Williamsand
Bellows find
courage to
love
See inside
Straight
Shooters
help at risk
children
January 5. 2000
w ww.theportlandobserver.com
Committed to ( ultural Diversity
Volume XXX. Number 1
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Eugene OR 97403
Adoption records M o r e s t u d e n t s a t t e n d b l a c k c o l l e g e s
sealed, after all, for The United Negro College
seven days
The temporary stay allows six
anonymous birth mothers
time to appeal to the Oregon
Supreme Court
A day after upholding a landmark adoption law, the
Oregon Court o f Appeals again placed it on hold
Thursday, frustrating hundreds of adult adoptees seeking
birth certificates.
The court agreed to reinstate a temporary stay on the law
for seven days so that six anonymous birth mothers
challenging it could take their ease to the state Supreme
Court.
“W e've won every single battle, every step o f the way,
but they w on't let us have this one simple thing: your
own birth certificate," said Helen Hill, a Nehalem teacher
and chief petitioner for Measure 58, the law voters
approved. “Nobody knows what it’s like, this emotional
roller coaster they've been on."
The stay will expire Jan. 6 unless the Oregon Supreme
Court agrees to extend it, said David Schuman, a deputy
attorney general who defended the law.
Roy Pulvers, a Portland attorney who has helped
represent supporters o f the measure, noted that even in
granting the temporary stay, the Court o f Appeals has
not changed its position.
“We view this as the last word by the Court o f Appeals
on this question," he said, "and they have made it clear
the plaintiffs have a seven-day period, at which point
their stay will no longer be in effect.'
The Court o f Appeals refused to reconsider the birth
m o th ers’ case, w hich it rejected in its decision
Wednesday. A three-judge panel unanimously ruled
that the mothers had no constitutional right to keep birth
records confidential ofchildren relinquished foradoption.
(Please see ’Adoption’ page3)
Fund will host its annual star-
studded televised fund-raiser
on Sunday
M I lll'I U t
oi Tri l Pomi. asd O bsermir
Danica Williams-Larry decided to attend Fisk University,
a historically black college, because o f her desire to
know about her culture and her desire to know about a
world about which poet Nikki Giovanni often wrote.
Giovanni often spoke o f her alma mater located in
Nashville, Tenn. and made Williams-Larry, a graduate
o f Jefferson High School and now a business and
English major, want to attend the school. When
Williams-Larry arrived at Fisk three years ago. she
found a lot more to love about the school.
“ I know why 1 love Fisk. It’s being around so many
motivated, educated black people with the same goals,”
said Williams-Larry, a 21 -year-oldjunior. “And the fact
that your teachers know your name, not just your Social
Security number.”
Williams-Larry is among the increasing number o f
Portland students attending historically black colleges.
And this Sunday, Williams-Larry will be among several
Oregon students featured on KPTV-Channel 12 as part
ofthe United NegroCollegeFund'sannual star-studded
fund-raiser. The event w illair from noon to 4 p.m.
The theme o f the fund-raiser is “An Evening o f Stars:
A Celebration o f Educational E xcellence” Celebrities
Lou Rawls, Debbie Allen, Star Jones, and Lynn Whitfield
will host the event. The program will feature concert
performances by recording artists such as Lauryn Hill,
Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Barry White, Earth
Wind and Fire and many more. In addition there will be
guest appearance by Quincy Jones, Gen. Colin Powell,
Tom Joyner and Barry Bonds.
Elaine Ordal, UNCF’s Portland consultant, said each
/
in
•rr* - ~
Danica
Williams-
Larry,
Sharee
Buckley-
Johnson,
and Teresa
Phillips all
attend Fisk
University
in
Tennessee.
*
year an increasing number ot Portland high school
graduatesareattending historically black colleges funded
through the UNCF. Currently, about 200 local students
attend colleges supported by the UNCF. “The people ot
Portland should be made aware o f this, Ordal said.
“These same kids are coming back to the community to
help make a difference in this community.” The United
Negro College Fund is the nation’s oldest and most
successful m inority higher education assistance
organization in the country. UnderthedirectionofW illiam
H.Gray.IIl, UNCF has been named as thcNo. 1 educational
nonprofit organization in America by the C hronicle ot
Philanthropy. In addition, the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation named UNCF as the administrator oftheG ates
Millennium Scholars Program, which isaSl billion 20-year
initiative to provide financial assistance to high-achieving
African-American, Hispanic. Native American and Asian
students who are in severe financial need.
PGE answers call to help Urban League move forward
Bi D iesscE ttE its
ot Tilt P ortland O iisirx lr
Margaret Carter sent out a clarion call
forhelpand Portland General Electric
has answered.
Carter, interim director o f the Urban
League o f Portland since December,
asked area businesses to help rebuild
the agency following its lossof major
funders follow ing a M ultnom ah
County report that revealed financial
m ismanagement under the leadershi p
o f fo rm e r p resid en t and chief
executive officer Lawrence Dark.
PGE is helping the cash-strapped
agency by allowing one o f their
employees to work at the agency to
K im b erly P o w e is th e o p era tio n s m a n a g e r f o r the U rban
L e a g u e o f P ortland, on loan fr o m PGE.
W eather
46°F/7°C
38°F/3°C
Through the weekend
46°F/7°C
48°F/8°C
Clouds
and sun
34°F/1°i:
4(I°F/4°C
A Shower
late
Inside-A
Week in Review................... 2
Today
Thursday
46°F/7°C
Sunday
40°F/4°C
Occaisonal
Rain
49°F/8°C
£
Carter, who is also running for the
Oregon Senate, said Powe is an asset
to the League. " I’m very pleased to
have this person on staff,” Carter
said. “The job is moving so fast. It’s
hard not to have people in place to
implement the change. ... 1 am not
Superwoman. I cannot do it all.”
In addition to providing the League
with an operations manager, PGE
donated $25,000 to upgrade the
a g e n c y ’s c o m p u te r
sy stem ,
Finlayson said. “We feel the Urban
League is a valuable part o f the
community and we realized it hit hard
times and we decided to lend targeted
assistance. ... We are sure other
businesses will do the same,” she
said.
The League came under fire last year
afterareport from Multnomah County
revealed major financial problems. In
October, Dark resigned from his
$95.000-a-year position, after the
county review raised questions about
the agency’s handling o f public and
p riv ate m oney under D ark s
leadership. As a result o f the
questions raised, Multnomah County
recently, Powe worked as a fund­
assist with the restructuring that
raiser for the United Way o f the
Carter, a former Democratic state
Columbia-Willamette.
In her position
representative, has planned.
as
a
loaned
executive
at the United
Kimberly Powe, a government affairs
Way,
Powe
assisted
and
coordinated
specialist at PGE. will work as the
fund-raising
campaigns
at major
League’s operations manager for at
c
o
m
p
a
n
ie
s
in
th
e
P
o rtlan d
least three months. Powe works at the
League three
days a week
and at PGE
tw o days a
w eek. H er
“ We feel the Urban League is a valuable
job is to help
part ofthe community and we realized it
the League
hit hard times and we decided to lend
tra c k
its
targeted assistance."
accountability
Cindy Finlayson, legislative relations
and
to
a sse ss the
and public relations supervisor.
n eed s
of
L eague
em ployees,
metropolitan area.
she said.
P o w e, w ho is a g ra d u a te o f
PGE pays her salary.
Georgetown University, said she
Cindy Finlayson, a PGE legislative
brings a fresh perspective to her job
re la tio n s and p u b lic p o lic y
at the Urban League “I’m a very
supervisor, said Powe was selected
creative person and I have good
to help the Urban League because
writing and organizational skills,"
she has experience working with
Powe said.
n o n p ro fit o rg a n iz a tio n s. M ost
39°F/4°C
I
Vancouver wom an donates
land to city................................2
PCC enrollm ent reaches
all-tim e high.............................. 3
Tax laws
rev ised ......................................... 6
Metro-B
.
.................................................
,
El Observ ador........................
stopped payments on a $1 million
contract to the Urban League.
Worksystems, one o fth e League's
largest funders, also canceled its
contract and the United Way of the
Columbia-Willamette canceled its
payments, too.
Dark resigned, saying his resignation
was necessary so that the agency
could move forward.
This Last Week
Straight Shooters helps
put kids on right track..............1
U.S. West helps bring Internet
to Oregon schools................... 1
_ .
.
i t »
___
Trin-i-tee dchuts new
a lb u m
M a rg a re t C a rter
3
4
in History
on,.n J. ts2, « h e , » . /
excommunicated from the Roman
p,
signed the Emancipation Proclamation,
declaring that slaves in rebel states were
frec
On Dec . 3 1, 1879. Thomas Edison
publicly demonstrated his electric
incandescent light in M enlo Park, N.J.
I