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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 7, 2018)
SEPTEMBER 7, 2018, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A3 Opinion Keep the conversation going By CASEY CHAFFIN On Saturday, Sept. 1, in seeming response to a set of Keizertimes stories on hate crimes and bias incidents, Oregon State Rep. Bill Post created a poll in the Keizer, OR Facebook. Post’s poll asked: “Do you feel like Keizer is a ‘racist’ or ‘non-inclusive’ community?” The poll set off a dis- cussion about hate and inclusivity in Keizer. Much of it ran along the lines of “Keizer is great, everything’s fi ne” and “racism is everywhere so stop attacking Keizer.” But there was a subset of commenters talking about structural inequal- ity and several people of color shar- ing their experiences with discrimi- nation in Keizer. As a contributing writer to the set of stories about hate in Keizer, it’s the kind of conversation I wanted to see. Some of the comments made me angry, but I was encouraged to see people grappling with what it means to live in this community and what it means to ostracize others. As I was scrolling through com- ments, I noticed an admin of the Keizer Facebook group was telling people “political/religious com- ments” weren’t allowed. I thought, how are we supposed to discuss hate, discrimination and racism without getting political? These are political issues and we need to discuss them, even if it starts arguments and ruffl es feathers. I was disheartened later that day to see that the admin ended up de- leting the entire post with all the comments, and then made a new post with a disabled comment sec- tion redirecting people to the Keiz- ertimes website to vote in the poll ad- dressing the homophobic language in the Keizer city charter. In doing so, the admin shut down a conversa- tion about hate and discrimination and racism—and in the process shut down my hope of progress toward a better Keizer. Neither the ques- tion of what it means for Keizer to be inclusive nor the dismissal of that question are new. This topic has previously been brought to the city coun- cil. In the past year since Keizer citizens requested the city council pass an inclusivity resolution, it was discussed at only one work ses- sion before disappearing completely. If every forum for dialogue is shut down, we will not make progress— only stagnate in our current posi- tions. Hate is an uncomfortable issue to discuss. Looking at our own com- munity and seeing something we don’t want to see is jarring. But we need to get uncomfortable. That dis- comfort is the beginning of under- standing. And understanding is what we need to address the systemic fl aws that allow hate to go unchecked. We need to create spaces where we can discuss these issues of discrimination and inclusivity, because we need to have this conversation now. We’ve been putting it off since Oregon’s founding. We can’t just delete the Facebook posts and pretend like ev- erything’s fi ne—because it’s not. And it won’t get better until we can talk about it as a community. (Casey Chaffi n was an intern with the Keizertimes this summer.) Kudos mained with the dog until the owner ar- rived. They also waited for the police to arrive. Given all the information avail- able on how quickly a car can heat up, it is astonishing that some pet owners are still so thoughtless or reckless that they will leave an ani- mal in a locked car on a hot sunny day. With recent temperatures in the high 80s, the temperature inside a car, even with a window open a crack, can quickly exceed 120 de- grees—potentially lethal for a pet. The owner of the dog rescued today did not seem appreciative of the actions of the Good Samaritans. Hopefully, on refl ection, she will re- alize the favor they did for her and her dog, or she will realize that she is not an appropriate owner of a pet. Doug Parrow Keizer guest column police scanner MONDAY, AUGUST 27 • 1:02 p.m. - Producing, processing, or storing of marijuana in public view on 1000 block Orchard Street N. • 2 p.m. - Vandalism on 4900 block Rick- man Road NE. • 5:15 p.m. - Traffi c accident on 2500 block Chemawa Road NE. • 7 p.m. - Arrest on warrant on 3600 block Brooks Avenue NE. • 7 p.m. - Bicycle theft on 5400 block McLeod Lane NE. • 8:30 p.m. - Arrest on warrant on 6000 block Jacobe Street NE. • 9:06 p.m. - Arrest on warrant on 100 block Garland Way N. • 11 p.m. - Vandalism on 5100 block Wit- tenberg Lane NE. • 10:25 p.m. - Arrest on warrant on 4600 block River Road N. • 10:31 p.m. - Arrest for possession of methamphetamine on 4600 block River Road N. • 4:30 p.m. - Theft from vehicle on 5100 block 7th Avenue NE. • 11:22 p.m. - Arrest for assault, criminal damage, and violation of release agree- ment on 1000 block Harmony Drive NE. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 29 • 5:22 a.m. - Arrest on warrant at inter- section of River Road N and Garland Way N. • 5:45 p.m. - Burglary on 5100 block Hasbrook Avenue NE. • 2 p.m. - Theft from vehicle on 4900 block River Road N. • 3:25 p.m. - Shoplifting on 3800 block River Road N. • 3:46 p.m. - Arrest for parole violation on 900 block of Chemawa Road NE. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 • 12:45 a.m. - Arrest for DUII on 3300 block River Road N. • 1 a.m. - Theft from vehicle on 600 block James Street NE. • 2:18 p.m. - Arrest for probation viola- tion at intersection of Crestwood Court NE and Lockhaven Drive NE. • 3:23 p.m. - Arrest for trespassing on 5700 block Crestwood Court NE. SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 2 TUESDAY, AUGUST 28 THURSDAY, AUGUST 30 • 1 a.m. - Missing automobile on 1500 block Wittenberg Lane NE. • 11:20 a.m. - Shoplifting on 6200 block Ulali Drive NE. • 11:28 a.m. - Fraudulent use of credit card on 5000 block River Road N. • 12:43 p.m. - Theft of motor vehicle parts/accessories on 5000 block Windsor Island Road N. • 4:40 p.m. - Arrest for DUII at inter- section of River Road NE and McGee Court NE. • 7:07 p.m. - Minor in possession of mar- ijuana on 1400 block Chemawa Road NE. • 9 p.m. Vandalism on 4400 block Delight Street N. • 12:05 a.m. - Arrest for probation viola- tion on 4600 block River Road N. • 12:29 a.m. - Arrest on warrant at inter- section of Cherry Avenue NE and John- son Street NE. • 12:59 a.m. -Arrest for DUI on 5400 block River Road N. • 10:30 p.m. - Arrest for DUII at inter- section of Chemawa Road NE and Wit- tenberg Lane NE • 9:20 p.m. - Arrest on warrant on 800 block Cummings Lane N. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 3 • 11:43 a.m. - Vehicle theft on 1500 block Shady Lane NE. • 8:57 p.m. - Arrest for giving false infor- mation to police offi cer on 1400 block Chemawa Road NE. • 11:14 p.m. - Assault on 4300 block River Road N. FRIDAY, AUGUST 31 TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4 • 12:30 a.m. - Theft from vehicle on 4900 block River Road N. • 1:05 a.m. - Homicide investigation on 400 block Cummings Lane N. MHS band collecting cans Members of the McNary High School band will spread throughout Keizer neighborhoods on Saturday, Sept. 8, to collect redeemable cans and bottles as a fundraiser to the benefi t the band program. Teams of band members will go door-to-door seeking donations of cans and bottles that can be re- deemed. They will also accept cash donations. Keizerites who will not be home on Sept. 8 can choose to leave their cans and bottles on the front porch or in front of the garage. Band Day is overseen by the Mc- Nary Band Boosters who will set up a station at the high school park- ing lot to accept and sort donations from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; they will ac- cept donations at that site from peo- ple who want to bring their donated cans and bottles themselves. Band Day is one of two major fundraisers for the band held each year. Proceeds fund band transporta- tion to competitions, music, cleaning of marching uniforms, band camp and to hire professional musicians to hold seminars for band members. Additionally, you can contribute to the band throughout the year by registering for a free BottleDrop ac- count and earmarking refunds for the McNary Band. Once registra- tion is complete, you will be able to pick up special green recycling bags that can be fi lled and dropped off at BottleDrop Centers. The clos- est BottleDrop Center to Keizer is located at 1880 Commercial Street N.E. in Salem. Hours are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. For information or questions, visit mcnaryhsband.org. letters To the Editor: Nice work on bringing the conversation about racism in our community to the forefront. It would be lovely if you would keep this conversation going through a regular series on the topic. Jessica Johnson Keizer Dog rescued To the Editor: Kudos to the folks at Keizer Sta- tion who took the initiative to res- cue a dog from a locked car today, Wednesday, Aug. 22. After seeing that the dog was in distress and having failed to be able to locate the owner, they did exactly as the Good Samaritan law (ORS 30.813) prescribes: they broke into the car, called the police, and re- KEIZERTIMES.COM Web Poll KEIZER ROTARY AMPHITHEATER JFK AT KEIZER RAPIDS PARK FREE 2018 SUMMER CONCERT SERIES with Special Guest TONY GRAHAM GATES OPEN 5:00 pm SHOW STARTS 6:30 pm Saturday, Sept 8 Results The current Keizer city charter includes language marginalizing LGBTQ+ residents, should it be changed? Yes – 54% No – 46% Vote in a new poll every Thursday! GO TO KEIZERTIMES.COM SPONSOR TITLE SPONSOR Keizertimes Wheatland Publishing Corp. • 142 Chemawa Road N. • Keizer, Oregon 97303 phone: 503.390.1051 • web: www.keizertimes.com • email: kt@keizertimes.com Lyndon A. Zaitz, Editor & Publisher SUBSCRIPTIONS One year: $25 in Marion County, $33 outside Marion County, $45 outside Oregon PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY Publication No: USPS 679-430 POSTMASTER Send address changes to: Keizertimes Circulation 142 Chemawa Road N. Keizer, OR 97303 Periodical postage paid at Salem, Oregon MORE SPONSORS City of Keizer • Columbia Bank • Uptown Music • KSLM 104.3 FM Keizer Vision Source • Willamette Valley Bank • Rich Duncan Construction UPS Store • Salem Electric • Walsh & Associates • R Bauer Insurance Advantage Renovations LLC • Highway Fuel • Rasmussen Spray Service Please no outside food or beverages. NO PETS allowed inside the amphitheater.
