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February 16, 2011
Portland Observer Black History Month
Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views o f the
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story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com.
O pinion
Work
We cannot wait
for the market to
solve this crisis
by E die
R asei . i .
The stock market
has rebounded to
near its pre-reces­
sion peak. Corpo­
rate profits are at
record highs. But for
millions of American workers who
have lost jobs, health insurance,
homes and financial security, the
crisis continues. Congress must
make job creation its highest prior­
ity.
Many families are caught in a
quagmire of financial and emotional
pain.
Three years into the “Great Re­
cession," the national unemploy­
ment rate is nine percent. But this
measure includes only people who
are actively searching for work, some
13.9 million. It omits those who have
given up looking, decided to be
stay-at-home moms since they
have no other options or claim
to be "retired" to conceal their
tears of never working again.
A broader m easure that
counts everyone who wants a
job plus people who want full-time
work when they can find only a part-
time job is over twice as large: 30
million people or nearly one in five
potential workers.
There are roughly four job seek­
ers for every job opening and nearly
half the unemployed have been with­
out a job for over six months. Among
people of color, young adults, and
teenagers, the jobless rate is much
higher. Workers and their families
are in crisis.
To keep pace with growth in the
labor force, the number of jobs must
rise by 114,000 each month. But
over the past year the U.S. averaged
just 82,000 a month. This is too few
to keep joblessness from rising, no
matter what the official counts tell
us, and does not begin to shrink the
backlog of unemployment.
Going forward, even if job cre­
ation were double the rate of last
year, it would take 19 years for un­
employment to fall to its pre-reces­
sion level. We cannot wait for cor­
porate decision makers and "the
market” to solve this crisis.
Congress and the Obama Ad­
ministration must intervene to cre­
ate jobs. Options include a tax credit
to encourage firms to boost hiring,
funds for state and local govern­
ments to ease their budget woes
and reduce the need for layoffs,
grants to send workers back to
school, and a public jobs program
where the government directly hires
workers.
There is much work that needs to
be done, from cleaning up brown
fields in our cities to weatherizing
homes and making repairs in our
national parks. Let's put people to
work doing the things that need to
be done.
Creating jobs costs money and
critics argue we cannot afford this
when the federal deficit is already
high. But we cannot afford not to.
Most of the deficit is caused by the
economic downturn. Unemployed
people earn little money and pay
few taxes, reducing government rev­
enues.
At the same time, government
expenses rise as millions of people
are forced to rely on safety net pro­
grams. Once people are working
again, much of the deficit will disap­
pear. In the longer term, the deficit
will return and will need to be ad­
dressed.
The time to reduce the deficit is
when the emergency is over, when
the economy on Main Street, as well
as the economy on Wall Street, is
sound. Right now. Congress and
the Obama Administration must cre­
ate jobs and put people back to
work.
Edie Rasell is the M inister fo r
Economic Justice in the United
Church o f Christ.
No Time to Cut Ex Offender Programs
Look at the
impacts down
the road
by
J udge G reg M athis
One of the first places
state and federal govern­
ments look to make cut­
backs in an attempt to
balance their ballooning budgets is
in the penal system. As a result, ex­
offender re-entry programs that help
rehabilitate those who are at risk for
returning to prison are on the chop­
ping block.
Sure, cutting funding to these
programs may help balance bud­
gets in the short term. But, as ex­
offenders become repeat offenders
and return to jail or prison, we end
up shelling out more money in the
long run to incarcerate them.
Additionally, communities and
individuals will continue to be vic­
timized by crime and trapped
in seemingly never ending
cycle.
Recently, USA Today re­
ported on these cutbacks and
the impact they could have
on states across the country.
Florida, for example, saw a small
decrease in the number of ex-of­
fenders who committed a new felony
while on probation.
Instead of looking at the bigger
picture and continuing to invest in
programs designed to reduce re­
cidivism, Florida, in an attempt to
get its fiscal house in order, plans to
cut such programs. Other states are
also weighing significant budget
^ 'Ilo r tk m b (ribsirtur
cuts to all parts of their criminal
justice systems.
This is just bad business. In many
states, the number of ex-offenders
committing new crimes has in­
lawmakers there to address both follow M ichigan's lead. With your
problems with a novel plan: help ex­ help, maybe they can. Call or write
offenders find and keep jobs that your county, state and federal leg­
will keep them out of prison.
islators and demand they not be so
According to a report by the In­ short sighted; ask that they avoid
making budget cuts to prison reen­
According to a report by the Institute fo r
try programs at all costs.
In these difficult economic times,
Research on Poverty, Michigan has used job
it is only reasonable that lawmakers
placement programs to cut the prison
conserve resources where they can.
population by about 15 percent over the last The criminal justice system, par­
ticularly ex-offender reentry pro­
four years and saved more than $200
grams, is not the place to make these
cuts. Our lawmakers must think
million each year.
about the effect these budget re­
creased, partly because of cuts to stitute for Research on Poverty, ductions will have on our overall
programs that help them transform Michigan has used job placement safety and the economic impact they
their lives and stay out of prison.
programs to cut the prison popula­ will have on taxpayers down the
Any state considering such cuts tion by about 15 percent over the road.
should look to Michigan for guid­ last four years and saved more than
Greg Mathis is a retired Michigan
ance. Budget gaps and increasingly $200 million each year.
District Court judge and a current
high unemployment rates have lead
Here’s hoping other locales will syndicated television show judge.
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Read this Book
I just read the article by Lee A. Daniels, “What is Truly ‘Exceptional’
About America: When words ring hollow,” (Portland Observer, Feb. 9
issue).
A few years ago I was listening to Cecile and Celeste on KBOO-FM 90.7
and they referenced, “The Northern Refugees” by Benjamin Drew written
in 1856. In their own words, those who successfully defected to freedom
tell the true story of slavery. The one constant theme over and over, never
enough food, never enough of the right clothes or shelter and never any
medical care.
I urge people to get and read this book. Thanks.
Respectfully,
Ed Martiszus, RN