Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (June 15, 1988)
> « < * » •» • < / < Mrs Frances Sehoen-Newspaper Room University of Oregon Library l u gene, Oregon 97403 PORTL ♦ ♦ * * * t'v <e <u ERVER “ The Eyes and Ears of the Community’ Portland, Oregon VolumeXVIII, Number31 »? ¿L 25< •i i-v 0. ?- & June 15,1988 ft: V ». Public Utilities And Affirmative Action NEWS IN BRIEF Storefont Theatre Holds Open Auditions For “Zooman And The Sign” Director Rick Jones will hold open auditions for the North west Premiere of ‘Zooman and the Sign’, written by Pulitzer Prize winner Charles Fuller, author of ‘A Soldier's Play’. Auditions will be held at Store front Theatre, 6 S.W. Third and Burnside, on Tuesday, June 28. Needed are 3 Black men in late teens or early 20’s; 3 Black men aged 30-50; and 3 Black women aged 30-50. Audtions are by appointment. Call Gary O'Brien or Mark Grimes at 224-9598 for an appointment. Auditions will be in small arouDS and will consist of read ings From the Script. Copies of the script are available for checkout at the Storefront of fice (615 N.W. Couch) for a $5 refundable deposit. Pre-Olympic Trials Benefit Reception For Robin Marks Friends and well-wishers of Robin L Marks are invited to a Pre-Olympic Trials Benefit Re ception, Thursday, June 23rd, at the Northwest Natural Gas Company, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. The affair is being hosted by ‘The Les Femmes’, a youth service group that presents Debu tantes and Cavaliers following training, community service and educational programs, to the Black community. Robin was a 1980 Debutante. By Stephen E. McPherson, Special Correspondent has e xp e rie n ce d num erous changes in technology and dereg ulation in recent years. These REVIEW: Last week the initial article of this changes have been reflected in series documented the observation that the the types of costs of service to public sector had made a significant gain in changing traditional employment and pro the consuming public. motional opportunities for minorities. Since The position of affirmative ac then, Commissioner Bogle indicated that the tion officers derived from federal statistics attributed to Faye Burch applied regulations as a conduit for equal only to those city employees within his re sponsibility. Additionally he clarified the fact employment opportunities. It usu that the Fire Bureau combines minority and ally is a function of human re women’s statistic together as a single re porting unit. Of the latter discrepancy statis sources departments and serves ticians might question that reporting to interpret, promulgate and de method. On the other hand women might ob velop programs a long federal ject on a completely different premise. The Portland Observer will correct the misim guidelines. They collect statisti :s pressions established in a future article limit and make periodic reports to the ed to the entire municipal employee popula labor department. This informa tion. tion is in the public domain and is ublic utilities represent a subject to a site audit so as to gray area with reference to a verify compliance. specialized entity within the pri Last week Robert Phillips from vate sector of the labor market. the Multnomah County office ex Each is publicly owned and trad posed the problem of confusion ed on the floors of several stock surfacing over the last eight years exchanges. Unlike other indus with regard to current affirmative tries outside the public sector, action programs. Such a condi utilities are rigidly controlled by tion is abundantly pervasive in the the State Public Utilities Commis private sector. This writer experi sion (PUC). PUC is comprised of enced mass reticence among three commissioners who are ap EEO people whom he approached pointed by the governor. Until the in the private sector even when most recent change, Oregon was there were remarkable accom the only state with only one PUC. plishments to report to the public. The PUC’s act as a surrogate for In the current presentation most the public with regard to investor of the information came from owned electric, natural gas, tele public and community relations phones and motor carriers. It is people. The following groups of per the role of the commission to en sure that consumers are provided sons were interviewed. The Northwest Natural Gas with adequate service at reason able rates while at the same time Company occupies an impressive permitting the utility to earn a glass tower overlooking the Wil reasonable return on its invest lamette River at 220 Northwest ment. Each unit within this group Second Ave. in Portland. I met P with Stanley L. Meyer, Staff Sup ervisor in the personnel depart ment. He was somewhat surpris ed that I would be interested in printing such data in that his com pany always had enjoyed a posi tive attitude toward employing minorities in the work force. It was only during the last seven years, however, that women sought positions in non-tradi- tional occupations such as con struction. We reviewed the cor poration's policy statement on af firmative action. It left no doubt that top management had made a strong commitment to extending equal employment and promo tional opportunities to all employ ees. The distribution of their work force at the Portland, Albany, Eugene and Salem facilities is as follows: Currently 2.4% of the of ficials and managers in Portland are minorities. There are some in the other sites. No minorities are professionals in Portland or Sa lem. Statistics were not given form Albany and Eugene. Minority technicians were 3.7% in Port land, none in Salem and Eugene and not tabulated in Albany. Salespersons were represented by a surprising 10.8% in Portland and none at any of the other sites. ' Office and clerical personnel comprised an impressive 13.7% njinority force in Portland and 4.3% in Salem but none in Eugene or in Albany. Crafts people were a healthy 6.7% mi nority in Portland and 5.8% in Salem but none in Albany and Eugene. Minority operators such as meter readers and others com prised 5.7% in Portland and none at the other three sites. Finally minority laborers accounted for 15.4% in Portland with surprising ly no representation at the other sites. It would appear that the Portland office has made good progress while the other sites lag conspicously behind. This latter observation does not convey the complete picture. In this regard, this writer does not intend to be an apologist for the shortfalls of any of the industries studied. It is important, however, to highlight certain quirks in the statistical analysis. Outside the Portland area the pool of available quali fied applicants is compromised seriously to the exigencies of population dynamics. The per ceived lack of compliance does not infer the absence of an effec tive recruiting effort. Northwest Natural Gas has a very stable labor force with their employees averaging about a 15 year tenure. New hires and promotions are ag gravated further by the fact that management has accomplished a reduction in the work force through attrition. Employment Antonio Anderson — Role Model For Black Youth hen Antonio Anderson re ceived his degree in Phar macy from the University Washington, Sunday, hard work, determination and goal orienta tion all had a special meaning to him. His achievement was gained only after a struggle that would have changed a lesser person's mind in disgust. Antonio learned a few lessons early in life that were key to his success. He is the offspring of Martin Anderson, a retired airman and sailor. He didn’t develop into the usual m ili tary brat, but heeded the direc tions of his father and mother. This gave him a healthy sense of purpose, discipline and punctuali ty. His mother, Mrs. Bea Ander son is a teacher at the Harriet Tubman Middle school. She not only emphasized the need for ob taining a thorough education but also underscored the importance of sticking with a problem until its resolution. His older brother, Mar tin, Jr. was always his hero. He in itiated every effort that Antonio initated. Antonio credits his bro ther for having influenced his de c is io n to a tte n d B e nson Technical High School. While there Antonio lettered in track, soccer and swimming. He did his undergraduate work in Biology with a heavy emphasis on chem istry at Portland State University. It was there that he developed a fascination for science in an organic chemistry laboratory. A ntonio firs t entered the School of Pharmacy on the Cor vallis campus of the University of Oregon. His experience there was disastrous. Being the only Black student, he was treated like a guinea pig in a fish bowl. Many of the other students were the sons W Robin has been accepted by the Athletic Congress of the U.S.A. to compete in the 1988 U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials in Indianapolis, Indiana, July 17th-23rd, for selection of athletes to represent the United States in the 1988 Sum mer Olympics in Seoul, Korea. A Portland native, Robin was the 1980 Queen of the Portland Rose Festival — the first black ever selected. She was Track and Field Champion at Lincoln High School, winning City and State (200 m LJ) and the same year named OSAA Most Valu able Female Athlete. Ornette Colemen & Prime Time Sunday, June 26th, 8:30 P.M. Pine Street Theatre Call 235-0027 For Ticket Info. of and daughters of alumnae and had gained previous experience in their parents' drug stores. An tonio attempted to make up his deficit by working in a Portland pharmacy on weekends. His grades and physical stamina suffered. Mr. Anderson then made a de cisive change in his overall strate gic plans. He abandoned Corval lis and applied for admission to the School of Pharmacy at the University of Washington in Seat tle. His application was rejected His academic performance at Corvallis was one problem, but the type of program offered at the University of Oregon was a greater problem. The University of Washington patterned the first two years of study on the style of its medical school. Each student was required to dissect human cadavers in gross anatomy. Antonio was not discouraged. He took courses to eliminate his academic deficiencies and ap plied for admission again. He was rejected again. Antonio then de veloped a clever indirect ap proach to satisfy his career objec tive. He took courses required for $ pharmacy students and passed them with good grades. He once more applied for admission to the School of Pharmacy. In the in te rim , he fo r tu ito u s ly e n countered the dean of the school who inquired about his progress. During the course of that mo mentous conversation Dr. Milo Gibaldi reviewed Antonio’s tran script and found his grades to be acceptable. But when Dr. Gibaldi reviewed the admission commit tee's recommendation, he an nounced that once more Mr. An derson had been rejected. The two men engaged in a lengthy discussion about Antonio's inten tions and with the result of the meeting of the minds, Antonio was admitted to the School of Pharmacy on the personal recom mendation of Dr. Gibaldi. This is not the first time in his life that Antonio Anderson has been abandoned into the wilder ness to make his own way. He first had that experience while earning one of the 40 merit bad ges required to become an Eagle Scout. Antonio recalled how he was driven up to Mount Hood, dumped into the bush with noth ing but the clothes he wore and told to survive. Antonio survived that experience and has survived many other encounters ever since then. He has given his story to the Portland Observer’ to demon strate to the younger Black gener ation who might aspire for a seemingly insurmountable goal that anything is possible if one makes the commitment and de termination to succeed. It also helps if you have a supportive family or surrogates like the three other Anderson’s. has been flat over the last several years. With the increase in new housing starts it will be in teresting to observe if the outly ing areas will demonstrate in creased employment and promo tional opportunities in the future. Promotions published in the “ Blue Flame," their inhouse pub lication indicated that George Richardson, a Black employee of 23 years, was assuming the position of Director of local and state government relations. He previously was Director of Corpor ate B u d g e t and S tra te g ic Planning. Lois Grace, a Black woman who has been with the company since 1973, was promoted from confidential secretary in Health and Safety to Disability Adminis tr a to r w ith in c re a s in g responsibility. The next interview was with Pa cific Power and Light (PP&L) in their offices at 920 S.W. Sixth Avenue. It was at their EEO office where I encountered evasion and refusal in even obtaining their an nual report, a public document. It Continued on Page 3 Oregon Bank Announces Scholarship Recipents regon Bank has selected cluded Unity Council Club, Key Lesley E. Kyle and Ericka Club, Student Council, varsity cheerleading and serving R. Warren as the recipients of track, the on the Rose Festival Court. She Oregon Bank Minority Scholar has also been involved as an in ships for 1988. Kyle and Warren structor's assistant at the Alberta will receive renewable annual Science for Kids Center and is a member of the Portland Youth Leaders of Today vocal ensemble. As part of the scholarship pro gram, Kyle and Warren will be em ployed at Oregon Bank in the Job Experience Program during their summer vacations. The goal of the program is to provide the two scholarship recipients with a gen eral knowledge of Oregon Bank s structure and functions to help them identify an area of interest for future employment. Kyle and Warren have began their summer employment at Oregon Bank as of June 13,1988. scholarships in the equivalent amount of a full year’s tutition at a public four-year college or univer sity in the state of Oregon. The purpose of the scholarship is to encourage graduating seniors from minority groups who have an interest and the potential for a ca reer in financial services. Kyle is a Lincoln High School graduate. She plans to attend ei ther the University of Oregon or Portland State University in the Fall as an accounting/business administration major. Kyle was an exchange student to Costa Rica Oregon Bank has assets of $1.2 and has been active in Junior billion and 56 branches through Achievement, soccer, track, year out Oregon. The Portland-based book production, and the com bank is a subsidiary of Security munity service club, LIN. Pacific Corporation, based in Los Ericka Warren ,a graduate from Angeles, and is administered by Benson Polytechnic, will attend Rainier Bancorporation head the University of Oregon in the quartered in Seattle. l Fall. Her school activities have in- O FEATURES....................................................................Pa8e 1 EDITORIAL/OPINIO N............................................... Page 2 RELATED STORIES............................................Page 3 & 6 ENTERTAINMENT...................................................... Page 4 RELIGION.....................................................................Page 5 CLASSIFIEDS..................................................... PageS-10 Classified / Display.........................................................................(503) 288-1756 News Desk.......................................................................................... . V. •.> fcrf ; S V * ■* *' -, * '