March 2, 1988, Portland Observer, Page 3
NATIONAL NEWS UPDATE
Jesse Jackson on the Persian Gulf and Social Security
We have much to lose if the
battle in the Gulf continues. It
can expand and ig nite the
flames of a major regional war.
The economic impact of such a
war would be disastrous. With
American troops at risk and the
countries of the region facing
off with U.S.- and Soviet-made
weapons, the increased possibi
lity of superpower confrontation
exists. The human cost of such
a war would be incalculable.
Peace in the Gulf is the im
perative of the hour. We must
be determined and active in our
resolve to achieve such a peace.
PERSIAN GULF
Bring Real Security to the Gulf
Resolving the war between
Iran and Iraq is the key to secu
rity in the Persian Gulf. At best,
the Iran-Iraq co n flict turns the
Gulf into a floating dem ilitarized
zone. At worst, the war ultim ate
ly threatens the nuclear holo
caust we all wisely fear and
must work earnestly to avoid.
The United States is ju s tifi
ably concerned about peace and
stability in the region and must
maintain a com m itm ent to
achieve these goals. M aintain
ing the freedom of people, oil
and other commerce to peace
fu lly travel in in te rn a tio n a l
waters is essential.
To bring security to the Per
sian Gulf, I propose we vigorous
ly support UN resolution 596.
My adm inistration w ill call for an
Iran-Iraq cease-fire. It w ill call
for the withdrawal of all forces
to in terna tionally recognized
borders. Also, it w ill call for an
exchange of prisoners of war,
the establishm ent of an impar
tial body to inquire as to who
started the war, and reconstruc
tion efforts.
If Iran or Iraq won’t abide by a
cease-fire, we must work with
our allies and the United Na
tions Security Council to en
force an international arms em
SOCIAL SECURITY
Take it Out of the Political
Football Game
bargo on both combatants.
France, Britain, and Israel, as
well as the Soviet Union and
China, must be called to ac
count for any further shipments.
We cannot accept “ business as
usual” with China while young
American soldiers are targets of
Silkworm m issiles supplied by
the Chinese. We cannot accept
defending the Gulf for our allies
while they send weapons that
continue the war.
As president I w ill work vigor
ously to build confidence in the
Social Security system, not to
undermine public support for it
every tim e the budget is debated
in Congress. Striking fear into
the hearts of the elderly every
year by calling for reductions in
the COLA or by suggesting that
the program be needs-tested
w ill have no place in a Jackson
adm inistration. We should even
consider making Social Security
into an independent agency to
take it out of the political spend
ing game.
I want to improve on the Sup
plemental Security Income (SSI)
program as well. Currently only
one-third of the elderly who are
eligible participate, due to poor
outreach and education about
the program. Those who do par
ticipate are only brought up to
75 percent of the poverty rate. It
w ill take about $5 billion to bring
the 3.3 m illion Americans on SSI
up to the poverty level. Closing .
the estate tax loophole passed
in 1981 would raise twice that
amount.
Finally, legislation is needed
to deal with the problems of pri
vate pension plans. Employer
contributions to the Pension
Benefits Guarantee Corporation
must be increased to cope with
underfunded plans and ensure a
steady income for those who
have earned it. We need new re
gulations to stop corporations
from terminating overfunded
plans. The merger mania on
Wall Street is bad enough when
you consider how harmful it is to
the economy. But it is even
worse when you consider cor
porations are terminating the
pension plans of seniors to ac
quire more assets to fuel this un
productive activity.
Reprinted with permission from "The
World and I” , March, 1988.
National PTA Helps Parents and Youth Face
Pressures of Drugs and Alcohol
C hicago , ill — Stress and low
self-esteem, as well as peer
pressure, can cause children to
d e c id e to d rin k , says the
nation’s largest parent-teacher
association, the National PTA® .
' “ Preteens and teens w ith low
Self-esteem feel powerless and
are more vulnerable to peer pres
sure,” said G lenna G undell,
chairman of the National PTA’s
Health and W elfare C om m is
sion. “ Telling kids like that to
Say ‘no’ is not enough. They
may not have the inner strength
to resist when peers ask them to
drink or use drugs,” she added.
? The areas of stress and self
esteem w ill receive special em
phasis from PTAs during the Na
tional PTA’s fourth annual Drug
and Alcohol Awareness Week,
March 6-12. The theme of the
observance is “ Parents and
Youth: Facing the Pressure.”
Peer pressure isn't the only
pressure that young people
face, noted Gundell. She urges
parents to learn how to identify
the symptoms of stress in their
children and teens and how to
help kids cope with stressful
situations.
Experimentation with alcohol
and other drugs is often related
to stress, as are moodiness, in
somnia, preoccupation w ith ne
gative or angry thoughts or feel
ings, loss of appetite or eating
disorders, and lowered body re
sistance to colds, the flu or
other diseases.
The National PTA suggests
that parents do the follow ing to
help reduce the am ount of
stress children and teens may
experience:
• Set a good example. When
you’re under stress, don’t take it
out on your children.
• Have weekly family meet
ings to discuss family activities,
routines and problems. Work at
problem solving rather than con
frontation.
• Show affection by hugging
children often and letting them
know you love them.
• Give children some undivi
ded attention every day. Talk
about both the happy and the
stressful events in their lives.
Let them know you understand
their concerns and take them
seriously.
During the week-long obser
vance, thousands of local PTAs
across the country w ill hold
meetings and sponsor events to
help parents and the com m unity
be more responsive to the needs
of ado lesce nts experiencing
peer pressure, stress or low self
esteem.
Inform ation related to these
topics is available in the Na
tional PTA’s Drug and Alcohol
Awareness Week planning kit
and in its “ Parenting:
The
Underdeveloped S kill” program
box. In addition, the association
is working w ith the Keebler
Comany to produce a s e lf
esteem film , leader’s guide and
brochure for parents, emphasi
zing how it related to the use of
alcohol and other drugs. The
film and accompanying mater
ials w ill be available in July.
Currently available are two
1-800- GC-BUILT
1-800- 632-FBH
1-800- 423-WARM
1-800- -852-SAFE
1-800 ■SBVTIME
1-800 -443-PUMP
1-800 -722-WÄTR
Wfe spell help in some
r
publications for parents on the
subject of drugs. “ Young Child
ren and Drugs: What Parents
Can Do,” (available in English
and Spanish) offers advice to
parents on ways to develop
children’s self-esteem. The bro
chure suggests parents teach
children how to feel good about
th e m s e lv e s th ro u g h hon est
c o m m u n ic a tio n , c o o p e ra tio n
àrid personal responsibility and
the ability to make judgements
and decisions.
For parents of older children,
the PTA has developed "Drug
Abuse and Your Teens: What
Parents Should Know.” A single
copy of each publication may be
obtained by sending a stamped,
self-addressed business size
envelope to the National PTA,
Drug Pubs, 700 N. Rush St., Chi-
caco, IL 60611-2571.
For more information about
Drug and Alcohol Awareness
Week and year-round drug abuse
prevention activities, contact
Jeanne Koepsell in the Program
Department at the National PTA.
WOZA (wo'zuh)
just
WOZA RUTH
WOZA STEVE
WOZA LILIAN
WOZA ROBERT
WOZA BRAM
See Entertainment Page
Rev. Benjam in F. Chavis, Jr.
nothing back in return. Business
will no longer go on as usual. We
have a moral imprerative to stop
cooperating . with
our own
oppression.”
Scores of African Americans,
organized by the Committee, re
cently picketed Macy's and
spoke w ith customers. Many
customers were persuaded to go,
instead, to other stores, while
others, who were carrying shopp
ing bags full of purchases, re
entered the store to return their
merchandise.
The Rev. Benjamin F. Chavis,
Jr., Executive Director of the
United Church of Christ Commis
sion for Racial Justice, and an
other campaign organizer, while
walking the picket line declared,
“ We have a profound responsibi
lity to unite ourselves in a con
structive way. And this is a
strategy in which everyone in our
com munity can participate.
Macy's and Sterling Drugs are
just the first targets. We intend
to expand this campaign until we
fundamentally change the power
dynamics that have controlled
and allowed this overt racism to
continue.”
This long-range goal was rei
terated by another campaign or
ganizer, the Rev. Calvin O. Butts,
Executive M inister of Harlem’s
Abyssinian Baptist Church and
president of New York’s Organi
zation of Afro-American Clergy.
He noted, “ African Americans
spend over$290 billion ayear, yet
we spend it primarily in com
m unities other than our own and
with those who do not support
us. Thebusinesscom m unityw ill
ignore us only as long as we per
mit them to do so. We under
stand that this is a long-range
strategy, but we know from the
response thus far that the people
are ready to support us. And if we
succeed here, it w ill send a mes
sage to the rest of the nation.”
The Committee for Sanctions
is hoping to nationalize its cam
paign in the coming months, par
ticularly as the Easter season ap
proaches. As one organizer de
clared, “ We have a profound re
sponsibility not only to struggle,
but to w in !”
DON’T WAIT TILL IT HURTS
Periodontal disease is painless. It affects 8 7 of
the population, and often victims are unaware.
There are warning signs, and the American Den
tal Association and our staff want you to be
aware:
Y es No
1. Do your gums bleed when you
brush your teeth or toothpick
between them?
2
If the answer is yes to any of these questions, you
owe it to yourself to bring it to the attention of
your dentist or hygienist. Act now and keep your
teeth for a lifetime.
5
Are your permanent
or separating?
6
Is there any change in the way
your teeth fit together when
Are your gums red. swollen, or
tender’’
teeth
you bite?
3. Are your gums pulling away
from your teeth?
4
7 Is there any change in the fit of
your partial dentures?
Do you see pus between your
teeth and your gums when the
gums are pressed7
8
Do you have bad breath7
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N E R .■
new york — The escalating
racist violence in New York has
prompted African American lead
ers here to return to an old but ef
fective strategy of the civil rights
movement — econom ic w ith
drawal. On Friday, February 19,
the Committee for Economic
Sanctions Against Racism in
New York announced that two
New York-based companies,
Macy’s Department Store and
Sterling Drugs, Inc. (maker of
Bayer Aspirin, Phillip's M ilk of
Magnesia and D-Con), would be
the Com m ittee’s initial targets.
The targets were announced to
an overflow crowd of more than
2,000, which packed Bethany
Baptist Church in Brooklyn. As
one member of the audience
pointed out after the rally, “ This
is the first time I’ve seen this
many people come out for any
thing besides a major racial in ci
dent. This group is serious.” The
meeting at Bethany was the
culm ination of a series of mass
meetings which the Committee
had held throughout New York
since January.
The Committee is a coalition
of over 40 African American
leaders in New York from esta
blished clergy, business, labor,
civil rights, com m unity and youth
organizations. They began plans
for the economic sanctions cam
paign in December of 1987. The
com m ittee has called its effort
an "econom ic sanctions cam
paign” to underscore its long-
range scope and to indicate the
broader purpose of the cam
paign.
The Com m ittee’s research re
vealed that both Macy’s and Ster
ling Drugs maintain relations
with South Africa, do not deposit
in African American banks in
New York, do very little advertis
ing with Black media or Black
advertising firm s and make m ini
mal use of African American con
tractors and vendors. Additional
ly, Macy's relegates most of its
African American employees to
visible but low-paying cashier
and sales jobs, while promoting
its white employees to executive
management positions.
Referring to the broader goals
of the sanctions campaign, spea
kers at the rally spoke of the es
calating racist violence and what
they called "the dehum a’ izjng
conditions which our people are
forced to endure in New York.”
As Bob Law, a nationally syndi
cated talk show host and one of
the organizers of the sanctions
campaign, explained, "We are
not saying that Macy’s must take
a moral position. We are saying
that we, as a community, must
take a moral position. We pump
m illions of dollars into Macy's
and Sterling — and provide their
margin of profit — yet they give
To rise up.
For instance, > the number above that ends in PUMP puts you in > touch with
all kinds of information on heat pum ps The number that ends in SAFE yields informa
tion on outdoor lighting. The number that ends in WATR covers electnc water heaters.
And the number that ends in WARM is for weatherization.
Fact is, we have a direct line for virtually ever)' one of our services - so we don t
waste your time switching you from line to line. To call, simply look us up in your local
telep h o n e^rert pty
Economic SanctionsCampaign
Announced in New York
228-3009
SATURDAY 8AM-5PM
Expires March 31, 1968