News
Street Roots • Aprii 8-14, 2016
Page 5
the protesters to follow her into the lobby of
training. Wesson-Mitchell defended the
the Portland Police Training Facility to ask if
purpose of the fundraiser, but admitted “the
they would be allowed entrance to the event.
messaging in the advertising was poor.”
All were immediately met by PPB Assistant
Despite the Meet the Heat organizers’
Chief Kevin Modica, who, after a brief
statements, the protesters gathered outside
private conversation with Hardesty,
of the fundraiser were unconvinced of the
addressed the protesters defending the
Bureau’s good intentions.
positive intentions of
“I think Portland
the event and urging
Police is trying to
the crowd to drive
glorify violence,” said
"Why would we allow a busi
holders, youth from the Boys and Girls Club
carefully on their
Kathryn Kendall, one
would be in attendance.
ness lobbying organization
ways home, ending by
of a handful of
“Our invitation must have gotten lost in
that has a very narrow agenda telling them, “I
members in
the mail,” protest organizer and NAACP
appreciate you.”
attendance from the
charge the public to enter a
Portland branch President Jo Ann Hardesty
Meet the Heat and
Buddhist Peace
building
that
the
public
paid
told protesters gathered outside of the year-
the accompanying
Fellowship, Portland.
for and frame it in such an ag protest came just
and-a-half old training facility. In a public
“In a time where black
statement released that morning, Hardesty
gressive way?"
under two months
lives matter and the
objected to the event marketing’s “glorifying
- JO ANN HARDESTY after the Portland
police department is
police violence” as well as its potential draw
PORTLAND NAACP Tribune acquired and
not honoring that, I
on public resources.
released a Multnomah
think it’s very
“Why would we allow a business lobbying
County Sheriff’s
important for people
organization that has a very narrow agenda
Office internal audit that found officers at
who are nonviolent to stand up.”
charge the public to enter a building that the
county jails disproportionately used force
Mariana Milne, holding a sign in memory
public paid for and frame it in such an
against black inmates. Additionally, the
of Fred Bryant, father of Keaton Otis, an
aggressive way?” said Hardesty in her
Portland Police Bureau is currently in the
African American man killed by Portland
statement. “Do you think Black Lives Matter
second year of a five-year settlement with the
Police officers in 2010, also expressed
could hold a fundraiser here if they said they
U.S. Department of Justice, who found that
disappointment with the event, specifically
would use the money to teach young people
the bureau routinely used excessive force
citing the use of language such as “high
their rights when they encounter the police?
against people perceived to have a mental
speed chase” in its marketing. “This is a
No, it would not be sanctioned.”
illness.
training center, and we should be training
The statement goes on to criticize Reese’s
In response to the protest and Hardesty’s
people to mediate and de-escalate.”
past leadership as Police Chief and detail
public statement, PPB spokesman Sgt Pete
Several protesters at the event held signs
Hardesty’s attempts over the past month to
Simpson told Street Roots via email, “The
memorializing victims of the Portland Police
communicate her objections to the event to
Police Bureau’s Training Division was
Bureau’s past incidents of force and calling
city leaders.
honored to host the event on behalf of the
for greater police accountability.
In printouts of a March 17 email from
Portland Police Foundation to bring business
After the fundraiser’s scheduled 9 a.m.
Policy Director for Public Safety Deanna
leaders, community leaders, and young
start time, Hardesty read her statement
Wesson-Mitchell to Hardesty, provided by
people to. have a quick, look into, the world of
aloud outside the training facility entrance,
Hardesty at the protest, Wesson-Mitchell says saying she would have supported the event
police training. We are aware that not
that funds raised at Meet the Heat will go
everyone in this community is supportive of
had it been open to members of the public
toward expanding the Community Academy
our efforts but we will continue to work to
and focused on how officers had been
program from an annual to a more frequent
build strongs lasting relationships with
“retrained to de-escalate situations” and
event in which more members of the public
everyone in our community.”
“value all human life.” Afterward, she invited
could participate and learn about police
Police Meet the Heat
event draws fire
BY ANN-DERRICK GAILLOT
STAFF WRITER
ttendees to a fundraiser at the
Portland Police Training Center in
Northeast Portland the morning of
Friday, April 1, were greeted by a group of
protesters opposed to what they saw as an
exclusionary event insensitive to Portland’s
low-income, minority and mental health
communities. The event, called “Meet the
Heat”, was a fundraiser for the non-profit
organizations Portland Police Foundation and
Citizens Crime Commission, an affiliate
organization of the Portland Business
Alliance’s charitable branch.
According to the Meet the Heat event
promotional material, for $1000 invitees
received a “never-been-done before, exclusive
look into the challenges, the danger, and the
successes of Portland Police officers,” as well
as the chance to meet members of the police
force and dogs from the K-9 unit. The price
of admission also included memberships into
the two benefitting organizations.
Former police chief and current interim
executive director of the Citizens Crime
Commission Mike Reese told Street Roots
that Meet the Heat is based on the
organization’s past community academies, in
which community and civic leaders are
invited to go through a simulation of police
training and “hear from the police chief on
21st century issues around policing.” Reese
stated that in addition to the fundraiser ticket
a
LEAD, from page 4
In 2011 we won the National Healthy
Homes Hero Award, presented by the EPA,
HUD, USDA, US Dept, of Energy and the
CDC.
And then in 2014 we won the best overall
outreach campaign from the same
consortium of agencies at the National
Healthy Home Conference and that was
really interesting to me.
We were up against hospitals, public
agencies: really well-funded organizations
• and our budget that year was like $60,000.
S.Z.:. You’ve touched on this a bit, but class
isn’t really an accurate measuring stick to
determine the likelihood of lead poisoning.
T.R.: It’s a myth perpetuated by the lead
industry that this is a low-income, minority
problem. The lead industry started doing
that in the 1910-20s. As long as they could
perpetuate that myth - that it was a low-
income problem - then the politicians didn’t
really think it was their problem and didn’t
have to really take action. That has been
forwarded into our culture and society now
100 years later. So that we don’t’ realize
that it is a myth.
Even now, with Flint. They are focusing
on this being a low-income problem.
It’s not a minority problem. It’s not a low-
income problem. It’s a lead problem.
There is only one place to lay blame in
this, and it’s the lead industry.
They knew about the toxicity of the
product prior to releasing leaded gasoline
and at the beginning of releasing leaded
paint because they had workers dying.
S.Z.: Are there actually 80 million homes in
the U.S. that contain lead paint?
T.R.: Recent assessments found that 92.5
percent of the homes in the 97202 area zip
code for one example, were pre-1978 and
potentially had lead paint hazards.
We say 80 million homes. The feds say
it’s 26 million because they are like, well
statistically, the odds are that (some of
these houses do not have lead-based paint
hazards).
Statistics don’t matter in an incidental
case of lead exposure.
The other thing is that the feds are
(recognizing) lead paint as paint that has at
least 5,000 parts per million (ppm) lead in
it. But the 1978 law (that banned lead paint
use) considered lead paint with 600 ppm
lead and the new law says paint can’t have
more than 90 ppm lead, so even though the
feds are looking at paint that is 5,000 and
above, we know that lead is toxic to children
as low as 90 ppm. Why aren’t they including
all of the lower lead paint?
These test kits test as low as 600 ppm
and the EPA is trying to have them thrown
out as “too accurate” because they test
below the 5,000 ppm.
S.Z.: Wait, what?
T.R. The EPA actually hired a company to
try to design an instant lead test that is less
accurate. They want one that only tests
down to 5,000 ppm.
We had the hearing last June. They said
they were trying to design a product that
was less sensitive because the current
product is “too sensitive.” How can it be too
sensitive? It detects lead. Lead is hazardous
at any amount.
You just need to change your HUD
standard from 5,000 ppm to 600 ppm. The
problem with that is that would make all of
these others housing units eligible for
intervention and they don’t have the funds
to address it
The fact that they don’t have funds to
address shouldn’t determine what they
consider a hazard in public statements.
S.Z.: The future seems so gloomy. What can
we do?
T.R.: Start with your house. Then deal
with your kids’ school. Then deal with the
playground and the places they hang out
and Grandma’s house. And then address the
biggdr community. Make sure your house is
lead safe.
Get all the lead out of your house if you
can. That includes your plumbing, that
includes your soil, your painted surfaces. If
everyone made sure that their house was
safe, that would go a long way. Kids spend
most of their time either at home or in
school.
Right now,, there is no federal law
requiring schools to not have lead hazards.
S.Z.: You studied mask and clown work
with the Theatre du Soleil in Paris, and also
studied with the legendary circus arts master,
Hovey Burgess. That is a pretty interesting
nugget of experience. How did this training
prepare you for the future and the work you
are doing now, if at all?
T.R.: I’m actually a very shy, introverted
person, but in order to compensate for that,
I pretend I’m an extrovert I think that is
what a lot of actors do. That’s why they are
good actors. They go out on a limb where
they might not otherwise be comfortable.
I always did stage work with the intention
of making people laugh and be happy. And
the one thing that has made me unique in
terms of being an environmental activist, is
that a lot of the other environmental
activist, is that I am always positive.
Some of the others are very angry, and in
all of their presentations they express their
anger. I’m (mad) as heck, but I’m not going
to speak it in that way. I recognize that
there is a problem, but what can we do
about it? Let’s not dwell on the past, on the
angry.
You can’t change history. Let’s stop
dwelling and try to find solutions that are
long term, comprehensive and societal.
suzanhe@streetroots.org