50< .37 years of ommunity service •^community Drug Coverage Offered to All Positive Agenda Carl Flipper remembered as v v community r i i i i i i u i i n j r u builder m avi State program brings bulk-purchase prices See story, Metro section Sec story, .Metro See Metro section Observer ‘City of Roses' Established in 1970 Committed to Cultural Diversity Volume XXXVI, N um ber 50 TLWeek ¡n The Review Bombs Kill 63 Iraqi Laborers T w o car bom bs targeting day laborers looking for work ex ­ ploded within seconds o f each other T uesday on a main square incentral Baghdad, killingat least 63 people and w ounding scores, the governm ent said. Obama Draws Crowds Illin o is Sen. Barack O bam a drew large crow ds d u rin g h is first triptothe pivotal presi­ dential cam paign state o f New H am pshire w hile he decides w hether to enter the Democratic- race. S ee sto ry, p a g e A 2. Annan Criticizes Bush U .N . S e c r e ­ ta ry -G e n e ra l Kofi Annan, in h is fa re w e ll address M on­ day, criticized the Bush ad­ m in istra tio n , w arning that j Am erica m ust not sacrifice its J D em ocratic ideals w hile waging war against terrorism . "H um an rights and the rule o f law are vital to global security and prosper­ ity," A nnan said. Sea Tac Christmas Trees Return after Dispute The C hristm as trees are back up at Seattle-Tacom a International Airport. M aintenance staff re­ stored the 14 plastic trees that had been rem oved during the w eekend because o f a rabbi’s threat to sue over the lack o f a menorah in the airport’s holiday decor. Oldest Person Dead at 116 w w w . p o r 11 a n do bserver, com Wednesday • D ecem ber 13. 2 0 0 6 Passing Grade for School Uniforms Rigler sees less tension, fights by C harity P rater T he P ortland O bserver School uniform s may have reduced ten­ sions between students and lessened co n ­ flicts at Rigler Elem entary in northeast Port­ land. Since becom ing the first public school in Portland Public Schools to adopt the uni­ form dress code this fall. Rigler hasn 't had a single fighting referral, according to school principal Kathleen Kaczke. A m ajor am ount o f school resource time sending kids hom e because they were w ear­ ing inappropriate clothing, such as low cut shirts and baggy pants, has also been elim i­ nated. Every one o f the 560 kindergarten through sixth grade kids is expected to com e to school w earing clean khakis, shorts or blue plaid skirts along with a plain navy blue or w hite shirt with a collar. “ We w anted to set ourselves apart," says Kaczke. “ Its helps the image o f the school to look more professional and it also helps the kids here that live in poverty." N inety-tw o percent o f the children that attend R igler live on or below poverty level. Since each uniform can be bought new for as little as $20 dollars per outfit, fam ilies can save hundreds o f dollars from the prices o f m ajor brand clothing. The school staff has also bought and donated clothing for families. R igler oper- photo by M ark W asiiington /T he P ortland O bserver School uniforms at Rigler Elementary in northeast Portland make students look like they are part of the same team. Jackie Sanchez is at the keyboard with her sixth grade classmates (standing, from left) Jackie Pacheco. Irley Mejia-Uc, Josh Smithers, Carlos Decker-Martinez, Elias Pierce (background) and Miguel Cedillo. ates a free clothing closet as well as an annual clothing exchange so growing kids can give their used clothes to the younger stu d en ts. Rigler is one o f the m ost diverse schools in the city with 60 percent o f the students of H ispanic origin, 23 percent African A m eri­ can and 11 percent Caucasian. "W e also have some V ietnam ese, Asian, and also some Somalian kids," says,Kaczke, "W e’ve even gone out o f our way to make sure som e girls have long skirts because o f theirreligion.” The school w on’t know for sure until later in the year if grades and test scores have im proved because o f the uniform s, but some We’ve even gone out of our way to make sure some girls have long skirts because o f their religion. - Kathleen Kaczke, Rigler Elementary Principal kids already know that the distractions of clothing have decreased and they are put­ ting more attention tow ards academics. Francisco Bautista is an 11-year-old fifth grader that began attending Rigler in the second grade. He and his friends spent a co n sid erab le am ount o f tim e choosing clothes to w ear to school before the uniform policy took effect. "W e w o u ld ch o o se sh irts th at had d raw in g s on them that looked c o o l,” says B autista, "N o w w hen I get ready for bed I d o n ’t have to think about w hat clo th es I'm g o in g to w ear the next day. T hey are c o n tin u e d on p a g e A S Investors Take Aim at Miracles’ Site Elizabeth "Lizzie" Bolden, rec­ ognized as the w orld's oldest person, died M onday at a M em ­ phis nursing home. T he daugh- terofform erslavesw as 1 l6,"She lived a full life and we are very, very proud o f her. She had a good life," said grandson Jam es W. Bolden, 69. “She was a d u ti­ ful C hristian.” Prince to Rock Super Bowl T he N FL has announced th a t v e te ra n funk rock star Prince will per­ form during the halftim e show at th e S u p e r Bowl in Febru­ ary. S ee story, p a g e A 2 ( Recovery club tries to match $1 million offer Michael Carr enjoys the activities at the Miracles Club, an outlet for African Americans recovering from drugs and alcohol. The club is trying to raise $500,000 now and $500.000 later to keep the building at Northeast Mason and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard from being demolished for future apartments. S arah B lount T he P ortland O bserver by In perhaps one o f the most evident signs o f gentrification along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, a creeping culture o f north­ east Portland developm ent may displace the non-profit M iracles Cluh, the city ’s only social outlet specifically for African A m eri­ cans recovering from drugs and alcohol. M iracles serves as a gathering ground for individuals who count their sobriety by days and decades. But as city urban renewal dollars, investors and new residents recre­ ate the surrounding King neighborhood. M iracles may soon succum b to the d istrict's insatiable housing boon, as investors want to raze the property and build apartm ent units in its place. M iracles’ non-profit board o f directors faces a Dec. 29th deadline to raise $5(X),(XX) to purchase the building. The am ount is only half o f the $1 million that has been offered to landlord Jack G orm an, reportedly by a group o f local and Japanese investors. If M iracles can successfully raise the first half m illion, G orm an will allow the clu b ’s board tocarry the other half on contract. The board m aintains there is a positive relation­ ship with G orm an and both parties want to find a solution. “O ur landlord has alw ays been very sup­ portive o f M iracles staying w here we are." said board chair H erman Bryan,. Board secretary Sarah Friedel takes a sim ilar stance and quells any talk o f im m i­ nent closure. "There is no way we will be closed on I PHOTOBY M ark W asiiington /T iie P ortland O bserver Dec. 29th," she said. "O ur landlord has told us he w ould keep us in there at least a year even after he sold the place." I AKated at 4069 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., the recovery club has moved around a couple tim es in its 12-year history before settling into its curren, address on the cor­ ner o f MLK and Northeast M ason Avenue. M iracles is the only one o f its kind in the Portland area, where African A m ericans liv­ ing close-in north and northeast d o n 't have to travel outside their neighborhood for a social outlet to help curb addiction. Founded by twin brothers Johnny A. and Johnny W. G age and friend Sam Brown, the trio sought to create their ow n center at a tim e when Portland and V ancouver only offered recovery clubs in predom inantly white com m unities. M iracles began leasing the space in 1997. and each month struggles to stay afloat to pay rent and m onthly expenses, ranging from $ 4 .1(XIto$4.6