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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 2014)
2 street roots Aug. 29, 2014 C J Still missing after Ferguson: Police accountability Tiny houses o ffer vital role in larger housing strategy ■ P o rtlan d is poised to begin the work of building tiny bouses. We couldn’t be more excited about JL the idea. Tiny houses are small, compact houses, typically around 200 square feet. Providing a safe home, regardless of its size, that offers privacy and security for individuals and families struggling through hard times is something we can all get behind. It’s also a great opportunity for elders on a fixed income that would like to be able to access something other than a large, crowded apartment building. Being able to implement such a plan doesn’t come ________________________ without challenges. Will Portland Their allure shouldn't neighborhoods replace the fact that we embrace the idea, and still need large can the city withstand Investments In the the political pressure if regional Housing neighborhoods do not? Investment Fund. We hope so. ■HnHMnHHnHMnraanaBB Time and again in Portland and around the nation we’ve watched neighborhoods come undone' over the idea of having homeless shelters, tent cities and other services in their neighborhoods. Having the city provide education and facilitating hard conversations will be key. It’s also important to realize that while tiny houses are cute and make a big splash in the media, ultimately they are just one component of a much larger strategy to tackle homelessness and poverty in our community. Their allure shouldn’t replace the fact that we still need large investments in the regional Housing Investment Fund. The rough costs for building a tiny home is $12,000. And these houses can be constructed with mostly recycled materials. It’s a win-win; especially considering what amenities can be added to areas with tiny houses, such as community gardens and green spaces. This means more than building small houses. It means modifying zoning laws and other regulations to allow for a breakthrough in the housing market that accommodates people who have been pushed out. When it comes to solving our city’s housing needs — everything should be on the table. On issues of housing and equity, Portland is at a crossroads. On one hand, we have thousands of individuals and families sleeping outdoors experiencing the harsh realities of homelessness. One the other hand, poor people and communities of color are being displaced from the city at an alarming raté. ■, We have a responsibility to provide housing to Portlanders in a way that is safe and affordable. It’s what a healthy society does. While tiny houses won’t solve all of the issues related'to housing, but they can play a small role in helping us work toward housing solutions. Israel Bayer is the executivedirector o f Street Roots. You can reach h im a t israel@streetroots.org or follow him on Twitter @israelbayer. e tragedy of the Michael Brown killing is rocking the nation. It should. For anyone living in an urban environment, especially people of color and the poor — the events of Michael Brown and the community " response is not surprising. 2 DIRECTOR1« 1 It’s hard to shift through all of the D IS K recent events in B y Israel Bayer Ferguson, Missouri, but one thing is for sure: there’s a commonality throughout Americaright now again, especially in urban environments. People are sick and tired of the lack of police accountability when it comes to the actions of a handful of officers who kill unarmed residents. The response by law enforcement and the militarization of the police adds fuel to the fire. Here’s the thing. The vast majority of police officers are amazing individuals who conduct heroic acts every day. I’ve personally witnessed with my own two eyes the police save people’s lives and deescalate conflicts that were deadly serious. It’s routine. There’s,no question that it’s one of the toughest jobs that exist. When things go wrong, it’s easy to cast the police, in bad light without the proper context. The Portland Police Bureau and Chief Mike Reese recently released a video talking about the importance of trust in light of the events in Ferguson. He highlighted three important areas the police bureau is working on: diversity, use of force policies and transparency — all things that are vital to maintaining trust between the public and a o n e vital thing < missing in the video is accountability. It would be easy for the public to give the police and city governments the benefit of the doubt if there was any. Unfortunately, there’s n o t There never has been. Accountability would mean actually stopping racial profiling and working to hold officers accountable when they engage in wrongful activities related to their use of force and not representing the communities they serve. It would mean creating police oversight with teeth. It’s fantastic that both complaints against officers and use-of-force incidents have declined in Portland. It’s great we’re working to change thé makeup of the police force to reflect the community and committed to equity goals. It’s not enough. The city can’t offer one good reason why the officers involved in the James’Chasse case are still police officers. Not one. There’s no excuse. There’s simply no amount of reform the police can accomplish that will ■„ replace reàl police accountability. Thè events in Ferguson have magnified these discussions in Portland and across the nation. These are not isolated incidents. Communities across the country want real police oversight Portland is no different. The sad reality is real police accountability has almost become a hollow term. It’s probably not going to happen. It’s no secret that police unions are one of the most powerful institutions that exist in American politics. How a police union can be more powerful than the government its members represent I have no idea. It’s always baffled me. In the meantime, we are left to. work around the edges and to make both the public’s relationship with the police and the police bureau itself the best it can be. It’s not ide^ .b u f it, js ffte reality. - Oh My Soul by Victor Rivera And you, 0 my soul, where do you stand? What shadows do you cast upon the world? Good, bad or indifferent How important it is to me To shade those in the heat To warm those who are cold To love those who are hated How important it is to me To cast my shadow in valleys deep To urge goodness in all men Even if taken for foolishness O how important it is for me. Our mission Staff Board e? Bwetors Vendors Street Root» creates iR co ro o p p o riu n ife for people experiencing homelessness and poverty by producing a newspaper and otfier media that are catalysts for individua I w id soda! change. Exseatiw Director fo iU y e r ‘ Brum Anderson (Chairman), M ldjael‘A nderson (Vice- ■ chairman), H eafeS tadick (TreaU Eddy Barbosa (See I,. Rich Rodgers, Brad Taylor, Leo^hobs, Nora Coon,", Street Roots v e n d o p u y the newspapers fo ^ 5 % n ti; each and sell them M l , keeping the T ie n ts in . profit forthem sebesjn order to-keep toe costldw to our vendors, we.receive additional support from .donationsandin-kiridcontribationsL- ‘ L Street Roots publishes every tw o weeks, launching on Fridays, and Is available exclusively through our street vendors or by subscription. We are proud members of the international Network o f Street Papers. Street Roots 211 NW Davis S t . Portland, OR 97209 503-228-5657 Fax:503-227-3117 streetroots.org news.streetroots.org israel&beetKX&org Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl. . joanne@streehoo&.org Vendor Coordinator Cole Merkel | . cole@streetroots.org ' ' I Operations Director Sarah Beecroft | Program Assistant Grace B sdikjesutf Volunteer, grace@streetroois.org . Development Director Sarah Cloud Office Assistant Amber Bielman Reporters Jake Thomas, Alex Zielinski, Nathan Gilles, Sue Zalokar, Ann-Derrick Gaillot Photographers Kristina W right, Christopher Onstott, Adrienne Burkett Darren Alexander, Amber Bielmab Volunteers Jan Bayer, Elizabeth Tierney, Rob Shryock, Ann- L . Derrick Gaillot, Stacey Heath; Vinnie Kinsella, Michelle Breslau,. Paula Cracas, John Barker, Mary Locke, Lucas Manfieid, Jessie Carver, Cherie Veda!, Sam Bouman, Isaac Hastings Hauss, Emily Green, Tom Ray, Sarah Hansell, Alana Kansaku-Sarmiento, Kyle Craven, • Audrey Benison, Crystal Ellnksi Street Roots Rose City Resource Street Roots publishes the Rose City Resource, a comprehensive booklet o f services for people experiencing homelessness and poverty. To inquire about getting guides, call 503-228-5657. Resources are online at www.rosecityresource.org. goes directly to the vendor w ho sold you the paper 25c goes toward printing costs. Vendor orientations are at 1 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the Street Roots office.
