Page 2 Portland Observer, December 17,1961
Suit charges FBI harassment
Since its inception, the c iv il
rights m uvem eni has been sub
jected to illegal surveillance, dis
ruption efforts, and harassment
by the FBI.
We must dem and an end to
F B I interference in legal political
activity that is guaranteed by the
U.S. B ill o f Rights. We have the
rig h t to speak o ut and dem on
strate against unem ploym ent,
jo b discrimination, cuts in social
services, the attem pts to repeal
the Voting Rights Act, the rise in
Kian violence, and her, in A tlan
ta, the murders o f our children.
. . . I support the S WP's national
suit, which will put questionable
operations on tria l, as well as
A tlanta efforts to stop these ille
gal activities at Lockheed.
— Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, president
Southern Christian
Leadership Conference
In 1973 the Socialist W o rkers
P arty (S W P ) and its a ffilia te the
Young Socialist A llia n ce (Y S A )
filed suit against the F B I, C IA , and
the Immigration and Naturalization
Service (IN S ). The party charged the
government agencies with violating
the rights o f its members through a
campaign o f illegal spying, harass
ment and d isru p tio n . The S W P /
Y S A is dem anding an in ju n c tio n
against this harassm ent, and $40
million in damages.
This fa ll, according to Betsy
Soares. S W P activist who spoke
with the Observer last week, testi
mony in the tria l ended, w ith a
ruling expected after the 1st o f the
year.
During the trial, said Ms. Soares,
the government admitted its harass
ment campaign, claim ing the right
to spy on and disrupt any organiza
tion which is “ unfriendly or poten
tially unfriendly** to the policies o f
the U .S . governm ent— even i f the
activities o f the o rg an iza tio n are
completely legal. Files the govern
ment was forced to release reveal
government actions such as break-
ins o f offices, conspiring with em
ployees to get workers fired from
their jobs, wiretapping, and other
forms o f surveillance, and anony
mous campaigns to incite violence
against socialists.
C O IN T E L P R O was the F B I’ s
name for its program o f harassment
and disruption o f progressive move
ment groups. Among those specifi
cally targeted were Black movement
groups lik e the B lack Panthers.
Black leaders whom the government
referred to as “ potential new mes-
siahs o f the Black movement’ * were
named. O f course, these names are
blanked out on the released docu
ments, but C O IN T E L P R O was in
effect at the time o f the murders o f
M a rtin Luther King and M alcolm
X.
The government claims to have
abandoned C o in te lp ro activities,
but the SW P says otherwise. They
point to recent campaigns o f firings
Street Beat
and harssment o f SWP-member and
others working at a Lockheed “ de
fense** plant in M arietta. G a., and
at a McDonnell-Douglas jet-fighter
plant in St. Louis. The socialists
claim that company security agents
collaborated with the F B I, the Alco
hol, Tobacco and Firearms Bureau,
the Pentagon's Defense Investiga
tive Service, and local “ red squads'*
to draw up a “ subversive hit list” in
eluding over 100 w orkers, in the
case o f the Georgia plant, where 15
SW P-m em bers were subsequently
fired.
In addition, the SW P points to a
campaign o f deportations o f fo r
eigners who have joined the SW P.
For example, Mojgan H ariri-V ijeh ,
an Iranian who came to the U .S. in
1977, was left alone by the IN S ,
throughout the overthrow o f the
Shah and the entire hostage crisis,
until she joined the S W P in 1980.
Today, she faces deportation.
The SW P’s suit has received wide
support. A partial list o f supporters
includes: M anning M a ra b le , Ron
D ellum s, Rev. Ralph A b e rn a th y ,
Joseph E. Lowery, the N A A C P , Ed
Asner, Pete Seeger, Russell Means,
Linus P auling, I.F . Stone, Jane
Fonda and Andrew Young.
For more in fo rm a tio n , or to
express your support, call 222-7225
in P o rtlan d, or write the P olitical
Rights Defense Fund, P .O . Box
649. C ooper S tatio n , N .Y . , N .Y .
10003.
W ith the holidays just a week
away, the P o rtlan d Observer went
into the streets to ask people, "H o w
are you coping w ith the present
economic situation?”
C a rry B rad fo rd , H a ir S tylist:
“ The economic situation is jus, ter
rible. We are no, having as many
Christmas decorations this year nor
arc we buying as many presents. I ’m
more on a budget now than I ’ve ever
been in my life and that makes a d if
ference. You can really feel the
squeeze.”
Patrice McLelland, Artist fo r The
Stephanie Michaels, C rim e Pre
vention Rep., freelance writer: “ My Oregonian; “ I f 1 was freelancing
husband and I are weathering the would really feel the crunch. What
storm . W e had to make cutbacks happens is that people don’t employ
and apply (hose savings toward ne freelancers, or advertisers w ill re
cessities. I f we can take the bus we duce their illustrations. When I do
take the bus. Wherever we can make my food shopping I ’ ve become
cuts that's where we do it. We have more aware o f price differences and
passed the point o f a recession and weight. This year I'm buying my
are really approaching a depression. friends something very practical or
I d o n ’ t thin k (hat everybody can something (hey can eat.”
make it. The notion that Black peo
ple are survivors will be tested. The
breadlines are getting longer and
crime is on the rise because there arc
no jobs.”
War in the Middle East?
va
if
(Continued from page 1 col. 3)
years: the problem came with World
W a r I I , ’ ’ Darweesh explains.
“ Zionism is a racist m o v e m e n t-
even in the d e fin itio n o f the U N
(U n ite d N atio n s). W e receive re
ports that there are racial problems
between European Jews and Eastern
Jews."
Both Darweesh and Ramezina say
the conflict between Jews and Arabs
is not based on religion, but on race
and class struggle.
“ I f you go to Israel, you will see
disgraceful areas where Palestinians
have had their own places, but i f
Israel wants that land, he cannot say
no. A lot o f villages have been
blown o ff the map now,” Darweesh
says.
And in a city where 60^» o f the
population is Palestinian, Ramezina
adds, " I f there are Jewish and
Palestinian settlements, the Pales
tinians will no, have running water
and the Jews w ill have all the
modern facilities.”
Darweesh says the Israelis claim
they are in danger o f being pushed
into the sea, when in actuality, “ we
are the people who have been
suppressed; our camps south o f
Lebanon have been burned every
day. The Red Cross knows this and
they are a very m oderate o rg a n i
zation.”
R am ezina agrees. “ T h ey talk
about terrorism o f Palestinians— we
are the ones who are being
terrorized.”
The students are both skeptical o f
the reports that Libyan “ hit
squads'* are roaming around trying
to assassinate U .S. government o ffi
cials. “ K haddafy is not crazy; he
knows getting rid o f one head
doesn’t get rid o f the system,” says
Darweesh. He believes the recent
m ilita ry maneuvers (O p era tio n
Bright Star) in Egypt were staged to
“ pressure Khaddafy and paint him
as crazy so they can get rid o f him.
It hits two birds with one stone.”
Darweesh says Saudi Arabia is a
problem in the region because it is
pro-U.S. and has the majority o f oil
reserves. “ The whole Saud family is
one o f a typ ical reactionary
reg im e.” W hy does Saudi A rab ia
make deals w ith the U .S . when it
has all that oil to use as blackmail?
“ For m o n ey,” Darweesh asserts.
“ Saudi A rab ia has the o il, but the
U .S . petroleum industry controls
Saudi A rab ia. They are the tail to
U .S . policy; they do what they are
told.
Ram ezina says the Saud fam ily
rules Saudi Arabia like the late shah
did in her own country. “ The Saud
family is not a government by popu
lar sup p o rt, and th e ir policies
cannot be different.”
L ik e R oosevelt’ s “ Big S tic k ”
policy o f dealing w ith foreign
governm ents, Darweesh sees the
Reagan adm in istration ’ s behavior
as the “ C razy M a n ” p olicy— “ to
pressure and frighten progressive
movements wherever they exist.”
These "progressive” movements,
in the view o f Darweesh and Rame
zina, are the Libyan government o f
M oam m ar K h ad d afy, the Iranian
government o f Khomeini, and those
o f South Yemen and Algeria. There
has been talk o f these forces joining
together to form a so-called
“ Islam ic F ro n t” to oppose U .S .
influence in the M id d le East and
help prom ote systems o f political
and social governance based on self-
determination.
Do these students believe this is a
possibility? Darweesh does not. “ I
don’ t th in k it w ould w o rk. The
revolutionary Moslem idea does not
exist in other countries o f the
Middle East— not like Iran which is
99.9V» M oslem . There are other
cultures in the Middle East.”
R am ezina is more o p tim istic .
“ Islam is a banner to get people to
gether, bu, other religions can be in
cluded, as in Iran. It ’s jus, a start—
it might happen, in my view.”
I f such a front were to m aterial
ize, Darweesh believes the U .S .
government would use any means
possible to squelch it. “ I f Jews and
Arabs ge, together, it w ill form
another superpower and the U .S .
would rather have a nuclear war
than risk this alliance.”
In the end, Palestinians and revo
lu tio n a ry Arabs are fig h tin g the
same b attle — for recognition as a
people and as a culture in their own
land, and for an end to imperialism
and Zionism as represented by the
Israeli and U .S . governm ents,
according to Darweesh.
“ We are in the same boa, as Latin
American people. Somoza (form er
dictator o f Nicaragua) was fighting
to the last man, and for what? For
the rubber companies and for
U n ite d F ru it. W e are fighting
against Mobil and Exxon.”
Press poll
Mrs. Lee Jones: " I ’ m on disabil
ity and things are getting harder and
harder. When I cook it ’ s just one
dish and we eat from that dish for
two days. The utility bills are going
up along with everything else. We
pinch from one day to ano th er.
There a in ’ t no buying for C h ris t
mas. I f we have som ething to eat
we’ll be blessed.”
£
5L
k
Tim Coughlin, A irp o rt Driver: " I
shop th r iftily and I think about
wha, I ’ m buying. I buy less and give
more. I don’t drive as much. I stay
at home a lot more. 1 cook at home
which cuts down on my eating o u t.”
(Tim is shown with a bottle o f beer
that he will give as a present.)
Mrs. D. Roub, Crim e Prevention
employee: “ We are in the process o f
building a house through the Veter
ans A d m in is tra tio n and they are
talkin g about raising the interest
rate. I f they do that we are not sure
if we can afford to continue build
ing the house or live in it when it's
completed. The taxes keep going up
A
Carolyn Sibley, Pacific N W Bell
employee: “ I read the newspapers
to catch all the sales. I've gone back
to Perry’s Market where I stopped
going years ago. This Christmas I ’ll
buy things we need rather than toys.
I don't think they should cut Head
Star, because education is real im
portant.”
and I resent Reaganomics, from the
standpoint o f the rich getting richer
and the poor getting poorer. I resent
the arrogance of Mrs. Reagan wear
ing a $10,000 dress and a few weeks
later they wan, to cut meals for chil
dren in the schools. I d o n ’ t know
how the rich can keep getting richer
because in the end we arc in this
boa, together.”
(Continued from page 1 col. 6)
Thomas M itc h e ll, executive d i
rector o f BOP noted: “ I t ’ s clear,
thses leading Blacks feel Blacks and
Th ird W orld peoples are being ig
nored by the general press.”
The poll also revealed that most
Blacks (52 per cent) feel mostly
“ neglect” is killing key Black insti
tutions. A n o th er 25 per cent feel
" in fla tio n ” is the villain. Some 56
per cent contend a Black think tank
is needed for Black survival and the
money is available for such a pro
ject.
On another economic note is 55.7
per cent said Japan should aid in the
development o f the U.S. Black com
m unity because o f the fact that
Blacks are large consumers o f Jap
anese-made products. When asked a
follow-up question “ Should Blacks
boycott the Japanese if they are un
willing to aid Black development?”
some 67 per cent said the boycott
was a good idea. Some 67 per cent
also agreed that a conference o f
Black journalists, academicians and
Black Studies adm in istrato rs is
needed to forge a Black survival
strategy.
Variety Beauty Salon
CURL SPECIAL £
*
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by Lanlta D u ka and R ichard B row n
Cuts boost health care cost
(Continued from page I col. 5)
grams which are designed to m axi
mize— rather than minimize— costs
is so scandalous it makes the Penta
gon overruns look like peanuts.”
H o w ever, even w hile President
Reagan was drawing attention to the
issue, his a d m in istra tio n was
slashing existing “ in-home health
services” by 25 per cent. Such a cut
will keep even more disabled people
in the hospital, at an even greater
drain on taxes. “ Unnecessary hospi
talization” continues to siphon o ff
three-quarters more tax money than
proper care would cost at home or
in a nursing center, according to
hospital finance directors.
W illie Ram irez, hospitalized for
two years after he was hit by an un
insured m o to rist, found his way
home a few weeks ago only because
a dogged team o f doctors, nurses
and social workers at S tanfo rd
pieced together elements o f about
six d iffe re n t public funding p ro
grams.
W illie, like Katie Beckett, has in
d o m itab le parents who simply
would no, give up. U nlike K atie’s
parents, Willie's are extremely poor.
M exican-Americans, their children
all born in the United States, they
do not even speak English. But they
have mastered the intricacies o f the
medical equipment that keeps their
quadriplegic child breathing. They
found a house big enough for the
complicated machinery to fit beside
his bed, along with the electric type
writer he has learned to use with a
m outh stick, and the special tele
phone he also can operate entirely
by m o u th , answering strong and
cheerfully, “ Hello! I ’m W illie ___ ”
“ T h at marvelous fa m ily has
learned to take care o f W illie by
sheer dint o f lo v e ,” said M a ria
Nasjleti, a Stanford Hospital social
worker who toiled for months to get
him home.
U n fo rtu n a te ly , at Santa C lara
Valley Medical Center, where Willie
astonished the staff by his alertness
in re-learning to speak and to use
the telephone and typ ew riter, D r.
C onal W ilm o t, m edical d ire cto r,
said there are a number o f children
whose cases parallel W illie ’s. Even
more numerous are disabled adults.
"Eight per cent o f our rehabilita
tion beds are tied up with patients
who can’, go away because, though
we have completed work with them,
there arc no other alternate facilities
for their c a re ,” said D r. W ilm o t.
Most move to another hospital. W il
lie wen, back to Stanford Hospital
and would be there still if teamwork
by his parents and S tanford’s staff
hadn’t gotten him home.
“ One case at a tim e , we try to
work out in dividual solutions for
care," said D r. W ilm o t. “ But it is
staggeringly complicated. The legal
structure militates against care any
where but at the most expensive lev
el. No, all could go home, but they
could go to nursing homes— if such
were available.”
Said Leonard Krauss, o f C alifo r
n ia ’s C h ild re n ’s H e a lth Services:
“ We have many cases in which fam
ilies get no help at all for a handi
capped m ember u n til they have
spent down every penny saved,
some even selling their homes. Then
they become eligible for Medicaid—
and w elfare fo r themselves. This
situation is growing worse.”
In the case o f K atie Beckett,
President Reagan waived this in
come b arrier. H er parents had
enough earnings to bar them from
Medicaid at home, but not when the
child was hospitalized.
In sheer numbers, adults are more
affected by the inconsistencies in
medical programs than arc children.
W hile “ in-hom e health services”
programs have grown in recent
years, they often lack coordination
with other programs, have inade
quate supervision and lead to abuses
when patients choose their own "in-
home aide. The current funding
cuts may exacerbate those p ro b
lems.
I here is terrible fragmentation
in health care programs and once
people get in s titu tio n a lize d , they
fear they will fall between the slots if
they make any change. So they cling
lo institutional care,” said Hadley
Hall o f San Francisso Home Health
Service. “ The institutions in turn
get dependent on the money. I gel
terribly angry because the money
isn’ t being spent wisely and it
doesn’t encourage independence.”
Some health professionals, like
Robert Erickson, Kaiser Founda-
lion Hospital director in O akland,
f a lif., hold out hope that the c li
mate o f fru g a lity in W ashington
may accomplish greater coordina
tion in health programs.
There are some very conserva
tive lawmakers who see the sense in
home care,” he said. “ Tight bud
gets may bring much-needed re
form . This would save m ore than
money: personal dignity for the pa
lient, happiness and a more whole
some community.”
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