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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (June 26, 2002)
Stage Set for Good in the Hood North and northeast neighbors celebrate diversity with four days of See Metro section, inside ial events îÎnrtÎanh (©bse *1 Volume XXXII Number 25 "The City Of Roses" Wednesday Committed to Cultural Diversity Established in 1070 www.portlandobserver.com TTCP liTC n s r REVIEW June 26,2002 Heritage Shared Families and friends celebrate Juneteenth Bush Announces Mideast Plan President Bush urged the Palestinians to replace Yasser Arafat as their leader and adopt “a practicing democracy” that could produce an independent state within three years. “Peace requires a new and different Palestinian leader ship so that a Palestinian state can be bom ,” Bush said. No immediate Shutdown of Amtrak W ASHINGTON — Two days before cash-starved Amtrak was to begin shut ting down rail service nationwide, the Bush administration said it’s confident trains will keep running. But Transpor- tation Secretary Norman Mineta didn't offer specifics to back up his assertion. Dozens of Death Sentences Overturned WASHINGTON— The Supreme Court overturned the death sentences o f more ¡than 150 convicted killers, ruling that juries, not judges, must make this life- or-death decision. The court held that 'a sentence imposed by a judge violates the constitutional right to a trial by ju ry . Ann Landers Dead at 83 CHICAGO— Ann Landers, the colum nist whose snappy, plainspoken and timely advice helped millions ofreaders deal with everything from birth to death, recently died. She was 83. Landers, whose real name was Esther Lederer, was at one time the world’s most widely syndicated columnist. WHO Worried About Cancer Link to Fried Foods G EN EV A — Alarmed about new stud ies indicating that potato chips, french fries and certain types o f bread contain a substance that may cause cancer, the World Health Organization has con vened an emergency meeting to evalu ate the research and debate action. Franklin’s Kite Experiment Hits 250th Anniversary ’ PHILADELPHIA — Legend has it that 250 years ago this month, Benjamin 'Franklin sailed a kite and a key into a stormy Philadelphia sky and made a shocking discovery: Lightning was a form o f electricity. The tale’s accuracy still generates debate among historians. Musharraf Says Tensions Remain ‘Explosive’ ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Tensions between India and Pakistan over dis puted Kashmir remain “explosive” even as Pakistan works to end terrorist activ ity within its border, Pakistani Presi dent Pervez M usharraf said. M usharraf also said his country would not back down from a fight. Tycoon In New Round-the-World Balloon Bid NORTH AM, A ustralia— Adventurer Steve Fossett drifted above Australia after launching his sixth attempt to become the first person to fly solo around the world in a balloon. Fossett ’s goal is to complete the trip in 15 days. House Panel Approves Bill to Arm Airline Pilots WASHINGTON— Lawmakers moved closer to a confrontation with the Bush administration over guns in airplane cockpits as a House panel endorsed legislation that could arm more than 1,000 pilots in the next two years. Similar legis lation has been introduced in the Senate. Amos offers a delicious assortment o f sweet potato pie at the annual Juneteenth celebration along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. D avid P lechi . T he P ortland O bserver by Old friends reunited and celebrated the rich blessing that is their shared A fri can heritage at last weekend’s Juneteenth festival in northeast Portland. The event drew hundreds o f neigh bors for music, food and fun at the comer o f Martin Luther King Jr. and Portland boulevards. Juneteenth commemorates a date when 'Trie Drama Queens" entertain a northeast Portland audience with theatrical antics celebrating the African American culture. photos by D avid Recording artist O.J. Freeze led the news o f freedom reached slaves in the crowd in prayer Saturday afternoon. South, nearly two years after President “Who here has not been blessed?” he Lincoln signed the Emancipation Procla asked. mation. - Freeze proclaimed an On this anniversary, See additional end to gun violence and local com m unity and photos on page A3. evil to a cheerful crowd. church leaders passed He introduced “The out literature, took to the Drama Queens,” an African American stage to praise God for blessings given performance group that jum ped to the the black com m unity and asked for stage dressed in colorful African gowns strength in struggles to come. P lechl /T he P ortland O bserver o f patterned reds, yellows and greens. Kids bunched together to watch and listen to the women’s stirring words of redemption and freedom. “Sing a black girls song. Bring her out to know herself,” the group sang. “She has been cloaked in silence for so long, she doesn ’t know her voice... she doesn ’t know her own beauty.” A parade the same afternoon attracted continued 'y f on page A3 Lcs Femmes Ready for Big Night The girls can dance hip-hop, but waltzing to something classical is something new by D avid P lechl T he P ortland O bserver In 1951,21 African A merican m oth ers recognized the urgent need for a program to encourage the social growth and developm ent o f young ladies within the black com m unity. Through structured activities, the m others hoped to teach proper eti quette and establish educational stan dards and moral codes that w ould help teens m ake the transition to w om an hood. Les Fem m es was founded in re sponse to these goals. The program ’s em phasis is diverse. Training includes career choices, self- Benson graduate Shakiyla Harris-Lambert rehearses with other members o f Les Femmes for this Sunday 's Debutante Ball. The dance punctuates years of involvement in a group designed to nurture positive development among young African American women. photo by D avid P lechl /T he P ortland O bserver esteem , health, leadership develop m ent, and arts and cultural aw areness. Sunday, the latest group to reach the Les F em m es’ rite o f passage after years o f involvement and volunteerism, will celebrate the D ebutante Ball. The girls are all seniors from several local high schools; they are presented to the com m unity and recognized for the progress they have made. At a recent rehearsal, choreographer Lynn G reen w ent over dance steps and curtsies w ith the graduating seniors. “ Lets run through this one more tim e,” Green says, again and again. Her patience is im pressive. It is a m uggy, hot afternoon and she struggles to keep the girls' attention. Som etim es it is trying. They giggle at unheard jokes and fidget and w hisper with the boys that will be their escorts. Green is strict and dem anding, but fun. W ithout too m uch prodding, the girls respond to her. They clam or, but it doesn’t take long for them to calm down. “She is not gonna m ove until you offer,” G reen says, instructing one o f the boys to initiate a cue, “So d o n ’t just stand there, com e on!” The girls laugh and the boys frown. Green says all the girls can dance hip-hop, but waltzing to something clas sical is something new for m ost o f them . “W e tell them a little about the his tory o f w altzing,” she said. Green says the balls go back to a southern tradition when girls w ere first continued ~y^ on page AS Cheney Talks Tough in Portland Visit Vice President Dick Cheney addresses a fund-raising breakfast in Portland with Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore. (AP photo) I A (AP) — Vice President Dick Cheney said Monday the United States will “shut down terrorist camps wherever they are" and also had tough talk for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Cheney said Iraq's interest in produc ing weapons o f mass destruction is a “gathering danger that requires ... the I most decisive response by America and its allies." A “regime that hates America must never be permitted to threaten Americans with weapons o f mass destruction,” the vice president said. Cheney made the comments at a fund raising breakfast for Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Orc. The $25O-a-plate breakfast was by in vitation only, and security around the Hilton Hotel in downtown Portland was tight. Spcakingofthe Bush adm inistration's war against Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida continued on page R6
