September 22, 2010
(Obstruer
Page 5
Groups Mobilize for Police Reforms
Call out made
for Saturday
rally, march
A broad cross section o f Portland
groups is calling for public involve
m ent in police union talks and other
police reform s.
The A lbina M inisterial A lliance
C oalition for Justice and Police Re
form is calling on the com m unity to
show their support for their agenda
items during a rally and m arch in at
Pioneer Square in dow ntow n Port
land starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday,
Sept. 25.
In less than a year, Portland police
have been involved in several high
profile cases involving the use o f
excessive force. These include the
shooting deaths o f three men: A aron
C am pbell, Jack Collins, and K eaton
O tis and the police arrest o f a 12 old
girl w ho w as tasered and shot w ith a
bean bag gun at a M A X station.
The A M A C oalition has taken a
strong stand for scrutiny o f the po
lice bureau's use o f excessive force
policy, the need for m ore public in
volvem ent in the Independent Police
Review C om m ittee, and opening p o
lice union contract talks to the public.
"The main goal o f the rally on Sep
tember 25 th is to continue mobilizingthe
community for justice and police re
form," said Rev. Dr. LeRoy Haynes, o f
the A M A Coalition. "Our work is not
done. W e need to restore a respectful
relationship between Portland's police
force and the community."
A lso jo in in g H a y n e s as g u e st
sp e a k e rs fo r th e ra lly , a re K a se y
Ja m a , e x e c u tiv e d ire c to r o f th e
C e n te r fo r In te rc u ltu ra l O rg a n iz
ing; C h ris O 'C o n n o r o f the M en tal
H e a lth A ss o c ia tio n ; Isra e l B ey e r,
e d ito r "S tre e t R o o ts" n e w sp a p e r;
R ev. B ill S in k fo rd , n ew S e n io r
M in ister o f F irst U n itarian C hurch;
M a rc o M ejia, B o a rd D ire c to r o f
V O Z W o rk e rs R ig h ts E d u c a tio n
P ro je c t;a n d re p re s e n ta tiv e s fro m
S is te rs o f th e R o ad , B asic R ig h ts
O re g o n an d P o rtla n d C o p w a tc h
a n d m o re.
The A lbina M inisterial Alliance
C oalition for Justice and Police Re
form is w orking tow ard the following
five goals:
1. A federal investigation o f the
Portland Police B ureau by the Justice
D epartm ent to include crim inal and
civil rights violations, as well as a
federal audit o f patterns and prac
tices o f the bureau.
2. Strengthening the Independent
Police Review Division and the C iti
zen Review C om m ittee w ith the goal
ofadding pow ertocom pel testimony.
3. A full review o f the bureau's
excessive force and deadly force •
policies and training with diverse citi
zen participation for the purpose o f
m aking recom m endations to change
policies and training.
I
Rev. Dr. LeRoy Haynes
4. The O regon State Legislature
narrow ing the language o f the state
statute for deadly force used by po
lice officers.
5. Establishing a special prosecu
tor for police excessive force and
deadly force cases.
The A M A Coalition for Justice
and Police Reform is guided by the
principles o f non-violent direct ac
tion as enunciated by Dr. M artin
Luther King Jr. and is dedicated to
w orking as a team to achieve its goals.
For m ore inform ation, call Rev.
Haynes at 503-249-5844 or Rev. Kate
Lore at 503-706-6482.
Officer Could Get Fired
The mayor o f Portland and its
police ch ie f say they have pro
posed disciplinary action in the
fa ta l shooting o f an unarmed man
during a standoff with officers —
hut the city officials didn't reveal
terms o f the punishment.
The Oregonian reported last
week that a police review board
has recommended that Officer
Ronald Frashour be fir e d fo r fa
tally shooting 25-year-old Aaron
Campbell in the back.
The review board has also rec
ommended another officer and
supervisors be disciplined, in
cluding a suspension fo r one su
pervisor.
The Portland police union said
it would challenge the discipline,
although it, too, would not say
exactly what's been proposed.
Oregon
Action
7
AMERICAN F A lu ff
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A
^September 25th^
Saturday, 11am - 3pm
Genesis C o m m u n ity F e llo w s h ip
5425 NE 27th & Killingsworth, 97211
Free Food, Face P a in tin g , P rize R a ffle & M ore!
c 1»;
K yn ä L. H a rris , Oregon A c tio n O rganizer. 971-634-0005