'age 2,
pldnd Observer, March 25, 1987
Along the Color Line
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M ANAGEM ENT
"R aise the M in im u m W ag e'
W h e n a fu ll tim e w o rker earns less than $7,000 an
nually, it's alm ost im possible to pro vid e the essentials
for a decent life fo r o n e 's fam ily Yet since Reaganites
cam e to po w e r back in 1981, the federal m in im um
w age, set at $3 35 per ho ur, has rem ained th e same A t
th a t level, the five m illio n people earning m in im u m
w age or less earn at m ost $6,968 per year The federal
p o v e rty level for a fa m ily of fou r is cu rre n tly $10,989,
for a tw o person ho use ho ld, it is $6.998 Today s m ini
m u m wage rate w o u ld have to be increased to $4 61
per hour to m ake up for the d e terio ration in in fla tio n
since 1981
The good no w s on the p o litica l fro n t is th a t the Iran
C o ntra scandal has h u rt Reagan so severely that the
conservative a d m in is tra tio n m ay be forced to cap itulate
to D em ocratic P arty and AFL CIO dem ands to raise the
m in im u m wage S enator M a jo rity Leader Robert Byrd
p re dicte d late last m o n th tha t Congress w o u ld hike the
m in im u m w age rate
Litieral D em ocratic S enator Ted
K ennedy, head o f the S enate's Labor and H um an Re
sources C o m m itte e , a ccu rately states
The m in im um
w a ge is not a liv in g wage, and it is not a decent wage
in w h ich a fu ll tim e jo b m eans a life tim e o f poverty
D em ocratic R epresentative M ario Biaggi has proposed
legislation w h ic h w o u ld elevate the curre nt m in im u m
level of $5 05 by 1991, and index the rate to one half
the average h o u rly ea rnings level C urrently, the m ini
m u m w age is on ly 38 per cent o f the average ho urly
w age
O n the defensive, th e a d m in istra tion n o w lacks the
p o litica l m uscle to elim inate the dem ands for higher
m in im u m w ages. In previous years, Labor Secretary
W illia m Brock has deplored and ridiculed calls for hiking
th e m in im u m w a ge But at last m o n th 's AFL CIO w in
ter m ee ting in Florida. Brock insisted to rep orters that
th e a d m in is tra tio n tiad not m ade any decision ' regard
in g th e m in im u m w a ge
W e h a ve n 't even addressed
C hicago T ribune co lu m n ist S tep hen C hapm an re
ce n tly cha rge d th a t higher w ages fo r th e w o rk in g poor
w o u ld fo rc e th o u sa n d s o f businesses to "tra n s fe r their
o p era tions overseas to take ad van ta ge o f cheaper
la b o r", or to sim p ly " g o o u t o f business " C hapm an
insisted "R a ise the price o f oil, and pe op le use less of
it, raise the co st o f unskilled w o rkers, and com panies
w ill em ploy fe w e r o f the m Raising the m in im u m w age
helps w o rke rs w h o keep their jobs at the expense of
those w h o get laid o ff and those w h o are never hired,
because their value is less tha n the cost o f e m p lo yin g
th e m ." One recent stu d y by the Federal Reserve Bank
o f C hicago argues th a t a re d u ctio n in the h o urly m int
m um w age fo r teenagers w o u ld gre atly decrease yo u th
toblessness Bank e co n o m ists assert th a t a 25 percent
cut m w ages for yo u th w o u ld increase the num ber of
lo w (laying jo bs by as m u ch as 36 percent
These a rg u m e n ts and o th e r co n serva tive a p ologe tics
for low er w a ge s sim p ly d o n 't square w ith basic facts
It is true th a t high er labor cost can lead to higher prices,
and m any bosses ten d to reduce the num ber o f w o rke rs
in response to increased w age rates
H ow ever, low er
wages also c o n trib u te to increases in w e lfare rates,
street h u stlin g , p e tty crim e and drug tra ffic , because
people fre q u e n tly w ill resort to anti social activitie s if
that is the o n ly w ay in w h ich their ch ild re n are g o in g to
eat and survive If a w o rk in g m othe r w ith several chil
dren ca n n o t pro vid e for housing, day . are. foo d, elec
tric ity , m ed ica l bills, clo th in g , etc . fro m the m eagre
wages she receives at a dead end jo b, she 'd be foo lish
n o t to resort to w elfare Higher w ages give the w o rk in g
poor greater self respect
W h a t's the hidd en agenda o f the Reaganites w h o
it at the Cabinet level
R egrettably b u t p re d icta b ly, the ideologues of the
w a nt to cu t the wages o f yo u n g w orkers? Conserve
lives m ay be vicio us , but they a re n 't ig n o ra n t
By re
d u cin g w ages for teens, you ng ste rs w ill be given jobs
w h ich generally go to sem i skilled lo w w aged ad ults In
the strugg le to keep their jobs, ad ults w ill be fo rce d to
tig h te n their be lts and take w a ge cu ts as w ell
u ltra rig h t are a tte m p tin g to ho ld the line on w age in
creasos to th e w o rk in g poor
P rom inent conservative
jo urn alists and e co n o m ists alike m ost o , w h o m earn
salaries in excess o f $50,000 are p re te n d in g to advo
cate the interests o f p o o r folk and the unem ployed by
Let's fig h t for a decent living wage for .ill A m ini
m um w age o f $5 05 is not on ly ab solutely essential
we m ust also have m assive jo b tra in in g and public
w o rks p ro je c ts w h ic h give skills and m u ch needed ex
penence to w o rk in g people
A w eekly co lu m n on personal finance d istrib u ted by
the O regon Societ\ o f C ertified Public A ccountants
Tax Tips For The
S e p a ra te d /D iv o rc e d C ouple
Recent studies sho w th a t a p p ro xim a te ly one m illio n
m arriages a year end in divorce A c c o rd in g to the Ore
g o n S o cie ty o f CPAs, those tw o m illio n in d ivid u a ls
need specific tax advice
There are several tax issues
th a t they sho uld c o n c e n tra te on. one ot the m ost im jx ir
ta n t being their new filin g status
If you w ere legally separated or divo rce d on or be fore
D ecem ber 31, 1986 you and your spouse or form er
spouse ca n n o t file a jo in t re tu rn You w ill have to file as
a single in d ivid u a l unless you are the custo dia l parent
The single in d ivid u a l sta tu s is available to those w h o
have never been m arried, are w id o w e d or w h o are di
vorce d and do not have cu s to d y o f their childre n or any
oth er depe nd ents
The head o f h o use ho ld sta tu s is
available to the spouse w h o is un m arrie d at year end or
w as legally separated for the last six m o n th s o f th e year
In eith er case, a p e rson i la im in g head o f h o u se h o ld
m ust tie th e cu sto d ia l parent and have p ro vid e d the
p rincip al ho m e for th e c h ild m ore th a n half the year
O ther im p o rta n t tax issues after a divorce or separa
lio n in clud e th e d e d u c tib ility of alim ony, professional
fees and child su p p o rt D e pe nding on the legal agree
m e n t b e tw e e n you and your fo rm e r spouse, som e o f
these exjjenses and fo rm s o f incom e w ill be d e d u ctib le
or taxa ble w h ile oth er w ill not tie
The first tax issue to tie a d d re s s e d .is a ne w ly separa
ted or d ivorce d in d ivid u a l is alim on y Couples m ust de
term in e w h o w ill pay taxes on ttie alim ony settle m e nt
and w h o w ill take a d e d u c tio n
A lim o n y p a ym e n ts d e d u ctib le try th e p a yin g spouse
m ust be in clu d e d in the in co m e o f th e receiving spouse
In order to tie classified as alim ony a pa ym en t to an
ex spouse m ust be paid in .a s h , in acco rda nce w ith
the d ivo rce dei:ree and clearly d e s ig n a te d as alim ony
Lette rs to the Editor
\
OI
V a n Z a n d t. his nam e was m isspelled in the article
At th e Free S o u th A fric a M o v e m e n t m e e tin g th e re
w as discussio n ab o u t S o u th A fru a s regional w a r
against the fro n tlin e states rather tha n regional w ay
There w as also discussion about p re v e n tin g aid to the
M NR O R REN A M O w h ic h are a cro n ym s for the
M oza m bica n N ational R esistant e a rebel g ro u p bar ked
by S o u th A frica w h ic h is a tte m p tin g to o v e rth ro w M o
zam bique
Also for ( la n fica tio n , the A frica n N ational C ongress
IA N C I is a lib e r a tio n m o v e m e n t as op po sed to a
gro up
I thank you for p rin tin g these co rre ctio n s
Avel G ordly
D irector. AFSC
S ou th A frica n Program
D isturbing
It is e x tre m e ly d is tu rb in g to read d e s tru c tiv e a tta c k s o n
Bla< k le a d e rs h ip in a n y fo rm
o r in a rtic le s
tie it in le tte rs to th e e d ito r
T h e re h a ve b e e n se ve ra l in s ta n c e s o f tin s
lately in th e P ortla nd Observer There also appears to tie
a one sided a p pro ach to coverage o f issues I h o p e th is
IHI
Sf K \ K I
liN I I I I) ( HURÍ H OI ( URISI
have fo rce d entry w ith his s h o tg u n already in his hand?
A nd w h e n tin s elderly w h ite gra n d m o th e r began to
approac h the team w ith a knife, w o u ld the o ffic e rs have
blasted her aw ay rather than sim ply b a ckin g o u t o f the
a p a rtm e n t ?
W e ll never k n o w because M rs B um p urs was Black,
not w h ite Hut a statem e nt a Black police o ffic e r m ade
sho rtly after the killin g sticks in m y m in d
He said.
W hen I saw the p ictu re s o f Eleanor B um p urs she re
m in de d m e of m y o w n gra n d m o th e r T hat im age w o u ld
have stop ped m e be fore I m ade a m ove in tha t s itu a tio n
H o w eve r, th a t's not w h at S ullivan w as w hen he deci
ded to fire
W h e n S ulliva n w as first in d icte d M ayo r K och praised
S ullivan s p o lice reco rd saying.
O ffice r S ullivan has
had an o u ts ta n d in g record o f heroic pu blic service to
ttie people o f N ew York C ity
S u lliva n 's colleagues
also rallied b e hind him W h e n w o rd g o t o u t that Sulli
van had been in d ic te d by a grand ju ry, a near po lice
livan first blew tier hand aw ay, then aim ed another shot
g u n blast at her i best w hir h killed her
It seem s it
never occu rre d to the po lii e to sim ply leave the elderly
w o m a n alone u n til a less vio len t m eans of e v ic tio n co u ld
stops
not ensued
A p p ro x im a te ly 8,000 prim arily w h ite off)
cers, organ ized by their un io n, the P atrolm en s Bene
volen t A sso cia tio n (the P B A ), de m o n stra te d o u tsid e the
o ffic e o f D istrict A tto rn e y M ario M erola W a vin g A m e
rican flags they sho uted ,
M ario m ust g o '" and
tie decided u p on
A t ttie trial tw o d o c to rs te stifie d as expert w itnesses
tha t after O tfn er S ullivan fired his first shot. M rs Hum
purs w o u ld have been com p le te ly disarm ed and harm
less As Dr Jon Pearl n o te d
She co u ld n , have held
a n yth in g in her hand after being shot
She had only
tw o fing ers le ft
In fat t m ost of her hand w as shot
aw ay by S ullivan s first blast
Yet, the ju dg e decided th a t if O fficer S ullivan
"m om entarily disregarded M rs B um p urs' safe ty ' it was
poor.
As harsh as L o u ry's analysis m ay appear, his asser
tio n s have m e rit
A lth o u g h the c iv il rig h ts re v o lu tio n
w as e ffe c tiv e in re m o vin g ove rt segregation in the
U n ited S tates especially in the S o u th e rn states it
failed to address the pro blem o f g h e tto life Black on
Black crim e . Black on Black m urd er (40 percent o f all
victim s), d ru g a d d ictio n and tra ffic k in g . Black teen
M erola the A ya to lla h
Yet, despite the P B A , a trial did result, b u t to w h a t
end? The ju d g e 's decision essentially declares th a t it
w as proper c o n d u c t for po lice to ram their w ay in to the
ho m e o f an elderly w o m a n w ith s h o tg u n s ready, just to
pe rfo rm an e v ic tio n As it had done in case after case,
the la w e n fo rce m e n t and judicial system s co n tin u e to
su p p o rt the b ru ta lity o f ttie police over the rig h ts o f N ew
Y o rk's m in o rity residents
The c ity o f N ew York is be co m in g increasingly pola
rized along racial lines This is due n o t on ly to th e ac
tio n s o f w h ite m ob s in places like H o w ard Beach It is
also due to the legal decisions o f those like J u d g e Eg
gert w h o a llo w the un bridle d, death w ie ld in g po w e r of
sim p ly because he w a n te d to ensure the safe ty o f a fel
lo w o ffic e r, and this w as ce rta in ly, fie said, no gross
d e via tion fro m reasonable co n d u c t or care
Just to p u t th is m a tte r in its projrer c o n te x t, let us,
fo r a m o m e n t, im agine th a t M rs B um p urs w as a 66
year old w h it e g ra nd m othe r w h o it was rum o red , has
som e m e n ta l p ro b le m s
Her o n ly o ffe n se , h o w e ve r,
w as tha t she was be hind in het rent W o u ld a S W A T
tea m have been sent to e v ic t her? W o u ld an o ffic e r
pre gn ancy, and w e lfare depe nd ency
If A frica n A m erican s are to assim ilate in to m ain
the po lice to c o n tin u e unchallenged
stream A m erica, so lu tio n s m ust be fo u n d to eradicate
this social p a th o lo g y. Lo ury is co rre ct w h en he says.
The Black c o m m u n ity is spending to o m u ch o f their
p o litica l energy and talent against th e enem y w ith o u t',
______ ■ MW______
w h ile the enem y w ith in ' goes un che cked '
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MEMBER
■
S IW S
P o lite D e p a rtm e n t standards
Let us |ust consider the far ts o f ttie . ase M rs Hum
purs was killed durin g an evit lio n proi edure She was
be hind in her $96 a m o n th rent
An Em ergency Ser
vice team was t a ile d tie» ause she w .is deem ed danger
ous, and th is S W A I tea m p ro ce e d e d to b a tte r d o w n
her door to e n fo rce the evit tio n M rs B u m jiu rs is said
to have m et them w ith a knife in her hand O fficer Sul
•
PORTLAND OBSERVER
C (i|> » i.y h t 19H7 A IC P A
Close range, ftas n o w been at q u itte d o f all crim in a l i har
ges
He has also been restored to fu ll d u ty
Ju stice
Fred W Eggert, w h o presided over the non |ury trial
stated tha t it had not been p ro ven tfia t the o ffic e r Ste
ptien S ullivan, was g u ilty o f any gross d e v ia tio n ' from
placed on ed u ca tio n by the m id d le class and by the
15
th e o th e r spouse's low er taxable incom e
The w h ite N ew York C ity jrohr e o ffic e r w h o killed
Black Social Problem s Deserves A tte n tio n
F u rth e rm o re , he states the strategy w o rk s either bad
ly or n o t at all in the presence o f disparities created by
d iffe re n c e s in social class such as the d iffe re n t value
A re ch ild su p p o rt pa ym en ts tax d e du ctible ?
Pay
m en ts spe cifica lly designated as su p p o rt for m in o r chil
dren are not d e d u c tib le nor are they taxable to the re
cip ien t
S tru c tu rin g of a lim on y pa ym en ts and child
s u p p o rt p a y m e n ts can be m u tu a lly b e n e ficia l to b o th
spouses w h ere there is the p o te n tia l to take d e d u ctio n s
at a higher in co m e tax rate and in clud e pa ym e n ts in
66 year old Eleanor B um p urs a Bl.n k g ra n d m o th e r
back in O ctober o f 1984 w ith tw o s h o tg u n blasts at
EDITORIAL/OPINION
m ic d isp a rity fa cin g Blacks on discrim in a tio n and seeks
g o v e rn m e n ta l agencies to rem edy the p ro b le m
The
tro u b le w itti th e strateg y, lo u r y agrues. is th a t it w o rks
w e ll o n ly on ba rriers aim ed at A frica n A m e rica n s such
as poll taxes or re strictive housing covenants
tio n s o f these issues
No Ju stice For Eleanor Bum purs
Sincerely.
Avel G ordly
G lenn Lo ury, a Black p o litica l eco no m ist at H arvard's
J o h n F K en ne dy S chool of G ove rn m en t, caused quite
a ru cku s in Black com m u nitie s th ro u g h o u t the nation
He criticize d past and present civil rig h ts strategies
aim ed at alle via tin g the m any social pro blem s afflic
tin g m illio n s o f A frica n A m ent ans w h o live in poverty
Lo ury said th a t this approach blam es all socio econo
ture tax problem s
Ju st g e ttin g a divorce can be expensive But certain
p ro fe ssio nal fees in curred by separation or divorce pro
cee dings are also tax de du ctible
N either spouse can take a d e d u ctio n fo r fees paid for
a rra ng ing or resisting a divorce O nly tho se fees incur
red as a result o f arra ng ing the details o f the alim on y
pa ym en ts and or tax advice are d e d u ctib le Therefore,
it is im p o rta n t th a t you have the a tto rn e ys and other
pro fe ssio nals for b o th sides list their fees in tw o cate
gones
11 tho se for specifics of the d ivo rce or separa
tion , and 21 tho se w h ic h detail the arra ng em en ts o f the
a lim on y pa ym ents, pro p e rty settle m e nts, or tax im p lica
COMMISSION IOR RA( IAI JUSTICE
Several Errors
2 11 871
The A m e n t an C o m m itte e on A frica event w .is a p ro
g ra m in Oliver T am bo 's honor anti n o t a c o n fe r e n c e
L e s o th o is not in S o u th A frit a It is an Independent
n a tio n to ta lly su rro u n d e d by S o u th A fric a geographi
cally
The m ass a ctio n planned for Philadelphia w ill
take (ilai e a ro u n d the a n n iv e rs a ry o f th e s ig n in g o f
th e c o n s t it u t io n anti d ie jo in t se ssio n o f congress, not
d u rin g th e 200th anniversary of th e n a tio n s indepen
dent e (w h it ti lia s already ot t u rre tll
The person w tio
organ ized th e S un C ity A lb u m P roject is L ittle Steven
rather tha n any o th e r purpose For pa ym en ts of m ore
than $10 000, a d d itio n a l req uire m en ts m u st be m et
O nce alim on y a rra ng em en ts have been m ade, it rs
im p o rta n t to stick to th e m If fo r exam ple, an in dividu al
agrees to pay m ore m on ey to his or her fo rm e r spouse,
th is extra m oney ca n n o t be taken as a d e d u c tio n U n ­
der the form al, w ritte n agreem ent, it is n o t considered
alim ony
If. ho w e ver, an in d ivid u a l does agree to pay
m ore m on ey to his or her form er spouse, to g e th e r they
can legally change their agreem ent and avoid any fur
CIVIL RIGHTS JOURNAL
keeping the lid on their w ages'
Thank you for th e o p p o rtu n ity to share m y recent
experiences at the Free S o u th A frican M ove m en t and
Call to C onscient e N ational S teering C o m m itte e m eet
m gs a m o ng o th e rs H ow ever. I m ust cla rify several er
ro ts in the a rticle by Jerry Garner (P ortla nd Observer
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