Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 19 May 2000 — Page 10

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THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, MAY 19,2000

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OPINIONS LAPD scandal creates callfor national agenda By RAOUL DENNIS NNPA Managing Editor The 2000 presidential election draws near. With both national conventions less than three months away, the Black community agenda to both parties is developing under several tents of leadership. The Black Press of America is a voice among dozens within the Black community that demands to be heard. At the top of any community’s agenda for survival and improvement are food, shelter and security. And inasmuch crime, the security portion of that list, is a national issue that has been of concern to both Black and white Americans. The concern stops at the threshold of police violence

and corruption.

We know that is a mistake. Police violence and corruption are part of a national crisis within our law enforcement and judicial system. Although California is a leading city in police brutality — more than 80 questionable police killings in less than a year in 1988 — the Los Angeles Police Department ■ (LAPD) is not alone in its patterns which target Black and Latino citizens. , : Whether the subject is racial profiling in New Jersey, racially-targeted customs inspections in Chicago or Atlanta or police shootings in New York, African Americans typically are disproportionately victimized by corrupt

police nationwide.

The case currently unfolding with the LAPD comes as little surprise to many of us within The Black Press. Organized crime, groups who participate in violent acts of white supremacy and police violence and corruption have long been fringe elements of American culture. And they have long been only mildly deterred. In fact, to some extent they are accepted as part of the fabric of American culture: a few bad boys who like to have a little fun but

who are really good men at heart.

In Los Angeles, in the development of this case, cops have exposed organized and extensive levels of unchecked police corruption: police planting evidence, targeting Blacks and Latinos and awarding brutality and shootings. The code of blue silence mechanism didn’t work because the department’s Black and Brown officers know that iiilith faced Tfeitfi criminal charge, te l a^ , ,l : ;;

as easily as their white counterparts.' So; they talk Clearly, we are seeing more than isolated incidents as a result of police stress, we are seeing the first glimpse of proof that there is widespread corruption within the police department of one of the five major cities in the United

States.

We call on the presidential candidates from both parties to endorse a national standard operating procedure for all law enforcement agencies. There should be adequate federal funding and training for citizens watch groups both as community patrol agents and as monitoring groups for area police departments. We expect candidates to speak to restructuring police. departments and to creatively rotate civilian resident leadership into police department management. Officers and management should pay stiffer penalties and fines for corruption and crime. Hold officers to the

law.

We hope that both presidential candidates address these requests. But we demand that they address this issue. The Black Press of America T^^TI

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Employment at will victimizes workers

The candidates for governor, incumbent Democrat Frank O’Bannon, Republican David McIntosh and Libertarian Andrew Homing, are boring voters talking about property tax reform and education. If they want to discuss an issue that is really important and would grab the attention of Hoosier voters, I suggest the candidates for governor say, if elected, they’ll reform Indiana’s “employment at will” doctrine. Under the employment at will doctrine, an employer can change your job, shift your hours or cut you loose at will, whenever they feel like it. Under employment at will, employees have no resource when they’re fired, unless they can prove they’ve been the victim of racial, sexual, age, religious or handicap discrimination. I talk with scores of people each year who have been victimized by their employers under the cover of the employment at will doctrine. In the time it takes you to read this column, an Indiana employee has been fired by their employer, without due process or right of appeal, for no good reason. Indiana workers, especially those not represented by a union, are regularly disciplined, mistreated and terminated by supervisors and employers who don’t like them; or are jealous or threatened. Employees who uncover wrongdoing On the job or speak to management about problems on the job are routinely thrown out the door, guilty of the crime of complaining. Much of this conduct by employers is clearly illegal; out and out discrimination. But the anti-

discrimination laws are written in the employers favor, not the employees. When an employee is wrongly disciplined or terminated, they must spend their life savings, retirement, or children’s college fund to prove they’ve been victimized and discriminated against. Many of the employees mistreated and terrorized by out of control bosses and supervisors are African American and other minprities. These abused workers can’t go to civil rights organizations for help because when it comes to standing up for workers abused by the employment at will doctrine, our community’s civil rights organizations have been timid and toothless. So has the Black church, which refuses to publicly condemn the employment at will doctrine. The Indiana Civil Liberties Union spends dollars and attorney hours defending Klansmen, but isn’t doing anything to reform an archaic doctrine more harmful than the Klan ever was. It’s time Indiana’s employment at will doctrine is reformed. Gov. O’Bannon, McIntosh and Homing should publicly support adopting mandatory due process, grievance and arbitration procedures to settle problems between employees and employers. State law should be changed so that employees facing disciplin-

ary and termination proceedings have clear cut rights and means of appeal that won’t push them into bankruptcy. It’s a shame that in Indiana, criminals have more due process rights and protections than Indiana’s Workers! “ ~ The ISO men and women the late Hahison Ullman regularly called “The Worst State Legislature in America,” should be cajoled and shamed by workers in this state into changing Indiana’s employment at will doctrine. Even though it doesn’t affect their members, organized labor should publicly get behind this effort. The Indiana and Indianapolis Chambers of Commerce will fight tooth and nail to keep employers power to subjugate, terrorize and demoralize employees. In fairness, some companies and employers have positive due process policies and stepping stone procedures covering discipline and termination*. Some companies provide ample protection and encouragement for their employees to bring concerns and complaints to management’s attention. Unfortunately some Indiana companies don’t. The state and local chambers should be ashamed of the companies acting like robber barons, abusing employees’ human rights. The problems of workers abused under the employment at will system aren’t confined to large corporations or small mom-and-pop companies. Government agencies and non-profit organizations are among the biggest abusers of their employees. This column has learned that for the past few months, managers and supervisors at a city-county

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government office have systematically engaged in vendettas and actions against their employees that can only be described as employer terrorism. This taxpayer funded office has unlawfully written up, reprimanded and terminated scores of employees on trumped up and made up charges, in a purge unprecedented in recent Indianapolis history. Numerous complaints against this city-county office are pending with the Indiana Cjvil Rights Commission. Local attorneys have filed or are contemplating filing lawsuits. It’s the most abusive example of employment at will run amuck! Mayor Bart Peterson and his administration are aware of the vendettas and purges against employees of this office, but his administration has yet to take action to correct these abuses and reinstate employees. I know you’re wondering what city-county government office I’m talking about. They know who they are. For now the rest of you can speculate. (But, if you’d really like to know, e-mail me at acbrown @ aol.com). The victimization of Indiana workers; whether at this out of control city-county office or by any employer in Indiana must end. In the 21st century, due process and employees rights must be brought to Indiana’s 19th century doctrine of employment at will! What I’m hearing in the streets Lynn Ford, former Recorder reporter, and current assistant features editor of the Indianapolis Star has been promoted to assistant arts and entertainment editor. Ford will help oversee all feature sections of the newspaper. It’s the first promotion of an African American since new Star Editor Tim Franklin arrived in January. Unfortunately, Franklin has yet to hire any other African American editors or reporters. Last Sunday marked the debut of ‘This Week in Health” on WRTV/Chaigiel 6, hosted by Sjpcta Matthews. Dumpeqrrom anchoring the weekend newscast fall, Matthews was given this program as a sort of consolation prize. Even with Matthews’ new program, Channel 6 continues with the fewest number of AfricanAmerican reporters and.anchors of any major Indianapolis TV station. Will Channel 6 air an editorial about that shortcoming? See ‘ya next week! Amos Brown’s opinions are not necessarily those of The Indianapolis Recorder. You can contact him at (317) 293-9600 or e-mail him at ACBROWN® AOL COM.

Elderly are denied vital home health care

WASHINGTON — While the nation debates the need for Medicare to pay for prescription drugs, America’s ailing elderly are being denied the home health care that many desperately need. And many aged people who need sustained care are being forced to spend long, costly periods in hospitals and nursing homes. Or they are dying. That is the message from the Congressional Budget Office, which reports that Medicare spending on home health care has dropped from $17.5 billion in 1997 to $9.7 billion in* 1999, a drastic cut of 45 percent. This reduction in home-care services is an unintended result of Congress’ 1997 slashing of payments to home-care agencies for people who are too sick or disabled to leave their homes for health care. Home-care agencies have responded by refusing to accept patients who need long rehabilitation periods from, say, a stroke, or who have chronic, long-term conditions like diabetes. . Many home-care agencies are also rejecting people who do not have at least one close relative who can help give care. The result of the 1997 payment cuts by Congress is that Medicare is “having” four times what Congress projected — but at the expense of suffering and deaths by the sickest of the aged, including the blind. Some 3.6 million people received Medicare home-health-care services in 1997, but the figure dropped to 3 million last year, meaning that some 600,000 very sick or disabled patients had to resort to hospitals or nursing homes or go uncared for. “The Medicare home-care cutbacks have been far deeper and more wide- reaching than Congress ever intended,” Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told the New York Times. She is leading an effort not only to rectify this unin-

tended denial of services to many aged, but to prevent an additional 15 percent cut in home care that is scheduled for next year. Her bill has 24 Republican and 14 Democratic sponsors already, so it is possible that the Congress will act on home care'long before it resolves the dispute over prescription drugs. Home health care has long been one of the most popular Medicare benefits. But homecare agencies are saying that they cannot make enough money to stay in business on the pay schedules adopted by Congress in 1997. The “savings” Congress envisioned are on one hand larger than was expected, but on the other hand illusory. Many communities are

finding large backups in hospital beds of elderly patients who don’t want to be in hospitals, but know that if they go home they will not get proper care and will likely die. So Medicare pays far more forhospitalization than it would have for home care. This is just one more example of unnecessary suffering by the sick elderly because the politicians keep screwing up, or deny care in misguided efforts to save someone or some insurer a few bucks. Congress ought to be as quick in 2000 to correct this home-care mistake as it was to make the ill-conceived cuts in 1997.

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