Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 17 January 2003 — Page 1

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Preparing a conscious community today and beyond The Heart of a Woman, Page D6

INDIANA’S GREATEST KLY NEWSPAPER

Volume 108 ■ Number 3 ■ Since 1895 fl FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2003 ■ www.indianapolisrecorder.com ■ Four Sections ■ 75C

- — v — - - * — ^ —— — p — — — — — — — — - ' w O'Bannon touts Energize Indiana plan

the governor told members of the colleee scholarshins. and schools.

By ERICKA P. THOMPSON

Staff Writer

the governor told members of the college scholarships, and schools. General Assembly. O’Bannon reflected on many “We believe that Energize In- oftheaccomplishmentsstategovdiana will, over the next 10 years, ernment has achieved. He discreate 200,000 new high-wage, cussed the Healthy Families pro-

state Representative Charlie Brown (Photo C. Guynn)

Gov. Frank O’Bannon said his

start the states economy, create sectors,” said O’Bannon. “It will ° b use and neglect! Hoosier jobs, and help Indiana emerge also enrol , 200) ooO additional HealthwiseandCHIPCChildren’s fne^is^venth^tat^of t'he'state students in hi S her education and Health Insurance Program) that Address Tnesdav at the State cre dential programs; and grow provides health insurance to many Address Tuesday at the State- th e state’s per capita income faster ^ h ii dr e n , and establishing the _ Kenlfn O'BannonaisoproDosed ^ OB.aaon ,pZ^ t^at Fne^7eTndiana 3dd?ava $692 mi,lion by borrowin g from ducts a child from Indiana. Guynn) Lnn^emnnm^c fn^ndaHnn S future Pay" 16 " 18 of the tobacco H e also noted that Indiana is Indianas Click It or Ticket seat strong economic foundation for sett i ement WO uld also borrow one 0 f the first five states in the be,t use cam P a 'gn which resulted * The^hln wdl need <ci shillirm an additional $195 million from a country to have its accountability >n fewer traffic deaths in 2002 The plan will need $1.5 billion, tob acco trust fund, and invest in program approved than any time in the past, but wilt no, use any ,a* dollars. business research , job training "^J^o applauded „ See 0 . Bannon , Pa „ A6

See page A4 for a detailed listing of events that will take place throughout the city in honor of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (Photo by Steve Schapiro/Black Star

BRIEFS

Anti-war rally Saturday On Jan. 18 at noon concerned Indiana citizens will gather at the World War Memorial in downtown Indianapolis for an anti-war rally in solidarity with rallies in Washington, D.C, San Francisco and globally. Civic groups to be represented at this gathering include: Indy Iraq Action Coalition, Indianapolis Peace and Justice Center, Peace Learning Center, Indiana Veterans for Peace Inc., IUPUI Campus Greens and Clergy and Laity Against War in Iraq. Congresswoman Julia Carson and former Congressman Andy Jacobs will be in attendance as well as Councilwoman Joann Sanders, Councilman Lonnell Conley, and Councilman Ron Gibson of the CityCounty Council of Marion County. At 10 a.m. in Martin Luther King Park there will be a gathering of citizens who will then march to the rally site through the streets of Indianapolis. IBE has new chairman of board Carolyn E. Mosby has been elected chairman of the board of directors for Indiana Black Expo. At 35, Mosby is the youngest chairman in the 32year history of the organization. Some of her goals as chairman include developing policies to expand IBE’s marketing efforts, creating national partnerships and strengthening the relation- ► See BRIEFS, Page A^ Got a hot nawa tip? Want to ba hoard? If you wouM like to report any nows or share your coeunents, COM the Recorder News Hotline •1(317)924-5143.

Members of N'Cobra, an organization that functions as a “Reparations United Front," recently held a meeting to discuss their agenda. N’Cobra believes the Reparations Movement can empower African Americans to continue their task of gaining social, economic and cultural parity and liberation for individuals, families and communities. (Photo/ C. Guynn)

Several plans helping seniors with lower prescription drug prices

By ERICKA P. THOMPSON Staff Writer Prescription drug costs continue to rise, but there is help for some who have difficulty paying for their medications. Senior citizens who are enrolled in Medicare do not receive prescription drug coverage and are forced to pay steadily increasing prices out of their pockets. A nonpartisan study released last year stated that for the fourth straight year, prescription drug spending rose more than 17 percent due to heavily advertised, high priced medications. The Indianapolisdrugmaker Eli Lilly & Co. has joined several other companies that offer prescription drug discount cards to low-income Medicare enrolled seniors and disabled individuals. "The LillyAnswers card assures individuals of modest income have access to Lilly brand products," said I .illy spokesman Edward Sagebiel. “This card is mainly for senior citizens who do not have prescription drug insurance.” The LillyAnswers card has nearly 104,()()() members enrolled and offers a fiat fee of $12 for a 30-day supply of any Lilly retail drug. There are more than 5 million Americans who are eligible

New study says Indy 8 rh most integrated big city

By AMOS BROWN III Recorder Correspondent

for the LillyAnswers card but they must be Medicare enrolled seniors or disabled, have no prescription drug coverage, and gross a single annual income of not more than $18,000 or a household income of $24,000. Many seniors feel that prescription drug cards are out of their reach because the income requirement makes it too difficult for them to qualify. “You have to be extremely poor to receive any kind of discount or a little help from the government or a pharmaceutical company,” said 71-year-old diabetic Virginia Coleman. "If you have to make less than $18,000 to qualify’, who says those who make $19,000 or $20,000 don’t need help?” Pfizer is another drugcompany that offers a prescription drug discount card. The Pfizer Share Card has about 229,000 members enrolled and is similar to the LillyAnswers card. The Share Card is for Medicate enrolled seniors who have no prescription drug coverage and are not eligible for Medicaid or any drug benefit plan funded by the state. The share Card also offers a fiat fee, but at an increase of $15 for a 30-day supply of any Pfizer drug. Alongwith benefits and praises for discount cards there are also ► Set DRUG, Pag* A2

A new study of racial integration in America’s urban areas has ranked Indianapolis as the eighth most integrated major city in the country. The study, published this week in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, was prepared by the Employment and Training Institute at the University of Wiscon-sin-Milwaukee (UWM). The study is a radical challenge to the traditional methodologies sociologists, urban researchers and experts have previously used to measure racial segregation and integration in America’s urban areas. Institute senior research scientist Lois Quinn and institute director John Pawasarat, who wrote the massive report, concluded that major Midwestern cities like Milwaukee, St. Louis and Indianapolis have greater levels of racial segregation than previously believed. Along with Indianapolis, the 10 largest cities with the highest racial integration are: Virginia Beach, Va., Charlotte, Nashville, Jacksonville, Fla., St. Louis, Memphis, Columbus, Ohio, Minneapolis and Milwaukee. In their analysis, as reported by the Journal Sentinel, Quinn and Pawasarat attack as “obsolete,” “racially-biased” and “based on a white majority view of segregation,” the old methodology for measuring urban racial segregation. That methodology assumed that for a community to be fully “integrated” its Black population had to be equally dispersed throughout all census tracts of a

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city or metropolitan area in the same percentage as the overall Black population of the area. By that rationale, researchers operated on the assumption, in Quinn and Pawasarat’s words, that all “Blacks w r ere expected to move into white neighborhoods.” Quinn and Pawasarat created a new paradigm of analyzing racial segregation and integration in urban areas. Using 2000 Census data, they analyzed the racial composition of all 8.2 million city blocks in the United States. After accounting for those blocks containing institutions like nursing homes and prisons, the racial composition of all remaining cityblocks were calculated. The UWM study concluded that an integrated neighborhood should be one where at least 20 percent of the population was either white or African American.

Some cable customers no\ happy with Time WSftifF

By using that new calculation, Quinn and Pawasarat found that “many of the Midwestern cities that are (currently) considered among the most segregated on the historic segregation index show average or above average rates of integration when actual counts are made of residents living on Black-white integrated blocks.” Under the new calculations, Indianapolis moved from being a city researchers considered “hypersegregated” to being the eighth most integrated of America’s 50 largest cities. Indianapolis ranks eighth in integration with 24.4 percent of the city’s total population living on city blocks that are either 20 percent white or 20 percent Afri-

► See STUDY, Page A3

By ANNETTE L. ANDERSON Recorder Correspondent “Customer agrees to pay for cable television services provided to customer, including charges for installation, equipment, tier services (including basic tier), services provided on a per channel or per program basis, or any other service provided by Time Warner Cable (the Company) and all applicable local, state or federal fees and taxes.” The previous statement is part of the terms and conditions of the Time Warner Cable Co., terms and conditions not all customers are pleased with. Boxes are required to view the premium movie channels, such as II BO, Showtime,

Cinemax, Star/, Encore and others, with the first box at a cost of $6.45. Each additional box cost another $7.40. There is also an additional $4,95 for the digital access package, according to Al Alridge. Warner’s director of public affairs, and David Marshall, the company's vice president of marketing. “This service is too expensive," said Isabella Ruffin about the rate of her new digital cable service. “And the remote doesn’t operate the box all the time; it’s just too complicated. But when I called the company (Time Warner’) for assistance, 1 was told that there would be at least a $30 charge, if a technician came out, and that really infuriated

me. Ruffin pays approximately $63 per month for several 11 BO and Showtime channels, but is preparing for a rate increase in the near future. According to Ruffin, she is not yet paying for the two boxes she is using, which arc needed for the premium channels. Further, nor is she paying the full rate for her channels, because she took advantage of a special the company was offering early on. However, all that is getting ready to change as soon as Ruffin's courtesy period has expired. Linda Henderson, another Time Warner customer, is just

► See CABLE, Page A3

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