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"The City Of Roses"
Volume XXXI
Number 22
THE»
REVIEW
AIDS Approaches Grim
Anniversary
Few people took note when, on June 5,
1981, doctors reported that a strange and
deadly new disease had turned up in five gay
men in Los Angeles. D octors, too, were
peiplexed by the illness, w hich turned its
victims into prey for exotic microbes. Today,
20 years later, the disease now know n as
AIDS has stricken roughly 60 million people
worldwide. Twenty-two million are dead; the
rest are desperately trying to delay the inevi­
table.
Bush Sticks to Energy Stance
LOS A N G E L E S — President Bush trav­
eled across the country to deliver news Gov.
Gray Davis doesn’t w ant to hear: H e w on’t
force dow n soaring electricity prices that
have cost California nearly $8 billion since
January. Bush and D avis will m eet about
energy crisis today, but there was no indica­
tion they w ould break their stalemate.
Canada Closer to
Decriminalizing Marijuana
C anada’s slow but clear shift tow ard de­
crim inalizing marijuana continues to gain
momentum. Justice Minister Anne M clellan
says the issue should be studied, and a new
Parliam ent com m ittee on drug matters will
look at decriminalization. Conservative Party
leader Joe Clark is urging the elim ination o f
criminal penalties for possessing a small
am ount o f pot.. The governm ent has pro­
posed expanding medic inal use o f marijuana,
and the Canadian M edical Association Jour­
nal recently supported full decriminal ization.
Canada’s Supreme Court will consider acase
this year that contends crim inal charges for
the personal use o f m arijuana violate consti­
tutional rights.
UJS. spy Plane Coming Home
B E IJIN G — C hina said it has agreed to a
U.S. proposal to cut a stranded U.S. N avy
spy plane into pieces and ship it back to the
United States. The U.S. Em bassy in Beijing
said it couldn’t confirm such an agreement.
The EP-3E A ries II has sat on a runway at a
Chinese air base on H ainan island since a
collision A pril 1 w ith a Chinese fighter jet.
Red Cross to Charge More
W ASHINGTON— The RedCross, which
supplies about h a lf o f the nation’s blood
supply, is telling hospitals o f its plans to raise
the c o sto fa p in to fb lo o d b y u p to 3 5 % to help
pay o ff its debts. N ational officials say the
prices are being determ ined by local blood
centers. The typical pint o f red blood cell
productnow costs $ 130 to $ 150. A RedCross
official does not expect the price increase to
affect hospitals’ ability to provide blood to
patients this summer.
74th Annual National
Spelling Bee Begins
Famed Civil Rights Attorney to
Speak on Justice in Portland
B y J oy R amos
T he P ortland O bserver
M orris D ees, c h ie f trial co u n sel for the S outhern
P o v erty Law C en ter, w ill be the sp eak er at the
an n u al D aniel J. & E lizabeth O . C o h n /R o se W hite
lecture at northw est P o rtla n d ’s C ongregational Beth
Israel o n Friday, Ju n e 8 at 8 p.m .
T h e title o f D e e s ’ sp eech is “ A T im e for Ju stic e .”
D ees has m ade h e a d lin e s b y successfu lly litigating
a g a in st racist gro u p s, and p e rsu a d in g ju rie s to find
th e g ro u p s' lead ers acco u n tab le for hate crim es
c o m m itte d by th e ir follow ers.
M an y O re g o n ia n s b ecam e a w are o f D ees in
1990 w hen he w o n a $12.5 m illio n verdict against
th e W h ite A ry an R esistan ce and its lead er Tom
M etzg er.
T h e ca se h in g e d on D e e s ’ ab ility to p ro v e a link
b etw een M e tz g e r and his o rg an izatio n and a group
o f sk in h ead s c o n v ic te d in the clu b b in g death o f
E th io p ian im m ig ran t M u lugeta Seraw in southeast
P ortland.
D ees first b e c a m e a ctiv e aid in g m in o rities in
co u rt d u rin g the civil rig h ts m ovem ent.
In 1967, he filed suit to stop co n stru ctio n o f a
w hite u n iv ersity in an A labam a city that already had
a p re d o m in a te ly b lack state college. In 1968, he
filed suit to in te g ra te th e a ll-w h ite M ontgom ery
Y M C A . A long w ith Jo seph J. L evin Jr., h e founded
the S o u th ern P o v erty L aw C e n te r in 1971.
T h e ce n te r h a n d le s civil rights cases and law suits
ag ainst ex trem ist g ro u p s th at p ro m o te hate vio-
lence. It d o e s not ty pically get involved in crim inal
cases, co m m ercial litigation, o r individual g riev ­
ances u n less th e y raise novel legal questions or
affect th e rights o f persons beyond the parties to
the dispute.
D u rin g h is career, D ees has w orked o v er 50
com plex civil rights cases, m any involving appeals
to federal circuit courts and the U. S. Suprem e
C ourt.
T he law suits ranged from the integration o f the
A labam a State T roopers; free speech; student and
te a c h e r rights; equal rights for w om en; and ap ­
peals in death sentence cases.
T o h elp you n g people learn about the civil rights
m ovem ent, D e e s developed the idea for T he C ivil
R ights M em orial. D esigned by M aya Lin, the
m em orial bears th e nam es o f 40 m en, w om en and
children w ho lost their lives during the civil rights
m ovem ent. T en thousand people attended the
dedication o f the m em orial in M ontgom ery in 1989.
D e e s’ auto b io g rap h y , “ A Season for Ju stice,"
w as pub lish ed by C harles S cribner’s Sons in 1991.
“Hate on Trial: The Case Against America’s Most
Dangerous Neo-Nazi,” was published by Villard Books
in 1993. “Hate on Trial” chronicles the Portland trial.
His latest book, “Gathering Storm: America’sMilitia
Threat"exposes the danger posed by today's domestic
terrorist groups. It ispublishedby HaipeiCollins Publish­
ers.
A made-for-televisionmovieaboutM omsDees' life,
“Line o f Fire," aired on NBC in 1991. Actor Corbin
Morris Dees wins praise for his court victories against
some of the most dangerous racist groups, from the Ku
Klux Kian to Neo-Nazis.
High Court Upholds
Disability-Bias Law
Bemson portrayed Dees in the film.
In “Ghosts o f the M ississippi," a feature film released
in 1996aboutthelifeofslain civil rights worker, M edgar
Evers, he was portrayed by actor W ayne Rogers.
D e e s' u p co m in g speech is free and open to the
public, but ad v an ce reservations are required. To
reserve a seat, call 503-222-1069.
law requires “reasonable m odifications”
for disabled people unless such changes
w ould fundam entally alter the place or
event.
T hat law applies to professional sports
events w hen they are held at places o f
S tory T o
continue on
P age B3
Oregon Golfer Has Right to Ride Golf Cart Between Shots
(A P) — D isabled golfer C asey M artin
has a legal right to ride in a golfcart between
shots at PGA T o u r events, the Suprem e
C ourt said Tuesday.
In a 7-2 ruling w ith im plications for other
pro sports, the ju stices ruled that a federal
disability-bias law requires the pro g o lf
tour to w aive its requirem ent that players
w alk the course during tournam ents. That
rule is not fundam ental to the gam e o f golf,
the court said.
In the m ajority opinion, Justice John
Paul Stevens said C ongress intended for
an organization like the PGA — the profes­
sional g o lf organization — to give consid­
eration to disabled golfers.
L aw m akers intended that such organi­
zations "carefully w eigh the purpose, as
w ell as the letter" o f its rules before reject­
ing requests o f disabled golfers out o f
hand.
Justice A ntonin Scalia w rote the dis­
sent, jo in ed by fellow conservative Justice
C larence Thom as.
“In m y view today’s opinion exercises a
benevolent com passion that the law does
n o tp lace it w ithin our pow er to im pose,” he
said.
The 1990 Am ericans w ith D isabilities
A ct bans discrim ination against the dis­
abled in public accom m odations, including
g o lf courses and entertainm ent sites. The
Casey Martin on the footsteps of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Radon Problem Blankets Local Community
Taliban: Hindus Must Wear
ID Labels
KABUL, Afghanistan — A fghanistan’s
conservative T aliban rulers, announced
plans to m ake Hindus w ear an identity label
on their clothing to distinguish them from
Muslims. The law would also make it manda­
tory for Hindu w omen to veil themselves.
A1 Sharpton Given 90
Days in Jail
i
50*
May 30,2001
Norris Dees vs. H ate Groups
W A SH IN G TON — It was “coreopsis" in
the sixth round that nailed him in 1999. In
2000, Sean Conley flubbed “apotropaic.”
Sean and 247 other brainy com petitors from
49 states and several U .S . territories are set to
start the 74th National Spelling Bee contest.
To the winner goes bragging rights, ofcourse,
and$10,000.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A federal
judge sentenced the Rev. At Sharpton to 90
days in jail fortrespassingonU .S. Navy land
as part o f a protest against military exercises
on the Puerto Rican island o f Vieques.
Sharpton was taken into custody for trans­
portation to the federal prison in suburban
Guaynabo.
W ed n esd a y
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Established in 1970
www.portlandobserver.com
P hoto by M ark W ashington /T he P ortland O bserver
Students at Whitaker Middle School started their Memorial Day vacation two days early
after tests revealed an unhealthy level of radon gas. The school took steps to circulate
fresh air through the building and seal cracks in underground walls. By Monday, a new test
showed a radon level of less than 1 picocurie per liter, a safe level according to the
Environmental Protection Agency.
With a radon problem detected in three area
schools, many parents are concerned about the
safety o f their children. W hitaker and Gregory
Heights middle schools and Kelly Elementary
School were closed last w eek in response to
reports o f radon gas at W hitaker. W hat some
parents do not realize is that radon is acontam i-
nant that is a problem for more buildings in the
area than just the schools. For example, many
residents living along 39th A venue in the north­
east section o f the city said this is the first they
heard about the age-old radon problem.
Radon is a naturally occurring gas produced
by the breakdown o f uranium in the soil. It
moves up into buildings through holes in the
foundation. Most buildings trap radon inside,
where it can build up
The gas is one o f 17 byproducts made by
uranium as it breaks down. Uranium is found
mostly in granite bedrock scattered through large
parts ofWashington, Idaho and Montana. F ifteen
mil 1 ion years ago, a phenomenon referred to as the
“Missoula Floods" washed through the North­
w est leaving large amounts o f gram te- laden sedi -
ment on to Oregon’s soils. As the uranium in the
granite decayed, radon released into the environ­
m ent Tests from 1994 showedtheAlameda Ridge
in Northeast Portland to the S t Johns area was a
high-risk area tor radon, and high radon readings
stretched as far south as Salem. Officials say
people living or working in high-risk areas should
Senator Calls for Investigation
Oregon Senate President Gene Derfler Tues­
day appointed a special committee to investigate
radon in Portland public schools. School district
officials were oideredtoappearbetbreacommittee
public hearing to “explain their failure to address
the radon gas issue affecting three schools in
northnortheast Portland.’' The date o f the hearing
was not immediately determined.
take immediate action. Simply opening windows
and doors can help filter out the radon gas Keep­
ing a constant flow o f fresh air blowing through
buildings for ventilation can reduce the health
risks associated with radon exposure. .
Home-testing kits are also available. They
range in cost from $25 to $35 and may take a
week to three months to produce an accurate
reading Experts predict as many as 80 percent
o f the homes in the north/northeast neighbor­
hoods harbor dangerously high radon levels.
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