Street Roots » J u ly 27-Aug. 2, 2018
Community
Page 7
Vendor voices: What would you do to improve police relations?
BY HELEN HILL
S T A FF W R ITE R
A s part of Street Roots continuing
ZA effort to shed light on the relationship
JL Jibetw een the Portland Police and
those who live on the streets, we recently
asked our vendors to tell us their thoughts
on how they would improve relations with
the police force.
Our vendors on the whole were
sympathetic to the difficulties of police
work, but also desirous of a more
compassionate attitude towards the
difficulties of extreme poverty. So we asked:
What would you do to improve relations
between the police and people living on the
street?
“The majority of police are educated and
caring human beings who struggle through
bureaucracy and rules to benefit community.
There are some there who are there to do
violence and discredit the housed and
un-housed and those with mental health
issues. I get treated well, but I’m white and I
can communicate. Only a few I’ve met have
an attitude of intimidation. We have to
weaken the police union so they are allowed
to fire th e m .... There’s lots of PTSD. It’s
the rare individual who can deal with what
they do, and there is massive overtime.”
- Dan Newth
New Seasons at Northeast 33rd Avenue
“The police need to be more
understanding and not so forceful* Abusive,
force is not necessary. You have to have
them, and not all are bad. Just like any
group, I think they are working on weeding
out the bad ones, but it takes a while. They
are getting better, but they are slow to
change. It’s a slow process. Cell phone
videos help. Portland has a huge drug
problem, and considering, overall, they are
doing a pretty good job.”
- David Wheat
Starbucks on Grand
“It’s a dichotomy.
They do good and bad.
Personally I haven’t
had experiences lately
because I quit
drinking. They used to
wait for me outside
stores. Some are good
people who want to
help, but as a system,
they need tougher
standards and more education for people
who have authority over others.”
- Ron Sanford
Food Carts on Stark
“I was walking through a mall, there was
ä guy the police were harassing. He was
homeless, he had bags. I offered him a
cigarette and walked him outside. Smoking
calms me down. He calmed down right
away. They should help like t h a t ”
- Char
SCRAP
Ron Sanford
“I think there are
good ones. I know one
really good one. And I
was impressed with
that statem ent from
the police (Daryl
Turner, Police Union
President). He said it
was the services that
need to improve. He
said the services for
homeless people are
“Sometimes on Max, if I don’t have fare, I
think they should just kick us off, but to
write up a ticket and give us a court date,
when they know we have no money to pay
.... I think law enforcement posing big fines
on people who can’t afford fare, it’s like they
are thumbing their nose at us. We have to
get from one place to another. If we don’t
have fare, just kick us off.
“Other than that, I don’t think cops are
harassing us. I see at homeless shelters if
someone is causing problems, they remove
them. They don’t throw them to the ground,
they don’t bully. I saw two Portland cops at
the front door peeking their heads in, they
weren’t getting in his face, they were
diligent and patient. I’ve seen them talk
guys down.
“I think the lack "of restrooms is a big
“I have seven brothers and sisters,
nephews, on the police force, so I’m in the
middle. I don’t think they are doing that
much good. Police should get specific. I wish
they would familiarize themselveswithwho
problem. People gerarrested for that, byt
the habitual offenders are, not just scoping
they don’t want to do that, they don’t want
to expose themselves but there’s nowhere
to go. We need day jphns or Porta Potties. It
isn’t that expensive.”
- John Kadubec
Standard Insurance Building and OHSU
and eyeballing people. I respect the police
but they should be more aware when they
walk a beat. There are some habitual
offenders trashing things, screaming and
yelling.”
- Robert Waters
Downtown Nordstrom
SISTERS
OFTHE
ROAD
. Charles
M C rherSO n
underfunded.... I think
instead of hiring more police, they should
pay to have mental health specialists in the
cár with the police, and they have to listen
to them.”
- Charles McPherson
Southwest Second Avenue
and Morrison Street
“I don’t think it’s
all them. The police
can’t be the first
responders. We need
other responders,
especially for mental
health calls. We need
more trauma care. I
watched when the
people at Safeway (on
10th and Jefferson)
called the police for a lady who was
screaming and yelling, they made the call for
her safety. Five cop cars showed up, 10 cops
surrounded one tiny lady. Why call them? I
could have handled her myself, I could have
palmed her down and I’m five foot three.
They just freaked her out more. Why not
have a mental health unit that can respond?
Also, we need to stop the blue line‘of
silence. There needs to be accountability
from outside the system.”
- Kris Beck
“I was at Sixth and
Burnside and this
woman was there, all
beat up. There were
policemen
everywhere. I asked
one what happened to
her, who did this to
her, and the
policeman said, ‘We
didn’t do i u j £ very one
is a t o d d s w itti each. ^
other and defensive. How did we get here?”
- Mark Rodriguez
Goose Hollow
“They are needed, but I would tell them
to be patient with (people with mental
illness). Be kind. Truly try to be helpful.”
-J a n K.
Powell’s on Burnside
©
MEAL COUPONS
$2.00 / EACH
A
Loving way to respond to
panhandling! Meal Coupons can
be used at Sisters of the Road for
a healthy meal and a drink.
Give someone a meal, start a
conversation, and maybe make a
new friend.
www.slstersoftheroad.org
133 NW Sixth Avenue, POX 97209
jnfo@sistersoftheroad.org
(503)222-5694
L A U G H IN G P L A N E T .C O M