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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 25, 1983)
Reagan fires C.R. commissioners Bra Francea Schosn-Xeeapaper Leca University cf Ore<ot» Library P rw M m t Raagan K m Read theaa manstoaea of tha U.B. C o m m M o n on C M I Rights and roptaoed thorn with conaarvatlvaa Ramovad ware Mary Barry, former A m i . •oet. of Education; Blandino Cardonas Ramlraa. a T omm educator; RabW Murray Bahama» of Baltimore Special: Section II page 4 UJ Z 111 z I- Below Sect. II page 4 Voices Career Issue $ from the Street Labor STRUGGLE PORTLAND OBSERVER usrs waeao-m o M tu tu n t <» /or. /«w Volume XIII, Number 32 May 25, 1963 25C Per Copy Two Sections _______________________________________________________ Court rejects racism The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that racially discriminatory schools are not eligible for federal tax exemptions. The opinion, written by C hief Justice Warren Burger, said there was no question but that the Internal Revenue Service was right when, in 1970, it stopped granting tax-exempt status to school* that discriminate. Based on the "national policy to discourage racial discrimination in educalion" the IRS ruled (hat "a private school not having a racially nondiscriminatory policy as to students is not ’charitable’ within common law concepts." Bob Jones University justified its racial discrimination on religous grounds. " T h e free exercise of religion clause, as interpreted by the C o u rt," Burger wrote, "provides substantial protection for lawful conduct grounded in religious belief. However, not all burdens on religion are unconstitutional . . The state may justify a limitation on religious liberty by showing that it is essential to accomplish an overriding governmental inter*. O n this accasion the Court found greater governmental interests so compelling as to allow even regulation prohibiting religiously based conduct. Denial o f tax benefits will inevitably have a substantial impact on the operation o f private religious schools, but will not prevent the schools from observing their religious tenets." President Reagan tried last year to revoke the 1970 1 R S. policy because he said it had no basis in law. The Court decision was a blow to the administration, repudiating the administration’s legal position, and was voiced in unusually forceful language "G iven the stress and anguish o f the history of efforts to escape from the shackles o f the ’separate but equal' doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson it cannot be said Ihat educational institutions that, for whatever reasons, practice racial discrimination, are institutions exer cising beneficial and stabilizing influences in community life . . . ” W illiam T . Coleman, Jr., was appointed by the Court to argue against tax exemption. Rumors of CIA action persist IP art Z o f a series/ bv Robert Lothian Nearly 40 people picketed the Northeast Welfare Office on West Burnside WadnMday noon, protesting delays on welfare related bills before the Ways end Means Committee - two parent ADC and the medically needy program. The picket was sponsored by the Oregon Human Rights Coalition and was specifically directed at Rep. Vera K ati. (PhotoRichard J. Brown) South Africa retaliates ANC bombs S.A. military South African black* were report ed to be jubilant over the recent bombing by the African National Congres* o f a building that housed the South African A ir Force com mand. About half o f the 18 casual ties were civilian employees, among them eight black*. The bombing is seen a* a shift o f tactics from at tacks against property to guerrilla action that will cause the loss o f ci vilians. The heightened activity against (he government has been long await ed and the fact that some blacks, as well a* innocent white*, will be killed in the struggle is understood. The goal of the A N C is establish ment o f a democratic society for all South African* "regardless of race, color or creed.’’ The A N C was founded in 1912 " to defend Africans against repres sion." In early year* it tried to achieve its goal* through legal politi cal tactics. In 1949 it adopted civil disobedience tactics. Following the police murder o f 300 blacks during a demonstration in Sharpsville in I960, the group was banned and went underground. A plan o f sabo tage was begun. In 1964, Nelson Mandela, leader o f A N C , was arrested and sentenced to life in prison. He is still being held in maximum security. Since the 1970* sabotage against police and property have increased The recent bombing was the first that was not planned to avoid civi lian casualties. A ll act* o f sabotage are answered by South Africa with military raids into neighboring nations they charge with harboring A N C guerril las. South African jets attacked M o zambique M onday, three day* after the A N C bombing. This was the first acknowledged air raid against Mozambique although there have been numerous ground incursions. The South African attack squa dron leader called the M aputo air port tower to inform them a raid was imminent and ihat any attack against the jets would bring retalia tion. They opened fire with rockets and machine guns, causing heavy damage to a factory and several homes. The victims (6 dead and 40 wounded) included at least six chil dren. Although the South African government called it an attack on members o f the A N C hiding in M o zambique, all but one o f the victims were Mozambican citizens. South African defense minister Magnus Malan said, "T h e world and our enemies must see this only as an example o f our capabilities, and what we are prepared to do to protect our territorial integrity and avenge the letting o f innocent blood.” In addition to its frequent m ili tary aggression against M ozam bique, South Africa supports a African Liberation March scheduled for Saturday The annual A frican Liberation Day will be held on Saturday. M ay 28th. The march will begin at King Neighborhood Facility (N .E . 7th and W ygant) at 11:00 a.m . and procede to Irving Park (N .E . 7th and Fremont) where there will be speakers, entertainment and food. Come and celebrate the freedom won and the liberation yet to be gained. For inform ation call 284- 9352. counter-revolutionary group in M o zambique that carries out acts of sabotage in an effort to destabilize the government. Sleepy M cM in nville, Oregon and war-ravaged El Salvador would not seem to have much in common. But one o f the largest contract helicop ter firm s in the w orld ha* its head q uarters in M c M in n v ille , and a giant workhorse helicopter owned by the firm is in El Salvador now helping to repair war-damaged elec tric transmission lines. Evergreen H e lic o p te rs , Inc. landed a $2 .2 m illio n Agency fo r In te rn atio n al Developm ent ( A ID ) renewable contract late in 1981 to re p a ir pow er lines sabotaged by guerrillas. The contract would appear inno cent enough, yet (he W a ll Street Journal and other publications have on several occasions uncovered links between Evergreen and the C IA . W h ile there is no evidence o f Evergreen's involvem ent in covert activities in Central America at this time, the company did buy a C IA - backed airline. Intermountain Avia tion of Marana, A riz. in 1973. Inter m ountain had been one o f several airlines around the world, including A ir Asia and Southern A ir Trans port, which the C IA grouped under the title A ir Am erica, a commercial cover fo r covert o p eratio ns. T h e C IA sold in te rm o u n ta in to E v e r green when In te rm o u n ta in 's re la tion sh ip w ith the C I A became kn o w n . { W a ll S treet J o u rn a l, 2 /1 6 /7 9 ). The US Agency for International Development has long been associ ated with covert operations in world trouble spot*. Using A ID contracts and the com m ercial cover o f A ir America, for instance, the C IA was able to o rg an ize a secret arm y in Laos, som ething w hich the US governm ent w ou ld not otherw ise have been able to do. As a journalist who was flow n around SE Asia by A ir Am erica said, "S u re i t ’ s A ID , and you spell that C I A ." Under contract with A ID in 1974, Evergreen helicopters carried food, medical supplies and A ID o ffic ia l* into remote area* of drought-stricken and w ar-ravag ed E th io p ia . (Ore gonian 3 /3 0 /7 4 ) A n Evergreen subsidiary, E ve r green In te rn a tio n a l A irlin e s , also based in M c M in n v ille , has been known to work for the m ilitary on occasion. Tw o A ir Force contracts, one in 1976 and the other in 1981, totaled $14 million for air transport w ork. ( W all Street Journal} When the Shah o f Iran needed a D C -8 to take he and his retin u e from Panama to Egypt, Evergreen In te rn a tio n a l took the jo b , which again raised speculation ab o ut a C IA connection. I t ’ s not easy to research E v e r green because it is "closely held" by sole owner Del S m ith , and annual {Please turn to page 9 column I ) Voices from the street Grassroots News. N. W. — They w alk up and dow n the streets. Young men between the ages o f 16- 21 whose* faces show the serious ex pression of unemployment, political powerlessness and the invisible social status given to young men w ho have been abandoned by the educational system, forgotten by the statisticians and ignored by society. They make their presence known by hanging out dow ntow n in front of the Post O ffice or at the door of an arcade. W hat you are about to read are voices from the streets — how young men really feel. From both black and white — hear what they hear. See what they see. Feel what they feel. Lionel, 17, and Gregory, 21. are young black men disproportionately hit w ith every inequ ality Am erica has to o ffer. Although their voices are their own, they represent the in visible young male whose presence is hidden in the statistics, but can be seen hanging out, looking for some th in g . an yth ing , or engaged in an impulsive criminal act. T .J ., 16, and Jim m y, 17, are white youth whose presence down town is o f increasing concern to the police and local merchants. They, too, occupy the invisible arena o f a subculture no one except the police want to reckon with. These young men view the 1980’s the same way th eir g ran d p a re n t* viewed the 1930's. Gregory, the old est o f the males we interviewed, say* he has known better times. " I t was easier when C a rte r was in o ffic e . Now that Reagan is in, the times are really depressing. When you go look fo r a jo b they tell you there is a stack o f ap p lica tio n s this high. I d o n ’ t w ant to get o f f in to any trouble, but that is what it's boiling dow n to . R ight n ow , it's really tough for me.” A ll the youth we interviewed ex pressed a sheer unwillingness to ven ture o f f in to the reckless crim in a l behavior which adds to the burglary and vice in m etropolitan Portland. But at an increasing rate the eco n om ic, p o litic a l and social co n straints cause them to view th eir situ atio n s w ith a note of desperation. " Y o u might get des perate for money and you’ll want to take som eone’ s purse. You get to th in k in g about going in to someone’ s house and doing things you a re n ’ t used to doin g. W hen things were easier fo r me I d id n 't have to do things like that. But now, the time* got me wondering." D o w n to w n , a nameless w hite youth say* he and his friends help one another out w ith credit card* and by shacking-up. " W e do any thing we can like sell drugs, equip m ent or hock s tu ff. A ll we do is smoke our sm oke, d rin k our beer and live h a p p y ." A n o ther yo u th, who declined to say much o f an y th in g , calm ly to ld me, " W e live from day to d a y .” Lionel believes that members o f his peer group w ho do engage in a c tiv ity w hich tops the c h a rt* o f p etty c rim in a l b eh av io r do not understand w hat they are d oin g. " T h e ir m ind isn ’ t in a positive {Please turn to page 2 column I ) Jerry (Photo: Richard J. Brown)
