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Volume XVI, Number 52
November 5 1986
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The New War on Drugs—Does It Ignore
the Black Situation?
by Eldridge Lewis
O ffice r Jerry Ja ckson sh ow s th e plaque he received fo r o u tstan din g
service and personal c o m m itm e n t to neigh bo rho od safety to his
w ife M ary and son Ja kh a ry
Photo by Richard J B ro w n
Officer
Honored by
Crime Group
By Jerry Garner
Officer Harry Jackson, a six year veteran of the Portland Police Bureau,
was honored last Wednesday at City Hall by the Northeast Neighborhoods
Against Crime for outstanding service and personal commitment to neigh
borhood safety, Jackson was presented a plaque by Sharon McCormick,
program Coordinator of Northeast Neighborhoods Against Crime Besides
Jackson, nine other officers were honored as part of Police Recognition
Week
Officer Jackson was asked how it felt to be recognized by citizens in the
community in which he works He replied, "I consider it an honor to re
ceive the award, not only for myself, but for the department What it sym
bolizes between the community and the Bureau is something positive in
that the communication that is being developed is not durhig a period of
crisis such as the T shirt, oppossum, and Stevenson incidents
Jackson was reared in Northeast Portland and attended Eliot and Benson
schools After attending one term at Portland State University, Jackson
joined the Air Force, serving as a flight crew member aboard a C-130 air
craft. After receiving an honorable discharge from the service, he became
interested in law enforcement
"M v younger brother was a security guard at the old McDonalds restau
rant on the corner of Union Ave and Fremont I used to hang around the
place During this period, I met several Portland police officers and decided
to get into law enforcement.' ’
So Jackson got a job as a security officer at Fred Meyers at the same
time he was working security at McDonalds and Safeway while holding
down a full time job w ith United Parcel Service and attending college
After getting enough education requirements, Jackson was hired by the
State Police in 1976 and was assigned to Klamath Falls Jackson said Kla
math Falls was okay, but he wanted to work closer to Portland. "However,
after being there for a period of time, it became obvious to me that I would
not be assigned to the Portland area under that administration ”
This, plus the fact that his wife was living in Portland, convinced Jackson
to quit his job with the State Police Jackson returned to Portland and took
a job with the Port of Portland police at the airport
When talking to Jackson, one can see that he is dedicated to the commu
nity and his job "I enjoy working in the neighborhood where I grew up
and have ties (family and churchl. The things I see happening in the
community that are negative, I feel my working in the area can have a post
live impact "
Jackson said he is concerned about young people who are involved in
crime and drugs, who are taking short cuts with their education
His past involvement in the community and dedication to his job have
resulted in Jackson receiving other awards in the past Besides receiving
the award by the Northeast Neighborhoods Against Crime, Jackson has
been awarded the Dennis Darden Memorial Award and The Eagle Civic
Award
The Darden Award is presented annually by the Optimist Club of Lloyd
Center to a police officer who has displayed outstanding personal integrity,
character, and citizenship The Eagle Civic Award was presented to Jack
son in March of this year for his dedication and professionalism
Officer Jackson and his wife, Mary, have been married for 17 years
They have one son, Jakhari, age 3 'A .
Drugs in Sports—
A Deadly Game
Len Bias, a Maryland All American basketball player seemed to have it
all success, happiness, money and the prospect of an All Star career with
the World Champion Boston Celtics of the NBA. At the NBA draft. Bias
was on top of the World when the Celtics announced him as their first
round draft choice, making his dream come true.
But the dream of a life time turned into a horrible tragedy when Bias was
found dead from an overdose of cocaine, less than two days after his big
gest moment of glory. "It's the cruelest thing I've ever heard," said Larry
Bird, the Celtics All star forward.
Shock and dismay were felt throughout the sports world as mvestiga
tions were ordered into Bias' tragic death. Even today, almost two months
later, those investigations continue Brian Tribble, who was charged in
connection with Bias' cocaine intoxication death, has recently been linked
to a gun slaying, as the tragedy continues to make the news
Unfortunately, the cruel cocaine death of Bias was followed only eight
days later by yet another Don Rogers, a starting free safety for the NFL
Cleveland Browns and the 1984 AFC Rookie of the Year, was found "u n
conscious and unresponsive" on the day before his wedding A few hours
The harsh irony of Reagan's new war on drugs is that those black com
munities most in need of help, the ghettos and regions of poverty. may
ultimately be the most neglected
From Harlem to Watts, life in the streets is cheek by jowl with drugs
the buying, the selling, and getting high for a good time
It is often not
possible to walk more than a few blocks in some areas before someone
mumbles an offer to deal as you pass Everything from marijuana and co
caine to heroin is more than available for the right price And efforts of
law enforcement officers have never dried up supplies for longer than a
brief pause in the multi billion dollar business of temporaiy escape, misery
and sometimes death
A key stratagem of the government s new campaign will be drug testing
on the job, already a common practice within a larger number of Fortune
600 companies and something Reagan appears to have taken from big bust
ness The problem is that those black communities where flesh strategies
are most needed are the ones most ravaged with unemployment Today,
close to half of the 8 8 million working age black men lack )obs. says a
report from tfie Center for the Study of Social Policy
"They aie either
unemployed, out of the labor force, in correction facilities or unaccounted
fo r."
Out of work, and often with precious few prospects for any kind of |ob
without leaving their homes, young black males frequently turn to the
hustle of the street economy to make ends meet, peddling drugs, mugging
the few passers by and even "cattle rustling" stealing meat from a gro
eery store While blacks form 12 1 percent of the population, 46 percent of
the occupants of state and federal prisons are black This statistic high
lights the prevalence of a crime oriented lifestyle in some black commu
nities
Falling prey to drugs is all too easy when life on the street is rarely
planned beyond tomorrow and where hope foi change lies in the dream of
the big score And in this environment, the threat of drug testing on the
job becomes a ludicrous joke What job?
If there is any part of tfie stepped up campaign that offers some hope
for success in ghetto areas, it will be the expanded drug education pro
grams But again, the black communities most in need may be the ones
least influenced by such programs
The point is to convince people that
drugs like cocaine are harm ful." says Robert Stutman, special agent in
chaige of the Drug Enforcement Administration's New York field division
"It's more a question of frightening people than giving medical facts "
Yet in ghettos, where drugs are part of the fabric of street life, where
illegal drugs are seen day in and day out, such scare tactics have in the past
proved virtually meaningless John D ull, co author of the book The Truth
About Drugs" who has lecturud or drag misuse in schools and colleges
across the country as part of the ‘ Drug Ed" program, says diug education
has drastically missed the mark Not only is the information inadequate,
but scare tactics tended to discredit the programs
Books were written
with the most horrifying of facts,” he says "They told gruesome tales o,
someone getting caught in drugs' evil grip
Duff says they have impact at first But then as kids meet drug users
and see that they are not all drug crazed and degenerate the drug educa
tion becomes suspect Kids start to think that tfie drug education has lied
"The main sources of drug data for all the kids, namely the schools, have
lost all credibility," says Duff
Duff suggests that a more effective approach lies in factual examination
of "a better way than drugs ” Perhaps the biggest mistake is to look upon
drug education as divorced from general educational goals
As Jesse Jackson said recently "The call to our children to prepare
themselves to go through the doors that are now opening is critical
We
Cannot reach maturity if we watch five hours of TV at night and chooso
entertainment over education, or if we put cocaine in our membranes and
our bodies are too weak and our minds too destroyed to make a contribu
tion.”
"The function of education
is to teach one to think intensively and
to think critically," said the late Martin Luther King, Jr
The most danger
ous criminal may be the man gifted with reason, but with no morals
We must remember that intelligence is not enough
Intelligence plus
character this is the goal of true education ."
Such words of wisdom provide a key to how more effective drug educa
tion programs must be developed, ones which have a reasonable chance
of curtailing drugs in the ghettos and elsewhere throughout society
The real battle against drugs, certainly in the ghettos, is not so much a
campaign against drugs but a fight toward a better life Only when we
begin to see the situation in this light will educational programs reach of
fectively into the ghettos and even into middle class black communities
as well
later he was dead from the abuse of cocaine A day later, his distraught
mother suffered a stress induced heart attack and was hospitalized in
critical condition. A time for family celebration had suddenly turned into
a time for mourning and grief
Short of outright killing, drug abuse has also ruined athletes' lives and
careers Michael Ray Richardson is out of basketball because of his drug
abuse Steve Howe couldn't even make it with a minor league baseball
team because of his drug problems. Even whole teams, like the NFL New
England Patriots, have been devastated by the abuse o, drugs
Any way you look at it, drugs are a serious and deadly problem in sports,
not to mention their proliferation throughout our society
It's brutally evident that something needs to be done, but that creates a
whole new set of problems starting with the question "W hat Works?"
Let's Go To The Zoo
N o v /D e c .: Family and Youth Programs, Washington Park Zoo. Zoo
experience for kids and their parents, endangered species tag class, career
exploration for high school and college age students. Call the Zoo's educa
tion division for information, 226 1561.
Nov. 18: Wildlife Lecture Series: Endangered Species at Front Royal, pre
sented by Dr, Chris Wemmer. 7:30 p.m., Miller Hall at the World Forestry
Center. Front Royal, the National Zoo's huge breeding center in rural Vir
ginia, is the home and last hope for a number of species on the brink of
extinction Dr. Wemmer, curator, will provide an overview of the strategies
zoos are using to save these species Sponsored by the Friends of the
Washington Park Zoo Admission at the door, $3 adults, $2 seniors
Dec. 30: Children's Holiday Free Day. Washington Park Zoo
sion for children 11 and under
11 a m. and 3 p.m.
i
«.■- •
t
Free admis
Special activities and clowns between
Teens Banding
Together to
Say No to
Drugs
American teen agers have been the most drug pervaded youth n tt •
world A recent survey of some 40,000 youngsters revealed tti.it ove, run in
10 seniors and one in 13 |umors use cocaine occasionally to daily, one in
20 seniors uses marijuana daily
Despite these alarming statistics, tens of thousands of young people are
banding together to fight drug use in what is described as a major national
movement.
By participating in anti drug rallies, conferences and forming national
organizations with names like Just Say No, World Youth Against D rug
Abuse and College Challenge, along with a host of state organizations
teen agers are taking positive steps to rid their lives of drugs The fust
bylaw of most of these groups is no illegal drug use and no alcohol until
you reach the legal drinking age
Those involved in the teen movement say their role is to counter tfie
enormous pressure faced by teens to take drugs, to act as a support system
and to teach their peers how to say no As Rick Lautman, 23, head of Teen
Connection in Mississippi, said, Parents don't begin to fathom what peer
pressure is. Today you find kids who get wasted on alcohol, pot and speed
Ninety percent will say, 'I really didn't want to, but I was afraid everyone
would call me a w im p.’"
The leaders of the teen age anti drug groups are anything but nerds or
wimps They are, in the main, popular youngsters, respected by their class
mates
As 17 year old Billy Coletti, founder and president of Florida's
Informed Teens, said, "Even the druggies don’t resent me that much,
because I'm making a stand."
Many of the groups use a simple approach to combating tfie drug
scourge. "The best way to fight drug abuse is with the three E's Educate
Educate and Educate," said Lon Smith of PUSH (Prevention Using Student
Help)
Another successful approach is to provide activities that are drug and
alcohol free STOPP (Students to Offset Peer Pressure) in Hudson N H .
holds high school dances, which in turn serve as fund raisers for even m ore
events such as midnight cruises, mountain climbing, cookouts and
bowling
Each success seems to spawn additional teen groups Said Mary Cobbs
of Atlanta based PRIDE (Parent Resource Institute for Drug Education)
"The youth groups are multiplying faster than we can keep track of the m
Dr. Donald Ian MacDonald, Administrator of the Alcohol. Drug Abuse
and Mental Health Administration, feels the teen age anti drug movement
bodes well for the country. "Those kids who do learn to handle peer pres
sure and think for themselves may well be the strongest, most responsible,
finest youngsters that we have seen in this nation."