Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, June 12, 1996, Image 1

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C om m itted to cultural diversity.
Ronstadt And
Nevill
Benson High School
students celebrate prom
night with their parents
support.
Governor Gives
Award
Grammy winning artists
Linda Ronstadt and
Aaron Nevill at a White
House Performance.
See Entertainment, page B3.
See who recieved Oregon
Governor's John Kitzhaber
International Award.
®Te j'.InrtLuió
M
Clinton
Visits
Church
Burning
Black Churches
Burns In The South
From Mathews - Markland Presbyteri­
an Church in, Charlotte, North Carolina to
St. Paul A M E in Hatley, M ississippi, a
torrent o f fires has evoked terror and hor­
ror in the Black Congregations that attend
these churches. About, three suspects, two
white males and one hispanic have been
apprehended by authorities.
Dozens o f Portland educators who ex­
pected to lose their jobs or get bumped to
other schools found out Monday they’
return to work next year. M illions o f dol­
lars raised by volunteers participating in
the Portland Public Schools foundation
has made this possible at least 180 full­
time equivalent jo b s in the schools, district
officials confirmed.
Dole Bows Out Of
Senate This Week
It’s farewell to senate majority leader
Bob Dole, after 35 years in the U .S. Con­
gress. Dole had announced that he was
quitting the Senate to run full-time for his
presidential Campaign. He was first elect­ Howard Nolte, the executive Director o f HOST, examines one o f the affordable housing agency's new homes on 37th block on
Photo by Michael Halle
ed to the U .S. Congress in I960. Am ong North Michigan, the site o f three affordable homes currently under inspection.
his legislative achievement was his effort
in 1983, when he led the Senate to Create
Martin Luther K in g Jr. holiday.
About 50 demonstrators chanting “No
Uncle Tom in our County” gathered to
protest the invitation o f Justice Clarence
Thomas to Central High School in Seat
Pleasant. Massachusetts. Thomas the only
B lack on the Nation's highest court, was
invited to address the ceremony last month
by the P T A o f the Thomas G. Pullen Cre­
ative and Perform ing A rts School in
Landover, amidst protest from the school
board
Oklahoma
Bombing: Seek
Evidence Against
Timothy McVeigh
Federal law enforcement officials re­
vealed Monday that residue found on T im ­
othy J M cV e igh ’s clothing and other pos­
sessions appear to link him to the Oklaho­
ma City Bombing. They also said he warned
a friend last year to “watch what you say”
because the “G-men" might find out. The
new allegations are included in Court pa­
pers prosecutors filed in Denver, C o lo ­
rado.
FRONT EDIT°RIAL
S E C T IO N
A2
n Monday President Bill
Clinton launched a broad at­
tack on racial intolerance
and decided to visit the site of a
burned black church in South Caroli­
na, one of 31 torched in a series of
arson attacks.
Speaking on the steps o f police head­
quarters in San Diego, close to the M ex­
ican border, Clinton rebuffed Republican
attacks on his administration’s record in
curbing crime and illegal immigration,
while issuing a broad appeal for social
and racial tolerance.
“ Even though I ’m a long way from
there, my heart has been in my native
South for the last several weeks as we
have dealt with this incredible rash o f |
church burnings,” Clinton said.
“That’s just another way o f people
finding a way, trying to blame somebody
else or put down somebody else or put
distance between them and someone else
in a totally dehumanizing way, forgetting
that everybody should be treated equally
before the law, in the eyes o f our fellow
Americans, just as we are before God
Alm ighty,” he said.
A Wh ite House spokesman said C l inton
would visit a burned church today in
Greeleyville, South Carolina. He would
view the ruins o f the building destroyed
last June and also inspect a new building
which was under construction and would
soon be rededicated.
Federal officials are looking for signs
o f a conspiracy in fires that have de­
stroyed some 3 1 black churches over the
last 18 months. Police in Charlotte an­
nounced they had arrested a 13-year-old
white girl for setting a fire that destroyed
a black church there last week.
“T o burn a church is a terrible thing.
We have got to stop these things,” Clinton
said. “ We need to come together as one
America to rebuild our churches, restore
hope and show the forces o f hatred they
cannot win, just as we need to come
together as one America to say, we are a
nation o f immigrants and we are a nation
o f laws.”
Speaking with ranks o f blue- and white-
shirted police officers behind him, Clinton
linked the series ofchurch burnings in the
South to the growth o f general anti-immi­
grant feelings in the nation.
‘Even as we crack down on illegal
immigration and do more than has ever
been done on that, we must never forget
that we are a nation o f immigrants and,
except for the Native Americans, we all
came from somewhere else,” Clinton de­
clared.
O
Portland Teachers
Smile Again
Demonstrators
Protest Clarence
Thomas Speech
j
See Business, page B5.
REVIEW
Embattled Portland Police Commander
M ike Garvey returned to the Central Pre­
cinct on Monday morning to turn over his
gun and his badge. Detectives are investi­
gating whether Garvey hired male prosti­
tutes. Meanwhile, the Central Precinct
Commander has seen placed on adminis­
trative leave with pay.
5X
M rs . F r a n c e s S c h o e n -
U n i v e r s i t y o f O re g o n L i b r
E u g e n e , O re g o n
97403
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Portland Police
Commander Under
Investigation
***• •
.lune I 2, 1996
Prom Night
Celebrated
See Metro, page BI.
i '■ -
Minority Contractors
Suffers Lending Discriminations
bi
P romise K im .
not ending it" Patrick told the contractors whose
ven as the bashing beats goes
members employ 60% o f people o f color who
on against Affirmative Action
work in the construction business.
programs and politicians chuck
The Justice Department reform proposal
le and dance pretentiously, depending
drew sharp responses from the conference.
on who they are listening to, the Nation­
Apparently, that is why the fiery speech by
al Association of Minority contractors
the association president N igel Parkinson
who gather in Portland last week, for
called fora united political front to confront
their annual conference say it’s no joke
the issue.
tempering with the program that has
"W e need to put our political act together.
provided life blood for their businesses.
We need to elect people who w ill seek our
While the ‘End- the- Affirm ative- Action
interest and our future is connected to who
slogan o f some right-wing republicans infu­
occupy 1600 Pennysyvania A v .” Parkinson
riates the contractors, the mend - it - don’t -
said.
end slogan o f Democrats did little to assuage
Even if the ball rolls in their favor, the
their obvious dissatisfaction with the way the
contractors o f color wou Id st i 11 have to contend
program is being reform by president Clinton.
with discrimination in most lending institution.
Speaking on behalf o f his boss, Assistant
A study conducted in Atlanta five years ago
Attorney G en eral,C ivil Rights D ivision, U .S
find that race consistently determines the lend­
Department o f Justice, Deval Patrick, said the
ing patterns o f metro Atlanta's largest financial
federal government is welding o ff traces o f
institution. The study had examined six years
abuse in the program and tightening his eligi­
o f lender reports to the federal government.
bility. “Federal Affirmative Action must work
Recent study by the justice department civil
to meet strict scrutiny. We are mending it and
right division also agreed lending discrimina­
E
tion still pervades most lending institutions.” We
find lingering effect o f past discrimination
continue to pose problems” the assistant -
attorney general said. Which is why the con­
tractors would have to grapple with this preju­
dice before they could meaningfully partici­
pate in the $500 billion industry.
How the organization would get by in the
next 25 years was the focus o f the annual
conference.
Baruti Atharee, Director o f Oregon Hous­
ing and Community Services Department
said surviving in the business world means
embracing those whose ideas are progressive
and prosperous.
“ Learning how to grow and preparing for
the future are vital issues for minority con­
tractors” says James Posey President o f the
local chapter.
The conference poked into Issues and
Attitudes in Dealing With Federal Programs,
What is Partnering and How to Approach,
The Churches Role in Development and
Empowerment, and Construction Mediation
Results Of WSU Racial Climate Survey is Reported
A recent survey o f Washington State Uni­
versity students shows widespread support
among all ethnic groups for the university’s
diversity recruiting efforts. In addition, most
but not all ethnic groups feel the university has
achieved a positive climate for diversity.
I he results o f the poll were reported to the
Board o f Regents by Paul Wong, chair o f the
Department o f Comparative American Cul
tures, who directed the telephone survey. The
university's Social and Economic Science
Research Center conducted the poll o f 700
students in early 1995. The sampl ing frame was
designed to give adequate representation to
American ethnic or racial minority groups in­
cluding white American, as well as foreign
students.
HOUSING
EDUCATION
A9
A7
“Race relations at W SU are positive when
looked at in the context of the larger society,”
Wong says. “Yes, there are complaints, but
also there are positive elements of feedback.”
African American students who took part in
the survey departed from the majority regard­
ing a positive climate for diversity. Only 42
percent o f African American students said they
agreed a positive climate has been achieved.
Other populations agreeing with the statement
ranged from 59 percent for foreign students to
78 percent for Asian Americans. Hispanic
American responses were 75 percent in agree­
ment, Native Americans 72 percent and white
students 71 percent.
Wong says the widespread support among
all students for recruiting students and faculty
METRO
SEC TIO N
FAMILY
B2
o f color is a positive factor given the polariza­
tion on some American campuses between
majority and minority students. Support for
active diversity efforts ranged from 90 to 99
percent among the student groups.
Also positive, Wong said, is the high per­
centage of students who said they have close
friends ofa different race or ethnic background.
Depending on the group, 78 to 99 peivent said
“yes” to this question.
Wong reported that while most students felt
W SU faculty and staff were rac ial ly sensitive in
working with minority students, African Amer­
icans and foreign students were less positive.
Only 47 percent o f foreign students and 40
percent o f African American students agreed
Less than one percent o f the respondents
SPORTS
B4
ARTS & ENT.
B3
reported they had been discriminated against
by other students, faculty, staff or students
“very often.” However, a considerable per­
centage felt that they had been discriminated
against by other students a few times, several
times or quite often; and a fairly large percent­
age felt that they had been discrim inated against
by faculty or staff at least a few times.
The 1995 sui vey is comparable to a similar
poll conducted in 1990, although there was no
breakdown into minority groups in the earlier
report. The percentage o f minority, white and
foreign students who felt that they have been
discriminated against by faculty, administra­
tors and staff because o f their race or ethnicity
is somewhat larger in the 1995 sample than in
1990.
RELIGION
B8
CLASSIFIEDS
B9
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