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Opening Doors to Diversity
Career electrician
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See story, page A3
See story, Metro section
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www.portlandobserver.com
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Volume XXXVII, Number 48
Wednesday • December 12, 2007
TlWeek in
The Review
Grannies on Trial
Charged with criminal mischief and
unlaw fully applying graffiti dur
ing a G ood Friday protest at the
Army Recruiting C enter in north
east Portland, m em bers o f a group
known as the Seriously Pissed-off
G rannies faced aju ry this w eek in
a trial expected to last through
T h u rs d a y at th e M u ltn o m a h
County Courthouse.
Obama, Winfrey Rally
Rallies for Barack O bam a’s presi
dential cam paign drew thousands
o fp eo p le in N ew
H am pshire and
at the University
o f South C aro
lin a o v e r th e
w e e k e n d w ith
the help o f Oprah
W in fre y w h o
told voters O bam a was the person
w ho co u ld chan g e p o litics in
A m erica. See sto ry , p ag e A2.
Crack Sentencing Eased
T he U.S. S en
te n c in g C o m
m issio n voted
u n a n im o u s ly
T uesday to al
low some 19,500
fed e ra l p riso n
inm ates, most o f them black, to
seek reductions in their crack co
caine sentences. The ruling fol
low ed the Suprem e C ourt’s deci
sion M onday that federal judges
can im pose shorter sentences for
crack-cocaine crimes to make them
more in line with those for pow der
cocaine. See sto ry , page A2.
Vick Gets 23 Months
H aving adm itted
involvem ent
the killing o f at
'east c' ^ lt
\ila n ta
Flacons quarter-
back Michael Vick
was sentenced on
M onday to 23 m onths in prison for
his role in an illegal dogfighting
ring. See sto ry , sp o rts page B5.
Feds Cut Interest Rate
The Federal Reserve cut a key inter
est rate by one-quarter o f a percent
age point Tuesday, trying to keep
the country out o f recession. Weak
housing and credit markets are chal-
le n g in g U .S. g ro w th , b u t the
economy is fundamentally sound,
senior U.S. Treasury officials said.
U.N. Offices Bombed
Car bombs exploded minutes apart
Tuesday in central Algiers, heavily
dam aging United Nations offices
and partly ripping the facade off a
government building. At least 22
people were killed, including U.N.
workers, and scores were wounded.
Olga Reopens Shelters
Subtropical Storm O lga drenched
Puerto Rico on Tuesday and the
D om inican R epublic reopened
hurricane shelters m ore than a
week after the official end o f hurri
cane season.
Issues like social acceptance and prejudice are dramatized in the theater production o f “ You B the
Newbie" at Rosa Parks Elementary school. Pictured in the foreground, from left, are Ariana
Vasamas Baker, Kaylee Combs, DeAngelo Clayton, Tyler Barron, Mar’Qeese Yarborough and
Rakesh Nash, and in the background are Kenshawna James, Marnisha Lucas and Katie Tobar.
photos
in Pun Is«
orv
i v
Confronting Alienation
Kids write play
about social ills
A diverse group of local kids have produced
and will perform a comedy revue that tackles a
serious topic: the challenge of confronting iso
lation and prejudice as a new kid at an urban
grade school.
The play called “U B the Newbie” follows
two fifth-grade “newbies” as they blunder their
way through motion-sensor soap dispensers,
library rules and the embarrassment of telling
inappropriate jokes.
The production at Rosa Parks Elementary
comes from a north Portland public school that’s
considered disadvantaged because most stu
dents qualify for free and reduced lunch. But
thanks to Principal Tamala Newsome, an award
winning African-American educator, the school
has had dance and drama in its regular curricu
lum for the past three years.
“This has resulted in a seasoned group of
young writers and performers,” said drama
teacher Julie Sparling.
The fifth- and sixth-grade students will per
form the original raps, dances and scenes from
the play for school assemblies in the upcoming
week. The production will also be filmed this Rosa Parks Elementary students Mar'Qeese Yarborough and
week for Portland Public School's Television Kaylee Combs perform in a play that tackles the social alienation
Series for later broadcast on Cable Channel 28. that comes with being a new kid at school.
Mayor Honors Edna Robinson Judge
For her many
Censured
long-standing
contributions
L ee P eri . man
T he P ortland O bserver
The city ’s annual Spirit o f Portland
aw ards, given each year to individuals and
groups who have contributed to the city ’s
livability, usually go to those involved in
current activities.
This year. M ayor Tom Potter m ade an
exception. In the category o f M ayor’s
A w ards, which he personally bestow s
outside the program ’s jury process, he is
giving an award to Edna Robertson, an
A frican-A m erican leader who retired as
Northeast Coalition o f Neighborhoods ex
ecutive director in 1994.
“ It’s important that we rem em ber the
people who contributed so much to our
com m unity," Potter told the Portland O b
server.
“ I think it's w onderful,” form er N orth
east Coalition board chair and Boise neigh
borhood activist C harles Ford told the
new spaper. “Edna has never to my know l
edge received an award for all the things
she did. It’s never tot) late.”
A fter serving as staff to the federally -
funded Model Cities anti-poverty pro
gram in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Robertson directed the neighborhood pro
gram from its founding in 1975 until her
retirement in 1994.
After homophobic.
racist comments
by
photo by
M ark W asiiington /T he P ortlani /O bserver
Edna Robinson reflects on the contributions she has made to the livability of
the city from her home in northeast Portland. The longtime neighborhood
activist is being honored by Mayor Tom Potter.
R o b e rts o n an d th e late S h a ro n
M acC orm ack, N ortheast N eighborhood
crim e prevention coordinator, were among
the first to warn o f California youth gangs
m igrating to Portland. Under their leader
ship the coalition gave birth to such service
and crim e fighting program s as the Graffiti
A b ate m e n t, T riM et R id er A d v o cates,
W orkforce C enter and Youth Gang O ut
reach programs.
1
U nder Robert so n 's leadership, the co a
lition w eathered tensions betw een long
tim e A frican-A m erican com m unity lead
ers and a newly-arrived, mostly white popu
lation with different priorities. They did so
while internal tensions in the north and
east Portland district coalitions tore these
groups apart.
continued y f on page A J
f
(AP) — A Clark County Superior Court
judge from Vancouver has been censured
for "demeaning, offensive and shocking"
behavior at a training conference in Los
Angeles last year.
Judge John P. Wulle. 57. used profanity,
made an obscene
gesture after being
asked to lower his
voice and referred
to a group facilita-
toras "the black gay
guy," according to
a nine-page docu
ment posted on the
website of the Com
mission on Judicial
Conduct, which i s
sued the censure on Friday.
At one point, according to the panel's
findings, the facilitator said. "Clark County
gets a star" for finishing an assignment, ami
Wulle replied. "I don’t need a star. I'm not a
Jew."
He was ordered to take I Ohours of judicial
ethics courses and seven hours ol racial,
religious, sexual-orientation ami diversity
training.
Wulle. a former assistant attorney gen
eral who has been a judge since 1997. also
continued
y^
on page .45