B' E a RI OFARI Hl
T ( H IN S O N ,
P h .D.
President Clinton is the latest to
sing the angry white male blues. His
promise to eliminate federal affirm a­
tive action measures that are unfair is
a blatant and cynical p olitical sop to
Gingrichconservatives. Even w'orse,
former Congressional Black Caucus
chair Kwesi Mfume and C alifornia
House Assembly Speaker W illie
Brown also buckled in face o f the
angry w hite male barrage. They
agreed that C lin to n ’ s action is "ap­
propriate." It isn’t.
A ffirm a tiv e action has fast
moved up to the number one spot on
the nation's political hit list. Many
white males fervently believe that i f
a m inority person is not comatose,
the government w ill force a private
firm to hire that person before a white
male.
This is a myth. President Lyndon
Johnson signed Executive Order
11246 in 1965. This is still the only
federally-mandated program that le­
White Men Still May Apply
mativP
artirvn ”
gally refers to “ affirm
ative action
The goal is to promote racial equity
in employment. Contractors and sub­
contractors who have 50 or more
employees and do more than $50,000
in business w ith the federal govern­
ment are required to insure that their
employees reflect the "d iversity” in
the workforce. The procedures are
straightforward:
• Submit a utilization study o f their
employees.
• I f the number o f women and m i­
norities are underrepresented, de­
velop a plan and submit it to the
O ffice o f Federal Contract Com­
pliance Programs.
• The employer must make a “ good
faith 'e ffo rt to hire qualified avail­
able women and m inority appli­
cants.
Contrary to popular opinion,
contractors are not forced to submit
the plan to the federal government.
There is no army o f federal monitors
who ride roughshod over contractors
to make sure they comply w ith their
own plan. No contractors are forced
ir -
to replace qualified (or even unqual
ified white males) with unqualified
women or m inority candidates Con­
tractors have not been forced to have
a fixed quota o f m inority or women
in their company.
I f contractors don' t comply with
their own plan, what’s the punish­
ment? An estimated 250,000 con­
tractors did business with the federal
government in 19 9 1. The small force
o f compliance officers made 5,379
compliance reviews o f companies.
A t that rate (and the rate has declined
steadily since the early 1980’s) it
would take more than 46 years to
review all the contractors. Three-
fourths o f those reviewed quickly
complied or modified their own plan.
I n prior years a few d idn ’t coop­
erate. During the administration o f
President Jimmy Carter 12 compa­
nies were debarred from doing gov­
ernment business. The number o f
companies debarred has not come
close since then. Four were debarred
from doing business d urin g the
Reagan years, and three during the
_
Bush years They weren’t ou, in the
cold for long Since 1972, thirty-two
companies have been debarred for
an average time o f eight months.
White contractors continue to
gripe incessantly about government
set aside programs. This is much
ado about little. Congress mandated
that 18 government agencies are ob­
ligated to award only five percent o f
their contract funds to "socially and
economically disadvantaged" indi­
viduals. This does not mean blacks
alone. It includes Hispanics, Native
Americans, Asian Pacific Americans
and even whites.
The biggest source o f white-male
rage, however, has been court-im ­
posed "quotas. They are rare and
have been imposed almost exclu­
sively on a handful o f police and fire
departments nationally. The Para­
dise decision in 1987 was the only
supreme Court decision that explic­
itly upheld court imposed “ quotas."
It was widely attacked by con­
servatives and sparingly read. It re­
quired that quotas be tailored to spe-
Postal Reclassification An Attack On Small Business
I he American Small Business
Association charged the Postal Ser­
vice reclassification plan is a “ bunch
of smoke and m irrors” that would
result in a s h ifto fm illio n o fd o lla rs in
mailing costs from the largest adver-
. tising and magazine mailer to small
businesses.
The reclassification plan was
filed today with the Postal Rate Com­
mission. It would change the way
mail is categorized and change the
current rate structure.
V ernon C astle, execu tive d i­
re cto r o f the association, w hich
is a m em ber o f the C o a litio n to
M ake O u r F irs t Class M a il F irs t
Class, denounced the plan a fte r
P o s tm a s te r G e n e ra l M a r v in
Runyon u n ve ile d it on a n a tio n ­
w ide s a te llite hook-up.
T his plan invite s a d v e rtis ­
ing m ailers to s tu ff y o u r box w ith
even m ore unw anted m a il, w h ile
squeezing out local businesses
who may fin d it too c o s tly to
co m m un icate w ith c u s to m e rs ,”
said C astle whose o rg a n iz a tio n
represents 150,000 sm all b u s i­
nesses n a tio n w id e .
F irs t class m ail is a m o n o p ­
o ly and the Postal S ervice forces
its trapped custom ers to pay more
than th e ir fa ir share o f overhead
costs, C astle said. “ W h ile firs t
class m ail is o n ly about h a lf the
post o ffic e volum e, it covers a l­
most 70% o f the o verhe ad .”
"B y toughening bulk mail stan­
dards and adding bar code require­
ments, the reclassification plan w ill
force many small businesses into the
highest m ailing rates.”
C astle ca lle d on the ind ep en ­
Ted Haines of Gresham has
been named the poster artist
for the 1995 Trains West Art
Association Show and Auction,
Oct. 20-21 in Vancouver. The
annual event draws artists,
collectors, dealers and art
admirers. Haines is well know
for his pencil drawings and
watercolors of traditional
western themes.
Block Reserved For
Classical Chinese Garden
The Portland City Council has
approved a lease a city block owned
by Northwest Natural Gas Co. for the
future site o f a Classical Chinese
Garden.
The block is bounded by N orth­
west Flanders and Glisan at Second
and Third streets in the Old Town/
Chinatown neighborhood. The lease
w ill give the city and the Classical
Chinese Garden Society use o f the
property for 99 years, at a cost o f $ I
per year for the purpose o f establish­
ing the garden.
" I am extremely excited about
the prospect o f a Chinese garden in
O ld Town/Chinatown because it w ill
he another significant step in efforts
io revitalize the area," said Mayor
•Vera Katz. “ It is also an important
step in the internationalization’ o f
ourcity, linking us more closely with
the local Chinese community and our
sistercitiesofSuzhouand Kaohsiung.
The city has been negotiating
with Northwest Natural Gas Co. for
the past year to obtain the option
agreement for the land, currently used
as a parking lot. Under terms o f the
agreement, by the time the lease is
exercised, the Garden Society, with
the support o f the city, w ill need to
have raised sufficient funds to begin
the project.
Organizers plan to develop a
budget w ith the help o f garden de­
signers from Suzhou by the end o f
A p ril. A fter approval o f the budget,
fund-raising w ill begin. The city w ill
exercise the lease option by the time
ofconstruction, which is expected to
begin by early 1997. Completion o f
the garden is expected no later than
spring o f 1998.
The garden its e lfw ill be authen­
tic to the tradition o f classical C h i­
nese gardens, with the integration o f
museum-quality art and space for
community activities, promoters said.
It w ill be built in the style o f
private urban gardens o f Suzhou.
The garden can become a cul­
tural landmark and attraction for c it­
izens and visitors alike.
"Portland now has an opportu­
nity to become the only city in the
United States to possess an authentic
Suzhou-style classical garden. Such
a garden would become an eloquent
symbol not only o f our friendship
with contemporary China but o f our
deep respect for one o f hum anity’s
most venerable cultural traditions."
said Donald Jenkins o f the Portland
Art Museum and Chair o fth e Classi­
cal Chinese Garden Society.
dent Postal Rate C o m m is s io n
(P R C ) to take a hard loo k at the
plan and make sure it is e q u ita b le
fo r a ll m ail users, especially those
forced to use firs t class.
The PRC has ten months to re­
view the reclassification plan and
make a recommendation to the Post­
al Service.
The Coalition to make Our First
C lass M ail First Class has more than
150 organizations that represent more
than 5 m illion businesses and indi­
viduals. Its members include the
Association o f Retired Americans,
Federation o f M in o rity Business
Associations, National Association
of Realtors, American Farm Bureau
Federation, United States African
American C hamber o f Commerce,
National Council o f Senior Citizens
and the National Dairy Council.
Tubman To
Boost Science
Studies
H a rrie t Tubm an M id d le
School, 2 2 3 1 N. Flint, w ill boost its
science education with the help o f
a $44,988 grant designed to reform
science eduction in the Northwest.
The award comes from the U.S.
Department o f Energy's Pacific
Northwest Laboratory in Richland.
Wash, and is one o f five awards
given to Washington and Oregon
middle schools.
The laboratory conducts re­
search in fields o f basic science to
solve problems in the areas o fth e
environment, energy, health and
national security.
The grant includes money for
teaching training, curriculum de
velopment, scientific equipment
materials and supplies, field re­
search and a science and technolo­
gy newsletter.
The program is designed to
seethat all students, includingthose
groups that are traditionally under­
represented in the sciences, receive
high-quality mathematics, science
and technology education through­
out their middle school years, said
Je ff Estes, laboratory project man­
ager.
C ALL:
503-288-0033
s \
it 5 news,
it's creative.
You probably saw it first in the
Çorflaith (ffharriier newspaper.
Agency Litho Closes Doors
Without Paying Workers
A local company. Agency Litho.
60 SW Idaho, shout down earlier
this month without paying workers
fheir final paycheck. Payroll records
show that the firm owes 37 employ­
ees nearly $88.000. At least $59,000
o f the amount due w ill be paid to
workers out of the Wage Security
Fund, which helps displaced w ork­
ers by pay ing them an amount equal
to their wages lost when a plant or a
business closes To receive payment.
workers must first file a wage claim
with the bureau's Wage and Hour
Division Former Litho employees
can call 7 3 1-4074 in Portland for
more information.
Bureau o fficia ls say that the
wages Litho owes range from $ l 19
to $4.825. The Wage Security Fund,
which is the nation's most compre­
hensive program to help such dis­
placed workers, can pay up to $2.000
per claim Claimants who complete
the necessary wage claim paperwork
can expect to receive checks w ithin
three weeks.
The Wage Security Fund has
been in the news recently because an
Internal Revenue Service assessment
that could exceed $3 m illion in taxes
and penalties on payments made to
workers since 1986, threatens the
future o f the Fund.
Top Chefs
Team Up
The eighth annual Chefs’ nigh
Out - Portland’ s participation in the
national hunger re lie f fundraiser.
Share Our Strength’s Taste o f the
Nation sponsored by American Ex­
press -- w ill be from 6 to 9 p m.,
Monday, A p ril 24, at the Portland
Center for the Performing Arts, 11 I
SW Broadway. Tickets are $50 per
person and can be purchased at all
Fastixx outlets and the PCPA box
office. A ll o fth e proceeds w ill go to
hunger re lie f agencies in Oregon.
Portland's premiere culinary
event. Chefs' N ight Out continues to
grow each year. In 1995. a projected
750 guests w ill sample delicious o f­
ferings prepared by chefs from 32 o f
the area’ s top restaurants and hotels,
along with representatives from 15
O regon w in e rie s , fo u r lo c a l
microbreweries, three master coffee
makers and a producer o f Oregon
m ineral water. A ll w ill unite to
achieve a common goal, helping to
raise funds fo r and awareness o f lo­
cal. regional and international hun­
ger-relief efforts.
cific jobs in specific agencies. They
must be flexible andtemporary. There
was not one word in the decision that
said that whites could not be hired.
The court made it clear that hiring
had to be "fa ir - to white applicants
and that they could and should be
hired ifthere were noqualified wom­
en or minorities.
W h ite w om en, not blacks or
L a tin o s, have been the m ain ben­
e fic ia rie s o f these "q u o ta s .” A n ­
gry w hite males ra il that the "q u o ­
ta s “ and c o m p lia n c e re v ie w s
am ount to “ reverse d is c rim in a ­
tio n . But there is no c o n clu sive
evidence that the gains that w o m ­
en and m in o ritie s have made in
the w o rkp la ce can be a ttrib u te d
to “ a ffirm a tiv e a c tio n .” T h e ir
num bers w o u ld have increased
anyway . T his is due to better ed­
u catio n, tra in in g , and e m p lo y ­
m ent s k ills , the m assive expan­
sion o f p ro fessio na l m anagerial
and te chn ical jo b s , and the in ­
crease in jo b o p p o rtu n itie s in the
p u b lic sector.
While many corporations issue
press releases, brochures, assorted
hand-outs and annual stockholder
reports that boast o f their com m it­
ment to diversity, a Korn Kerry inter­
national survey in 1991 found that
less than one percent o f the top cor­
porate executives were black. Yet
sixty-nine percent ofwhites in a 1990
National Opinion Research center
poll still believed that a corporation
would hire or promote a “ less quali­
fied black" before a white.
D u rin g th e 1990-1991 reces­
sion many c o rp o ra tio n s hired no
blacks and dow nsized thousands
out the door. The share o f jo b s
blacks held at m ajor co rp oratio ns
dropped fo r the firs t tim e in nine
years. O v e ra ll, blacks s till make
up o n ly 5.2 percent o f the to ta l
corporate m anagerial p osition s.
Neither Clinton nor the conser­
vative assailants o f affirm ative ac­
tion ask, "Is the racism that continues
to pervade the American workplace
fair9” The answer is one they don't
want to hear.
Crime
Stoppers
Woman Sought For Burglary
Portland Police Bureau detec­
tives, in cooperation with Crime
Stoppers, are asking fo ryo u r help in
locating Connie Lynn Patten. A fe l­
ony arrest warrant is on file charg­
ing Patten with first-degree burglary.
Patten, who goes by the street
name “ Yo Y o,” is described as a
white female, 29, with a date o f birth
o f A p ril 28. 1965. She stands 5 foot.
5 inches tall, weighs 130 pounds
with green eyes and blond hair.
Patten has a tw o inch scar on her
right arm and several tattoos, in­
cluding the words “ Yo Y o “ and two
swastikas on her left wrist and the
word “ gangster” on her right wrist.
She is believed to frequent the
north Portland area and is reported
to have been seen in Columbia Coun­
ty and Lewis County, Wash.
Crime Stoppers is offering a
cash reward o f up to $1.000 for
z
A
Connie Lynn Patten
j
inform ation, reported to Crim e
Stoppers, which leads to an arrest in
this case or any unsolved felony
crime and you can remain anony­
mous. Call Crime Stoppers at (503)
823-HELP.
10‘ Anniversary IV Special
SATURDAY • APRIL 29 • 7-8 PM
Watch as 10
players vie for
$100,000
a Jeep Wrangler-S,
and a Caribbean
Carnival Cruise.
Saturday, April 29,7*8 pin
KOIN Portland • KOBI Medford
KMIR Eugene• KMTZ Coos Bay
KOTI Klamath Falls
¿ ¿ o a k Carnival Cruise Lines • Willamette Jeep Eagle
The Benson Hotel • The Heathman Hotel • Mario s for Women • Alex Forma