fo r the C o a litio n 's re c o m m e n d a tio n th a t the g e n e ra l a c a d e m ic p ro g ra m at Je ffe rso n be o f the highest q u a lity so it could a ttract ond h o ld n e ig h b o r hood students. Dr. B lanchard said the "F a c u lty and a d m in is tra tio n a t Je ffe rso n have w o rk e d d ilig e n tly to im p ro ve th e ir g e n e ra l a c a d e m ic p ro g ra m a n d to m eet th e needs o f n e ig h b o rh o o d as w e ll as tran sfe r students...I b e lie v e that c o n tin u e d e ffo rt in this d ire c tio n w ill address as a hig h p rio rity our g o a l o f stren gthe nin g both the s p e cia lize d a nd a c a d e m ic program s at J e ffe rs o n ." It is u n fo rtu n a te th a t Dr. B lanchard d id not in c lu d e the co m m u n ity in p la n n in g fo r m a g n e t e xp a n s io n , if any, a nd fo r g e n e ra l a cad em ic im p ro ve m e n ts. This w o u ld have been an o p p o rtu n ity to b rin g m ore parents and co m m u n ity m em bers into th e process and d e te rm in e w h a t program s the c o m m u n ity w ants fo r its ch ild re n . Thus, the a d o p tio n o f Dr. B lanchard's re c o m m e n d ations d id little to e ffe c t the changes sought by the C oa litio n . The C o a litio n 's m a io r a c c o m p lis h m e n t — in the eyes o f m any observers — w as to d em o n stra te that the Board of Education has d e v e lo p e d a nd sustained a p ro gram o f d e s e g re g a tio n th a t is m a n d a to ry fo r Black students w ith o u t the p ro p e r facts to support such a p ro gram . These facts w e re a v a ila b le to the Board. The fa ct that the Board w o u ld ta ke a c tio n w ith such a d is ru p tiv e im p act on c h ild re n , fa m ilie s and c o m m u n ity , w ith o u t d e m a n d in g the fa cts to support the need a n d w ith o u t c o m m u n ity in v o lv e m ent is inco m p re h e n sib le . This in its e lf sh o u ld dem onstrate th a t c o m p re h e n s iv e analysis o f the d istrict's d e s e g re g a tio n p ro g ra m is essential. In the absence o f an analysis by the Board, the C o a litio n w ill p e rfo rm this fu n c tio n . It w ill be interestin g to see w h e th e r the Board w ill be a b le to accept the fa ct that m istakes w e re m ade a nd m o ve d e cis iv e ly to correct the w ro ng s th a t have b ee n fo rce d on the Black co m m u n ity fo r a ll o f these years. 1 hoptyouVc r ig h t mom | B u t you'd b e tte r Keep your eyes o p tn .T h em an d o n t give awag ndthiiiq ur le s s he's going to gain double! by Bayard Rustia It has been said that nothing is more crucial to the political success of the Carter presidency than achieving enough economic growth to bring about a stgnifi cant and rapid reduction in unemploy ment. If anything, this is an understate ment. The questions of how much economic growth is desirable and how it is to be achieved are emerging as central issues in American politics. Although the economy remains mired in stagflation with high levels of both unemployment and inflation, there ap pears to be modest optimism about the prospects for a relatively healthy ecu nomy in 1978. Unfortunately, modest optimism means a rate of economic growth that will reduce joblessness only slightly. A t the same time, there is still a real danger that growth will slow and unemployment will again worsen. There is also a smaller, though very troubling, possibility of another recession with negative real economic growth and an explosive increase of joblessness. Even modest optimism about the state of the economy has extremely disturbing implications for society. Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Samuelson has recently warned that the anticipated rate of economic growth is ‘ not good enough to realize Jimmy Carter's promises to create jobs for youth, the unskilled, and minority workers." The longer we endure high unemployment, the harder it will be to achieve economic integration. Black unemployment already appears to be stuck at higher levels relative to whites. This trend can be expected to continue unless there is more rapid growth. The economy has recovered somewhat from the depths of the recession, but it is still far from full health. Although we art less than half way back to prosperity and full employment, powerful and influential Murder of the mind by Representative louis Stokes National attention is focusing on a little known, but highly controversial brain operation called Psychosurgery. This highly experimental procedure has been performed on hundreds of mental pa tients, children, and even some prisoners to control aberrant behavior, thoughts, and emotions. I t differs from normal brain surgery ii.e. tumors, lesions, etc.) in that it is [•erformed on non-diseased brain tissue. Healthy tissue is destroyed and since brain cells do not regenerate, the func tioBs they govern are also obliterated. The term psvehosurgery refers to a variety of operative procedures. The most familiar form is the lobotomy which is the amputation of the prefrontal, bimedial or transorbital portions of the brain. Included in this scope of psycho surgery are those operative procedures which cauterize, place lesions, or inject foreign substances into specific areas of the brain. Some psychiatrists and neurosurgeons have termed psychosurgery as "murder of the mind." Yet o tte r medical profes sionals feel that it is a legitimate way of treating severe mental and behavioral disorders. The controversy over this experimentation is so great that I have sponsored legislation prohibiting its prsc tice in federally-funded institutions. Furthermore, in 1974, the National Research Act (Pub. L. 93-3481 was signed into law. thereby creating the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research. The Commission, which was asked to make an indepth study on psychosurgery and determine the appropriateness of its use, recently submitted recommends tions of its use to H E W Secretary Jo Basically, the report recommends that psychosurgery be used only to meet the Do YOU think theFight is over ? Subscriptions: $7.50 per year in the Tri-Coonty area, $8.00 per year outside Portland Second Class Postage Paid at Portland. Oregon 5th Place Best Editorial N N P A 1973 1 he Portland Observer's official position is expressed only in its Publishers column (We See The World Through Black Eyesl. Any other material throughout the paper is thaopimon of the individual w riter or submitter and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Portland Observer. Honorable Mention Herrick Editorial Award N N A 1973 National Advertising Representative Amalgams ted Publishers, Inc. New Y ork 2nd Place Best Editorial 3rd Place < ommunity Leadership O NPA 1975 Mt Mat i- through ATS International Scholarships, a high school student from any one of 60 nations can live with your family for a year H is a (amity adventure A ipetwl opportunity to share your life and learn about the world at the same time telephone (212) 6614550 O NPA 1973 Kni J 1st Place Best Ad Results O N PA 1973 $7.50 in Tri—County Area $8.00 O th e i NÏWAL PER I Association - Founded II Publishers Association ) ) this delicate procedure. The Commission, also failed to add my recommendation to their report that a minority person sits on the proposed National Psychosurgery Review Board. They also rejected the findings of a Special Minority Conference on Human Experimentation sponsored by the Na tional Urban Coalition. The minority report stated that psychosurgery should not be performed on prisoners, or those who are involuntarily confined in institu tions. sexual deviants, social deviants, or political dissenters, and that funds for research should not be accepted from law enforcement agencies, pharmaceutical companies or other institutions that do not hold paramount the patients personal care. In my letter to Secretary Califano. 1 also urged him to support my bill H R. 7371 which would prohibit psychosurgery in federally connected health care facili ties, prisons, and hospitals. My decision to sponsor this legislation has been baaed on four major premises: 1) psychosurgery has no therapeutic value; 2) it is impossible to give informed consent to psychosurgery because of the experimental nature of the procedures; 3) because of the potential to docilize its victims, it violates the patients right to freedom of speech since he loses his ability to personally gain redress, and; 4) psychosurgery has awesome potential as a tool for the social and political repres sion of minority groups, and political dissenters. If psychosurgery is not banned. Blacks, the poor, the young and the social and political activists are in danger of being its victims. Even though the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects proposed certain safeguards in their endorsement of this surgery, in my opinion the practice of psychosurgery is not amendable to effective regulations by either the public or private sector, and therefore, should be totally banned. International Scholarships € J1J latt Slid Si. New Yiwk N V KWV ,7 z - M EMBER Oregon Newspaper health needs of individual patients, and that an institutional review board (IRBI. approved by the Department of H EW . should be instituted for the protection of the patient, especially when the subject is a prisoner, minor, or mental patient. I am unequivocably opposed to the Commission's recommendations not only because psychosurgery is dangerous, ex perimental and of dubious medical value, but because it also presents a clear and present danger to disenfranchised mi nority groups. The danger in permitting psychosur gery. in my opinion, is the possibility of a politically inspired move to employ pay chosurgery to "rehabilitate" prisoners, "cure" sexual diviants, detoxify drug addict», quiet unruly children and gen erally silence political dissenters. In fact, several years ago, two Boston physicians suggested that urban rioters may be suffering from "brain dysfunc tion." Shortly thereafter, in 1968. it was reported that three inmates at Califor nia's Vacaville Prison were subjected to psychosurgical procedures. In Michigan, 13 mental patients were lobotomized before a court order averted further procedures. It is estimated that 40,000 prefrontal lobotomies were performed in the U.S. in the decade following 1940. Recent esti mates reveal that between 500 and 600 psychosurgical operations are now per formed each year. In order to prevent further experiments and abuses, I have asked H E W Secretary Califano, who ia scheduled to act on the recommendations by mid January to reject the findings of the Commission In my opinion, the report is inadequate, inconclusive and incomplete. The Com mission report is based on the studies of four surgeons and included only 61 case evaluations. This is not sufficient evi dence on which to give the green light to psychosurgery. Furthermore, only a few surgeons in the country have expertise in It could make all the difference in the world. Community Service Published every Thursday by Exie Publishing Company, 2201 North Killingsworth. Portland, Oregon 97217. Mailing address P.O. Box 3137, Portland. Oregon 9720b Telephone: 283 248fi ALFRED !.. HENDERSON Editor/Publisher Host an AFS foreign student. 1st Place P o rtla n d O b s e rv e r voices now argue that this is about as which does not place a burden on working good as we can hope for Herbert Stein, a people and the poor. leading Republican economist, and A r A common proposal for stimulating thur Burns, the powerful outgoing chair growth is a lax cut focused on invest man of the Federal Reserve Hoard, ment. The idea is that jobs require believe that a seven percent jobless rate capital and, therefore, investment. Since is full employment. While it is true that most investment is done by high income more youth, women, and minorities have groups, it is contended that tax cuts entered the labor market, this is not. as should he concentrated on business and Stein. Burns, and others would have us the rich. The final, and often unstated, think, the cause of high unemployment. part of the proposal is that because These new workers should be viewed as energy and social security taxes are an opportunity not a burden. They going up any way, low and middle income increase the ability of the economy to earners must pay more absolutely and as achieve higher levels of non inflationary a share of total taxes in order to provide growth. Our high unemployment rate "incentives" for the rich to invest. There cannot he explained away as a structural is an element of truth in this argument, problem. Excessive unemployment ia not but far less than is usually imagined and restricted to "unemployables," secondary certainly not enough to justify its obvious workers, or groups especially affected by and profoundly inegalitarian results. Jobs government benefit programs. do require capital, that is. plants, equip The reason that unemployment re ment, and so forth. But with almost mains so high is not really a mystery. twenty percent of existing productive Production simply has not grown enough rapacity idle, it is not obvious that new to generate the jobs needed to get us investment is the way to generate jobs. hack to prosperity. Between 1973 and Business is unlikely to invest in new 1977, our annual growth rate averaged plants when old ones are not being fully only two percent. used. What is needed instead is more 1 ear that growth will aggravate a total demand for goods and services. persistent inflation has been a powerful The economy is presently operating brake on the economy. In both its almost $200 billion below full employment extreme and mild forms, this fear has levels. This is a waste and extravagance wrecked havoc without providing a solu which a rational and humane society tion to inflation. As demonstrated by cannot afford. Moreover, with industry Richard Nixon's deliberate slowing of running well beneath capacity we should the economy, a severe recession and be able to achieve much faster economic massive unemployment on a scale far growth without increasing inflation exceeding even our recent experience The differences between those who would be required to eliminate inflation. would accept continuing high unemploy The slow growth policies of recent years, ment and those who urge quicker growth a milder product of this fear, are doing and full employment are much more than little to reduce inflation, while extracting economics. It is also a debate about what a heavy economic and social cost. Slow is a tolerable or just distribution of ing the economy enough to reduce infla economic resources jobs, income, and tion by one percentage point sacrifices wealth - and the social priorities and $100 billion of output in goods and moral values that guide a society. Econo services. It is increasingly apparent that mic growth is an essential precondition if what we need ia an anti inflation program we are to expand economic and social which is enthusiastically pro growth and justice. O b se rv e r S ta te Zip Box 3137 97208 • ~ ■ .«a K T
