Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 31 January 2003 — Page 2

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THE INDIANAPOLIS RECORDER

FRIDAY, JANUARY 31, 2003

AFRICAN-AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH CENTER IN DANGER?

► Continued from Page 1 clients arc exposed to workshops, in-services, seminars, health lairs and public broadcast messages. With a variety of outreach programs, the stall'can usually track the progress of their patients in the community and, when necessary, modify and update treatment. “The closure of UBS can leave Black mental health patients untreated," stated fern Buford,chief operating officer at UBS. “Many ofthese clients are unlikely to seek help and treatment in other facilities that are unfamiliar. These clients are also unlikely to seek treatment from mental health professionals they do not trust primarily because these professionals do not look like them." Buford added that the real reasons why the state denied UBS funding are clear. UBS. he said, broke into an elite “good ole'hoy” network after becoming the first community mental health center to be fully licensed in the state of Indiana in over 25 years. Also, he said, a lobbying group for the established mental health facilities the state contracted with were not happy with the “freedom and successful clinical discretion”. UBS has given to its more experienced staff members. “This whole denial stems from a greedy - corrupted and racially insensitive mental health system that has no desire to treat Afri-can-American mental heath clients and has a long history of not treating them, yet it does not want

financial competition from Afri-can-American providers who successfully reach out to this underserved and often-times neglected segment of our community,” he said. But the state's reason for the denial of re-certification and state funding of UBS is that UBS did not meet financial viability requirements set forth by the Indiana Department of Family and Social Service's Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA). These requirements state that a facility that has a contract for mental health sen ices in Indiana must have at least a net worth of $50,000. “The case we have with UBS is purely financial," said Cindy Collier, policy director for the Family and Social Senices Administration. “We can’t just write checks. There are very specific federal and state rules as to who we can give the money to and there are requirements a recipient must meet." Collier added that UBS had recently filed for bankruptcy, and “this is not a status you can have and be fully certified or receive funding.” But Buford disagrees with the state’s claims that UBS is not financially viable because, he says, the Center’s latest tax audit stated that UBS has a current net worth of $322,511. However, state officials are sticking to their guns. “We would like to see a positive

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resolution in this case,” Collier said. “Our major concern, however, is not the facility, but the clients who are treated at the facility. We want to make sure clients are getting what the state pays for. We don’t want them to worry about how is the overhead going to be paid, how the staffs being paid or weather or not the facility will still be open when they come back.”

Finally, Collier dismissed any charges of racism as ridiculous. “We don’t allow it in our agency,” she says emphatically. “We are sensitive to the needs of minority clients and realize UBS is the only African-American operated facility in the city. But if UBS closes down, we are ready to work with an organization such as the Indiana Minority Health Coalition to open another one.”

Law group denounces Bush aclion on affirmalive action

Special to The Recorder WASHINGTON - The National Bar Association (NBA) has denounced the Bush administration for its decision to file a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in opposition to the University of Michigan’s affirmative action policies. “President Bush wants us to ignore generations of prejudice and discrimination,” said MalcolmS. Robinson, president of NBA. “Bush claims that he supports diversity, but he is hindering, if not destroying, one of the few means of securing it. It is clear that Bush does not believe that diversity on college campuses is a compelling governmental issue.” “By taking this position against the University of Michigan case and filing this brief, he is condemning affirmative action without actually having to take an official stance on it,” said Robinson. “How can we ensure that our schools remain diverse and that minority students have the opportunity to reach the levels of higher education, without serious efforts to make amends for the racism that has held them back for decades? For President Bush to make opposition of affirmative action the official policy of his administration, he is sending a message to the American people that true di-

versity and true equality are not worth working for.” The U.S. Supreme Court is currently reviewing the two cases Grutter vs. Bollinger and Gratz vs. Bollinger, which involve the University of Michigan’s law and undergraduate programs. The cases call to question public universities’ use of race as a factor in the admissions process. The outcome of this ruling could overturn the 1978 Bakke decision which allowed race to be considered with the intent to promote diversity on university campuses. “The Bush administration calls for fairness, yet it is willing to allow special privileges for some applicants like those whose parents are alums or those who excel in sports and produce revenue for athletic programs,” said Robinson. “Justice Thurgood Marshall saw fit to support affirmative action in the Bakke decision. Unfortunately, we have yet to reach a point in our society where we no longer need these measures to provide for equality and diversity. It is amazing that President Bush does not see that.” The National Bar Association, established in 1925, is the oldest and largest association of attorneys of color, with more than 18,000 members worldwide.

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(AP) — A state commission says it has found evidence of unfair treatment of women and minorities in Indiana’s criminal justice system. The study, ordered by the Indiana Supreme Court, was released recently by the Commission on Race and Gender Fairness. It concluded that the majority of nearly 1,250 people surveyed, including prosecutors, police, public defenders and court employees, believe the courts treat people fairly. Still, the commission found a “significant minority” of Indiana attorneys, court officers and staff reported they have observed courtroom harassment and disparagement based on gender, ethnicity or race. Most of the discrimination appeared to be aimed at female attorneys and litigants, according to the report, which took three years to compile. Female attorneys said they are often not treated with the same respect as male attorneys and are subject to demeaning and sexist remarks by colleagues, opponents, litigants and judges. “The system isn’t broken, but it needs to get better,” I ndiana Court of Appeals Judge Ezra Friedlander, co-chairman of the commission, said. “A lot of things cry out for more attention.” The 26-member commission, agroupof attorneys, judges, educators and community leaders, offered 16 recommendations to improve treatment of minorities and women in the court system. The recommendations call for more race and gender education of the legal community, more recruitment of women and minorities by law schools, and steps to address and further study reported disparities in the courts. “It’s a significant issue if there are people who perceive they are being treated improperly,” ^aid Jim Bourne, president of the Indiana Bar Association. “Certainly, this is a beginning step. It needs to be addressed and studied.” Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard said that some efforts to address equity issues were already under way, including upgrading local public defender programs. As part of his budget proposal to the I legislature for the next two years, Shepard has asked for $260,000 to continue the commission’s work. Of that, $103,000 would fund grants to counties to start a court interpreter system for non-En-glish speaking litigants.