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“Serving the com m unity through c u ltu ral diversity."
Y olum n XXIII. N um ber 29
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Seems Like Summer, A lm o st
We awakened this
morning,
Not having much to
say,
Except, We wonder
what to do today".
Peeking through our
various shades,
We were delighted to
see,
That the sunshine
was looking back as
we,
Shielded our eyes
with utter joy,
and great ado,
expressed, Oh Boy!
Former House Postmaster
Pleads guilty
To Embezzlement
Robert Rota, former postmaster of
the House Post Office, pleaded guilty to
two charges involving embezzlement.
The development is expected to advance
the investigation of two or three mem
bers of
Congress in connection with alle
gations that money was improperly ob
tained from the House Post office. As
part of his guilty plea Rota has agreed to
provide truthful testimony and to coop
erate fully in the on going investigation
See related story on page A4
As we hurried to
catch the sunshine
rays,
We joined others
going our way,
Who wanted a
chance in the sun to
play.
We were happy to
repeat,
Rain, Rain, go away,
Rain, Rain, go today.
Rain, Rain, do not
stay,
Rain, Rain, try some
other day.
Drinking W ater
For Flood Victims
Two tanker trucks each holding
4,500 gallons of drinking water the tank
ers are the first elements of aid that the
water purification company is providing
to Iowa’s capital city where damage to a
waste treatment plan has left 250,000
people without drinking water.
See related story on page B4
So here we are, all in
our places,
With sun beams
gracing our smiling
faces!
W hite Supremlsts Target
Rodney King To Start W ar
__2_______ _____ _____ _________________________________________________________ —--------------
Youngsters On King Elementery Playground enjoy our skies last Saturday (July 17). Apparentely, they really are
enjoying themselves. Along with the rest o f us , they are looking forward to several more sunny days o f what has
turned out to he an Indian summer
The FBI said six reputed white
supremists “skinheads” were arrested to
prevent them from blow ing up a rabbi
attaching a prominent black church with
machine guns and assassinating Rodney
King On display were an arsenal of
weapons, Nazi flags and uniforms and
pictures of Adolf Hitler confiscated dur
ing the arrests.
See related story on B2
National Urban
League Selects
Portland Affiliate
And CEO AS Race Relations Award Fi
nalist
The National Urban League has selected
the Urban League of Portland and its President
Dr. Daryl S. T ukufu asonc of three finalists for
the first annual Whitney, Young, Jr. Leader
ship Award in Race Relations The award will
be presented each year to the local Urban
League affiliate and president who have dem
onstrated outstanding leadership in race rela
tions in their community.
The winning affiliated and CEO will be
named at the National Urban League Annual
Conference in Washington. D C on August 4,
1993. The award includes a $10.000 award to
the affiliate and $ 1.000 aw ard to the affiliate's
chief executive officer.
The announcement w as made by Mildred
Love, National Urban League vice president
for affiliate services.
Clinton Picks New
FBI Director
President Clinton has picked U S.
District Judge Louis Freeh of New Y ork,
a former FBI agent and federal prosecu
tor as director of the FBI. Speaking
briefly, Freeh said, “If confirmed by the
Senate, I pledge to a total commitment to
the FBI whose only beacon is the rule of
law.”
See related story on B2
Protesters March Against
Gay Compromise
About 500 protestors marched in
west Hollywood, CA to demonstrate
against President Clinton’scompromise
policy on homosexuals in the military.
The Protesters w ere angered by the com-
ironuse.
See related story on page B2
M exico Deports
Chinese Refugees
Mexico completed the deportation
of 6 6 1 Chinese refugees who landed in
Baja California after the U S. Coast
Guard blocked their efforts to enter the
United States in Mehrec fishing boats
The Chinese, attempting to enter the
U S. illegally, were intercepted by the
Coast Guard in International waters
under a new U S. policy.
See related story on A3
OLCC Hearing
Recommendation On Gabi’s
A recommendation on the rcncwcl of the
liquor license for G abi's Resteraunt and
Lounge located at 5700 NE Martin Luther
King Jr. Blvd in Portland, was released today
by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission
OLCC hearings examiner David Slansky, who
heard the case, found there was a history of
serious and persistent problems at Gabi's, bu,
said the owners, Cordell and Etta Blockson,
had taken steps to overcome these problems.
Slansky recommended that the Block-
sons be granted a renewal of their license with
restrictions includecmployingasecurity guard
to patrol the business, maintaining a daily
incident log, maintaining a list of persons
barred from the premises and checking cus
tomers at the hearings exam iner’s recommen
dation as the second step in the internal pro
cess. Earlier, OLCC regulatory staff proposed
that G abi’s license not be renewed because of
serious problems such as fights, altercation
and stabbings at the lounge.
The licensee requested a hearing to con
test the initial decision not to renew the li
cense. Slansky, the OLCC hearings examiner
who served as the fact-finder in the contested
case hearing, has written a report based on the
testimony. His recommendation will go to the
citizen board of liquor commissioners, who
will make the final decision on the matter. The
earliest the commissioners will hear the case
is at their August 16 meeting, according to
Lyons.
“Right now we are still involved in an
internal decision-making process,” Lyons
said “The com m issioners have several
options when the case conics before them
Over use Of “Front”
Disadvantage Business.
James L. Posey
The National Association of Minority
ContractorsofOrcgon (NAMCO) iseinbroiled
in probably the most significant legal action
brought against a public agency since the land
mark Croson decision; which struck down
utilization of minority business goals on local
public work contracts. On June 25, 1993
NAMCO filed a compliant on behalf of it’s
members in circuit court seeking a prelim i
nary injunction against Tri-M et, Frontier
Kempcr/Traylor Bros, and Mendez Excava
tion on the Light Rail Tunnel project. But in
contrast to the Croson case, which was basi
cally some disgruntled white contractors try
ing to recapture 100% of the contracting pie
instead of 90%, the NAMCO action is a rare
African-American and minority contractor
offensive.
The legal action not only represents a
significant change in thrust for local minority
contractors, but signals that minority contrac
tors are no longer willing to sit back and be
starved into extinction. And while these same
contractors have not abandoned the tactics of
picketing, marching and demonstrating, they
have added the legal tactic to their arsenal.
It has always been a struggle to get a fair
piece of work, but Tri-Met was successful in
aggrav ating the already raw nerv es of minor
ity contractors who for more than a decade,
barely prevailed against impossible odds dur
ing the Rcagan/Bushadministration. In simple
terms, Tri-Met agreed to be party to a sham
contracting business arrangement, exploiting
and undermining the integrity of the disad
vantage business programs They in fact ap
proved a contract that would have allowed a
fraudulent disadvantage business to satisfy
the federal requirement to use disadvantage
businesses They agreed that the successful
bidder could use the hispanic firm out Colo
rado who is not qualified to perform the
proposed work This all would occur at the
expensive of legitimate local minority con
tractors who bidded above board and tried to
play by the rules.
While Tri-M et’s attempts to foster mi
nority participation through the use of it’s
Oregon Opportunities Advisory Committee
may not have been intentionally deceptive, it
certainly represents a perceived Trojan Horse
in the battle to obtain long sought after genu
ine minority participation. Even Tri-Met w ould
not argue that the award of this first contract
represent a total failure to included local mi
nority contractors Tri-Met must accept re
sponsibility for creating false expectations
and deepening the mistrust and alienation
toward the public agency
The bright side of these events is the fact
it has drawn together groups and interest that
would not ordinarily interact There appears
to be a broad spectrum of support for the
principles espoused by the NAMCO legal
action. NAMCO has gained momentum in it’s
attempt to engage the broader community
around equity in contracting And now they
are asking every one who can understand and
appreciated the significant of their actions to
rally and support their efforts
NAMCO is requesting that everyone
attend the scries of hearings beginning
Wednesday , July 21,9:30am , room 544 in the
Multnomah Courthouse The community can
also send contributions to help defer legal
expense to the "NAMCO Legal Fund for the
Light Rail project” in care of Bill Harden,
Secretary/Treasurer, 4837 NE Martin Luther
King Blvd., zip 97211.
Metro Page
Arts & Entertainment
Editorial
Automotive
“1 Have A D ream ”
John T. Sam ples, 95
A ctivists Say Clinton Has
Abandoned Blacks
Prepare For A Disaster
W ith your camping gear.
After pledging support fo r African Ameri
can communities during the campaign last
year. President Clinton has failed to deliver on
those promises.
Page A4
The samefirst aid kit you throw into the car
before going on a trip, you should stock it fo r
home emergencies.
Eighth graders go to Whitman College for
three weeks. And they enjoy a variety o f
classes.
Cats First Album A t Age 95
“He's still got it. ”
Page B3
Page BI
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They could decide to accept, modify or reject
the hearings exam iner’s recommendation
The commissioners will consider the issues,
weigh the facts in the case and reach their ow n
decision,” she said
Lee Moore, OLCC director of Hearings,
said that to some, the dccision-maki ng process
may seem confusing, but it is all a part of a
licensee’s right to due process under the law.
In his proposed order, Slansky found that
the licensees did not prove that the OLCC
discriminated against the licensee because of
race. He also found that the licensee was not
treated inconsistently or in an arbitrary fash
ion by the commission The licensee had
argued that imposing certain restrictions de
parted from normal procedures and were based
on racism.
Slansky said in h is w ritte n order
that”.. The record show s that in its case against
Licensees, the Regulatory staff focused upon
the problems involving physical harm or the
threat o f physical harm to Licensees’ patrons
These arc problems of legitimate concern to
people of all races. The record docs not show
that the Regulatory stalTignored similar com
plaints about to the promises that were white
owned.”
In regard to the licensees' charge that
requiring the lounge to check patrons for
weapons was discriminatory , Slansky wrote
“ given the past problems with patrons using
or threatening to use weapons at Gabi’s. the
Hearings Examiner concludes that the search
ing for weapons restriction is reasonable.”
OLCC Regulatory staff and the licensees
have 15 days to file exceptions to the order
Tri-Met
Injunction
HOUSING
EDITORIAL
ENTERTAINMENT
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A2
B3
V
SPORTS
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FOOD
AUTOMOTIVE
CLASSIFIEDS
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