November 5, 2008 Page A4 O pinion Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views o f the Portland Observer. We welcome reader essays, photos and story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com. Stop the Foreclosures Buy Local First Helping the community when it’s needed most by D ebbie M annings • closed on to find and move into seemed federal efforts to offer a solution were nonexistent. new housing. The Countrywide program is a Thankfully, leaders at the state among Arizona, Califor­ by J udge G reg M athis level took matters into theirow n strong model that should be ex­ nia, Connecticut, Florida, The federal govern­ hands. Because of their work, we Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, panded. Not only is it mandatory, ment recently bailed out now have a foundation onto unlike programs supported by the North Carolina, Ohio, Wall Street's failing finan­ which we can build a mortgage Texas and Washington. federal government, it will also be cial institutions, using relief program that serves the monitored by state officials. It is The money will provide more than $7(X) billion in loan relief to roughly a viable program that serves to entire country. tax payer dollars to do so. Write and call your attorney But the bailout does noth­ general’s office. Find out if they ing to assist the millionsof Ameri­ are planning legal actions similar cans who are facing home fore­ to those taken in the California closures. and Illinois. If they are, leant which Tired of waiting on help from lenders they are targeting. If not, Washington, some states took demand that they go after the matters into theirown hands, seek­ mortgage companies that are fore­ ing legal action against the closing on homes during this cri­ nation’s largest predatory mort­ sis. gage lender. Those actions are Our federal leaders have made paying off. it clear, with the passage of the Finally, buyers at risk of losing financial industry bailout pack­ their homes have some support. age, that the well-being of the Led by Illinois and California A t­ average American is not their first torney General’s Lisa Madigan priority. Instead of looking to them 400.(XX) homeowners across the not only support families duped and Jerry Brown, 11 states filed for assistance, it is ti me we turn to into risky mortgages but to also lawsuits against Countrywide country. our local lawmakers and ask that The program will waive nearly create some financial stability for Financial, the country’s largest they work on our behalf. hundreds of thousands of Ameri­ $ 140 million in late fees and pre­ mortgage lender. Judge Greg Mathis is vice Though the lender didn’t ad­ payment penalties while also sus­ cans. president o f Rainbow PUSH and pending foreclosures on delin­ This country has searched for mit any wrongdoing, it did settle a board member o f the Southern answers to the mortgage crisis for quent borrow ers. A dditional the suit and created the largest home loan modification program funds will be set aside to help over a year. As more and more Christian Leadership Confer- ever. $8.4 billion will be divided those w ho've already been fore- Americans lost their homes, it Time to support homeowners In supporting local mer­ chants, consumers also sup­ port those nonprofit agencies depending on local business donations to keep them run­ ning. When you buy local you strengthen your government services such as police and fire. All business taxes and fees come back into the community to support better services. Local shopping also means local jobs. This is where neigh­ bors directly benefit from the economics. More jobs in the neighborhood leads to more money being circulated locally which then leads to added business and more neighbors being employed. Our local neighborhoods have many products anyone would want on an. everyday basis. Realistically a person might not purchase 100 per­ cent of their merchandise within a lOmile radius of their home, but it would be worth their while to try to change their shopping habits and get their neighbors to consider what’s available at home before taking their money elsewhere. Negative economic news is every where today. It’s diffi­ cult for the average person to have any influence in the lager trends, but one way to control our economic destiny is to patronize local merchants. Studies show that buying close to home will have a posi­ tive effect all through the com­ munity. When people spend their hard earned dollars in lo­ cal stores they circulate wealth in the community making it richer and healthier. “ Buying Local First” en­ courages neighbors to stay in their neighborhood before going outside the area to buy products. This kind of shopping bol­ sters our local economy when it’s needed most. A consumer doesn’t have to be motivated by communal interests - Our neighbors will benefit hand­ somely by shopping locally as often as they can. Some of the reasons why this is a sensible idea is that you can save gas shopping local and it is easier on your Debbie Mannings is the environment. You get better service with merchants in your owner and operator o f the community. Its easier dealing bungalow Rose Floral <5 Gift Shop. 7545 N.E. Sandy Blvd. with someone you know. Thankfully, leaders at the state level took matters into their own hands. Because o f their work, we now have a foundation onto which we can build a mortgage relief program that serves the entire country. aHMMMMMMMMMMMM A Threat to Justice Everywhere Death penalty case is troubling New Prices Effective May 1,2007 by M . 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Troy Davis is a prime example of how the justice system does not seem to work every­ where; nor does it work for everyone. Mr. Davis was tried and convicted in 1991 for the murder of police of­ ficer Mark Allen MacPhail some two years before. Murder trials, especially those asking for the death penalty, require a higher degree of rigidness or at least they should. 1 always thought that physical evidence was essential in a trial that could result in the state mandated death of another. I always thought that "beyond the shadow of a doubt” was the minimum standard in such cases. It does not seem to be true in this one. Looking back on the recordsofTroy Davis’ trial, we see that his conviction was not based on any physical evidence; in fact no murder weapon was ever found. The conviction was Yeached after jury members heard the testimony of nine wit­ nesses. Seven of those witnesses have now taken back or contradicted their original tes­ timony. Some of them now say that they were coerced or harassed by the police. In fact, one of the nine has now been implicated by others as the murderer. Appeal after appeal has been denied. The Georgia Supreme Court heard Troy Davis’ Why has no court been willing to hear the new evidence in this case? Is it because Mr. Davis is African American and the police officer was white? I hope not, but I can ’t help but wonder. motion for a new trial in November 2007, but rejected the appeal based on technicalities that were considered by a dissenting judge who set an impossibly high bar for the recan­ tations to be considered. The U.S. Supreme Court recently declined to hear the appeal of Troy Davis, meaning that a new execution date can be scheduled at any time by the Department of Corrections of Chatham County, Georgia. Even though this appeal will not be heard by the Supreme Court, serious doubt remains as to Mr. Davis’ f $11 l h c r r i h p ! 503-288-0033 I O llD S C IlD v ’ I See Flyers for A dditional Prices Call For Appointm ent (503) 281-3949 guilt. Members of the Georgia Board of Pardon and Paroles can still reconsider their deci­ sion to deny him clemency. Mr. Davis is entitled to have his case heard again, especially because the primary testimony against him has now been re­ canted. Troy Davis simply wants his case heard again. He is scheduled to die for a crime that he did not commit; most of the witnesses agree and they are no longer afraid to say so. Why has no court been willing to hear the new evidence in this case? Is it be­ cause Mr. Davis is African American and the police officer was white? I hope not, but I can’t help but wonder. Troy Davis has claimed his innocence for all these years but he has been unable to convince authorities, because he can­ not afford a high priced legal team to defend him. Severe cuts to Georgia’s legal defense resources have resulted in only two lawyers to represent 160 people on death row. Death row appeals are time-and-energy- consuming for any attorney. Imagine having a caseload of 80 people to represent! What it comes down to is, “how much justice can you afford?” The family of Officer MacPhail certainly deserves justice and our deepest condo­ lences for their loss. But a wrongful convic­ tion is not the way to bring about that justice. M. Linda Jaramilo is Executive Minister o f Justice Ministries fo r the United Church o f Christ. N ame :------------------------------ I F ill O u t & Send To: T ELEPHONE: ____________________ ))