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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (April 20, 2016)
Page 2 The Skanner April 20, 2016 Challenging People to Shape a Better Future Now Opinion Bernie Foster Founder/Publisher Protesting the Right to Vote: Democracy Awakening Bobbie Dore Foster Executive Editor W Jerry Foster Advertising Manager Christen McCurdy News Editor Patricia Irvin Graphic Designer Arashi Young Reporter Monica J. Foster Seattle Office Coordinator Susan Fried Photographer 2015 MERIT AWARDS WINNER The Skanner has received 20 NNPA awards since 1998 The Skanner Newspaper, es- tablished in October 1975, is a weekly publication, published every Wednesday by IMM Publi- cations Inc. 415 N. Killingsworth St. P.O. Box 5455 Portland, OR 97228 Telephone (503) 285-5555 Fax: (503) 285-2900 info@theskanner.com hen we think about the right to vote, it is and should be un- derstood to be a civic sacrament in the temple of de- mocracy. However, this pres- idential election will be the first in 50 years without the full protection of the Voting Rights Act. In 1965, the Voting Rights Act was enacted with the blood, sweat and tears of Americans from all across the country. But 50 years lat- er, we’re still dealing with a multi-hued, multi-racial, multi-ethnic form of bias and discrimination at the ballot box. To combat this assault on the right to vote, the NAACP has come together with more than 260 organizations – rep- resenting the labor, peace, en- vironmental, student, racial justice, civil rights and money in politics reform movements – to stage a mass convergence this month on Washington, D.C. and call for democracy reforms. On April 16-18, thousands of activists will mobilize in the nation’s capital for De- mocracy Awakening, a three- day event featuring a rally, march, teach-ins, lobbying and civil disobedience. De- mocracy Awakening plans to fight back against business Cornell William Brooks NAACP President and CEO as usual in Washington, D.C., and demand a democracy that works for everyone. This means restoration of full vot- ing rights, breaking the stran- glehold corporations and the wealthy have on elections, and and demand Congress hold hearings and vote to fill “ vote. Since then, we have seen state legislature after state legislature engage in a Machi- avellian frenzy of voter disen- franchisement. More than 30 states have imposed voter ID laws, which on their face seem innocuous. But, when we keep in mind which American voters don’t possess these ID’s, we have reason to be alarmed. Consider the state of Tex- as. Because of voter ID laws, it is estimated that between 500,000 to 700,000 eligible citizens do not possess the prerequisite I.D. – dispro- years – is at risk. Students also are being put at risk. In Texas, a law essen- tially said, if you have an ID that allows you to carry a con- cealed weapon, it is deemed sufficient as civic proof of identification to vote. But a library card — an I.D. that allows you to carry a book of Shakespeare or of chemistry – is deemed an insufficient form of proof to vote. Consider North Carolina, once the most progressive state in the country with re- spect to voting rights. But, in a few short years in the wake of Shelby, we saw a massive rollback in terms of that franchise. Among the mea- sures that were curtailed or constrained: “pre-registra- tion,” which allowed 17-year- olds who were about to turn 18 in time for a new election to register early; Sunday voting and early voting. Instead of curtailing and re- straining the right to vote, we should be expanding it. It is, once again, the time to stand up and fight for our right to vote. The NAACP is committed to breaking down barriers to the ballot box and maximiz- ing the vote. We have seen state legislature after state legislature engage in a Machiavellian frenzy of voter disenfranchisement the U.S. Supreme Court va- cancy. People all across the coun- try, African-Americans, Lati- nos, students, and senior citizens feel as though the civic sacrament of the right to vote is being threatened. As a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s misguided Shelby County decision in 2013, which invalidated Section 4(b) of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, millions of Americans are now denied the strong protection of their right to portionately affecting low-in- come citizens, African-Amer- icans, and Latinos. We know that voter ID laws also disproportionately dis- enfranchise the elderly. For example, 93-year-old Rosanell Eaton is legally challenging North Carolina’s voter ID law. She has voted for 70 years – but, because she was born at home, because her name does not match the name on the birth certificate or match the name on the voting roll, her franchise – notwithstanding the fact that she voted for 70 www.TheSkanner.com The Skanner is a member of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Association and West Coast Black Pub lishers Association. All photos submitted become the property of The Skanner. We are not re spon sible for lost or damaged photos either solicited or unsolicited. ©2016 The Skanner. All rights re served. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission prohibited. Local News Pacific NW News World News Opinions Jobs, Bids Entertainment Community Calendar RSS feeds BE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION #SkNews Let’s Re-Focus on Closing Shell Companies and Tax Havens I t is hard to believe that the second easiest place in the world to run a shady, anon- ymous, and often criminal corporation is right here in the United States. According to a recent academic study, the United States is second only to Kenya for harboring these shell companies used to launder money and skirt their taxes. Much like the classic sleight-of-hand game, compa- nies across the country — in- cluding many here in Oregon — are shifting and shuffling ownership and holdings until we lose track of who or where they are. Criminal organizations reg- ularly set up shell companies to launder ill-gotten revenues and fund their criminal enter- prise. In the case of multi-na- tional corporations, however, what they are doing is not ille- gal. That doesn’t mean there aren’t victims. The elaborate game of deception corpora- tions play costs the average taxpayer nearly $1,500 annu- ally, close to $4,000 if you own a small business. They shift, they shuffle, and we pick up the tab. This month’s leak of the Pan- ama Papers revealed more than 11 million documents from a Panamanian legal team showing the actual dev- Maurice Rahming Guest Columnist astating toll anonymous shell companies take on the world, signally a time for U.S. action. Our own Senator Ron Wyden has commented on the paper’s release and says he will open an inquiry into the “ eryday Americans are the vic- tim, and call these tax avoiding multinational corporations what they are, criminals. America shouldn’t he one of the easiest places in the world to form these companies; we can’t afford to be. Roughly 100 media outlets collaborated on the “Panama Papers” investigation, and they have begun publishing a series of stories based on documents leaked from the prominent Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca. Many coalition partners urge the House Ways & Means Com- mittee to eliminate the off- shore tax loopholes abused by wealthy individuals and mul- tinational companies to avoid paying taxes that then must be made up by individual cit- izens and small businesses, to the tune of $150 billion a year. Some of the biggest com- panies in the country – like Apple, Pfizer, Wal-Mart and, of course, Nike — shift their profits offshore to a network of foreign subsidiaries in countries known for their abnormally low corporate tax rates. Use of such systems allows 358 of the largest 500 multinational compa- nies in the U.S. to avoid paying their fair share in taxes. Likewise, offshore tax ha- ven secrecy enables wealthy Americans to secretly hide their wealth abroad, away from tax authorities — stick- ing the rest of us with the tab. The Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act — currently pending in both the House and Senate — would end the ability of wealthy individuals to cheat on their taxes while simulta- neously putting an end to the ability of the biggest compa- nies in the world to indefinite- ly defer paying the taxes that they owe. The elaborate game of deception cor- porations play costs the average tax- payer nearly $1,500 annually tax evasion issues revealed. While we applaud his ef- forts, this issue can’t be tack- led alone. The Main Street Alliance, and our national coalition partners at FACT (Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency) call on Senator Merkley and our representatives in Congress to not only look into the crim- inal avoidance of taxes but to develop a head-on approach. We are calling on our mem- bers of Congress to pass a law to stop the creation of anon- ymous shell companies that facilitate crimes, of which ev- of these secretly owned com- panies exposed in the papers operate in Nevada or Wyo- ming, but recent reporting from the Portland Business Journal suggest that Oregon is not far off. These states act as getaway cars for money launderers, terrorists and corporate tax evaders, and it is time to take away the keys. Requiring the collection and publication of information on who owns and controls these companies would make it much harder to launder dirty money. Small business owners across the country and our
