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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 3, 2012)
Local News Grant Are You Registered? 4:30 p.m. Problems at Holladay Park – for years a youth violence hotspot — have dropped sharply since Connected began working there, law enforcement officials say. Eleven:45 aims to work on four different prayers for the community. Each volunteer was asked to commit to serving for a t least 45 minutes, one a week for one year. Con- tact Eleven:45 at marcie@eleven45.org or 503-995-3448. Overall, however, gang violence in the City of Portland has increased in 2011. The gang enforcement team has recorded 93 “call outs,” as of Sept. 29, most of them described as “shots fired.” That’s compared to 103 call outs for the whole of 2011. Police and outreach workers are currently attending high school football games with the goal of preventing fights between rival gangs. The Department of Commu- nity Justice is holding a series of interventions based on the work of David Kennedy, who was one of the founders of Cincinnati’s Ceasefire pro- gram. The first of several “call-ins” was held Sept. 28. Selected gang members are called in to a meeting with law enforcement and community members, where they are confronted with the consequences of illegal behavior, and at the same time are offered help. The mother of a homicide victim also spoke at the event as did a former gang member. “This really gave a strong message to gang members that violence will not be tol- erated, but if they want to get help then we will give it to them,” said Erika Pruitt, a Eleven:45 and the District Attorney’s office are working together on an initiative that connects gang-affected youth with pastors. As a condition of probation, first- time offenders who have committed minor offenses will be asked to contact a mentor through the Eleven:45 program fronts, which it calls: There, Care, Share and Prayer. Connected is part of the “There” group, which puts adults on the street and in parks to talk to youth. The “Share” group offers one-to-one mentorship through Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Columbia North- west. The “Care” group offers comfort to bereaved and grieving families. The “Prayer” group does just that –offers PHOTO BY SLISA LOVING continued from page 1 Roseta Akins, left, checks the voter registration status of a young man who walked into the Voter Registration Depot at 1615 NE Killingsworth St. The depot is in overdrive, training volunteers to go out and register as many voters as possible before Oct. 16 – the cutoff for registering in time to vote on Nov. 6. The office is open Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 8 p.m., and Sundays from 1 to 8 p.m. manager with the Department of Communi- ty Justice. Other developments in youth and family violence prevention work include: The Police Activities League begins its fall football program, serving 1,200-1,300 youth in elementary and middle school. Community members are encouraged to support youth by attending games. The Rosewood Initiative is holding a series of Monday night celebrations starting Oct. 15, at the Rosewood Café, 16126 S.E. Stark. Events will include photography ses- sions for families, arts, music, crafts, beauty, yoga and dance. Everyone is invit- ed to attend. If you want to share a fun activity, contact Jenny Glass at Jenny@RosewoodInitative.org. Forum continued from page 1 Michael Alexander CEO of the Urban League of Portland said; “The partnership with PFLAG Portland Black chapter has been constructive and has helped illuminate issues faced by a individuals and families who are often marginal- ized and invisible. We are stronger when we work together to find solutions that will help the community thrive and prosper. ” PFLAG Portland Black Chapter and the Urban League of Portland are partnering with Basic Rights Oregon Our Fam- ilies, Western States Center and Pride NW to look at the National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. June Key Delta House, 5940 North Albina St. in Portland To RSVP or more information about event: 503-280-2600 findings of the report in an upcoming forum. Please join us. National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. June Key Delta House, 5940 North Albina St. in Portland To RSVP or more information about event: 503-280- 2600. Angelou continued from page 1 ing.” In 2010, she was awarded the Presi- dential Medal of Freedom. She talked to The Skanner News Monday, Oct. 1, about President Obama, reading, and what the good life means to her. The Skanner News: Dr. Angelou, I came to see you speak many years ago at the Uni- versity of Portland. Have you visited Portland often? Maya Angelou: Oh many, many times. It is one of my favorite cities, Portland – it’s very beautiful. I am happy to come. I used to have friends Portland, who I’m sorry to say have passed on. But I have friends in other parts of Oregon and I’m sure they will come to Portland. There is a wonderful painter and artist. Her name is Lynda Lanker and she has a new book out on sheroes—Tough by Nature. It’s a won- derful book. You’d really like it. And then, there is a great philosopher liv- ing in Oregon: Gary Zukav, who was just on Oprah’s program. He is one of those great minds, and he is a friend of Oprah’s and a friend of mine. He is the author of the Seat of the Soul, and his new book is “Spiritual Partnership: The Journey to Authentic Power”. He is brilliant, really brilliant and I don’t use that word casually. There is an area in Portland named for me. It is an apartment building called the Maya Angelou. I have been to visit before, and when I am in Portland I will go and see the Maya Angelou. I’d like to meet the people ton. When she first moved to Arkansas, I think a number of people expected that, this cute little blonde coming down there as the wife of the governor, that she would have governor’s teas on the lawn or something. Instead, she became very interested in the ‘There is an area in Portland named for me. It is an apartment building called the Maya Angelou. I have been to visit before, and when I am in Portland I will go and see the Maya Angelou.’ and have some chat with them. TSN: You started off by supporting Hillary Clinton in the run-up to the last presidential election. So what do you think about President Obama now? MA: I think he has done much better than he gets credit for. But I also think President Obama did not expect the opposition he encountered. Let me tell you first about Secretary Clin- conditions in prisons and she tried to improve those conditions. And she worked for healthcare. I was very impressed. Later when she came to Washington as the First lady, I thought, “Now I will really see what she is made of.” And when she got there, I think she set the journalists’ backs up. Because she said, “If you’re expecting someone to come here and talk about making chocolate chip cook- ies, you don’t want me.” I saw her and I said: “If you ever run for anything, I’ve got your back. So I did sup- port her when she ran for the Democratic nomination. Then when she stepped down, I went over to the Obama camp and said, “Well if I can be of any use…” And I sup- ported him for the rest of the campaign. TSN: And you think he has not been given the credit he deserves? MA: Yes, very much so. I am sorry to say – and I know this will make a lot of people angry, and so forth –but the truth is, I see a lot of racism in the campaign. It’s unfortu- nate, because as soon as he was voted in there were people who dug their heels in the ground and said: “I will not support him no matter how good his plan. No matter how good his intentions are: I will not support him.” And you know, when the automobile industry was about to keel over, he worked to get money for the automobile industry, and he was opposed on every end. But he persevered. Read the rest of this story online at www.theskanner.com October 3, 2012 The Portland Skanner Page 3
