f » '*
P age A S
T he P ortland O bserver • J uly 7, 1993
NAFTA: A Bad Gamble For
African Americans
BY WILLIAM LUCY
A frica n Am ericans have a im
portant stake in a new trade agree
ment now pending in the Congress
T hat trade agreement is the N orth
N A F T A w ill make it worse
N A F T A p ro p o n e n ts c la im
that firm s arc not m oving to M exico
per hour
fo r low rates, but rather to reach
Threats to move production to
the M exican consumer market That
M exico w ill depress m anufacturing
wages as w e ll as undercut wages in c la im is rid icu lo u s The M e xica n
other sectors o f the economy. One market is tin y, less than five percent o f
economist concluded that N AF1 A w ill the U.S. market. By almost any c ritc -
in flic t an average annual wage loss o f rion, there arc more attractive con-
$1,000 per w orker fo r the low er 70 sumer markets rig h t here in the U.S.,
in
clu d in g ----------
A fric a n A m erican comm u-
------------o
percent o f the U.S. labor force
* T o be sure, increased unem nines. Consider this, in 1990, the
ploym ent and wage depression w ill aggregate purchasing power o f the
have pow erful rip p le effects through A fro -A m e rica n com m unity was $265
b illio n , roughly equal to M e x ic o ’ s
out every A fric a n A m erican com m u
private
nity.
ill re- Gross Domestic Product— all „<-«770
n u y . Less
uc»» disposable income w
.....
suit in sh rin k in g retail sales fo r neigh- and public sector spending
w ith wages in six o f the nine affected
industries averaging more than $12
A m erican Free Trade Agreement, or
N A F T A as it is better know n
Very little has been w ritte n in the
black press about N A F T A , but the
economic im plications o f this trade
agreement fo r A frica n Am ericans are
enormous.
C u rre n tly, there is a big debate on
the benefits that U S industry could
yie ld from N A F T A , but little is said o f
the grave ana
pact m
at w in
and severe im
impact
that
ill
be suffered by A frica n Americans i f
this oact is approved.
borhood businesses The local tax base
Relative to th e ir w hite counter- w ill erode, d ryin g up fu n d in g fo r e n ti-
b illio n
Instead ofpol.ces to make^Mexico
parts, black workers are more lik e ly to
be employed in industries w h ich w ill
experience large jo b losses to M exico,
in c h id in g autom obiles and trucks,
cal government programs and ser-
vices. Public sector w orkers, w ho are
disproportionately female and m in o r-
ity, w ill be la id o ff
more attractive to ' nvcstorJ- ‘
government sho u ld^n co u ra g u n ve st-
ment in our ow n A fric a n A in c r c
M arket Ifth e Am erican business com-
* In addition to the obvious cco-
nom ic backlash o f N A F T A , there are
m u iiity were m aking investment in
jobs, plants and equipm ent in our
also social costs— ch ie fly, drug tra f-
fic k in g — to be considered. N A F T A is
lik e ly to put more crack cocaine on the
inner cities and poor rural com m um -
tics, as it is doing in M exico, black
unemployment should plum m et from
streets o f our inner cities.
A recent U.S. intelligence report
apparel, household glassware, ceram
ics, m ajor household appliances, and
electronics H istory has proven that
U.S. workers w ho are throw n out o f
w o rk because o f im port com petition
do not clim b up the jo b ladder. In
1991 average hourly wages in those
industries n m n in g a trade^deficit w ith
nesses as fronts fo r drug shipments
There is already a massive drug cn-
its current 14 percent.
L e t’ sbeclear: the real m otivation
behind N A F T A is the lure o f cheap
labor for U.S. investors. N A F T A is a
massive gamble w ith Am erica s eco
nom ic future. For A fric a n Americans,
, .
the odds are overw helm ingly stacked
M e xico ranged from $8.30 to $16.30,
forcem ent problem on the border,
against us.
stead, they fa ll back to low er wages, or
worse, end up in unemployment lines.
* Jobs lost to 1 mports from M exico
are high-wage m anufacturing jobs In
warned that d rug tra ffic k e rs have
started buy in g M exican m anufactur
ing, tru ckin g , and warehouse busi-
Common Sense Legal Services
sumers, the cost o f using an attorney to
handle every legal matter has out
grow n th e ir budget N ow , in Portland,
there is a affordable alternative to
seeing a lawyer: C O M M O N SENSE
L E G A L SERVICES offers assistance
to the general public in specific areas
o f the law: filin g a divorce, creating a
w ill o r liv in g trust, incorporating a
business, fo rm in g a partnership, f i l
in g fo r bankruptcy, or help in prepar
in g other legal documents.
The sta ff at C O M M O N SENSE
understands that many in d ivid u a ls
and fa m ilie s are seeking no legal ad
vice , but effe ctive and affordable
help w ith sim ple yet necessary legal
form s and documents. "O u r typical
clie n t knows exactly what she wants
as an end product,” according to
C O M M O N SENSE partner Casey
The number o f passengers using
A free summer tu to ria l program
for students in grades six and up is Portland International A irp o rt ( PD X)
being offered by the Urban League o f continues to increase at a phenomenal
Portland's W hitney M Young, Jr rate in 1993, vv ith a 2 1 percent grow th
Education and C u ltural Center The in May
A total o f 664,4X8 passengers
summer session w ill run from June 28
to July 29, Mondays to Thursdays flew through PDX in May 1993, far
between 9am and 3pm focus areasare surpassing the previous May record
ma(h readj ng w rj tin g and SAT ,cs,
o f 551,146 passengers set in 1992.
preparation
M a y’ s impressive performance
E nrollm ent is on a first-com e was the 13th consecutive month that
basis F o r
PDX has bettered the m onthly record
n fo r m a tio n , c o n ta c t
Herman Lessard o r G lo ria P h illip s at
for passengers. For the first five months
the Urban Lcaguc 280-2600.
o f 1993, PDX passenger count is 20
N ortness, " B u t we a ll need help
occasionally, especially in a com plex
legalistic society, w ith choosing the
rig h t words to use or proper form to
file C O M M O N SENSE offers con
sumer s a choice o f services at an
affordable cost, and w ith a faster tu rn
PORTlAMr~
ÜF.VE1.OPMENT
COMMISSION
COMMISSION MEETING
C a rg o th ro u g h P D X is also
achievingdouble-digit grow th May s
14, 4X7 tons was 14 percent above
Date: July 14,1993
Place: Portland Building
1120SW Fifth Ave., 11 th Floor
Portland, Oregon
Time: 9:30a.m.
Commission meetings are open to
the public. A complete agenda is
available at PDC or by calling
823-3200. Citizens with disabilities
may call 823-3232 or TDD 823-6868
for assistance at least 48 hours in
advance.
PDC is the City of Portland's urban
renewal, housing and economic
development agency.
Rep G ail Shibley, D-Portland,
saw two o f her p rio rity b ills make
progress though the Legislature on
Wednesday. One piece o f legislation
House
2900, is aimed at noisy
truck brakes called “ja ke brakes.' The
other b ill. Senate B ill 262, requires
private dev elopers to prov ide bike pal 1 is
and foot paths along new roads TIB
combined legal experience Partner
Barbara D avis stressed the difference
between this service and a law firm :
“ We aren’ t com peting w ith law firm s,
we d o n 't provide the same service I f
a c lie n t's need exceeds our ca p a b ili
ties, we refer them to an attorney. but
in most cases, we can assist clients
Mon - Fr. 10 a.in. - 6 p.m
Saturday 10 - 5:30 pin
because they know what they want
and it saves them substantial tim e and
N e a r L lo y d C e n te r
J
Bili
wide and requires the state to post
Taiw an helped boost our cargo n u m
bers in May, said Brockely.
PDX has now experienced 23 con
secutive record months fo r cargo O p
erations (takeoffs and landings) at the
•’• U r
Port o f P ortland's general aviatiort
airports arc heading in opposite direc
tions. Troutdale A irp o rt’ s operations
are up 10 percent for 1993 after 11
,£i:
percent growth in M a y . M a y ’ s 10,6X9
' •'
•f. re.
ir is
•v-.,
-...
operations at Troutdale are the most
for May there since 1979.
Operations at H illsb o ro A irp o rt,
however, continue to decline. In M a y .
5?
there were IX .726 o p e ra tio n s at
H illsboro, a 10 percent drop from M ay
1992 and the lowest M ay total since
?» A
1988 For 1993, H illsboro operations
'• I •
are down 15 percent.
r. , ;
w a rn in g signs fo r truck drivers. T h is
b ill was stuck in the legislative p ro
cess at one tim e, but Rep Shibley
forged an alliance w ith rural la w
maker Rep B ill M arkham , R -R iddlw ,
and brought together a ll interested
parties: truckers. Teamsters, State
Department o f Transportation, and
Public U tilitie s Commission, he P ort
< .
■J?
V. <
■iXi
f t
$
ató
ment«
&
'f e
&
282-1664
1105
money.”
4
&
A dvertise in the O bserver
N .E . B r o a d w a y
‘The Eyes and Ears ol the CcmmuntY
Sisterhood Luncheon
*£ » 7
2900 was approved by the Senate alter land lawmaker helped shapee a con
passing the House earlier in the week sensus and her jake brake regulations
and now goes to the Governor foi her were amended into a b ill sponsored by
signature SB 262 passed the Senate Rep. M arkham .
Rep Shibley began w o rkin g on
and is on its way to the House.
SB
262
du rin g the 1991 legislative
"These two b ills w ill make O r
session
to
create more bike paths along
egon a safer, better place fo r m otor
ists. pedestrians and bicyclists, “ said Oregon roadways The b ill died in
Rep. Shibley "T ransportation is one committee that year Shibley came
o f m y top issues and I feel H B 2900 back to the legislature this year and
and SB 262 form substantive, positiv e gave the legislation a second e ffo rt
le g is la tio n that w ill h elp people W o rkin g w ith her colleagues in the
throughout the Portland inctro area Senate, she advanced the b ill through
that chamber and is o p tim istic the
and throughout the state '
Oregonians vv ho live ot vv oi k neai House w ill also support it. The legis
busy highway s w ill be the most im m e lation requires developers to provide
diate beneficiaries o f HR "’ 9000 The bike pa’ hs and foot paths along new
so-called "anti-jake make b ill pro roads, when b u ild in g new roads in
hibits unm uffled engine braking state residential or com m ercial develop
E va G a b o r
N a o m i S im s
R enee o f P a r is
Synthetic & Human I lair
For Braiding & Weeving
May 1992’ s 12,729 tons and pushed
tonnage for 1993 to 69, 454, a 12
percent rise over 1992 Fresh cher
ries transiting PDX fo r Japan and
Shibley Moves Safe
Transportation Bills Portland
Lawmaker Takes Action On Truck
Notice, Bike Paths
O n e o f th e N o r th w e st Largest W ig D isp la y s
W ig s a n d H airpieces For all N a tio n a litie s
around.”
The sta ff as C O M M O N SENSE
is not a group o f lawyers, but trained
professionals w ith over 60 years o f
PO R TLAN D OBSERVER
percent abov e 1992 s record year
‘ A ttractive lares, new domestic
and international destinations like
Taipei and New Y ork, and new ca rri
ers a ll contributed to our grow th,”
said A via tio n director John Brockely.
PDC
21
PDX Passengers
Percent In May
W ig la n d
“A n a ffo r d a b le a lte r n a tiv e to a la w y e r ”
For a gro w in g number o f con
Whitney Young Center
Open For Free
Summer Tutoring
h
O flic e : (503)200-0033
F a x « : (503)200-0015
Dale: J u ly I, 1993
To: A frican-A m erican Women
From: A ve! Gordly, A m in a A nder-
son
O ur next Sisterhood Luncheon,
scheduled fo r July 9th at 11:30am,
w ill be hosted by R ip C ity D iner,
located at 3100 NE Sandy Blvd.
The Sisterhood Luncheon’ s are
sim ply a tim e for sisters to get to
gether, share inform ation, eat and en
jo y in the company o f other sisters.
We look forw ard to seeing you
there, ify o u have any questions and/or
comments please call Jo A nn A lle n @
52
Sv»
7X'-
Summertime Low Prices!
&
fe
K
&
-w#
SAFEWAY
282-7973.
P S. Feel free to b rin g a friend and
ify o u know o f anyone who w ould like
to be added to the m a ilin g lis t please
let m yself o r A rtangia know at the
above number
Ad Prices Good July 7 through July 13,1993 At Safeway.
Sw anson
F r o z e n D in n e r s
&
• S e le c te d v a rie tie s
• 8 .7 5 to 1 6 -o z .
• F irst 1 2 , a d d itio n a l
a t $ 1 .6 9 each
Parking Parol
Adds Swing Shift
*
vi
1
P ortland's P arking patrol w ill
provide enforcement u n til m id n ig h t
Tuesday thorough Saturday thro u g h
out the city lim its Previously, police
officers performed parking enforce
ment duties after 6pm. “ We continued
to receive com plaints from citizens
about blocked driv eways, fire hydrants
and crosswalks.” said Anne L a rkin ,
P arking Patrol Manager. "A d d in g the
■■
»,
dedicated sw ing sh ift should allow us
to provide better p arking enforcement
and reduce the burden on the Police
Bureau.”
T w o deputies w ill be enforcing
parking violations in clu d in g blocked
driveways, fire hydrants and cross
walks, tra ffic hazards as in blocking
tra ffic lanes and no parking zones As
meters arc not required after 6pm,
meters w ill not be enforced a flc r 6pm
an neither w ill lim e zones unless they
have an extended tim e w ritten on them
such as 10 minute p arking a ll hours
C itizens needingto report a park
ing problem between the hours o f <>pm
and 12 00 m id n ig h t can continue to
ca ll the C ity o f Portland Police non-
emergency number and the request
w ill be relayed to the p a tro llin g depu
E n j o y E x tr a S a v i n g s W ith T h e
N e w 'In -S to r e !
S a f e w a y S h o p p i n g <>ui<le
Look In The This Week
Magazine for your Safeway
Shopping Guide for a com plete
list of specials on sale this
w eek at Safeway!
Available at your Safeway store._________
ties
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