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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 19, 2020)
August 19, 2020 The Page 3 INSIDE L O C A L N E W S Week in Review page 2 page 6 M ETRO In light of recent events of racial injustice, TriMet is re-evaluating its approach to public safety and security. TriMet Eyes Changes in Policing page 7 S PORTS Agency calls on public to guide response Arts & page 8 ENTERTAINMENT TriMet says recent events of racial injustice, including the kill- ing of George Floyd and too many others at the hands of law enforce- ment, has led the regional transit agency to take action to bring last- ing change in policing. The agency is re-evaluating its approach to public safety and se- curity to make the transit system better—more safe, welcoming and equitable for all, officials said. Last month, as part of the effort, TriMet re-allocated $1.8 million in funding from traditional po- lice services and other sources to community-based public safety services. Now TriMet is launching a broad community outreach and engagement effort to help inform change in its safety efforts. In partnership with the Coalition of Communities of Color and DHM Research, TriMet will seek feed- back from riders, community groups, local leaders and the pub- lic, as well as our frontline work- ers and security officers. “We want to bring more voic- es into the conversation as we re-imagine public safety and se- curity on our transit system,” said TriMet General Manager Doug Kelsey. “Transit, in and of itself, brings social equity to a communi- ty, providing access to opportunity, connecting people from all races, religions and economic levels to jobs and education. We also want to ensure the security on our transit system is fair and free of bias as we address the needs of all our riders and employees to feel safe.” TriMet will also research na- tional best practices in equity and transit security. A third-party anal- ysis of security challenges facing the region as well as the types of issues that riders experience on board buses and trains will also be completed. For more on TriMet’s equity actions, visit trimet.org/equity. Ryan to Fill Vacant Council Seat Candidate bests Smith in close runoff page 9 O PINION C LASSIFIED /B IDS pages 9-10 Established 1970 USPS 959 680 4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland, OR 97211 The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied by a self addressed envelope. All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or per- sonal usage without the written consent of the general man- ager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad. © 2008 THE PORTLAND OBSERVER. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED. The Portland Observer--Oregon’s Oldest Multicultural Publication--is a member of the National Newspaper Association--Founded in 1885, and The National Advertising Representative Amal- gamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers Association PO QR code P ublisher : e ditor : Mark Washington, Sr. Michael Leighton Office Mngr/Clasfds: Lucinda Baldwin C reative d ireCtor : Paul Neufeldt o ffiCe a sst /s ales : Shawntell Washington CALL 503-288-0033 • FAX 503-288-0015• news@portlandobserver.com ads@portlandobserver.com• subscription@portlandobserver.com Postmaster: Send address changes to Portland Observer, PO Box 3137, Portland, OR 97208 Dan Ryan, a former Portland School Board member and execu- tive director of a youth advocacy organization, will fill a vacant po- sition on the Portland City Council left open by the death of City Com- missioner Nick Fish in January. Ryan narrowly outdistanced former Multnomah County Com- missioner Loretta Smith in last week’s special runoff election to immediately fill the two years re- maining of Fish’s term. The con- test was a sequel to a May Primary election in which no candidate in the race captured a majority vote. In the Aug. 11 special runoff, Ryan captured 51 percent of the vote to 48 percent for Smith, a crushing loss to a long time mem- ber and advocate for Portland’s African American community. Smith issued a statement on Facebook thanking her supporters, Dan Ryan pledging to continue promoting progress for Black people in Port- land, and asking others to join her. “For all of us who genuinely believe that Black Lives actually do matter, I call on you to stop be- ing silent and complacent to the anti-blackness that has permeated every facet of our community,” she said. “Indeed we cannot truly call ourselves a progressive city when progress is not being made for Black people in Portland.” Ryan, who served as chief ex- ecutive officer of the educational Loretta Smith nonprofit All Hands Raised, said he was honored and humbled to be elected. He thanked Smith for bringing her passion and love for the city into a special election race run amidst a global pandemic and largely defined by unrest sur- rounding police violence and the Black Lives Matter movement. “This campaign was about bringing Portlanders together to address the issues we all face,” he said. “Our city is in crisis and I am eager to join in and get to work,” he said.
