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lattò ffibserucr _________________________ lune 20, 2007
Immigration Raid Breeds Fear
con tin u ed
fro m Front
and passed out bilingual cards de­
signed to assert Fifth A m endm ent
rights.
Possibly no one has lost more sleep
than D iana Ruiz o f O regon ’ s Catholic
Charities. She has been helping orga­
nize em ergency services to address
fear in the undocum ented com m u­
nity, fear w hich seeped into the
greater com m unity, as exhibited by
the large, non-Hispanic majorities that
show ed up to the services.
People like Ruiz co u ld n ’t do any­
thing w ithout a central location and
p o w e rfu l a llie s lik e N o rth e a s t
A lberta's St. Andrew Church, headed
by Pastor C huck Lienert.
Ask Ruiz why imm igrants insist on
entering the country illegally, and
she argues that the federal govern-
m ent is partly to blam e because it has
taken no action to reform a broken
system .
“A lot o f people tell you to com e
legally," says Ruiz. “W e’d really love
tocom e legally, but they have no idea
w hat it takes to com e here to the
United States; it’s alm ost im possible
unless you have a political friend or
som eone who has a lot o f m oney.”
Many city leaders joined advo-
Faith Leaders Condemn Worker Raid
Ecumenical Ministries o f Oregon
condemned last w eek’s raid at the Del
Monte plant in north Portland by the
federal governm ent’s Immigration
and Customs Enforcement agency.
The group said it was “deeply
saddened by this inhum ane and
unnecessary action, w hich has tom
apart families and caused a great
deal o f unnecessary suffering to
children and their parents.
“T o sum m arily arrest large num ­
bers o f m others and fathers w ho are
w orking hard to support their fam i­
lies (leaving their children without
their parents) is unacceptable. As
well as violating the basic principles
o f com passion and justice, these
actions are inhum ane and tear at the
fabric o f our com m unity,” said an
Ecum enical M inistries statem ent.
The group said w hile there are
m any legitim ate concerns about
im m igration issues, low wage un­
docum ented w orkers are not respon­
sible for, and have no pow er over,
the grand political and econom ic
policies that have left them with few
options for a decent life for them ­
selves and their children.
cacy organizations in speaking out
against the action by federal im m igra­
tion officers, but the attending n a­
tional-m edia blitz divided the co u n ­
try. It’s no surprise then that the
com m unity’s intensifying mixed em o­
tions include anger and anguish, with
a little hope.
T he restrictive effects o f a global
econom y have galvanized support
for im m igrant am nesty. "Y ou used be
able to survive in M exico with your
crops and your hens,” Ruiz says,
“but you cannot do that anym ore.”
N onetheless, R uiz expects that
A m erica will rem ain an accepting
melting pot for hardw orking, poor
foreigners, especially in progressive
cities like Portland.
“T here are alw ays going to be
people w ho are going to tell you to go
back, but there are many m ore people
w ho will tell you w elcom e, or thank
you for the jo b you do, thank you for
helping the econom y, thank you for
ju st sharing your culture,” she said.
photo by R aymond R endleman /T he P ortland O bserver
Hispanic-advocate Diana Ruiz works out o f the St.
Andrew Church Parish Hall in northeast Portland. She
has been losing a lot of sleep lately working on behalf of
people caught up in the battle over immigration.
Mixed Bag of Properties Along Interstate
continued
4^
fro m Front
rican A m erican com m unity.
"The PDC is good at trying to
force things because they have the
money, property and w herew ithal
to d o it." Brown said. “ But it doesn’t
mean it’s right for the com m unity.
T hey have their usual suspects
aro u n d the ta b le, but nobody
chooses to listen to cultural differ­
en ces.”
Brown says much o f the neigh­
borhood didn’t want light rail along
Interstate, a sentim ent echoed by
Portland voters who shot down the
M A X p ro p o sal in th e 1990s,
prom pting the city to create an U r­
ban Renewal A rea which, which
made them el igible for federal funds
for light rail construction.
“ MAX acted much like the m e­
dian put along Martin Luther King
Jr. BI vd„” Brownexplairted. “Ittook
away parking and killed business.”
Brown said he has met with City
Com m issioner Erik Sten about af-
photo by S akaii
B lount /T he P ortland O bserver
New apartments and condominiums in the Interstate Avenue Corridor, like this one on North
Montana Avenue, are becoming increasingly common among the single-family neighborhoods of
north Portland.
Providence ElderPlace offers one
convenient solution to the health
care, social and housing needs o f older
adults in N orth and Northeast Portland.
fordable housing in the region, or
the lack o f it.
“At this point I w ant to ask City
C ouncil to request rent control in
n o rth ea st P ortland becau se it’s
outrageous,” he said.
H ousing advocates at the C om ­
m unity D evelopm ent N etw ork rec­
o g n iz e
P D C ’s
e f f o r ts
in
affordability.
“T h ere h a v e n ’t been enough
projects or resources dedicated to
affordable housing, but I think the
PDC and C ity Council have m ade
the com m itm ent, said Sam Chase,
the n etw o rk 's executive director.
He said his group was was in­
strum ental last year in getting a
City Council vote to set aside 30
percent o f urban renewal funds for
affordable housing and increased
access for people o f color.
T he m oney will help those who
fall betw een 0 and 30 percent o f the
m edian fam ily income, capping out
with a fam ily o f four that earns no
m ore than $20,350 a year.
It may be hard to imagine a fami ly
getting by on so little in the Inter­
state neigh b o rh o o d as property
values soar, and for the m ost part
low -incom e households have been
priced out o f the area.
“ I think (the city] has taken a
historic step with this 30 percent,”
C hase said. “ But th ere’s going to
be as m uch o f a challenge to make
sure these dollars get spent on the
right kinds o f project and are effec­
tive and efficient."
Several m em bers o f the com m u­
n ity ad v iso ry b o ard , in clu d in g
M ichelle H aynes o f REA CH C om ­
m unity D evelopm ent, bring to the
group concerns o f shutting out low-
incom e residents.
R E A C H is c o lla b o ra tin g w ith
the PD C an d T riM et in on e o f the
first effo rts to fig h t d isp lac em e n t
b e c a u s e o f g e n tr if ic a tio n by
b rin g in g affo rd a b le ren tal units
to the o ld C ro w n M otel site and
a n a d j a c e n t lo t n e a r N o rth
K illin g sw o rth S treet. T h e m ixed-
use b u ild in g , o p en in g late n ex t
y ear, w ill in c lu d e m o re th an 50
u n its fo r th o se living below’ 50
p erc en t o f the M ed ian F am ily
In co m e, and w ill o ffe r S ectio n 8
c e rtific a te s fo r fam ilies in the
th ree -b e d ro o m units.
T h e P D C is h e lp in g fu n d
R E A C H ’S construction and land
costs, w hich H aynes says has rap­
idly risen o ver the past decade.
W e’re looking for more opportuni­
ties ¡along Interstate], but the question
is when will there be money available to
develop more housing?" Haynes said.
T he PDC invites the public to
w eigh in on the future o f the Inter­
state C orridor Urban R enew al Area
through a series o f m eetings taking
place o ver the next few months.
V isit w w w .pdc.us for a schedule or
more inform ation.
Providence
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Compassionate Care,
Commitment and Community
We believe th a t older adults and th e ir
families deserve the com fort and
convenience of a com plete elder care
program. Our members receive a
comprehensive package o f services.
Providence ElderPlace is a national PACE
program (Program o f All-inclusive Care
fo r the Elderly). We are a Medicare Part
D plan and accept Medicaid, Medicare
and private payment. All approved
prescription and over-the-counter
medications are fu lly covered w ith o u t
additional co-pays or deductibles.
ElderPlace
Serving seniors in your neighborhood at:
Providence ElderPlace in Cully
5119 NE 57th Ave., Portland
P hoto by R aymond R endleman /T he P ortland O bserver
School Ends with
Field Day Fun
Providence ElderPlace at
The M arie Smith Center
4616 N. Albina Ave., Portland
Providence I ElderPlace
To learn more about Providence ElderPlace,
visit w w w .providence.org/elderplace
or call 503-215-6556.
A c a rin g d iffe r e n c e y o u can fe e l
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To celebrate the beginning o f summer vacation,
Jefferson High School students line up Friday for
airbrush tattoos dispensed by hired event staff
during a field day on the last day o f school.
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