Page A4
DEC. 17, 1997
îh v ÿlortlanb (íDbscruer
Editorial Articles Do Not Necessarily
Reflect Or Represent The Views O f
(Eljc |Jo rtIan b ffibscruer
Attention Readers!
Plea»« take a minute to send us your comments. W e ’re always trying to give you
a better paper and we can't do it without your help. T ell us what you like and
what needs improvement... any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. We
take criticism well! G et your powerful peus out N O W and address your letters
to: Editor. Reader Response,
p e e
s p
(© b s c r u e r
(DSPS 959-68«) Established in 1970
Charles Washington
Publisher & Editor
Mark Washington
Distsribution M anager
Gary Ann Taylor
Business M anager
Larry J. Jackson, Sr.
Director o f Operation
Iesha Williams
Graphic Design
C ontributing Writers:
Professor McKinley Burt,
Lee Perlman,
Neil Heilpern
Joy Ramos
4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.,
Portland, Oregon 97211
503-288-0033 • Fax 503-288-0015
Email: Pdxobserv@aol.com
Deadline for all submitted materials:
Articles:Friday, 5 :0 0 pm
Ads: Monday, 12:00pm
POSTMASTER: Send Address Changes To: Portland Observer,
P.O. Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208.
Periodicals postage paid at Portland, Oregon.
Subscriptions: $30.00 per year
The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. M anu
scripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned
if accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created design display
ads become the sole property o f the newspaper and cannot be used in
other publications or personal usage without the written consent ot the
general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of
such ad © 1996 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART W ITH
OUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED.
The Portland O bserv er-O reg o n ’s Oldest Multicultural Publica-
tio n -is a member of the National Newspaper Association-Founded in
1885, and The National Advertising Representative Amalgamated
Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers
Association • Serving Portland and Vancouver.
S ubscribe to w
^ o r t i a n b < © b « « ru e r
The Portland Observer can be sent directly to your home for only $30.00
per year Please fill out, enclose check or money order, and mail to:
T he
S ubscriptions
P o rtla n d O b s e r v e r ; PO B ox 3137
P o r t l a n d , O reg o n 97208
N am e:___ ____________________________________________________
Address:___________________________________________________ —
City, S tate:__ _____________________________________________ ___
Zip-Code: ____ _______________________________________________
T hank Y ou F or R eading T he P ortland O bserver
better Tirf ~C'lic■ (SJ^itor
Send your letters to the Editor to:
Editor, PO Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208
To The Editor
W hile th ere m ay be som e
good re su lts from O reg o n land
use law s and re g u la tio n s, O r
e g o n ian s need to know th ere
are som e very bad — and they
need to be d e a lt w ith!
The highly re stric tiv e “ farm
d w e llin g ” ru le s a d o p te d by
L C D C (the state L and C o n se r
vatio n and D ev elo p m en t C o m
m issio n ) are a g la rin g ex am p le.
To q u alify for a farm d w e ll
ing, the ru les req u ire the “ fu
ture o c c u p a n t” o f the d w e llin g
to have p ro d u ced $ 8 0 ,0 0 0 or
m ore gross farm incom e in each
o f tw o p reced in g years, or th ree
o f the last five years. It d o e s n ’t
m a tte r w h eth er the farm is 5
acres or a 100 acres or m ore.
My w ife and I w ere lucky
en ough to have a 2 00 acre farm
w hich w as big eno u g h to p ro
duce the req u ired $ 8 0 ,0 0 0 in
the tw o y ears b efo re we a p
p lied for a d w ellin g . W e are
c a re e r fa rm e rs w ho w ant to
m ove from an o th er farm a cro ss
the v alley that o u r c h ild re n are
tak in g over.
Dear Editor:
We ap p re c ia te y o u r h elp in g
us to help O re g o n ’s youth.
On b e h a lf o f the e n tire sta ff
at Boys & G irls A id S o ciety of
O reg o n , I w ould like to th an k
you for y our recen t c o v e ra g e o f
the w ork we do.
We can not acco m p lish our
g o als fo r c h ild re n w ith o u t the
h elp o f the public.
Y our in te re st in o u r pro g ram
h elps us to reach the c itiz e n s o f
o u r com m unity w ho care.
For this we say thank you.
The newsbrief you recently
But, w hen we a p p lied for our
d w e llin g , it w as den ied because
the farm incom e was “p roduced”
by a lessee — and the county
in fo rm ed us that, if the lessee
g o ta d w e llin g and m oved out, it
w ould have to be rem oved. We
c o u ld n ’t live in it.
T o m ake th is situ a tio n even
m ore o u trag eo u s, we could have
g o tte n a d w e llin g w hen we
b o u g h t the farm and we spent
o v er $ 1 0 ,9 0 0 d rillin g a w ell,
p ro v id in g u tilitie s and o th er im
p ro v em en ts needed to live there
b efo re the new rule w ent into
effect.
I sh o u ld a lso add th at we
w anted to site the dw ellin g on a
tw o acre area that is im p o ssib le
to farm . So the d w e llin g d id n ’t
take any land out o f farm in g ,
and my w ife and I need to live
th ere to farm the land that can
be farm ed.
Y e t G o v e r n o r K itz h a b e r
th re a te n e d to veto a le g isla tiv e
bill to rem edy this situ a tio n .
S in cerely,
R ob ert M eyer
L ebanon, OR
ran was very helpful at gettin g
the m e ssa g e o u t that sh e lte r
hom es are n eeded fo r youth.
T h is m essage re su lte d in in
c re a se d a w a re n e ss and m any
c a lls to our agency about sh e l
ter p aren tin g .
Again, we appreciate you and
your organization for lending a hand
in improving the lives of O regon's
children. We look forward to work
ing with you in the future.
V ery sin c e re ly .
Jo n ath an K ipp
Shelter Care Counselor
S h e lte r P arent R ecru iter
t
i
r e s
American Philosophy of
Land and Space, Cont’d
P.O, Box 3 1 37, Portla n d. OR
^ ¡ .I n r t la n b
e c
lion proclamation' (Document 222),
"The Origin of Eminent Domain’,
and the ‘National Geographic Index.
And precisely means that by accu
rately assessing both the past and
current urban traumas resulting from
such phenomena as the two great
war-driven northward migration of
African Americans... we may better
employ the parameters indicated by
author Mugeraver than the discourses
and edicts of the ‘Urban Planning
Establishment:
Certainly, he does not deny the
importance and influence of such
“planning gods” as the great land
scape a rc h ite c t F red erick Law
Olmstead (1822 - 1903): Olmstead
quoted Lord Bacon in describing his
plan for the Berkeley Campus, “God
almighty first planted a garden... New
Yorks Central Park exercises a refin
ing influence upon even the most
lawless.”
Other prime movers are cited in a
developing panorama of an urban
American landscape, but we would
turn you now to an acclaimed ac
count of a man whose politics “char
acterize many of the problems of
—
Purple m ountain majesties
Above the fruited plan.
M etro’s urban boundary c ity ’s
“granny fla t” pain.
----
Last week we began and exam i
nation of those American ideolo
gies and philosophies that evolved
into today’sdiscipline (imposition?)
known as “Urban Planning.” Early
on it was established that there was
a great dichotomy: Between “a para
dise given (Eden)” and “a negative
wilderness to be overcome." With
the aide of Light Rail, yet?
And we recommended, “Inter
preting E nvironm ents’, Robert
Mugeraver (1995), as an excellent
point of departure for this type of
examination. Though those “early”
views “are now concealed and
forgotten...they still operate in our
understanding of parks and wilder
ness and in our attitudes to the use
and development of land.”
This probably means we will have
to look beyond our ‘cultural incu
bator’ of ‘Cowboys and indians’,
‘Powells’ Report on Arid Lands of
W est’ (document .302), 'Homestead
Act (Document 214); Emancipa-
urban decline that plague us today.”
This revealing and necessary addi
tion to the library of anyone seriously
interested in the field is “The Power
Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of
New York”. Robert a Caro, Vintage
1975.
As the most powerful Park Com
missioner and City Planner in the
nation's history he directed the con
struction of billion of dollars in parks,
play ground, highways, bridges, tun
nels, and housing project - mostly
his own concepts and designs. And
with little political or social consul
tation. His fiefdom reigned from the
1930’s to 1970.
There is much here that can be
related to by any sharp, if not san
guine observer of the urban scene
during these times - whether white or
black. O f special interest to African
Americans who would wonder what
happened to that early “spiritual con
cept” o f American land as a “para
dise given”, are gages 509 to 514.
A description is given of the mer
ciless manipulation of access and
enjoyment of such recreation facili
ties primarily used by children. A not
uncommon practice across America,
the availability of playgrounds and
swimming pools is a racially con
trolled as other real estate by actual
or defacto associations of realtors.
Much to be learned here concerning
unwritten urban social controls.
A century o f northw ard African
A m erican m igration to the large
central cities brings blacks into a
strange congruence with an urban
"paradise given” , shaped by that
pantheon o f planners, architects,
essayists and sociologists who are
revered by the urban planning es
ta b lis h m e n t; L ew is M um ford,
Frank Lloyd W right, “Am erican
Bungalow D esigners."
In a carefully - controlled pattern,
blacks moved in where whiles moved
out. An excellent detailed national
picture is given by “African Ameri
can Historic Places” ed. Beth L. Sav
age 1994. An equally interesting an
informative account is given by “Cor
nerstones of Community: Buildings
o f Portland’s African American His
tory” , Cathy Galbraith, Project Co
ordinator, The Bosco-Milligan Foun
dation, 1995. C ont’d next week.
W hen K ids P erform , T h ey Learn!
Bv D r . L enora F ulani
studios in midtown, led by a senior
writer on a popular daytime show; a
public speaking class taught by a day
visit to Washington. D C ., during
which the students made presenta
tions to members of congress on is
sues of concern to youth. All of these
workshops are led by adult profes
sionals who are supporters of the
program and who volunteer their
time. Many of these adults have told
me how it has been developmental
for them, too!
A scene that was recently added to
our development play was directed
by one of our supporters, the owner
of an advertising agency. This adver
tising executive and members of his
staff met with the young people to
develop an advertising campaign for
their Development School for Youth
as a way to show them something of
The Development School for
Youth, a project I co-direct, em
ploys a new performance-based edu
cational approach that challenges
the prevailing view of how young
people learn. It is a rigorous three-
month leadership training program
for young adults between the ages
of 16 and 22 that uses performance
to enable them to make the transi
tion from school-which is where
they are now—to the world of work.
The Development School for
Youth is structured as a 12-act “play"
in which the students, most of them
in highschool, perform as leaders in
a variety of “scenes." These are
some of the scenes in which the
Exchange, conducted by a retired
managing director of Merrill Lynch;
a visit to the ABC-TV television
how the advertising business works.
As part of creating the “campaign,”
the young people were organized into
a “focus group” where they came up
with a slogan to describe the leader
ship training program: School As It
Should Be.
In addition to such basic perfor
mance requirements as being ready
to go on-stage, on time and “in cos
tume” for each scene, the students
are expected to do the homework
assignments based on the exercises
in Let’s Develop!—the marvelous
book by Dr. Fred Newman is our
textbook. They also produce a pro
fessional resume, and take part in a
mock job interview. All 17 members
of the Spring class were placed in
paid summer internships. We are
enormously proud of the rave re
views our students received, with
several of them being invited to
come back next summer or offered
perm anent part-tim e jobs after
school. The current class consists
of 14 young people, who will gradu
ate on December 17. Like the first
group of trainees, the class is very
heterogeneous. It includes a Mus
lim young woman, a 15-year-old
from John Jay College (at 22 he is
our elder statesman), several young
people whose parents are recent
immigrants from the Caribbean, and
African American youngsters.
In the Development School for
Youth, young people are perform
ing ahead of themselves, doing more
than they are "scheduled” to do,
stepping outside the fixed identi
ties that keep them undereducated
and unconnected to the world at
large.
Take a Stand Against Impaired Driving
Support National 3D Prevention Month
Last December, John Doe didn’t
make it home for the holidays. He
spent December 20 through January
12 in the intensive care unit of a local
hospital. His family spent the holi
days gathered around his bedside,
waiting for some spark of recogni
tion in his eyes, dreading that it might
never come. He spent the better pari
oftheyearin a rehabilitation lacility.
He'll make home for the holidays
this year, but now that he is in a
wheelchair, he can’t walk or drive.
All because an impaired driver
chose to drive home from a holiday
party.
In the news business, we see tragic-
scenarios like this, and worse, all too
often. Because every day, thousands
of people across our country decide
to drive after they’ve been drinking.
So, what can we do about it? Here’s
what the Oregon Department of
Transportation, Oregon State Police
and numerous transportation safety
advocacy groups are doing. We are
supporting:
* National Drunk and Drugged
Driving (3D) Prevention Month and
this year's campaign, “Take a Stand
Against Impaired D riving.” This
year’s campaign emphasizes safe
communities. Every part of the com
m unity-businesses, citizen groups,
health care providers, police agen
cies, schools and governm ent-has a
role to play in the fight against im
paired driving.
* National Lights On for life Day
on Friday, December 19, when mo
torists are asked to drive with their
headlightsonallday to remind people
about the impaired driving problem
and in remembrance of those killed
by impaired drivers.
* Our local law enforcement agen
cies as they participate in the N a
tional Holiday Lifesaver Weekend.
Friday, December 19, through Sun
day, December 2 1. Law enforcement
officers across the nation will step up
enforcement efforts against impaired
drivers and motorcyclists, speeders,
aggressive drivers, and others who
make the roads especially dangerous
at this time of year.
* Join with us for National Drunk
and Drugged driving Prevention
Month. Drive with your headlights
on Friday, December 19 Designate
a driver for holiday parties. Take the
keys from a friend who’s had too
much to drink. Arrange to store or
haul home som eone’s motorcycle if
the operator has been drinking. Sup
port alcohol-free holiday events and
encourage your local government and
civic leaders to do the same. Partici
pate in the Mothers Against Drunk
Driving red-ribbon "Tie One On For
Safety” campaign. And request a
“Sober Solutions” recipe book of
non-alcoholic beverages from your
local AAA office.
And above all, don’t drink and
drive.
This Land Mine Is Our Land
It's a glorious week for nonvio
lence and peace, thanks to Jody Wil
liams, Robert Muller, Canada, and
the International Campaign to Ban
Landmines. 125 nations signed a
treaty banning the use or production
of land mines, a treaty that the for
eign policy establishment viewed as
unimaginable only a year ago.
We agree w ith UN S ecretary
Kofi A nnan, who was quoted in
the W ashington Post that this
“ treaty is a landm ark step in the
histo ry o f d isa rm a m e n t...a vic
tory for the w eak and vulnerable
o f the w orld."
We congratulate those grassroots
activists who and in record lime suc
cessfully found common ground with
most of the world.
Unfortunately, that does not yet
R A IN B O W PU $H
C O A L IT IO N
include the U S. however, is not on
that list. America, home of the free
and land of the brave, finds itself on
two other-m ore sham eful-lists:
(1) the list of the leading produc
ers and exporters of anti-personnel
land mines; and
(2) the very short list of nations
which have not yet signed this treaty,
a list including such human rights
“models" as Russia, China, Pakistan.
Afghanistan & Turkey.
We do applaud the Clinton/Gore
Administration’s recent commitment
of $80 million per year for mine
clearance operations around the
world. This funding is a necessary
and valuable step towards ridding
the world of its existing mines, which
kill or injure a child every 2 hours,
and it is good that the U S. will fund
demining.
We find it very sad, however, that
a nation which President Jimmy
C arter-a fellow Southern Democrat-
tried to make synonymous with hu
man rights, a country which stands as
the last, best hope for democracy,
says it is too scared of a starving
North Korea to ban land mines.
Many of the world’s leftover land
mines are our land mines. Millions
w ere-and are-born in the USA. We
should be leading the world on this
issue, not apologizing to the world
for being too fearful to say yes to
hope.
Mr President, you can still sign
this treaty Make it a birthday present
to Jesus. Announce you will sign it
next month, thereby marking the
Martin Luther King Holiday celebra
tions with meaning. After all, both
the International Campaign to Ban
Landmines and Dr. King are Nobel
Peace Prize recipients. It would be a
fitting gesture.