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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 19, 2006)
50)¿ Gateway to College Jefferson Dancers home for Spring Concert after winning scholarships years of •^community service See story, Metro section inside ‘City of Roses Established in 1970 Volume XXXVI. Number 16 .Week ¡n The Review Porter Talks Blazer Buyout Form er Blaz e rs g u a rd T erry P orter arrived in Port land Tuesday to meet with p o te n tia l in vestors interested in buying the team and the Rose G arden arena. He will m eet with the m ayor W ednesday . See story, page A3. Quake’s 100th Anniversary S irens w ailed through San F ran cisco at 5:12 a.m . T uesd ay as resid e n ts m arked the m om ent 100 years ea rlier w hen the G reat Q uake struck, shattering the city a n d to u c h in g o f f fire s th a t burned fo r days. T he 1906 d i saster w as one o f the w orst in U .S. h isto ry . Lacrosse Players Charged T w o D uke U niversity lacrosse p lay ers w ere arrested on rape ch a rg es T uesd ay in a scandal th a t h a s r o c k e d o n e o f A m eric a’s elite cam puses and raised ex p lo siv e q u estio n s o f race, class and the p riv ileg ed status o f co lleg e ath letes. S ee sto ry , p age A2. Gas Prices Push Inflation A big ju m p in g asoline prices pushed inflatio n at the w h o le sale level up in M arch at the fastest pace in three m onths, as oil prices above $ 70 a barrel sent co n su m ers a h igh-octane w a rn in g o f e x p e n s iv e c o s ts ah ead . www.portlandobserver.com Committed to Cultural Diversity Wednesday • April 19. 2006 Wide Open State Rep. Election ‘Fit g i g F abulous ’ May Primary sees competitive race Ebony fashions hot styles for charities by S arah B lount T he : P ortland O bserver Three north Portland residents are bri ng i ng thei r ideas for healthcare .jobs and education to voters in a com peti tive race for State Representative in an election that has no incumbent run ning. Tina Kotek. Mark Kirchmeier and Jim Robison are vying for voters in the May 16 Democratic Primary in the heavily Democratic House District 44, encom passing most o f north Portland from 1-5 to St. John’s. The w inner will advance to the General Election in November. The 48lh Annual Ebony Fash ion Fair Show “Fit to Be Fabu- lous” stops in Portland on Friday. April 21 celebrat ing new, varied and exciting designs in an event to raise schol arships for local African American women. Fit to Be Fabulous is the w orld’s largest traveling fashion show, featuring extrava gant styles from high-profile designers around the globe. The Portland C hapter o f The Links, Inc. will sponsor the fair at the Oregon Convention Center, 111 N.E. M artin Luther King Jr. Blvd. at 8 p.m. Twelve Ebony models, including two men, will showcase the glam orous and elegant designs of Givenchy and O scar de la Renta, and black designers, including B. M ichael and Tracy Reese. Fashion authority Eunice W. Johnson produces and directs the show. Since the fashion fair’s inception in 1958, Ebony has donated more than $52 m illion to charitable donations. A Persian inspired print gown o f silk chiffon is banded in gold beading and word with a contrast ing god-bordered stole is one o f the many fashions to be featured at Friday's Ebony Fashion Fair benefiting local scholarships. continued Pointer Sister Remembered T he y oungest m em ber o f the Pointer Sisters isbeingrem em - bered after her death last w eek o f cancer. June Pointer sang on the hits ‘I’m So E xcited,' “Jum p (For My L ove)’ and ‘F ire.’ She was 52. See story, page A6. Students Raise Voices Minority Scores Omitted S ta te s a r e h e lp in g p u b lic s c h o o ls e s c a p e p e n a ltie s by sk irting the No C hild Left B e hind law that stu d en ts o f all races m ust show annual a c a d em ic pro g ress. S chools d e lib era tely a r e n 't co u n tin g the test scores o f nearly 2 m illion stu d ents w hen they report progress by racial groups, an A sso c i ated P ress co m p u ter analysis fo u n d . Immigrant Bill Vetoed Gov. Janet N apolitano vetoed a bill that would have crim inalized the presence o f illegal immigrants i n Arizona, citi ng opposition from police agencies that want im m i gration arrests to remain the re sponsibility o f the federal gov ernment. Tina Kotek Occupation - Policy director r fo r C h ild re n F irs , fo r O r egon. K otek lives in the Kenton k •’/?*** $ n e ig h b o rh o o d with her part ner, Aimee. She ran in a close race for House District " 43 in 2004, the T'n a K otek $ 1 FA 4 1 adjacent state representative district where she used to reside in the nearby W oodlawn neighborhood. Although she’s never held public office, K otek's passion is in state policy; her professional careerincludes significant bipartisan work in Salem, including the state’s M edicaid A dvi sory Com m ittee and Human Services Coalition o f Oregon. Kotek describes District 44 as one with twogroups: veterans w ho’ve lived in the area for 40 or 50 years, and the newcomers. “T hat k i nd o f ne w and old creates an energy in the com m unity,” she said. “The state needs to look at affordable housing and how we can keep people in their hom es.” Kotek said the solutions com e down to jo b s and money to m aintain a livable community. “It's a challenge to keep the w ork ing-class tradition alive,” she said. “We need lots o f different things to live and work in north Portland.” Her advantage over K irchm eier and Robison: "W hen you work for non profits y o u ’re not a D em ocrat o r a Republican. My experience has been w orking in a bipartisan way. I d o n 't think my opponents have com e close.” For more inform ation on K otek’s candidacy, visit w w w .votetina.com . Mark Kirchmeier photo by I saiah B ouie / T he P or t i . and O bserver Faridhy Torrecilla raises her voice to support irrigation rights at a downtown rally. She was one o f hundreds o f local stu dents who walked out o f classes in an organized protest Friday. School walkout for immigration rights Hundreds o f local students walked out o f Portland area classroom s, jo in ing students from Southridge to Sandy, to gather at the Southwest Park Blocks downtown in support o f im migration rights. The blocks by the Portland Art Museum were packed by nixrn Friday, mostly with students from high school but alsoelemen- tary school, alongside police. Students from Madison High School in northeast Port land were given permission to join the protest as a civics lesson. The sea of protesters waved signs and listened to speakers who spoke so excitedly their English interpreters had a hard time keeping up. O ccu p atio n - hom ebuilder and legislative a s s is ta n t to State Rep. Gary Hansen; former sta ff assistant for Rep. Ron W yden. K irch m eier lives w ith his Mark Kirchmeier w ife and tw o children in University Park neighbor hood. Schools, jo b s and healthcare are his top priorities. “O ur best strategy to keep north and northeast Portland racially and ethnically diverse is to provide afford able housing,” he said. “T he best way is tw ofold - increase the supply o f ow ner occupied hom es and m ake sure agencies like the Portland D evelop ment Com m ission provides rent assis tance and other assistance to keep housing prices low .” continued on page A 6