Volume XXIV Number 4K
Ser\ mg the communit} through cultural diversity
Nos ember 30. 1994
Support For
School Building
Football All-Stars
Saluted
Rance Spruill welcomes
patrons contributing to the
Albina Youth Opportunity
School building fund.
Alberta Boutique
Opened
Jason Scott and other high
school players earn honors
on the Portland Observer
All-City Team.
Diana Lewis-Me Knight
brings popular African
fashions to northeast
Portland.
See Metro, inside.
See Sports, page B2
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See story, page B4.
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AIDS Day Draws Look To Lost Lives
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B y J onathan H utchison
Battle With New
Congress Expected
“ The Republican victory is a tempo
rary setback, but none o f us is going to roll
over and play dead. The caucus is going to
be very visible in trying to protect hard
won gains we made in the last few years.”
Those were the words last week o f Con
gressional Black Caucus member John
Lewis, D -G a„ in anticipation ofan expect
ed Republican Party assault on programs
favored by most black leaders.
GOP To Kill Funding For
Caucus
There are reports that new Republican
House leaders plan to eliminate public
funding for the Congressional Black Cau
cus. W ith such a loss, the caucus, would
stil 1 be able to meet but would not have any
staff. And one o f two black House Repub
licans, J.C. Watts ofOklahom a, has said he
is “ not sure” whether or not he w ill jo in the
caucus when he takes office in January.
?
Simpson Lawyer Earns
Award
O.J. S im pson a tto rn e y Johnnie
Cochran is the recipient o f an award for
African American achievement. The pre
sentation was made by the Los Angeles-
based Brotherhood Crusade Black United
Fund in recognition fo r Cochran’s three-
decade fight for justice, equity and fair
ness.
Thursday is W orld A ID S Day, a time to
reflect on the over 10 m illion people who are
infected w ith the H IV virus worldwide.
In Oregon, there are 2,866 reported A ID S
cases and about 6,200 people living with
H IV . In some A frican countries, one in 40
adults is infected w ith the virus.
Generally, people react to these statis
tics w ith sadness, pity or indifference. De
spite the innocent lives ending prematurely
and the emotional and physical pain often
accompanies A ID S , there is a great deal o f
beauty, jo y and optimism that has resulted
from this epidemic.
Last November, DeNice Paschal, 43,
Portland, lost three good friends to AIDS.
Paschal was not aware that two o f the
individuals were H IV positive. One person
died suddenly, another was perfectly healthy
only seven m onth’s prior to their death. When
thinking about the people who died, Paschal
remembers the beauty and dreams the indi
viduals possessed.
The first person was a woman Paschal
knew through her work at as a counselor at a
drug and alcohol treatment facility. This
woman was a client, but when she returned to
treatment fo llo w in g a relapse, Paschal hardly
recognized her.
The woman’s hair was fa llin g out and
she was rapidly losing her sight. But even
with these obstacles, the woman completed
treatment and had an active social life. A l
though the blindness was irreversible, Pas
chal remembers the plans this woman had
upon regaining her eyesight. She felt silly
doubting the woman’ s plans as she was in
credibly enthusiastic.
The second person was a well-known
African American male performer and pub
lisher. He once served as high school class
president and positively impacted the A fr i
can American community as an openly gay
man.
Paschal remembers how he impacted
Denny's Works On
Image
An Atlanta, Ga. company, N D I, Inc.
w ill operate 50 Denny’ s Restaurants under
a deal announced last week. The agree
ment is part o f an effort by Denny’ s to
improve its image after being hit by a series
o f complaints and racial discrimination
suits from black patrons.
War Ends In Angola
One o f the most bloody and longest
wars in A frica o ffic ia lly ended last week.
Rebel leader Jonas Sivim bi signed a peace
treaty with Angolan President Jose Eduardo
dos Santos. The nearly 20 year-old war
which has taken tens o f thousands o f lives
was forced to a conclusion when govern
ment troops captured a rebel base in the
provincial capital o f Huambo. The white
m inority government in South A frica along
w ith the Reagan and Bush administrations
had long supported the rebels as part o f a
campaign to weaken the left-le an ing
Angolan government.
Mandela: Winnie Not
Guilty
In his autobiography, South African
President Nelson Mandela said his es
tranged wife. W innie, showed poor judge
ment over her use o f private bodyguards
but was not guilty o f any serious offense.
W innie and the guards, drew controversy
and condemnation when the guards, known
as the Mandela United Food Club, gained
a reputation in black townships fo r vio
lence. “ I w holly supported my w ife and
maintained that while she had shown some
poor judgement, she was innocent o f any
serious charges,” Mandela said in the book.
She Knew Three People Who
Died From AIDS
DeNice Paschal of Portland reflects on
the three people she knew who died of
AIDS and a new appreciation for
setting life goals.
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Christmas Tree Opens Holiday Season
A giant evergreen tree in Pioneer Courthouse Square has been lighted for the Christmas season.
her three children; his presence allow ed them
not to harbor prejudices against homosexu
als. Such attitudes allowed Paschal, herself,
to be open w ith her children about her lesbi
anism, which ultimately made the fam ily
closer.
She feels that her children are privileged
to have been influenced by this man, with his
generosity, compassion and creatively being
embodied in their attitudes.
Her third friend to die last November o f
A ID S was the sister o f the man mentioned
above. Paschal questioned why two people in
the same fam ily would die one after the other.
Eventually she concluded that perhaps she
w ill never understand, but appreciated know
ing they are together again.
She laughs and remembers how nervous
she felt visiting people once they were ill.
What would she talk about, how should she
act? N ow, such questions seem irrational, as
they would talk about their plans, relation
ships, hair; the same things they always dis-
Continued to page A8
HIV Diagnosed In All Races
NEW HIV DIAGNOSIS BY RACE/ETHNICITY
OREGON, 1989 - 1992*
RATE PER 10,000 TESTED
2 0 0 -f'
<
F
*H IV Test Results, Public & Private Laboratories
Roosevelt School~To*Work Program Wins Support
north Portland program
preparing students for jobs
after high school has been
awarded $359,909 by the
Departments of Labor and Education.
A
The grant to the Roosevelt Renaissance
2000 School-To-W ork Opportunities Pro
gram is part ofan effort to assist young people
in low and middle-income urban and rural
communities make a successful transition
from school to work.
The grant is part o f a $ 10 m illion alloca
tion to 2 1 business, education and labor part-
nerships across the nation under the School-
T o-W ork Opportunities A ct singed into law
by President Clinton.
U.S “ For many young people who live in
impoverished areas o f the country, the road
to economic self-sufficiency and success in
the w orld o f work is block w ith innumerable
barriers,” U.S. Labor Secretary Robert B
Reich said. “ These grants w ill help break
down these barriers and provide access to
programs which w ill prepare them for bright
futures."
The Roosevelt project works to prepare
students to succeed in a changing economy
requiring a highly skilled and adaptable
workforce.
Through its school-to-work opportuni
ties system, art and communications, health
occupations, human services, business and
management, manufacturing and engineer
ing technology and natural resources fields
are the targeted career pathways.
“ Young people livin g in high-poverty
areas must have access to opportunities that
prepare them fo r college and careers," said
Armando Quiroz, labor department official
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EDITORIAL
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NATIONAL
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METRO
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SPORTS
ENTERTAINMENT
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in Seattle. “ These grants w ill help comm uni
ties learn how to build systems to improve
schools, help school dropouts and produce
meaningful work experiences.”
The Act is designed to broaden educa
tion and career opportunities for all students
by encouraging partnerships between busi
ness and educational institutions at the state
and local levels. These partnerships w ill help
students made the connection between what
they learn in school and in the workplace and
prepare them for careers and further educa
tion and training
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RELIGION
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