Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 8, 1997)
Volume X X V II, Number $ì Committed to cultural diversity. Fall passage celebrated! Let the party begin as thhe Chinook make their way upstream at Oxbow Park. See Metro, inside. OCT. 8, 1997 Helping even the playing field for kids 'Standard Procedure' goes public Mothers Against Gang Violence make call for action. Portland's talented Pamela Jordan releases new and first album. See Metro, inside See Entertainment, page B3. ■ REVIEW Clinton uses line veto President Clinton is using his line- item veto power to lop off nearly $300 million from a military construction bill. The military construction bill tradition ally is plumped up with pork barrel projects, and a White House spokesman says Clinton w ill strike 38 projects worth $287 million. A Clinton spokesman clas sifies the projects as 'unnecessary spending.” Don’t ask policy upheld The Supreme Court has rejected a legal challenge to President Clinton’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that allows the military to discharge homosexuals. It’s the third time in the past year the court has refused to get involved in the legal battles over the policy. In another ruling affecting Clinton, the court de nied an appeal by a conservative group seeking access to his videotaped testi mony at the trial o f his Whitewater busi ness partners. Toran to visit Romania Oregon official to assess child welfare in poverty state regon’s lop child welfare offi strengthen its child care system s. I can cial is headed for Romania in think of few things more rewarding.” early October to advise the The plight of thousands of Romanian chil former Communist country on its dren child made headlines when the regime of welfare system. Nicolae Ceausescu was toppled in 1989. Kay Toran. Director of the State Office Ceausescu had abolished all social work lor Services toChildren and Families (SCF), and child welfare systems Americans re is part of a United Stales delegation invited sponded by adopting nearly 2,300 Roma to assess Romania's current system and nian children during 1991. Romania is now consult on child welfare issues. The trip is a republic under President Ion Iliescu. sponsored by the US Department of Health Iliescu’s government has asked for help & Human Services (HHS). in rebuilding its supports for troubled fami "Seven years ago, many A m ericans lies with children. w ere m o v ed by the p ic tu r e s o f “Oregon is recognized in this country as R o m an ia's orphaned and abandoned a family-friendly, child-centered agency. ’ children.' said Toran. “Now we have a noted loraii. But she also expects to brine w onderful, unprecedented opportunity home some new ideas This is a 2-way to h e lp the c o u n try re b u ild and street We will learn by watching Romania O Kay Toran, director o f Oregon Services to Children and Families Espionage charged Two suspected Israeli agents arrested in Jordan in the attempted murder of a leader of the Muslim militant movement Hamas reportedly were freed today and returned to the Jewish state. Israel Radio says they returned shortly after Sheik Ahmed Yassin, founder and spiritual leader of Hamas, flew home five days after his release by Israel from a life prison sentence. Mir docking delayed Ground control says the docking of the M® space station and a new cargo craft is likely to be delayed because the space tug occupying M ir's docking unit failed to uncouple as planned. Deputy Flight Director Viktor Blagov told a briefing near Moscow that experts have decided to stop further attempts to un dock the Progress M-35 tug until they work out why the initial attempt earlier today failed. War crimes suspects surrender One of the more wanted war crimes suspects from the former Yugoslavia has surrendered Dario Kordic was among 10 Bosnian Croats.who flew to the Neth erlands today and were taken into cus tody by the war crimes tribunal. Kordic and a Bosnian Croat general who surren dered last year arc charged with leading a campaign of persecution against Mus lims in Bosnia in 1993. fter more than a year of planning and public review, the Port of Portland’s proposed program for making landscaping and pedestrian access improvements on Swan Island has been given the green light for development. rhe City of Portland’s Bureau o f Plan ning formally approved the Port’s proposal to make landscaping enhancements and build a pedestrian trail system, viewpoint areas, and interpretive facilities in and'around the approximately 580-acre inner-city “island.” To be developed during the next two years, these amenities will provide an opportunity for visitors to Swan Island to learn more about the workings of the Portland harbor, the Portland ShipYard, and its associated dry docks. Enhancements will also include plantings that encourage native habitat, sidewalk ex tensions that offer better pedestrian access, and creating information stations that ex plain some of the history o f the property, such as its use as Portland’s first airport. The Port’s strategy for improving public areas on and around Swan Island is in place of creating new greenspaces within the in dustrial environs of the Portland ship yard and adjoining property. Previously, under the City’s Willamette River Greenway Zone regulations, any development occurring within the ship yard was subject to a Greenway review and mitigation process. A It took awhile for Stanley Prusiner’s work to be recognized, but he got the ultimate recognition Monday when he was named winner of the Nobel Prize in medicine. The biochemist from the Uni versity o f California-San Francisco dis covered a cellular protein that can cause fatal brain diseases. His work is key to understand Alzheimer’s and mad cow disease. Israel retrieves agents examine their laws, their funding and put a workable system together from scratch. I've been impressed that they plan to involve families in the process of finding the best home for their children.'’ Oregon's SCF has gained national atten tion for such innovations as family deci sion-making meetings, strengths/needs- based system of care, and its second-place ranking for moving foster children into per inanent adoptive homes. Toran is one of only two state child wel fare directors chosen for the trip The other is Irom Delaware, along with two members ol federal Administration on Children. Youth and Families They will join other experts Irom the U.S .Office ol \ssistance Io Inter national Development Walking trails • for Swan Island Nobel winner in medicine U.S. Justice Department sources say the FBI has arrested three people, in cluding a lawyer who used to work at the Pentagon, on espionage charges. The sources say the three, who were arrested over the weekend, allegedly tried to sell U.S. classified documents to East Ger many, the Soviet Union and South Africa since the 1970s. b m m b m i Seeking skilled workers Sharon Washington Clark o f Providence Health Systems represents one o f many Portland-based employers looking for a qualified and diverse workforce at the job and career fair at Portland Community College's Cascade Campus in north Portland. See additional photos, Minority Enterprise Development section, inside. Photo by M. Washington) A salute to minority and women-owned enterprises Sam Brooks and Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneaurers reach maturity - See Minority Enterprise Development section, inside. BIERWIRTH’S DEPARTURE UNFORTONATE. NOT SURPRISING tate Rep. Anitra Rasm ussen, D- tion funding is not a Portland problem . Portland, calls the departure of It is a statew ide problem in need of P o rtlan d School S u p e rin te n statew ide so lu tio n s.” dent Jack B ierw irth as unfortunate but “The problem s rem ain for those of not altogether surprising given the cu r us who have been struggling for years rent political clim ate. to find solutions that work for all of It is a w onder that more educators O regon,” R asm ussen said. “This ses do not leave our state. The Legislature s io n , w ith o u r u n u s u a lly ro b u s t holds the purse strings and that Lcgis- econom y, we had the opportunity to S “The problems remain for those of us who have been struggling for years to find solutions that work - State Rep. Anitra Rusmussen lature is dom inated by people who care more about refunding taxes to out-of- state corporations and bashing on teach ers than they do about the education of Oregon s children," Rassm ussen said. We are in a dangerous position if our best educators start leaving at the same time that we disinvest in our ed u ca tional system , " Rasm ussen said. “Jack deserves a lot o f credit for reaching out to the rest of the state,” Rasm ussen said. “ He knew that educa- invest in our c h ild re n 's education But despite the best efforts of m yself and other education advocates, the R epub lican leadership refused to reverse the trend of grow ing class sizes and sh rin k ing educational opp o rtu n ity ." "Those of us who have fought for education in the L egislature side-by- s id e w ith Ja c k w ill m iss h im ." Rasm ussen said. “ But we are firmly com m itted to continue the light for our children s fu tu re.”
