ustxtxb_obs_1971_03_26_50_00015-00000_000.pdf

Foul or Fair? Readers of The Observer from the Austin area will be aware of the current City Council race. This advertisement hopes to bring to public attention several facets of the race for Place 5 in that election. There are five candidates. Thus far, two candidates seem to be running at the head of the pack. Of those two, one is moderately well known as an Anglo chili cooker and sometime newspaper humorist. The other is a young attorney named Jeff Friedman. It is on his behalf that this advertisement was prepared. People are always saying that it is stupid to mention your opponent’s name, so we will refer to Mr. Friedman’s opponent as “Some Alarm,” referring to a brand of Chili powder which enjoys moderate success in the marketplace. Those of us who support Mr. Friedman have no quarrel with the quality of Some Alarm’s chili or even with the quality of his sometime humor. The fact that his sometime humor is only sometimes humorous does not bother us. What we are concerned with is Some Alarm’s alarming campaign platform. A recent Some Alarm advertisement reads: “If murders, injuries and property losses in 1970 had occurred in one week, Austin would be declared a National Disaster area!” By that logic, if all the chili eaten in 1970 was eaten in one day, Austin’s sewage treatment plant would declare itself a National Disaster area. Well, it’s a good old Law and Order campaign. You thought people were weary of Spiro Agnew impressions, didn’t you? Some Alarm is talking about crime and violence in the streets. How do you feel about parks? Hike and Bike Trails? asked the Sierra Club. Make the parks we’ve got safe for women and children, replies Some Alarm. But an examination of the facts reveals that Austin is not only already a relatively safe city to live in, it’s actually getting better. Police records indicate that the rate of crimes of violence in Austin has declined over the last three years. Austin hardly seems like a city on the verge of rioting and lawlessness. Why a Law and Order Campaign instead of just passing out free bowls of chili? We think there are only two possible reasons for Some Alarm Austin is going down the chute with thieves, murderers and scoundrels in general going unpunished, in which case his service to the city of Austin would be something in the order of an drum of Law and Order can take one more loud thump. In either case, Some Alarm does Austin voters an injustice by the sheer fact of his candidacy. If, as he suggests, Austin is soft on crime, we should support a man who knows something about Law Enforcement, not Some Alarm. Here’s where we stop giving plugs to the chili industry and start trying to convince you that you should support Jeff Friedman with your votes and dollars. Jeff Friedman is an Austin attorney who, coincidentally, does know something about Law Enforcement. During the past three and a half years, Friedman has been on over 300 eight hour patrols with officers of the Austin Police Department. Jeff assisted the police department in the training of 5 police cadet classes in courtroom procedure. He helped organize the Buddy system, a program which gets citizens involved with Law Enforcement. Friedman has received the Certificate of Appreciation from Austin’s police department. And he was in charge of the Police Action Project for three years while at UT Law School. Friedman also organized SLAC, a legal aid program for the University Community. He served as president of the Criminal Law Association at UT. During the Presidential Commission study on Campus Unrest, Jeff served as a volunteer staff worker. Last Spring, when the University of Texas Campus was troubled arid disturbed following the Cambodian invasion and the Kent State deaths, it was Jeff Friedman who acted as liaison between campus leaders and police officials. Friedman has been on the front lines and he knows what the problems are on both sides. With your help, Jeff Friedman can be the next City Councilman on Place 5. But we do need your help if we are going to inform Austin citizens about Jeff and what he stands for. Some Alarm is running some alarming ads. We need financial help if we are going to be able to run some sensible ones. Mr. Friedman has a good chance of winning if we can only get his qualifications and programs before the public. This is one political opportunity where your help can make an immediate and important change. You can sit back and not help and thereby help Some Alarm chuckle off with the City Council seat. Or you can contribute cash money and your support and put Jeff Friedman to work. Supporting Friedman will do more to help combat local repression and insensitivity than a thousand well stated curses will ever do. We need your help fast. Time before the election is rapidly diminishing. Please send us your contribution as soon as you read this ad. And please speak to your friends and associates on behalf of Jeff Friedman. Citizens for FRIEDMAN 109 East 10th Austin, Texas 78701 political advertisement