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January 20, 2016
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Racial Equity Progress
Report inds success but more work ahead
Racial equality legislation moved at a
record pace in Oregon last year, but more
engagement will be needed to advance civ-
il rights bills in the future, according to a
new annual report by a coalition of racial
and social justice organizations.
“Facing Race: the 2015 Oregon Legis-
lative Racial Equality Report,” was issued
last week by a group that included the Ur-
ban League of Portland, Coalition of Com-
munities of Color, Basic Rights Oregon,
Center for Intercultural Organizing and
others.
According to Rev. Joseph Santos-Ly-
ons, executive director of the Asian Pacif-
ic American Network of Oregon, and one
of the other groups that participated in the
study, lawmakers were involved with com-
munity members early and more often in
2015 than in past sessions.
Some of the accomplishments included
Police Relations Suffering
A new study commissioned by the may-
or to improve police training shows that
over half of the Native Americans polled
in Portland distrust police. The study found
that most whites found the police “trust-
worthy” while slightly less than half of
African Americans agreed. Only about a
third Native Americans said the same.
Suspect Caught in Hit-and-Run
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The driver in a hit-and-run that critically
injured a pedestrian on Friday night sur-
rendered to authorities Monday. The vic-
tim, who was struck at the intersection of
Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and
Jarrett Street, is expected to survive.
Planned Parenthood Files Lawsuit
On Thursday one of the biggest nonproits
in the United States iled a federal lawsuit
alleging extensive criminal misconduct
by anti-abortion activists who produced a
Nkenge Harmon Johnson
the passage of laws to end racial proiling,
giving workers paid sick leave, and ban-
ning questions about prior criminal records
on job applications until after an applicant
is considered a job inalist.
The
Week
in
Review
misguiding video targeting the handling
of fetal tissue at some Planned Parenthood
clinics. The organization says they have
had to up their security since the footage
with false allegations came out, and that
the groups targeting them committed fraud.
Wage Increase Proposed
Gov. Kate Brown announced a proposal
Thursday to increase the minimum wage
throughout Oregon. The plan calls for a
two-tiered minimum wage increase gradu-
ally over the next six years. Wages would
be higher in Portland than in other areas,
with the metro area having a minimum
wage of $15.52 hourly by 2022.
Nkenge Harmon Johnson, president
and chief executive oficer of the Urban
League of Portland, cautioned that there
was still more work to do to fully advance
racial equity in the state.
“We need folks to champion racial equi-
ty legislation,” she said, before presenting
the report’s recommendations to lawmak-
ers and the public. The document included
calls for increased representation of people
of color among elected representatives,
greater engagement from legislative lead-
ership, and good implementation and fund-
ing for the civil rights bills that passed in
2015.
Andrea Miller, executive director of
Causa, another group involved in the study,
stressed that helping communities of color
and other disadvantaged groups was ulti-
C ontinued on p age 4
Solidarity Against Hate
A solidarity rally was held Saturday at
Portland City Hall to support members of
the community who have been the victims
of hate speech and violence. #StandFor-
Love and #InterruptHate” was organized
by groups with a range of religious, eth-
nic, and community viewpoints. Speakers
included civil rights leaders, like Jo Ann
Hardesty, president of Portland’s NAACP
chapter, and others.
Sentenced for Killing Girlfriend
A Portland-area man was sentenced Fri-
day to 20 years in prison in the 2015
death of his girlfriend, whose body was
found in the Willamette River off Kelly
Point Park. Nicholas Estrada, 23, plead-
ed guilty to manslaughter and unlawful
use of a weapon as part of a plea bargain
while Monica Taylor, the mother of the
victim Elyesicia C. Payton, addressed
the court and looked on.