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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 28, 1985)
Page 2, Portland Observer, August 28, 1988 EDITORIAL/OPINION ' Reagan and apartheid: rhetoric vs. reality ' A lon* ‘ he C o lor L me by Dr. M anning M arable Pari Two of a Two-Part Senes Reagan anti-affirmative action movement finding participants by Jerry Garner Last week I reported that the Reagan Adm inis tration is considering rescinding Executive Order 11246. This order was signed in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson to require employers who do business w ith the federal government to make positive affirm ative action efforts to hire women. Blacks, Hispanics and members o f other minority groups in representative numbers. Executive O r der 11246 has been a vital weapon in the battle against discrimination in employment. Since the Reagan A dm inistration's inception, it has been trying to dismantle this nation’ s civil rights laws and, in the process, has created an in crease o f racial tension in this country. A n exam ple o f this can be seen in the drive by an organiza tion called the Associated General C ontractors o f America (AGC). A few days after the Adm inis tration announced its intention o f rescinding Ex ecutive O rder 11246, A G C announced they w ould lobby Congress to discontinue Section 105(f) o f the 1982 Surface transportation Assist ance A ct. Section 105(f) requires that at least 10 percent o f federal funds fo r highways and mass transit be expended with businesses owned by m i nority group members. The A G C has sent a new publication to every member o f Congress entitled, Slop Legislated Dis crimination: The Case Against Section 105(f) o f the 1982 Surface Transportation Assistance Act. The p u b lica tio n contends that Section 105(f) threatens the very existence o f small W hite spe cialty subcontractors in every region o f the coun try. The accusation made by the AG C is false, for the simple reason there are not that many minority contractors in this country. The few minority con tractors that do exist are often victims o f discrim ination, the very reason why Section 105(f) was passed in the firs, place. A G C and the Reagan A dm in istratio n is tryin g to convey the message that C iv il Rights and A ffirm a tiv e A ctio n P ro grams are d iscrim in a tin g against W hite males. Nothing could be further from the truth. M in o ri ties are still victims o f employment discrimination in the U nited States. A ffirm a tiv e A ctio n P ro grams are needed to insure , ha, m inorities are given the opportunity to compete for certain jobs in the labor market. I he Reagan A dm inistration and groups such as A G C is trying to move m inorities backward, by attempting to rescind the past A ffirm ative Ac tion Programs that help to prevent widespread employment discrimination. I f Executive Order 11246 and Section 105(f) o f the I9H2 Surface Transportation Assistance Ac, is rescinded, discrim ination in employment oppor tunities fo r m in o rity groups w ill result in many minority companies going out o f business or suf fering severe financial problems. EDITORIAL/COMMENTARY inside A n g o la . In J u ly , the House also voted to repeal the act by a vote o f 236-185. M any liberal Democrats were stampeded in to supporting the measure, fearful o f being called "p ro - Communist.” But as Senator Edward Kennedy observed, "th e constructive engagement p o lic y o f the Reagan a d m in is tra tio n has fa ile d and the a d m in istra tio n knows it — so they want to abandon the peaceful route o f negotiations and resort to a m ilita ry one.” The C ongressional repeal o f the C la rk A m endm ent sent a "g re e n lig h t" to Pretoria. The apartheid re gime understands that the overthrow o f the M arxist Angolan government and the suppression o f neighboring Namibia are crucial to its continued existence. Thus when Black workers inside South A fric a staged dem on stra tio n s th is J u ly , the regim e re ponded by a national state o f emer gency. A p a rth e id 's leaders are c o r rectly convinced that Reagan's verbal jibes are meaningless, and th a t the suppression o f human rights through out the region had the a d m in is tra tio n ’s continued blessings. The U .S. State D e p a rtm e nt has recently confirm ed this analysis. In a recent o fficia l study, the Reagan A d m inistration slated that the racial un rent inside South A fric a " is not a re volutionary or a prerevolutionary situation." Economic boycotts would " n o t stop foreign investm ents," ac cording to one State Department o f ficial quoted in the New York Times. “ People who want to invest always find a way to do it." And as for the re cent uprisings o f Blacks, the real posi tion o f the State Department is one o f contem pt: "S h a rp e v ille blew over, Soweto blew over, and even though this is worse, there’ s nowhere it can really g o ." The Reagan A d m in is tra tio n has been more successful in r even I months in undermining anti-apartheid forces in southern A fric a through different techniques. The key to the strategy is the separation o f South A fric a ’s cur rent unrest from the political dynam ics o f the region’s neighboring states. The rhetorical condemnation o f Pre toria is followed by political and m ili tary aid to South A frica's allies. The best example is that o f Angola. In early June. Lewis E. Lehrm an, a m illio n n a ire R epublican, caucused with South African-supported terror ists in southern Angola, led by Jonas S a vim b i. T e c h n ic a lly , the meeting was set to in itia tite a "D e m o c ra tic In te rn a tio n a l" o f anti-Soviet groups. Representatives fro m Laos, A fghan istan, and Nicaragua were in attend ance to sign the so-called " p a c t . ” Lehrm an claimed he was not a per sonal spokesman fo r President Rea gan — how ever, he stated th a t the new alliance was " a n expression o f the President’s sentim ents." A ll par ties vowed to “ cooperate to liberate out nations fro m Soviet im p e ria l ism ." Reagan has also stated o f Sav- im b i's gro u p : " T h e ir goals arc our goals." The significance o f Lehrm an’ s lit tle excursion was not lost in W ash ington and P re to ria . Lehrm an was n a rro w ly defeated in New Y o rk ’ s gubernatorial elections in 19X2, and it is an open secret that he plans to run for President, probably in 1992. His private o rganization, "C itize n s fo r A m e ric a ," has members in over 300 Congressional districts. One week after Lehrman's visit, the Senate vo t ed to repeal the ( lark Amendment, a n in e -ye a r-o ld ban on arm ed aid to South A frica n -su p p o rte d terrorists B y John T re v e r The strategic co n sid era tio n s o f Pretoria and W ashington are based on the erroneous assum ption that protests against a p a rth e id can be "m a n a g e d " or "m a n ip u la te d ." But th ro u g h o u t the summ er inside the U .S ., protests and rallies against South A frica have continued. In late July, over 2,000 delegates at the Na tio n a l U rban League's 75th annual conference demonstrated at the South A fric a n Embassy in W a sh in g to n , D C On July 24, demonstrators pick eted the Federal b u ild in g in Seattle, W ashington, demanding the end o f U.S. investments and loans to South A fric a . On A ugust 2 - 4, an a n ti apartheid regional conference was held idn C hicago, w ith C hicago m ayor H a ro ld W ashington and a leader o f the A N C . Even the A F L - C IO released a press statement attack ing South Africa's stale o f emergency as "th e most extreme violation o f all basic r ig h ts ." Organized la b o r has called fo r the use o f “ economic and d ip lo m a tic " pressures to halt racist violence within South Africa. The only hope fo r a peaceful solu tion in South A frica is the release o f Nelson M andela and a ll p o litic a l prisoners; the immediate negotiations between legitimate Black leaders and the w hite m in o rity regime w ith the stated goal o f the abolition o f apart heid; and the exteasion o f democratic rights to the nonwhite m ajority. Nei ther Reagan nor the leaders o f South A fric a are w illin g to accept these terms — and protests fro m A m e ri cans and Black South A fricans w ill continue to escalate until these condi tions arc met. Dr. Manning Marable teaches po litical sociology at Colgate University, Hamilton, New York. Healthwatch by Steven Bailey N . D. FDA testing procedures insufficient 1 Portland Observer ’•«» MW» • Th« M-rttom / IU S P S 9 » « D l • putrfnbed «vary ThurwWv by E«» Pubhahmg Cfxnpariy. Inc . 1463 N E Kilhnga worth fXagrx. 97211 Poti ( U S . B o. 1137 Portlenrt O wqoo 977OB Second fla w postage part i t Portland O m goo * •»•»•owai ) •a* • t » ll * ' Tha Portland O h w rtet w e i w ta N n h a d m 1970 MEMBER NMWAoen M to tie lio n ■ Founded ’U S Alfred l.. Henderson, Editor/Publisher At Williams, General .Manager 288 0033 N a tio n a l A d v e rtis in g R e p ra a a n ta tlv a A m a lg a m a te d Pub lisher«, In c N e w York ACETAMINOPHEN (Tylenol) P H E N AC E TIN which when experimented on humans have been proven as unsafe. A n o th e r im p o rta n t fa cto r which accounts fo r much e rro r is the fact that humans are often given numerous chemical substances which may inter act with each other. It is impossible to provide a matrix o f drug interactions in anim al studies w hich com pletely investigate the possible adverse re actions among different chemicals. Finally, one o f the single most im portant reasons that we continue to kill and injure thousands o f people with our "sa fe n e w " products is that like most regulatory agencies the F D A and N ational Institute o f Health are comprised mostly o f industry (phar maceutical), and research personnel who like "o ld dogs" are quite disinter ested in new approaches to drug devel opment and safety standards Phenacetin which is converted into acetam inophen (T yle n o l) thro u g h normal metabolism has a long history o f health concerns. In the early 70's, a group o f Oregon researchers sent findings to the FDA that showed mea surable levels o f phenacetin in patients’ serum w ho had not taken the drug fo r 3 - 4 months. The F D A returned the findings w ithout taking any sub stantive action on these dangers. I f the F D A were more w illin g to pull suspicious drugs out o f the market instead o f w a itin g to " p r o v e ” the dangers w ith human tragedy we un doubtedly w ould be a healthier and safer society. Iro n ic a lly most drug m anufacturers feel current regula tions are much too restrictive and that standards should be lowered. W hile the close association w ith T ylenol does not mean that Tylenol will cause cancer. Tylenol Is aLso not a benign substance. The PDR says that "acetam inophen in massive dosage may cause hepatic to xicity" (hepatic = live r). Massive in this case means around 20 O TC Tylenols, which has always seemed to me a relatively low level for possible lethal consequences. The best recom m endation I can make, is to lim it your intake o f medi cations My article on the importance o f fever reported recent research that holds the fever process as essential to complete resolve o f some illnesses (first reported in Science 84, Nov.) Many o f the symptoms that our drug indulgent society wish to elim inate are the re sults and byproducts o f an active and healths immune system When we present their completion through drug interference we may actually worsen our long-term health. Learn what your symptoms mean and what makes them worse or better, and change the habits that may co n trib u te to your health concerns, exercise and eat more whole grains, fib e r and green leafy vege tables. *, Mr Subecriptiona I I S 00 par yaa> m the Tn County area P o tt m aa ta t Sand addtaaa c hangat to the Portland O t a r r w r . P O Bot 3137, Portland Oregon 9720B A few weeks ago new research was released that resealed that phenacetin intake was highly correlated with an increased risk o f developing bladder cancer. This pain medication had, un til recently, been available as an over- the-counter (OTC) product, including its use in the product Darson. In the early 80’s, the Food and Drug Administration (FD A) placed this sub stance in a more restricted category, requiring a doctor's prescription, and tlx- Physician’s Desk Reference (PDR) warned that phenacetin “ i f taken in large doses for long periods in com bination with other analgesics, is asso ciated with severe kidney disease and with cancer o f the kid n e y." The most recent research shows cancer potential with as little as three doses per month fo r one year. As a product used fo r menstrual pains this is by no means a "large dose." W hy do we co ntinue to fin d so many " h o le s " in our drug testing processes? Last year’ s Senate revela tion that over 4,(XX) drugs were avail able in the U.S. which had not com plied w ith F D A safety standards re veals one o f the m a jo r holes. M ore relevant to the phenacetins, D.E.S.'s, acutanes, etc., is the basic tenent o f toxicity studies which assume that all test animals are sim ilar and equal to humans, who o f course are all alike. The LD 50 (lethal dose 50 percent) which involves drugging dogs, m on keys or other species w ith sufficient levels o f the test substance to k ill 50 percent o f the population proves only the toxicity levels relevant to that spe cies. W hile human cell cultures may eventually make the I D50 obsolete, the stubborn self-interest o f the re search community will Tight tooth and nails to preserve this practice o f “ hor ro r " which has shown far too many “ green lights o f safety" fo r products I I I PORTLAND OBSERVER 1 15 fot Ori* year >25 to* tw o y w s B o » 3137 Portland OR 97208 $ 5 o o 5 m < Q ?» O i o m Cri 3J ± *3* o 3 ùv * £ < z _ » s Apt STATE zip > a i cb X» *v- 'T*.Ï• f • « . k-V V ‘Jt -v ’ tí ■ n