Anita Hill To
Speak
Halloween Fun!
Anita Hill, the law professor who
testified against Supreme Court
Justice Clarence Thomas, is
coming to Linfield College.
Portland's Zoo Boo, pumpkin
carving, food and carnivals. A
complete schedule of events.
See Metro, Inside.
® In'
Portland’s Boxing
Tradition
A former world heavyweight
contender signs a young prospect
for training.
See Halloween, page B5.
See Sports, page B2.
anh (f *
er»
Students Say Wilson Is Short On Diversity
by
M ichael L eighton
______________________________________ _
Lloyd Parking Meters
Opposed
Students at Wilson High marched into
the school office Monday demanding
a hearing on grievances over minority
concerns.
About 75 students were stopped just past
the office door by a uniformed police officer
Opposition to a city proposal to install
who asked them to move their protest to the
parking meters in the Lloyd Center district is
school’s auditorium.
growing. Five residental and merchant
The students then were provided with a
groups are developing strategies to defeat
microphone and addressed their complaints.
the proposal. The meters would be aimed at
Student Erica D eLazerda said the dem
promoting mass transit and managing avail
onstration was organized because there is a
able parking areas.
lack of cultural diversity at Wilson.
In particular, she said, were complaints
Blazer Says Tire Led To
over the jo b elimination of a staff counselor
Accident
hired for ethnic integration programs at W il
Portland Trail Blazer Guard James
son.
Robinson said he was not being careless
DeLazerda said the employee, school
when his 1994 Mercedes flipped over in a ,
counselor John Mays, had been pivotal in
spectacular wreck early Sunday on Inter
organizing support groups and addressing
state 5. Robinson estimated he was driving
the concerns o f minority students, especially
betw een 65 and 70 mph through the
Hispanic and black students.
Terwilliger curves when a tire blew out. He i
The students said they also were unhap
was shaken, but not seriously injured in the !
py with dress code policies, they claim un
accident.
fairly target clothing worn by minority stu
dents.
Alcohol Ban Sought For
To m ake th e ir p o in t, they w ore p a
Arena
p er hats from B u rg er K ing and w ore
A group of community organizations, . th e ir b elts h an g in g . T he hats and sty le o f
including the Ecumenical Ministries of Or
d re ss are a lle g e d ly b an n ed at the sch o o l
egon and Mothers Against Drunk Driving,
b ecau se they are said to be re la te d to
are opposing a proposal to permit alcohol
gangs.
consumption in seating areas of the Memo- i
The stu d e n ts said th ey w ere u p set by
rial Coliseum and new Rose Garden. The
the em p lo y m en t o f so few m inority te a c h
Oregon Liquor Control Commission is con
ers at the school and the lack o f c u ltu ra l
sidering the proposal by the Oregon Arena
d iv e rsity in the su b je c ts stu d ied . S tu
Corp.
d en ts also c o m p la in e d about m in o rity
re p re se n ta tio n on the s c h o o l’s hom e-
Hispanic Populations
Grow
A
Bahamas Want Stop To
Gun Smuggling
Islam Nation Meets In
Ghana
The Nation of Islam has concluded a
meeting in the west African nation of Gha
na, the group’s first such gathering outside
the U.S. Ghana’s President Jerry Rawlings
praised Nation of Islam leader Louis Farra-
khan as one of the "most impressive people
I have come across." However, observers
said relatively few Ghanaians participated
in the conference.
co m in g c o u rt and pep ra lly squads.
W ilson High School Principal Carole
Viebrock listened to the complaints during
the 35 minute presentation and then addressed
the students.
Viebrock said programs to improve eth
nic diversity at the school would not be
eliminated, despite the loss o f the counselor.
She asked the students to form a board of
students who represent every ethnic minority
at the school.
"We will work with you for inclusion
and improvement o f diversity,” she said.
Viebrock explained how the school’s
counselor for integration was assigned by the
school district to other duties because of
Housing Fair Held Saturday At Coliseum
Hispanics now outnumber blacks in
Los Angeles, Houston, Phoenix and San
home buying fair on Saturday
Antonio, four of the nation’s largest cities,
can help put you on a path
according to a recently released Census
tow ard home ow nership.
Bureau report. The reasons for the popula
tion shift appears to be that Hispanics are •
Fannie Mae, the nation’s largest source
having children at a faster rate and the in
o f home mortgage funds and the Portland
Trail Blazers are hosting the fair from 10
creasing numbers of middle income blacks
a.m. to 5 p.m. at Memorial Coliseum.
who are leaving the cities for the suburbs.
The event is part of an effort to increase
America’s Poverty
home ownership in the metropolitan area.
"By teaming up with the Blazers, we
Rates Rise
hope
to reach thousands o f low and moder
According to a new Census Bureau
ate
income
residents of the Portland area
report, the number of Americans living in
who
think
they
may never own a home and
poverty went up last year for the fourth year
show
them
how
they can get started,” said
in a row. And the group with the highest
Jam
es
A.
Johnson,
chairman and chief ex
poverty rateis African Americans. A soflast
ecutive
officer
for
Fannie
Mae.
year a record 33 percent of American blacks
The
fair
brings
together
a wide range of
were officially classified as poor. The gov
experts
at
one
location
who
can
provide all
ernment classifies a family of four as poor if
types
o
f
information
on
the
home-buying
it earns less than $ 14,763 a year. Overall, 39
process.
million Americans fall below the poverty
According to the latest Census figures,
line.
the overall home ownership rate in Portland
Faced with a rise in violent crime, pol
iticians in the Bahamas are calling on the
U.S. to do more to stop the smuggling of
weapons out of the U.S. into the resort nation
where the primary industry is tourism. The
call comes after the Bahamas has stepped up
its efforts to slow the flow of illegal drugs
into the U.S.
Wearing hats the school says are gang-related, senior Erica DeLazerda leads about 75 of her classmates on a protest at
Wilson High School.
is 53 percent,
below the na
tional average
o f 64.2 p e r
cent.
A m ong
minorities, the
d is p a rity is
greater: only
one o u t o f
three African-Americans and Hispanics who
live in the greater Portland/Vancouver area
own their own home.
“Naturally, w e’d like to see more people
be able to own homes because with ow ner
ship comes increased pride in neighborhood."
said M arshall Glickman. Blazers/O rcgon
Arena Corp, president. Glickman said the
Blazers and the arena corporation are deeply
committed to supporting efforts to revitalize
local neighborhoods.
The fair will focus on the how-to's o f the
home-buying process, including how to qual
ify for a mortgage, how to repair credit prob
lems and how to find affordable loans.
M ore than 80 in fo rm a tio n bo o th s
w ill be set up w ith m o rtg a g e len d ers,
c o u n se lin g g ro u p s, c o m m u n ity o rg a n i
z a tio n s. real e sta te p ro fe ssio n a ls and
o th e rs. W o rk sh o p to p ic s c o v e r the p ro
c ess o f q u a lify in g for a m o rtg a g e , fin d
ing a ffo rd a b le loans and u n d e rs ta n d
ing c re d it issu es. The fair is designed to
help eliminate the lack of knowledge and
fear that can sometimes come with the
home-buying process.
F annie M ae said th e se tw o b a rrie rs
have proven to be se rio u s im p e d im e n ts
to bu y in g a hom e. F u rth e rm o re , the
c o m p an y has found th a t the ab se n c e o f
in fo rm a tio n a b o u t the h o m e -b u y in g
p ro c e ss c o rre la te s w ith a lack o f c o n f i
d e n c e in o n e ’s a b ility to n e g o tia te a
p u rc h a se o f a hom e.
budget cuts.
She said Mays was now em ployed half
time at W hitaker Middle School and half
time at M adison High School.
The position at W ilson was started in the
70s to help students make the transition from
a segregated school to one that is racially
integrated.
Blankets
Needed To
Warm Families
he Low Incom e F a m ilie s
Emergency Center has begun
its annual drive to collect
blankets for needy fa m ilies and
individuals in the Portland metro area.
T
"W e ho p e to c o lle c t 200 b la n k e ts
b e fo re the w in te r w e a th e r b e g in s, said
c h a ir R ich ard R ic k e l. “ A lot o f n eedy
fam ilies and se n io r c itiz e n s co m e to us
fo r help and we need to be r e a d y .”
The blankets should be in good shape
and clean .
T hey can be d ro p p e d o ff at the L IF E
C e n te r, 2746 N .E . M artin L u th e r K ing
Jr. B lv d ., or a p ic k -u p can be a rra n g e d
by c a llin g 2 8 4 -6 8 7 8 .
For m ore in fo rm a tio n , call d ire c to r
C h a rle s C a rte r at 2 8 4 -6 8 7 8 .
Young Minorities Recruited For Apprenticeships
Y
oung people in Portland are in
a good position for lifetime
employment in skilled labor
jobs.
Keith Edwards and others in the con
struction trades are looking for minority and
other students to enroll in apprenticeship
programs to meet increasing job demands.
Students can prepare themselves for ac
ceptance into these jobs by concentrating on
their education, especially in math and En
glish.
"Be all you can be, and get the most out
of school," Edwards advises young people
Opportunities in the construction trades
is “one of the best keep secrets." Edwards
said.
“A skill can take you to the jobs and keep
you employed for a family" he said
Portland’s projected growth in popula
tion and business is expected to sustain and
create a need for skilled labor jobs for many
years to come.
Edwards started his career as an electri
cian in 1969. At the time he was only one of
six African Americans employed in the pro
fession in Portland. Today, there are nearly
50 journeym an and apprentice electricians in
the metropolitan area who are black and the
numbers are going up.
Edwards, as a member o f the Interna
tional Brotherhood of Electrical W orkers, is
involved with the Metro Electrical Training
Trust, an educational facility for the con
struction trades at N ortheast 42nd and
Killingsworth The facility is supported bv
the union and employers.
He also works with Portland Communi-
Keith Edwards
ty College to create and support classes giv
ing students jo b skills.
He said, currently, there is a shortage of
skilled labor in the Portland workforce.
Lou Boston of the Oregon Arena Project
echoes those concerns.
He said the construction of Portland's
new Trail Blazer arena has seen a shortage of
electricians.
W ith only about 20 percent of students
going on to college, a lot of kids are left
wondering what is left for them to earn a
living after high school, Edwards said.
He said apprenticeships are a great alter
native to a college degree.
Edwards said being skilled in labor jobs
is also a way to get into the contracting
business.
The IBEW union has been a front runner
is getting minorities em ployed in the trades.
“W e’re always trying to bring in more
women and m inorities." Edwards said.
EDITORIAL
HEALTH
HOUSING
METRO
SPORTS
ENTERTAINMENT
A2
A5
A6
BI
B2
B4
CLASSIFIEDS
B7