News
Providence
Little Libraries
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was their family heritage? What kind of previous losses
have they had, that are unresolved? What other kind of
stressors are going on in their lives?
We talk about grieving styles, because not everybody
grieves in the same way. That’s a big one for a lot of people.
They often struggle because they’re concerned about family
members as well as their own grieving process.
And when they do find their way, their life might not to
go together in the same way it was before, if you know what
I mean.
TSN: It sounds really hard.
AK: When people come, nothing is expected of them. I
let them know that. So if they just want to sit and listen and
take information and, that’s all they have to do.
TSN: What is the most important thing people should
know about the work you do around grieving?
AK: I think– that they’re not alone. And we trust them to
know what they are ready for. Nobody is going to be trying
to force them to do anything. We just simply meet them
where they’re at, and provide whatever support they need.
For more information on Providence Health & Services
grieving programs, go to www.oregon.providence.org or
www.washington.providence.org.
PHOTO BY HELEN SILVIS
I’m not an expert on their grief,
because it’s too unique
Youth interns with Multnomah County’s STRYVE (Striving To Reduce Violence Everywhere) program
worked with staff at the nonprofit jobs program Constructing Hope and with the ReBuilding Center
to build 150 Little Libraries. The youth plan to stock the little libraries with books that feature
characters that reflect the diversity of county children. After painting the libraries the youth will
install them in four target neighborhoods: New Columbia, Albina/Killingsworth, Cully and
Rockwood/Rosewood. Volunteer hosts still needed: Contact STRYVE on the STRYVEPDX Facebook
page.
Pot
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outliers in enforcement,” O’Toole said.
“The officer’s actions have been reported to
OPA and he will not perform patrol duties
during the course of the investigation.”
O’Toole also offered more information
that appears to suggest a personal motive
for the disproportionate enforcement.
“In some instances, the officer added
notes to the tickets. Some notes requested
the attention of City Attorney Peter Holmes
and were addressed to ‘Petey Holmes.’ In
another instance, the officer indicated he
flipped a coin when contemplating which
subject to cite. In another note, the officer
refers to Washington’s voter-enacted
changes to marijuana laws as “silly.”
Holmes was a vocal advocate for legaliz-
ing marijuana and also for the ordinance
that banned public use.
The officer indicated he flipped a coin when
contemplating which subject to cite
The report found that all but one of the
tickets were issued by bicycle officers
patrolling areas around Victor Steinbrueck
Park, Westlake Park, Occidental Park and
downtown streets.
Only six percent of the tickets, which can
demand up to $50, have been paid. Almost
two-thirds are in default already with others
unpaid and on track for default.
Marijuana legalization advocates argue
that research shows that African Americans
and other people of color are arrested,
charged and imprisoned at higher rates than
whites, even though they don’t use the drug
at higher rates. Now the report on the pub-
lic use ordinance shows that public use
tickets have disproportionately targeted
Blacks.
In 2011 the Department of Justice
released a report on Seattle Police Depart-
ment that found constitutional violations in
use of force and serious concerns about dis-
criminatory policing.
“ Of the cases that we determined to be
unnecessary or excessive uses of force, over
50 percent involved minorities,” the DOJ
report noted.
Seattle City Council instituted reforms,
“If that doesn’t happen, the Court should
make clear that there will be certain conse-
quences, including, if necessary, a
requirement that the State be barred from
funding non-education elements of the
budget.”
evaluations to include student growth on
state tests, when appropriate.
“I agree: Student progress should be one
of multiple elements in a teacher’s evalua-
tion,” he said. “Unfortunately the teacher’s
union felt it was more important to protect
but has experienced pushback over the new
use of force policy. More than 100 police
officers launched a lawsuit to fight the
changes in May 2014.
Gerald Hankerson says more needs to be
done.
“In order to bring justice to our communi-
ty and integrity to our police department,
we need to acknowledge the problem and
work together to fix it,” he said. “Police
officers need to have an understanding of
structural and institutional racism, and the
role they play in continuing to criminalize
the black community. There needs to be an
open line of communication with communi-
ty members, and we all need to come
together to find solutions that ensure that
everyone is treated equally under the eyes
of the law.”
Schools
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cut to bolster education.
The Legislature did file a plan with the
Court but it was not “complete;” the Court
then ordered the Legislature to appear Sept.
3 and explain why it shouldn’t be sanc-
tioned for failing.
The Children’s Alliance, Columbia Legal
Services and the Washington Low Income
Housing Alliance last week filed an Amicus
Curiae brief asking that the state “refrain
from funding education in a way that jeop-
ardizes housing and other basic services to
children and families.”
The groups support Mc Cleary but say
vulnerable communities will be hurt if law-
makers “rob Peter to pay Paul.”
“If we cut social programs to pay for edu-
cation, everyone’s worse off,” said
Children’s Alliance Executive Director
Paola Maranan.
“In addressing our failure to uphold kids’
right to a basic education, we don’t want the
solution to exacerbate the problem.”
But Washington State Superintendent
Randy Dorn last week filed his own motion
with the Court demanding they take strict
measures to hold the Legislature account-
able.
“The state Legislature and the Governor
should be given the 2015 session to make
substantial progress on fully funding basic
education,” his office said in a statement.
‘If we cut social programs to pay for education,
everyone’s worse off’ —Children’s Alliance
Executive Director Paola Maranan
“The Legislature passed a plan to fully
fund education,” Dorn says. “Now they
need to fund it.”
Dorn has another legislative fight on his
hands because of the federal government’s
NCLB ruling, which means the state must
go back to “Adequate Yearly Progress”
reporting in reading and math.
“Washington State has been doing great
work under our waiver agreement,” Dorn
said in a statement when the ruling was
handed down last April. “We have devel-
oped our own system that more accurately
reflects the progress being made by schools
across the state.
“But to get our waiver renewed for next
year, the Department of Education was
clear: The Legislature needed to amend
state law to require teacher and principal
their members than agree to that change and
pressured the Legislature not to act.”
On the McCleary Act requirements, Dorn
argues that the Court should give the Wash-
ington Legislature one more year to come
up with a specific plan for education fund-
ing; if the lawmakers fail, they would get
the “hammer.”
“I’m asking the Court to hand the plain-
tiffs a hammer if enough isn’t accomplished
in 2015. That hammer could stop spending
that doesn’t apply to basic education,” Dorn
said last week.
“That could include declaring all, or part,
of the 2015-17 operating budget unconstitu-
tional.”
He added that he does not believe such
sanctions should be rolled out yet.
“As a former legislator, I understand the
difficulty of the work that needs to be
done,” he said. “There are only two major
state budgets left before the 2018 deadline:
2015 and 2017. That leaves only two oppor-
tunities to satisfy McCleary.”
The children’s rights coalition argues that
paying for schools by cutting or freezing
basic services – such as housing — would
only hurt low-income families, which they
say are already in a funding crisis of their
own.
“Cutting programs could not have come at
a worse time, as students in homeless
households are at an all-time high,” the
groups said in a statement. “The Office of
Superintendent of Public Instruction report-
ed 30,609 homeless students in the 2012-13
school year.”
“For children across Washington, the lack
of a safe, stable home can be a huge barrier
to learning,” says Housing Alliance execu-
tive director Rachael Myers. “We already
have proven, innovative programs that cre-
ate affordable homes and keep families and
children stably housed. They just need to be
adequately funded.”
For more information go to www.chil-
drensalliance.org; www.columbialegal.org;
wliha.org;
www.k12.wa.us;
and
www.courts.wa.gov.
August 6, 2014 The Portland and Seattle Skanner Page 3