Page A4
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December 12, 2001
3Ilje Iflortlanb ffibsmier
Opinion
Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views
of
P o rtla n d (Jftbaeruer
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An Ode To The Postal Workers
by
B ernice P owell
J ackson
First, a disclaimer. I am
not objective about postal
workers. My father was a
•postal worker, and when
he died nearly half a cen
tury ago, he was in charge
W the state department’s
•post office. Many of my
uncles and cousins have
worked for the Post Of
fice and one of my cousins
is still a letter carrier in the
Washington, D.C. area.
Because of these family
connections, 1 know first
hand how important the
Postal Service is to our
nation, and I also know
how important it has been
to the African American
community in particular.
In d eed , during my
father’s time, there were
m any b lack men and
women who worked in the
post office while going to
law school, divinity school
or medical school. It was a
job which had some flex
ibility in its hours, had good
pay, benefits, and most im
portantly for them, it hired
black people.
So, the recent events
with the anthrax going
through the mail have hit
home with me. And I un
derstand the anger e x
pressed by many postal
workers in the Washing
ton area as two of their co
workers died from inhala
tion anthrax. They were
especially angry when they
learned that the dogs of the
Capitol police had been
given Cipro for anthrax,
while the human beings of
the U.S. Postal Service had
not even been tested for
the dreaded disease. Only
belatedly did the postal
workers receive the tests
and the medication. Too
late for two men and their
families.
Granted, public health
officials seem to have had
to go through a steep learn
ing curve on anthrax and
initially gave the postal ser
vice bad advice on how
anthrax could be dispersed.
But the same public health
officials were advising all
the government agencies.
Capitol officials wasted no
time in evacuating the of
fice buildings on Capitol
Hill or in providing them
with medication just in case
they might have been ex
posed. They even p ro
tected their police dogs.
So two questions have
been haunting me ever
since. Why is it that we
value the men and women
who work for Congress
and may or may not have
come into contact with the
mail more than those we
know delivered the con
taminated mail to them?
Why is it that we value the
police dogs of the Capitol
police more than the hu
man beings of the postal
service?
S om etim es I am ac
cused of seeing racism in
everything. And perhaps
that’s because as an Afri
can American, I have seen
so many instances where
our nation has denied that
race was a factor, when
indeed it was at the bottom
of it all. I don’t know what
the racial breakdown of
the postal workers in the
Washington, D.C. area is,
but I would guess that
most are African Ameri
can. And I don’t know
what the racial breakdown
is of Capitol Hill workers,
but I would guess that
while many are African
American or other people
of color, most are not.
Did race play a con
scious part in the decision
making about which gov
ernm ent w orkers w ere
expendable and w hich
were not? No, I am sure it
did not. Was it an uncon
scious factor? That would
be my guess.
And, of course, there is
the whole element of class
in all of this. We Ameri
cans don’t like to talk about
class differences, but like
it or not, they do exist. Did
class play a role for the
blue-collar postal workers
who only received medi
cation after two of them
died? That would be my
guess.
So, to my brothers and
sisters in the United States
Postal Service-thank you
for continuing to deliver
the mail during the most
frig h ten in g o f tim es.
Thanks for being the ev
eryday heroes and sheroes
that you are. May God bless
each and every one of you.
The Portland Observer—Oregon’s Oldest Multicultural Publication-is a member of the
National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885, and The National Advertising Repre
sentative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers
Association • Serving Portland and Vancouver.
“We Always Said That
Enron Was Bad News”
by L loyd K. M arbet ,
U tility R eform P roject
Contrary to the public statements
of the chair of the Oregon Public
Utility Commission, the imminent
bankruptcy of Enron, the owner of
Portland General Electric, does
threaten the wallets of Oregon elec
tric ratepayers.
The O regonian on Nov. 29 re
ported that the chair o f the com
m ission, Roy H em m ingw ay, said
“firew alls separating PG E’s bal
ance sheet from its corporate par
ent com pany are solid,” referring
to “rules governing the transfer of
PG E ’s assets in any six-m onth
period.”
Public interest attorney Dan Meek
has an opinion to the contrary.
He says the federal bankruptcy
court will have broad power to de
termine how assets owned by Enron
are sold, including PGE.
“If the court orders the assets
sold in a way to maximize the money
available to creditors, the result could
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Rev. Dr. Martin
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Sponsored by: Portland Public Schools *University of Portland *SAFECO Corporation
♦ Portland Association of Teachers ♦Washington Mutual
I
1-5 Widening
Would Hurt N/NE
Neighborhoods
by
17th Annual Tribute To:
Lim ited
Vending paece
be significant additional rate increases
for PGE ratepayers in Oregon,” Meek
said.
The bulk o f the net value of PGE is
its transmission lines and its hydro
electric generation. If these assets
were sold separately to companies
that are not regulated electric distribu
tion utilities in Oregon, then Oregon
ratepayers could lose the equivalent
of over $ 1 billion in value.
Since those assets would be worth
far more in the hands o f a non-utility
com pany, the Enron creditors would
argue for the court to order PG E ’s
electric distribution, generation, and
transm ission assets be sold sepa
rately.
Enron’s dealings in Oregon have
been a m ajor fiasco for O regon
ratepayers.
We tried to stop them, but they
bought approval with money and big
promises. Then they paid the Citizens
Utility Board to get out of their prom
ises. Now Enron’s bankruptcy could
end up costing us more and more.
I
A study considering future use of the 1-5 corridor
is of special interest to north and northeast Portland.
If 1-5 is widened to three lanes at the bridge over
the slough north o f Lombard, all three lanes will be
filled with Vancouver commuters in the morning. It’s
likely the timing of ramp meters on Lombard, Portland
and Alberta will be lengthened to prevent congestion
on the freeway and the traffic will eventually back up
onto local streets.
Once again residents of north and northeast will get
the short end when a regional decision is made.
The 1-5 Task Force appointed by the governors of
W ashington and Oregon is nearing decisions on wid
ening 1-5. It’s important that they hear from those of
us who think we should invest in communities and
transit - not freeways. There is a good chance that a
recommendation to extend light rail to Vancou ver will
come out of this group, but they need to hear there is
support for that option.
Unfortunately, there is also a good chance that they
will recommend widening 1-5, including building a
new bridge across the river. That will increase traffic
on Portland streets and encourage further sprawl in
Clark County.
There is a better alternative.
Many of the people crossing the river are just trying
to get from local Vancouver neighborhoods to Jantzen
Beach and jobs at the Port and along Columbia
Boulevard. A local arterial bridge would serve those
trips without forcing people to get on the freeway. It
could also serve light rail, bicyclists and pedestrians.
And it could allow port-to-port access for freight,
avoiding 1-5 entirely.
The task force needs to hear that you want light rail
and a multi-modal local arterial, not another freeway
bridge.
The task force has created a survey that can be
accessed from their web
site: http: yyww .i-5 p arln g fsh jp.com /survcy7
index.html. This is the direct survey address:
h ttp ://w w w .s u r v e y m o n k e y .c o m /
s.asp?u=4021487919.
Contact Ross Williams, Citizens for Sensible
Transportation, at 1220 S.W. Morrison, Suite
535, or phone 503-225-0003
i
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