January 27, 2021
Page 9
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O PINION
Now Even Harder to Trust the Police
The insurrection
response and the
cops among the
extremists
t raCey l. r ogers
Having lived and
protested in the streets
of D.C., I was shocked
to see the U.S. Capitol
breached by insurrection-
ists denying the outcome of last
year’s presidential election.
As an activist, I’ve gotten scru-
tiny visiting the Capitol just for
wearing politicized attire. So it
was truly remarkable to watch as
a predominantly white mob, en-
couraged by the former president,
stormed the Capitol building on
January 6 with seemingly little re-
sistance.
by
It was impossible not to imag-
ine that had the mob been black
or brown, they would have been
brutally counterattacked and then
prosecuted to the fullest extent of
the law.
When nonviolent racial
justice protestors gathered
on the National Mall last
summer, they were met by
heavily armed police officers
in full camouflage. And yet
police appear to have liter-
ally opened the gates for the
white mob.
This should have never hap-
pened. But it did. The Capitol
Building can, in fact, be breached
if you are white — and have a lit-
tle help.
Guard rails can be removed for
ease of entry. You can even pose
for selfies with Capitol police offi-
cers inside all while possibly plot-
ting to take hostages.
There is something wrong with
all of this. While the majority of
police that day fought to protect our
democracy — one officer, sadly,
lost his life — there were still a few
too many who did little to nothing.
The rioters planned their attack
openly on social media and far-
right websites for weeks. The FBI
warned the Capitol police days
in advance that the Capitol could
be attacked. Even requests to the
Pentagon from D.C. Mayor Muri-
el Bowser for additional National
Guard troops ahead of the rally
were denied.
Yet police that day were told to
prepare for only a “normal” pro-
test, leaving them vulnerable and
easily overwhelmed.
More disturbingly, Rep. Ayanna
Pressley, a Black member of Con-
gress, reported that the panic but-
tons in her office had been ripped
out before the attack. These and
other complaints highlighted con-
cerns from lawmakers that mem-
bers of the Capitol police could
not be trusted to protect them.
Then there are the revelations
that many off-duty police officers
from around the country, includ-
ing from Philadelphia, where I
now live, attended the rally.
Yes, they have a right to free
speech. And perhaps not all who
attended the rally stormed the
Capitol. But knowing that police
attended a rally replete with white
supremacist banners and Confed-
erate battle flags only diminishes
public trust that the police are sup-
posed to rely on.
It’s no wonder that some activ-
ists are reviving calls to defund
the police.
“Tell me again,” activist Bree
Newsome tweeted during the at-
tack, “why we can’t defund the
police and military when they’ve
shown us today that they don’t in-
tend to use any of their expensive
gear to protect the Capitol from a
domestic invasion?”
I believe it’s time to more seri-
ously consider the possibility.
There is plenty of research
that shows how defunding police
departments nationwide would
allow for more social services
(health care, education, housing,
etc.) that center people and com-
munities. Even the ACLU points
out that less policing would actu-
ally make us safer.
For me, as a Black American,
that point is key. After witnessing
this month’s events, I more firmly
distrust the police.
I remembered when Miriam
Carey, a Black woman suffering
a mental health emergency, was
shot and killed by Capitol po-
C ontinued on P age 12
Letters to the Editor
Message was Disingenuous
I am a white, 65 year old male.
I have been an active member of
the Portland NAACP branch for
several years. Mr. Mondaine’s
recent letter in The Portland Ob-
server was troubling to me. This
is the first statement from him
that I have read since the Oc-
tober Mercury article alleging
sexual and other improprieties
and his subsequent resignation
from the branch. While he was
congratulatory of the new officer
slate, many things about the arti-
cle were disingenuous:
It is true, as he states, that
branch membership and fund-
raising increased dramatically
under his watch. What he fails
to acknowledge is that those in-
creases were in direct response
to the racial justice uprising
of 2020. Omitting this context
helps to portray him as the driv-
ing force behind the changes.
The reality is that before those
events, public engagement with
the NAACP chapter was on a
downward trajectory.
Regarding his and the
branch’s involvement in pass-
ing the Portland Clean Energy
Fund, Mr. Mondaine and the lo-
cal NAACP were a helpful, but
relatively small, part of a large
coalition of People of Color led
organizations that helped the
measure pass.
Finally, and probably most
concerning, is that Mr. Mon-
daine presents himself as gra-
ciously conceding his position
to a leadership that he supports.
This could not be further from
the truth. He did all he could
to silence anyone who present-
ed any kind of challenge to his
authority and opinions, includ-
ing violating NAACP bylaws by
dumping people from the Exec-
utive Committee and deposing
committee chairs. He even at-
tempted to void memberships of
several people who contested his
decisions - something the branch
president has no authority to do.
Two of those people currently sit
on the new leadership team he
claims to support. To my knowl-
edge, he has made no attempt to
apologize for his bad behavior or
to reconcile with people that he
has harmed. His congratulatory
words ring hollow.
It further troubles me that
there has been so little comment
from Portland leaders who for-
merly were anxious to curry Mr.
Mondaine’s support and friend-
ship. My hope is that he never
again is given the opportunity
to lead publicly at any level. His
words and actions are not ulti-
mately becoming of a true lead-
er. To the contrary, he has caused
deep and extensive harm. Port-
land will be far better off moving
forward without his voice.
Daniel Portis-Cathers
Portland
On New NAACP Leaders Covering Up
I applaud the new leadership
for prioritizing the establishment
of ground rules that will foster an
open and supportive environment
in order to strengthen communi-
cation. We were missing that. In
the past two years we lost many
amazing pillars in the communi-
ty who resigned out of hurt and
disillusionment. Their departure
from a dysfunctional setting hurt
the PDX chapter. What was left
was a fractured chapter where
many had lost faith in their abili-
ty to “get things done” and work
with an embittered community.
The Education Committee lost
two Chairs, who can speak for
themselves about the damage
and hurdles created by past lead-
ership, and yet the committee con-
tinued to meet. The late Dr. Harris
waited two years to see scholar-
ships being created for the youth.
The PDX chapter has been in-
spired by the election of President
Sharon Gary-Smith and the diverse
leadership committed to “trans-
parency, clarity and accountabil-
ity.” They understand the need to
bring healing and create an inviting
space for those community leaders
who left. I was elated to see them
return. I am greatly encouraged
and look forward to the next two
years. There is a lot of work to do,
and I am confident this leadership
team will rise to the challenge.
Susan Elliott
Portland
Misdeeds
I was taught that congrats and
compliments directed to others
should not be a mere excuse to
glorify and praise oneself. The
former disrespectful and now
disgraced NAACP president
E.D. Mondaine, has once again
allowed his narcissism to over-
take him, and caused him to try
covering his misdeeds with false
praise.
When he stands before the
many he harmed - those vulnerable
young and older men and wom-
en who risked more unspeakable
C ontinued on P age 12