Pa&eAfe
_____________________ il!C}4ortlanb ©bseruer
Shootings Exhaust
Police Resources
continued
fro m Front
students, teachers, parents and the com
munity to give at-risk youth an alterna
tive.
Hendricks said that having the com
munity cooperate with the unit by bring
ing forth any information they have is a
vital key o f piecing together gang activ
ity in particular areas.
“W e’ve had more success solving
gang shootings in the last year because
people who have seen things have been
more willing to come forward with the
information they ’ ve had,” Hendricks said.
“The citizens are the eyes and ears of the
police. W hen these shootings occur,
there’s not an officer on every com er to
witness a gang shooting. W hen they
work with us, we have much greater luck
in solving the gang shooting and putting
the persons responsible in jail.”
A c c o rd in g
to
th e
w e b site
Gangsandkids.com, there are steps you
can take in figuring out whether your
child is prone to gang activity.
“If you are afraid that your kid is in a
gang, he or she probably is. It is better to
try to protect a kid who doesn’t need it,
than to bury a kid who tried to hide the
truth from his parents," the site says.
Look for tattoos of possible gang names
or insignias, question extra money that
can 't be explained, as well as changes in
wardrobe, attitude, music and cars, col
ored bandanas, and examine why your
child is having trouble with school or
getting into fights.
March 9 .200s
Gang Violence Intensifies
continued
from Front
else,” Baker said, describing gang
members as people who are hurting
inside and looking for companions in
the same state of affairs.
Like some people crave material
goods such as cars, clothing or houses,
gang members strive for a territory, he
said, “Something to have control over
and to call your own.
“Gangs are not a problem in them
selves - they are a result o f a much
bigger problem,” Baker said. ‘T he family
environment, the structure and resources.
The gang is a result of a whole bunch of
things that are wrong with our system.”
Being in a group allows gang members
to feel like they have a place in the world,
often something they can’t find at home or
in school.
“Everyone’s looking for a sense o f
belonging. Your child is going to get your
attention one way or another, if you don’t
respond to your child with positive atten
tion, they’ll go somewhere else for nega
tive attention. They want to be loved and
* Gangs are not a
What a large part of gang life comes
down to is a family structure that is
neglectful, careless and unmindful of
w hat’s going on in a child's life.
“If I’m hurting and I have some
issues, I can’t be good to anyone else
unless I take care of myself. Reinsti
tuting the family focus and union is
what we have to do. That wont be the
cure-all, but that’s a real positive start
with community involvement and ac
\
countability,” Baker said.
With recent public shootings, it’s
obvious that gang violence doesn’t just
affect those in the gang.
“You throw a rock in the water and the
ripples go beyond sight,” Baker said. “It
impacts families, communities. I can’t count
the number o f funerals I’ve done eulogies
for over the past 9 or 10 years. You have
children losing parents, parents losing
children. The overarching affect of gang
violence itself is horrifically tremendous.”
For more information in getting in
volved with the House of Umoja, located
at Northeast 17th and Alberta Street, call
503-282-3296.
problem in themselves
- they are result of a
much bigger problem,
- Or. Vernon Baker
—-4———-----.....— ■
some of them have come from environ
ments where that doesn’t happen,” Baker
said.
Beyond lack of attention, a gang mem
ber may find it’s much easier to make
money selling drugs than it is to work nine
to five at a minimum wage job.
“A lot o f it has to do with economics.
The drug trafficking and involvement can
be lucrative depending on who you are,”
Baker said. “A lot of times people just see
the glamour and the pretty things on the
surface but don’t factor in all the things
below the surface.”
School Closures Pick Up Steam
continued
from Front
M o st o b je c te d to m o v in g
sev en th and eig h th g ra d e rs into
Je ffe rso n .
V esia L oving, a long tim e A f
rican -A m erican resident, parent
and co m m u n ity lead er, c a lle d it
an insane id ea and a n o th e r in a
long list o f ill-a d v ise d ch an g es
to sch o o ls serv in g n o rth and
n o rth e a s t P o rtla n d o v e r th e
p ast 30 y ears.
M any w ere w o rrie d a b o u t
stu d e n ts being in a p p ro p ria te ly
ex p o sed to o ld e r stu d e n ts at
Je ffe rso n .
A large g ro u p o f stu d e n ts
from Sisters in A ction for Pow er
spoke e lo q u e n tly in o p p o sitio n
to the p ro p o sa ls, lik e n in g the
p lan s to racial d isc rim in a tio n
and red lin in g . T h e ir com m ents
drew loud cheers from the a u d i
e n ce.
E lish a W illiam s, 17, said the
d istric t w as c o n tin u in g a p a t
tern o f g e n trific a tio n , forcing a
high p ro p o rtio n o f stu d en ts o f
c o lo r and low -incom e students
in to a very sm all area.
P a re n ts in A p p le g a te and
K enton E lem entary pleaded for
th e c o n t i n u a t i o n o f t h e ir
sc h o o ls, arg uing th e ir n e ig h
b o rh o o d s w ere g ro w in g w ith
new re sid e n ts and p ro sp erity
fu eled in p art by its new light-
rail tra n sp o rta tio n link.
P h illip s said se v e ra l m o d ifi
c a tio n s w ere m ade to her o rig i
nal p ro p o sa ls b a se d on s u g
g e stio n s from the com m unity
and school board m em bers.
One exam ple is that W hitaker
s e v e n th a n d e ig h th g ra d e rs |
would relocate toTubm an Middle
School next year, before both
schools m erge into Jefferson in
tw o years.
S chool d istric t o ffic ia ls said
all the p ro p o sa ls are d e sig n ed
to im p ro v e e d u c a tio n a l s e r
v ices and clo se the a c h ie v e
m ent gap, sta b iliz in g sch o o ls
im p acted by d e c lin in g e n ro ll
m ent, and m axim ize the use o f
staff.
T he b o ard w ill vote on the
recom m endations at th e ir reg u
larly sc h e d u le d m eetin g s on
photo by M ark W ashington /T hf . P ortland O bserver
M onday, M arch 14 and M on
The
New
Seasons
Market
on
North
Interstate
Avenue
between Holman Street and Portland
day, M arch 28.
Boulevard is in the early stages of construction.
New Seasons Market Builds
C onstruction has begun for
opening a new location o f New
Seasons Market on North Portland
Boulevard and Interstate Avenue.
The store is scheduled to open
this fall with more than 33,000square
feet and employing approximately
120 to 130 staff members for this
location.
“ W e ’ve had w o n d erfu l re
sponses from the neighborhood.
People in the community have been
very supportive,” said C laudia
Knotek, community relations man
ager for New Seasons.
“The biggest reason for the new
store is that we had gotten so many
requests from customers,” Knotek
said. “We had so many people say
ing ‘We love your store but it’s too
far to drive.’ We thought this would
be a great location because it’s on
the brand new MAX line. What a
nice way to use public transporta
tion to do grocery shopping.”
The independently and locally
owned store chain celebrated its
fifth anniversary last weekend,
noting five store openings in five
years.
Senate Shoots Down
Minimum Wage Increase
The game is just a game... it’s how you play that makes it fun, or frustrating,
or dangerous. It’s true for all types of games - including gambling. Less than
three percent of Oregonians may have a gambling problem - but when they
play, it’s more than a game. The way they play puts them and their families
at financial and emotional risk.
If playing isn’t fun anymore, call:
1-877-2-ST0P-N0W
Licensed treatment providers are there to listen, help and make
referrals to local treatment centers 24 hours a day.
Or visit www.oregonlotteryhelp.org for:
•
•
•
•
Warning Signs
Treatment Centers
How to Get Help
Reaching Out
►► When gambling is more than a game, no one wins.
(AP) — The last increase in the
minimum wage was in 1996. And if
Republicans now in control of Con
gress have their way, don ’ t look for
another one anytime soon.
The GOP-controlled Senate de
feated a labor-backed increase in
the $5.15 wage floor on Monday,
saying it would only hurt the entry-
level workers it was designed to
help.
Democrats then helped kill a
Republican alternative, arguing it
would have weakened existing
worker protections.
“I believe that anyone who works
40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year
should not live in poverty in the
richest country in the world,” said
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass„
arguing for the Democratic proposal
to increase the minimum wage by
$2.10 over the next 26 months.
Republicans countered with a
smaller increase, $ 1.10 in two steps
over 18 months, they said would
help workers without hampering the
creation of jobs needed to help those
with low skills. But the Republican
bill would have also gutted minimum
wage provisions for restaurant woik-
ers, even in states like Oregon who
have passed a higher minimum wage
for all workers.
The Democratic amendment was
defeated, with 46 votes for and 49
against. The GOP alternative fell by
awidermargin,38forand6I against.
Kennedy accused Republicans
o f advancing a “deeper poverty
agenda” for the poor by includ
ing several p ro v isio n s to cut
long-standing wage and overtim e
protections for mi 1 lions o f Ameri -
cans. He took particular aim at
Sen. Rick Santorum, R -P a.,acon-
servative who is atop the D em o
cratic target list for 2006 and the
lead supporter o f the G O P m ini
mum wage alternative.
Chimney Fall Kills Student
(AP) — A University o f Oregon
student died when he fell down a
chimney shaft at the Ione Plaza, a
14-story apartment building next to
Portland State University.
Firefighters found the man bur
ied under burning ash at the bottom
of the shaft early Sunday, said A.J.
Jackson, a spokeswoman with the
Portland Fire Bureau.
The victim , Tim othy D. Buras
o f Palatine, 111., was visiting Port
land for the weekend with a friend,
w ho said he had w atched Buras
fall into the shaft on the roof o f
the building.
It was the second death in a
decade involving the chim ney
shaft. In August 1994, police found
the body of Michael Louis Hall, 20,
at the bottom of the ventilation
shaft a month after he was reported
missing. Hall had been attending a
party in the apartment building.
l