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Trayvon March
main speakers of the event, Johnny Lake,
Andrae Brown and Marcus Sharpe. Some of
the topics included family, community and
police brutality.
Each smaller group developed a list of
ideas to present to the larger group when it
reconvened at the end of the event.
Debates over some topics were heated but
Dye says they produced a number of pro-
ductive ideas.
One plan that came out of the family and
community discussions was the need for
parents to create a language to better com-
municate
with
teachers
and
school adminis-
trators. This was
part of a larger
discussion on
the importance
of
getting
involved in chil-
dren’s education
because
stu-
dents
today
don’t see the
value of it as
much as past generations.
Another point that was discussed in detail
was the need to get involved in local gov-
ernment.
Dye, who sits on the Marion County Sher-
iff’s Community Adviser Board, uses
himself as an example.
“There are 16 members and I’m the only
Black person,” he says. “My presence is
important so they understand that the Black
community cares.”
Lastly, speakers and participants in “The
Conversation” encouraged attendees to get
involved in organizations in the community,
including the Urban League, gang outreach
and mentoring programs.
“Our goal wasn’t to create another organ-
ization,” says Dye. “We wanted to
reinvigorate the organizations that already
exist in the community. There’s a job for
everyone.”
Originally, the event was billed as a Black
male’s meeting. However, a number of
w o m e n
responded to
the invitation,
so a separate
classroom
was used to
facilitate
a
question and
answer ses-
sion between
them.
Blake Dye
“From the
point of view
of the men,
they were happy to be among themselves,”
says Teressa Raiford, who did marketing for
“The Conversation.”
Raiford said there were a number of spir-
ited conversations on topics that included
what women expect from the men in their
communities and what women can do col-
lectively to enact change.
She says there was a heated debate among
different generations of women about the
‘Our goal wasn’t to create
another organization. We
wanted to reinvigorate the
organizations that already
exist in the community’
PHOTO BY HELEN SILVIS
continued from page 1
Portlanders took to the streets again last weekend for a justice march
remembering Florida teen Trayvon Martin. The march was called by
Cameron Whitten, a Portland mayoral candidate.
role of men. Specifically, she says older
women came with the point of view that
men should already have certain values
instilled in them while younger women
argued that younger men were not taught
some of the values of the older generation
due to a different upbringing.
Another major topic was having discus-
sions with Black children on how they will
be perceived by the police and authority fig-
ures.
“I had to have a discussion with my son
about why it’s not safe to jog at 4:30 in the
morning,” says Raiford. “He thought it was
his clothes and told me his gear was fine. I
had to tell him that the gear was his skin.”
you’re white, whether you’re brown,
whether you’re First Nation, because it
means that we cannot trust our police
department,” Haynes said. “It creates a val-
ley of mistrust. It taints those good and
professional and ethical officers who want
to do the right thing, and do it in the right
way.
“It means that every mother calling 911 in
case of their son or daughter having a men-
tal problem that they have to say
at the end of the call, ‘Don’t kill
my son. Don’t kill my daugh-
ter.’”
AMA Coalition President Dr.
T. Allen Bethel indicated that
the AMA Coalition met this
morning with Portland Police
Union President Daryl Turner.
“There needs to be changes in
policy, there needs to be
changes in procedures, there needs to be
accountability,” Bethel said. “I am asking as
I said before, and I said to Mr. Turner this
morning, the president of the police associ-
ation, please look at your heart. Look at
your soul, I want to add. Because what has
happened is not endearing you nor the
bureau to the city. It is a short fuse on a keg
of powder that’s about to explode.”
State Rep. Lew Frederick described the
Black community in two words: Under
siege.
“Some friends of mine always say, ‘why
don’t we have more local black and minori-
ty folks join the Portland Police force?’
“At the same time I have black officers
pulling me aside as I’m walking down the
street and Asian officers stopping me in the
grocery store, telling me that they know that
the white officers and the supervisors
expect them to be more aggressive with the
minority neighbors than they are, just to
prove that they aren’t weak.
“I have to go back to a 13-year-old, who
came to me – he had always wanted to be a
police officer as a young black kid. He came
to me right after the Aaron Campbell shoot-
ing and said, you always told me if there
was a problem I should talk with the police,
I should call the police. But if I do will they
shoot me?
“That’s how we’re talking about being
under siege,” Frederick said.
“When Rev. Haynes says 100 percent of
the time that there’s excessive force, noth-
ing’s done. Nothing is done. “
more, for a total of 41 solar panels
that will produce 10 KW of energy.
Already, The Skanner’s accountant
reports that our power bills have
gone way down.
The whole project will cost about
$100,000, but who cares. The boss
is paying. And we’re helping to
create green jobs. Actually we did
get a little help from the Portland
Development Commission through
its Green Features program, designed to
help businesses become more energy effi-
cient. That’s funded through the urban
renewal plan for Killingsworth St.
Check out our plan to put the next batch
of solar panels on the outside of our build-
ing. Since Killingsworth Street is now
designated a historic preservation area, it
took a planning hearing and a special per-
mit. The next batch of panels will be
installed on a new awning that will replace
the current fabric awning. Let’s hope they
don’t flap in the wind.
Cop
continued from page 1
“I think the track record with his tenure as
chief and my tenure as police commissioner
shows a real strong effort to continuously
improve this police bureau,” he said.
Adams encouraged members of the public
to schedule ‘ride-alongs’ with officers.
“You’ll find that the Portland Police
Bureau is full of compassionate public ser-
vants,” he said. “With a group of employees
that numbers close to 1,000 you’re going to
have issues like this happen,
and when they do happen,
especially when the Police
Bureau has that sacred
authority and responsibility
for use of force – I believe
that standing up for our prin-
ciples, for appropriate use of
force are worth fighting for.”
The mayor said that only a
“narrow” window of opportu-
nity exists for an appeal.
“It’s unusual for the city to do that and
we’re studying what exactly our opportuni-
ties are in that regard,” he said. “Today I
don’t have an answer for you but we will in
a matter of days.”
Meanwhile, outdoors in the warm spring
sunshine, it appeared that a strong group of
Occupy Portland protestors lent its strength
to the mixed-race crowd, with bullhorns,
signs and car horns honking in support.
Dr. LeRoy Haynes of the Albina Ministe-
rial Alliance Coalition kicked off the rally
with slogans linking the police killing of
Campbell with the recent death of Trayvon
Martin in Florida.
“This decision is outrageous as Trayvon
Martin being shot down by a neighborhood
‘This is the action/reaction principle to
a young person of color: Don’t even
move if you are pulled over. Don’t
make any mistake’
vigilante – holding skittles in one hand and
tea in the other hand.
“There is no way a justice system, an arbi-
tration that promotes itself to be fair just and
unbiased could render such a decision,” he
said.
“This review touched every citizen in
Portland whether you’re black, whether
Solar
continued from page 1
are purple.
The transformation started last Septem-
ber, when we applied a reflective tint to the
windows. Next, a team of workers from
Western Roofing risked their lives to climb
onto our roof and lay down a dazzling,
white reflective surface called – amazingly
enough— White Roof. The building cooled
off immediately. Then we brought in the
real power brokers. Imagine energy
installed an array of solar panels that cap-
tures rays of sunlight and turns them into
Check out our plan to put
the next batch of solar
panels on the outside of our
building
electricity. Right now, the building has 22
panels and plans are underway to install 19
April 4, 2012
The Portland Skanner Page 3