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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 27, 1981)
W hat role will the US play? 1 South Africa escalates invasion of Angola W hat could become the US* next war i i developing in A n go la. The Angolan government reporti fight ing deep inside its territory as South A fric a n troops invade across the Namibian border. Although there have been numer ous invasions since Angola gained its independence in 1973, the latest military incursion began with South African and mercenary troops occu pying seven Angolan towns late in July. The forces that penetrated the Southern Cunene Province were backed by helicopters and Im p ala jets. The invasion followed a build up o f South A frican forces in N a mibia the last two weeks o f June. The US has decried the increase o f “ violence” in the region but US interest in Angola is longstanding. The US first supported the P o rtu gese efforts to m aintain its colony, then, when Portugal w ith d rew , it jo in e d South A fric a to support movements against the new government, the M P L A . M o re recently, the Reagan A d m inistration has moved rapidly to im prove relations w ith South A f rica. The Reagan A d m in is tra tio n has also proposed a repeal o f the law forbidding US covert involve ment in Angola, passed after the se cret C IA involvement in the Ango lan civil war came to light. The ad m in is tratio n has indicated th a t it w ill be w illin g to provide arms to a n ti-M P L A forces once that law is eliminated. In this respect the US has worked with South Africa to delay indepen dence o f Namibia, a territory illegal ly held by South A frica , which lies between South A frica and Angola. South A fric a has failed to com ply with the 1978 United Nations agree ment calling fo r a U N -e n fo rc e d cease-fire and internationally super vised elections. South A fric a in stalled a new adm in ister general, held illegal elections in 1978, created an illegal N ational Assembly, and has brought in additional troops. The new U S plan fo r N a m ib ia , which has been rejected by all na tions o f A fr ic a , calls fo r m eeting South A fric a n " c o n c e rn s ” in N am ib ia and ties any N a m ib ia n settlem ent to the w ith d ra w a l o f Cuban troops from Angola. " T h e P r e t o r ia - W a s h in g t o n rendezvous is undeniably a sinister plot against the aspirations o f Nam ibian people fo r genuine indepen dence and fre e d o m ," responded Sam N u jo m a , president o f the South West A fric a n People’ s O r ganization (S W A P O ). C uban involvem ent in A n g o la was subsequent to that o f the US and came at the request o f Angola’s then president Agostinho Neto. A f ter the c iv il w ar ended w ith an M P L A victory and the new govern m ent was in firm c o n tro l, C uban presence con tin u ed . Besides the a p p ro x im a te ly 2 0,0 00 C uban troops, there are 1,000 teachers and 1,000 doctors and other technicians in the country. The Cuban presence has been the focal point o f much o f US A fric a policy and is used as a rationaliza tion for supporting the racist South A frican government. Efforts to push Cuba from Africa have been fre q u e n t. T he U S firs t asked the M o vem en t o f N o n- Aligned Nations for assistance, but that body supported Cuba’s military com mitment to the M P L A govern ment as consistent with its principals — “ The non-aligned countries pro vide encouragement and support to all people fighting for their indepen dence and equality___ ” The Organization o f A frican U ni ty also supported the rig h t o f Angola to ask for Cuban assistance. T an za n ia ’s president Julius Nyere said in 1978: “ They are still there because until now the South A f r i cans . . . are still financing organiza tions opposed to and com mitted to the overthrow o f the M P L A govern ment.” (Please turn to page 4 col. 5) PORTLAND OBSERMER August 27,1981 Volums XI Number 48 284 Par Copy Two Sections USPS 939-680-853 Portland cop makes illegal snatch Archie F ra n k lin , a newcomer to Portland, is without his driver’s li cense as the result o f a police stop. “ I drove an old man around the cor ner, then returned to my house,” he explained. “ As I pulled over a po lice officer pulled up. He said not to get out o f my car.” F ra n k lin reported that O ffic e r W ad d ell asked fo r his d riv e r’ s li cense. then returned to his own car and sat for some time. He then came back and asked fo r papers on the car, which has an Oregon plate. He took the papers, said they weren’t sufficient, and asked for evidence o f ownership. “ He asked how I got an Oregon license plate: I told him I had bought it and showed him the D E Q slip: H e asked where I lived and when 1 showed him my house he asked if I could prove it ." A t this time Tess Brewer arrived to visit Franklin. "1 saw this police man leaning against the car window with his hand on his gun. He turned and said, ‘ What can I do for you?’ I said I was com ing to see F ra n k lin and added, ‘ Y o u ’ re not going to shoot him, are you?” Franklin said he was looking for his registration and handed the o ffi cer the same papers as before.“ H e d id n ’ t even lo o k at them , but he handed them back and said they were O K but ’ put them where you can fin d them .* ” W hen W ad d ell started to leave, Franklin asked for his Arizona driv e r’ s license. “ H e w o u ld n ’t give it back and said it was no good— that 1 w ould have to get an O regon lic e n s e ." F ra n k lin , who lived in A rizo n a until three weeks ago but made frequent trips to Oregon, said his license is still valid. This happened at about noon on Saturday. Brewer drove Franklin to the Observer o ffic e, where he told the story to A I W illiam s. W illiam s called North Precinct and explained the incident to L t. Price. Price sent Sergeant Earl Johnson to the office to ta lk w ith the men. Johnson agreed that the officer was wrong to keep the license and said that since he was W a d d e ll’ s supervisor he would talk to him. H e said that after getting W a d d e ll’ s story, he would call them. Franklin did not hear from John son, so on Sunday he and Brewer went to N o rth Precinct to see C ap tain McCabe, the commanding o ffi cer. M cCabe was not in so they re turned M onday morning. A fte r lis tening to the story, M cCabe talked to W a d d e ll by telephone. Statin g that W addell said he had put the li cense in Franklin’s mailbox on Sun day, McCabe asked them to look for it. He added that he did not want to get too in volved . The license was not there. A lthough there was someone at home all day r ao o o e had seen a po liceman. T h ey called M c C a b e again . H e said he w o u ld have W a d d e ll and Johnson go to F ra n k lin ’ s house at 2:00 pm . Johnson showed up but W addell did n ot. Brewer reported that Johnson had seen the license and d eterm in ed th a t it was good, th a t W a d d e ll’ s a ctio n had been (Please turn to page 10. col. 3) Mental health clinic hires director Photo: Richard J. Brown The bottom of the bottle G rassroot News. N . W . — The above advertisement is from Rich ard W right's 1963 Law d Today. It reflects the timeless problem o f a l coholism and its cure. (There is no surefire cure). People have drunk and will con tinue to drin k. “ I drink because I want to ,” is a common answer as to why the thirst exists. But this thirst can control your life and directly or indirectly affect (he lives o f those around you. Alcohol is not illegal and it takes no secret password or dark alley to purchase it. On the one hand you have a support structure that produces the supply with the blessings o f the sys tem because they get theirs from the top w ith a liq u o r tax. And on the other hand, there's a support struc- tue that treats those whose con sumption is out o f control and is f i nanced by the same system that per petrates its use. Therefore, we find an incredible conflicting situation with alcohol and its abuse. The textbook definition o f alco holism is a chronic disease brought on by the repeated drinking that ex ceeds customary dietary use or com pliance with social drinking. It in terferes w ith the d rin k e r’ s health, interpersonal relations and econom ic funtioning. The next question is: When does the com m on social drinking develop into full-fledged alcoholism? " A person has to go through an abuse pattern which is in two stages. A person m ight get in tro ub le w ith the law because the crim e is alco h o l-related , or he’ s missing work or beating his wife and c h ild ren . I f one o r tw o o f those things are happening consistently, an abuse pattern is being set. After that comes physical dependancy. Your body gets used to the alcohol and it needs the alcohol because o f the chemical changes that alcohol induces. You wake up in the morn ing and have the shakes, take a d rin k and it calms the shakes d ow n.” answers a counsellor from one o f many alcohol treatm ent centers. “ The chemical changes vary from a mild hangover to a full-blown trem or. Emotional anxieties, loss o f ap petite, hallucinations o f varying in tensities and excessive sw eating." Joe Grant from the Hooper Detox C en ter runs down the symptoms that occur when (he body is hooked on alcohol and the drug is withheld for any length o f time. W hat are some o f the reasons or excuses for drinking to the degree that would lead to this physical ad diction? “ L ife,” a man answered as he put the bottle up to his lips. The ups and downs o f living, along with how d rin kin g is socially used, are the reasons for this problem . You drink when you’re happy and you’re sad. There is conversational d rin k ing, in tim ate d rin kin g and crowd d rin kin g . A ll around you there is advertisement telling you how sexy, b e a u tifu l and n atu ra l it is to consume. It is an accepted drug and in a drug-dependent society we can take something to cure any ill. Statistically, the number o f peo ple who drink are about the same. It may look as though the fold is in creasing when, in fact, the number o f people who are a d m ittin g to themselves that they have a drinking problem are just coming out o f the closet. Whether alcohol is a disease or a learned b ehavior is a point o f argument among the experts. Some times a person may drink heavily be ginning with the first taste, so this cannot be considered a learned be havior. And then there arc people, who are in situations where there is a great deal o f d rin k in g , tend to have m ore problem s w ith their drinking behavior than others, and this could be learned behavior. Whether or not alcoholism is called an illness or a learned behavior, the image o f an a lco h o lic as a weak- willed person or a bum is no longer funny. There is a ripple effect that goes along w ith the abuse o f alco h o l. H ealth w ise it can cause heart attacks and liver disease, even pan creas problem s or b ra in dam age. And please d o n ’ t d rin k and drive because the life you save may be your own. The effects on the Black commu nity are high and run deep. I f problems are the reason for drink ing then drinking is too excessive be cause our problems are double those o f any other com m unity. And just because y o u 're Black and have problems is still no reason to drink away your dreams, goals or hopes. Too much can leave you the same way you leave it: empty. by Nathaniel Scott The N orth/N ortheast Com m uni ty Mental Health Center is a new or ganization serving an economically and culturally diverse population in P o rtla n d . Its catchm ent area is bounded by the Columbia and W il lamette Rivers, the Banfield Free way, and 82nd Avenue, with a pop ulation o f approximately 160,000. The center is the only federally funded com prehensive m ental health center in P o rtla n d , and its 1981-82 budget, a p p ro xim ately $ 2 ,3 0 0 ,0 0 0 , is a com binatio n o f state and federal funding. The Executive D ire cto r o f the N orth/N ortheast Community M en tal H ealth Center, Michael B enja min, said, “ We are not going to in discriminately send people to Dam - maseh. Those people who can bene fit from com m unity based m ental health services, w ill be able to get that treatment in the community.” B enjam in, 39, a native o f O a k land, C a lifo rn ia , served on the fa culty o f the Southern Oregon Insti tute o f Alcohol Studies from 1976 to 1976, directed the nationwide alco holism p rogram fo r the N a tio n a l Association o f Counties, and most recently, was a health science ad ministrator at the National Institute o f M en tal H e a lth in W ashington, D .C . He said, “ W ith the cutback with federal programs in the human ser vice area, housing, welfare, etc., we w ill be facing very d iffic u lt times over the next two years.” Presently, Benjamin is in the pro cess o f screening fo r a clinical d i rector who w ill be a psychiatrist. " O n c e we get fu lly staffed , there will be 21 persons and we should be fully geared and operational by N o vember 1,” he said. “ The Black man is more at risk o f becoming mentally ill because o f the environmental factors.” But he stressed that mental illness is a com bination o f factors, “ b io logical and environmental.” Please turn to page 10 col. 3) MICHAEL BENJAMIN PPS denies added parent input The Portland School Board failed to add another element o f citizen participation in its process for the selection o f a new superintendent as represented by the Citizen Advisory Committee and adopted a time-line for the selection process. The selection process was de signed by Dr. Don Leu, Dean o f the Portland State University education d epartm ent, who is contracted by the Board to assist in recruitm ent and selection o f applicants. A t D r. L e u ’ s request, a Professional Screening Committee was named to review resumes and cut the list o f applicants from over 100 to from 8 to 15. The applications are c o n fi dential. An Internal Advisory Committee, representing s ta ff groups, and a C itizen Advisory Committee, were selected to provide s ta ff and com munity input. The role o f the Citizen Committee is to provide a set o f criteria to the Professional Selection Committee, to receive input from the commun ity, and to participate in the public interview o f the three to five fin al ists. Committee C o-Chairm an George Sheldon reported that the com m it tee is concerned about this lack o f ability to participate in the process d u rin g the fin a l e lim in a tio n . T he group feels that " i f they have been asked to represent the groups and act as a conduit for the community, they should participate.*’ Otherwise they cannot guarantee the equity o f the initial phase o f the selection. The com m ittee asked the Board eith er to add one or tw o o f th e ir members to the Professional Screen ing Com m ittee, or to add a step in the process to allow them to have a representative to help prioritize the S to 15 semi-finalists. School Board member Joe Rieke: “ Is this an absolute demand?” School Board member C h arlotte Beeman: " W h y do y o u je e l th a t’ s necessary when you have seven who have access to the a p p lic a tio n s ? " (School Board members). (Please turn to page 4 col. I )
