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Page 4...The Portland Observer...February 12, 1992
Nero Delivers Keynote Address at the Fifth Annual
Development Conference at Mississippi State University
David M. Nero, Jr., Chairman/CEO
o f N ero and Associates, Inc., a Port­
land, Oregon based professional serv­
ices company delivered the keynote
address at the January 28th Fifth A n ­
nual Developm ent Conference at M is­
sissippi State U niversity, Ita Bena,
Mississippi.
N e ro ’ s speech, “ Education: A
V ehicle to Econom ic and Com m unity
D evelopm ent” was presented to m i­
n o rity and female business owners and
M ississippi Delta p olitical leaders at
the Center fo r Economic Development
on the university campus.
In his talk, Nero pointed out that
the conference theme, “ Education: A
V ehicle to Economic and Com m unity
D evelopm ent” suggests, “ that eco­
nomic and community development are
targets we must s till get to...that we are
not there yet. For me the phrase should
state ‘ True Education: A Vehicle to
Econom ic and C om m unity Develop­
m ent.’ I stress ‘T rue’ education be­
cause we must not make the mistake o f
believing that ju st sitting in a class­
room or m em orizing facts and figures
is w hat we need to succeed in what
appears to be a coming tim e o f eco­
nom ic hardships and challenges. ‘T rue’
education must be a process that cre­
ates an ind ivid ua l who is both com m it­
ted and able to bring about positive
changes fo r the comm unity in which
they liv e and labor.”
Nero went on to say "T h e very
firs t step in u tilizing ‘ true’ education as
a vehicle fo r progress is acknowledg­
ing that fo r us and for Am erica a severe
problem currently exists. W ithout de­
nying the great strides that have been
made in some areas o f national race
relations, any honest look at where we
are now compared to where we used to
be and where we wish to be in the
future, reveals that serious problems
continue to plague those caught in the
grips o f the economic and racial legacy
o f an earlier era. A part o f the problem
for Blacks is what non-Blacks continue
to mistakenly believe about us as a
group. The old stereotypes persist. A
recent nationwide study conducted by
the National O pinion Research Center
at the U niversity o f Chicago revealed
that 78% o f the country’s N on-Black
population still believe that Blacks
‘ prefer to live o ff w elfare.’ S ixty-tw o
percent said Blacks are more lik e ly to
be lazy. Such continued m isinform a­
tion and ignorance is not harmless. It is
manifested in many real and concrete
barriers to Black progress and advance­
ment today. The study went on to state
the m inorities lack access to training
and development programs. Transuded
out o f bureaucratic jargon that means
they lacked ‘education.’ ”
Nero continued, “ It is ‘ true’ edu­
cation that w ill be that vehicle, that
mechanism, that w ill allow a brighter
future for us all. One critical part is to
in s till an appreciation in our youth for
their history and culture. This is very
important because for many genera­
tions there was a comprehensive and
systematic attempt to pretend that only
W hites had contributed to the develop­
ment o f the modem w orld we live in.
O f course, this pretense is nonsense.
W hites have certainly contributed their
share--but many other individuals and
groups were just as important and inte­
gral to that development.”
Therefore, an important part o f
‘ true education must recapture the es­
sential truth o f our shared m ulticultural
past and infuse it into the hearts and
minds and souls o f our young people
today. But by its e lf that w ill not be
nearly enough. We should know that is
not in itself enough to solve our prob­
lems because it has never been enough
to solve the problems o f any group by
itself. We need look no further than our
fellow W hite Americans to see the truth
o f that. The W hite youth o f America
are surrounded and immersed in a sea
o f W hite cultural history and identity
support systems that truly dominate
every aspect o f inform ation and com­
munication in this society. Yet, you all
know the problems Am erica’ s White
youth face today. Identity and role
models alone w ill not suffice in a time
o f economic recession and global
competition.
Look fo r example at our welfare
system. W hile there lingers in Am er­
ica’ s p olitical and social m entality this
absurd notion that welfare is a ‘ Black
program ’ and that Black people abuse
the system, when even a peek at the
statistics o f welfare show what we know
by intuition. We know that i f it were
true that only Black people were on
w elfare-there w ould be no w elfare—
Period! And sure enough, the statistics
show us to be correct. A revealing look
at welfare by Tim e magazine recently
showed that 61% o f those receiving
welfare are W hite w hile only 33% are
Black. In truth, considering the history
o f racism and oppression in this coun­
try ’ s history, the real shocking story is
not how many o f us are on welfare but
the remarkable number who are not.
Conversely, in a country that so over­
w helm ingly projects and protects the
identity o f W hites and reinforces their
cultural history, the amazing question is
why are so many o f them ‘o n ’ welfare?
In one sense the answer is simple and
useful fo r our purposes today. It is not
enough to have a sense o f identity or a
pocketful o f role models. You must
have skills and training and direction as
well.
‘True’ education looks not only
behind us but ahead. In addition to iden­
tity, we must teach geometry. Our youth
must know o f both ancient Egypt and
modem economics. They must know o f
our great grandfathers but they also
must know the grammar o f the board
room. We must not let our traditions
imprison our vision, keeping i t locked
in the past, and preventing us from
seeing the way to a better future. We
must look at and compete in a global
economy w ith global competition in a
w orld in which the worth o f an unskilled
individual has been seriously devalued.
In today’s world o f technology and in-
fo rm a tio n -o u r salvation is to acquire
technical skills and master information.
We, as a race, must also look not only to
our own past fo r paths to progress; we
must also look at our neighbors today
and borrow from the techniques that
supported their success. We must look
at Whites, look at Jews, look at South­
east Asians, Japanese and Koreans. The
lessons are there. They are not hard to
Find but d iffic u lt in execution:
1. work hard.
2. work smart.
3. work toward a common goal.
4. share the success w ith those who
shared the work.
5. put our youth in a position to
benefit from progress already achieved
and continue the quest fo r success.
We can no longer hide behind
complaints and accusations-regardless
o f how v a lid -o r we w ill pay a terrible
social and economic price-becom ing
obsolete. Today our progress is at a
point in history when the concept o f
‘ true ’ education for our youth can be the
vehicle that advances their quest for
personal worth and fu lfillm en ts as well
as contributes to the larger good o f
economic and com m unity development
fo r us all.
“ Starting today, let us make the
gifts o f that great truth become self
evident,” Nero concluded.
Prophet Approves Access To
Condoms In Portland High Schools
Continued from front page
authorities feel would provide improved
protection to our students from sexu­
a lly transmitted diseases, I fe lt I needed
the input and opinion on these matters
from our parents, our com m unity and
our students, to help me form my own
opinions and to make a decision as to
whether to support or not support the
request from multnomah county.
"A lso , because o f the various moral
and ethical considerations, and other
very challenging complications that arise
when one deals w ith issues o f this kind,
I fe lt it was important to conduct a
reliable and scientific survey o f par­
ents, citizens and students with the survey
to be conducted by an independent
research firm .
“ The times in which we live re­
quire responsible decision making and,
I believe that the process we have under­
taken is fa ir and it is objective. Every­
one must know that in addition to the
research findings, my decision also re­
flects and takes into consideration, other
input com i*ng form c lin ic advisory
committees at the schools, county and
state health departments, phone calls
and letters to the district, input from the
religious com m unity, editorial views
expressed by our local media, processes
and outcomes in other cities who are
dealing w ith this issue, and certainly,
m y own knowledge o f what is really ap-
pening w ith our children.
“ I have decided to support the health
o ffic ia ls ’ request to provide condoms in
the six high school health clinics to stu­
dents under medical supervision.
“ The six schools where I support
the request are: Roosevelt, Jefferson,
Grant, Marshall, Cleveland and M adi­
son.
“ M y agreement w ith their request
is w ith the understanding that condoms
w ill be provided and dispensed only af­
ter comprehensive abstinence counsel­
ing has occurred, — along w ith other
strict medical protocal and procedures.
“ M y agreement w ith health o ffi­
cials is also given w ith the understand­
ing that medical personnel in the six
teen health centers w ill urge and assist
a ll students to obtain parental involve­
ment in all student health decision. This,
o f course, is a practice which is cur­
rently being followed. Our efforts must
remaib very vigorous in this area.
“ It is also o f great importance to
remind our parents and our community
that in our classrooms, as w ell as the
clinics, abstinence is the overriding and
consistent message we teach to our stu­
dents, and that our program in health
instruction w ill be closely monitored
and supervised to assure that our stu­
dents learn and understand that - there is
no such thing as safe sex.
“ The provisions o f the new agree­
ment between the county and the school
district w ill become effective as soon as
Multnomah County finds it practicable
to implement same. The agreement
currently applies only to those high
schools where teen clinics are located
and operating w ith licensed health care
providers.
“ A t the four (4) high schools where
there are no teen health centers, health
officials and the school district w ill work
toward the implementation o f this serv­
ice.
" I am sincere in my b elief that we
have adopted a resonsible public health
policy and responded to the expressed
wishes o f our parents and our commu­
n ity .”
Metropolitan Human Relations Commission
Task Force Report Issued
Members o f Portland’ s C ity Coun­
c il met w ith the M ultnom ah County
Board o f Commissioners in an in fo r­
m al jo in t session on February 10,1992.
Called by M ayor C lark and County
C hair M cCoy, the discussion centered
on recommendations made by the M et­
ropolitan Human Relations Com m is­
sion Task Force appointed in October
o f 1991 by the M ayor and County Chair
to review the Metropolitan Human
Relations Commission.
C ity C om m issioner Gretchen
K afoury said, “ We are now ready to
discuss the Task Force’s recommenda­
tions. Reaching agreement w ill proba­
b ly not be easy but it is in the best
interest o f Portland and Multnomah
C ounty residents that we work this out
together. I thank all o f the Task Force
members who have given so w illin g ly
o f their time and talents over the past
few months.”
“ We are most grateful that so many
busy and committed people were w ill­
ing to spend so much lim e on a review
which affects issues we all care so
much about, diversity and inclusive­
ness,” said County Commissioner
Sharron Kelley. “ The work session is
certain to present us w ith challenges,
but 1 expect that w orking together we
can arrive at solutions benelieial to
both Portland and Multnomah County.”
Commissioners Kelley and Kafoury
arc liaisons to the M etropolitan Human
Relations Commission for the County
and C ity. As liaisons, they have pro­
vided the staff support to the Task Force
which has met almost every week since
being formed in October. “ Clearly this
review was important. The C ity ’ s Fu­
ture Focus Plan has as one o f its six
prim ary goals, 'To embrace and cele­
brate diversity and eliminate bigotry,
enhancing our sense o f community’ .
We needed some help identifying what
it m ight take to have the M H R C take a
leadership role in w orking toward that
goal,” said Gretchen Kafoury, chair o f
the committee charged with implement­
ing the C ity ’ s Future Focus Plan.
Black History
Poetry Reading
Mr. James B. Williams
Beaumont M iddle School w ill
present for Black History month a Poetry
Recital Thursday, February 13, at 1:45
pm. The recital w ill be presented in the
school library, 4043 N. E. Fremont.
The recital w ill feature M r. James
B. W illiam s (J. B.), Black H istory and
poetry teacher. He w ill recite poetry
from works o f famous American poets
from the Cotton R evolution, 1825, to
1941, the Depression. The theme o f
this recital w ill be: Lest W e Forget.
Sharon Gary-Smith
Elected Branch Chair
of North/lnner
Northeast YMCA
The Y M C A o f C olum bia-W illam ­
ette announces Sharon Gary-Sm ith has
been elected Branch Chairperson o f the
North/lnner Northeast Y M C A Branch.
The N orth/lnner Northeast Y M C A
is one o f eight comm unity branches in
the Portland M etro area. Ms. Gary-
Smith has served as National Program
Director o f the National Black Women’s
Health Project from 1984 to 1990. She
has held positions in Public Relations,
Management and as an account execu­
tive w ith T ri-M e t, Port o f Portland and
Pacific Northwest Bell. Sharon is Presi­
dent o f the W omen’ s Foundation o f
Oregon, a board member o f Planned
Parenthood o f C olum bia-W illam ette,
the Urban League and is Vice President
o f the National Political Congress o f
Black Women.
Project Independence
W hat: Project Independence is
designed to assist single parents and
displaced homemakers to become eco­
nom ically self-sufficient. The program
provides access to a variety o f em ploy­
ment and training opportunities which
enable participants to acquire neces­
sary skills in order to become success­
fu lly employed. The program is a jo in t
venture o f Portland Com m unity C ol­
lege, the Department o f Education and
A d u lt and Fam ily Services. Offices are
located at PCC’ s Cascade Campus,
W om en’ s Resource Center.
A ll participants attend an eleven
week, L ife S kills Seminar. Topics
covered include: personal skills assess­
ment and development, assertiveness
training, job readiness assessment, in ­
formational interviews, transferable skill
identification, career research, time,
stress and money management. Job
search skills fo r placement preparation
include: cover letter, resume w riting,
applications and videotaped mock inter­
views. Placement options include:
education, direct jo b placement, train­
ing and referrals to apprenticeship and
non-traditional employment opportu­
nities.
Ongoing activities provided by
Project Independence include place­
ment assistance, support services and
counseling. Participants are continu­
a lly assisted w ith identifying and re-
Packwood Again Leads
Effort to Extend
Unemployment Benefits
‘Crazy Hat Luncheon’
At Ymca
Oregon Senator Bob Packwood
today encouraged his colleagues in the
Senate to vote in favor o f a 13-week ex­
tension o f unemployment benefits. Pack-
wood broke ranks w ith the Adm inistra­
tion early last year to sponsor the first
extension o f these benefits. Now they
are running out again, and he urged the
Senate to act quickly on another exten­
sion.
‘ ‘This recession has lasted longer
than anyone anticipated, and it has left
tracks on the backs o f many workers in
m y state o f Oregon and around the
country,” said Packwood. “ This b ill
w on ’ t help us out o f the recession. But
it w ill help those who are suffering. M y
firs t p riority is to get unemployed Ore­
gonians back to work. But in the mean­
time, we must extend benefits for those
who s till struggle to find w o rk ,” he
The Y W C A o f Portland Northeast
Center is sponsoring its firs t annual
“ Crazy Hat Luncheon” on March 7,
1992 from noon to 2 p.m. The luncheon
w ill be held at the Y W C A Northeast
Center, 5630 N.E. M artin Luther King
Jr. Blvd. Tickets are $5.00. A ll pro­
ceeds w ill benefit the Northeast Center
youth programs.
For more inform ation contact the
Y W C A -22 3-62 81 , Ext. 3057.
continued.
“ It took us six months last year to
get an agreement on extending unem­
ployment benefits. D uring that debate
here in Washington, unemployed tim ­
ber workers and others in Oregon were
suffering. L e t’ s pass this b ill and get
some re lie f to our citizens,’ ’ Packwood
concluded. The Senate passed the ex­
tension by a vote o f 94-2, and the Presi­
dent is expected to sign it.
I
• G.
Ed Washington
Endorsed by BLC for
Vacant Position of
Metropolitan Service
District Councilor for
District 11
The Black Leadership Conference
(B LC ) is pleased to announce its en­
dorsement o f Ed Washington to f ill the
vacant position o f M etropolitan Serv- ’
ice D istrict C ouncilor fo r D istrict 11.
“ M r. Washington was recom­
mended to f ill the position because o f
his record o f service and long-tim e
commitment to the com m unity,” said
Carl Talton, a member o f the Endorse­
ment Committee.
Washington is president o f the
Portland Chapter o f the National Asso­
ciation fo r the Advancement o f C o l­
ored People, and also serves on the
State Unemployment Compensation
Board, the United Way Board o f D irec­
tors, and a special committee that re­
viewed funding fo r the M id-C ounty
Sewer Project.
During the endorsement process,
Washington expressed a keen interest
in urban growth, land use, solid waste,
water policy, and maintenance o f re­
gional facilities.
B illy W hite, who recently returned
to Portland after graduation from M ore­
house College was among several other
candidates under consideration by the
BLC .
Northwest Front Avenue Urban Renewal Project
Completed; Bonds To Be Paid Off 18 Years Early Saving
Taxpayers More Than $10 Million Interest Payments
Taxpayers w ill save more than $10
m illio n in interest payments w ith com ­
pletion o f the Portland Development
Com m ission’ s Northwest Front Ave­
nue Industrial Renewal Project and the
retirement 18 years early o f urban re­
newal bonds issued to finance it.
PDC Chairman Douglas M cGre­
gor announced achievement o f the
milestone at form al ceremonies held
January 31 at W ackcr Siltronic Corp., a
m ajor employer and principal property
owner in the urban renewal area.
McGregor called the Northwest
Front Avenue project “ a model for
future urban renewal programs.”
“ This project,” McGregor said,
“ demonstrates how a wise public in ­
vestment can come back to us many
times over in jobs and in a broader
property tax base. Paying o il the N orth­
west Front bonds 18 years in advance
o f the due date should send one unmis­
takable message to the taxpayer: ‘The
money you entrust to us is going to be
worked ‘ to the m ax’ on your behalf
w hile wc have it, and it w on’ t be tied up
in a project a day longer than necessary
to reach the intended result.’ ”
M ayor J.E. Bud Clark hailed the
project as ‘ ‘one o f PD C ’ s most success­
ful efforts.” PDC is the C ity ’ s urban
renewal, housing and economic devel­
opment agency.
“ This was an area that was largely
empty; there were a few vacant, run­
down buildings and a rock quarry,”
Clark recalled, referring to the 360-
acrc area along the west bank o f the
W illam ette River live miles north o f
downtown Portland. “ But now, because
o f this project anil the enormous invest­
ments made here by W ackcr and an
expanded Atochem fa c ility , more than
1,000 people have jobs in the N orth­
west Front urban renewal area. In addi­
tion, an estimated 2,000 to 4,000 others
in Portland and the region have jobs
they owe indirectly to this project be­
cause o f the m illio n s o f dollars in goods
and services Wacker and Atochcm buy
locally every year.”
Clark presented Certificates o f
Appreciation from the C ity to Dr.
Rudolph Staudigl, President and CEO
o f W ackcr, and to Gene Spina, plant
manager o f the Atochem North Am er­
ica fa cility.
Former Oregon Governor Neil
Goldschmidt said that the p u b lic’ s $14
m illio n investment in the project has
yielded “ hughdividends” fo rth e C ity .
Goldschmidt, as Mayor o f Port­
land in 1978, was instrumental in per­
suading Wacker to locate its plant in
the Northwest Front district and in es­
tablishing the urban renewal area that
made public financing o f necessary
improvements there possible.
“ Assessed property value in the
urban renewal area has quadrupled since
th e n -fro m $32 m illio n to $132 m il­
lion. Tax revenues available for the
benefit o f Portlanders from one end o f
the C ity to the other have risen 19-
fo ld -fro m $165,000 back in 1978 to
$3.1 m illion now,” Goldschmidt added.
“ This is the way urban renewal
was meant to work; the Northwest Front
project has brought jobs to Portland
that w o u ld n 't have come otherwise.
W ackcr came at a time when the worst
recession in a generation was about to
engulf us. This project has generated,
all told, more than $14 in private in ­
vestment fo r every dollar put in by the
taxpayer,” Goldschmidt said. “ The
taxpayer clearly has gotten his money’ s
A
I
moving barriers to their success and
independence.
Who: Applications to Project In­
dependence w ill be accepted lrom in­
dividuals who are displaced homemak­
ers or single parents w ith children 18 o f
younger. Applicants must also live in
the city o f Portland; be socially or
economically disadvantaged and be able
to benefit from participation in Project
Independence.
Cost: Project Independence is cur­
rently funded through June, 1993, w ith
new sessions each term. The day time
class is free, and the evening class has
a charge o f $50 to the student. I f a
student needs scholarship assistance,
they should tell the sta ff during the
intake interview.
How: An applicant should person­
a lly call our office to be included in an
orientation session. A fte r the orienta­
tion, there w ill be an opportunity to
schedule an individual intake interview
for final admittance into the program.
Orientation sessions occur each term.
T im e: Beginning Fall o f ’91, there
w ill be an evening and day session o f
Project Independence. Day classes are
8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Monday,
Wednesday and Friday; and evening
classes are Monday and Wednesday
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Note: AFDC recipients should
n otify their caseworker i f they apply.
worth from the Northwest Front project
and I ’ m proud to have been involved in
starting it.”
The Wacker fa c ility , which opened
in February 1980, produces hyper-pure
silicon wafers, the base material fo r
integrated circuits in electronic devices.
Wacker chose the Portland site after
in itia lly considering some 70 locations
in the U.S. It has invested more than
$ 150 m illio n since acquiring its 80-acre
site in the Northwest Front district. In
the same period, Atochem (form erly
Pennwalt), a chemical company, has
invested $50 m illio n in expansion o f its
plant in the urban renewal area.
A ll o f the original production and
clerical workforce hired by Wacker were
Portland residents; 450 o f them came to
W acker through a special Portland
Com m unity College program. Today, a
decade later, 41% o f the o riginal
workforce is s till on W acker’ s payroll.
The $14 m illio n in urban renewal
and redevelopment bonds now being
retired were issued in 1978 at 8% inter­
est and were due to mature in 2010.
Paying them o ff now means that the
remaining 18 years o f interest payments,
totaling some $10 m illio n , need not be
made and represents a direct savings to
the taxpayer.
The bonds paid for improvement
and realignment o f Front Avenue to
improve access to the area, for acquisi­
tion and assembly o f land parcels for
the Wacker fa c ility , installation o f tw o
major storm sewers and relocation o f a
gas transmission line. The role o f pub­
lic funds in the land acquisition was a
critical factor in Portland’ s selection by
W ackcr over the other fin alist cities
that were competing for the facility.