The Pharr Press (Pharr, Tex.), Vol. 63, No. 33, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 15, 1985 Page: 2 of 15
fifteen pages : ill. ; page 24 x 15 in. Scanned from physical pages.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Page 2.The Pharr Press,August 15,1985
Hispanics Lag In Educational Attainment
Charter Review
Can’t Wait
%
There are times when we can
say to ourselves, “I should have
taken care of this a long time
ago.” Some times, as indivi-
duals, we can afford the luxury
of waiting. As a community, we
can never afford to wait. We
will invariably pay for waiting.
That is just what the city has
done.
You will remember that last
week the city appointed a new
city commissioner. You will
also remember that there was
some controversy over some
legal questions raised over
conflict of interest and nepot-
ism. Apparently, at two differ-
ent meetings, the commission-
ers received conflicting legal
opinions over whether a parti- j
cular person could be appoint-
ed.
The difference apparently
capie from different interpreta-
tions of the city charter. The
city charter has some provi-
sions that do not run parallel to
state laws. There are also some
provisions that seenrto conflict
each other.
As a result of this, one
candidate was disqualified
from consideration.
This is just one of the pro-
blems with the city charter.
There are several areas where
the charter needs to be updat-
ed.
It was this need to update the
charter, as well as some
political considerations, that
first prompted the city commis-
sion to appoint a charter re-
view committee to work on-
updating the charter. This was
done earlier this year. Howe-,
ver, it has yet to meet once
after many months of having
been appointed.
The city has dragged its feet
on the issue, and the result was
what happened last week.
Now, the city will suddenly
realize the necessity of getting
the charter review committee
going. There were will be
statements about how import-
ant the work 6f the committee
is and about how important it is
that they get their work done
quickly.
There is a danger here that in
an effort to get the committee
working quickly there will be
rush job of getting the job
finished without sufficient stu-
dy and consideration. If this
happens, we will wind-up with
a worse charter than we have
now.
The charter review is an
important function that will
take some time and long hours
of study and research. But it
must start soon.
The city administration wait-
ed too long on the subject. Now,
it has to make the effort to get
the committee going. But, it also
has to take care to do it
methodically and with due de-
liberation.
By Raul Yzaguirre, President
National Council of La Raza
WASHINGTON, D.C.—
“When literacy is definded by
such practical criteria as abili-
ty to interpret a bus schedule,
address a letter so that it
reaches its destination, or read
an explanation of finance
charges from a bank, research
indicates that 56% of Hispanic
Americans could be considered
functionally illiterate.”
This disturbing statistic is
only one provided in The Edu-
cation of Hispanics: Selected
Statistics, just issued by the
National Council of La Raza, a
Washington-based Hispanic or-
ganization with a national net-
work. The compendium also
indicates that:
.Most national data show that
half of all Mexican American
and Puerto Rican youth will not
graduate from high school.
’ . Three-fourths of Hispanic
high school seniors have been
placed in curricular tracks
which make college attendance
improbable.
.The percent of Hispanic high
school graduates entering post-
secondary education actually
declined between 1975 and
1980.
.Hispanics who enter college
are less likely than Whites to
graduate. While 61% of White
youth entering college earn
degrees, only 32% of Mexican
Americans and 28% of Puerto
Ricans finish college.
According to Lori S. Orum,
Senior Education Policy Ana-
lyst with the National Council
of La Raza, “The existing data
reveal that Hispanics do not
benefit from or participate in
the nation’s educational system
to the same degree as other
population groups.” Literacy,
dropout rates, tracking, early
school failure, and postsecon-
dary education are addressed
in the report, which also re-
views Hispanic demographics,
educational aspiration and ex-
pectations, and school segrega-
tion.
The document is a practical
interpretation of data compiled
from private and public studies
and presented in a “user-
friendly” format. “It can be
used by interested citizens as
well as professionals,” says
Orum, “Data are extensively
referenced to facilitate further
research.”
Because Hispanics are the
most undereducated group of
American children and have an
educational status unique from
Whites and Blacks, compara-
tive data are presented. In
addition, because educational
outcomes for Hispanics sub-
groups often differ, The Educa-
tion of Hispanics: Selected Sta-
tistics provides separate data,
where available, for Mexicans
Americans, Cubans, Puerto Ri-
cans, and other Hispanics.
The Education of Hispanics:
Selected Statistics can be ob-
tained from the Office of Policy
Analysis at the Council, (202)
628-9600. The report’s develop-
ment was supported by grants
from the Pew Memorial Trust,
Rockefeller Foundation, Ford
Foundation, and Anheuser-
Busch. Printing of the report
was made possible by Coca-
Cola USA.
A Crime Victim’s Bill Of Rights Endorsed
Governor Offers Game Plan
To Help Students Learn
By Governor Mark White
AUSTIN-When school doors open
in September, Texas educators will come
prepared with a game plan for groom-
ing schoolchildren for success in the
classroom as well as on the playing field.
Texas corporations and Texas celeb-
rities like football star “Mean” Joe
Greene are joining Texas teachers and
coaches to promote academic excellence
in our public schools.
Fina Oil and Chemical Company will
award a $1,000 college scholarship to 11
Texas high school athletes who combine
football prowess with outstanding school-
work. Winners will be named to the first
annual Fina Texas Academic All-State
Football Team.
One of the 11 - judged by a Blue Rib-
bon Panel to best combine football skills
with academic achievement, leadership
qualities and participation in other
school and community activities—will
be named the Fina Academic All-State
Athlete of the Year.
This is one of many programs now in
progress across our state to recognize the
academic achievements of our young
athletes.
New academic requirements man-
dated by the Texas Legislature will bet-
ter prepare our schoolchildren for the
demands of the job market.
Our students should not be daunted
by the challenge of passing all their
coursework before they can participate
in extracurricular activities.
“Mean” Joe Greene, who I appointed
as a regent at North Texas State Univer-
sity, is teaming up with me in a public
service announcement promoting a “do
pass, do play” winning attitude in Texas
schools.
In this TV spot underwritten by Fina,
Southwestern Bell and Atlantic Rich-
field, we urge young athletes to become
winners in the classroom and on the
playing field.
Their success in meeting that
challenge depends on successful early in-
tervention on the part of high school
counselors, teachers and coaches when
a student begins having problems in
class.
My office has prepared a “play book”
for academic coaching—outlining a
variety of approaches they can use to
help students learn course material:
tutorials, counseling, a buddy system for
studying, and meetings with the stu-
dent’s family to get them involved.
No student who wants to learn will be
left out or left behind.
AUSTIN—Attorney General
Jim Mattox has announced a
new program involving a “bill
of rights” for victims of crimes.
Mattox announced the new
program at a recent news
conference, held in conjunction
with the statewide meeting of
People Against Violent Crimes,
a citizens’ organization. Joining
Mattox at the news conference
were representatives of People
against Violent Crimes, includ-
ing founder and director Nell
Myers, who presented Mattox
with a plaque of appreciation
from the organization for Mat-
tox’s work to assist victims of
violent crimes.
The new “bill of rights” cards
for crime victims were deve-
loped by Mattox in an effort to
better inform victims and famil-
ies of victims about certain
rights they have in the Texas
criminal justice system. The
“bill of rights” was mati^K
possible by passage of a law
during the 69th session of the
legislature, a bill sponsored by
Rep. Frank Tejeda of San
Antonio and Sen. John Mont-
ford of Lubbock.
The 10 rights are spelled out
on cards that will be distribut-
ed statewide by Mattox’s Offi-
ce, in public buildings such as
libaries and by cooperating law
enforcement agencies.
“For far too long in this
country, the criminal justice
iystem has not taken the rights
}f crime victims into considera-
tion,” Mattox said. “That is
beginning to change now, with
the advent of organizations like
People Against Violent Crimes
and with increased media at-
tention to victims.
“I am hopeful that this new
bill of rights for crime victims
will be widely distributed so
that victims will now that they
don’t have to be ignored,”
Mattox said. “They have a
right to be informed about
proceedings regarding cases
against persons who committed
the crimes, and many victims
have a right to seek compensa-
tion through our Crime Victims
Compensation Fund.”
“I want to commend People
Against Violent Crimes for its
help in making this bill of rights
a reality,” the Attorney Gener-
al said. “Nell Myers has
worked on this project since
1982, and her work has paid off
for all victims of violent crimes.
1
CRIME VICTIMS
BILL OF RIGHTS
As a victim, as the guardian of a victim, or
as the close relative of a victim, you have cer-
tain rights in the Texas criminal justice
system. Among these are:
The right to PROTECTION from
.harm, and threats of harm, arising
from cooperation with peace officers
or prosecutors.
f\ The right to have your SAFETY and
fc.that of your family, taken into con-
sideration when bail is set.
Q The r'9ht to be INFORMED about
O.court proceedings, including whether
they have been canceled or
rescheduled.
A The right to INFORMATION about
H .procedures in criminal investiga-
tions.
C The right to INFORMATION about
O.procedures in the criminal justice
system, including plea bargaining.
8,
C± The right toTELL a probation depart-
U ■ ment conducting a presentencing in-
• vestigation about the impact of the
offense on you and your family.
”7 The right to beINFORMED about the
/ ■ Crime Victims Compensation Fund,
the payment of certain medical ex-
penses for victims of sexual assault,
and of the availability of social ser-
vice agencies that may provide
assistance.
► The right to be NOTIFIED about
K parole proceedings.
Q The right to INCLUDE information in
the defendant’s file to be considered
by the Board of Pardons and Paroles.
A ri The right to be PRESENT at all public
I U. court proceedings related to the of-
fense, if the presiding judge
approves.
Note: Article 56 of the Texas Code of Criminal Pro-
cedures states: “A Judge, attorney for the state, peace
officer, or law enforcement agency is not liable for a
failure or inability to provide a right enumerated in this
article."
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
Jim Mattox
Attorney General
HERE’S WHERE I STAND
Richard A. Viguerie’s
- : TWICE-WEEKLY NEWSPAPER COLUMN
The Pharr Press
319 South Cujjo
1* 0. Dux 710
Pharr, l x. 70577
Phono: (512)787-2291
Serving Ike Pharr-Seu Juan-Aiaiuo area ileceilM? J
Single copy rate: 259
Muii Subscription
1 Year at $7.50
2 Yearaul $13.00
$11.00 Annually out-of-county
)uuu Curio* Morulou
Publisher
Arnoldo Mutu
Munuging Editor
Arnoldo Mutu
Business Munugcr
Aim* Lopez
Sulus Manager
: Aidu Garza
Production Muimgur
Turosu Cortez
Freelance Writer
Abruhum U. Choy
Circulation Manager
The Pharr Pros9 dedicates itself tu report tho items of interost to the Pharr-San
juan-Alamo areas as well as the surrounding communities of Las Milpas, Hidulgo
and portions of McAllen und Edinburg. Our muin guui js to make our reporting
accurate in the spirit of fairness end truth. We are dedicated to a well rounded
newspaper including Editorial ccn merits, news of interest to men and women, the
.'Id und the young, Sports, Histo?/. entertainment. Community and School ovonts.
& 'J Pltarr Press is published oach Thursday morning in Pharr, Hidalgo Co. Texus
1 in the tower Rio Grande Valley.
H All items must be turned in by Tuesday noon. .
WASHINGTIN, VIRGINIA—
The federal budget has been
pared to the bone...You can’t
cut federal spending any more
without hurting programs that
are essential to the well-being
of the American people...
Besides, so many people benefit
from these programs that it
would be politically impossible
to cut them...
If you believe that, I’ve got a
synthetic fuels plant in North
Dakota that I’d like to sell you.
It’s a plant that was financed
by the U.S. Department of
Energy. To build the Great
Plains Coal Gasification Pro-
ject, a group of corporations
that included Tenneco raised
$2.1 billion, including $1.5 bil-
lion in loans guaranteed by the
Energy Department. The plant
was supposed to produce syn-
thetic fuel that would lesson
America’s dependence on fore-
ign oil. Sure enough, the plant
went into operation last year
and began producing synthetic
gas.
There was a slight problem,
however. The synthetic gas
cost twice as much to produce
as “real” gas. And there was
no prospect that the cost would
ever come down enough to
make the plant prof) 'e. So
Tenneco and the othe pora-
tions delivered an ultimatum to
Engergy Secretary John Her-
rington: give us another $720
million, or we’ll shut down and
throw 1,000 people out of work.
Herrington did a little mental
arithmetic. He figured out that
his department had already
laid down $1.5 million in loan
guarantees for each job that
the plant created, and that the
plant’s operators were asking
for $720,000 more. It would be
cheaper to buy each worker at
the plant his own McDonald’s
franchise than to keep financ-
ing the Great Plains project. So
Herrington turned
thumbs-down. The plant will
close, and the federal govern-
ment will probably lose “only”
$1.2 billion.
The synthetic fuels program is
one of hundreds of government
programs designed to subsidize
Big Business. Another boondog-
gle is the Export-Import Bank,
which bribes foreigners to buy
products from certain U.S.
firms. In 1981, seven corpora-
tions received 70 percent of the
Ex-Im Bank’s direct loans. In
1984, two companies — Boeing
and McDonnell Douglas — got
40 percent of the bank’s bene-
fits. “It’s not good policy for
countries to be in the business
of subsidizing exports, because
the only winners are those that
buy,” Agriculture Secretary
John Block admitted recently.
In 1981, the Rural Electrifica-
tion Administration began to
provide 35-year loans at five
percent interest to finance ca-
ble-TV operations. REA contin-
ues to lend money, at two
percent interest, to utilities in
some areas that were poor
during the Depression but that
are wealthy today.
Subsidies to airlines that
serve small cities have cost the
taxpayer $460 million since
1978. On one run, between
Blythe, California, and Los An-
geles, the government subsidy
per round-trip flight was
$1,096 per passenger in 1983.
The Small Business Admini-
stration actually serves only
about one-fifth of one percent
of the small businesses in the
United States. Most of its
beneficiaries are “government-
wise loan seekers,” that is,
savvy operators whose primary
qualification for doing business
is that they know how to
wrangle handouts from the
government. And the business-
es that don’t get SBA help vnd
up facing artificial, govern-
ment-sponsored competition.
Other programs subsidize the
construction of apartments, or
provide cheap credit for the
construction of some people’s
houses while raising interest
rates for other people. The
government pays some farmers
to grow tobacco and pays other
not to grow wheat. Specialized
weather information, collected
with government satellites and
government computers, is pro-
vided free to multinational
corporations that could affort
to buy it from private compa
nies. Shipbuilding research i:
also done at taxpayer expense
Urban Development Actioi
Grants are given to cities- si
they can bribe companies ti
build multimillion-dollar hotel
and convention centers.
Taxes on working people it
the United States today an
higher than taxes on the riel
were, twenty years ago. Mucl
of the money from those taxei
is used to subsidize companiei
which, in turn, use part of thei:
ill-gotten gains to finance thi
campaigns of members in Con
gress. In turn, those Congress
men raise taxes on the stee
lworkers, the truckdrivers, thi
hairdresser, the dimestori
clerk, and all the other folks
who can’t afford their owi
lobbyists in Washington. It’s i
vicious circle, with the empha
sis on the word “vicious.”
Members of Congress, Repub
lican and Democrat alike, ap
parently lack the courage tc
stand up to the special inter
ests. That’s why, as things nov\
stand, there is no prospect foi
a balanced budget next year
the year after, or ever. Bui
pressure is mounting for e
Constitutional amendment re
quiring a balanced budget, anc
if that amendment passes, ther
the circle will be broken
by-and-by, by-and-by.
MEMBER 1985
TA
TEXAS PRESS ASSOCIATION
Postmaster
Send form 3579 for change of address
‘ Pharr Press
P.O. Box 710
Pharr, Texas 78577
J
>
i
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Mata, Arnoldo. The Pharr Press (Pharr, Tex.), Vol. 63, No. 33, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 15, 1985, newspaper, August 15, 1985; Pharr, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth866946/m1/2/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Pharr Memorial Library.