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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 1997)
i ; .’ ' > * f *.<í* f* f - X W C v* *?*"■< £«*■•« ’J ^ a L V j£ jU 4 « . a v -x3.. ■ • s a fe - • October 29. 1997 omniittcd to cultural diversity. Bonofide stardom for LL Cool J Governor urges support for HEAT a Gov. John Kitzhaber puts focus on emergency energy assistance. Award winning rapper and TV star emerges as cross- cultural phenomenon. See Entertainment, Page H3. T* > * r a * >«9» a*U>. J k See Housing, Page A3. J Make yourself known at KBOO's Boo Ball The costumes will put you in a festive mood and the music will get you dancin'. See Metro section, inside. (Lite ^ o rtía n h (feu SiKjAfe y r *' 5' People vote on dying Chinese President Jiang Zemin toured h isto ric b u ild in g s in c o lo n ia l W illiamsburg Tuesday on the eve of his summit with President Clinton. Jiang watched colonial dancers and shook hands with the performers. About a dozen pro testors, kept 250 yards away, held signs reading “Free Tibet” and “Human Rights Now.” Question is repeal of law allowing Physician assisted suicide Stock market rebound Wall Street rallied Tuesday as The Dow Jones industrial average soared 337.17 points, its biggest one-day gain ever, and closed at 7,498.32. Shrugging off a historic plunge, investors jumped at cheaperprices. A slump in Asian and European financial markets had led to three days of heavy U.S. losses, including M onday’s record 554- point Dow drop Spooked by the plunge on the New York Stock Exchange, overseas markets fell even more Tuesday with Hong Kong’s posting its largest selloff since 1989. The London exchange skidded before re covering most of its loss on the heels of a big rally by U.S. stocks. Clinton orders guidelines President Clinton sought anew to build support for national testing stan dards, urging more school districts to promote children on the basis of academ ics rather than for social reasons. In a speech at O scar M ayer E lem entary School, the president said Chicago has been able to turn failing schools around in part because of its decision to stop advancing children from grade to grade based on their social development. Albright confident Though concerned about delay. Secre tary of State M adeleine Albright ex pressed confidence Tuesday that Israeli Prime M inister Benjam in Netanyahu wants to reach a new agreement with Yasser A rafat’s Palestinian Authority. Albright told reporters she had talked to Netanyahu on the telephone and was con vinced "the prime minister wants results.” Jury gets murder case Jurors have begun deliberating the case of a British au paircharged with killing an American infant. Defense attorney Barry Scheck, part of O.J. Sim pson’s Dream Team, says prosecutors “did not even come close” to proving that nanny Louise Woodward killed 8-month-old Matthew Eappen by shaking the boy or slamming his head Prosecutor Gerard Leone Jr. said 1 9 -y ear-o ld W o o d w ard k illed Eappen in frustration over the child’s fussing and the demands of her job. School drug use cited A survey of schools by a private drug- control program found increases in drug use among junior high students, while use in senior high held steady. The IOth an nual survey by Atlanta-based PRIDE - Parents' Resource Institute for Drug Edu cation - found a 5 percent increase in the junior high students who reported that they used illegal drugs monthly. Artists on Diana album Paul McCartney, Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen are among 35 major artists who have agreed to contribute songs toacharity double album in memory of Princess Diana, her lawyers said to day. The album - “Diana, Princess of W ales-Tribute”- goes on sale Dec. I and also includes songs by U2, Eric Clapton. Rod Stewart and Mariah Carey. Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind 1997” will not appear on the album 3S K M H U M t* ■ ■■■■■■■■ Chinese leader visits World markets shaky 25(2 B y N eil H eilpern Area youth practice theatrics at a Smart Start program at the Portland Police Activities League Center in northeast Portland. Art auction takes aim at violence little peace o f mind—and a great youth (The cultural crtNcr, located a, 18,9 deal o f art—will be auctioned NW Everett, was formerly known as the Nov. 8 in an event that hopes to Northwest Service Center.) ultimately make Oregon a safer place grow The event will benefit Smart Start. Inc., a up. non-profit organization which teaches youths The first annual Smart Start Art Auction, how to resolve conflict and express them from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. at the Northwest selves through the visual and performance Neighborhood Cultural Center, offers col arts. lectors and the public a chance to bid on an The fundraisei is co-chaired by Portland eclectic range o f art and help fund a new Mayor Vera Katz, Portland C hief of Police program aimed at lowering violence among Charles A. Moose, Portland art collector A Gordon Gilkev and Oregon artist James Lavadour. Jackie Gamble, director of the Touchstone School in Lake Oswego, is also co-chairing the event. Founded by Rebecca Singer, an actress, artist and youth counselor with more than 15 years experience in teaching at-risk youth how to creatively overcom e vio lence, Sm art Start w orks to build self esteem , sucess and self-expression am ong youth. Portland’s many cultures Local jews dance with their Torah B y N eil H eilpern ambourines jangled, and drums vibrated as dozens o f people danced around the room with their beloved Torah. These were the people of P ’Nai, Hebrew for “Faces of Light”, one of several Jewish congregations in the Portland metropoli tan area celebrating last w eek’s holiday of Simchat Torah. “Joy of Torah". Held at the Smile station in Sellwood, the event capped a month long cluster of major Jewish holidays, including Rosh Hashanah, The Jewish New Year, in late September, Yorn Kippur, Day of Atone ment, Oct 10, and Sukkot, "The Feast of Ingathering” or “Tabernacles”. As with most Jewish holidays, this was a family affair, and the children started the evening with an arts and crafts project to make their own paper Torahs. Shulamit Levine asked the youngsters what Simchat Torah was all about and young Jonathan Irwin answered, “To rejoice about the holy scrolls.” When Levine asked, "What is a Torah?” Lceba Laviolette blurted out, “a paper that keeps on going.” Aki Fleshier, another adult leader of the event, noted that the scrolls — which in clude the first five books of the Bible — told the children it was not paper, but either parchment or animal skin Most youngsters knew a portion of the Torah is read each week, until the entire T C ontini ED t <) page A2 Kids are astonished by the handwritten Torah, a scroll o f the first books o f the Old Testament. (Photos by Neil Heilpern) Karen Irwin leads grandson Jonathan as he dances with the Torah. f a terminally ill person is racked with uncontrollable pain and suffering, with no apparent hope of recovery, will society allow that person to ask a doctor to provide a prescription lot a lethal doze of drugs to end his or her life? That is the question once again before voters this Tuesday Measure 5 1 would repeal the Oregon Death With Dignity Act The act was titled Measure 16 in 1994 and passed by voters. A “Yes" vote on Tuesday means the voter is against physician assisted suicide and wants the current law wiped off the books A “No" vote means the voter wants people to have the freedom to choose when, where and how to end their lives when faced with a terminal condition, thus keeping the 1994 law on the books. While the courts affirmed Measure lb ’s constitutionality, earlier this year, state leg islators decided to send the measure back to the voters. Current law provides specific conditions under which patients can request lethal drugs and protects participating physicians from legal repercussions. Physicians are not per mitted to inject the drugs or take an active part in the final act. The law requires a 15-day patient wailing period, two oral and one written request, a second physician’s opinion and counseling for patients with impaired judgement due to depression. Patients may choose whether to notify next of kin. Health care providers have the right to refuse participation. Measure 51 supporters argue mandatory counseling and notification of fam ilies should be required and complain that physi cians aren’t allowed to indicate on death certificates a death was an assisted suicide. Opponents of the current law also com plain about lack ol stale residency require ments, expressing concern of a flood of people coming from other states to die. "W hen O regon’s legislature sent the Death with Dignity law back to the ballot, they told us that we just didn't know what we were doing when we passed Measure 16," said that m easure’s chief petitioners Bar bara Coombs Lee, Elven Sinnard and Dr. Peter Goodwin in a current voters' pamphlet statement. "When life has deteriorated to the point of a miserable, agonizing existence, we would like the choice to hasten the inevi table end, and to do so with the advice and help of a willing physician,” said terminally ill patients BarbaraOskamp. Penny Schlueter and loin Shuck ”1 believe an individual should have con trol, should be able to make choices about the enil of their life,” said G ov. John Kitzhaber. Supporters of the repealing measure 51 argue lethal drugs may not be effective and may increase discomfort in dying. Ballots have been sent to voters and must be received by county election officials no later than 8 p.m., Tuesday Postmarks do not count. I
