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Eighty-two years of editorial freedom
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan
Looking ahead--a stable future for OEO?
I
420 Maynard St., Ann Arbor, Mich.
News Phone: 764-0552
FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1973
In support of renters' rights
THE ESTABLISHMENT and enforce- ance of necessary upkeep a
ment of effective legislation for the ties, making them liable f
protection of tenant's rights is an es- performance.
pecially crucial issue in Ann Arbor.
The housing shortages near campus HESE MEASURES are
allows landlords to charge students ex- aid to Ann Arbor rente
horbitant rents that often are accom- ecoulhe an holb
panied by poor service. Tenants are often tect their rights.
In continuation of this, ti
trapped into signing twelve month bills are under constructi, n
leases when they only plan to live in Ann billsearegueon
Arbor during the school year, and land- to the legislature.
The first bill again deals
lords often charge unreasonably high deposits. It would require
damage deposits which are sometimes
not returned. pay their tenants a five per
rate on all deposits. It has
A public meeting will be held Monday, duced to the state senate f
April 16, in the Lawyers Club (law quad) The second bill to be intr
to discuss these and any other renters' House would allow renters
problems. The hearing will be chaired and to form tenants' unions
by State Rep. Perry Bullard and will be pose of bargaining with la
open to anyone who wishes to speak. measure would give legal
Bullard will discuss collective bargain- these groups.
ing and formation of tenants' unions, To gain support for the1
rent control legislation, and the bill re- pieces of legislature and
quiring landlords to pay interest on se- more about tenants needs,
curity deposits. tive to attend the hearing.
This meeting is crucial as far as any Some present local rent
nances might be found un
future tenants rights legislation being under the present law. But
instigated.
rent control is passed into 1f
Recently a piece of legislation has islation will be protected.1
been enacted called the "Renters Bill of will help this legislation to
Rights" which could be the beginning of
fairer renting practices in Ann Arbor. AT THE PI)ESENT TIME
bi-partisan support am
The most significant feature of the legislators for these bills, b
bill is that it places the burden of prov-
ing damages on the landlord to recover attend the meeting and let
damages, rather than requiring the benown.
renter to institute court action to recover Members of the investi
a justly deserved security deposit. mittees on tenants rights wi
The bill allows landlords to assess a and want to find out about
security deposit, while placing protecting bor's renters' situation. If n
limitations on the practice. it will be logical for them
If the bill passes a landlord will not that there are no problems.
be able to require more than one and ly, the two new bills wil
one-half month's rent for the deposit, chance of passing.
and the money will be held in trust for We strongly urge all Ann
the tenant. ers to be present in the LaN
It also makes the landlord or rental Monday and to participate
-onager responsible for the perform- ing.
Flmngalittle late
E READ WITH some interest Presi- us, he "does not propose tc
dent Robben Fleming's statement on lent" despite the dangers
the Advocates for Medical Information's villification and abuse."
book burning on the Diag Wednesday. How courageous!
He tells us he "watched in horror the It was, in fact Fleming
relative silence" which he says sur- stood by silently when the
rounded the incident. But, he assures ing was announced.
The week before the burn
T.tff, a firm stand against it. We r
stand again on Tuesday, ur
News: Penny Blank, Michael Duweck, reconsider. We actually did
Eugene Robinson, Judy Ruskin villification and abuse.
Editorial Page: Denise Gray, Kathleen It is hard to be impress
Ricke moral courage of a man who
Arts Page: David Gruber til the act was done to to
Photo Technician: Karen Kosmauski against it.
ind other du-
or their non-
certainly an
ers, but much
done to pro-
wo additional
for proposal
with security
landlords to
cent interest
s been intro-
or' discussion.
oduced in the
to organize
for the pur-
ndlords. This
sanction to
two proposed
to find out
it is impera-
control ordi-
constitutional
if statewide
aw, local leg-
Your support
pass.
there is some
ong the state
ut this sup-
unless people
t their gripes
gating com-
ill be present
the Ann Ar-
o one comes,
to conclude
Consequent-
l have little
Arbor rent-
w Lounge on
in the hear-
Editor's Note: This is the last ar-
tice in a series of overview articles
on the Office of Economic Oppor-
tunity.
By DAVID YALOWITZ
A DECADE of deliberation over
the most efficient mechanism
for placing money in the pockets
of the poor has failed to produce
a viable formula for alleviating
poverty. The current federal court
ruling that bars the executive of-
fice from dismantling the Office
of Economic Opportunity (OEO)
has added an extra dimension to
the complexities surrounding t h e
anti-poverty debate. But when the
commotion generated from t h e
headlines subsides, the conditions
afflicting out nation's poor will still
remain.
The controversy over the use of
services as opposed to a direct in-
come approach has continued for
years at the expense of the under-
privileged. It has become increas-
ingly evident, however, that a real-
istic soluiton to the problems of the
poor will not be found at either
extreme. A program designed to
release people from poverty must
contain elements of both approach-
es. "You have to have both," as-
serts Wilbur Cohen (former Secre-
tary of Health, Education, and Wel-
fare and currently Dean of t h e
School of Education here at the
University) adding that "income
is not necessarily a substitute for
services."
It is undeniable that there are in-
nate flaws in the concept of pro-
viding large scale services to the
poor. A review of the list of fail-
ures throughout OEO's history will
attest to this fact. In providing
services we are saying that some-
one other than the poor knows what
is best for them. The fallacies of
such broad assumptions have been
shown through some of the failures
of the OEO and other government
agencies which have found it dif-
ficult to adequately fulfill needs of
the poor without correctly evaluat-
ing their priorities as seen f r o m
that level.
Bureaucratic inefficiency and cor-
ruption together with the clout of
special interest groups have com-
bined in the past to form a power-
ful coalition against the interests of
the poor. Underutilization has thus
appeared where the need was con-
sidered vast.
Despite the many criticisms of
the OEO, it cannot be disputed
that the organization, has its pro-
per share of successes, as well as
its failures., It helped to expose
the true dimensions of poverty. Al-
so, it has established new prece-
dents for community organization
and has given the poor a new sense
of self-worth.
IT IS INDEED distressing that
these very contributions of the
"xwar on poverty" have increased
the gap between those receiving
benefits and those who must pay
for them.
Urban violence and mounting
welfare rolls have created a public
backlash against the poor result-
ing in pressure on Congress to trim
anti-poverty measures. Yet, such
existing measures are quite insuf-
ficient as they stand. Congress only
gives the impression of spending
too much, causing the public to
believe it is paying too heavily for
quick results which never material-
ize.
President Nixon, as could be ex-
pected, has capitalized on these
sentiments in his recent federal
cutbacks. By enacting revenue
sharing, Nixon has placed the bur-
den, for continued program deploy-
ment on cautious local officials.
Compounding local governments'
initial reluctance to continue these
programs is the uncertainty over
the exact amounts of revenue shar-
ing funds that they will allocate.
The outcries of Mayor R o m a n
Gribbs of Detroit and his contem-
poraries across the nation are suf-
ficient proof that revenue sharing
is not expected to be as successful
as once believed. Furthermore,
questions remain as to whether
local governments are capable and
competent enough to take over
these services.
."Is the OEO doomed?
W ednesday's federal
c ourtI r ling may
serve only to delay its
dismantling. . . . It is
highly doubtfIu~l that
Congress can gather
enough support to ap-
propriate funds for
{}EO."
Is the OEO doomed? Wednes-
day's federal court ruling m a y
serve only to delay its dismantling.
The Washington D.C. U.S. District
court has held that the President
has no power to shut down pro-
grams enacted by Congress. For
the present, the winding down of
federal funding must stop.
Nevertheless, funds for OEO will
run out at the end of the current
fiscal year on June 30. There are
no appropriations for OEO in the
1974 budget - a point which Act-
ing Director of OEO Howard Phil-
lips underscores in predicting the
agency's future demise.
Further, it is highly doubtful
that Congress can gather enough
sipport to appropriate funds for
OEO. Judging from recent Con-
gressional failures to override Pre-
sidential veto, such as the bill to
aid the handicapped as well as the
Rural Sewers Bill, this is a rea-
sonable assumption.
WITH THE THREAT of cut-
backs still looming at the federal
level, and the questionable pros-
pect of program extension .in the
various localities, President Nixon
has deftly maneuvered himself and
his policies into a seemingly un-
assailable position. If his intent is
to rid the United States of an over-
burdened service bureaucracy by
totally eliminating OEO and h e
subsidiary Community Action
Agencies, his goals remain alarm-
ingly within reach. The "New Fed-
eralism" may turn out to be a
mere euphemism for his proposed
hatchet job.
Nixon's actions appear unsym-
pathetic to those OEO programs
which, although unsuccessful by his
subjective standards, must be both
maintained and improved. Despite
restricted resources, health, em-
ployment, education, legal, and
family planing programs h a v e
made important advances. While,
in many cases their success can-
not be measured in conventional
terms, their overall effects m a y
begin to stirface in the years to
come. If these programs are elim-
inated, there will be nothing to ade-
quately take their place and to
continue the advances that have
already begun. Furthermore, pro-
gram deployment allows for con-
tinued diversity - it breeds exper-
imentation in a positive direction.
IN SEEKING improvement of
economic services, perhaps an ac-
ceptable guideline would be to -e-
strict services to those which will
concentrate on developing abilities
to earn fitujre incomes. Also, ser-
vices should put major emphasis
on the maintenance of the legal
rights of the poor as well as pro-
viding adequate health care and
family planning.
Why, some critics ask, should
the government continue to give
money to the poor at expense of
the average taxpayer? Steve
Schlesinger, Administrative Assist-
ant for the local OEO, in reply,
states that "the old saying is that
people should pull themselves up
by their bootstraps, but nowadays
people can't even afford to buy
boots."
Visions of poverty in the publiz s
eye conjures up images of some
transitory stage which can be es-
caped by a lot of sweat and toil,
Americans just don't seem to real-
ize that Horatio Alger is dead.
There is' a deeper meaning to
poverty when all avenues of es-
cape are obstructed - when the
color of your skin, your educational
background or social status deny
any attempts to gain some sense
of self-sufficiency Poverty expands
into a more prevailing and entrap-
ping atmosphere of dependency.
The OEO, as originally conceiv-,
ed, did not wish to continue a mas-
sive handout to the poor. Rather,
its goal was, and still is, to im-
prove the ability of the under-
privileged to become self-suffic-
ient.
Only the government has the
resources to back such essential
services, and only the government
has the responsibility to its people
to provide such services.
Steve Schlesinger sums up the
problem in this way. "Is the coun-
try going to be committed to hu-
man needs or material needs?
"It's a question of one's values,
I guess."
Dar id Yalowitz is a staff Writer
for the Daily.
4
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OMu4
By The International Center Staff
Editor's note: This is sixth in a
series of articies on travel abroad
written by members of the Interna-
tional Center Staff.
AN AURA OF intrigue, haunting
music and inexplicable violence
beckons the adventuresome to the
Middle East. This stereotyped im-
age still prevails in the Western
mind, even though the M i d d l e
East possesses a diversity, hospi-
tality and history which may sur-
pass that of Europe.
The Middle East also has some
unique advantages. The hugh influx
of tourists who've invaded Yugo-
slavia and Greece in their ever
widening search for warmer and
more exotic campsites has yet to
hit the Middle East in force. Des-
pite cool official relations, Arabic
speaking people welcome "Yankee"
tourists with a genuine warmth.
Syrians, Egyptians and Iraquis
may be so friendly that their hos-
pitality takes a while to get used
to.
Some general notes on the touchy
subject of Arab-Israeli relations-
travelers with U.S. passports and
Jewish surnames may not be able
to enter Syria, Iraq and perhaps
Egypt but will be welcome in Le-
banon and probably Jordan.
VISIT ARAB countries first, then
go to Israel, either by flying to
Cyprus or Istanbul then to Tel
Aviv or by crossing the Allenby
Bridge. If you do travel to Israel
first, ask officials not to stamp the
I ~'||g'p"'
lent guide to Mideast travel
Israeli visa in your passport. Re-
quest a loose paper with the vi.a
on it instead. This method helms
ensure subsequent entry to Arab
countries.
Women traveling in the Middle'
East may have to be a bit cau-
tious and extra sensitive to culturil
cues. American women have an
especially had reputation for pro-
miscuity. If you choose to dress
by casual campus standards (b i-
less, cut-off levis, short skirts), be
aware that you may be inhibiting
cross-cultural communication and
inviting hassles.
Be sensitive to the political sit-
uation in the Middle East. Listen
to everyone and argue heatedly
with no one. Taking pictures near
anything military can be danger-
ois. Avoid shots of bridges, bord-
ers and policemen.
EGYPT
The least expensive country in
this area, as well as the-most pop-
ulous and the poorest, Egypt has
a lot to offer the student traveler
-the Pyramids, Sphinx, the Valley
of Tombs and extensive museums.
In the summer Cairo is hot and
dusty. Try a trip to Alexandria, the
elegant Mediterranean resort where
Caesar used to hang o it. Here,
amidst the cool water and hot sand,
you can stay in beautiful hotels
which used to be palaces.
Egypt's night life includes gamb-
ling casinos, night clubs and belly
dancing in huge tents. The Am-r-
ican University in Cairo is a great
place to meet fellow students. Tra-
vel, hotels and restaurants a e
cheap. Second class air conditioned
is probably the best deal by rail.
If you go third class you may oe
up all night with the onickens and
goats, but you could meet s o m e
friendly Egyptians from the poorer
classes.
ISRAEL
Contrast strikes the "'aveler to
Israel, a modern state with an an-
cient religious heritage. The di -
ferences between Tel Aviv and Old
Jerusalem, the modern port of Fi-
lat and the parched Negev a n d
concrete and green grasz enclave,
with supermarkets in the desert
are heightened by the image of
tank convoys destroyrng the seren-
ity of the Sea of Galilee.
It's possible to take bus tours to
some territories occupied by Israel
in 1967 - the West Bank (Bethle-
hem) or the Syrian Golan Heights
- but the Gaza Strip is still off
limits to the public. While gener-
ally more expensive than the rest
of the Middle East, transport is
reasonable. You can buy a two
week ticket on Egged Bus Lines
for about ten dollars and travel
just about anywhere.
IRAN'
Land of the Persian Empire, Iran
has a strong sense of its history
and is again growing in power.
The mosques and rose gardens of
Isfahan, the ruins of Persepolis and
the resorts os the Caspian Sea
are some things not to miss.
Tehran is a fairly expensive city,
hut modern and exciting.,Take ad-
vantage of the cheap, efficient pub-
lic transport system - it's air-
conditioned. If you like caviar, in-
dulge yourself in Iran. It's supposed
to be the best in the world.
LEBANON
The most Western and cosmo-
politan country of the Arab Middle
East, Lebanon governs peoples of
diverse religious and political ideol-
ogies in a delicate parliamentary
republic. The active cafe life is
an obvious remnant of the Frenwh
influence. In the summer Beirut's
Baalbeck temple presents live per-
formancbs between its towering
columns.
From December to April, you
can take a twenty minute drive
from Beirut, on the Mediterran-
ean beaches, to ski in the moun-
tains. While Beirut is fairly expen-
sive, YMCA rooms and some fa-
cilities at the American University
are available for two dollars a
night. Service cars from Beirut to
Damascus cost about two dollars,
to Amman about four,
TURKEY
Istanbul bustles with so many
levels of activity that you suspect
it could remain largely mysterious
after years of acquaintance. A
contrast between poverty and im-
mense wealth in a rich historical
context marks this capital.
Try living outside in a camp-
ground and commuting in on a
"dolnus," a type of taxi-bus. The
covered bazaar is becoming a bit
"touristy", but it's still possible
to get beautiful custom-tailored
suede at some of the cheapest pric-
es in the world. Istanbul's night
life catees to a variety of travel-
ers from the "Hilton men" to bare-
foot hitchers on the way to Nepal.
Letters to The Daily should
be mailed to the Editorial Di-
rector or delivered to Mary
Rafferty in the Student Pub-
lications business office in the
Michigan Daily building. Letters
should be typed, double-spaced
and normally should not exceed
250 words. The Editorial Direc-
tors reserve the right to edit
all letters submitted.
D remain si-
of "personal
himself who
book burn-
ting we took
epeated that
ging AMI to
d take some
ed with the
awaited un-
ake a stand
4- -"4------°-r-- -
'4- -t rv a >t,, -y ti .-.-'.. 'of .
A
look at city employment practices:
Women at work
By LINDA ROSENTHAL
ENTERING THAT bastion of democracy,
Ann Arbor's very own City Hall, I heard
a whistle. Was this the place to study sexual
discrimination?
A good question, but only one of a myriad.
Sexual discrimination is not just rhetoric
that politicians employ to win elections. No,
it's more than that - much more because
unfortunately, it is a reality.
The city has 191 women on its payroll of
around 1500. Of these women employees, 63
per cent were listed in the "clerical" area.
Additionally, 31 per cent were listed in. the
"technical" area, with 3.4 per cent in super-
visory positions and 2.6 per cent performing
in an administrative capacity.
Comforting is it not? All these women
employed in such an "enlightened" city
such as Ann Arbor; a city that approved
the resolution regarding the Affirmative Ac-
tion Program clear back in Sept. 29, 1969.
This is a program "to recruit and upgrade
black employees" by having "an active con-
tinuous search" . . . in all parts of the
State."
WHAT ABOUT women? Discrimination be-
cause of sex has already been given lip-serv-
ice recognition. What is the city doing to
rectify such a gross inequity?
People working in personnel seem agreed
that Ann Arbor is a "unique town." Over
and over again they would mention that this
in a lle-a town 'where there are lots of
Equal Opportunity Employers but "are kept
by law from saying we are actively seek-
ing women."
"A little while ago," Garrett said, "we
did a little survey of how women felt towards
employment." The returns were interesting:
All the women were aware of chances for
advancement but saw not particular advant-
age in applying. "They were happy in their
clerical positions," opined Garrett.
RESPONDING to what the city is doing
to improve the situation Garrett replied, "We
are embarking on an educational program to
acquaint women with opportunities. The
problem is there is no money for training--
we are asking for it next year." The money
would come from city taxes.
The future outlook approximates bleakness.
An influx of women into the so-called elite
positions is not likely. Garrett speculates that
women feel it is expedient to apply for tradi-
tionally female jobs.
An interesting development is that men
are now applying for those traditional female
jobs.
It is in the area of clerical work that the
highest turnover occurs. The average turn-
over rate (4 per cent) is small compared
to most cities and private industry.
The small turnover infers difficulty for
women trying to break into the more "execu-,
tive-type" positions. If there is no opening
and new nositions ano nt hein-- ceated. what
ment head. Enthusiastic about the situation,
she finds "no real discrimination." She says
Harris began pushing for the creation of pro-
fessional part-time positions for men and
women. Mack admits, "Today we are not
completely successful in getting women into
power," but she attributes this to the fact
that most executive positions are preferably
full time jobs, and women in Ann Arbor
usually seek part-time employment.
Mack also finds there is a problem in
distribution of jobs due to basic human na-
ture. She says by nature most city-employed
of women in higher positions. Later an order
from the mayor and Council went out to the
personnel director to recruit women for these
better jobs. "This was successful to a de-
gree." Departments now have career ladders
for every job. For example, there are 60
classifications for those on clerical staff.
"Anyone can rise."
Confirming what Grarret said about -men
applying for female positions, she adds that
much publicity was given to the Human
Rights Ordinance about no sexual discrim-
ination. This encourages men who, for ex-
job, it's hard comparing, but most male
counterparts make twice as much."
SALLY PATTEN is unusual - not just be-
cause she is a woman or because she works
for the city. She is unusual because she
is e m p 1 o y e d as a draftsperson. When
her husband was admitted to the u n i -
versity, she needed a job. She said, "A police
friend recommended I take a look at City
Hall. He said it was a good place for women
--g-ood pay." This was in the summer of
1970 "when no one was hiring; not because
I was a woman - it was just a bad time."
She called on a Monday when the jobs
w ere posted and a drafting position was
available. Being qualified for the job she
was hired without difficulty and receives
equal pay for the work she is doing.
There aren't many Sally Pattens around.
IMAJOR -HOWARD ZECK is in charge of
the police patrol division. Currently, there
are five voen in his division. "The only
time a woman receives special consideration
is when two big burly 6"4" males are engaged
in a fight and someone has to stop them."
The only problem with the women is
outfitting them, for he says it's hard get-
ting uniforms that small. Also, "one needs
a little different hat because of the differ-
ence in heads and styles of hair. Now the
women are wearing skirts but possibly the
unin'(Willm mOnMn -tlnr ,,ill rt-onmmnd frnmit-
to ride with us." She hastened to add those
were only a few. She also said there were
two women in the detective bureau and she
knows of no problems confronting them due
to their sex.
UPION FIRST MEETING, Anita Busbee,
asst. city personnel director, was eager to
talk of sexual discrimination. It is her
opinion that "there is traditional discrimina-
tion and problems still exist."
"The attitudes of people towards hiring
women is changing - especially those in a
position to do something about it, but im-
plementation is slow."
She was glad to add, "The situation is
changing - there is an awareness of a
need to change and that is a start."
Bemoaning the situation, she cited three
main problems:
-traditions still exist; they have not been
eradicated
-women are not aware o fthe new op-
portunities
-women have to branch out into different
areas such as civil engineering.
SIMPLISTIC AS it may sound, qualified
women are going to have to deluge the city
if they want to improve their lot as far as
employment is concerned. Early this year,
the city advertised throughout the state for
an assistant attorney. Of the replies, not
one was a woman.
........... -
I