il! * ^ l î n r t l a n b f f i h s e r u c r
Page A4
O pinion
December 17, 2008
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Bill Gates Needs Help
Building bridges for students
Ji dge G reg M athis
The econom y, to put
it bluntly, is in the toilet.
In N ovem ber, more than
half a m illion A m ericans
lost their jobs. Major cor­
porations are filing bank­
ruptcy and small businesses are
closing their doors.
E very one, even the very
wealthy, is feeling the pinch. And
w e've yet to hear any predictions
on when this econom ic crisis will
start to resolve itself.
O ne group that is particularly
vulnerable in all o f this: low-
income students.
Only about 25 percent o f stu­
dents from low-income families ftn-
by
positions. Jobs that would
norm ally go to them are
going to candidates who,
in a b e tte r e c o n o m y ,
w ouldn't bother applying.
W ithout a college de­
g ree, the jo b search is
longer; the unem ploym ent rate
for people without that diplom a is
four tim es higher than those who
have one.
G ates' new program is sorely
needed. But he needs help. O ther
wealthy foundations, like Ford
and MacArthur, for example, also
need to create sim ilar or com ple­
m entary funding programs.
M oney isn't all that is needed.
S m allcrnot for profits focused on
We must all make a commitment
to ensuring our young people go on
to receive their college degree.
ish college. For black and Latinos
that number is around 20 percent.
The rising costs o f secondary
education and a lack o f bridge
program s that take these students
from u n d er p erfo rm in g high
schools to college m ake it diffi­
cult for these young people to
transition to higher learning suc­
cessfully. As a result, many of
them end up dropping out.
M icrosoft founder and philan­
thropist Bill G ates w ants to help.
Through his foundation, he will
donate nearly $70 million in an
effort to double the num ber of
low -incom e students who either
receives a college or vocational
degree by their 26th birthday.
Most o f the money won't go
directly to students. Instead, it
will go to program s designed to
help students succeed in college.
Not having a college degree
limits a persons earning pow er
overtheirlifetime. D uringareces-
sion, non-degreed individuals are
com peting with those who have
degrees for a lim ited num ber o f
education can strengthen their
m entoring programs. Faith orga­
nizations can create program s
d e sig n e d to h elp the yo u n g
people from their com m unities
make it through college. Church
mem bers can serve as m entors or
tutors to young students.
W e m ust all m ake a com m it­
m ent to en su rin g o u r young
people go on to receive their col­
lege degree. The work force gets
more com petitive with each pass­
in g y e a r. J o b s are b e in g
outsourced to o th er countries
because o f a lack o f qualified
w orkers here in America.
If we do not work to ensure that
our young people are educated,
thiscountry will fall further behind
in the global market place. We'll
lose more jobs and it will be that
much more difficult to rise to the
economic and social prominence
we are capable of achieving.
JudgeGreg Mathis is vice presi­
dent o f Rainbow PUSH and a board
member o f the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference.
■MnMMHMHMMMHNraMMl
A n E con om ic R ecovery fo r E veryon e
Our plan
supports urban
communities
BY
youth; jo b training for disadvan­
tag ed w o rk ers; h elp fo r the
stalled-out auto industry; and the
possible creation o f a tem porary
public service program sim ilar to
the one that generated more than
M ARC H.
M orial
The National Ur­
ban L e a g u e ju s t
submitted its "Eco­
n o m ic R e c o v e ry
Plan for JobCreation
in Urban Com m unities" to both
President-elect Barack O bam a
and Congress.
O ur plan is designed to help
stabilize our reeling econom y
and stem the steady erosion o f
jobs that included 533,(XX) jobs
lost in N ovem ber and nearly 2
THE
SPINACOLUMN
Dr. Billy R. Rowers
million jo b s so far this year.
Some econom ic experts are
forecasting that if this trend co n ­
tinues the unemployment rate will
be least 9 percent by the end of
next year. That could mean unem-
A n ongoing series of questions and answers about America's natural healing profession
Part 27. Chiropractic VS Migraines: Saying
goodbye to the most menacing of headaches
Q: Can anything be done for one com m ent I'll never forget! one precious m om ent, let alone
m igraines? I’ve had them for the The story had a happy, but isn’t years suffering needlessly? Find
last 2 0 years and I sincerelycan’t it sad that it had such an unfortu­ y o u r freed o m th ro u g h good
nate beginning. So many suffer health N O W ... naturally. Find
take it much longer.
fre e d o m
th ro u g h
A; I had a patient once ask the for so long with their pain. They y o u r
sam e question. Her concern, literally w aste years o f their lives, C h iropractic...and make each
how ever, was that Chiropractic waiting, thinking that it is ju st a day count, is n ’t it tim e you
might hurt. A fter becom ing a tem porary condition. Life itself is stepped up to safe, effective
p atien t, she began to m ake a tem porary condition. W e are all Chiropractic?
progress. Slow ly but surely the here for only a while. Why waste
nauseating effects o f the m i­
graine were leaving her. One day.
relaxed and w ithout pain, she
2124N.E. Hancock Street, Portland Oregon 97212
said to me “ I c a n ’t believe that I
Phone: (5 0 3 ) 2 8 7 -5 5 0 4
w aited 20 years for this!” T h at's
It is imperative that when we go
to work rebuilding America, those
who live in urban America are not
left behind.
ployment rates as high as 17 per­
cent for A frican Am ericans and
12.5 percent for Hispanics.
C learly, we have not seen the
promised benefits o f the $700 bil­
lion taxpayer bai lout of Wal I Street.
Main Street and urban Am erica
need action now.
For m onths we have been call­
ing for an econom ic stimulus plan
that includes an imm ediate exten­
sion o f unem ploym ent benefits;
more help to states for infrastruc­
ture projects, a greater invest­
ment in sum m er jo b s for at-risk
1 OO.OOOjobsduring the recession
o f 1974-75.
W e agree with President-elect
O bam a, the nation's governors
and m ayors and a growing num ­
ber o f leading econom ists that
the centerpiece o f a job-focused
recovery plan must be substan­
tial investm ents in rebuilding the
nation's infrastructure and shift­
ing to a greener, more energy
efficient and energy independent
econom y.
We know this will work. One
D epartm ent o f T ransportation
Platinum Fade
S A L O N
Flowers' Chiropractic Office
5010 NE 9th Unit A
Portland Oregon 97221
503-284-2989
yding
I f f off last
& year’s models
Hours o f operation:
M-F
Sat
Sun
9 a m - 6 pm
8 am - 9 pm
11 am-6 6pm
il!C ^ p n r t l a t t h
(O b se rv e r
Marc H. Morial is president
and chief executive officer o f the
National Urban League.
Established 1970
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study found that for every $1
billion in investm ent, 48,000jobs
are created in one year. W ithout
these much needed investm ents
in infrastructure, many inner city
com m unities are doom ed to con­
tinue the cycle o f joblessness
and poverty. It is im perative that
when we go to w ork rebuilding
America, those w ho live in urban
A m erica are not left behind.
The N ational Urban League is
urging Congress to specifically
address the needs o f disadvan­
taged w orkers through its seven-
point plan:
1. Fund proven and success­
ful models o f w orkforce training
and job placem ent sim ilar to the
Urban League's successful U r­
ban Y outh Em pow erm ent Pro­
gram.
2. Fund the Sum m er Youth
Employm ent Program at a level o f
$3 billion to put 2.5 million teenag­
ers to work next summer.
3. Fund p re-ap p ren ticesh ip
program s in the construction in­
dustry targeted to "green jobs"
to benefit disadvantaged w ork­
ers.
4. Infrastructure plans should
include more than roads, high­
w ays, bridges and levees. More
C om m unity D evelopm ent Block
G rant m oney is needed for reno­
vation o f schools, com m unity
centers, libraries, recreations cen­
ters, parks, etc.
5. A percentage o f all infra­
structure m onies should be d i­
rected to jo b training, placem ent
and preparation for d isadvan­
taged workers.
6. Fund a tem porary public
serv ice em p lo y m en t program
aimed at creating 150,000-200,000
jo b s in urban areas.
7. Congress m ust include pro­
visions that establish and rein­
force goals w hich ensure that
minority and w omen-owned busi­
nesses participate fully in con­
tract opportunities created by the
econom ic recovery plan.
T o read our full plan, log on to
nul.org.
E d it o ii : M
ic h a e l L e ig h to n
D is tr ih i .non M snsc . f x :
M a rk W a sh in g to n
CnF.ATivt DmrcToii: P a u l N e u fe ld t
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