J une 1, 1994 • T he P ortland O bserver
P age A2
R ainbö W
■jUurtlattb
©bserrier
(U SPS 959-680)
OREGON’S OLDEST AFRICAN
AMERICAN PUBLICATION
E sta b lish e d in 1970 by A lfred
L. H end erso n
Joyce W ashington
P u b lish er
C O A 1U 11 I I O ]N
T H E V O T IN G T O U R
Justice Demands River
Clean Up
S T A N D U P F O R Y O U R R IO R T S ’
M AY 27 - J U N E 6 7
asm™
NC
BY
K?
by Ö
B E ernice
/M M *
T h e P O R T L A N D O B SE R V E R
is lo cated a t
4747 N E M L K .J r . Blvd.
P o rtla n d , O reg o n 97211
503-288-0033
Fax 503-288-0015
Rocky Mount
Greenville NC
Durham
Greenboro
Winston-Salem
Ch ariette
Deadline for all submitted
materials:
A rtic le s:F rid a y , 5 :0 0 p m
A d s: M o n d a y N o o n
P O S T M A S T E R : Send A ddress
C h an g es to:
P o rtla n d O b se rv e r,
P.O . Box 3137, P o rtla n d ,
O R 97208.
Second Class postage p a id at
Portland, Oregon.
The Portland Observer welcomes
freelance submissions. Manuscripts
and photographs should be clearly
labeled and will be returned. If ac
companied by a self addressed enve
lope. All created design display ads
become the sole property of the news
paper and can not be used in other
publications or personal usage, with
out the written consent of the general
manager, unless the client has pur
chased the composition of such ad.
© 1994 TH E PO RTLA N D
O BSERV ER. ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED. REPRODUCTION IN
WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT
PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED.
Subscriptions :$30.00 p er year.
The Portland O bserver-O regon’s
Oldest African-American Publica-
tion-is a member of the National
Newspaper Association-Founded in
1885, and The National Advertising
Representative Amalgamated Pub
lishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The
W est C oast B lack P ublishers
Association • Serving Portland and
Vancouver.
The Rainbow /CBC V oter Registration & Voting Rights Bus Crusade will go to 17 cities in 7 states in
10 days. In addition to highlighting Shaw V. Reno, part o f the focus o f the crusade is passage and
implementation, at the state level, o f the National V oter Registration Act (NVRA), which was passed and
signed into law in 1993. Tw enty-one states have yet to com ply fully with the law, with a deadline o f January
1,1995 for all but Virginia, which has a deadline o f 1996 because o f necessary state constitutional changes.
The chart below sum m arizes seven southern states w ith regard to key voting procedures.
STATES
VOTER REGISTRATION
PROCEDURES
TX
LA
FL
GA
SC
NC
VA
In Full C om pliance W ith T he NVRA
N
N
N
N
N
N
N
X
..................................................
-
-
-
-
X
Passed (S tate H ouse & Senate)
X
X
Sen
-
Im plem enting
X
X
-
-
No Bill In tro d u c e d Yet
Bill P ending
X
N
Y
N
Y
Y
N
C e n tra liz e d V oting File
Y
Y
Y
N
Y
N
Y
E arly V oting (P rio r T o E lection Day)
Y
N
N
N
N
N
N
F a ilu re T o V ote (Y ears)
2
N
2
-3
2
2
4
Felony C onviction
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
M ental In com petence
Y
Y
Y
Y
N
N
Y
Moved
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Agency B ased R eg istratio n
Y
N
N
N
N
N
N
D eputy R e g istra rs
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
VR D eadline, G e n e ra l E lection (O ct.)
8
24
10
10
8
-
17
1 1 ...............................................................
D ays B efore E lection
30
P u rging P ro ced u res:
24
30
30
30
21
Y
31
Notes On Voting Rights & The NVRA: In LA, Senator Bagneris and the Black C aucus are the state’s
biggest advocates for the NVRA; in SC, G overnor Cam pbell may veto the NVRA legislation, and a federal
judge is expected to approve nine majority black state legislative districts in June; and in N C, M ickey
M icheaux is leading the efforts in Raleigh to pass the NVRA legislation.
Hide Your Genes;
Somebody May Patent Them
abilities.
A m o d e r n h e a lth c h e c k u p
m ig h t see an in d iv id u a l’s g e n e tic
p ro file re la tiv e to a s u s c e p tib ility
to r a d ia tio n fro m x -ra y s, c ig a
re tte sm o k e , n u c le a r p la n t a c c i
d e n ts , h ig h v o lta g e tra n s m is s io n
lin e s , s u n ta n s , c e r ta in p e s tic id e s
a n d h e rb ic id e s , sa c c h a rin e an d
o th e r sp e c ific fo o d a d d itiv e s , m i
c ro w a v e s o r a n y o th e r io n iz in g
r a d ia tio n , in c lu d in g ra d o n g a s in
th e h o m e o r ra d io /T V to w e rs.
-
Y
p e r s p e
’m serious! A lot o f readers
have been following my se
ries, “S eeds o f C h ange,”
w here I’ve described how interna
tional corporations are waging fierce
battles to gain firm legal control and
a proprietary interest in the genes of
the plants and livestock that feed us.
Have these new concerns diverted our
attention for the first line o f defense -
- the body itself?
Just last w eek, Portland hosted
the 25th annual international m eet
ing o f the “Environm ental Mutagen
S ociety.” A m utagen is an agent -
chem ical or radiation, deliberate or
accidental - that causes/prom otes a
change in the chrom osom es (genes).
M ore than 400 scientists and govern
m ent regulators gathered to discuss
how to m easure the scale o f risks from
c o u n tle ss en v iro n m en tal hazards.
They are w orking toward developing
a “genetic zip sheet” that might warn
people o f their ow n special vulner
X
M ail-In R eg istratio n
According to Phillip C . Hanawalt, have only to cite their perform ances
professor of biology at Stanford U ni in respect to syphilis or the A ID S/
versity, “Although the DNA in each HIV situation which has rendered
human cell is like a tape (or floppy their endeavors suspect no m atter the
disk) containing all the inform ation depth and com m itm ent o f other ac
necessary to re-create that individual, tivities. A t the least there could have
the body routinely makes use of only been adequate monitoring o f the more
3 percent - and is not very good at reckless contingent.
There is further shock and dis
repairing the other 97 percent if som e
tress for those who
th ing happens to it.”
Aside from the question of why pick up the June
G od, in all his infinite w isdom , has issue o f the very
not more closely monitored his in widely-read “Sci
vention which obviously was intended entific A m erican
to be fail safe, we would make further M agazine” - are
inquiry as to why these hum ans he you ready for this?
created spend so much time stupidly There, beginning
typing to alter the “garden/environ- on page 108, is a how to do it yourself
m enf ’ that matches their genetic struc article on GENE M ANIPULATION,
“ G e n e tic a lly
A lte rin g
ture? Laboratory rats and chim pan title d
E
scherichia
C
oli.”
You
heard
me
zees always seem perfectly happy in
right!
T
hat
is
the
little
bacteria
that
their natural environs (and healthy)
until we either modify their habitat or closes up the ham burger joints, kill
ing and crippling patrons across the
cruelly experim ent upon them.
country.
“Because E. Coli is already
It w ill no d o u b t o c c u r to som e
present
in
your gut there is little to
o f us th a t th e b u sin e ss o f the “ E n
v iro n m e n ta l M u ta g e n S o c ie ty ” worry about,” have fun.
T he ste p by ste p in stru c tio n s
c o u ld very e a sily beco m e th a t o f
an “ E x p e rim e n ta l M u tag en S o c i (w h ic h can lead to b ig g e r and
b e tte r tric k s w hen m a ste re d ) b e
e ty .”
Such a development would sur g in , a c c o m p a n ie d by illu s tra tio n s
prise none who have been shocked an d a lis t o f to o ls any high school
and distressed by the conduct o f the stu d e n t m ay o b ta in , “ T he e s s e n
m edical and scientific com m unities. tia l tric k to m a n ip u la tin g E .C o li
And this w hether we speak of indi g e n e tic a lly is to get the c r e a tu r e ’s
viduals, professional associations, sin g le c e ll to th in k th a t a fo re ig n
universities, governm ent agencies, g en e is one o f its o w n !” Is th is
corporations, or other entities. We how A ID S b e g a n ? S le e p w ell.
c
t
Danger! ‘
?
Civil Rights
Journal
P owell J ackson
he Imperial Valley is a lush
agricultural center about
an hour and a half east of
San Diego. R unning through this
valley is the New River. Some say
it’s a new river because it was c re
ated w hen the C o lo rad o R iver
changed its course, running from
the Rocky M ountains into M exico
and then northw ard where it em p
tied into the Salton Sea instead of
the G ulf o f California. O thers say
the river changed its course when
farm ers started the m assive irriga
tion farm ing w hich m akes the land
lush and green today. Today the
New River is one o f the m ost con
tam inated rivers in the world.
T he riv e r is p o llu te d w ith
chem icals from 200 industrial plants
located in M exico. T he firms dum p
so m uch discharge from their plants
into the w ater that at tim es the river
has had a foul sm elling foam on top
o f it. Raw sew age and annual excre
m ent is dum ped by the city of
Mexicali, a town of between 600,000
and one million people, with a sew
age system built for no m ore than
300,(XX).
As the river winds north though
C alifornia’s Imperial Valley, itgoes
past parks and new housing divisions
inhabited mostly by poor Hispanic
Americans with little political clout.
Children play near and in the river.
The C alifornia Regional W a
ter Quality Control Board has spot
ted considerable debris in the river,
including vegetables, shoes, greasy
globules, bottles, animal carcasses
and even a dead human body. The
state has found invisible pollutants
in the river, m ost notably viruses
carrying polio, encephalitis, hepa
titis and bacteria such as salm onella
and E coli.
But the incredible and deadly
pollution is now new. Fifty years
ago the state noticed the pollution of
the river. Yet, despite many m eet
ings and discussions since then with
/
V
both the U.S. and Mexican govern
ments, nothing significant has o c
curred. The Mexican governm ent
pleads lack of funds and the U.S.
claim s lack o f authority. Even com-
prehensive monitoring data and risk
assessm ents have not been done.
The only firm data available is from
fish in the New River which con
tain high levels o f PCBs, D D T and
Toxaphene, all known to cause can
cer.
But tw o new developm ents
have brought hope to residents who
live near the New River. President
C linton has signed a bill and a
treaty which might provide some
relief. U nder the Environm ental
Justice Act, the governm ent is re
quired to show remedies for sites
where environm ental racism can
be proven. And under the new North
A m erican Fair Trade A greem ent,
the governm ent has com m itted it
self to negotiate with the Mexican
governm ent around environm en
tal problem s.
Im perial County officials are
hoping that the Environm ental Pro
tection Agency will agree that it
has the authority to take action in
M exico. And that it will then issue
subpoenas to the corporate pollut
ers and order the M exican plan
m anufacturers to pay for the much-
needed study of the New River pol
lution.
The Com m ission for Racial
Justice has been w orking on issues
o f environm ental racism for the
past 12 years. O ur expertise tells us
that the U.S .-M exico border region
is one integral eco-system which
stretches across m an-m ade politi
cal boundaries.
O urcom m itm ent to justice tells
us that the people who live near the
New River deserve to live in a safe,
clean environm ent and that their
voices much be heard by their gov
ernm ents on both sides o f the bor
der. The New River must be cleaned
up. Justice dem ands no less.
6
S
of Change’ Are In Your
Tank - More Ethanol
c o rro siv e q u a litie s o f a lc o h o l.
xasperated Portland/Oregon g a s-d e riv e d m e th a n o l. “C a rb o h y
T
H
E R E P O R T A L SO SAYS:
d
r
a
te
”
c
o
rp
o
ra
tio
n
s
lau
g
h
a
ll
the
drivers may not have seen
•
O
x y g e n a te d fu e ls c o s t se v n to
w
ay
to
the
b
a
n
k
.
‘nuthin’ yet! The corporate
10
c e n ts m o re p e r g a llo n .
W
hen
you
read
my
list
of
“Com
agricultural m achine that does busi
•
T
h
e
y can
h u r t c a r s if
ness as the “Renew able Fuels Asso mon Problem s...” and you become
im
p
r
o
p
e
r
tly
b
le n d e d .
ciation” has the blessings o f the EPA angry beyond belief at the revela
•
F
o
r
o
ld
e
r
c
a
r
s
:
to siphon more gasoline out o f your tions, ready to grab the phone to call
A lc o h o l a t t r a c t s m o is tu r e .
tank and more dollars out o f your your favorite politician - keep in
w allet. DEQ stalls on 1995 clean air m ind that he may already have been T he w a te r th a t o fte n fo rm s on the
r e q u i r e m e n t s , re a c h e d . T h a t R en ew ab le Fuels to p o f the fuel in the tan k is d if f i
how ever, for ex- Assocation spent several months lob c u lt fo r the sy ste m to p ro c e ss. It
aetproportionsof bying the W hite House to get the EPA can lead to filte r and je t p lu g g in g .
A lc o h o l c o lle c ts s e d im e n t.
ethanol in gaso to require that 30 percent o f the na
tio n al eth a n o l m a rk e t is c o n tro lle d W hen th e d e b ris e n te rs the fuel
line.
L ast month, by A rc h e r-D a n ie ls-M id la n d C o ., sy ste m , it can c lo g a c a rb u re to r,
in my “ S e e d s of th e U .S .-b a se d m u ltin a tio n a l I d e in je c to r o r f i l t e r . ( T h e r e a re
C h a n g e ” se rie s, sc rib e d so v iv id ly last m onth. T his c la im s th a t so m e d e te rg e n ts and
I d e sc rib e d how m u ltin a tio n a l c o r frie n d o f th e R e p u b lic a n P arty d e p o s it- c o n tr o l a d d itiv e s c a n
p o ra tio n s in th e a g ric u ltu r a l fie ld h a s now sw itc h e d its se v e n -fig u re m in im iz e the d e b ris .)
A lc o h o l is a s o lv e n t. W hen
a re b e g in n in g to m a n ip u la te the c o n trib u tio n s to the C lin to n a d
m
in
is
tra
tio
n
.
R
ead
the
fo
llo
w
in
g
an
a
u
to m ust use a lc o h o l-b le n d e d
e n tire e c o n o m y th ro u g h the g e
fu e l, i t ’s b est to c h a n g e ru b b e r
n e tic m a n ip u la tio n o f fo o d p la n ts a n d w eep.
C o m m o n P r o b le m s o f O x y h o se s, p la stic c a p s, g a sk e ts and
-- w h ere natu ral d iv e rsity has been
fuel filte rs to m e ta l, w h en ev er
sa c rific e d fo r p a te n ta b le c o m m e r g e n a te d F u e ls :
c ia l p a ra m e te rs th a t w ill in su re • O x y g e n a te d fu ie s d o n o t h a v e p o ssib le.
th e sa m e e n e r g y c o n te n t as
A lc o h o l fu m e s m a y m a k e
p ro fita b ility . O n M ay 3, I b a re ly
g a s o lin e , sa y s a re p o rt in the c o n s u m e r s s ic k . M o to r is ts in
to u c h e d th e tip o f the ic e b e rg ,
A utoW eek issue o f Feb. 21. Poor A la sk a , w ho pu m p th e ir ow n g as,
“ C o n tr o llin g P la n ts F o r Y o u r
fuel ec o n o m y is a co m m on c o m c o m p la in e d o f d iz z in e ss and h e a d
B ody O r A u to m o b ile .”
a c h e s.
p la in t.
T o d a y , I am in c lu d in g a very
“ T he b e st th a t c a n be said
p re c is e c o m p ila tio n o f p ro b le m s • A u to W e e k a ls o r e p o r t s f e a r s
a b o u t c o ro s io n o f o ld e r en g in e a b o u t e th a n o l, re p o rts A utoW eek,
v e h ic le o w n e rs m ay e x p e c t from
p a rts, v ap o r lock and d riv a b ility “ is th a t a sid e from h e lp in g s u p
the g o v e rn m e n t e n fo rc e d u se o f
p ro b le m s . M any a u to m a k e rs p o r t g r a in p r i c e s , it g iv e s
“ o x y g e n a te d fu e ls” from s u p p o s
have re p la c e d p la stic fu el sy s a u to m a k e rs so m e w h a t o f a break
e d ly 'r e n e w a b le re s o u r c e s ’ -- 30
tem p a rts w ith m etal c o m p o in th a t no new e m issio n c o n tro l
p e rc e n t o f th e a lc o h o l m u st co m e
n
e n ts sin c e 1980. T h e m etal e q u ip m e n t w ould be re q u ire d as a
fro m g r a in - d e r iv e d “ e t h a n o l ”
p
a rts are m o re re s is ta n t to the re su lt o f usin g o x y g e n a te d fu e l.”
r a th e r th an th e c o a l o r n a tu ra l