Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 12, 2003)
Page A4 November 12, 2003 O pinion Thc Portland Observer _____________U SPS 9 5 9 - 5 8 0 ____________ Established 1970 4 7 4 7 N E M a rtin L u th e r K ing, Jr. B lv d ., P o rtla n d , OR 9 7 2 1 1 Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer E D IT O * S T A F F ] -I H - C n i t F . P u B t . l S H £ A C l l t T Chtirles H. Washington E D I T O « O F f I C F M A N A t U ! A t C T O A M A N A G t A Mark Washington R e r o A T tA Jaymee R. Cuti P ostmastcr : Send address changes to Portland Observer P0 Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208 Periodical Postage paid In Portland, OR i Subscriptions are $60.00 per year 5032880033 • FAX503-2880015 • EMAIL: G A A Kathy Linder Michael Leighton I) IS T A IA U T IO N I V Paul Neufeldt subscriDtion@Dortlandobserver. com , The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and w ill be relumed i f accompanied by a self addressed envelope. A l I created design display ads become the sole property o f the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or personal usage without the written consent o f the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition o f such ad. © 1996 T H E P O R T L A N D OBSERVER. A L L R IG H T S R E S E R V E D , R E P R O D U C T IO N IN W H O L E O R IN P A R T W IT H O U T P E R M IS S IO N IS P R O H IB IT E D . The Portland Observer--Oregon’ s Oldest M ulticultural P u b lic a tio n -is a member o f the National Newspaper Association-Founded in 1885. and The National Advertising Repre sentative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New Y ork, N Y , and The West Coast Black Publishers Association • Serving Portland and Vancouver. City Leadership Takes Vision Jam es Posey for M ayor prom otes a better Portland James Posey, a candidate for mayor of Portland, issued the following statement to both the voters of the city and other candidates: I challenge the voters to demand excellence from the m ayor's office, demand that the mayor be a true leader, demand that the mayor restore Port land to its position as one of the top three large cities in the United States in overall quality of life. At the same time, I challenge the other candidates to prove to the voters that they are leaders and to explain their specific goals and plans. Give the voters more than the, ‘more jobs, more affordable housing, less crime’ line of every other politician. I have developed a comprehen sive and progressive plan as mayor. By the May 2004 Primary, you will know exactly what you are voting for when you vote for me. You will know that I am not your typical politician. Healthcare initiatives will be a hall mark o f my administration. We will work develop strategies to make Port land a leading city for breast cancer treatment and AIDS research - and one of the top five cities overall healthcare quality and pharmaceuti cal research. We will endeavor to become the number one city in the U.S. for improvement in elementary and secondary school education. We will work with our great public colle giate institutions, such as PCC and PSU to support significant improve ments in post-secondary education and life-long learning of our citizens. Portlanders will be served by the most highly respected police force in the U.S. We will recruit, train and hold accountable officers who are commit- ers that leave or are forced out due to scandal and disregard to the public. The hard working members o f our community deserve affordable op tions for housing. In this regard, I would seek the development of a mul- timillion-dollar, self-sustaining fund to help first-time homebuyers. I will also seek to expand affordable rental options for low and restricted-income citizens with rent controlled housing / would have never proposed putting a lid on 1-405 without first conducting a survey to see if the voters were interested in the project and considering the cost. -James Posey ted to serving and protecting our citi zens with the respect and dignity they deserve. Under the auspices of my ad ministration, the quality of our police will be evidenced by a significant de crease in complaints against officers and the number of cities offering posi tions to members of the Portland Police Bureau, rather than the number of offic- and ‘livableneighborhood’ initiatives. I will provide detailed plans for each of these areas, one by one, so that voters can dissect them, debate them and challenge them so that each voter can truly see that my plans will work. The mayor of Portland should look at city government as a business that provides the services required of its active Lives: residents. While Vera Katz is just as dedicated to Portland as I am, our ap proach is entirely different. She wanted to put a lidon the 1-405 freeway through Portland. She did not approach this in abusiness-like manner by first looking at the need and interest in Portland to do so. Many were vocal in condemn ing the idea due to it cost versus the lack of benefits. Next, she wanted to bring Major League baseball to Port land, which required going the State Legislature because the financing com ponent had not been developed. I would have never proposed put ting a lidon 1-405 without first conduct ing a survey to see if the voters were interested in the project and consider ing the cost. The same with baseball. I would have done my homework, in cluding securing sensible financing options, before putting the idea out for public debate. The mayor o f Portland should be a leader like Neil Goldschmidt. Down town Portland was dying just as most major U.S. cities in which people aban don the city center at 5 p.m. To save downtown, Neil brought us light rail. He made the transit mall happen. He made Pioneer Courthouse Square a reality. When Nordstrom announced it was closing its downtown store. Neil met with them and Nordstrom not only stayed, but they built the newer, larger store on Broadway across from Pio neer Courthouse Square. This is the type of visions and leadership 1 want to bring to city hall in 2004. tftc ( E d i t o r Right to Choose 1 don't think President Bush should have the right to take our rights away. I’m a woman and believe that it should be our right to choose and no one should tell us that is not our right. We have been fighting this battle for over 30 years, and what makes him think that he can come and just take that right away. I think that this law should be banned from law. You're invited to a public forum Shelley D. Young, Vancouver What can we do to fight the twin epidemics of obesity and diabetes? A researcher and a physician/ diabetes expert will share what we know at this free forum. Advertise with diversity in Ihc Portland Observer call 503.288.0033 ads@portlandobserver.com Job Figures Leave Too Many Behind African A m ericans feel brunt o f unem ploym ent by E lijah E. C ummings The U.S. Department of La bor announced Friday that our unemployment rate is now 6 percent, virtually unchanged from last month. While this is welcome news, it is alarming that the African-American un employment rate actually rose to 11.5 percent. This is an in crease of over 2 percent in one year and a jum p from last month’s rate of 11.2 percent. Unfortunately, millions of Americans continue to be left behind. All too often, when the economy sours, African Americans tend to feel the brunt of it more so than any other ethnic group. We are unemployed for a longer period of time and are less likely to receive unemployment insurance benefits. , Close to 30 percent o f African Americans who are unemployed have been unemployed for 27 weeks or more. This is essentially 6 months that people have to survive without a paycheck. Even more unsettling is that the economic recovery beginning in November 2001 has had little effect of creating jobs for African Americans. For months now, ' the Congressional Black Caucus has been saying that the best indicator of whether our economy is back on the right track is to measure the number of people who have jobs. The employment numbers have therefore shown that we have a long way to go. I ask you, how, when our economy grows at a rate of 7.2 percent, can 4 out o f 10 African Americans not have a job? Now, a small string of increases have taken place, but to make up for the over 3 million jobs lost, we will need to create close to 250,000 jobs a month over the next 12 months. This number actually grows to 272,000 a month' if one considers the fact that the working age population grows by about 272,000 a month. Now is not the time to celebrate. In order for this recovery to benefit every single American it is essential that we invest in human capital. We have to invest in the American people. We have to invest in job-training programs that give individuals the tools and resources they need in order to place them in positions that may be available. We must create an environment for people to build small businesses and hire workers. For the vast majority o f African Americans, the President’s economic policies are not working and lead ing us in the wrong direction. I urge the President and my Republican colleagues in Congress to work with us in a bipartisan manner and show the same dedication to creating jobs as they have to passing tax cuts for the wealthy. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, D-Md., is chair o f the Congressional Black Caucus. 15-1 November 5, 7 p.m. Student-Teacher Ratio Kaiser Permanente Tualatin Medical Office 19185 SW 90th Ave., Tualatin November 11, 7 p.m. State-Standard Curriculum _______ Just Regular Kaiser Permanente Interstate Medical Office South* 3500 N Interstate Ave., Portland Kids Who Are Willing to Learn Call 503-528-3909 or 1-877-274-0824 to ensure a seat. For more information about weight management, visit the "For Our Members" section of kaiserpermanente.org. F ree P u b lic S c h o o l - No T uition! Accepting 6th Grade Transfer Students Today! Taking Applications for Next Year 6th & 7th Grade Students *A healthy physical activity will be offered for children 6 and older. VICTORY MIDDLE SCHOOL KAISER PE R M A N EN TE at the Blazers Boys and Girls Club 5250 NE MLK 503-789-9099