ÿurtlanh ©bseruer
April 12,2000
Focus
Page 7
Blue vs. Black
In Print
Let’s End the Conflict Between Cops and Minorities
BLUE
VS.
BLACK
By John L Burris with
Catherine Whitney
St. Martin’s Press; 1999
Many of us believe that cases of
police brutality are isolated events,
happening only in large cities and
having no bearing on our own lives.
But incidents of cop violence against
minority citizens have come far too
common everywhere in America,
and the problem affects us all.
John L. B urris, a nationally
renowned civil rights attorney, has
spent the past tw enty years
defending the rights of minorities
who have been the victims o f police
misconduct and excessive use of
force. In Blue vs. Black he tells the
true, heartbreaking stories o f many
of them - a young community center
director who is savagely beaten by
cops before the eyes ofthechildren
in his care; a woman who is
handcuffed to a chainlinked fence
by a female officer and humiliated
in front o f her neighbors, simply
because of a minor traffic violation;
a father who is pulled overby police
officers and shocked with a stun
gun w hile his three-year-old
daughter screams in the backseat of
the car. These are not criminals, but
ordinary, law abiding citizens.
Burris introduces us to several
remarkable men and women who,
by letting their stories be told in this
book, demonstrate their courage in
trying to repair the damaged
relationships between blacks and
law-enforcement officials.
Burris present with compassion and
insight a measured analysis of
tensions between police and the
people they are meant to protect. In
this important and moving work, he
offers solutions forending the cycle
of police and civilian distrust.
> ?»
J
LI I S I N I ) I HI C O N FL IC T
BI 1 \\ I IN ( O P S AND MINORI LIES
JOHN L. BURRIS
■ a ,
,i
VI 111 R I M
W III IN I Ì
SPRING EVENTS
My Soul to Keep
I& I
“Reggae Inna Afrikan Stylee” • Thursday, March 23, at 7pm
BATTLE OF THE BANDS 2000
By Tananarive Due
HarperPrism; 1997
Jessica is an African-American
journalist, as ambitious as she is
bright. She is chasing the biggest
story o f her life, a story that strikes
closer to home than she knows.
Dawit is an immortal, whose ancient
thirst for wisdom leads him to break
the first commandment of his kind:
not to fall in love.
Together they are about to pay the
ultim ate
p rice
for
th eir
ambition.. and their desire.
Tananarive Due, the author o f A/y
Soul to Keep is a Miami Herald
columnist and the author o f The
Between, a novel the New York
Times Book Review hailed as “a
finely honed work that always
engages and frequently surprises.”
A finalist forthe Bram Stoker Award
for a first novelist, she is also
included in N aked Came the
Manatee, a collaborative mystery
novel featuring several Miami
writers.
Ali EERIE EPIC. .MACS FAVORAW.E COMPARISON
TO ffIT ttV K W WITH T M VAA PIPL I LOVED THIS HOVEL
- S t e p h e n K in g
My S o u l
t o Keep
STEVE BRADLEY GROUP WITH JON KOONCE
VS. THE X ANGELS
Thursday, March 30 at 7pm
HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN’S
BIRTHDAY STORYTELLING
featuring Will Homyak
Sunday, April 2, 6:30pm to 8:30pm ■ Reservations required
Adults $10 • Children Free (maximum four children per adult)
JACKSTRAW
Bluegrass • Thursday, April 6, 7pm
JACK McMAHON BAND
Country Rock • Thursday, April 13, 7pm
THE STEVE BRADLEY BAND
Surf Rock • Thursday, April 20, 7pm
EASTER BRUNCH WITH THE BUNNY
Sunday, April 23, 9am to 2pm • Call for reservations
JIM BASNIGHT BAND
Pop Roots Rock • Thursday, April 27, at 7pm
All ages welcome • No cover charge unless noted
M cM en am in s K en n ed y School
author
or
rut tHTwttn
5736 NE 33rd • Portland, Oregon • 249-3983
www.mcmcnamins.com