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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 18, 2018)
July 18, 2018 Page 13 Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views of the Portland Observer. We welcome reader essays, photos and story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com. O PINION Creating a Justice System that Works for Everyone Community supervisors play critical role e rika p reuitt In my 25 years working in the criminal justice system, I have seen the widespread impact extended jail stays have on individ- uals, families, and communities at-large – loss of employment and wages, disruption to families, and interruption to treatment and care for those who need it. What’s more, the misuse and overuse of jail perpetuates racial disparities and can turn jails into warehouses for people suffering from mental health and substance abuse is- sues. Locking up people who pose limited or no risk to public safe- ty comes at great cost with little benefit. This is not what jail was intended for. We can serve our by whole community better. Monica’s story is an example of the kind of success possible when we rethink how we use jails and direct resources to prov- en alternatives. Monica spent years struggling with addiction and cy- cling in and out of jail for drug-related of- fenses. Her time in jail forced her to miss birth- days, graduations, the birth of a grandchild, and other major life milestones. But today, she has been sober and out of jail for 16 years. She’s a proud busi- ness-owner and dedicated years of her life to helping survivors of domestic violence. Monica was determined to turn her life around, but she didn’t do it alone. We know that for many people like Monica who come in contact with the justice system, the critical catalysts for change are dedicated probation officers and service providers who are in unique positions to create lasting change in people’s lives. In Moni- ca’s case, her probation/parole of- ficer helped connect her with ad- diction treatment, job training, and peer support services, and played the role of mentor and cheerleader for her long-term success. In Multnomah County and across the country, communi- ty supervision professionals are helping put people like Monica on better paths and break cycles of in- carceration. We know community supervision can play an important role helping reduce rates of recid- ivism and over-incarceration. In Multnomah County, in 2017 the Department of Community Jus- tice reduced jail bed use by an average of 62 beds per day and maintained recidivism rates below the state average by engaging in deliberate jail reduction strategies. We also know that, as in Monica’s case, supervisors can be critical in connecting people with jail alter- natives, such as treatment for sub- stance abuse and mental health is- sues that have long-term impacts. One such alternative service is soon to open in Multnomah Coun- ty. As part of the MacArthur Foun- dation’s Safety and Justice Chal- lenge, the county will soon open a new transitional housing facil- ity for justice-involved women, with a particular focus on serving women of color. The facility – named the Di- ane Wade House after the much beloved probation/parole officer who helped hundreds of women in her community, including Monica – will provide transitional hous- ing for justice-involved women referred by the Department of Community Justice who are in need of mental health stability and support, as well as cognitive-be- havioral and culturally-respon- sive curriculum day services for women from across the county. Programming will be Afrocentric, gender-specific, and trauma-in- formed to reflect people’s lived experiences and help reduce ra- cial and gender disparities in our current system. The new facility is part of the county’s overall goals to end jail overuse and misuse and reduce racial and ethnic dispari- ties in our local justice system. As jurisdictions like Mult- nomah County continue the necessary work of local justice system reform, community su- pervisors will continue to play important roles. This week is of- ficially Pretrial, Probation, and Parole Supervision Week, a time to recognize the work these pro- fessionals do impacting people’s lives, maintaining public safety, and creating a justice system that works for everyone. I encourage everyone to learn more about the work underway locally and across the country. Erika Preuitt is deputy director of Multnomah County’s Depart- ment of Community Justice’s and president of the American Proba- tion and Parole Association. Employing the Tactic of Naming and Shaming It works and should be continued o scar h. b layton There was a reason Ku Klux Klan mem- bers wore hoods that hid their faces. Anonymity allows people to act upon their worst instincts without hav- ing to suffer the consequences. Southern bigots acted out their racial hatred as night riders and then resumed their roles as re- sponsible doctors, policemen, judges and other model citizens the next day because no one knew who was behind the masks. The Internet has given individ- uals similar anonymity, allowing trolls and haters to assume false or cloaked identities as they terrorize their victims in cyberspace. There had always been a certain shame that attached to depraved acts of cruelty. Bullies and sadists did not want to be known for their true selves. If the world did not by know who they were, they could dress themselves in a suit of false rectitude and hypocritically wag their fingers at those they deem to be unfit. Today, however, there is a new norm for bullying and sadism. Donald Trump has fig- uratively flung wide the gates of hell and all its minions have come spilling out. His cabinet is rife with villains determined to leave the entire Earth worse than when they found it. They appear to take joy in abusing the helpless and molesting the rights of peo- ple they consider unworthy. Trump’s lieutenants are so drunk with power they believe that through their lies they can support bigotry, greed and cal- lousness with impunity. But recent events have shown that America has had enough of this bad behavior and will not allow it to be normalized. In confronting Trumpism, we can all take a lesson from Emile Zola, the French journalist who in a famous 1898 commentary Letter to the Editor Give Pot to Seniors titled “J’accuse” charged the French president and government with anti-Semitism because of a blatant case of injustice against a Jewish French military offi- cer, Alfred Dreyfus. Dreyfus had been falsely accused and convict- ed of treason due to anti-Semitic sentiment in France at the time. Zola’s charge against the pres- ident and government of France spoke truth to power so forceful- ly that it started a groundswell of support for Dreyfus that led to his being released from prison and awarded a medal for having en- dured martyrdom. This tactic of “Naming and Shaming” also has been used for years by Human Rights Watch to confront dictators and human rights violators around the world with an aim towards forcing them to stop their bad behavior. Now it is time to employ this tactic at home. We know who the bad actors are, and we know what they are doing to enable a maniacal, pow- er hungry demagogue who poses a threat, not only to this country, but to the world. The Nuremberg Trials established the principle that individuals cannot escape the consequences of their actions by claiming that they were merely following orders, and Trump’s minions cannot escape responsi- bility for their bad behavior by claiming they were only carrying out the president’s wishes. Among some Democrats who consider themselves to be pro- gressive, there is strong support for the tactic of naming and shaming when used against for- eign dictators and their enablers. But they appear to value civility over justice and wring their hands over the lack of decorum when it is used against Trump’s enablers. These Democrats have turned on Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California and chided her for speaking truth to power when she called for all right-thinking Americans to confront Trump’s enablers whenever they show their faces in public. Those of us old enough to re- member the Civil Rights Move- ment recall that Southern bigots and their enablers intoned in the 1960s how demonstrators lacked civility and proposed proper de- corum as the path to voting rights and equal justice when confront- ed with fire hoses, vicious po- lice dogs and bludgeoning night sticks. Only after it became clear that civil disobedience would persist until the humanity of people of color was recognized that Amer- ica’s political and cultural land- scape began to change. For anyone who has a love for humanity, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sand- ers and the rest of Trump’s hellish minions are not entitled to civil- ity, regardless how many “white girl tears” they shed over being ejected from restaurants and oth- er public places. Shaming them is a tactic that works and should be continued, as it is quite possibly the way to bring America back to a sane path – the qualms of those who would abide tyranny for the sake of de- corum notwithstanding. Oscar H. Blayton is a former Marine Corps combat pilot and human rights activist who prac- tices law in Virginia. Recent news coverage has in- dicated that there is an oversupply of pot. Well many of us seniors grew up smoking the stuff. It was and is the only way we can cope with our vicious economy and the never ending increase in the cost of living. Some of us, like me, had to retire early because of drug test- ing. Many of us are physically and mentally impaired due to the stress and strain of working in our free enterprise economy. We live near poverty. Let seniors have the oversupply for free. We can no longer afford to live, and yes, we are addicted. Help us. Bruce Badrick Northeast Portland