P«0«2 Portland Observer Thursday. April 12. 1979
EDITORIAL/OPINION
Survival
by N. Fungai Kumbula
Injection: The easy way to die
Last week the Oregon House of Representa
tives, with fourteen dissenting votes, voted to
mandate execution of convicted murderers by
lethal injection. This bill was passed to make exe
cution more humane. A side effect is the saving
of money — about $300,000 — that it will take to
build a new gas chamber.
Opponents of the bill state that this method of
execution — closely resembling medical treat
ment — would gloss over and hide the horrors of
execution — allowing the people of Oregon to
ignore the executions taking place under their
jurisdiction.
• " A t this time the person(s) behind the
screened partition of the room shall begin the
flow of the ultrashort-acting barbituate. Admini
stration of the substance shall continue until such
time as the physician pronounces the inmate to
be dead.
"A physician does not have the task of admini
stering a lethal injection. His chief function is
limited to the monitoring duties performed at exe
cutions by any means — to pronounce the pri
soner dead."
This article — though written with the best of
intention by one who opposes capital punish
ment — becomes more gruesome with rereading.
An Oregonian article written by Wilma Hogle,
It makes the act of execution so clothed in
the instigator of the bill, points out the niceties of
sterile medical procedures that only those who
this method of execution:
receive the dead body will remember that a
• "Just before execution, the inmate will be
human being has been killed.
moved from the holding cell to the execution
Although perhaps easing the pain of execution
room. Before doing so, the inmate shall be
for the criminal, this bill goes far to ease the con
secured on a portable stretcher. The inmate's
science of the collective executor.
arms, legs and chest shall be restrained. A trained
We agree with those who believe that the
medical employee shall insert a catheter into a people of Oregon — who voted to reinstate
vein. Then the inmate shall be moved into the
capital punishment — must be forced to face the
execution room on the stretcher.
consequences of that vote and those who still
• "The bottle(s) of fluid shall be passed
have some doubts about this system of "justice"
through a paneled area behind the stretcher
made to suffer over each and every execution.
where the person(s) who will inject the lethal sub
No one has mentioned the "c ru e l and
stance into the catheter is located. At this point
inhumane" treatment for those who have to carry
only the warden, deputy warden, the physician
out the death penalty — those doctors and
and medical technician and person(s) ad
medical personnel who will be perverting their
ministering the flow of the lethal substance are in
purpose and the prison superintendent and per
the room. Witnesses are in a separate room.
sonnel who are hired to "rehabilitate" but must
• "Once the medical technician has prepared
kill.
the inmate, the examining physician shall inspect
Perhaps if we really must have executions in
the catheter and monitoring equipment and
Oregon, it should be performed by our highest
determine that the fluid will flow into the vein.
elected official — the Governor. The Governor is
The warden shall read the judgement to the in elected to uphold the laws of the State — and he
mate and ask if the inmate has any last comments.
is the person who has the power to commute the
After such comments, if any, the warden shall
death sentence. Let him be the one to make the
order the execution to begin.
final decision to kill or not to kill.
LUTHER
By Brumsic Brandon Jr.
PEE W E E ,
YOU'D -E A R N A LOT
5
LIKE MS
HARD CO RE,
<H0W DO ><00 F i BURE'
BEEN
AROUND?
IF Y O U 'D l i STB n T O
WHO'S
AROUND1
2OMEBCDT
ÔEE n
Youvs
1-14
Inmates support private visits
(Continued from page 1 col. 3)
brace. But no longer than necessary -
like about 3 seconds. The inmate
must then sit in his assigned seat
across a table from his guest, and
either to hold hands, or put them in
his own lap. He can not put his hand
in anv wav on his visitors face, hair,
leg or any other part o f their person.
" I f during your visit your guest
has an emotional out-bust (crying)
the inmate is not allowed to give aid
at this depressing sight. The inmate
must remain in his assigned seat. In
no way is the inmate allowed to help.
I f the inmate does give aid, his visit
w ill be terminated and the inmate
will receive a disciplinary report for
this major infraction. No physical
contact other than the first embrace
and kiss is allowed. This is called a
no contact system.
"Supervision is at its maximum.
Each visitor is restricted to his/her
assigned seat for the duration o f the
visit. Now the only exception is, you
can use the rest room, and buy junk
foods and drinks. But all o f these
things must be done alone.
“ Now at the end o f each visit you
and your guest are allowed to walk to
the doorway and have that last em
brace and kiss. But again, you w ill
take no longer than three seconds or
less.”
C hildren, also, are unable to
receive affection from their fathers
or to share a private conversation.
They are put in the position o f com
peting w ith th e ir m others and
siblings for a few minutes o f their
fathers’ time.
The inmates propose that ten 12 x
28 foot tra ilo r units be leased to
create 20 units w ith kitchen and
bedroom. Thus each inmate would
have use o f the facility each 30 to 60
days. I f the Legislature does not
allocate funds, the inmates propose
to finance the units with a use-fee so
the facilities would pay for them
selves.
The State Street Jaycees surveyed
25 other states. California, Florida,
G eorgia,
Iow a,
M a ryla n d ,
Massachusets, Missouri and North
Carolina have furloughs or home
leave plans where prisoners can leave
the in s tu tio n to be w ith their
families. Minnesota and New York
have fa m ily visits inside the in
stitution. Pennsylvania has programs
such as picnics, sports activities, etc.
inside the in s titu tio n fo r fa m ily
members.
OSP Superintendent Hoyt Cupp
told the Judiciary Committee that he
has no objection to family visits but
has other priorities for limited funds.
Stating that there are many men in
the prison who do not have jobs and
having no money w ill "s e ll their
bodies for a pack o f cigarettes” , he
prefers to spend the prison’ s funds
to expand the vocational training
program and the prison industries
program. He speculated that expand
ing the prison industries program,
which makes fu rn itu re fo r state
agencies, might raise money to sup
port the family visit program.
Cupp had no opposition to the
Legislature
passing
enabling
le gislation and allo w in g the in
stitu tio n to find funds when and
where possible.
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O N P A 1973
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The Iasi Congressional elections
saw the ousting o f Representative
Charles Diggs (D. Mich.) as chair
man o f the House Africa subcom
m ittee. He was replaced by
Representative Stephen Solarz
(D. N.Y.). He was ousted as a result
o f his legal problems. That same
election also saw Senator Dick Clark
(D. Iowa) lose his Senate seat to a
Roger
Jepsen,
an
obscure
Republican State Senator. I f you
recall, in last week's column, his
name cropped up in connection with
the South African influence peddling
scandal code named 'Muldergate.*
Eschel Rhoodie, the central figure
in the scandal and the man who was
in charge o f South Africa's sinister
efforts at m anipulating American
politics, charged that Jepsen was one
o f the people who received secret
South African contributions to help
him defeat Senator Clark who had
been one o f South A frica’s betterest
critics in the U.S. Congress.
Even though there were now more
conservatives on the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, (Hayakawa
had joined so he could speak up for
both Rhodesia and South Africa), 1
had been o f the opinion that the di
rection o f the committee would not
change that much due to the leader
ship provided by its new chairman.
Senator George S. McGovern. I had,
however, expressed strong reser
vations about the kind o f leadership
Representative
Solarz
w ould
provide.
The firs t m a jo r Congressional
foreign policy issue has recently
shown that I was 180 o ff the mark.
The debate in question was over the
sending o f a team o f a Congressional
observers to Rhodesia to monitor the
elections as a prelude to the lifting of
sanctions and the resum ption o f
trade with the regime to be borne out
o f this electoral charade.
I expected McGovern, w ith his
reputation for liberalism, to oppose
this plan, to be able to see it for what
it was (or is), a simple ploy to prop
up a puppet Black regime while leav
ing effective power in the hands o f
the whites. I expected him to be able
to see that it was designed merely to
win international approval so the
West could come to the rescue o f the
tottering Smith regime and not really
change anything as far as Zimbab
we’s Black masses were concerned. 1
even expected him to oppose the plan
also on the grounds that it would
legitim ize an illegal regime and
prolong the suffering in Zimbabwe.
But, what did he do? He was ac
tually one o f the sponsors o f the re
solution (along w ith Hayakawa)!
And his committee voted 5-1 to send
the observers! Thus misled, the full
Senate voted and passed the
resolution and sent it to the House.
The long dissenting vote came from
Senator Charles Percy (R. 111.).
In the House Africa subcommit
tee, Representative Solarz took up
the bill and led the fight opposing
passage. As a result, the committee,
following his good leadership, reject
ed the bill by a vote o f 9-0. So, to all
intents and purposes, the idea o f
U.S. observers at the Rhodesian
'elections’ is dead. Needless to say,
this deals a severe blow to Smith's
plans and delivers a tremendous
psychological uplift to the freedom
fighters. We may have lost quite a
few lately but, this one big victory
calls for a celebration: CHEERS!
There has been talk o f sending pri
vate individuals but that too seems to
be fizzling out. For one thing, they
would not carry as much weight as a
Congress sponsored team and for
another, the time element seems to
rule that out. The charade (elections)
is due to start in eleven days. W ith
out U.S. monitors, the Smith regime
w ill fail in its one most crucial objec- •
live: recognition by the U.S. and the
West and a repeal o f the economic
sanctions that have plagued the
regime for the past fourteen years.
We sincerely hope that McGovern
was simply suffering from the effects
o f the very severe South Dakota
snowstorms. It would certainly be a
catastrophe i f this unholy alliance
(McGovern — Hayakawa) were to
continue to bloom to fruition. To
Representative Solarz and his Africa
subcommittee, BRAVO!
Letters to the Editor
Conjugal visits right, not privilege
To the Editor:
I am a prisoner and have read
Deone W ashington’ s thoughts on
conjugal visits. A bill to pass this is
not going to be all that much help.
The prison has different ways to
deny any kind o f pass, that is why
I ’m writing. They won’ t like this but
I believe the constitution states some
thing about freedom o f speech.
I was married February 9, 1979,
our wedding picture appeared in the
Statesman and the Oregonian.
Someone even gave me a copy from
Grants Pass. I have asked for two
passes to go and be with him but
both were denied.
The next time I asked for a pass
the person who was to come and get
me had to have a police check done
before they could even attempt to
pick me up. The poor man, in search
ing for an apartment he fell on a
stairwell because o f his crutches. The
last day I saw him he had run out o f
money and he came walking on those
crutches down the prison road to see
me before he returned to Portland to
see his doctor.
I had put in for a second pass and had
talked to him that morning when he
told me he was very ill. This was the
morning he was preparing to return
to Portland. While I was speaking to
an o ffic e r, she turned and said,
" Is n ’ t that your husband walking
down the road?” I looked and sure
enough slowly and surely he was on
his way to say goodby.
We needed that approval on the
pass to go get his things packed. I
asked for a few hours. I don’ t know
if you can picture a man on crutches
and the other knee injured trying to
pack anything? Can you picture him
walking up a long road in a lot o f
pain as a car goes right by and sprays
gravel on him, never even hesistating
to stop. He was very tearful by the
time he got to see me, but he came to
say he was going back to Portland
for medical help because he couldn’ t
get any help or find an apartment in
Salem. He did not tell me all the time
Nuclear rally
(Continued from page 1 col. 3)
National Lawyers Guild, Southern
Oregon Safe Energy Com m ittee,
Forelaws on Board, Women’ s Inter
national League for Peace and Free
dom , Pebble Springs P ro je ct,
Oregonians fo r U tility R eform ,
Colum bia Environm ental Council,
Business and Professional People for
Sane Energy, Mobilization for Sur
vival, University o f Oregon Survival
Center and the Hanford Conversion
Project.
For additional in fo rm a tio n call
222-1963 or 234-6944 in Portland or
287-8121 or 686-4356 in Eugene.
we were drinking coffee in the visit
ing room that that was his last $2. He
told me just before he left. He went
in to sec i f I could go help him and it
was denied. It took me some time to
fin d out the reason why. I was
blamed for something another girl
with the same first name did. Also
because o f a poor floor report. Well,
I checked that too — they were all
good but two — one for being too
depressed and the other fo r com
plaining too much. No violence, no
uncooperation. Nothing. This is the
reason for denial. The prison w ill be
angry at me for saying these things
but the truth is truth.
M y reason was very different. I
was taken about ‘/ j hour after my
wedding back to the prison. My hus
band and I have never been together
in any way except the prison visiting
room. 1 regard this as highly unfair,
our whole marriage so far has been
tears. He may not be physically able
to carry on a "conjugal visit” but the
mere fact o f being together,
especially at the first o f the marriage
is an imminent factor in rehabilita
tion. I have considered the choice of
annulm ent due to the prison
methods.
What good would it do to pass a
law that the prison can override with
a very simple excuse?
A ll these things definitely need to
be considered by the Legislature
before passing it. I agree it is highly
d ifficult to maintain a good attitude
or anything else in prison, you on the
street do not realize the extreme men
tal pressure o f being locked up. The
natural processes o f life can not and
w ill not stop regardless o f how the
body is locked up. As Deone said,
the mind still lives. When you arc
sentenced the judge does not and is
not able to say, “ you got five years,
take their brain and put it in storage
until sentence is over . . . put the
body in the pen.”
The "co n ju g a l v is it” is a vital
necessity for the retaining o f a good
marriage in all areas; from aiding the
one in prison, to really putting forth
the effort to gain release sooner. Also,
I think that the Legislature should
enter a clause for all applying for
such visits that the prison could not
deny. Such a visit may be set up for
certain times o f the month, possibly
even lim iting where the couple can
go. I think people would see a big
change in the penal system by taking
this particular appeal to heart and
see that it is granted. Also it would
save on taxes. A few visits with
your loved one and the desire to
maintain a straight life by visits that
are desired by society. 1, as a
prisoner, realize what a difference it
would make. There would not be the
crowding o f the prisons as they arc
now and much less problems in the
prison. Society is out to save money
and this is a sure way o f doing it.
Does society want a debilitated per
son or a truly rehabilitated person??
A prisoner is what you make them.
Other states have “ m odernized”
their penal system. Why is Oregon
behind?
Name withheld by request
OWCC
'Survival' explores oppression
(Continued from page I col. 6)
cry with them every time they are
brutally kicked for refusing food —
usually in the solar plexus. We rile
with them when they castigate this
brutal system.
Lumps form in the throat when we
see what one loving mother has to go
through in order to get a pass for her
son to get a job. The anguish and hu
miliation o f the son as he watches his
mother used and abused on account
o f him makes one want to turn away.
The break-up o f a once loving family
as the mother seeks refuge in a bot
tle, tears at one’s guts.
When one goes looking for a job,
the audience cannot help but scream
at the runaround he faces: pne has to
have a pass in order to get a work
permit. To get a work permit, one
needs a residential permit. Catch-22:
a residential permit cannot be issued
unless one has a work permit and a
work permit cannot be issued unless
one has a residential permit.
The dancing, music and choreo
graphy that accompany this odyssey
through the land o f apartheid will
leave many a toe tapping, many a
finger snapping and many a tongue
clicking long after the performers are
back in New York. For me, it was a
trip in time; for you it w ill be an un
forgettable experience. SURVIVAL
cannot be praised, it is its own
trium ph. Presented in twelve lan
guages: Z u lu , Xhosa, Tswana,
Sotho, Pedi, Shangaan, Tsonga,
Swazi, Ndebele, English and
Afrikaans, it is the most meaningful,
the most powerful play I have ever
seen, and I have been around quite a
long time.
Selaelo Maredi has written another
play “ Homeland” with Steve Fried
man o f New Y ork’s Modern Times
Theater. He has expressed interest in
seeing that perform ed by a local
theater group.
Whatever you do this week, don’t
miss SU R VIVAL! I f you never see
another play again for the next five
years, at least see S U R VIVAL. I f
you don’ t, you will not only miss one
o f the most important plays ever to
hit the stage, you w ill also have rob
bed yourself o f the most culturally
enriching presentations ever. A ll per
formances are FREE.
"Selaelo, Fana, Themba Lo Seth,
Umfana wekhaya uti Am hlope!”
(Please see Com m unity Calendar,
page6 col. I)