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September 27, 2ÖOO
(Eìje ^lartlanh (Bbamier
Federal Jury Awards Portland
Man in Discrimination Lawsuit
A federal ju ry aw arded a Port
land man $251,000 after he sued his
former employer for firing him from
his job because he is black.
Dexter Morrison, 45, was fired in
1997 after 20 years shuttling fuel for
Unocal Corp, in Portland after a large
amount o f super-unleaded gasoline
leaked from tanks at a company stor
age facility.
The spill closed 12 blocks o f
P ortland’s Front A venue for sev
eral hours. According to M orrison’s
lawyer, Thomas F. Spaulding, com
pany officials m ade M orrison a
scapegoat for the spill because he
is black.
" M r. M o r r is o n a lo n e w as
blam ed," Spaulding said. “He ad
m itted he was partly responsible.
But it was a case o f a w hite em
ployee leaving the bathtub run
ning and a black em ployee failing
to turn it o ff.”
The w hite em ployee, Spaulding
said, handed o ff a routine fuel trans
fer to M orrison w hen the process
was halfw ay through — w hich was
against com pany safety policy.
The w hite em ployee, who had a
poor disciplinary history involv
ing spills, was never reprim anded
for the incident that cost M orrison
his job.
According to Spaulding, the people
who decided to fire Morrison feared
losing their jobs because the incident
occurred just weeks before Unocal
was scheduled to sell its 76 Products
Division, including the Portland termi
nal, to Tosco Corp.
"W e argued that managers’ per
sonal motivations in making sure the
blame was cast somewhere other than
on themselves was because o f this
sale,” Spaulding said. “They needed a
scapegoat, and faced with two candi
dates, one white and one black, they
chose the black.”
Michael D. Williams, representing
U nocal, on Tuesday said the com
pany is “obviously very disap
pointed w ith the result” o f the
law suit. He declined to com
ment further because other dis
crim ination claim s brought by
M orrison are pending.
A cco rd in g to trial d o c u
m e n ts ,
U nocal
d e n ie d
M orrison’s allegations and ar
gued it w asn ’t liable for puni
tive dam ages for actions taken
by its em ployees because the
firm has “a bona fide policy
against discrim in atio n " and
has made a good-faith effort to
enforce it.
The all-white jury disagreed.
In the trial before U.S. D istrict
Judge A nna Brown, jurors de
term ined racial m otivations led
to M orrison’s firing and on
M onday awarded him $ 101,000
in back pay, $ 100,000 in puni
tive dam ages and $50,000 in
em otional distress dam ages.
On Tuesday, M orrison, who
now w orks at a Portland logis
tics firm , said he was “ thrilled
to death” w ith the ju ry ’s deci
sion. “ For me, this was never
about the m oney,” he said. “ It
was about clearing my nam e.”
Neil Kelly
WE RE ON CALL FOR ALL YOUR SM ALL JOBS.
FINISH CARPENTRY
ROOF & SIDING REPAIR
DRY ROT REPAIR
SHOWER REPLACEMENT
CABINETS & COUNTERTOPS
DECK REPAIR & INSTALLATIONS
A Neighborhood Business Since 1947
Contact John Frazier, Sr. for a free estim ate.
It may be warm now, but winter is
just around the comer. If your gas
service is off, now is the best time to
call to have your natural gas service
turned on and to request a furnace
inspection at no charge.
And with steeper natural gas bills
expected this winter due to higher
wholesale prices, an appliance in
spection now can help make your gas
use more efficient and save costs.
These are services offered to cus
tomers as part o f their utility service.
NW Natural is urging its custom
ers to call now if they want a furnace
inspection this year. The company is
closer we get to autumn the less
time is available for routine in
spections.”
Whenever cold weather does
strike, NW Natural becomes
swamped with calls from custom
ers who wish to start or restart
theirservice. Bycalling(503)226-
4210 now, customers can reduce
the change o f having to wait.
S e c h rist ad d e d th a t the
com pany’s custom er's service
technicians could inspect your
gas w ater heaters, gas ranges
and cooktops, gas dryers and
gas heart products.
again offering routine appliance in
spections upon request. A service
technician will inspect your hom e’s
gas appliances, make minor adjust
ments if necessary, and ensure that
the equipment is working properly. If
additional work is needed, customers
will be referred to a qualified repair
facility.
“ If a customer believes that their
furnace isn’t functioning properly, or
if it has been a long time since it was
inspected, this is a great time to get
som e a d v ic e ," e x p lain ed Steve
Sechrist, NW Natural spokesperson,
“Now is the best time to call. The
O L C C can cels C isc o & P a n c h o ’s liq u o r licen se
The Oregon Liquor Control Com
mission has cancelled the liquor li
cense o f Cisco & Pancho’s, 107 NW
5Ih, Portland, Sept. 12 because o f a
history o f serious and persistent al
cohol related problems at the restau
rant, including a fatal shooting, a
stabbing, and what police character
ized as a riot involving up to 150
persons.
Cisco and P an ch o ’s president
Trudi Li was served with the OLCC ’ s
order, which cited violations between
May 31,1998, and Aug 26,1999. and
said the license must be cancelled
because Li has not shown a w illing
ness and ability to control the pre
mises and patrons’ activities.
The OLCC issued an emergency
on food, removing the pool table
and disc jockey booth, installing
improved exterior lighting and
trying to switch to other clien
tele.
However, in meetings this July
and September, the OLCC con
cluded that Cisco & Pancho’s
still had not demonstrated ad
equate control over the premises
and patrons, and refused to over
turn the suspension order.
The O LCC’s cancellation or
der becomes effective Sept. 22.
Li was notified that she is en
titled to a judicial review o f the
order under ORS Chapter 183 if
she files for the review within 60
days.
suspension o f the restaurant liquor
license Aug. 26, 1999, based on the
above activities and other incidents
on the around the premises including
thefts, fighting, public drunkenness,
drug used and sales, public urina
tion.
The Portland Police bureau has
asked OLCC to intercede because o f
continuing problems at the business
located in Portland’s Old Town
Li requested and received a hear
ing on the suspension before an ad
ministrative law judge. The hearing
ended Dec. 7,1999. Thejudgerecom-
mended that the suspension be lifted
because Li made a number ofchanges
at the facility, including adding new
chef and placing a greater emphasis
Phony Fire Inspector Arrested, Businesses Victimized
OR CCB #1663 WA REG #NEILKCI 18702
Urban League's October 4th Dinner
Will Celebrate the Spirit of the City.
The Urban League of Portland's biggest fundraising event of the year
will be a dinner on Wednesday evening, October 4, in the Grand Ballroom
of the Hilton Hotel.
The event is entitled, "Celebrate the Spirit of the City -- the Urban League's
Dinner 2000 " Sponsors of the dinner include Fred Meyer, Oregon Health
Sciences University, Pacific Power & Light, Portland General Electric,
Providence Health Systems, and Wells Fargo Bank.
Margaret Carter, President of the Urban League, says the evening will
feature local performers. "The League's Dinner 2000 will celebrate
the spirit of young, local talent and the generous spirit of our sponsors
and contributors."
For information about the dinner, please call the Urban League office
at 280-2600.
WEST COAST BLACK
PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
OCTOBER 4 - 7 , 2 0 0 0
MONTE CARLO HOTEL • LAS V E G A S , NEVADA
“ T he P ower
of the
B lack P ress : G etting R esults T hrough S trategy
A Multnomah County Grand
Jury has indicated Lockridge’s
on 4 counts o f Burglary in the
second D egree, 1 counts o f
Theft in the First Degree (over
$ 1000), 3 counts o f Theft in the
Second Degree and 4 counts of
Criminal Impersonation.
nal ch a rg e o f B u rg la ry in Second
D egree.
T he in d ic tm e n t ch a rg e s stem
from L o c k rid g e ’s involvem ent in
p h ony fire in sp e c to r scam that
v ic tim iz e d se v e ra l b u sin e sse s in
the P o rtlan d a rea o v e r the past
sev eral m onths.
I
and
A ction ”
Wednesday, October 4, 2000
6 :3 0
ML
Welcome Dinner
Thursday, October 5, 2000 • Youth, Community L Cultur*
8 :3 0
• 10:00 a . m .
a . m .
10:00 a . m . ■
1 1:45
1 0 :0 0 a.m .
Noon
-
t.M.
Welcome Breakfast
Youth Day Summit
WCBM PRESIDENT
1:30
r.M.
2 :3 0
ML
Workshop: Technology
3 :3 0
ML
Workshop: The Underground Railroad
•
8 :0 0
ML
Reception: Salute to Community Leoders
8:00 p . m . -
9 :3 0
ML
Cultural Arts Program
Noon
•
1:30 ml -
2:30 m », •
7 :0 0 M L
C loves C ampbell , J r .
Publisher, A rizona In fo rm a n t
CONFERENCE DIRECTOR
A lescia B uford & A ssociates
Inquiries, please call: 818-995-6545
Friday, Octobar 6, 2000
8:30 a . m . - 10:00 a . m .
1 0 :0 0
Corporate Diversity Breokfast
•
2 :0 0
ML
Block Church/Block Press Luncheon
ml
-
7 :0 0
Mt.
WCBPA President's Reception
7:00 ml -
9 :3 0
ML
WCBPA Awards Dinner
9 :3 0
ML
SUPPORT THE BLACK PRESS!
Workshop: Business ond Finance
AJL • Noon
Noon
6 :0 0
WCBPA INVITES YOU to participate in workshops and
forums that address im portant issues to the minority
community.
Political Workshop
Welcome Luncheon
T h e W est C o ast Black P u blishers A ssociation,
established in 1971, has 22 m em ber new spapers
and 34 editions th a t are published in 18 m arkets
encom passing the states o f A rizona, California,
N evada, O regon and W ashington.
After-Glow... Dessert Party
Saturday, October 7, 2000
9:00 a . m . - 1 0:30 A.M. Farewell Breakfast
1.00 ML • T il O ff
Golf Outing, The Las Vegas
F or S pecial R o o m R ates ,
National Golf Club
contact the
C onference D irector
CONFERENCE REGISTRATION FORM
fax to
at
8 1 8 *9 9 5 -6 5 4 5
8 1 8 -9 0 5 -8 8 0 1
N a m e ______________________________________ C om pany___________________________________
Address____________________________________
C it y ________________________ State_______
Telephone ________________________________________
O n Sept 20, P ortland State U ni
v ersity C am p u s S afety O ffic e r
L aizure a rre ste d 3 7 -y ear-o ld A n
thony L. L o ckridge qn C harges o f
P o ssessio n o f a C o n tro lle d S u b
stance II. (c ra c k co cain e). D eliv
ery o f a C o n tro lle d S u b stan ce II
and P arole V io la tio n , on an o rig i
www.neilkelly.com
503-288-7461
proven to be the
ideal location in
the past, offering
am ple room and
e a sy ac c e ss for
em ployers and job
seekers from both
states and is the
chosen site again
fo r th is y e a rs
event.
M ark your cal
endar
fo r
Utility crews install banner for the
W ednesday O cto
interstate job fair
ber 4, from 10:00
AM to 3:00 PM to attend the 3rd
change. T he co m b in ed e f
annual Interstate Job Fair at Jantzen
forts o f the p riv a te and p u b
B each SuperCenter.
lic secto rs w ill once again
en su re one o f the la rg e st and
There will be great opportunities if
b e st jo b s fairs o ffered by e i
you are lo oking for ca re e r o p
th er state.
tio n s, em p lo y m en t, o r a career
Gas Furnace Inspections at No Charge
W INDO W S & DOORS
SHEETROCK
LEAK REPAIR
FLOOR COVERING JOBS
SMALL CONCRETE JOBS
ANO M O R E ...
EASTSIDE SHOWROOM: 804 N. ALBERTA ST., PORTLAND
Job Fair, Bridge To Future
“Helping Bridge Your Future” is
the for the 3rd annual Interstate Job
Fair
W ednesday O ct 4, at Jantzen
Beach. Portland G eneral Electric is
a link in that bridge as they give a
boost to support this worthwhile com
munity event by offering their services to
hangbannersover Martin Luther King Jr.
Blvd. Just south ofAlberta, and just west
ofI-5 on North Lombard Street.
An astounding 45CXR people at
tended last years fair sponsored by
th e
S ta te
o f W a s h in g to n
W orkSource and their Job Service
Employer C ommittee.
O ver 70 busin ess from both
W ashington and O regon are g ear
ing up to make this m ajor, once a
year, jo b fair a success.
Jantzen Beach SuperC enter has
HOME
REPAIR TEAM
T itle _____________
Z ip
__________
Spouae/Guest_________________________________________
[«»tai r.nclosrd
Ind ivid ual event tickets may be purchased ^^CalHbt^detalls, > 1 1 - 9 9 5 - 6 5 4 5