Job Losses Worst in Years
Employers slashed 533,000jobs in
November, proof the county is
careening deeper into recession
Weary OJ. Put Away
O.J. Simpson chokes back tears with
an apology and then is sentenced to
at least 9 years in prison
See story, page A5
See story, page A2
rtíanh ©bserver
www.portlandobserver.com
www.portlandobserver.con
Established in 1970
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Volume XXXVIII. Number 48
Wednesday • December 10. 2008
.Week ¡n
The Review
Illinois Governor Arrested
The G over­
nor o f Illi­
nois was ar­
rested T ues­
day
on
charges that
he s o u g h t
kickbacks as he considered a
replacem ent for the U.S. Senate
seat being vacated by P resident­
elect Obam a. The FBI said Gov.
Rod Blagojevich conspired to
sell or trade the vacant Senate
seat for personal benefits for him ­
self and his wife.
H
Shinseki Joins
Obama Team
P re s id e n t­
elect Barack
O bam a has
chosen re­
tir e d G en .
E ric
K.
S h in s e k i,
th e fo rm e r
Army chief o f staff once vilified
forquestioning the Bush adm ini­
stration’s w ar strategy, to be the
next V eterans Affairs Secretary.
Shinseki would be the first Asian-
A m erican to bold the post, add­
ing to the diversity o f O bam a’s
Cabinet. See sto ry , page A2.
Caroline Kennedy
C a ro l i ne
K ennedy,
the d augh­
ter o f Presi­
dent John F.
K ennedy,
h as in d i­
cated she is
in te r e s te d
in the Senate seat that will com e
o pen w hen H illary R odham
Clinton becom es Secretary o f
State. As a prom inent booster of
Barack O bam a's presidential bid,
Kennedy spent much o f the year
on the public stage.
Deadly Fighter Jet Crash
Both engines o f a m ilitary jet
fighter failed before the aircraft
crashed and burned in a residen­
tial area o f San Diego, killing four
people on the ground as it de­
stroyed tw o houses, a congres­
sional aide said Tuesday.
photo by
M ark W ashington /T he P ortland O bserver
Lauren Rimestaci of Human Solutions introduces the public to a new Warming Center in northeast Portland for families left out in the cold. The center
will be open seven nights a week.
Warming Centerfor Families Opens
Removing kids
from dangerous
elements
G ood news for families who have
now here to go when cold w eather hits.
M ultnom ah County and the City of
Portland have joined forces to create
two W arming Centers that will provide
a place for the hom eless to stay during
the cold season.
The first center, operated by Human
Solutions, opened M onday at 1435 N.E.
81st Ave., focusing on families.
The second center, w hich will open
soon, will be located in the dow ntow n
area. Details for that center are still being
w orked out.
The county and the city com bined to
put up $300,000 to pay for the centers,
which will be open seven nights a week
\ We know that without the Warming
Center, there are families who would have
no place to stay, and would otherwise be
sleeping in cars, unheated buildings, and
outside. - Jean DeMaster, Human Solutions executive director V
from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.
Recently, a count o f the hom eless by
the county’s Human Services D epart­
ment found that on any given night,
more than 7(X) families have nowhere to
stay indoors. A nd w ith the souring
econom y, officials and social service
advocates expect that num ber to rise.
Human Solutions, a nonprofit agency
dedicated to helping low -incom e and
hom eless families m ove toward self suf­
ficiency, will operate the family W arm ­
ing Center.
“W e know that without the W arming
Center, there are families w ho would
have no place to stay, and would other­
wise be sleeping in cars, unheated build­
ings, and outside. This is too dangerous
for fam ilies with small children,” says
Jean D eM aster, Executive D irector of
H um an Solutions.
T o support the W arm ing C enter, of­
ficials with Human Solutions are looking
for help from the com m unity in the form
continued
on page A3
Frigid Air
Moving South
Portland braces for low
temps, possible snow
A blast o f w inter could hit the Port­
land area this weekend.
The coldest air o f the season is fore­
cast to start moving from the arctic re­
gion to across northwest Oregon and
south west W ashington Friday night and
then intensify Saturday, Sunday and
through early next week.
W hether it gets cold and wet enough
to snow rem ains to be seen. The N a­
tional W eather Service says snow could
fall in higher elevations like the W est
Hills with a chance o f snow on most
Portland streets.
■M M
Leno to go Prime Time
C o m ic Ja y
L eno
w ill
la u n c h h is
ow n nightly
talk show in
p rim e tim e
next year in a
la n d m a rk
te le v is io n
deal that keeps him from moving
toarival network after his planned
departure as host o f "The T o­
night Show," NBC said on T ues­
day. T he new one-hour show
w illa irat 10p.m.
Hudson Returning to Work
J e n n ife r
H u d so n is
getting back
to work. The
singer is set
to
b e g in
film in g a
v id e o next
week forhersingle, "If T his Isn't
Love," according to her label, J
Records. Hudson was due to fi I m
theclip in Los Angeles w hen her
mother, brother and nephew were
discovered shot to death in their
Chicago hom e on Oct. 24.
photos by J ake T homas /T he P ortland O bserver
Portland City Commissioner Randy Leonard receives a golden plunger Monday from Varner
Seaman o f Sisters o f the Road Café during a ceremony marking the completion of a new
public restroom in Old Town.
Prototype for Public Decency
by .J ake T homas
T he P ortland O bserver
Until recently LaVergne Smith,
a 4 1 -year-old hom eless wom an,
has had a reoccurring problem
with som ething so basic many of
us take it for granted: she needed
to use the bathroom and had no
where to go.
The city of Portland is hoping
that S m ith's problem will be less
common.
On M onday, Com m issioner
Randy Leonard unveiled the firs,
o f a new line o f public toilets
called a “L oo” on N orthw est
G lisan Street and Sixth Avenue
near the G reyhound bus station.
The Loo is one o f the city ’ s latest
efforts to address a longstanding
and messy problem .
Leonard noted that many poli­
ticians aspire to have public build­
ings nam ed after them, but said.
A public toilet called the Loo' on Northwest Glisan Street and
Sixth 'Avenue is a prototype meant to address a longstanding
need and fundamental human right.
Restroom seen as fundamental right
“it looks like I’m going to have to
settle for a restroom ,” and added
that the facility fulfilled “a funda­
mental human right.”
A Loo looks like the toilet from
the future. It is a sleek, m etallic
structure with an ovular shape.
Three photovoltaic panels line
the top. which soaks up sun and
pow ers the Loo putting it co m ­
pletely off the electric grid.
M ayor-elect Sam Adams gave
the Loo its m aiden flush, shortly
after Leonard w as aw arded a
golden plunger by V am er S ea­
man, an advocate for the hom e­
less from Sistersof the Road Café.
A nna Di Benedetto, a staff as­
sistant to Leonard, explained tha,
the city took care to prevent the
Loo from becom ing a m agne, for
unsavory activities. It has lou­
vers on the top and bottom , which
allow onlookers to see how many
people are in it.
Leonard said the structure's
sturdy build w as intended to
serve the larges, cross section of
people as possible including visi­
tors, hom eless, and dow ntow n
businesspeople.
“ It’s designed to be abused,”
he added.
There is also no sink in the
continued
on page A3