Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 13, 1982)
« ■ 8 / IMS yr r -~-4 •V Sugar Ray : Will he fight again? Page 11 Page 14 ÙI LU Help for teen-age prostitutes Election endorsements Pages 5 & 6 PORTLAND OBSERVER May 13, 1982 Volume XII, Number 31 25C Per Copy Two Sections USPS 959-680-855 War on crime becomes war on press Criticism o f the press, with racial overtones, was the reaction o f M a y o r F rank Ivancie and Police C hief Ron Still following a series of com m u nity meetings to sell their “ war on crime." Still reacted to journalist Linda W illia m s ' reporting of the N ortheast m eeting, held at King Neighborhood Facility Wednesday night. Although citizens present at the meeting verified the accuracy of M s. W illia m s ’ story, S till took exception with a personal attack on Ms. Williams and Ivancie supported his stand. I inda Williams sees the attack on her as an attack on the press that sets a dangerous precedent. "There is a fun d am en tal lack o f un d er standing o f or appreciation for the role o f the press m a free society. Their view seems to be that the press should only report on the officials' point o f view and the views o f the people they think are responsible. They seem to thin k the views o f others should not be presented." Criticism of Ms. Williams by the Police Bureau and the Ivancie A d m in istratio n is not new. Ivancie's criticisms "are rooted in his dislike o f the Oregonian that goes back for years. I believe I ’ve become a sym bol. I ’ve always thought 1 was sin gled out, that o f all the people who report on C ity H a ll, I ’ m the one singled o u t." Serious criticism o f Ms. Williams by the Police Bureau came last sum mer follo w in g a series by her and A lan O ta on alleged police abuse. The attack on the tw o reporters came in the R ap Sheet, the police un io n ’s newspaper. A m ong other things one o f the articles stated: " A n d L in d a d ear, if you d o n ’ t like cops, next time you need help why d o n ’ t you try calling A lan O ta ." This was considered by many to be an implied threat that police pro tection would be denied. Ms. Williams also described “ ru mor mongering.” One such rumor was that the young man who killed a taxi driver was her son. " T h is ru mor seemed to have come from the police," she explained. Ms. W illiam s considers the criti cism of her to be a symptom o f the hysteria that grasps Ivancie and Still LINDA WILLIAMS whenever their plans are challenged. "Portland is a town that is going through growing pains. T ra d itio n ally it’s been all white, pretty homo geneous. The people really believe it is America’s most livable city. W ith the school issues and the police COMMISSIONER C. JORDAN issue, the com m unity’ s perception o f itse lf is being challenged. The ’old guard' is uncom fortable and aH’ "itcd. " T h e reporting ot the Oregoman on police brutality issues— the idea that the Oregonian was paying at- MAYOR FRANK IVANCIE CHIEF RON STILL tention— was a turning point. It was singled out for attack because she is black and a woman. "There is some a sign that criticism o f the police is evidence that the administration has being taken seriously by people some problems with my race.” dow ntow n. They could no longer make excuses that if was o n ly 6 T ** T h e attack on M s. W ifitafns is concern to a narrow segment.” seen by many persons as an attack She also feels that she has been 'Please turn to page 5 cot. O School district, community call a truce CHARLOTTE BEEMAN The successful m ediation o f the c o n flict over the site o f T u b m an Middle School is seen as having the potential to im prove the re la tio n ship between the P o rtlan d School Board and the black c o m m u n ity . For many years, and particularly the last 12 years, the community has felt the brunt o f educational and politi cal decisions by the School District that generated anger and fru stra tion. The decision, fo llo w in g media tion between representation o f the community and o f the D istrict, fa cilitated by the U.S. Department o f Justice, places the middle school at the Elio t site— the site selected by the community and originally select ed by the Board. Following the re placement o f two Board members, the Board had changed its decisions. " T h is is really a victory for the com m unity," Ronnie Herndon, co- chairman o f the B U F told the Oh- server. " I t is a victory fo r all the people who came to the ra lly , the dem onstrations, responded to the boycott— but most of all for the chi- dren. " I t should be a good learning ex perience, dem onstrating that if we do stand up and fight for our chil dren there is e good deal we can ac complish; if we don’ t stand up we gain nothing. " T h e real credit goes to the par ents who rallied around their chil dren. They showed confidence in the suggestions we made. It was a lot to ask— to keep their children out o f school. " C r e d it should also go to the ministers and the other org an iza tio n s— P O IC , the Black Social Workers, the Northeast Coalition of N eigh b o rh o o ds— all those who stood firm on this issue." Herndon gave much credit for the successful resolution to Prophet. "Prophet did a superb job. I was ex tremely impressed w ith more than just his professional skills. I was im pressed with his integrity and sense o f fairness and justice. I think he will be able to do a lot for the Port land Public Schools if he is just giv en a chance.” The mediation process, Herndon added, allowed for an exchange o f views, ideas and philosophies over a long period o f time. "D o in g this in closed sessions, people did n ’t have to protect their images. It could not have taken place in pu b lic. Bob Hughes did an excellent jo b ." Herndon hopes for a more posi tive and constructive relationship between the School District and the community in the future. "This is a big step in reducing the wrongs o f the past. W e w ill stay close to the planning for Eliot and offer our as sistance in every way possible." Vesia Loving, a long-time fighter for Boise School, said, " I feel pretty good about it. 1 do feel that for the first time we will have some stabil ity. I f Eliot is moved to Boise with its staff and all, it should be a better program for Boise’s students. " I t will provide a good program in walking distance for the younger children and a middle school in the neighborhood. I can live with it.” School Board Chairman Bill Scott was very pleased with the mediation process. " W e had an opportunity to sit and ta lk about the issues. W e were able to better understand the depth o f feeling that each has and the convictions with which we hold our views. 1 think the process was valuable and the outcome will please the community." C h arlo tte Beeman, w ho was on the m ed iatio n com m ittee fo r the School D istrict, said the discussion and the public forums made it very (Please turn to Sect. I I Page 8) JOE RIEKE British-Argentine war endangers US-Latin American ties by Nelson Valdez Pacific News Service Secretary o f State Alexander Haig recently assured Congress that rela tions between the United States and Latin America did not face a critical ju n ctu re over the Falklands W ar. This may be wishful thinking. In fact, a c ritica l watershed in U .S .-L a tin American relations was crossed last A pril 30 whrn the Rea gan Administration decided to sup port the British in their conflict with Argentina over the Falklands. From now on, inter-American relations no longer will be the same. Never before in the history of re lations between the two regions has the United States found itself so iso lated from Latin America. Twenty members o f the 21-membcr O rgan ization o f A m erican States have now recognized the A rg en tin ian claim o f sovereignty. Washington alone casts its fate with Great B rit ain. The unanimous stance o f all the Latin American countries is a most unique situation. Conservative re gimes such as H a iti have voted in the same manner as revolutionary Nicaragua, while independent Mexi co sides w ith an A m erican client state like El Salvador. Indeed, something extraordinary has been touched in all o f Latin A m erica: their sense o f regional pride and identity. The reaction goes far beyond territorial or political defini tions to the very deeply ingrained cultural definition o f what it means to be a Latin Am erican. The long submerged but always volatile en mity between the Hispanic and A n glo-Saxon cultures has been brought to the fore once again, and Latin America may now define itself as a cultural whole rather than a motley collection o f independent and often hostile slates. Some fundamental practical con sequences are apt to evolve from this cultural and regional unity. The O A S , for instance, may become a very different kind o f forum. In the future, the United States will find it extremely difficult to preach convin cingly to fellow O A S members on the need for a collective security sys tem that can defend the entire hemi sphere against foreign aggression by e xtra -c o n tin e n ta l powers. Over time, it has become a ritual for Am erican presidents to pay lip service to this concept. The Soviet Union and Cuba often were denounced be cause they supposedly presented a clear threat to the area. Needless to say, the U .S . government posed it self as the u ltim a te defender o f Latin Am erica, a position that can be traced all the way back to the 1823 M o n ro e D octrine. But now, Latin America feels betrayed by the United States. In the eyes o f Latin America, the American government has failed to live up to those im portant declara tions o f principle. For Latins, the assumed community o f interests be tween the U nited States and Latin A m erica has been shown to be a very expensive farce. W hen the chips are down, W ashington cares more for Europe than Latin Ameri ca. The Latinos are at best merely junior partners, not equals, on the global stage. U nder such circumstances, it is n atu ra l to question w hether the O A S can continue functioning as before After all, the member states are supposed to help one another in cases such as this one. Latin Ameri can intellectuals, as well as political figures, are already posing the ques tion and even suggesting that the U n ite d States should be expelled from the O A S. Although this is not a new dem and, it may have much greater support now. But even if U .S . expulsion were not to take place, the conditions for inter-American relations have been rad ically altered. It is d o u b tfu l whether the Reagan Administration w ill be able to continue to use its cold war arguments o f m utual se curity needs to ju s tify its own foreign policy. I f it did so, it would have a hollow sound. The American alliance with Britain appears to Lat ins to mean that the United States is not truly com m itted to defense o f the hemisphere except when it is threatened by communism. In that sense, what appeared to be a defense o f principle was merely a rationaliz ation for anti-communism. In a d d itio n , ideological b o u n daries in the hemisphere may be more d iffic u lt to define in the fu ture. Those accused until recently of wanting to harm Argentina are giv ing aid, while the traditional ally re fuses to do so. Already, Cuba has offered all the assistance Argentina may need if the rest o f Latin America approves. One possible result fro m all o f this may be a closer collaboration between Latin America and the So viet bloc. This may express itself in a d rift tow ard non -alig n m ent and neu tralism , or in an increase in Latin commercial ties with the Fast. A move tow ard non-alignm ent w ould have to be a concerted re gional e ffo rt to succeed, and for that to happen countries such as Mexico, Brazil and perhaps Venezu ela would have to take the lead. But the most fundamental breach (Please turn to Sect. I I page 8/
