Etcetera

etcetera

Golf Course vs. Human Services

The Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners, at its Sept. 22 meeting, proposed a budget for 1994-95 which would cut funds to four community agencies. The targeted agencies include: The Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti, which provides health services to teenagers; Options Center in Pittsfield Township, which assists ex-offenders in finding employment; Housing Bureau for Seniors in Ann Arbor, which helps seniors with services that enable them to stay in their homes; and Prospect Place in Ypsilanti, an emergency shelter for families.

If all this rubs you the wrong way, come to the public hearing on the proposed budget scheduled for Oct. 6. The meeting is at 7:15 in the board room of the county administration building, 220 N. Main St.

U.S. Lags in Reducing Child Mortality

Over the last decade, some 40 million children under age five died worldwide, mostly from preventable or treatable infections or malnutrition. However, the world child mortality rate for 1991, the last year for which there are available statistics, was down to a global average of 97 deaths per 1,000 births, about half of what it was in the early 1960s. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has set a goal of reducing the world's average child mortality rate to 70/1,000 by the turn of the century.

Given the 30-year trend in reducing child deaths, UNICEF expected that the United States would have had 9 deaths per 1,000 births in 1991. The actual rate achieved was 11/1,000. While this is almost exactly the average for the world"s 27 industrialized nations, the U.S. rate of improvement is the worst of any developed country. By comparison, Sweden has the world's best record, with 5 deaths per 1,000, while Niger is the world's worst with 320.

UNICEF, which recently released these figures in its "The Progress of Nations" report, concluded that a major cause of child mortality is that many governments spend more on arms and debt service payments than on meeting human needs.

Incarceration or Education?

On October 9 the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom will hold their Michigan state meeting entitled: "How Should We Spend Our Money? Incarceration or the Needs of Our Children." The featured speakers will be Penny Ryder, prisoner rights advocate and Community Relations Director of the American Friends Service Committee, and Jenni Zimmer, psychologist for Ann Arbor pre-school programs and consultant for the Family Shelter Program.

The conference will be held at the Friends Meeting Center, 1420 Hill St. The registration fee is $5 and includes lunch. Registration is at 10 am, Ryder's talk is at 11 am, and Zimmer's talk is at 1:30 pm. The public is welcome to attend the talks, free of charge. For more information contact Ruth Graves at 483-0058.

Ozone House Loses Funding

Due to reductions in the federal budget, Ozone House, the county's only youth crisis and runaway service agency, did not receive the $120,000 Transitional Living Grant which had been approved for them.

Ozone House will now be forced to close its Miller House group home by October 15. Miller House provides 24-hour housing, support, and training for homeless teenagers working toward independent living.

Ozone House will continue to provide non-residential services for homeless youths. However, they will no longer be able to provide the 24-hour support that some homeless youths require in order to successfully learn to live independently.

Ozone House is working to find resources to expand programs to serve high risk homeless youth and to create other housing options for them. Staff are exploring other foundation and government grants, and have scheduled a city-wide bucket drive for October 29 and 30. Call Ozone House at 662-2222 to find out how to help.

U-M Sponsors Ninth Annual Sexual Assault Awareness Week

The U-M Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center (SAPAC) will be sponsoring Sexual Assault Awarness Week on campus Oct. 24 - 29. Several activities are scheduled throughout the week, each dealing with a specific area of sexual assault, but all designed to raise community awareness and understanding of the many issues surrounding sexual assault.

This year's guest speaker is Suzanne Pharr, author of "Homophobia: A Weapon of Sexism." The title of her presentation is "Democracy Under Siege: The Dismantling of Civil Rights," which discusses how the conservative political movement is working to undermine the movement fighting violence against women, women's reproductive freedom, and the rights of gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and people of color. Two events, "Speak Out" and "Friends Helping Friends," focus on helping survivors of sexual assault. For a complete listing of events, see the AGENDA CALENDAR. For more information call SAPAC at 763-5865.

Ex-Panther To Give Two Talks

The Interfaith Council for Peace & Justice is sponsoring two talks in October by one of their staffers, Ahmad A. Rahrnan. Rahman will speak on Oct. 12 about his experiences in the Black Panthers, in prison, and about the ideals and realities of Islam. His talk on Oct. 26 will address Islam in relation to Christianity, Judaism, and other faiths.

Both talks take place at 7:30 pm at the Holy Trinity Chapel, 511 W. Forest, in Ypsilanti. For more info, call 663-1870.

Community Access TV Tums 20!

It was the fall of 1973 when Ann Arbor Community Access Television (AACAT) first began telecasting programming on cable TV that was created by local residents. It was a revolutionary time that saw the free speech rights of American citizens extended to the cable television platform. AACAT now operates three cable channels: Educational Access Channel 8, Public Access Channel 9, and Government Access Channel 10.

Twenty years later, AACAT, one of the oldest access centers in the country, celebrates its historical beginnings with a community Open House and the debut of a new service. The open house will take place Oct. 28 from 6 - 9 pm at the station, 107 N. Fifth Ave. During the open house, AACAT will launch a fourth access channel that will provide viewers with instant access to local information via their telephones. Call 769-7422 for more information.

EMU Workers Narrowly Ratify Pact

Eastern Michigan University's non-teaching technical and professional workers, who are represented by the UAW, ratified a new contract by a margin of under 2% of those voting. Taking inflation into account, the small wage increases and a few benefit cuts probably mean a loss in living standards. However, other provisions give workers new protections against arbitrary or retaliatory layoffs and transfers. The economic package is roughly in line with the UAWs contract with Ford and with other unions' contracts with EMU.

Meanwhile, EMU professors will hold an Oct. 6 ratification vote on a new contract. While there was a tentative agreement reached in late August, further negotiations over several unresolved details took many more weeks to resolve. Eastem's building and maintenance workers, who are members of AFSCME, continue to work without a new contract.

WCBN's October Surprise

Beginning at 9 am on October 14, WCBN 88.3 FM Ann Arbor will hold its third annual on-air fundraiser. This event will run through 1:23 am on Oct. 18 - 88.3 hours of fun! Call up and support U-M's free-form and funky student-run radio station. For more information call 763-3500.

AGENDA is interested in receiving items from you for etcetera. Press clippings, press releases, summaries of local events and any other ideas or suggestions are welcome. Just mail them to: Etcetera Editor, AGENDA, 220 S. Main St, Ann Arbor, MI 48104