PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, JUNE 5, 2020
Residents call for gun In the streets
violence proclamation
By ERIC A. HOWALD
Of the Keizertimes
A group of Keizer residents
turned out at the Keizer City
Council meeting Monday,
June 1, to implore city leaders
to adopt a proclamation rec-
ognizing June 5 as National
Gun Violence Awareness Day.
They didn’t get what they
hoped for, but they did shine
light on the issue of gun vio-
lence in heartfelt ways as they
talked.
Councilor Kim Free-
man, who acted as mayor pro
temp in the absence of Mayor
Cathy Clark, said the request
to approve the proclamation
arrived too late in the hour to
reach the city’s agenda.
“We did receive the in-
formation a little later than
normal and the mayor is out
of town. She likes to read
through the proclamations
and work to get them worded
appropriately,” Freeman said.
Despite the disappoint-
ment, proponents of the ac-
tion remained vocal in their
support. They also encouraged
others of a similar mind to
wear orange on June 5.
“I remember growing
up and being told not to go
down Plymouth or Clear-
view at night. We didn’t heed
those warnings and one of my
friends was shot,” said Ramiro
“RJ” Navarro. “She was hit in
the back twice. We need to
come together as a communi-
ty and say this needs to stop.”
Resident Cyndi Swee-
ney was brought to tears re-
counting the fi nal minutes of
a cousin, Heather Alvarado,
who lost her life in the mass
shooting at a Las Vegas concert
in 2017.
“She was there with her
14-year-old daughter and
threw herself over to take
those bullets and she left be-
hind two other children and a
husband,” Sweeney said. “In-
stead of putting all these band
aids on, can’t we just face it?”
Michele Roland-Schwartz,
executive director of the Keiz-
er-based Sexual Assault Task
Force, connected the dots be-
tween gun violence and do-
mestic violence.
“Many of you know that
when COVID hit our com-
munity, were those in violent
relationships suddenly forced
into close proximity to their
abusers. Requests for shel-
ter from abusive relationships
doubled in the weeks after the
pandemic hit compared to last
year,” Roland-Schwartz said.
“We look at guns as a public
health issue. One of the ways
that we address it is bringing
awareness and working toward
prevention.”
Keizer resident Carol Do-
erfl er read the names of all the
child and adult victims of the
mass shooting in Newtown,
Conn., in 2012 as she made
her statement.
“As of 2018, there were
7,000 more children who
were killed by gunfi re. This
can never, ever happen again.
Please wear orange on Friday,
June 5.”
The testimony brought
some members of the city
council to tears prompting
Freeman to request a moment
of silence for all at the meet-
ing to compose themselves.
KEIZERTIMES/Lauren Murphy
Demonstrators took to the streets of Keizer Tuesday, June 2, in support of worldwide protests
happening in the wake of the murder George Floyd in Minneapolis , Minn.
Oregon Garden hosting cruise-in movies
The Oregon Garden pres-
ents the Cruise-In Cinema:
The Rise of Skywalker, Frisday,
June 5 through Saturday, June
6. The gates open at 7 p.m. and
the movie will begin at dusk.
Sound is delivered by FM ra-
dio.
County Health offi cials
have given the Oregon Gar-
den health guidelines that they
must adhere to:
There will be a 100-vehicle
capacity.
Six foot distance must be
maintained by all people.
There is no alcohol or
smoking allowed at this event.
Concessions must be or-
dered online and will be deliv-
ered to your vehicle.
Unless taking a necessary
bathroom visit, attendees are
asked to stay in their vehicles
at all times.
If choosing to sit in the
back of a pickup attendees
must be wearing a mask.
All lights should be off
during the screening of the
movie.
In addition to purchasing a
ticket, attendees can purchase
concessions to support the
Oregon Garden.
Tickets must be pre-pur-
chased online, adults are $6,
children and garden members
are $4, children 4 and under
get in for free.
Tickets can be found online
at www.oregongarden.org/
cruise-in-cinema/.
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