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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 2, 1978)
F r o m by Larry Baber. O.S.P. Correa,«adeat One year ago the "Behind The Wal!" column was horn within this prison. After spending an entire night on the first article, this O.S.P. Correspondent never dreamed it would (hypothetically speak ingi slip between the bars, sneak by a half dozen electronic camera eyes, tip-toe beneath sleepeyed guards in gun towers, scale a thirty foot concrete wall, evade voltage alarm trip-wires strung on top of the wall and slide down the other side, only to go running down the road shouting and screaming in a loud voice "H E L L O W O R LD . H E R E I AM ." Normally, most newspaper readers who heard such a scream or "words" in print from those incarcerated behind the walls would say. "Oh well! Here we go again, just some more rhetoric and criticism mess", and would swiftly turn the page. But those who read our first column responded with such a tremen dous effect by letters and cards, that the great escape of "Behind the Wall" column from the cells to the general public was not only successful, but also self reward ing. Over the past twelve months, hun dreds of voices have come forth through poems and stories of prison experiences. "Behind the W all" has served the Oregon public as a vast information source so that you may know what your U x dollars are buying in such fields as corrections, penal institutions and the criminal justice system. Breaking through that silent wall that has been still for so many years are the voices of prisoners as they try to understand and experience their sentences and convic tions; there have been articles (pro and con), approval and contradictions. The main fact is 'freedom of the press' and the 'right to express ones views through such means without retaliation; mail abuse or censorship. This is a right not granted to many prison correspon dents within penal institutions. Any ■risoner within the walls of O.S.P. has the right to w rite and present to this Correspondent his or her articles and they can then be published in "Behind the W all" column of the Portland Observer. Many readers of "Behind the Wall" have viewed such a column as a revolu tionary change in the prison system, but to this Correspondent, the main purpose or motive for its development remains the same as 12 months ago - to open a constructive avenue for communication. b e h in d th e Phil I-an* »39520 Aoot. Correa,wndont w Mandatory unit pricing takes effect a ll JtiUii. D. Snowden »38013, Poetry Editor City studies neighborhood livability Residents of three of Portland's neigh borhoods will have a chance to let City Hall know how they feel about City services. Interviewers will be canvassing Sabin, Boise and Maplewood as part of a study of Portland's neighborhoods. The Neighborhood Livability Project, re 0 . 8 .P. Correr,undsnt Larry Baker and Richard Rlnebart, ;>botogra;ther aad ¡wot. as well as providing a way for people to meet people. Also it is to build a bridge over these walls so the general public may have a closer look at those individ uals who have become society's ‘human problem' - the convicted and incarcerat ed prisoner. I t has been stated many times... “No one can speak more clearly about a problem than the one who has actually experienced it." Throughout the first successful year of "Behind the Wall," many of the inmates have developed new friendships through articles they have submitted and now receive letters from Portland Observer readers. W e have always encouraged the public to w rite directly to the inmates who have w ritten the articles. Names and prison numbers are printed along with each article and we all reside at the same address: 2605 State Street, Salem, Oregon 97310. “Behind the W all" has not only re ceived credibility with the 1500 inmates inside these walls, but also with the staff and administration, for they too have submitted articles and statements for printing. The "Behind the W all” inmate volun teer staff consists of Billy W hitm ire, Phil Lane and Julius Snowden - who have contributed endless assistance to"yours truly" - in order that this column present a positive picture each week. The staff has had the opportunity to present prisoners’ articles to other newspapers within the state and their editors have met our requests with open arms. Tim e and time again the questions have been asked, "W hat direction is the column going? W hat is its goals?” This O.S.P. Correspondent must answer such questions w ith, "As long as the column generates 'better understanding, reality, and information' among its readers, then its purpose is worthwhile, because, that's what the Portland Observer is afl about." Let Africans choose (Continued from Page 1 Column 6) For once, we would like to do our own thinking. After all. isn't it true that "the foot knows best where the shoe pinches?” Christopher Bean (Oregonian 2-3-78) is a South African white, an international lawyer, and he lives in L .A . How that qualifies him to tell me what's best for me is beyond my comprehension. He accuses President Carter, his aides and the American public of being ignorant of South African realities then goes on to really mislead them all. How anybody who claims to be a friend of the Africans and a foe of apartheid can defend the Bantustans is utterly incred ible. Does he seriously believe that all we want to do is escape apartheid by going off to some barren, desolate, economically disastrous back of beyond? No, Bwana! That is not what we are fighting for. For the umpteenth time, we are fighting for our fair share of the pie. Every time some white South African “liberal" writes about Africa the idea of tribes never fails to crop up. Bora and raised in that part of the world where I also spent the first eighteen years of my life, the only time I ran into Xhosas, Zulus. Shonas. Ndebeles et al was in the media -- when I read what some “expert" on Africans had to say. Among the people concerned, such “differences" don't exist. W hy do these “experts" create these tribes? Because it substantiates their arguments about the "disunity” among Africans. Transkei got it's "independence" in 1976 but where is she now? She is nothing but a worthless labor reservoir, so poor in fact, that the people are forced to go “back" to South Africa to work, with the added handicap that now they are "foreigners" in their own land. The country belongs to all the people: Black, white. Indian, etc. and nobody but no body has the right to split it up and banish some of the citizens off to the "homelands." Services personalized to your family's lifestyle... ond finances For complete details, call or stop at any of our convenient locations You’ll find that we are sensitive to your needs— as we have been to Portland families for more than 40 years. Credit terms and trust planning available. Mortuary • Crematory • Calclnatory Gateway N E. Halsey at 106th 256-0606 N. Lombard 3018 N. Lombard 283-0525 Supermarket shoppers throughout Oregon will find valuable new informa tion to judge their purchases of most food and grocery commodities March 1st when mandatory unit price labeling takes ef feet statewide. The shift - from voluntary unit-price systems in some outlets to mandatory labeling in most stores grossing S I.5 million or more a year - has been in the planning stages for months, said Leonard Kunzman, director of the Oregon State Department of Agriculture. The agency will administer the unit-price require- N. Killingsworth 430 N. Killingaworth 263-1676 Southgate 10305 S.E 82nd Ave. 777-1465 Wre would be crazy to accept a system that allocates only thirteen percent of the land to 87 percent of the population while leaving the whites, who only make up thirteen percent of the total population, the other 87 percent which also happens to contain all of the gold, diamonds, iron and all those other minerals as well as all the most valuable farmlands. A ll these riches belong to us too and until they are equally shared among us all, there w ill be no peace in Azania. W e are fighting a system that makes us non persons in our country of birth. W e will never give up our birthright. W e will continue to fight, to the last man if necessary. Coming to American investments, Bean makes the absurdly myopic sugges tion that American corporations should use their influence to effect changes within the system. For the last tim e, we are not fighting for mere changes within the system. The whole system has got to go. W ithdraw ing those investments would have a sizeable impact on the economy. Rigorously applied, this is the kind of pressure that can force the electorate to choose a more responsible leadership. Isn't it rather funny that Bean seems more concerned about Blacks losing their jobs than the Africans themselves. W ith drawing those investments would be a big blow to the apartheid regime and a big boost to the forces fighting for freedom, equality and justice. quested by Commissioner Jordan, is being conducted by the Office of M an agement Services and is developing a system to measure the effect of City services on the livability of neighbor hoods. The design of the system is now nearly complete and the three neighbor hoods have been chosen for a pilot study which will help determine how effective the process is in measuring livability. Each of the neighborhoods studies will be the subject of a report on findings (a “Neighborhood Profile”) before the pro ject is completed in June. Each Profile will include information from City bu reaus, the results of a block-by-block field inspection and the public opinion survey concerning City services as well as census data. The survey, being conducted by Oregon Attitudes, Inc., was recently funded by a unanimous City Council vote and is an important component of the study because it will provide information about how citizens feel about the services they receive. Dozens of environmental conditions are being studied, such as housing conditions, abandoned autos, public safety, loose dogs and the condition of neighborhood streets and sidewalks. Data will be compiled for each condition and put together in readable form in the Neigh borhood Profiles. I f the pilot study shows that the system is workable and finan cially feasible. Profiles for all of Port land's neighborhoods could be developed, offering citizens and bureaucrats detailed information concerning service delivery, providing early indications of problem spots and a system to track neighborhood change. Wants friends To the Editor: I am presently incarcerated in an Ohio prison, I've been incarcerated over seven years and have lost all contact with family and friends. I would like to have a friend. Therefore I'm turning to you in hopes that you will make my name and address available to your readers. I am 25 years old, have blond hair and blue eyes. I would like to correspond with anyone who would like to form a friendship through correspondence; race, age or sex so unimportant. I'm lonely and need a friend. In closing I thank you for your time and help. Sincerely, Jim Nance »141-844 P .0 . Box 45699 IAjcaiville, Ohio 45699 will show which size is the real value," she said. "Consumers still must consider their own quality requirements and other factors to determine the package that best meets their own needs." she added. The Departm ent’s consumer office is in charge of consumer information and education in the unit-price picture. Actual administration of the statute will be the role of the Weights and Measures Division. That division’s administrator, Ken Si- mila, and Ms. Baker recently completed a series of statewide meetings with retail ers and consumer representatives to set the system in motion and to explain the department's philosophy of administering the statute. Director Kunzman has emphasized the Department's philosophy is one of seek ing voluntary compliance. ‘T h e changes brought about by the law are significant to Oregon’s food and grocery industry - just as important as they are to the consumers - and by avoiding actual hardships and potential higher costs, we believe we are serving all individuals and entities better by making the transition gradually.” he said. “W e will certainly enforce willful and deliberate violations, but we don't antici pate many problems of this sort with the average Oregon food retailer." Kunzman explained that some ele ments in the statute opened up broad interpretations and time will be required before the entire unit price transition could be considered complete. "One example is the section of the law which deals with the source of the food items," he said. ‘T h e bill exempts unit price requirements on food commodities which come from a warehouse where there is no computer-label capability.” That means that in some stores, some items will not bear the unit price because there was no ability to produce computer ized labels. “But we already are seeing many stores which have chosen to unit price almost everything, whether the law specifies it or not. Managers have told us that it’s easier for them to do it uniform ly, rather than split hairs and try to keep track of exempted items. That is encouraging,” Kunzman said. American State Bank 2 7 3 7 N.E. U n io n 2 8 2 -2 2 1 6 tir e u r rwm... v k h w Our Dad CAN SA VE YOU MONEY ON REMODELING . . . Residential-Commercial HOW? . . . W HY . . . His business has grown, as we have, with the finest staff of C A R P E N TE R S , D E S IG N E R S and E S T IM A T O R S in the trade. Interested in current books about African Liberation? Visit: JO H N R E E D BOOK STORE In the Dekum B u ild in g 519 S.W. 3rd Avenue Sixth Floor A d d itio n s «O ffices Kitchens • Stores NEIL KELLY COMPANY 735 N. Alberta, Portland, Oregon • Baths • Spec. C a b in e t work O r call: < 97217 Call N ow 2 8 7 -4 1 7 6 < Fred Meyer > S h o p p in g C e n te r s t Super Shopping Centers Help Lower your Cost of Living . . . N. Fungai Kumbula I Twenty-three year old Zimbabwe na tional, Portland State University ;»har- mary student.l ments set forth in House Bill 2242, passed in the 1977 session of the Oregon Legisla ture. Essentially, the system requires that most packaged food and grocery pro ducts be priced in two ways - »ith the conventional total package price and a unit price showing what the item costs according to a specified unit of measure ment. "W hat the change really means is that the pricing system which has been traditional at the meat and produce departments will extend to the rest of the store," said Linda Baker, the depart ment's consumer advisor. The five basic units of measurement which will be in effect for "per-unit" comparison between different sizes and brands will be pounds, pints, feet, square yards and 100 units (in categories where the sale is made to a specific count of items). Each wholesaler or retailer can develop individual formats for displaying unit prices. The legislation, however, re quires the displays to be legible and easily understood. Many shelf labels already prepared by the industry show the unit price - or "cost per measure” - in the top left corner of the shelf label, close to the customary total-item price. "The advantage to consumers in unit pricing lies in the providing of more specific value-comparison information to judge a purchase, and every consumer really should have that right to informa tion,” said Ms. Baker. “I t ’s not the absolute, foolproof yard stick for the consumer, however. The best way to use unit pricing is to apply the price to identical or similar items, particularly if they appear in varying brands, sizes and prices. I t also helps the careful consumer to determine prices of similar or identical items from store-to- store," she explained. For example, many consumer goods come in packages of varying sizes, with the smaller container often more expen sive per unit than the larger one. “Every consumer. I ’m sure, has found it a complex mathematical problem when trying to decide which size is the best value. Checking the unit prices, for example, on 9 ‘/»-ounce, 14-ounce, 22 ounce and 35-ounce boxes of corn flakes Your nearby Fred M eyer Super Shopping Center is fille d w ith "P eople-P leasing" services to m ake your shopping m ore pleasant. W ide, spacious aisles, frie n d ly helpful clerks and undercover parcel loading are just some o f the "People-Pleas ing services to you. Plus...everyday lo w prices on thousands o f items you use and need everyday help low er your cost o f livin g . Because w e re open 9 a.m. to 10 p.m . d a ily , including Sunday, you can shop w hen you WANT to, not w hen you HAVE to. Com e in anytim e and "fu n s h o p " in a pleasant, relaxed atm osphere. . . W d ln U t P a r k In te r s ta t e « P e n in s u la N.E. Killingsw orth of U n io n N . L o m b a rd a t Interstate 6 8 5 0 N. Lom bard Plenty of free and Easy Parking O p en 9 am to 10 pm d a ily , in c lu d in g S u nday.
