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U n iv e rs ity o f Oreron L ib ra ry
Eugene, Oregon 97403
Race
Results
Page 11
Nation
Building
in Israel
Terror in
Guatemala
Page 4
Page 2
PORTLAND OBSERMER
Portland Observer
Volume XII Number 5
250 Per Copy
'Kids will be my number one priority.'
In the '80a kids w ill be Num ber One. School
Board member Herb Cawthorne welcomea achool
superintendent-designate Or M atthew Prophet to
the Portland School District
(Photo: Richard J. Brown)
Coalition hits immigration plan
C a llin g
Reagan's
proposed
“ guest w o rker” plan for Mexican
nationals “ legalized slavery,” the
newly form ed Oregon C o a litio n
Against the Reagan Im m ig ra tio n
and Refugee P lan, denounced the
adm inistration’s proposed changes
in U.S. immigration policy.
The Reagan plan includes:
•C re a tio n o f an experim ental
guest-worker program that would
bring 50,000 Mexican workers each
year. These workers could not bring
their families and would be ineligi
ble for social services.
• O ffe r tem porary w ork permits
to all undocumented workers who
have been in the U.S. since January
I , 1980. Those who remain on tem
porary permits for ten years, paying
taxes but receiving no social ser
vices, could become eligible for per-
mancnl residence status or to bring
their families to the U.S.
•Im pose fines on employees who
kno w in gly hire undocumented
workers.
•Expand the Border Patrol.
•In cre as e annual M exican and
Canadian immigration quotas from
20,000 each to 40,000 each.
•Attem pt to gain Mexican help to
stem the tide o f refugees fleeing re
pressive governments, mainly from
El Salvador and Guatemala.
•O rder the Coast Guard to inter
cept vessels suspected o f carrying
Haitian refugees (in effect since Sep
tember 29, 1981).
There has been widespread oppo
sition to the proposal by Hispanic
organizations and labor groups.
Ramon Ramirez, Secretary of the
C o a litio n , said the guest w orker
program — which would be the la r
gest in the w orld’s history— is pat
terned a fte r the old Braccro P ro
gram that was used fro m 1942 to
1964 and kept Mexican workers in
v irtu a l slavery. A lthough these
w orkers w ould pay taxes, they
would have no legal rights and no
access to social services. They would
be in constant danger o f deportation
should they challenge the working
conditions or attempt to organize.
Those workers who remained in
the U .S . for ten years w ithout re
turning to Mexico, and who during
this tim e do not have the right to
have their families with them, could
then q u a lify for perm anent resi
dence. H owever, there arc 32 rea
sons for which they could be dis
q u alified and even if they met all
(Please turn to page 4, column 4)
AG politicizes federal courts
Attorney General W illiam French
Smith has pledged to use the powers
o f his office to ensure that the fed
eral courts become attuned to the
p o litic a l realities o f the “ Reagan
mandate.”
He said the A dm inistration will
seek greater judicial restraint in such
areas as school desegregation, a ffir
mative action, environm ental pro
tection, and prisoners rights,
tio n ally dubious and unwise in tru
sion upon the legislative domain” in
broadening the definition o f indivi
dual rights, Sm ith said, “ The
groundswell o f conservatism evi
denced by the 1980 election makes
this an especially appropriate time
to urge upon the courts more princi
pled bases that would reduce ju d i
cial activism.”
1
Smith has committed the Justice
Department to move the law o f the
land tow ard Reagan’ s principles.
“ S im ply p u t, consistent w ith the
C o n s titu tio n and the laws o f the
U nited States, the Departm ent o f
Justice intends to play an active role
in effectin g the principles upon
which
Ronald
Reagan
cam
paigned.”
The A tto rn e y G eneral said the
Adm inistration is working to iden
tify “ those big areas in which the
courts might be convinced to desist
from actual policy-making” so that
“ errors o f the past m ight be c o r
rected” and “ past trends might at
least be halted.”
Smith is concerned about federal
court decisions over the past 40
years that have broadened the inter
pretation o f fundamental individual
rights guaranteed by the C onstitu
tio n . “ They now include the First
Amendment rights and the right to
vote in most elections— the rights
mentioned by the Constitution.
“ In addition, however, they in
clude rights th a t, though deemed
fundam ental, were held to be only
im p lied by the C o n s titu tio n . The
latter group, which has become a
real base fo r expanding Federal
Court activity, includes the right to
m arry, the right to procreate, the
right o f interstate tra v e l, and the
right o f sexual privacy that, among
other things, may have spawned a
rig h t, w ith certain lim itatio n s, to
have an abortion___
" A t the very least, the multiplica
tion o f implied constitutional rights,
and the unbounded strict scrutiny
(Please turn to page 4, column 4)
“ Kids w ill be my num ber one
p rio rity ,” D r. M atth e w Prophet,
Po rtlan d ’s new Superintendent o f
schools told the pub lic M o n d ay
evening. The thing that counts is
what happens to kids. There will be
a delivery system that will have one
priority, one objective, one goal— to
maximize the opportunity for learn
ing for every child.”
D r. Prophet was in t n uced to
the public by School Boat J C h a ir
man
F ran k
M c N a m a ra .
D r.
Prophet, who was selected from a
field o f one hundred, said he con
siders it a “ singular p rivilege” to
have been chosen by the school
board and the com munity. Stating
that he has been impressed by the
quality and interest o f the staff and
the community people he has met he
indicated that something is occur
ring in this city in public education
that is not happening in many other
parts o f the country. W hile public
schools are being buffeted by criti
cism there are some absolutely out
standing programs in public educa
tion.'
” 1 will not k t the Portland School
f>i*lrictdown in any w a y .: .and wilT
measurably contribute to the better
ment o f opportunity for every single
student.”
In a subsequent press conference.
Prophet said he values the exper
ience and service o f Interim Super
intend! D r. James F en w ick, who
was also a can d id ate fo r superin
ten d en t, and w ill ask him to stay
with the district.
H e w ill expect to reorganize the
s ta ff structure o f the d is trict in a
way that will best suit his style and
theory o f management. “ When you
come in new and inherit an organiz
ation, everyone knows what’s going
on and you don’t . ” When he reor
ganizes, “ I will know what is going
on. I am ultimately responsible.”
‘I will measurably
contribute to the betterment
o f opportunity fo r every
single student*
—Matthew Prophet
He does not expect to immediate
ly replace principals or adm inistra
tors, but there will be changes in as
signments. Keeping in mind that the
education o f children is the primary
goal, the central office staff must set
the example and provide the atm o
sphere. “ Anyone in the central o f
fice has to set an example, to p ro
vide needed support to teachers.
Teachers need to believe the admin
istration is fully committed. Every
one in the C en tral O ffic e must be
sensitive to needs and dedicated.”
Principals and administrators will
be guaranteed due process: they will
not be judged on inuendos and
charges from other staff or the com
munity. When he has determined a
p rin c ip al or a d m in is tra to r’ s per
form ance is not ap p ro p ria te, that
person will know what is wrong, will
have an opportunity and assistance
to conform.
“ It all exists fo r k id s .” H e w ill
find out what is happening and what
is not happening— what in the
school system prevents the proper
delivery o f services to help children
learn. He will look at student learn
ing and work backward from there,
designing the d istrict to meet the
needs o f the students. The district
should put in place a ll o f its re
sources so there would not be a sin
gle child who does not have the
maximum opportunity to learn.
D r. Prophet will remain with the
Lansing school d is trict through
M arch in order to assist with a tax
levy election scheduled for Febru
ary. He expects to take the helm o f
the Portland district on April 1. A l
though contract negotiations are not
com pleted, no d ifficu ltie s are ex
pected. Prophet will accept a three-
year contract with a beginning sal
ary o f $62,500.
D uring the interim he will spend
approximately 30 days in Portland,
visiting every school tiLtalk with stu
dents and staff, talking with indivi
duals from the community and gov
ernment, and making a thorough as
sessment o f the district’s needs. “ I
will make a very intensive study o f
the school system and form definite
conclusions; I won’t make hasty de
cisions, but I ’ m not relu ctan t to
make decisions.”
Community saves local library
Grassroot News, N. W. — The pos
sible closure o f North Branch Public
L ib ra ry, located at 512 N o rth Kil-
lingsworth, was averted by the ac
tive involvem ent o f various mem
bers o f the community. Last month
the lib ra ry Ifad a series o f m inor
c rim in a l incidents which sparked
fear and concern among its users.
" I t seemed like everything hap
pened at once. First, cars were brok
en into, elderly ladies were harassed
and there was m in o r van d alism ,”
M ary G riffin , Head Librarian sum
marized the problem. This resulted
in the library being closed for four
evenings.
Sharon M cC orm ack, a represen
tative from Neighborhoods against
C rim e , told how the com m u nity
changed the situ ation . “ A fte r the
head librarian contacted me I got in
touch w ith H u m b o ld t N eig h b o r
hood Association. The A m erican
Muslim Mission, P .C .C ., Jefferson
H igh School, and the U rb an
League. Our M ain purpose was to
reduce victimization and restore the
nighttime hours.
“ It appears to be more o f a fear
o f crim e than incidents. However
that fear becomes just as real as if
crime was occurring. Various indivi
duals from com m u nity groups
stayed at the library during the even
ing hours to counteract the situ a
tion.”
Because o f the in p u t received,
Mrs. G riffin stated that now every
thing is back to norm al. ” 1 believe
that only a few were c om m ittin g
these acts. I have been at this branch
for 13 years and we never had this
happen.”
Mary Griffin, Head Librarian of the North Branch Library, is avail
One concern, which is the a fter-
able to halp patrons with thair reading needs.
math o f this temporary crime wave,
(Photo: Richard J. Brown)
is lack o f use. The North Branch li
brary is a large facility which is open hours. Every month the library has drens. R em em ber, a fa m ily that
to community groups during library special sessions for adults and chil- reads together will live forever.
I