READERS WRITE
Minority entrepreneu have
ch nee to le rn the fact about
franchi e 0 ne hip t no co t.
-Buying a Franchi e: Making the
Right Choice" will be held in Detroit
the University of Detroit-Mercy
Conferen Center, 8200 W. Outer
Drive t Southfield freeway. The
three-hour program i d igned for
any minority person who would like
to learn about options available in
franchi in .
The seminar, presented by the
Detroit Minority Business Develop­
ment Center and the Michigan
Department of Commerce, is one of
a series under the National Franchise
Initiative funded by the United
States Department of Commerce's
Minority Business Development
Agency (MBDA).
The Initiative is the result of find­
ings and recommendations by the
Minority Enterprise Development'
Advisory Council, which reveal that
minorities currently own les than 3
percent of the nation' franchi ,
while they comprise approximately
25 percent of tbe American popula­
tion.
"This seminar i a chance to learn
about the opportunities available in
franchi ing and al 0 to evaluate
QUESTIONS
franchi ing
tion.
viabl busin op-
mon y.
He ho th t th S lvation Anny
might rous public opinion and get
the Governor or the Republican-con­
troll d tate S nat to change their
minds.
H IT of D troit al 0 gave
aid to Operation Get Down during
the winter, but the money ran out in
c
continued from P g 1
tually get a good job and become a
tax-paying citizen instead of the
homele mother of one year go.
The type of financial aid that gave
Anne her chance will be made illegal
if the Bush Administration' ruling
restricting minority scholarship be­
comes law. Proposed last December,
the policy will soon become law un­
less Congress intervene or the Ad­
ministration changes its proposal.
"It is a tragedy for the nation,"
says Jones, who notes that close toBO
percent of his students will be forced
to drop out of school or disrupt their
education.
"THE RODNEY KING incident­
showed us the onl y way we can save
these generations of African
Americans and Hispanics is to give
them a better future, a better oppor­
tunity, a better education so that they
can contribute to society," says
Continued from P.g On -
George Mallory, former presi­
dent of the Langston Bar and a rep­
resentative of the National Bar
Association, said mmority lawyers
believed a disproportionate number
of minorities were amsled for loot­
ing and for curfew violations during
the riots.
He said there was concern that
police did not act in a "fair and
equitable" manner. ,
"It seems that there was a high
majority of minorities arrested on
curfew violations, which leads us to
believe that the curfew was being
enforced differently in different
parts of the city'," Mallory said.
NEARLY 14,000 people were
arrested during the three days of riot­
ing in predominantly minority
neighborhoods that followed the ac­
quittals April 29 of four white police
. officers in the videotaped beating of
motorist R�y King.
There were 58 people killed and
more than 2,500 others were injured.
Damages are estimated at nearly
$1.5 billion.
Mallory said he did not have any
figures on the number of riot arrests,
but said the lawyers' groups were
COURTS
TH B FIT TO be 0 -
tained from au nding the eminar
include increa ed understanding of
the ris rewards and requirements
involved in becoming a franchisor,"
ay Mr. Joe Lira, ational Director
of the Minority Busine D velop­
ment Agency. Gregg Wallace of the
Michigan Department of Commerce
ays "this initiative i one of our
highest priorities. It ha the potential
to dramatically increase th rate of
ucce or our entrepren urs."
Local expert in franchising,
franc hi e financing and small busi­
ness development, along with repre-
entatives from franchi e companie
and a franchi e attorney will par­
ticipate as guest speakers. In addi­
tion, a Resource Area will be
avaiable for attendees to pick up
literature on franchising.
Each attendee will receive
"Buying a Franchise: How to Make
the Right Choice," the Franchi e
Self-Assessment Guide and addi­
tional frachi e material. Seating is
limited. Advance registration is
necessary. Registration is com­
plementary.
basing their concerns on what they
saw on television news reports ot the
violence.
Reiner spokeswoman Sandi Gib­
bons said her office prosecuted only
the most serious cases of looting -­
those people who went from store to
s tore taking armfuls of merchandise
-- and believed the maximum sen­
tence was warranted.
"Looting begets looting," Gib­
bons said. "This is where people
wiped out an entire business by
taking things. These are very serious
crimes." '
Gibbons said the district attor­
ney had not been asked for a meet­
ing.
Maureen Siegel, acting chief of
criminal operations for Hahn, said
the City Attorney's Office, which
handles all misdemeanors, did not
seek the maximum sentence in all
cases, which included burglary,
firearm and curfew violations and
petty theft.
"This wasn't something where
we looked up the maximum in the
penal code and said, 'Sure, that looks
fine to us," she said.
Siegel said sentencing recom­
mendations ran from 30 days to the
maximum 90 days in jail.
Siegel said Hahn was scheduled
. to meet with the African American
lawyer groups Thursday.
THE LAWYERS also had
harsh words for the book manuscript
written by another defendant in the
King case, Sgt. Stacey Koon.
Koon refers to King as "Mandin­
go," a reference to a West African
people used by some Westerners to
denigrate Black male slaves.
He also referred to an earlier in­
cident in which he shot a Black man,
and his fellow officers joked that the
man would survive because Blacks
"are too dumb to go into shock."
"While it is not in our interest to
give the manuscript any further
publicity which may affect its
marketability, we must tell you that
we are saddened but not surprised by
the racist attitudes it reflects," Young
said.
"One wonders how anyone with
such a mindset could be trusted to
serve and protect all the citizens of
Los Angeles." .
federal appeals court appointments:
only two Blacks out of 1�5 appoint­
ments in nearl y 12 years.
Clarence Thomes, the lone Black
among Bush's 32 appointees, baS
ince been elevated to the Supreme
Court.
By contrast. Carter, who took of­
fice when only two Blacks sat on
federal appellate benches, included
nine among his 56 appointees in four
years, said ReiDbardt, who is white.
He is also a former Democratic na­
tional coJllIDitteeman from Califor­
nia w e court confirmation was
talled by Senate Republicans for al­
most a year.
"PRESIDENTS REAGAN
and Bu h have ensured that the
federal courts will not be repre-
entative," 'Reinhardt said. "In­
stead, they are a bastion of white
America. 1bey stand a symbol of
white power."
Reinhard t has criticized the
Supreme Court in his wri tten
opinions, and denounced the high
court in a speech last month for its
refusal to let the 9th Circuit stay the
execution of convicted murderer
Robert AI ton Harris.
He said Saturday the courts'
composition and rulings help to ex­
plain a nationwide poll last wee that
found an overwhelming majority of
African Americans felt they were not
treated fairly by, the courts.
Where minorities once believed
that the law and the Supreme Court
were on their side, Reinhardt said,
"their current belief leads only to
despair -and to disrespect for the
law."
"No one should have been
surpri ed when Los Angeles ex­
ploded," said Reinhardt, a former
president of the Los Angeles Police
Commission. " ... As law-abiding
Citizens, we cannot condone the riot,
but we can understand the feelings of
all those who live in America's gbet­
tos.'
SOME OF THE rioters after the
Rodney King verdict, which cleared
four Los Angeles policemen of mo t
charges of bea ting the Black
motorist, were "hardened profes­
sional criminals" taking advantage
of the situation, Reinhardt said.
But he said others were "ordi­
nary law-abiding individuals,
angered and- frustrated by what they
felt to be a grievous demonstration of
the racial injustice that permeates
their lives, who suddenly saw much­
needed food and goods readil y avail­
able and were overwhelmed by a
combination of raw emotio and
their conviction that the majority
white ociety would never treat them
fairl y or afford them the opportuni ty
to obtain tho e nece i ties by
legitimate means." _
,the
pro
rein
edu
lng,
Noting that the federal govern­
ment gave an id p c of urban
aid to rebuild Los Angel , "merely
restoring it to th tatus quo," h
ugg ted that even if a fraction of
o on.
B on i reportin to the VA
t t they ve only igned contrac
worth 9 million d million
gon to Small D· dvantaged B i-
n es, Cob ·d. But if you 100
on th building ite, you will 24
to 25 traile belonging to all kinds
of co truction compani , and only
two of them re minori ty firms,
Cobb aid. So what kind of hell
game are they pI ying, both Cob
and Beckham want to know.
Congressman John Conyers
lent hi upport to the Black contrac­
tors, meeting with them over the p t
ix to seven months as they struggle
to force Bateson/Dailey and the VA
to follow federal rules .
Conyers as h d of the Govern­
ment 'Operations Committee is re­
searching his powers to stop the
project or force compliance.
There is a target of 20% minority
participation on the Detroit VA
hospital.
"We are trying to become a
partner in thi process," Beckham
said. "We can help them reach that
goaL"
The reaJ problem is ith the VA,
said Beckham. They have no process
in place to realize the minori ty goals.
In all even cities where Bateson has
constructed buildings for the VA
over th past year, not one project has
reached the target set by federal
rules, he added.
The V A only does an "end of
proj eet" review, Beckham said. Then
it's too late, the money is spent.
That is not going to happen in
Detroi t, the Black contractors vow.
When ked bout criti . m of
Riegle' own record of voting for the
first Re g n budget bill in 1981,
which tarted the policy of federal
cutbacks, Riegle . d he did this be­
cause he nted of pro io in tbe
Jones. "Th moni are the e iest,
. and the mo t direct form of giving
individual the bility to be self-sup­
porting nd functional in our
soc ety."
According to census figures, by
the year 2000, 70 percent of the
BI c male population will be part of
the criminal justice y tern either in
jail, on probation or dealing with
some sort of rehabilitation program.
At the same time, many states such
as California will become minonty
states. The population of Hispanics,
African Americans and Asians will
be greater than whites. People of
color will form the majority of the
nation's workforce.
One 'of the most vocal critics of
the Bush Administration policy is
the United States Student Associa­
tion (USSA), the country's largest
group of students. They recently
convened a hearing at the University
of California-Davis, where
hundreds of tuden t tifted to the
deva tating impact re tricting
minority cholarships would have on
their lives.
.
The USSA is calling for incre ed
monies for education and no restric­
tions on minority cholarshi .
"RATHER THAN dividing
along racial1ines. We are demanding
a real commitment from the federal
government to increase the funding
for higher education. It is critical to
educate the most diverse group of
students possible if America is to
remain competitive in an increasing­
ly complex world market Minority
scholarhips are in the national inter­
est." say Tajel Shah, USSA Presi­
dent.
The group plans to lobby Con­
gress and the Administration to re­
scind the restrictions on minority
scholarships and increase monies for
financial aid.
INC.
"NOBODY WILL SAVE US
"
FOR US, BUT US"
-REV. JESSE L JACKSON
FOUNDER
JOIN PUSH TODAY
JOIN TODAY •••
Support Oper.tlon PUSH (P.ople United to Serve Humanity) •• natlon.1
hum.n right. organization committed to the go.l. of educatlon.l. economic
.nd politic. I equity .nd p.rlty for all people. PUSH .chleve. It. go.l. through
r •••• rch. education. negotiation •• nd direct action. '
ECONOMIC The PUSH for Economic Juatlc. drlv. to rfen.gotlate the
relatlon.hlp betw •• n the Black and HI.p.nlc communltl .. and corporat •
Am.rlc. ha ••• rved ••• natlon.1 model for economic d.v.lopm.nt
POLITICAL: The PUSH Polltlc.1 Cru •• de for voting right. enforcement and
voter regl.tratlon I. helping to .dd million. of unreglatered voter. to the
voting roll ••
JOIN the PUSH
COMMUNITY FORUMS
EVERV SATURDAY from 9 a.m. to �1 :30 a.m.
at Big Star Theater
(Woodward at Gr.nd Clrcu. Park In downtown DetrOit)
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Make check. payabl to: Operation PUSH·Detrolt Metropollt n Chapt r
MAIL TO: Dr. J.b.rl V. Pr.mpeh / P.O. Box 21088/ Detroit. MI44S221
PHONE: 313/ 381-8701 FAX: 313/342-8298
'.