Page A4________________________________________ o r t l a t t ò ( í ) h s e r v e r ____________________________________*une l6,2004 O pinion Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views of The Portland Observer Economic Woes Not Getting Better b v U.S. R ep . E lijah E. C ummings Trickle down policies hurting all Americans I am encouraged by the news that the nation’s payrolls made moderate strides during the last month. However, 1 am very con cerned that despite the jobs cre ated over the last few months, the nation’s unemployment rate has not shown a significant decline since December 2003. A ccording to the U.S. D epart ment o f Labor, each m onth since D ecem ber 2003, the n atio n ’s un em ploym ent rate has been either 5.6 percent or 5.7 percent. In May, 8.2 million Americans found them selves out o f work. T hat is the same num ber o f individuals who were unem ployed for the month o f April. M oreover, that num ber does not reflect those w orkers who have given up looking for work. The employment picture gets worse if you are African-American. In May, African American unem ployment rose by .2 percent to 9.9 percent. Furthermore, the non-par tisan Congressional Budget Office White Americans dropped by 47 percent. What these numbers really tell us is that the Bush Administration's trickle down economic policies are hurting all Am erica’s workers. Although the economy is show ers entering the marketplace each month. A dditionally, w hile business productivity is up, worker wages are down. That means that our economy is creating a permanent class of working poor. Increasingly, ? Since President Bush assumed office in January 2001, African Americans have lost up to 88 percent o f their earning potential. - U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings recently reported that since Presi dent Bush assumed office in Janu ary 2001, African Americans have lost up to 88 percent of theiream ing potential. In comparison, wages for ing faint signs of growth, job cre ation and worker investment is at a virtual standstill, and the economy is barely creating enough jobs to keep pace with the number of work ployed population, are making $ 18,800 or less and many are work ing at least two jobs to make ends meet. President Bush and his A d m inistration have made it clear they are unw illing to ch an g e their econom ic approach o f fiscal m is m anagem ent and deficit spend ing. In order for our econom ic picture to change, we m ust have new leadership in C ongress and a new A dm inistration com m itted to econom ic policies that uplift all Am ericans. workers are clocking more hours, but bringing home less and less at U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the end o f the day. One May issue of Business Week reported that 1 in D-Md. is chairman o f the Congres 4 workers, or 25 percent o f the em sional Black Caucus. College Should Welcome NAACP Fueling Hate Crimes Worldwide Decision to block chapter is arbitrary and racist Racial attacks continue at home and abroad University who want to organize are not Catholic University of America’s deci Nazis, they are not thugs, they are not sion to ban students from organizing a skinheads and they are not terrorists. T h e h y p o c risy ro o te d in the NAACP college chapter on their Wash ington, D.C. campus is blatant discrimina university’s decision to ban this student chapter and then to hide tion in its most naked form. behind such an indefen We believe that it is an sible position is a biblical em barrassment not only to fig leaf that grows smaller the good men and women by the moment. of the Catholic faith but to The NAACP will con fair minded Americans ev sider legal steps to have ery where who believe that the University allow stu discrimination o f any type dents to organize the col is wrong. This is not the lege chapter. We are pre nature of democracy as we pared to bring litigation know it, and this is not the against Catholic Univer nature o f the Catholicism sity for violating what we that others and I grew to believe is the right o f all know and respect. Kweisi Mfume studentsin America tofree NAACP college chap ters are on four otherCatholic universities association and equal protection under the law. w ith no p ro b le m . T h ey in c lu d e Kweisi Mfume is president o f the Na Georgetown University, Trinity College (Washington, D.C.), St. John’s University tional Association fo r the Advancement o f Colored People (NAA C P), the nation's and Fordham University. Our student chapters and our members oldest and largest civil rights organiza are of all races. The students at Catholic tion. by K wf . isi M fume by J udge G reg M athis appears to be most hostile to ethnic mi norities with a series o f attacks that have prompted a hate crimes law. Indeed, Russia appears to be the coun try with the most racial attacks in recent The beatings and killings of ethnic minorities and dark- skinned foreigners occur so often it is rarely even covered in the media... k In our ideal world, people would be treated equally and without regard to skin color. In our current world, however, people continue to be treated unequally and sometimes, killed - based on skin color. Throughout the world, w hite suprem acists co n tinue to attack people of color. For the most part, the attacks occur in countries that are majority Caucasian, with the victims being members o f an ethnic mi nority group. In the United States, racial attacks continue in the form of violent killings, as well as racially motivated police brutal ity. Similarly, in Australia, police brutal ize the darker Aborigine ethnic group, who are the native inhabitants. Russia years. The beatings and killings of ethnic minorities and dark-skinned foreigners oc cur so often it is rarely even covered in the media, according to a report by Detroit Free Press foreign correspondent Mark McDonald. He reports that skinhead white suprema cist gangs, on a regular basis, are ran domly attacking Indians, Africans, and darker-skinned Russians. There have been so many attacks that a Russian website has been set up to keep a log o f them. The reasons for these attacks are many. In addition to subscribing to a flawed belief in white supremacy, racial attackers are usually poor, ignorant, uneducated and looking to blame their problems on a minority group. Combining these factors with an environ ment o f extreme national ism and patriotism, con fused supremacists go on the attack to relieve their frustration with their own situation. W hat is occurring in R u ssia and e lsew h e re should be a lesson to countries throughout the world. The flawed ideology of white supremacy must be confronted and defeated. Our government and business leaders must invest in uplifting its citizens out of poverty and ignorance and must set a patriotic tone of equality and justice for all. Judge Greg Mathis is chairman o f the Rainbow PUSH-Excel Board and a na tional board member o f the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. W ELLS FARGO Embrace the past while looking towards the future. The Next Stage* Wells Fargo honors Juneteenth, a national day of African American freedom. J U N E C i 004 Well, Fargo Bank. N A All rtqhti reserved Member FOC T E E N T H • J U N E 1 9 , 1 8 6 5