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Ashanti at the Beach
Daylight savings
time begins at 2
a.m. on Sunday
Grammy award winner
sets two concert dates at
Chinook Winds
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‘City n of f P Roses
‘f i t u
Volume XXXVIV. N um ber 9
Shining
Light on
Prisons
Shields insists
lockup measures
address race
bv J ake T homas
T he P ortland O bserver
For decades, Oregon’s small minor­
ity population has made up a dispro­
portionate amount o f the state prison
population. It’s a shame that doesn’t
get m uch atten tio n w hen to u g h e r
sentencing laws are enacted.
African Americans m ake up nearly
♦
10 percent o f the state's prison popu­
lation, even though they are about 2
percent o f the population. Hispanics
make up over 12 percent o f state pris­
oners, out o f a population o f about
10 percent.
State Rep. Chip Shields, D-Port-
land, is hoping to bring greater atten­
tion to the disparities, and make the
public and other law m akers think
twice before enacting future measures
that seek to crack down on crime.
Shields has introduced House Bill
2352, which requires the Oregon Crimi­
nal Justice Com m ission to issue a ra­
cial and ethnic im pact statem ent of
any change in sentencing policy put
before voters or the Legislature.
He is hoping that the statem ents
will make lawm akers and the public
more inform ed on some o f the nega­
tive im pacts tougher sentencing laws
bring to ethnic com m unities and con­
sider alternatives, like increasing fund­
ing for treatment and social services.
"W ell go in with open eyes," said
Shields,
A racial and ethnic impact state­
ment w ould be sim ilar to an environ­
m ental o r fiscal im pact statem ent.
A nalysts w ould look at the current
num bers o f inm ates im prisoned for
crim es targeted by a new sentencing
policy, and then make an estim ate on
how they'll be affected.
Shields said the bill has not been
analyzed for how much it will cost.
continued
on page A 6
¡n l o i n
Established
In 1970
w w w .p o rtla n d o b s e rv e r.c o n i
Committed to Cultural Diversity
Wednesday • March 4, 2009
Executiveon a Mission
Spirit Mountain’s
Rodney Ferguson
has big dreams
bv J ake T homas
T he P ortland O bserver
Spirit M ountain C asino boasts "a
gam e for every player." It has Vegas-
style poker, Texas hold 'em, card tour­
nam ents, slots, and even bingo and
keno.
But Rodney Ferguson, the recently
nam ed chief executive officer of Spirit
M ountain, has even bigger dreams for
w hat’s already considered O regon's
num ber one tourist attraction.
"1 want to make it the premiere en ­
tertainm ent destination in the N orth­
west," said Ferguson.
T he v isio n in clu d es a new spa,
swimming pool facility, an 18-hole golf
course, a night club, concerts and box­
ing matches, am enities for the Grande
Ronde casino that will bring in fam i­
lies as well as businesses looking for
a spot to hold retreats and co n fer­
ences.
The 52-year-old Virginia native has
a long history of managing and expand­
ing businesses.
A fter graduating in 1978 with a d e­
gree in accounting from Virginia State
University, Ferguson worked as an au­
ditor for Pricew aterhouseCooper, an
international accounting firm.
He w ent on to w ork for Harrah's
M arina Hotel and C asino in Atlantic-
City. He then worked for "The Donald"
as a financial controller at the Trum p
Plaza Hotel and Casino.
Ferguson said he m et Trum p while
working in his sprawling business em ­
pire, and described him as "very high
energy" and not deviating much from
the persona he projects on television.
He also had a stint with his own ac­
counting firm in Atlantic City, N.J.
His last gig was general manager of
the Isleta Casino and Resort in A lbu­
querque, N.M. D uring his five year
stint at Isleta he turned the casino into
a full-service resort with a golf course,
family entertainm ent center, bowling
alley, RV park, music park, and cam p­
ground.
F rom his long b u sin e ss career,
continued
yf
photo bv
M ark W ashington / T hk P ortland O bsi rm r
Rodney Ferguson, the new chief executive officer of Spirit Mountain Casino in Grande Ronde, wants to
make Oregon's number one tourist attraction the premiere entertainment destination in the Northwest.
on page AN
Race Discrimination Lawsuit Settled
PSU pays former
administrator $795,000
Portland State U niversity's former
vice provost o f student affairs has
received a $795,(XX) settlem ent from
the school, concluding a four-year
legal battle alleging racial discrim ina­
tion.
Douglas Sam uels charged that the
university violated his civil rights
when it dem oted him to a teaching
post and claim ed he was subject to
inequitable treatm ent in term s of pay.
TLWeek in
The Review
Confident on Reforms
President Barack O bam a
expressed confidence on
Tuesday his econom ic re­
forms would work as senior
officials began lobbying
C ongress to support the
adm inistration's jaw -drop-
ping budget proposal.
Local Leaders Stand Up
The Portland branch o f the NAACP
stixxl up against a racist cartoon seen
/ ¡Wpe ¡his settlement
will be a healing milestone
for both Portland State
and my family.
com mittee assignments and
jo b responsibilities during
his four years o f em ploy­
ment at PSU.
“ 1 hope this settlem ent
will be a healing milestone for both
Portland State and my family," said
S am uels, w ho lives in S o u th w est
W ashington with his wife and their
three children. “This has been a sig­
nificant professional and financial
as advocating the assassination of
President O bam a and prom oting de­
hum anizing racial stereotypes. Sec
story, page A7
Rihanna, Brown
Reunite
law suits are handled by
the Oregon Department of
Justice and in this case the
Oregon Dept. o f A dm in­
istrative Services advised
settlem ent. PSU had no
further comment.
Sam uels was hired at
-Douglas Samuels
PSU in 2(X)I to oversee
hardship, and I'm looking forward to records, registration, financial aid,
resuming my career working with uni­ educational opportunity program s,
student academic advising and sup­
versity students."
PSU adm itted no w rongdoing in port services, career services, student
agreeing to pay the settlement. U ni­ activities, leadership programs, and
other responsibilities.
versity officials said discrim ination
Previously, he had been associate
dean of student affairs and diversity
at Vermont Law School.
His hiring came after a Campus C li­
mate Study report to former PSU Presi­
dent Daniel O. Bem stine addressed
the university's lack o f diversity with
no persons o f color in senior adm in­
istrative positions other than P resi­
dent Bemstine and the PSU dean of
social work.
“Portland State had a reputation as
a very hostile working environm ent
third man lost off the Florida coast
O akland linebacker M arquis Cooper,
free-agent Corey Smith and former
South Florida player William Bleaklcy,
had been m issing since Saturday
when their boat capsized.
the word from county C hair Ted
W heeler, who sent out a memo to
county em ployees Tuesday. He did
not say how many positions would be
eliminated.
together."
NFL Players Still Missing
The Coast Guard on Tuesday stopped
searching for two NFL players and a
continued
Oregon Economy Sinks
R ih a n n a m ay h av e
spent the w eekend in
M ia m i w ith C h ris
Brown, but her family
isn't quite ready for the
tum ultuous couple to
re u n ite . "E v e ry o n e
wants them to take a break, to cool
off," a relative of Rihanna tells People
Magazine. "N oonc wants them back
O regon's unemployment rate has risen
to 9.9 percent as the state's economy
sinks faster than the natio n 's as a
whole. The state Employm ent D epart­
ment says joblessness h asn 't been so
high, since 1984. See story, page A2.
County Expects Layoffs
M ultnomah County expects to lay off
some em ployees by m onthsend. That's
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y ^ on page AN