Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 6, 1971)
4 Portland / O bserver May 6, 1971 morirnl e it i t Albina police project begins The Portland Model C itie s Police Community Relati o ns Project is a new program in Portland which is being jo intly funded by the U.S. Dept. of Justice and the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Develop* ment. Chief Donald I. McNa mara is the Project D ire ctor. Personnel fo r the project in clude a PoliceCommunity Re lations D ire ctor, Assistant Di* rector, a Community Re lations Aides Supervisor, te n Police Community Relatio n s O fficers, ten Community Rela« tions Aides, and a part-tim e Youth Planner. The project s main goal is to build mutual cooperation and understanding between the Portland Police Bureau and the residents of Portland, par ticu la rly in the Model C it ie s area. The project w ill benefit the police by creating an at mosphere conducive to a better day-by-day relatio n ship with the Model C ities rest- dents. It w ill benefit the resi dents by providing them w i th police service which reflect s the concept of both service and protection. U ltim ately, the r » suits of the project can be re duced to more effective 1 aw en forcement from the standpoint of everyone. The project has seven m a in components. They are out lined as follows: 1. An in-service training p ro gram is being established fo r the 60 uniformed officers who are norm ally assigned to the model C ities Neighborhood Its goal is to provide the o ffi cer with a greater knowled ge and sensitivity to the speci al needs and problems associat ed with the Model Neighb o r- hood. 2. A Police Community Re lations Center is located at 3807 N.E. Union A v e , pho ne 282-4524 from 9 a jn .to mid night. Residents ofthearea are encouraged to use the cen te r whenevei they have a 1 a w enforcement jroblem . 3. A Pol ice-Youth program is being developed beginning with the hiring of a part-tim e youth planner. The principle of the project is to establish rapport between the police and you th of the Model Neighborhood i n an atmosphere not associated with enforcement or control. 4. Eight Neighborhood Ad v i- sory Committees have been established—each deali n g with the problems of a parti cular geographic area with in the Model Neighborhood. This program is designed to brin g the residents of the Model Neighborhood area into a more active support of law enforce ment so that police and re s i- dents w ill eventually come to gether in an atmosphere of give-and-take where each may advise the other concern i n g problems that confront the area. 5. A Public Safety Advis o r y Committee has been formed; composed of representatives from each of the Neighborhood Advisory Committees and Po lice officials. It w ill be con cerned with the meeting and solving of any and all problems which may develop during the life of the project. 6. Additional Police Com munity Relations O fficers w ill be assigned to the Model Neigh borhood, enabling the Commu nity Relations Unit to expand some of the already exist i ng programs. 7. An O fficer-A ide program, which is the heart of the en tire program, has been estab lished. The aides have been mostly recruited from the Mo del C ities area and selected on the basis of a strong com m it ment to the maintenance of a lawful, orderly, and just so ciety, as well as the preserva tion and protection of lives, hu man rights and property. The training program lasted about two months and was conducted under the guidance of the bu reau of Police. The aides w ill almost always be a part ofa regulartw o-m an team which includes a sworn officer from the Police Con> munity Relations U nit. These teams w ill cover situations which have a potential fo r v io lence or fric tio n in the com munity and w ill be present at dances, concerts, and athletic events taking place in or near the Model C ities area. In the event of an arre st, the aides and officers w ill work at lessening crowd tensions and also provide accurate fir s t hand records of events in o r der to squelch any possible ru mors which develop in the con> munity. The aides w ill be on hand to render information re garding charge, bail, and c iv il rights to an arrested party and his fam ily. This program can offer great benefit to both the officer and the citizen. The citizen is assured of legal and fa ir treat ment, and the officers are p ro tected from false charges of mistreatm ent, brutality, or in correct procedure. The suc cess of the program depen d s largely upon the maintenance of a close working relationship between the Community Rela tions teams and the precinct officers. Equal Opportunity The U. S. Senate’ s Select Committee on Equal Educational Opportunity continues to publish reports of its hearings. The la t est, P art Seven, is on "Inequali ty of Economic Resources," and includes testimony by witnesses last fa ll, as well as numerous articles and publications on the subject. This and other com mittee publications are avai lable from the committee at the Old Senate Office Building, Washington, D j C. The science class was having its final test and one of the questions was Which are the last teeth to appear in the mouth? One youngster answer ed sim ply. False. The teacher had to admit that he was not wrong Black with Educator Albina Allan D, Rutherford, 64, was back home a few weeks ago af te r spending a lifetim e build ing a distinguised career in Statesville, N.C. pop. 30,000. Rutherford said it looks like a pattern of segregated hous ing exists in Portland and when youve got segregated housing, youre asking fo r problems. He said of P ortland*I cant understand why blacks are all concentrated in this old neigh borhood. A ll down W illiam s Avenue and Union A venue— its like a neglected area. This is a ghetto area now; its segrega ted and decay ing. and I cant sej how Portland can let it happen.’ He graduated from Jefferson High School in 1924 and went to the South in 1936 as a teacher; and w ill re tire next July as assistant superintendent. Ru therford studied 2 years at NJ State Normal School in Tren ton, taught elementary school there fo r 2 years, then return ed to Pacific Col lege in New berg (now George Fox) where he trained from 1929-33 fo r high school teaching. In those days Negroes were not allowed to do student teaching so in stead, Pacific agreed to give him credit fo r the 2 years he had taught and after doing grad uate work at theU n iv.ofC alif. at Berkeley, he headed for Statesville. Even though his parents didrft want him to go to the South, he recalled that I had to go so I could teach. He said that the only difference between Ore. and the South is that here in Portland you never knew how fa r you could go but in the South they didnt have to tell you---- you knew. Rutherford has seen many changes in his years in States v ille since 1936. Its a gradual process, he said, but I think the South w ill move ahead fast e r than places like Portland— we have accepted mandates of the court. On A p ril 23rd he was inducted into the local Kiwanis Club as CALL OUR ADVERTISERS FO R FAST RESULTS! concerned housing its fir s t black member in the town; maybe in the whole state. Yet he remembers that about 15 years ago when he address ed the Kiwanians, the mem bers had to go across the street to hear him in the C ity Hall because blacks were not allowed in the hotel where the club met. An elementary school in Statesville, with 4 black teach- ers and 21 per cent black stu dents, has been named a fte r A 1 len D. Rutherford. A ll others are white. * My name i& o \e rth e d o o r, arai my p o rtra it is inside^Ruther- ford sak£and I am s till al lv e - usually you have todie b efore they name a school after you. Its like looking at your own tombstone,' he added, until you get used to it.“ Classified Ad Brings B R IN G S R E S U L T S (Alameda Theater) I ♦ ( ♦ ♦ I I I ♦ 3000 N.E. Alberta 284-9448 Thunderball Starring . Jam«S BOIld You Only Live Twice 5’o,rin«-Jame» Bond Fri. Thru., Tuos. Watermelon Man with Godfrey Cambridge Landlord wi,h-P earl Bailey Starts -F r i.,M a y 14 Thru.Tuas. M ay 18, O pen at 4:45 p.m Sundoy, Fri.,Sat., M on.. Tuos. 6:45 p.m. All seats an Mon, Tuos. $1.50 * ♦ I I ♦ ♦ I ♦ I ♦
