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Page A4
October 5. 2005
Opinion articles do not
necessarily reflect or represent the
views o f The Portland Observer
O pinion
Diversity at its Best
I w as d riv in g h o m e fro m w o rk w h en a m o st u n iq u e
situ atio n h ap p en ed . I had ap p ro a ch ed th e in tersectio n o f
N o rth east M artin L u th er K ing B o u lev ard an d L o m b ard w hen
m y ey e cau g h t a su b u rb an b lo c k in g traffic.
Inside the tru ck w as an A sian m an try in g to m o v e the
v eh icle by h im self. S u d d en ly , th ree y o u n g H isp an ic m en
a p p e ared an d tried to push the su b u rb an o u t o f th e street. T h e
v eh icle w as on an in clin e and b arely m o v ed . T h e n an A frican
A m erican m an sto p p ed to help. W h en I sto p p ed , he to ld m e
to g o around! I rep lied , “N o, I am h ere to h e lp !” I ’m sure he
w as p u zzled that m e, a sm all p etite C a u ca sia n w o m an w earin g
je a n s an d flip flo p san d als w as g o in g to m ak e an y d iffe ren ce
w ith th is cu rren t situation.
A s a cu ltu rally d iv e rse g ro u p w ith n o lim ita tio n s o r rese r
v atio n s w e w o rk ed d ilig en tly to m o v e th is m a ssiv e tru ck from
h arm s w ay. N ow th at is w hat I call d iv ersity ! W e w ere an o d d
b u n ch , w o rk in g to g eth er. N ot m any th in g s w ere said, b e
ca u se w e w ere all there on a m issio n , w ith the sam e p u rp o se
to h elp a fellow p erso n in need.
I left the scen e in aw e k n o w in g that so m eh o w , the w o rld
is ch a n g in g and it w as satisfy in g to m e to k n o w that w e can
co u n t on those aro u n d us to help us not b ased o n co lo r, sex,
o r creed , b ut on th e b asic h um an need that w e all need each
o th e r an d w e are all here to h elp each other.
T h is ex p e rien c e left m e feeling ca lm and p eacefu l and w as
d efin itely the g ran d fin ale to a p erfec t day!
Brenda Richards
North Portland
Making Poverty A Priority
M arian W right E dei . man
O ne o f the unexpected side
effects of Hurricane Katrina is
that the storm opened up a
n a tio n a l c o n v e r s a tio n on
poverty. K atrin a ripped the
blinders o f denial o ff on the
chronic, quiet, invisible tsu
nam i o f poverty that afflicts 37
million Americans, including 13 mil
lion children. People were forced to
see what poverty looked like on the
clear pictures on their television
screens: fam ilies w ho d id n 't have
enough m oney to own a car or have
a credit card or enough cash to pay
fo r a n o th e r w ay o u t o f th e
by
h u r ric a n e ’s p ath ,
f a m ilie s
le ft
s tra n d e d w ith o u t
food, water, or shel
ter w hen the storm
came.
T he pictures of
Hurricane Katrina’s
poor victim s w ere
hard to ignore. They put a vivid and
desperate face on w hat is really a
constant, daily crisis for m illions o f
people in our rich nation. All over
the country, poor fam ilies and ch il
dren are being left behind as the
benefits o f a stead ily g row ing
econom y fail to trickle down.
Bush can change misguided, unjust policies
The day after H urricane K atrina
hit, the U.S. Census Bureau released
the latest data on A m erican pov
erty show ing that in 2004, poverty
increased in our rich country for the
fourth year in a row. The num ber of
A m erican children living in pov
erty has grow n by 12.8 percent over
the last four years, and is now over
13 m illion. T his m eans 1.5 m illion
m ore children w ere poor in 2004
than in 2000.
As these num bers were being
released, w as our governm ent re
sponding by announcing a federal
em ergency m anagem ent plan to
deal with child and fam ily poverty?
Join us for the
Minority Enterprise Development
(MED) Week Awards Luncheon
Just the opposite: T he Bush A d
m inistration and C ongress were
proposing additional tax cuts for
the w ealthiest and budget cuts in
program s that serve low -incom e
children and fam ilies. T he persis
tent and grow ing high level o f chi Id
poverty reflects conscious, m is
guided and unjust choices. How
can the Bush A dm inistration and
C ongressg iv een o rm o u stax breaks
to the w ealthiest A m ericans w ho
have benefited m ost from the eco
nom ic recovery w hile seeking to
underm ine the guarantees and cut
the budgets for M edicaid, food
stam ps, and other program s that
assist poor children w ho continue
to be left behind?
M ore than 7 out o f every 10 poor
children in 2004 had at least one
em ployed parent. W orking hard
and playing by the rules is not
hit, President Bush said, “W ithin
the G u lf region are som e o f the most
beautiful and h isto ric places in
A m erica. As all o f us saw on televi
sion, there is also som e deep, per
sistent poverty in this region as
well. And that poverty has roots in
a history o f racial discrim ination,
w hich cut o ff generations from the
opportunity o f A m erica. W e have a
duty to confront this poverty w ith
bold action. So let us restore all that
we have cherished from yesterday,
and let us rise above the legacy o f
inequality.”
President Bush is still correct to
say that poverty is w rong and un
worthy o f A m erica’s promise. Now
is his opportunity to translate that
assertion into action.
en o u g h to lift fam ilies o u t o f
poverty. Even if a parent w ith one
child w orks full tim e at the federal
m inim um w age, w hich h asn ’t been
raised since 1997, the fam ily still
lives in poverty. Poverty affects all
kinds o f fam ilies and child poverty
has risen significantly am ong all
racial groups. Extrem e child pov
erty, defined as living with an an
nual income below $7,610 for a fam
ily o f three, increased by a terrible
20 percent betw een 2000 and 2004
and now affects alm ost 5.6 million
children.
F ar less w ealthy industrialized
countries have com m itted to end
child poverty, w hile the United
States is sliding backw ards. We
can do better. W e must dem and
that our leaders do better.
In an address to the nation from
N ew O rleans 17 day s after the storm
Marian Wright Edelman is chief
executive officer and founder o f
the Children's Defense Fund.
We have a plan for college.
Featuring Guest Speaker
Martin Luther King III
We will celebrate and recognize
outstanding small minority-
owned businesses in Oregon
and Southwest Washington
at the awards luncheon.
Saving for college may not be easy, but it helps if you have a plan.
That's why families all over Oregon are investing with the
Oregon College Savings Plan.
- investors enjoy these benefits -
October 5,2005
Oregon Convention Center
11:30 a.m. -1:30 p.m.
State tax deduction up to $2000 per year'
Tax-free growth and withdrawals2
Use your savings at schools nationwide
Please register online at
www.oreqon.feb.gov/mboc.
for your free enrollment kit.
Call toll free today or visit our website
OREGON
1-866-772-8464
C P U {G F SA VIN G S PLAN
PART OF TU P ORPOON
C O L I.PGP S A V IN G * NCTW ORK
R a n d a ll E d w a r d «
O rag o n State Treoiurer
w w w .o re g o n c o lle g e s a v in g s .c o m
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
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OppenheimerFunds'
PORT OF PORTLAND
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This plan helps Oregon families achieve the
dream of higher education. Its flexibility and
outstanding tax benefits make it an ideal
choice when saving for college.
Possibility in »very direction '
State Treasurer Randall Edwards.
Plan Administrator
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The Oregon College Savings Plan is administered by Oregon State Treasurer Randall Edwards.
The plan Is managed bv Oppenheimerl-Tmds, Inc., a registered investment advisor and distributed by OppenlietmertTinds Distributor. Inc., a
registered broker dealer Some stales offer favorable tax treatment to their resklents only II they invest in the state's own plan If you ate not
a resident of Oregon. you mav want to Investigate wlietlier your state offers Its residents a s29 plan with alternative tax advantages The tax
b ill exempting ra n itn g i on qualified withdrawals from Federal income taxes expires December A1. 20 Id. requiring Congress to take furtlier
action tn extend those provisions beyond that date N o t FOIL in s u r e d n o r g u a r a n t e e d a n d m ay l o s e v a lu e . Please read the Plan
Dweriplkin and Participation Agreement prior to Investing (x>r more infnrm aikm regarding investment objectives, risks and expenses
Oregon state tax deduction for contributions of up to »2000 per tax filin g
'Tax free withdrawals for qualified expenses.
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