News stories from Saturday February 21, 1976

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said that farmer President Richard Nixon would brief administration officials when he returned from his trip to China. Mr. Kissinger, who was in Brazil on a Latin American tour, told a news conference: "We will, of course, wish to learn about the nature and the result" of Mr. Nixon's trip. He did not indicate who would be briefed by Mr. Nixon. When Mr. Nixon's visit was first announced, the White House apparently attached no significance to it and Mr. Ford recently told reporters that he had not asked Mr. Nixon to make a "special report" to him when he returned. [New York Times] Black crime -- a subject that blacks once regarded as "too sensitive" to be discussed openly -- has become a major public issue among blacks who feel that the rising crime rate is hitting their communities hardest. Black elected officials in cities across the country have spoken out about the need to get rough with black criminals. Community workers and residents now show a more receptive attitude toward black policemen, but not to the police in general, and a willingness to report crime to authorities and to help apprehend black suspects, particularly those involved in illegal drug traffic. [New York Times] The "legitimate" rights of all people, including homosexuals, have been defended in a pastoral letter by Bishop Francis Mugavero of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn. The Bishop said that homosexuals had been "subject to misunderstanding and, at times, unjust discrimination." The letter's intent, a spokesman said, was to "urge priests, counselors and others to express concern and compassion for those men and women who experience pain and confusion due to a sexual orientation." The letter was described by a diocesan spokesman as a "comment on" rather than a "response to" a recent Vatican declaration that condemned premarital sex, homosexuality and masturbation. [New York Times] On the final weekend of campaigning in New Hampshire before the state's presidential primary on Tuesday, just about everybody agreed that none of the Democratic or Republican candidates had a decisive edge. Most of President Ford's political advisers were predicting that he, not Ronald Reagan, would win the Republican primary, but they have scaled down their early forecast of a smashing victory to a guess that he would win with a slim margin. Some said that "it's too close to call." Among the Democrats, it was generally agreed that Jimmy Carter, the former Governor of Georgia, and Representative Morris Udall of Arizona were leading the other candidates. [New York Times] Portugal recognized the Luanda regime as the government of Angola after long and agonizing debates on the issue that divided the country. Recognition was announced in a statement by President Francisco de Costa Gomes, who declared he had exercised his "constitutional rights" after hearing the views of the cabinet and the ruling military Council of the Revolution. The statement said that Portugal desired "fraternity and cooperation based on non-intervention, equality and mutual respect." [New York Times] The United States, according to administration and congressional sources, has decided to sell a squadron of F-5E jet fighter planes to Morocco as a sign of continuing support for King Hassan II, whose country is in a bitter dispute with Algeria and Algerian-backed insurgents over the phosphate-rich Western Sahara. The proposed sale of 24 jets, valued at $120 million, was disclosed on a classified basis to Congress on Wednesday and made public today. State Department officials said that the sale, which has not yet been concluded, had been negotiated over the last two years and was not a direct result of the current tensions in North Africa over the disposition of the former Spanish Sahara. [New York Times] State Department officials said that the administration has approved the resumption by the Gulf Oil Corporation and the Boeing Company of normal business transactions with the Angolan nationalist faction backed by the Soviet Union. While this is an important policy reversal, the officials backed away from saying that it could be the first step toward establishing diplomatic relations with the government of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola. The officials stated that the only point that has been decided is that the administration will not recognize the Popular Movement's government in Luanda before Zaire and Zambia, the two nations that initially urged the United States involvement in Angola. [New York Times] The United States and Brazil signed an agreement to consult each other on all important economic and political issues involving both countries and their relations with the rest of the world. The agreement -- signed by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and the Brazilian Foreign Minister, Antonio Azeredo da Silveira -- provides strong support for Brazil's aspirations to be recognized as an emerging world power. No similar agreement has existed between the United States and any other Latin American nation. [New York Times]