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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 6, 2020)
Campus Love, Support during COVID-19 Surviving a Pandemic Karin Edwards on our collective response to health crisis See Cascade Connections, page 7 Grassroots lender helps small businesses See Local News, page 3 Established in 1970 PO QR code Volume XLVIV • Number 12 ‘City of Roses’ www.portlandobserver.com Wednesday •May 6, 2020 Committed to Cultural Diversity Important Election Looms Photo by b everly c orbell /t he P ortland o bserver Portland Attorney Ernie Warren puts his 31 years as lawyer heading up his own law firm and a lifetime of pursing justice issues as qualifications in a campaign for election as an Oregon Circuit Court Judge for Multnomah County. Warren Campaigns for Judge Experience and community ties win accolades b everly c orbell t he P ortland o bserver Ernest “Ernie” Warren Jr., a seasoned Portland lawyer, passionate civil and criminal defense attorney and long time advocate for pursing justice issues, is asking voters to put him on the bench for an open seat on the Oregon Circuit Court for Multnomah County, one of six candi- dates running in Oregon’s May 19 vote-by-mail election. Warren has been a mainstay in Portland’s African American community since his family migrated here from Texas in the 1930s and ‘40s. The Warren clan came to Portland from Pleasant Hill, Texas after mechanization took their farming jobs, During World War II, employment at ESCO Corporation, today a global manufacturer of metal parts, provided economic opportunity. By the 1960s, there were more Warrens in Portland than back in Texas, and like other second and third generation members of the black community, they were employed in many different professions. In an interview the Portland Observer, Warren told how his father, Ernest Warren Sr., was a successful insurance by broker. But far from coddling his son, the senior Warren was insistent that his son learn the value of work. From the time he was just 9 years old, while other kids were playing summer sports, Warren Jr. was expected to work and work hard. Warren said he remembers joining his grandfather at the time, who would pick him up before daybreak, to go pick whatever produce was in season on local farms. “So I know what it’s like to go out and pick berries and beans all summer long and have your hands all stained with dirt,” he said. Warren said the values he learned growing up in a big close knit family formed the basis for his lifelong involve- ment in the community. In 1990, he opened the first Afri- can American-owned law firm in the state with the goal of “being a resource to the community, serving the common good and steadfastly pursuing justice.” He said he was in- spired by the words of Martin Luther King Jr., “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” “I’m running because I want to be a person who main- tains justice and always do what is right,” Warren said. In his 31 years in practice serving a diverse clientele, Warren earned a reputation as a passionate attorney and Ballots out; countdown begins by M ichael l eighton P ortland o bserver e ditor Voters in the May 19 Primary have less than two weeks to mark their ballots in an important vote-by-mail election that will decide who wins many local offices outright or sends their campaigns into a runoff in November. In ad- dition, two ballot measures face ratification and adoption with a simple majority. In Portland, a diverse field of candidates faces votes with candidates of color and clearly liberal credentials running in all four contested races for seats on the Portland City Council, including mayor; an open position on the Oregon Circuit Court in Multnomah County; and contest- ed positions for Metro Councilor and Oregon Secretary of State. The names of Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren and Ber- nie Sanders will appear on the Democratic Primary Ballot for President, but Biden is already the presumed nominee after beating Sanders in recent contests and holding what political experts say is an insurmountable lead. Sanders and Warren have already conceded, but in some cases they can collect more delegates for the party convention. A two-way race for Multnomah County District At- torney features Mike Schmidt, a former deputy DA and justice reform candidate who has won endorsements from civil rights and racial justice advocates versus Ethan O. Knight, another former deputy DA and assistant U.S. At- torney who has endorsements from a wide swath of the legal establishment, prosecutors, police and firefighters. Two ballot measures face voters in Portland, a proposed city measure to renew a 10-cent per gallon fuel tax to pay for street repairs, maintenance and safety; and a proposed Metro tax on high incomes and business profits of over $5 million to pay for homeless services. c ontinued on P age 11 c ontinued on P age 11 Ballots for the May 19 vote by mail election are out.
