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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 8, 2015)
April 8, 2015 Page 3 INSIDE This page Sponsored by: L ocal N ews Empowering Youth S ports page 5 Trayvon Martin’s mom to visit Portland O livia O livia T he P ortland O bserver Many of those who remem- ber the story of Trayvon Mar- tin, and black Florida teenager murdered in 2012, and the in- famous trial surrounding his killer, George Zimmerman, might remember another name – Sybrina Fulton. Fulton, Martin’s mother, brings her powerful and inspi- rational message on “Empow- ering Our Youth” to Portland, courtesy of the African Ameri- can Alliance and the YWCA of Greater Portland. The program will be held on Monday April 13 from 6:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Maranatha Church, 4222 N.E. 12th Ave. Seating for the event is limit- ed and interested parties are encouraged to arrive by 6:15 p.m. Along with Fulton’s mes- by pages 6-7 O pinion M etro page 9 Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin, will bring a powerful and inspirational message about empowering youth during a forum in Portland, Monday, April 13 at Ma- ranatha Church. sage, there will be spoken is free and open to the public. word, poetry, and music from For more information, you can black youth and other com- leave a message at 503-288- munity members. This event 8429. Police Reform Panel Gets an Earful Outreach brings emotional testimony and frustration O livia O livia T he P ortland O bserver Community frustrations with Portland police were expressed in emotional testi- mony as a panel tasked with monitoring police reforms in the city got an earful at its first public hearing on issues divid- ing law enforcement and the community. African-American and Lati- no mothers were among those who shared their concerns about the safety of their sons in their interactions with police during the Thursday session in northeast Portland sponsored by the Community Oversight Advisory Board. Mothers who lost their sons by pages 8-13 C lassifieds C alendar page 14 page 15 to violent encounters with po- lice, and others who felt mis- treated by police, stepped up to rail against racial profiling and urge officers to treat all people with respect, no matter the color of their skin. A cen- tral theme from the testimony was a demand for the city and Police Bureau to hold officers accountable for misconduct or excessive use of force. The oversight board was created to help monitor fed- erally-mandated reforms to Portland police training and policies. After the first hour of the forum was used up by the police to show how they were working to making connec- tions with the public through social media, billboards and other outreach efforts, resi- dents grew restless and anx- ious for a chance to express their long-term grievances. President of the Portland NAACP chapter Jo Ann Hard- esty said the meeting showed the community is frustrated and expressed the disconnect between what the police say they want and what is happen- ing on the street. One Portland woman, through an interpreter, said that when she called a police officer to assist her in a local dispute over her son’s car be- ing towed, the police officer C ontinued on P age 5
