Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 30, 2011)
www . THESKANNER . COM N OVEMBER 30, 2011 P ORTLAND , O REgON V OLUME XXXIII, N O . 57 25 CENTS I nSIDe Baseball Exhibit page 2 ‘Reel Injun’ page 6 Healthy Recipes C hallenging P eoPle to S haPe a B etter F uture n ow Kids at Coffee Creek? page 8 Rob IngRam, 38 Testimony sought on juveniles held at adult prison facility by lisa loving of The Skanner News pHoTo bY julIe keefe D o you know a teenager who has been processed for incarceration through the adult Coffee Creek Correctional Facility? The nonprofit Partnership for Safety and Justice wants to know how juveniles are being treated there, as part of a research project to bolster new legislation keeping youths out of adult jails. Youth advocates cite research showing that youths incarcerated in adult jails are at increased risk for physical and sexual assault, and when held in isolation can an increased risk of suicide and attempted sui- cide. “The consequences of juveniles in adult prisons are very serious and that’s why we at Partnership for Safety and Justice are working to address that issue,” says the group’s associate director Shannon White. While Coffee Creek Correctional Facility is considered to be the state’s women’s prison, it also serves as the processing cen- ter for newly-convicted male offenders. Earlier this year During the last legislative session the Partnership helped pass HB 2707, which helps to keep youth who are charged as adults out of jail, pretrial. “Research shows kids who have contact with the adult criminal justice system are much less likely to be successful when they get out than youth who are kept in the juve- nile justice system,” White says. Youth who are charged and convicted as adults often — even if they’re going to serve their sentence in an Oregon youth authority facility — can end up doing an intake process through the adult Coffee Creek prison. “We heard from a number of members, both family members and youth who went to Coffee Creek, that it can be awful experi- ence that usually lasts a week, but some- Rob Ingram was a beloved city leader and director of the Portland Office of Youth Violence Prevention who passed last weekend of a heart attack. Here he is pictured accepting the Skanner News Drum Major for Justice Award in January, 2010. The International Fellow ship Family hosts a memorial at noon Friday, at 4401 NE 122nd Ave. Leader, Advocate, Family Man Lost His motto: ‘I don’t work for the police department, I work for kids’ by Helen Silvis of The Skanner News Rob Ingram, director of the Portland’s Office of Youth Violence Prevention, died suddenly Sunday Nov. 27 of a heart attack, at just 38 years old. He leaves behind his wife of 11 years Dana Ingram, and his five children: Shamyua, Derriel, Renee, Njeri, and Kai. With friends in every corner of the city, Ingram was known as a tireless champion for young people, but particularly for poor and minority teens. “I don’t work for the police department, I work for kids,” was his motto. Mayor Sam Adams released a statement saying: “Today, sadly, we lost a friend and public servant, Rob Ingram, who was passionately dedicat- ed to the success of all Portlanders, especially our youth of color. Rob was a man of wit and wisdom and he will be deeply missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his spouse Dana and his entire family.” The International Fellow - ship Family will host a cele- bration of his life at noon Friday, at 4401 NE 122nd Ave. Viewing will be held Thursday, Dec. 1, from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm at Caldwell, Hennessey, Goetsch & McGee, 20 N.E. 14th Ave., and again 10 to 11 a.m. Friday, Dec. 2 at the church. “He was an excellent leader and I expected him to be a force in this community for decades to come,” said Marcus Mundy, president if the Urban League of Portland. “Everything he did in the community was positive. He had a lot of passion and he worked very hard. He wasn’t getting rich doing it – he was fairly selfless. He was a good family man: a loving family man and husband. He was just a very nice person on top of everything else.” Ingram was The Skanner See Ingram on page 9 See prISon on page 3 InDeX Urban League Launches Jobs Initiative News .................2,3,10 Portland ranks 4th worst city in the nation for poverty among Black Opinion ..................4,5 by bruce poinsette Special To The Skanner News A & E ......................6,7 Food.......................8,9 Bids/Classifieds ........11 T he Urban League of Portland is rolling out a new jobs initiative to tar- get multigenerational unemployment in the Black community. “Unemployment has had a devastating effect on Portland,” says director of Advocacy and Public Policy Midge Purcell. “According to recent poverty figures, Portland is number four in the country in poverty levels for Black children.” The Urban League will be holding its Urban Jobs Initiative Community Forum at Humboldt Gardens from 6-7:30 p.m. on Nov. 30. It encourages job seekers, people and families coping with unemployment and underemployment, employers and com- munity members to attend. An Urban League issue brief on inequali- ties in employment shows that there is a large disparity, both nationally and locally, in how the economy has affected Black and white populations. According to the report, white unemploy- ment decreased from 8.8 to 8.5 percent on a national level in the third quarter of 2010. In See jobS on page 3
