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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 21, 1984)
K rs Francea Se je n - ' e • ¿paper U n iv e r s ity o f c.-etran 'r a r y cumene, Ur - *on Press role questioned Wildcats will howl! Below Page 6 oca PORTLAND OBSERMER ™ C CMS * M * 4 | O r . M /« * Feds order Hopsing 'minority' decertification The Oregon Department o f Trans p o rta tio n was n o tifie d this week th at it w ill lose cred it against its m in o rity business en terp ris e re q u ire m e n ts fo r w o rk done by H o p sin g C o n tru c tio n C o m p a n y . T h e S u rfa c e T ra n s p o rta tio n A c t, which allots federal funds for high way construction, has a ten percent m inority business enterprise require ment. O D O T was also advised to decer tify Hopsing as a M ino rity Business Enterprise/Disadvantaged Business Enterprise immediately. T h e state was am p ly w arned o f Hopsing's questionable status when other governm ental bodies refused to c e rtify or recertify H opsing. In Ja n u a ry o f 1981 and Ja n u a ry o f 1984, the W ashington Departm ent o f T ra n s p o rta tio n denied c e r tific a tio n ; in August o f 1983, T r i- M e t denied re c e rtific a tio n ; in O c tober 9 , 1983, the C ity o f Portland denied re c e rtific a tio n , statin g to Christopher Scarrott, the m inority c o -o w n er, " Y o u r m anagem ent o f the co m p an y does not go beyond pro-form a ownership.” Hopsing was investigated during October o f 1983 by the C ivil Rights O ffic e o f the Federal Highw ay A d m in is tra tio n , at the request o f m in o rity business people, and it recom m ended th a t H o p sing be decertified because it did not meet the federal c rite ria as a m in o rity - owned and -controlled business en terprise. The Regional Ad m in is tra to r recom m ended d e c e r tification to the State. O D O T responded w ith its own investigation an d , using substan tially the same info rm ation gained by the federal d ep artm en t, d e te r m ined th at H o p sin g should be recertified. Here the waters were muddied as Deputy H ighw ay A d m in istrato r in the Po rtlan d o ffic e , Louis N . M c D o n a ld , recom m ended to the Region that it override its own civil rights office's recommendation and conclude that O D O T 's actions to re c e rtify was " re a s o n a b le and proper.” Subsequent to this decision, the U.S. Department o f Transportation conducted an investig ation at the request o f the L a b o r -M in o r ity Business C o a litio n and found that "H opsing Construction Com pany, a fte r being in o p eratio n fo r eight years, is not fin a n c ia lly and m a n a g e ria lly independent o f its n o n -m in o rity ow ner. R .N H a tc h , nor the m ajority construction com pan y, R .A . H a t c h .” T h e in vestigation found that R .A . Hatch's " a c tio n s fa r exceed the D e p a rt m e n t’ s policy to encourage prim e contractors to assist M B E ’s /D B E 's in the areas o f bonding, insurance, loans, etc., during the initial years in operation.” This decision upholds the recom m endation o f the local civil rights office. The question that remains to be asked is: W hy did M c D o n a ld override the recommendation o f his c iv il rights o ffic e r? W h y did the Region accept M cD on ald 's recom m endation? This question is even m ore sig n ifican t now that the S ecretary o f T ra n s p o rta tio n has determined that the civil rights o f ficer was right. W hat is the role o f the civil rights o ffic e ? W h o is the re g u la to r and monitor over the state if it is not the civil rights office? I f the c iv il rig hts o ffic e ’ s judgem ent had been accepted and the state had been forced to decer tify Hopsing last October, all the in ju re d parties w ou ld have been in better position now. Department o f Transportation po licies state that when a recip ient (O D O T ) has certified an M B E and the c e rtific atio n is overturned, the recipient may not count (he dollar am ount o f the w ork perform ed by the d e c e rtifie d M B E to w a rd its overall goal." T h e State must now give up approxim ately $500,000 credit to w ard its M B E /D B E goal fo r this fiscal year (T h e $8 m illio n paid to Hopsing during the 1982-83 fiscal year will not be removed). Although O D O T should have no p roblem replacing the $ 5 0 0 ,0 0 0 , had this situ a tio n lingered it could have caused serious problems: fo r, if the State cannot maintain its 10 percent requirem ent, it could be in danger o f losing fe d e ra l funds or facing repayment. T h e a f f a ir also harm s the credibility o f the Federal Highway Adm inistration which has begun to move more effectively after years of inactivity when it comes to protect- ting m inority rights. T h e o v e rrid in g b en efit o f the d ece rtificatio n , however, is that it w ill serve notice to m a jo rity con tra cto rs th at th eir m in o rity requ irem en ts must be met w ith legitimate minority firms. H o p sin g C o n s tru c tio n was established in 1975 by Suzanne C. (Please turn to page 6, column i f Jesse Jackson gains voter support by Chuck Goodmacher Spring has sprung at laatl Goldie A. Irby and his mother Lamodla A. Irby taka time out to enjoy the sunshine. (Photo: Richard J. Brown) Support fo r the R ainbow C o a li tion presidential campaign o f Jesse Jackson skyrocketed d u rin g the last w eek as Jackson w on the South C a ro lin a and M ississipi prim aries, nearly won in Kentucky and received a very strong tw enty percent o f the vote in Illinois. A lth o u g h m a jo r m e d ia outlets and the o th e r tw o candidates still c h a ra c te rize the fig h t fo r the Dem ocratic nom ination as " a two- man race", Jackson's voter support Minority capital legislation filed Congressman Charles Rangel, D - New Y o rk , ranking member o f the House W ays and M eans C o m m it tee, the co m m ittee responsible fo r introducing all tax legislation, along with Congressman Parren M itch ell, D -M a r y la n d , C h a irm a n o f the House o f R epresen tatives Sm all Business C o m m itte e , have in troduced the single largest m inority ca p ita l b ill ever introd u ced to the Congress, The M in o rity Investment Tax Act o f 1984" ( M IN T A ) . " M I N T A ” w ill a ttra c t e q u ity c a p ita l fro m b ro ad sectors o f A m e ric a n businesses and in d iv id u a ls fo r investm ents in to m in o rity owned businesses. It is a p riva te en terprise in itia tiv e which w ill not require government budget line a p p ro p ria tio n s and as such should get broad support from the Senate and H ouse o f Represen tatives. " M I N T A ” will allow non-recog n itio n o f c a p ita l gains fro m sales o f capital assets if the proceeds are reinvested into m in o rity owned com panies th ro u g h a designated "m in o rity investment fu n d ". T h is leg islative in itia tiv e by Rangel and M itchell is hailed as the single most im p o rta n t m in o rity legislation ever introduced into the Congress o f the U n ite d States o f America. appears to be on the rise. Jackson's solid th ird place finish in Illin o is T u e sd ay , the firs t p rim a ry in a major industrial state, is expected to be followed by strong finishes in up com ing p rim a rie s in New Y o rk (A p r il 3) and Pennsylvania (A p r il 10), according to campaign staffer Arnold Pinkney. An estimated seventy-five percent o f the Black vote in Illinois went for Jackson, w ith the rem ainder split between H a rt and M o nd ale. " T h e Black v o te ,” said Jackson e a rly W ed nesd ay, " is the heart o f the Rainbow C o alitio n , but we will not stop until we embrace all the people o f this nation.” S p eaking alongside C h icag o M ayor Harold Washington, Sunday, Jackson criticized W alter M ondale fo r saying the race is a contest be tween himself and Colorado Senator G ary H a rt. “ M r. M o n d ale has said this is a tw o-m an ra ce ,” Jackson said, ac cording to Associated Press reports. " I ’m a man, and I ’ m running. So, if he (M o n d ale) is going to drop out, he ought to be m ore direct ab o ut it." M a y o r W a sh in g to n com pared Jackson’s campaign to his own elec to ra l experience last year, saying, " W e set this c o u n try on fire . W e also und erstan d th at some things have to be done and some mes- ages have to be s e n t," added Washington. “ What is the message? Rebirth and reform o f this country and the Democratic party. T h e unio n vote in Illin o is was even closer than the vote for the en tire pop u latio n. Despite the A F L - C IO endorsem ent o f M o n d a le , he received only thirty-nine percent of organized labor's vote, according to a C B S exit p o ll. T h e same poll showed Jackson and H a rt w ith roughly the same support: tw enty- six percent for Jackson and twenty- eight percent for H art. Support o f Jackson among non- Black m inority groups also appears to be on the rise. Before the strong Jackson showing o f the last week, he led other contestors in a survey of P u erto R ican voters. T h irty -tw o percent said they w ou ld vote fo r Jackson w hile o nly ab o u t tw enty percent indicated support for M o n dale, according to the survey con ducted by the In stitu te for Puerto Rican Policy o f Washington, D .C . The CBS Tuesday evening news delegate count showed a strong lead for Mondale with 542 delegates; 342 fo r H a rt and 72 delegates fo r Jackson. T h re e hundred and tw o remain uncommitted. Fisher resigns G lo ria F is h e r, w ho has been M an ag ing E d ito r o f the P o rtla n d O bserver since 1976, has resigned effective March 31st. Ms. Fisher has been w ith the Observer since 1971, shortly after its establishment in O c tober o f 1970. A lfre d L. Henderson, publisher, announced that A l W illiam s will be G en eral M an ag er and w ill share m anagem ent responsibilities w ith Gary Ann Garnett. M s . Fisher plans to leave for Nicaragua, where she will do research and pursue a career as an in dependent journalist. That nation is in the process o f holding elections, in s titu tio n a liz in g its governm ent and developing a new constitution. American press plays role in domestic and foreign repression " T h e A m e ric a n press does not re fle ct the A m e ric a n m in d — it reflects the views o f established power which in turn seeks to mold the A m e ric a n m in d to accept its p reju d ice s. T h e A m e ric a n press seeks to shape p u b lic o p in io n , or even replace p u b lic o p in io n by fo sterin g and presen ting a u n an im ity o f views w hich it then o f fers as public o p in io n . . . " James A ro n s o n , a c o -fo u n d e r o f the N a tio n a l G u a rd ia n w ro te in his b o o k , " T h e Press and the C o ld W a r” . The Am erican press serves up the same diet to readers in all parts o f the n ation — urban and ru ra l. They are o ffe re d the same c o lu m n s — James Reston, Joseph A lsop, W il liam F. Buckly— the same w ire ser vice news, com ics, ca rto o n s, p u z zles, etc. " I t follow s they w ill tend to think alike and their thinking will be encouraged to su p po rt the " n a tio n a l interest” . T h e national interest is interpreted fo r them by the managers o f the syndicate and the ow ners o f the new spapers, businessm en w ho id e n tify th e m selves, because o f th e ir c o n g lo m erate fin a n c ia l concerns w ith national policies (hat protect these concerns.. . " Analysis In a d d itio n to A ro n s o n ’ s re v e l a tio n o f the ro le o f the press in c re a tin g and fo s te rin g a n ti-c o m m u n ism and its s u p p o rt o f m ilita ris m , the role o f the press in crea tin g and p e rp e tu a tin g racism has been c le a rly revealed by numerous Black authors. In the Newhouse papers o f March 18th, there appeared an extensive a rtic le on the R eagan ad m in is tra tio n ’ s response to " lo w in te n s ity w a rfa re ” . T h is a rtic le , su b -h e a d lin e d , “ U .S . fo u n d u n prepared for conflict” , outlined the Reagan adm inistration’s plans to in te n s ify co vert w a r, in te llig e n c e g ath erin g at hom e and a b ro ad , p o litic a l assassin atio n, " d ir t y - tricks” , etc. Far fro m sounding the alarm to the A m e ric a n people th a t th eir g o vern m en t is p re p a rin g fo r p o litic a l repression at hom e and more far-reaching m ilitary interven tion abroad, the article prepares the scenario fo r the " n e e d ” fo r such operations. " A new form o f warfare— viewed by the Reagan a d m in is tra tio n as more immediately threatening than a nuclear h o lo cau st— is posing a severe new challenge to the security o f the United States at home and its interests abroad,” the article says. "C a lle d 'lo w -in ten sity’ w arfare, it encompasses c o n flic t ranging fro m te rro ris t bom bings and h ostage-taking to brush fire wars and lengthy insurgencies— all cases in w hich the U n ite d States is ill- prepared to respond. “ Experts expect the new form of w arfare w ill face the United States with a stark choice: Either adopt (he weapons o f lo w -in te n s ity c o n flic t (in c lu d in g m ore in telligence g ath erin g and covert m ilita ry ♦ o perations), or w ith d raw from the international arena into a ’ fortress A m erica'.” The Am erican people, the article im p lies , must accept U .S . a d ve n turism abroad—covert wars in Cen tra l A m e ric a and A f r ic a , use o f disinform ation, political assassina tio n , psychological w arfa re , sabo tage or leave the international scene and live, afraid, in isolation. These covert wars w ill be fought, fo r the most p a rt, in u n d e r developed th ird w o rld co u ntries where U .S . c o rp o ra tio n s have a stake in the resources. R obert H . K u p p e rm a n o f the G eo rg eto w n University Center for Strategic and International Studies is quoted " , . .th e U n ite d Slates must fig h t to m a in ta in its access to o il and mineral riches and its vital maritime shipping lanes." O ne a d m in is tra tio n spokesman quoted in the article said, “ We have taken an archaic view o f warfare. . .W e need to have a departm ent o f dirty tricks, to use disinformation. And we should sanction murder as a national policy— tightly controlled and not used very o fte n . T his is a situation o f w a r." The article emphasizes that the Pentagon is not yet prep ared fo r fighting this type of warfare. " T o shift U .S . perceptions and strategies toward (his new reality is vital, many experts say,” the article reports, and this is the role o f the press. Surveillance at home " U . S . faces th reat at hom e” , a s u b -title says. Y o nah A le x a n d e r, (Please turn to page 2. column 4f
