Volume X X V Number 14
A p ril 5, 1995
Committed to cultural diversity.
Join In Celebrating Our
Old Radicals Deal
With Modern
Times
Inner City Kids
Learn Soccer
The Portland Parks and
Recreation's soccer program
means fun for these area
youth.
They 're from the 60s, trying
to survive.
See Entertainment, page B4.
See Metro, inside.
A N N IV E R S A R Y
3Zlu'
er
250
UCIA WEARS NCAA CROWN
by
D anny B ell
It was an expected outcome in an
unlikely way.
The UCLA Bruins persevered without
the luxury o f their field general Tyus Edney
to come through with an impressive win
over defending NCAA champion Arkan
sas, 89-78, capturing their 11th national cham
pionship and their first since the John Wood
en era o f 20 years ago.
Edney played only three minutes due to
a sprained wrist he suffered in Saturday’s
game against Oklahoma State. But freshman
Cameron Dollar came off the bench and
effectively took over the ball handling duties
as well as play some important defense
Playing before 38,540 fans at Seattle’s
Kingdome, Ed O ’Bannon turned in another
stellar performance scoring 30 points and
gamering 17 rebounds.
Arkansas’ much touted swarming de
fense, labeled “40 minutes of hell,” by their
coach, Nolan Richardson, was not able to
shut down the quick passing and ball han
dling ability the Bruins share as a team.
To a large degree it was UCLA’s ability
to move the ball in the open court and defeat
the trap that gave them so many good looks
at the basket.
“I think it’s really hard to press good
basketball teams,” UCLA Coach Jim
Harrick said. “We had good spacing and
when you play Arkansas, you need as many
players on your team that can pass and catch
the ball.
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Continued to page B2
Japan Attack Serves As Alert
Japan's recent terrorist attack is a wake
| up call, according to University o f Oregon
professor emeritus Aaron Novick who
I served on the Manhattan project which
developed the atomic bomb. Novick says
stockpiles o f chemical agents pose a seri
I ous threat and should be destroyed. He says
the nerve mist stored near Hermiston in
northeast Oregon could be deadly in the
wrong hands.
Hill Seeks South Africa Investment
| Post Office Named For Activist
A post office building in Ruleville
Miss, has been named in honor of the late
human and civil rights activist Fannie Lou
Hammer, an outstanding orator and inspi
rational leader from Mississippi who be
came famous for her trademark phrase that
she was “sick and tired of being sick and
tired" of blatant racial practices against
| African Americans.
Some Economic Gains Made
African American women have made
more progress than black men in closing
employment and income gaps Th Census
Bureau reports that more black women
than black men were employed in 1990,
includingthosew ithcollegedegrees. While
college-educated African American wom
en with full-time jobs have reached earn
ings parity with their white counterparts,
the same is not true for black men with
college degrees.
NAACP Sets Battle With
Contract
The NAACP has announced a major
| campaign against the Republican Party's
| so-called Contract With America which
includes plans to roll back civil rights gains
I and reduce federal social problems. Newly
elected chairperson Myrlie Evers-W illiams
| of Bend said she's frightened by what's
happening in Congress.
Rutgers Presidents Holds On
The Rutgers Board of Governors re-
I jected attempts to have university president
] Francis L. Lawrence ousted because of
I alleged racist remarks. Lawrence suggest
ed that blacks were genetically less intelli
gent than whites. He later apologized and
I the board accepted it. But black student
leaders are promising continued disruption
I of university activities under Lawrence is
tired.
Poor Science Could Boost
Racism
A panel of scientists and historians
meeting in Atlanta, Ga. warn that biased
scientific research and the public's weak
understanding o f genetics could fuel a new
wave of racism and prejudice in America in
which minorities would be blamed for so
ciety’s ills and discriminated against by a
host a new restricted laws They were par
ticularly upset by the media exposure given
to last year’s best selling book “The Bell
Curve.”
Colin Ferguson To Appeal
Colin Ferguson, the black man found
guilty ol killing six people during a shoot
ing spree on a crowded New York commut
er train said he will appeal The Jamaican
immigrant was found guilty in the deaths of
six non-blacks and of try ing to kill 19 others
on the Long Island rail road
Oregon State Treasurer Jim Hill (right) and South African Consul General J.H. De Klerk boost the merits of investing in South
Africa during a meeting at Doris Cafe on Northeast Russell and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
(Photo by Donn
Thomas)
by
P romise K ing
help and we must stand up to this responsibil
ity in the same way we stood up against
ust a few years ago, Oregon
apartheid," Hill said, recounting the horrors
State Treasurer Jim Hill stood
that apartheid wrought on black people.
before lawmakers in Salem to
“We stand to learn that people can put
demand a ban on South African
aside the gravest difference, the most severe
business investments.
discrimination and yet. the people there are
But I 1 months after apartheid crumbled.
w illing to put all of these things behind and
Hill rose again last week, this time before
move ahead,” Hill said.
businessmen, politicians and community lead
South Africa's economy, according to
ers in Portland to appeal for more dollars for
foreign watchdogs, has not benefitted the
post-apartheid South Africa.
poor black population which fought against
“More than ever. South Africa needs our
apartheid, rather they contend that President
J
Nelson Mandela's budget has so far pros
pered the wealthy white minority'. This prob
ably to placate the extreme right wings w hich
were bent on stalling the transition period.
Millions ofblack South African families
still live in tin or cardboard shanties. They
haul water from great distances in order to
have fresh drinking water.
On the streets, tension and mistrust of
government officials, especially the police
still linger.
Hill’s appeals came at a time when
Bloemfontein. South Africa, one ofthe coun
try's major cities and home to the largest
shanty camp.
desperately needs medical attention for
people ravaged in extremely unhealthy con
ditions.
“Now is the time to demonstrate our
commitment to a free South Africa," the state
treasurer said, in a gathering at Doris Cafe in
northeast Portland and which included South
African Consul General J.H. De Klerk.
De Klerk was in Portland on the
invitation o f Hill to meet with Gov. John
Kitzhaber. Oregon business leaders and
community activists to discuss changes
in his country and seek closer trade ties
with the state.
Hill visited the former apartheid enclave
last November as part of a delegation of
pension fund managers to learn firsthand
about changes in the country and possible
investment opportunities for the state pen
sion fund.
De Klerk thanked the American peo
ple. especially African Am ericans for
their consistent and sustained effort to
end apartheid.
"Portland deserves our thanks. It de
serves the regards of all South Africans and
in particular the Africa American community
in Portland," De Klerk said.
He said an economically viable South
Africa would mean a better life for all free
dom fighters.
The country’s business environment,
according to De Klerk, is conducive to good
business investment, adding that government
incentives are well in place to help emerging
businesses.
“Your continuous involvement in the
business of our world helps meet our com
mitment to our needy brothers,” De Klerk
said.
That commitment includes the building
of about one million housing units, improv
ing the educational system and creating eco
nomic opportunities for the majority of the
black South African population.
Governor Faces C hallenges Of Com m unity
I
(Editor's note: The Portland Observer
recently had an exclusive interview with
Gov. John Kitzhaber. This is the last part of
a special series.)
by
P romise K ing
ov. John Kitzhaber has taken
a pragm atic approach to
governing Oregon. He's
shying from being heavy-handed in
partisan politics and philosophies.
G
“ I am not an ideologue,” Kitzhaber ex
plains.
The governor said he’s a “good Demo
crat" in the sense he believes in the value of
the Democratic Party , but said the Democrat
ic Party o f today needs to “re-evaluate how
we achieve our objectives.”
Unless something drastic happens, this
physician turned-politician would certainly
would like to be re-elected
“I think it’s important to have a certain
degree o f continuity, especially when your
job is effective and particularly with term
limits," Kitzhaber said
Governor John Kitzhaber
"There are a lot people (new legislators)
who have no history of the Oregon Health
Plan, no history of education reforms, no
history of land-use planning and 1 think that
is a problem." he said
Kitzhaber said part of his challenge is to
curtain this Legislature from eroding "a lot of
important things," passed by former lawmak
ers.
Another challenge is the economic de
velopment of the state, particularly of north
and northeast Portland which constitute’s
one of the state's poorest domains.
Past efforts have stalled in quagmire and
have done little to alleviate the pains of
poverty
Kitzhaber was concerned that economic
activities and jobs are not being spread even
ly for minorities and minority-owned small
businesses.
“One of the problems is the credit line,”
he said. "They've (minorities) never been
players on the table.”
How does he intend to solve this linger
ing financial nausea?
“I think we should really look hard at
try ing to get people into the revenue stream,”
the governor offered “Economic develop
ment should include hiring people," adding
that a lack of jobs has fueled crime.
E
The challenge of crime has the gover
nor's attention
Recently, he met with the Johnny Gages,
one a director of the House of Umoja in
northeast Portland and the other a director of
MYCAP, to develop a plan on curtailing the
social ills of juvenile delinquency.
Even though he does have some reserva
tions about recent ballot measures requiring
the treatment of some juvenile offenders as
adults and building new prisons, he noted
that he was going to implement them anyway .
Kitzhaber said he hopes to provide con
stitutional provisions and reform that will
insure equity in the justice system.
“As we construct our juvenile justice
system. It’s very important we not lose sight
that the most effective way to deal with
juvenile justice is to keep kids out of the
sy stem in the first place," he said
The governor sees the challenge of di
versity as an opportunity to enrich ourselves
and learn from each other
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