^ J J o rtla n h (Observer
Page A4
Februaiy 8, 2006
BLACK HISTORY MONTH and the American Experience
Opinion articles do not
necessarily reflect or represent the
views o f The Portland Observer
O pinion
Change Direction with Universal Healthcare
Current plan
cuts budget at
expense of poor
by J udge
G reg M athis
House Republicans have passed
a bill that, among other things, makes
cu ts to M e d ic a id , the fed eral
g o v e rn m e n t's health insurance
program for the poor. President
Bush praises the bill, saying these
cuts will help control government
spending.
H ow ever, a recent report says
the cuts will result in higher co
paym ents and prem ium s for pro
gram participants, eventually forc
ing many people to drop out o f the
programs because the out o f pocket
expenses will be too high. Control-
lin g
g o v e rn m e n t
spending is a noble
g o a l, b u t s h o u ld
ac h ie v in g th a t goal
com e at the expense of
the p<x>r? O nce again,
it
se e m s
th is
adm in istratio n ’s p ri
orities d o n ’t include
the well-being o f some
of our country’s most
vulnerable citizens.
According to the Congressional
Budget Office, about 13 million low-
income A m ericans - that’s about
one fifth o f M edicaid recipients -
would have to deal with higher co
paym ents for doctor’s visits and
other medical services. The office
estim ates that one-third o f those
affected will be children and almost
half would be people living below
Our elected officials
work for us and their
priorities and values
should mirror our own.
the federal poverty level.
,n his State o f the Union ad
d re ss, P re sid e n t B ush b rie fly
touched on several topics, includ
ing the current state o f A m erica’s
healthcare system. He urged C on
gress to address rising healthcare
costs and asked small businesses
to work together to secure lower
insurance rates so more workers
could be insured.
Keep costs under control and
expand access, that’s what the Presi
dent wants to do. But he d id n ’t
reveal a plan for making this vision
a reality. The Am erican Federation
o f Labor and Congress o f Indus
trial Organizations (AFL-CIO), how
ever. does have a plan: a govern
ment run health insurance program.
The organization has urged C on
gress to institute universal health
insurance for all A m ericans. The
group has begun to push for legis
lation that requires com panies to
pay a specific percentage o f their
payroll tow ard the cost o f health
insurance. The state of M aryland
has already introduced such a m ea
sure; 30 other states are expected to
roll out sim ilar program s.
The A FL-CIO is a federation of
more than 50 national and interna
tio n a l
la b o r
u n io n s ,
representing nine million w orking
people from every walk o f life -
teachers, m usicians, firefighters,
doctors and more.
President Bush insists that a
governm ent-run healthcare system
isn ’t the way to go. He prefers a
private health care system , where
Am ericans are free to “choose.”
But, with the cuts to M edicaid, too
many Americans will have tochoose
between paying the light bill or
paying for medicine. N oone should
be forced to make such a decision.
A m ericans should rally behind
the A F L -C IO 's push for universal
healthcare. W rite your local legis
lators and dem and they support
this initiative. Ask that they work to
control governm ent spending by
putting and end to the wars in Iraq
and A fghanistan, not by cutting
poor people o ff from necessary
m edical services.
O ur elected officials work for us
and th eir p rio rities and values
should m irror our own.
Judge Greg Mathis is national
vice president o f Rainbow PUSH
and a national board member o f
the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference.
Coretta Scott King: Pillar of Strength and Bravery
raised fourchildren, constantly
shielding them from the vio
lence o f the times.
She served as the g lu e that
held the family together which
by U.S. R ep . M axine W aters
I was deeply saddened by the allow ed Dr. K ing to have the
passing o f C oretta Scott King and p rolific im pact that he had
wish to express my sym pathy and not only on this co u n try but
my deepest condolences to her fam the w orld at large. I am c e r
tain th at on nights too n u
ily for their loss.
Mrs. King was a pillar o f strength m erous to co u n t, it w as she w ho
and bravery during the civil rights answ ered the telep h o n e only to
m ovem ent and she rem ained dedi hear d eath threats on the o th er
cated to her late husband’s dream side. Y et she rem ained a p icture
o f achieving racial equality. She o f g race and dign ity d u rin g these
s u ffe re d m ig h tily d u rin g h e r tum ultuous tim es.
G iven the recent controversy
husband’s lifetime and lived under
the constant threat o f persecution, surrounding the President’s autho
at ti mes from her o w n govern men t. 11 rization of wiretap surveillance on
was within this framework, that she American citizens, I am reminded of
She Lived Under
Constant Threats
/ am reminded o f the
many injustices faced by
the King family during
the civil rights movement.
the many injustices faced by the
King family during the civil rights
movement. Dr. King w as under
constant surveillance by the United
States governm ent. The organiza
tion he founded, the Student N on
violent C oordinating Com m ittee,
w as in filtra ted by g o v ern m en t
agents that attem pted to disrupt
the good work that he and others
were doing in an effort to obliterate
racism and bigotry from our nation.
T he g o v ern m en t even spied
on M rs. K ing and her ch ild ren
and sent hateful letters in the mail
in an attem p t to u nderm ine her
love and d ed icatio n to her h u s
band. T h ro u g h it all, M rs. K ing
w as ste ad fast in her su p p o rt o f
her husband and refused to bow
dow n to the in ju stic es they
faced. It is u n fo rtu n ate that
o n ce again, w e m ust co n fro n t
a g o v ern m en t that sp ies on
its c itiz en s an d ig n o res an
in d iv id u a l’s rig h t to be left
alone.
I am sad d en ed that causes
th at her h u sb an d w o rk ed so
hard to ad d ress: p o v erty , a f
fo rd ab le h o u sin g , an d eq u al em
p lo y m en t o p p o rtu n ities are is
sues that w e co n tin u e to stru g g le
w ith today. She and her husband
stru g g led to fo rce th is cou n try to
live up to a stan d ard o f ju stic e
and d em o cracy th a t we h av e yet
to see.
I am certain that President Bush
will express his sym pathy regard
ing her death. However, it is ironic
that the President laid a wreath on
the grave o f her slain husband to
honor the anniversary o f his death,
y etju st one year earlier, his A dm in
istration filed a brief to oppose af
firm ative action. He has also re
fused to meet with the N A ACP, an
organization that w orks to carry on
the legacy o f Dr. K ing’s vision. 1 am
sure that he will have kind words for
the King family, but w ouldn’t it be
acau se for celebration ifh is actions
m atched his w ords?
So, on this fateful day, I honor
Mrs. King for her strength, her d ig
nity and herdedication. She will be
sorely missed.
Maxine Waters is a member o f
Congress from California.
Black History Month Tribute to Civil Rights Champions
by
U.S. R ep . J ulia C arson
A w om an o f great stature has
left us behind. A woman whom
many leaned on for support and
guidance.
C oretta Scott King left behind
a legacy o f com passion, love and
standing for w hat is right. She
was a phenom enal w om an who
was kind to all she met and
worked tirelessly for those she had not.
The mark she has left on America and the
world is indelible and we are all better for
her having lived the life she led.
However, we must rem em ber all those
who have passed and left a
mark on our lives. Today, in
h o norof Black History Month,
I would like to pay tribute to
some o f those we have lost in
the past year.
O ver one year ago we lost
Shirley C hisholm , the first Af
rican A m erican w om an to
se rv e in C o n g re s s . M s.
Chisholm served honorably for seven
term s and was never one to back down
from a fight. A founding m em ber o f the
Congressional Black Caucus and the first
viable African American and female candi
date for President, she won 152 delegates
to the 1972 D em ocratic Convention.
Ossie Davis was the consummate Ameri
c a n e n t e r ta in e r an d a p a ra g o n o f
integrity. W hile he spent many years of
his life as an entertainer he also served our
country as an activist w orking alongside
the likes of Martin I .uther King Jr., Malcolm
X and Jesse Jackson.
R osa P arks, w hen she sat dow n the
w h o le w o rld s to o d up to c h a n g e
A m erica. If it w ere not fo r her, the
M o th er o f the M odern Day C ivil R ights
M ovem ent, w e m ay never have heard o f
M artin L u th e r K ing Jr. R osa P ark s
m arched to a d ru m b eat in p u rsu it o f
liberty, in p u rsu it o f eq u a lity and in
pursuit o f ju stic e fo r all p eople.
Johnnie C ochran served as an attorney
to the stars. He worked in court not only on
behalf o f A frican A merican entertainers
and athletes, but cham pioned the cause o f
everyday people. He understood the law
and worked hard to make sure his clients
were served fairly by the courts, often
taking cases in w hich police brutality was
a factor.
D r.C . D elores Tucker, starting in 1971,
served as the first African A m erica Secre
tary o f State in Pennsylvania. During this
tim e she worked to appoint more women
and African A m ericans to boards and com
missions. She led the fight to move the
voting age to 18 from 21, as well as started
voter registration by mail. As a younger
w oman she participated in the 1965 M arch
on Selma.
These are but a few o f those w ho left us
th isp asty ear. Iu rg e y o u to ta k e so m e tim e
to look over one o f these biographies this
month. Let us never forget the sacrifices of
those w ho cam e before us.
Congresswoman Julia Carson is a
member o f the Congressional Black Cau
cus from Indiana.
Coretta
Scott King
m eth becomes
your d o tte d l i n e .
TEAR
HERE
m e th l i e s , you d e c id e .
If you know someone with a meth
problem call 1-800-923-HELP.
It is sym bolic that C oretta Scott
K ing died on the 141" A n n iv er
sary o f the 13th am en d m en t to the
C o n s titu tio n , w h ich a b o lish e d
slav ery .
T he p assag e o f this a m en d
m ent by tw o votes d u rin g the
C ivil W ar rem inds us that the fight
ag ain st racial d isc rim in atio n and
fo r hum an d ig n ity has been a
p itc h e d b a ttle th ro u g h o u t o u r
h isto ry .
C o retta Scott K ing w as in the
fo re fro n t o f th e re v o lu tio n o f
progress and heartbreak. She will
be rem em b ered , not ju s t as the
w idow o f Dr. M artin L uther K ing
Jr., but as a w om an o f g reat c o u r
age and d ig n ity in her ow n right,
w hose role in the civil rights m ove
m ent is o nly now being fully a p
p reciated .
I jo in w ith the nation in ex ten d
ing c o n d o len ces to the K ing fa m
ily and in ho n o rin g the life o f
C o retta Scott King.
U.S. Rep. Earl Hlumenhauer,
Oregon Congressman from Port
land