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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (June 21, 2023)
Page 8 The Skanner Portland & Seattle June 21, 2023 News Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill to Teach Oregon Students Personal Finance, Career Path Skills Formerly Wrongfully Incarcerated, Yusef Salaam Runs for Office, Seeking Redemption in the City’s Power Structure Member of ‘Central Park Five’ is running for a New York City office The Skanner News SALEM – Tuesday, the Oregon Senate passed Senate Bill 3, which will add to Oregon high school graduation require- ments one half-credit of personal finance educa- tion and one half-credit of higher education and career path skills. The bill passed 24-1 and now heads to the House for consideration. As defined in the bill, personal finance educa- tion includes instruction on: • Credit scores, how to build credit, long-term impacts of good or bad credit and the costs and benefits of borrowing • Investments, assets, types of bank accounts, understanding retire- ment plans and total cost of loan repayment • Budgeting strategies • Comparing costs asso- ciated with renting and home ownership • Tax credits, filing state and federal tax forms and familiarity with federal, state, regional and local taxes • Financial well-being, including preventing fraud and identity theft “Our students must be prepared to make ma- jor financial decisions immediately upon grad- uating high school, if not sooner,” said Senate President Rob Wagner (D-Lake Oswego), co- chief sponsor of the bill. “This bill will help en- sure our young people are leaving school with the skills they need to make good financial de- cisions now and through- out their lives.” Instruction on higher education and career path skills will include: • Resume writing and job applications • Applying for post-sec- ondary education in- stitutions, apprentice- ships and job-training programs, including finding financial aid and scholarships • Developing and im- proving employable skills and taking ad- vantage of communi- ty-based learning • Acting as a self-advo- cate for mental, physi- cal and financial health “Our schools have al- ways been about more than reading, writing and arithmetic. They are about helping young people find the path that is best for them,” said Senator Michael Dem- brow (D-Portland), co- chief sponsor of the bill. “The better our students understand the various paths they can take af- ter graduating, the more successful they will be on those paths.” These courses will be required for students graduating in January 2027 and beyond. Despite having bipar- tisan support, Senate Bill 3 is one of hundreds of bills that were threat- ened by the Senate Re- publican walkout. AP PHOTO/MARY ALTAFFER Bill is one of hundreds that were threatened by walkout. New York City Council candidate Yusef Salaam, right, talks to a Harlem resident while canvasing in the neighborhood, Wednesday, May 24, 2023, in New York. Salaam is one of three candidates in a competitive June 27 Democratic primary. With early voting already begun, he faces two seasoned political veterans: New York Assembly members Al Taylor, 65, and Inez Dickens, 73, who previously represented Harlem on the City Council. By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent Y usef Salaam, a man who en- dured wrongful imprison- ment, has launched a cam- paign for a seat on the New York City Council. Widely recognized for the un- just ordeal that altered the trajec- tory of his life, Salaam now aspires to join the very power structure that once condemned him. In 1989, when Salaam was just 15 years old, he and four other Af- rican American teenagers, collec- tively known as the Central Park Five, were apprehended by the police. Falsely accused and convicted of raping and assaulting a white woman in Central Park on April 19 of that fateful year, the group faced years of wrongful incarcer- ation. Reflecting on his experienc- es, Salaam remarked during an interview with the Associated Press at his campaign headquar- ters, “I’ve often said that those who have been close to the pain should have a seat at the table.” Salaam’s and his co-defendants’ miscarriages of justice, which included Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise, attracted nation- al attention. Their convictions were over- turned in 2002 when new evi- dence, including DNA analysis, linked the crime to a serial rapist. The city awarded the group, now known as the Exonerated Five, a settlement of $41 million. Salaam counts among three candidates locked in a closely contested Democratic primary scheduled for June 27. The primary outcome will de- termine who will represent Har- lem’s district in the City Council. “When people look at me and learn my story, they resonate with it,” Salaam expressed with conviction. “But now, after 34 years, I can utilize the platform I have to re- purpose the pain and help uplift people as we emerge from de- spair.” As a native New Yorker, Salaam passionately seeks to address some of Harlem’s most pressing challenges, including poverty, homelessness among children, and the ongoing issue of afford- able housing. Political experts said Salaam’s campaign represents a remark- able journey of resilience and pursuit of redemption. If successful, he said a goal is to leverage his unique perspective and experiences to advocate for those historically marginalized and neglected.
