PANEL SETS HEARINGS TO DISCUSS MINORITY RIGHTS

HAYTI - An interim committee of the Missouri House of Representatives will be in Hayti Heights this week for two days of public hearings on ways to improve the quality of life for minorities in the state.

"Missouri has a very large minority population living under the poverty line, and hopefully this committee will be able to offer some suggestions to alleviate this distressing problem," said state Rep. Vernon Thompson, D-Kansas City, chairman of the committee.

The hearings in the Bootheel will be the first of several planned by the special panel.

Hearings are scheduled Tuesday from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. and from 4-8 p.m., and on Wednesday from 9 a.m. until noon and from 1-5 p.m. All of the hearings will be at the Hayti Heights Community Center.

Thompson sponsored the resolution this year that called for the formation of the committee that will report its findings and recommendations to the Missouri General Assembly and governor in January.

The committee will focus on several issues as they relate to minorities. They include student dropouts; accessibility, availability and quality of housing; the increasing level of delinquency and crime in youth; and the scope of unemployment, underemployment and community development.

Hearings are also planned Oct. 30 and 31 in St. Louis, and Nov. 6 and 7 in Kansas City.

Serving with Thompson on the panel are: Reps. Paula Carter, D-St. Louis; O.L. Shelton, D-St. Louis; Carson Ross, R-Blue Springs; and John Hancock, R-St. Louis County.