* W • V •
Page 2, Portland Observer, September 1, 1988
Ray Ray W inston
■ Continued
Continue from Page 1
Authority was concerned," Pitre
now says of the teen-ager.
W hy, then, was W in sto n
evicted? The answer is not
apparent from the court record.
The original eviction order did not
even mention the teen-ager.
On May 16, the Housing Auth­
ority notified Azzie Winston that it
intended to evict her and her
family from their Columbia Villa
duplex by June 18. The original
notice stated that the family was
being evicted because Azzie
Winston failed to keep several
a p p o in tm e n ts to have her
financial status re-evaluated. An
annual financial re-evaluation is
required of all Housing Authority
tenants who are under age 62.
The re-examination is used to
help determine whether the ten­
ants are earning too much money
to stay in their publicly subsidized
houses.
Azzie Winston went to Mult­
nomah County Legal Aid to fight
the eviction. From there, she was
referred to Portland lawyer Frank
Wall, who agreed to represent her
in the proceedings, which took
place before Multnomah County
D istrict Court Judge Dorothy
Baker. On July 27, the parties
agreed on a settlement that,
among other things, required that
J o s e p h W in s to n n o t sta y
overnight at his mother’s house.
The settlement is the first time
the teen-ager’s name appears in
the court record.
According to Pitre, Azzie Win­
ston volunteered, during a settle­
ment hearing in Baker’s cham­
bers, to throw her son out of her
house. “ It was all agreed that it
was her idea to remove her son,”
says Pitre.
But Pitre’s statement is contra­
dicted by Azzie Winston and her
attorney. According to them, Pitre
had made it clear before the
settlem ent hearing that the
Housing Authority wanted the
teen-ager evicted. “ It was pretty
clear that if we were going to
settle, those would be the terms,"
says Wall.
Judge Baker agrees. “ They just
wnated him out of there at night.”
she says. “ The feeling I got was
that he was a gang member, caus­
ing trouble at night.”
Winston may have been a gang
member, as Portland police
believe. But Pitre may also have
made a mistake in concluding
that he was an active member of
the Columbia Villa Crips. Pitre
says that her assessment of
Winston was based in large part
on a KOIN news report, during
which Winston was shown brag­
ging about being a Crip. “ He was
saying sensational stuff, like,
‘Crips don’t die, they m ultiply,” ’
Pitre says of the report, which
aired several months ago. “ The
media picked up on that.”
In fact, KOfN says the self-
proclaimed Crip member in the
report was not Winston. Accord­
ing to reporter Richard Draper,
several Columbia Villa residents
recently reviewed a tape of the
s to r^ itr ^ te d ^ T h e ^ e s id e n ts a l^
agreed the admitted gang mem­
ber in the story was not Winston.
The settlement took effect on
Aug 10, one week before Winston
was killed. "In retrospect, maybe
that wasn’t the right decision,"
says Wall. "The settlement put
him on the streets, which may
have resulted in getting him
shot.”
Don Clark, the new director of
the Housing Authority of Port­
land, is the first to admit that his
agency needs to do more for its
tenants. And Clark seems well-
qualified to bring about such
changes. Clark has a long record
of public service, including sever­
al terms as Multnomah County
sheriff and executive officer of
the Multnomah County Commis­
sion. After leaving the commis-
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Leon Harris/Gen Mgr
Nyewusi Askari
News E d ito r/S ta tl W rite r
Mattie Ann Callier-Spears
R e lig io n Editor
Danny Bell
Bill S cheider
Sales R epresentative
Copy E d ito r/P h o to g ra p h e r
Ruby Reuben
Sales R e presentative
R osem arie Davis
Sales R epresentative
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OREGON S OLDEST AFRICAN AM ERICAN PUBLICATION
B usine ss M anager
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ERVER
Gary Ann G arnett
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sion, he served as head of Central
City Coner, a private, non-profit
agency providing a variety of
services to the homeless in Old
Town. At this time, the Housing
Authority seems clearly in need
of the multiservice approach that
Clark supports.
Founded in 1941 to provide
housing to shipyard workers dur­
ing World War II, the agency has
changed its role substantially in
its 47 years. Now, it provides
housing to approximately 15,000
low-income people in Portland
and the unincorporated parts of
Multnomah County. The agency
has an annual budget of $22 m il­
lion, most of which comes from
the U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Developm ent. It
operates or subsidizes 7,207
housing units, many of which are
located in high-rise towers. Co­
lumbia Villa is easily the most
controversial of the Housing
Authority’s projects, and it is here
that the agency’s current short­
c o m in g s are m ost re a d ily
apparent.
In recent months, the north
Portland housing project has
been portrayed as a haven for
criminals. News stories have
portrayed the project's residents
as living in fear of roaming gangs
and drug dealers, some of whom
occasionally discharge firearms.
But those problems are not im­
mediately apparent to first-time
visitors. The development is not a
slum or a ghetto. Located be­
tween Houghton Street and Co­
lumbia Boulevard, the Villa is in­
stead a large, peaceful-looking
residential suburb. It houses
approximately 1,200 people, half
A lfred L. Henderson/Pubiisher
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Richard Medina
P h o to-C o m position
Lonnie W ells
C irc u la tio n M anager
B. G ayle Jackson
C o m p tro lle r
PORTLAND OBSERVER
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of them children.
The Villa has 478 housing units,
all built in the 1940s. The units are
mostly small duplexes or modest
two-story apartments, arranged
courtyards, with neatly trimmed
lawns, large trees and conveni­
ently located playgrounds. Most
of the duplexes and apartments
are located along a sweeping oval
street made up of North Woolsey
Ave. and North Woolsey Court.
Each unit has a large sign next ot
the front door with its street
number, giving the development
the look of a campground or a
forest retreat.
“ It doesn’t look like the kind of
public housing projects they have
in the East,” says the Housing
Authority’s Pitre, referring to the
high-rise tenements in many ur­
ban areas. “ It's a nice place and
can be a nice neighborhood.”
But the key to understanding
life at Columbia Villa is not what
the housing project has to offer.
The key is what is missing.
Multnomah County maintains a
health clinic and a parole and
probation center at Columbia
Villa. But beyond that there are
few programs to serve the resi­
dents’ needs. Several years ago,
the Housing Authority closed the
one facility that offered residents
any kind of organized evening or
weekend activities. The agency
converted Columbia Villa’s large
community center into office
space for the employees who
a d m n is te r th e lo w -in c o m e
housing program. Until then, the
center had served as a location
for social gatherings. "We used to
have dances and things like
Bluebirds in there, but we need
the space," says Pitre.
Useni Perkins, president o t the
Portland Urban League, deplores
the lack of resources available for
troubled youth at the housing pro­
ject. “ We need to invest in more
outreach access to counselors at
the Villa without having to go
downtown.”
Clark agrees. Almost immed­
iately after being named to head
the housing authority, area
manager, three assistants and
seven resident aides. A summer
employment project provided
work for 20 teen-ager residents.
But Clark knows that much
more is required. Although he is
reluctant to talk about the future,
Clark acknowledges that plans
are under way to increase public
services to Columbia Villa resi­
dents. He is currently working
with the city and the county and
apparently plans to lobby the
1989 Legislature for even more
help. “ There was a much more
substantial government presence
at the Villa in the 1970s,” says
Clark, referring to a time before
gangs were visible in Portland.
It would be foolish to suggest
that assigning a few counselors
at Columbia Villa would solve this
city’s gang problem. But it is also
clear that the other proposed so­
lu tio n s— such as building more
jails — will not do the job alone,
especially if Joseph Winston is
typical of the people involved in
this city’s gangs. The recently
released report of the Governor's
Task Force on Corrections makes
this clear. So does the Urban
League's Perkins, who argues
that government needs to support
community agencies and such
grassroots movements as the
recently formed C oalition of
Black Men, which hopes to
provide positive role models for
im pressionable young black
males.
“The moneys are available in
this country to reduce this
problem,” says Perkins. “ Maybe
not in the state of Oregon at this
time, but in the country. It’s all
about how we set our priorities."
Tragedy
C o n tin u ed fro m p a g e l
Em ergency R o o m . K enyata was
treated and reteased, b u t at 12:46.
a .m . this m o rn in g , Kevin and
J o h n n y w e te s t» in surgery fo r
w o u n d s to th e chest and ab­
do m en . T h e d o cto rs placed their
chances o f survival at 96 p er cent.
Rev. Hill discussing options to solving Portland’s gang problem.
Rev. Clarence R. Hill
our society? By participating in
the work force and by getting in­
volved in some kind of self help
program perhaps we can give
them a new direction. Will Port­
land bring their resources to bear
in order for us to achieve this
goal?
Portland Observer: Is our prob­
lem in Portland any different from
what you have experienced in
California?
The Rev. Hill: I see the same
general kinds of behavior, but I
see the problems here largely in­
fluenced by California gangs. I am
not talking particularly about
southern California. The differ­
ence between Portland and Cali­
fornia is that down there the
gangs have a more traditional de­
meanor. That is to say that they
have been in existence much
longer which means that they
bring to bear a more callous
nature. They are intractable to
change and the suggestion of a
new direction. The gangs here in
Portland are rather new and more
impressionable. I think here in
Portland it is unique for a person
such as myself to come here with
the desire to help.
The possibilities for success
here in Portland are far more
achievable than they are in
southern California where we are
dealing with a large population of
hard core incorrigibles.
Portland Observer: How do you
view our approach to this prob­
lem, is it effective?
The Rev. Hill: I see you just
scratching the surface. There
needs to be more in-depth in­
volvement at every level of the
community.
Portland Observer: Are we com­
petent enough to address this sit­
uation effectively as you see it
now?
The Rev. Hill: Not at the present
time. I think the City of Portland
and the various concerned indivi­
duals have not been equipped
with the kind of exposure that
would allow them to cope, but the
genuineness of your effort is
quite apparent. I see an interest
which I believe from this initial ac­
quaintance will generate a more
intensified effort which will in
time ameliorate the problem.
Portland Observer: In your
eulogy for Ray Ray Winston you
said that we need to start preven­
tive action down in the elemen­
tary schools with the younger
children if we are to avoid having
them later become entrapped
with the gang culture. Would you
expand on that notion?
The Rev. Hill: We need preven­
tion modules. I am concerned as
to whether a person who has not
had experience or training for
operating in the crisis ghetto is
going to comprehend the es­
sence of the problem and in the
long run do far more harm than
good. It has a lot to do with know­
ing the psychology and speaking
the language of the street-wise
youngster. If you always have
operated in the middle class
arena, it is not likely that you are
going to have any success in ap­
plying your education and ex­
perience to the grass roots level.
But if you have had the opportuni­
ty to get in at the crisis level, ex-
perientially, you can talk with a
greater acceptance and convic­
tion. I believe the middle class
certainly can play an important
role. But they should be keenly
aware of their serious limitations.
Their role in Portland will emerge
as things unfold. I think that their
Continued from Page 1
ability or inability to help is con­
tingent upon the degree of
commitment they bring to bear
upon the problem.
Portland Observer Even young
girls in Portland are involved with
gang activity. Does the same
thing occur in California?
The Rev. Hill: It is even more in­
tensified. When we talk about pre­
vention we are talking about the
elem entary level — third and
fourth graders. I have had to inter­
act with children of even a much
younger age. In fact we had one
boy who was only six years old
but already had begun to display
some of the characteristics that
would indicate he either had a
close association or affiliation
with gangs. He expressed a close
allegiance to the Crips.
Portland Observer: But even
after you re-program him, how are
you going to prevent his future in­
volvement with gangs or some
other illegal activity? He still lives
in that environment doesn’t he?
The Rev. Hill: We know that
children between one and five are
very impressionable. If we get him
during that period he can be edu­
cated and conditioned with such
information that will discourage
involvement with the gang ele­
ment and everything that goes
with it. It is like saying no to drug
say no to gangs.
The Portland Observer: What
about the lure of fast money when
youngsters become involved with
pushing drugs?
The Rev. Hill: The community
has a real challenge in that re­
gard. They have to create alter­
natives that will not allow young­
sters to become exposed to
things that make the gang
lifestyle attractive to them. There
are recreational alternatives.
There are academic alternatives.
There are cultural alternatives.
There are other means by which
we can honor youngsters so that
they might develop a healthy self-
image. They need to learn that the
quality of life can be better and
that their tenure on this earth cer­
tainly will be longer if they avoid
gangs. I don’t see a great deal ot
that kind of re-inforcement here in
Portland. I went to the parks and
there was no recreational director
to involve children with recrea-
tional alternatives.
The Rev. Hill: That is a program
which was developed by our
group in Inglewood, California.
We would like to try it here in
Portland. It is a very successful
concept and I am certain it will
work here. Pick up is the respon­
sibility of law enforcement. It is
also their responsibility to protect
the citizenry and to preserve the
peace. Lock up is the respon­
sibility of the community and its
voluntary organizations or other
groups that have rehabilitation
thrusts. They should create ave­
nues by which delinquents and
substance abusers can have an
opportunity to be redirected into
the society. Follow-up should be
the responsibility of the entire
community in providing programs
that will support the continued
rehabilitation of the individual. Go
up is the responsibility of the
church wherein moral fortitude is
nurtured. The situation in Port­
land is complex, but it is not
altogether hopeless.
"The Eyes and Ears of the Com m unity"
&
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' * * '"ft”’’ -?3 5
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Ì
Investment
made
tfM
T 'l
George Collins,
The Portland School District
has invested just over $1 million
through American State Bank, the
Northwest’s largest Black-owned
bank, G eorge C o llin s , the
district’s director of finance af­
firmed this week.
Using ASB an “ investment
medium” for the $1,002,035 is part
of the district’s policy of diversify­
ing their investments, Collins
said.
Since the district's funds derive
from public money, investing in
ASB is one way of reinvesting tax
dollars in the community.
Collins said that investing in
ASB would improve the bank’s
ability to work with businesses in
the Black community and en­
hance business opportunities.
“ Certainly,” he said, "improv­
ing and expanding business op­
portunities in the Black communi­
ty w ill help im p ro ve th a t
community.”
Portland Observer: You men­
tioned a program that involved
pick up, lock up, follow-up and go
up Would you expand on that
notion?
PORTLAND OBSERVER
Printed by permission ot the Willamette
Week. August 25-31,1988
The mother, Mary Lee Black,
said none of the victims were in­
volved in drug or gang activity, to
her knowledge. Both men were
employed, Johnny with Boise
Cascade in Salem and his brother^
by Fred Meyers in Clackamas’
a
County.
“ They are good, hard-working
boys,” she said “ I don’t see why
this had to happen.”
The step-father, Charles Black,
a cab driver, said the assailants
had been by earlier in the evening
and had had an argument with the
Williams men. About 30 minutes
later, they returned and opened
fire on them. The Blacks have two
other children, 9 and 10-years-old.
Kenyata Black resides with his
parents and the Younger boys,
across the street from the
shooting.
More information will be forth­
coming as the story unfolds.
•'
’ ”"1. '
A .
George W . McCree, II
George W. McCree II, 5624 N.E.
16th Avenue, Portland, local repre­
sentative for the Mutual of Omaha
Companies, has been licensed as
a representative of Mutual of
O m aha’s Fund M anagem ent
Company.
To earn his mutual funds li­
cense, McCree successfully com­
pleted a comprehensive securi­
ties training course and passed
an examination administered by
the National A ssociation of A
Securities Dealers.
Mutual of Omaha Fund Man­
agement Company manages
seven funds including a money
market account and a closed-end
fund listed on the New York Stock
Exchange.
McCree is associated with the
T. W. Smith Division office, the in
Mutual agency in Portland.
The Mutual of Omaha Compa­ )9
nies provide total income protec­ 6«
tion through a comprehensive
line of insurance and financial
services.