Portland Observar Juno 11,1M1 Page 3
Salvadoran leaders speak
From the Capitol
Congressman Ron Wyden
Q. Congressman Wyden, this
week the House voted to retain
funding fo r a nerve gas manufac
turing facility in the south. How do
you feel about this vote?
A. I find it nothing short o f in
credible that the House would vote
to spend ta xp a ye rs’ m oney to
finance a weapon that is unsafe and
ineffective against a ll but defense
less populations.
The arguments in favor o f fin an
cing th is weapon have a fa m ilia r
rin g: “ The Soviets are increasing
their nerve gas arsenal, so we better
do the sa m e ." T h a t argum ent
makes as m uch sense as the
argument that since they have 5,000
statutes o f L enin, we should b u ild
5,000 statues o f Jefferson.
We must ask ourselves, w ill the
p ro d u c tio n o f a rtille ry shells con-
ta in in g b in a ry nerve gas make us
any safer? W ill we sleep any better
at night? W ill our children live in a
more secure world?
The answer to these questions is
no. The m ilitary forces o f the Soviet
U nion and its allies are adequately
protected against chemical warfare -
as are our Arm ed Forces. The only
p o p u la tio n s vu ln e ra b le to th is
weapon are T h ird W o rld countries
and
u n p ro te cte d
c iv ilia n
populations.
T his is n ot an issue fo re ig n to
Oregonians. We have our own nerve
gas stockpiles in U m a tilla . I have
never met an Oregonian who feels
safer or less threatened because we
have our share o f nerve gas in our
state.
A nd I d o n ’ t believe I ever w ill.
M a n u fa c tu re o f b in a ry nerve gas
and w ill not co ntribu te to develop
ment o f the s tro n g defense th is
co u n try needs. It m erely prom otes
yet another arms race with a weapon
e ffe c tiv e o n ly against the u n p ro
tected.
Q.
The news these days is
filled with stories about how hard
hit the Housing Industry is. Why is
the Housing Authority in its current
predicament and what can be done
to help resolve it?
A. The H ou sing In d u s try —
from the stump to the stud — is on
its knees largely because o f federal
policies - from spending too many
defecit dollars to wrenching interest
rates a rtific a lly high. A t this point,
nothing short o f targeted assistance
w ill pull the housing industry out o f
the sink holes we have shoved it in
to.
Such targeted assistance should
start w ith the tax cut Congress in
considering. It must extend further,
however, to include such measures
as HR 110 (U.S. Congress) and HB
2014 (O regon I e gislatu re) w hich
would create tax-exempt Individuals
H ou sing A c c o u n ts fo r firs t-tim e
homebuyers.
Individual Housing Accounts are
im p o rta n t to Oregon because they
w ill p rovide fin a n c ia l in s titu tio n s
w ith stable, lo n g -te rm sources o f
ca pita l and b rin g dow n m ortgage
interest rates. T his is a bso lu te ly
c ritic a l in a c a p ita l-s ta rv e d state
such as O regon whose econom y
depends so heavily on housing and
supporting industries. In addition, it
w ill meet the needs o f Oregonians
w ho believe th e ir rig h t to own a
home should be more than a dream.
Trade u n io n leaders fro m El
Salvador w ill present a talk and slide
show , “ W o rk in g People o f El
S a lv a d o r” on F rid a y , June 12th,
7 :0 0 p.m ., at 3I3 E. Burnside.
F ernando
B e lto n ,
G eneral
Secretary o f the T e x tile W o rk e rs ’
U n io n , is a c o -fo u n d e r o f the
R e v o lu tio n a ry
T ra d e
U n io n
Federation.
Rosa M a rie R ivera, a m id d le
school teacher fo r 30 years, is c o
founder o f the National Association
o f Salvadoren Educators.
The R evolutionary Trade U nion
Federation (FSR) is a large national
federation made up p rin c ip a lly o f
te x tile and fo o d w orkers. L ik e a ll
Salvadoran union organizations, the
FSR has faced great repression over
the last few years. Its national office
has been m ach in e -g un ne d and
dynamited five times and ransacked
tw ice . On M a rc h I9 , 1980, the
N ational A rm y invaded the o ffice,
assassinated the Secretary o l
Grievances o f the union, and seized
25 workers.
Last year, the FSR joined with the
eight other p rin c ip a l Trade U nion
F ederations in E l S a lva d o r and
fo rm e d the C o m m itte e o f Trade
U nio n U n ity (C U S ). CUS consists
o f over 120 u n io n s representing
9O’ /o o f El S a lv a d o r’ s o rganized
workers.
Jlb Z 1
&
From City Hall
By Mayor ! rank Ivancie
M ay 24th marked the end o f my
firs t six m onths in o ffic e . D u rin g
that time I have taken steps to help
city government p rovide more ser
vices fo r less money. Several o f the
changes 1 have initiated are just now
beginning to pay o ff. One example
is occuring in the area o f economic
development, a topic that the Port
land Observer has covered at length
in previous articles.
One o f my fir s t m a jo r acts as
M ayor was to reorganize the C ity ’ s
economic development programs. 1
a p p o in te d new m embers to the
P o rtla n d
D evelopm ent
C om
m ission, which is the five-m em ber
citizen committee that is authorized,
by the C ity C harter to direct P o rt
la n d ’ s econom ic developm ent and
urban renewal programs.
I also appointed new members to
the 16-member Economic Develop
ment A d v is o ry C o m m itte e . T his
group advises the Mayor and Coun
c il on econom ic developm ent ac
tiv itie s. At its firs t meeting since I
to o k
o ffic e ,
th is co m m itte e
designated inner Northeast Portland
as an area deserving top p rio rity in
the coming years.
And I eliminated several bureau’ s
that I felt were unnecessary, trans-
fe rin g th e ir fu n c tio n s to the
professional staff w orking under the
direction o f the P ortland Develop
ment Commission.
The first m ajor projects are now
beginning to emerge from this new
o p e ra tio n . A w ell th o u g h t-o u t
p ro po sal fo r the o ld C a d illa c -
Fairview site w ill soon be presented
to the C ity Council fo r its approval.
T his is know n as the M o rris o n
Street P ro je c t, and it has been
developed through a lengthy series
o f p u b lic hearings in v o lv in g
numerous citizen advisory groups.
U n lik e the ill- fa te d C a d illa c -
F a irvie w p ro p o s a l, the M o rris o n
Street Project is being designed by
Portlanders fo r P ortland. I believe
this process w ill prove successful
and w ill serve as a model fo r future
projects, like those that w ill occur in
inn er N orth ea st P o rtla n d . I w ill
discuss this further in future column
in the Portland Observer.
The Portland C ity C ouncil a f f ir
med my econom ic developm ent
changes d u rin g the fin a l series o f
hearings on the new C ity budget.
This budget contains the first reduc
tion in both general fund spending
and c ity employees in 30 years. It
was approved a fte r the most
peaceful budget hearing in recent
memories.
The new C ity budget is v irtu a lly
id e n tic a l to the proposed budget
that I presented on March 30, 1981
It w ill allow the C ity to provide bet
ter basic services w ith o u t fo rc in g
Portlanders to increase their taxes.
The budget accomplishes this goal
by cu tting adm inistrative overhead
D ic k
This week’ s ram blings...The ink
was h a rd ly d ry on a special M u lt
nom ah C o u n ty grand ju r y in
vestigation report on county correc
tions when seven Rocky Butte ja il
inmates broke out and a week or so
later, five o f them are s till on the
loose.
A fte r weeks o f study, the grand
ju ry branded county corrections as
“ in a state o f crisis” and even went
so far to say in its recommendations
that corrections ch ie f Bob H atrack
should be fired.
The grand ju ry cited examples o f
p oo r tra in in g fo r c o rre c tio n s o f
ficers. One example was o f a young
officer who didn’ t even know where
to turn o ff the lights in a certain sec
tion o f the ja il.
The escape o f the seven was
almost a stamp o f endorsement o f
what the grand jurors had stated.
Can you believe this? One ja ile r
got a tip from an inform ant that an
escape in vo lv in g an inm ate named
C haney and several o thers were
planned fo r th a t n ig h t. A sub
sequent search o f his cell revealed
that bars had been sawed through,
w hich when rem oved le ft a hole
measuring nine by twelve inches.
N a tu ra lly , Chaney was removed
fro m
th a t tank and placed
somewhere else. T w o o f the three
correctional officers in the tank had
to leave to attend to obtaining some
chains w hich were being b ro u g h t
from another facility. They left one
and elim inating costly duplications.
It should serve as a model fo r other
cities in these times o f budget cuts
and shortages.
D uring my first six months in o f
fice I have also taken steps to a d
dress P o rtla n d 's housing needs. I
have established a H o u s in g A d
v is o ry G ro u p , b rin g in g to ge th er
representatives fro m the P o rtlan d
D evelopm ent C o m m is s io n , the
Bureau o f B uildings and the P lan
ning Bureau and the H ousing and
C o m m u n ity Developm ent agency.
This group is meeting regularly un
der my d ire c tio n to b etter c o o r
dinate the C ity ’s housing programs,
especially those dealing with low in
come and single roo m occupancy
housing.
1 have also worked during the last
six m onths to insure th a t c ity
government w ill be able to meet the
day-to-day needs o f all Portlanders
in the years ahead. Im p o rta n t im
provements to Portland’ s water and
electrical supply systems are being
made. An emergency water supply
system is being developed in East
M ultnom ah County and two hyrdo-
electric power houses are under con-
strucion at the Bull Run dams. Both
projects are right on schedule.
And I have taken the opportunity
to work on a number o f im p orta nt
regional issues as well in the last half
year. I te stified before the Oregon
I egislatu re on the need fo r ad-
639-7728
620 5199
CASCADE
TREE SERVICE
Topping, Trimming, Removals
Hedge A Shurb work
Free Estimates
“ The Portland Branch N A A C P is
shocked beyond w ords o f ex
pression o f M ayor Frank Ivancie's
a ctio n o f recent days to relieve
C om m issio ne r C harles Jordan as
head o f the Portland Police Bureau.
" T h e P o rtlan d Branch N A A C P
wishes to go on record as p u b licly
sta tin g its d is-ap p ro ved o f the
M ayor’ s appointment o f a new chief
without in-put from the community.
"W e further deplore the securing
and the appointment o f a chief who
was n o t in accord w ith C o m
m issioner J o rd a n ’ s rece n tly ap
proved A ffir m a tiv e A c tio n C e r
tific a tio n R ule. The Black co m
munity desires to ascertain i f the A f
firm ative Action C ertificatio n Rule
Bausch 6 Lom b
SOFLENS®
ONE PRICE/ONE DAY
(149
00
Complete
Offer good until 6 /1 /6 1
Pnce includes eve exam ination contact lenses chemicol disinfection supplies
and com plete follow up setvice with most fittings com pleted in the some day
224-5367
Contact Lens Clinic
of Portland
Portland Medical Center
Dr James H. Vale. Optometrist
Dr. Philip Stocksrad. Optometrist
Visa ond Mostetchotge W elcom e
v ”1
**• '
Financing Avoiloble on A ppto ved Credit
Pacific
Citizen
Power o f the Week
ogle
guard to w atch fo r “ unusual
m o ve m e n t” in the ta n k . U n fo r
tu n a te ly , the one g ua rd , where he
was stationed, could not observe the
w ind ow w hich had its bars sawed
th ro u g h . The next th in g anybody
knew, there were fo o tp rin ts on the
ground outside the ta n k , tram pled
bushes and a rope fashioned out o f
inm ate’s clothing. Yes, th a t’ s right,
even w ith advance knowledge, the
discovery o f the lo c a tio n o f fro m
where they were leaving and all that,
the seven still got away. Corrections
o fficials ought to thank their lucky
stars they d o n ’ t w o rk fo r M a y o r
Frank Ivancie.
C ounty executive Don Clark held
a news conference a week later to
b o th com m ent on the grand ju r y
NAACP 'shocked'
L ucius H icks, P resident o f the
N A A C P , P o rtla n d Branch has
released the fo llo w in g statement on
the rem oval o f C om m issio ne r
Charles Jordan from his position o f
Police Commissioner.
d itio n a l p riso n space in P o rtla n d
several m onths before the Special
M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty G rand Jury
issued its rep ort s u p p o rtin g my
position.
The federal governm ent is
th re a te n in g to cut back on tra n s
p o rta tio n fu nd s th a t have been
prom ised th is area, and I have
w orked to prevent th is fro m hap
pening. Much o f this money w ill be
spent on road improvement projects
to open up areas fo r in d u s tria l
d evelopm ent. P o rtla n d needs the
new jobs that a dd itio na l industrial
developm ent w ill p ro v id e . I am
w o rk in g to make sure the federal
government honors its agreements
w ith P ortland and the surrounding
region.
And, on a smaller regional issue, 1
have worked to overturn the state-
imposed ban on backyard burning.
This ban is a good example o f a
costly, unnecessary governm ent
regulation. It imposes an additional
burden on the residents o f this area
at the very tim e when government
should be cutting back.
During my first six months in o f
fice, I have laid the foundation for
c o n tin u in g P o rtla n d ’ s progress in
the years to come. M uch o f th is
w o rk has not been v is ib le to the
average Portlander. But the results
w ill become m ore and m ore a p
parent as we move further into the
1980s.
w ill be implemented under the new
ch ie fs administration?
"T h e
Black c o m m u n ity is
desirous o f k n o w in g w hat is the
M a y o r’ s position w ith reference to
C om m issio ne r J o rd a n ’ s Special
Task Force on In te rn al A ffa irs o f
the Police Dept?
“ F in a lly , the P o rtla n d Branch
N A A C P feels the removal o f C om
m issioner Jo rd a n as head o f the
Police Bureau w ith o u t reason and
the M a y o r's secretative manner o f
selecting a new c h ie f raises very
serious d o u b t in the cty a d
m in istratio n in terms o f what does
the Black com m unity have to look
fo w a rd to w ith reference to equal
police protection for all citizenry?"
report and to release the findings o f
a S h e riff’ s Inquiry board report on
the escape.
The news m edia was hard on
Clark as well; they should have been
because he announced there would
be no d is c ip lin a ry a c tio n taken
against any co u n ty employees in
volved in the escape fiasco.
A C hannel T w o m anagem ent
editorial branded it “ incredible and
unbelievable.”
A p p a re n tly no one is a ccoun
table.
Sure there are going to be escapes
fro m most any p riso n o r ja il and
everyone w orking in them is human
and prone to m istakes. I ce rta in ly
have made my share on my job and
most everyone I know has com m it
ted jo b related e rro rs . But how
many o f us can expect to make the
kinds o f mistakes that jeopardize
the safety and lives o f c i’ .zens and
then not have to pay any co n
sequences?
Politically C lark’ s decision not to
discipline was strange fo r he is the
o nly one who is accountable to the
voters.
W h ile on the subject o f co rrec
tions, did you know that convicted
felons are serving sentences which i f
it w eren ’ t fo r o vercrow ded co n
ditions at the Oregon State Peniten
tia ry in Salem would be doing their
tim e there, are instead serving it at
Rocky Butte? And at the same time,
there are over one hundred men ser
ving time at O.S.P. for driving with
a suspended license.
These are indeed strange times.
A man who has dedicated his life to young people
is Vernon Chatman, retiring Director of Education
and Youth Incentives for the Urban League of Port
land. Chatm an spends countless hours finding
scholarships and employment for students, arranging
work study placements, finding 'foster homes' for
o u t-o f-to w n students, arranging youth job fairs,
scheduling tutoring for SAT test preparation, and
many other activities that help college students stay
in school.
He has earned the love and respect of the Black
community and its young people and the business
com m unity. He serves as a model for the com
munity's youth - quiet, untiring devotion.
brought to . you by
Pacific
Power