Ur# F ra n c e * Schoen-'.cw spaper ftcos
U n iv e r s it y o f Oregon L ib r a r y
e u re n « , Oregon 97403
Crime Prevention UnitIMames Coordinator
The appointm ent of Dennis G. Payne as coordinator of Port
duating from Portland S ’ :e University, he earned a master's
land s street crime prevention program has been announced by
degree in c o m m u n ity service and public adm inistration from
City Commissioner Dick Bogle
the University of Oregon's l hvision of C ontinuing Education.
Payne, 39, w ill work w ithin the c ity 's O ffice of Neighborhood
Payne’s professional background includes w orking for the
Associations (ONA), under a second year block grant from the
Oregon Departm ent of Justice
Albina M ulti Service Center and for the Oregon Executive De
partm ent under the late Gov Tom McCall
Bogle, the city's Commissioner of Public Safety, said the
He also served as executive dire, tor of the Martir
grant to ONA is the city's only Justice Assistance Block Grant
King Foundation in Oregon
to be funded for a second year
Prior to accepting his new appointm ent, he was a member of
"T his means the program is w orking,
Bogle stated
It %
the M etrop ilit.in Youth Commission for tw o years
a real feather in ONA s ca p .’’
He also
served for th< past tw o years, on city budget advisory com
Payne said his im m ediate goal is to help people organize
their neighborhoods to fight all types of street crime
mittees.
His long
Payne said his w ork for the Youth Commission has given
term goal is to help restore livability to areas seriously impacted
by crime.
turn a special interest in steering young people away from
crime.
As a result of last year's grant, ONA developed and distri
buted a drug house reporting form
Luther
W hen young people say they have nothing to do, w hat
The "D ru g House Abate
they need is inform ation on all the activities open to th e m ,"
ment O rd in an ce ," enacted by City Council on May 7 is an
other product of the grant
he explained
what tfiey need is a gently nudge, to get them m o tiva te d ."
As part o f his duties over the next year, Payne w ill work w ith
Payne sees one of his roles as acting to minimize the impact
residents o f neighborhoods hit hardest by the drug house pro
of budget cuts in the Police Bureau's Juvenile Services Divi
blem. He w ill assist citizens in passing inform ation about drug
sion, and the
houses and dealers to the Portland Police.
O fficer F riendly" education program in the
schools
He also w ill work w ith people seeking a solution to the prob
lem of street prostitution.
H e and his w ife, Louise, a receptionist for Mayor Bud Clark,
have three i hildr -n
Payne was born in Hubbard and raised in Portland, attending
Eliot Elementary School and Benson High School
And if they d o n 't respond to the inform ation,
D e n n is G P a y n e
A fter gra
Bobette, 20, is a sophomore at Spellman
College in A tlanta; Dennis II, 18, is a junior at Grant High
School and Corey, 8, is a second grader at Madeleine School.
Violent Deaths Strike African Smoke
Detectors
Americans at Alarming Rate
Are Not
Enough
by Jerry Garner
The b ru ta l m urd ers o f 17 year old G ilbert Venard M yles and 16 year old
Frankie L. H enderson are part o f a d istu rb in g tre n d tha t is o c c u rrin g n a tion
w id e That is. Black on Black m urder
M yles w as b ru ta lly m urd ere d by another Black y o u th , 16 year old Jerry
Sandies b e fore som e 50 stu d e n ts at G rant H igh S cho ol H enderson was
stabbed to de ath last S atu rday by W esley G Gray an 18 year old w h o was
charged in c o n n e c tio n w ith H enderson s death
C u rrently, in tra ra cia l h o m icid e is the leading cause o f de ath o f A fm an
A m e rica n m ales 15 to 44 and it is estim a te d tha t h o m icid e m ay be respon
sible fo r one th ird o f all the causes o f death o f Black m ales in th is age range
A fric a n A m e rica n m ales are at risk o f being m urd ere d ten tim es m ore
than w h ite m ales Black fem ales are five tim es m ore likely to be m urdered
tha n w h ite fem ales Nearly a th ird o f fem ale h o m icid e victim s are killed by
the ir husbands or b o yfrie n d s
The G rant H igh s h o o tin g illustrate s an othe r d istu rb in g p a tte rn to Black
on Black m u rd e r th a t is the high num ber o f k illin g s am o ng Black
yo u th s
N a tio n w id e , in such large citie s as Los A ngeles, C hicago N ew York
P hiladelphia, D e tro it, there has been a w a ve o f m urd ers c o m m itte d by
Black yo u th s on one an othe r O f all o f the above cities m e n tio n e d none
have experienced m ore killin gs than D e tro it Last year, 43 ch ild re n younger
tha n 17 were killed On the average, a ch ild w as shot every day in tha t city
So far this year, 102 D e tro it y o u th s age 16 or you ng er have been shot, 10 of
the m died fro m th e ir w o u n d s
In an e ffo rt to address the issue, D e tro it
o ffic ia ls have be gu n placin g m etal d e te cto rs in inner c ity schools, in hopes
o f p re ve n tin g s tu d e n ts fro m b rin g in g w e ap ons in to classroom s
Those w h o s tu d y the p h e n o m e n o n o f Black on Black m urd er give dif
fe re n t vie w s on its cau satio n Som e argue th a t the high rate o f in traracial
killin g a m o ng A fric a n A m erican s can be explained by the "s u b c u ltu re of
v io le n c e " th e o ry and th ro u g h the "p s y c h ia tric disorder " th e o ry
The s u b cu ltu re o f violence th e o ry states th a t the "u rb a n g h e tto environ
m e n t pro du ces a typ e of m urd ere r tha t is cha ra cte ristica lly a you ng , A frica n
A m erican , lo w e r class m ale w h o is quick to repond to na rcissistic in jury
w ith lethal aggressive in te n t
This type o f in d ivid u a l w as fe lt to be pre
disposed to using aggression as a m eans to an end, and crim in a l violence
to o b ta in m a te ria l go od s w h ic h w o u ld ord in a rily be o u t o f his reach Pro
po n e n ts o f th is th e o ry believe th is typ e o f m urd ere r e tio lo g y is in a sub
cu ltu ra l and social e n viro n m e n t th a t encourages physical aggression
The p sych ia tric d isord er th e o ry a ttrib u te s Black on Black vio le n ce in part
to th e high in cid e n ce o f com a in the Black p o p u la tio n A rece nt stu d y on
Black p sych ia tric p a tie n ts in C hicago, at the C o m m u n ity M e n ta l Health
C o un cil, reveals th a t 45 pe rcen t o f the 108 sub je cts re p o rte d h a vin g had at
least one ep iso d e o f co m a O th e r stu d ie s have 3 h o w n a re la tio n b e tw e e n
head injuries, n e u ro p s y c h ia tric im p a irm e n t, and com a to be subsequent
episodes o f h o m ic id a l aggression o f suicidal behavior
A lth o u g h b o th th e o rie s give an e xp la natio n for Black on Black violence,
th e y are q u e stio n a b le
C ritics o f the su b c u ltu re o f vio len ce th e o ry argue
th a t i t ’s q u e stio n a b le and leads to in a p p ro p ria te ra tio n a liza tio n s for m ur
der, th e re b y d isco u ra g in g fu rth e r research and h in d e rin g the de ve lo p m e n t
o f in te rv e n tio n strateg ies
The q u e stio n o f w h e th e r m e n ta lly ill p a tie n ts are m ore predisposed to
vio len ce is h o tly de ba te d w ith one side asserting tha t m urderers w h o are
p s y c h o tic are rare
The answer to this p ro b le m is very co m p le x It's very d iffic u lt to point
to |ust o n e single cause to explain the high rate o f h o m icid e am ongst A fn
can A m e rica n s
said Dr O iodi T Osu|i
Dr O su|i, a m en ta l health w o rke r at the N o rth /N o rth e a s t C o m m unity
M en ta l H ealth Center said fru s tra tio n a m o ng a high pe rcen ta ge of Blacks
regard ing their lo w status in society c o n trib u te s to Black on Black violence
Blacks are a m in o rity in the U n ite d S tates
W e are basically powerless
and su b ju g a te d people
strated
These c o n d itio n s ten d to lead one to becom e fru
He said hu m an be in gs like to feel in c o n tro l o f the ir o w n environm ent
like to p a rticip a te in th e g o ve rn in g o f society and to share the w ealth Dr
O suji said. This gives in d ivid u a ls a sense o f s e lfw o rth in th a t they are con
tn b u tm g to the w e ll being o f th a t society
For m a n y A fric a n Am ericans,
this in n o t the case A m erican so cie ty has co n s c io u s ly co n s tru c te d an en
v iro n m e n t in w in c h B lacks begin to th in k of the m se lve s as ou tside rs and not
part of m ainstrea m A m erica
C o nse que ntly, A fric a n A m o m ans feel dis
c rim in a te d against pow erless, artd m any feel an gry "
Dr O suii said instead o f d ire c tin g this anger at the establishm ent w h ich
caused this sense o* pow erlessness, m any B lacks and oth er ethnic m in ori
ties vent the ir anger at each o th e r
He calls th is p h e n om en on "d isplace
m en t o f anger
Dr Osu|i s d ispla cem e nt th e o ry m ay explain the rise in in cide nce of youth
m urd ers am ong A fric a n A m erican s M any Black yo u th s place little value on
hum an life It has been re p o rte d th a t as M yles laid m o rta lly w o u n d e d on the
school c o u rty a rd , his a ttacke r calm ly shot him several m ore tim es in the
head as a g ro u p o f h o rrifie d stu d e n ts w a tch er!
S uch m urders o ccu r fre
q u e n tly w h e n yo u n g Black m ales and ad u lts settle arg um e nts A cco rd in g
to p u b lish e d reports, the M yles Sandies feu d w as over a cap
A n o th e r reason c ite d fo r the hig h in c id e n c e o f in tra ra cia l h o m icid e
am ong Blacks is th e lo w value plai ed on the ir lives in the U nited S tates A
clear exam ple o f th is can be seen in the recent 5 4 decision by the U nited
S tates S uprem e C o u rt s ta tin g tha t it s c o n s titu tio n a l fo r states to discrim i
nate against A frica n A m erican s w h e n a p plying the death penalty
The case, b ro u g h t b e fore the high c o u rt by the N A A C P le g a l Defense
and E ducation Fund, Inc. on the be ha lf o f a co n d e m e d Blacx Georgia m ur
derer, argued th a t sta tistica l data show er! th a t Blacks w h o kill w h ite s in
G eorgia are nearly 11 tim es m ore likely to receive the death penalty than
those w h o kill blacks B lacks w h o killed w h ite s w ere sentences to die three
tim es m ore o fte n th a n w h ite s w h o killed w h ites
The con seq ue nces o f Black on Black m urd er in Black i om m u n itie s
a ro un d the n a tio n is d is tu rb in g The killin g reduces the presence of Black
m ales in th e c o m m u n ity
This c o n trib u te s to th e high incidence o f Black
fem ale head o f ho use ho lds.
Dr O suji said if Black on Black violence is to be reduced, society m ust
first be gin to address the hig h rate o f p o v e rty a m o ng A fric a n A m ericans
He said p o v e rty "in flu e n c e s values and a ttitu d e s ab ou t the w o rth o f hum an
life ."
W h e n po lice in N o rth va le , N J , in ve stig a te d the fun death o f a 19 year
old w o m a n last O cto be r, tfie y learned th a t a sm oke deter, tor o u ts id e her
b e dro om failed to sou nd trie alarm that c o u ld have saved her Id».
Inve stigators fo u n d ttia l th e d e te c to r's ba tte ries w e n ; dead
N o tin g sim ilar tragedies every year, the D icto rg ra p h S ecu rity In fo rm a tio n
Bureau w a rns tha t to ta l reliance on single statio n sm oke d e te c to rs is dan
gerous
"S m o k e d e te cto rs are an in valu ab le life safety to o l, tin t tfie y are no sub
s titu te for dilig en ce
said bureau spokesm an M ich ae l t Horne "H o m e
ow n e rs sho uld co n tin u e to rely on them selves by p la n n in g and pra< ticin g
escape rou te s and learning o th e r m e th o d s o f p re ve n tin g and escaping fire
The buearu, located in Florham Park, N J , p o in ts to statistics to sh o w
th a t the n a tio n . rising fire de ath rate co u ld be im p ro ve d A lth o u g h a 1985
Lou Harris (Kill in dica tes th a t nearly 75 percent o f all A m erican ho m es are
eq u ip p e d w ith sm oke deter tors, ad d itio n a l studies suggest that nearly one
th ird o f the m do not w o rk bei .lose of dead b a tte rie s or fa u lty d e te c tio n
m echanism s
"F re q u e n tly , ho m e o w n e rs do not use e n ou gh d e te cto rs, and to o o fte n ,
the y are rendered useless because tfie y are im p ro p e rly placed, said Horne
He added that reside ntial fire safety is .in espei silly im p o rta n t co n ce rn
in 1987 fo llo w in g the N a tion al Fire P ro te ctio n A sso cia tio n s a n n o u n ce m e n t
late last year th a t hom e fire deaths rose 19 8 pen ent in 1985. the first rise in
the n a tio n 's fire death to ll since 1981 A to ta l of 4.885 people were killed in
residential fires and p ro p e rty dam age rose 9 2 pe rce n t to $7 3 m illio n
" A house fire occu rs every 57 s e c o n d s ," observe d H o m o
The bureau also sug ge sts tha t fam ilies c o n d u c t m o n th ly fire drills in addi
tio n to in sta lling sm oke d e te cto rs o u tsid e each separate livin g are.) and
regularly ch a n g in g ba tte ries and te stin g e q u ip m e n t
"Escape routes and alte rna te esc.ipe ro u te s s h o u ld be planned and fa ith
fu lly p ra ctice d once a m o n th so th a t all fa m ily m em b ers even b a b ysitte rs
are fa m ilia r w ith th e m , said H o rne
A re n d e z v o u s (jo in t o u ts id e the
hom e also m ust be established so th a t all m em b ers o f th e h o u se h o ld can be
a cco u n te d for
H orne suggested any c o n ve n ie n t, easily rem e m be re d lo c a tio n a street
lig h t, a tree or a spot in fro n t o f a n e ig h b o r's house
M any, m any people are killed g o in g back in to a b u rn in g hom e try in g to
rescue som eone w h o ’s already g o tte n o u t , " he said
M ore co m p le te in fo rm a tio n a ljo u t fa m ily fire p ro te c tio n is exp la ine d in the
b u re a u 's illu s tra te d b o o k le t. Prepare yo u r fa m ily 's escape plan " A free
cop y m ay be o b ta in e d by w ritin g to th e bureau at D ic to g ra p h , D e pt. 204.
26 C olum b ia T urnp ike F lorham Park, N J 07932
The D ic tro g ra p h S e c u rity In fo rm a tio n Bureau is a special service o f Die
to g ra p h S e cu rity S ystem s o f F lorham Park, N J , on e o f th e n a tio n 's olde st
and largest fire and b u rglar alarm firm s