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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (July 13, 2016)
Page 2 The Skanner July 13, 2016 Challenging People to Shape a Better Future Now Bernie Foster Founder/Publisher Bobbie Dore Foster Executive Editor Jerry Foster Advertising Manager Christen McCurdy News Editor Patricia Irvin Graphic Designer Arashi Young Reporter Monica J. Foster Seattle Office Coordinator Susan Fried Photographer 2016 MERIT AWARD WINNER The Skanner Newspaper, es- tablished in October 1975, is a weekly publication, published every Wednesday by IMM Publi- cations Inc. 415 N. Killingsworth St. P.O. Box 5455 Portland, OR 97228 Telephone (503) 285-5555 Fax: (503) 285-2900 info@theskanner.com www.TheSkanner.com The Skanner is a member of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Association and West Coast Black Pub lishers Association. All photos submitted become the property of The Skanner. We are not re spon sible for lost or damaged photos either solicited or unsolicited. ©2016 The Skanner. All rights re served. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission prohibited. Local News Pacific NW News World News Opinions Jobs, Bids Entertainment Community Calendar RSS feeds BE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION #SkNews Opinion My White Male Privilege Is Complicit In Black Male Killings I am the outward embod- iment of privilege. A 39-year-old heterosexual white man. A six-foot-tall lawyer with no physical im- pairments living on a safe street with my white lawyer wife and our two kids in a safe part of an overwhelmingly white city and state...and this letter is about shame. Shame that so many lives in my community and this country have been quietly lived and loudly taken in such demonstrably unjust ways. Shame that our collective in- action, and our cumulative public policies have led us to a place where death from guns, and death from the police, have become so brazen and so common, that even now, despite the advantage and widespread use of recording devices, my own inaction is complicit. When I was 16 years old I was pulled over for the first time in my life. I was speed- ing in northern Virginia. The police officer was standing on the side of the road with a ra- dar gun pointed at my car and he was shouting and motion- ing at me to pull over to the side of the road. The officer approached me quickly and said I was driving 12 miles an hour over the limit. He an- grily told me that I was a new driver and therefore needed to drive more slowly. When he walked back to his motor- cycle to issue me my ticket, I Robert S. Milesnick Attorney at Law, Oregon yelled out my window at him: “Officer, can’t you just give me a warning this time?” It is a shame. It is a shame that at 16 years of age I was al- ready well aware of my white male privilege — or at least not afraid to throw the police “ agers would have yelled out the window of their formerly speeding vehicle at 16 years of age to ask… challenge…a white male officer after they had been so plainly at fault? For how many would that re- quest have been granted? It was granted for me. The officer was visibly upset and shouted that he had just tick- eted a woman who was driv- ing slower than I was, but a lecture was all he gave me before he waved me forward and I drove away. I am a plaintiffs’ civil rights attorney now. All around me I am ashamed that white America has not demanded a systemic re- alignment about who we hire as police officers, how we train them, what we expect from them such an arrogant question ,which is a byproduct of the same thing. I was just a naïve teenager, but I didn’t have an inkling of concern that I might increase my chances of being targeted for later ha- rassment, or told to “step out of the car”, or told to “watch myself ” or told to “calm down” or ultimately become the vic- tim in a reflexive escalation that might lead to my own death over a speeding ticket. How many Black or brown or yellow or red or mentally ill or LGBT or female teen- I see different sides of injus- tice, but I am not forced to personally live it the same way my clients do. It is true that some of the Black men who have been shot by police had criminal records. But that should not diminish the val- ue of their lives or the tragic manner of their deaths in any way, yet I have condoned that devaluing with my silence. I have allowed the absurdi- ty of the indefensible to take root, and I have turned a blind eye to alleged “actionable offenses” given in the name of police officers who, if not legally, were physically re- sponsible for any number of far too many untimely black deaths. Death for “offenses” like speeding…or selling CDs… or loitering…or looking too poor…or looking too rich…or running away…or standing one’s ground….or being a 12 year old boy playing with a toy gun despite growing up in an American culture that so vociferously promotes one’s right — indeed obligation — to possess all manner of real guns (as long as the possessor is white) …or asking “what’s the charge?”…or saying “I want a lawyer” or asserting any number of constitution- ally guaranteed rights ... or pleading with closed eyes, “Officer, can’t you just give me a warning this time?” ...or crying, and then whisper- ing while they died, “I can’t breathe.” I am ashamed that White America has not demanded a systemic realignment about who we hire as police offi- cers, how we train them, what we expect from them, what crimes we enforce and for what actions we hold the pub- lic as well as police account- able. Police officers have an incredibly difficult job, but we must redefine the rules of engagement. Read the rest of this commentary at TheSkanner.com Moving Forward After Last Week’s Tragedies O ne Hundred Black Men, Inc., is deeply disturbed by the homicides of Al- ton Sterling and Phi- lando Castile at the hands of police officers. Our hearts and prayers are with their families. This tragedy has un- fortunately become common- place in our society, and the promotion of body cams on police officers has not become the panacea many hoped would provide restraint and accountability by law en- forcement. Some of our nation’s most notorious White criminals in history have been delivered safely by police to courtrooms to exercise their constitution- al rights. However, too many accused Black men never make this journey. We are struck down and strangled on site, even after already being restrained. History teaches us that in the coming weeks and months, we can unfortunate- ly expect more Black men to be shot and killed by police under questionable circum- stances. We are not prey. We are engineers and architects who build cities, we are busi- nessmen who serve commu- nities, we are doctors who Michael Gardner President, One Hundred Black Men heal the sick, clergy who save souls, and mentors who inspire children. We are fa- thers, husbands and sons. We are One Hundred Black Men, and Black Lives Matter. As an organization born “ in Dallas who were gunned down yesterday in the line of duty during a peaceful march. These sniper-style shootings of Dallas police officers were a “vicious and calculated at- tack” on law enforcement, and we condemn violence against police officers. The officers, and the injured sur- vivors, have become the latest victims in a national epidemic of gun violence that stains the soul of our great nation. All of us have an absolute right to live safely and be treated with Some of our nation’s most noto- rious white criminals in history have been delivered safely by po- lice to courtrooms to exercise their constitutional rights out of an incident involving police misconduct more than 50 years ago, we believe in the collective power of Black men standing together to address injustice. Some of these men are law enforcement officials themselves, who exemplify the noblest efforts to protect and serve. At the same time, One Hun- dred Black Men mourn the loss of five police officers respect, and our hearts and prayers are also with their families. As we approach the anniver- sary of the senseless killing of Eric Garner, we, the Founding Chapter of 100 Black Men of America, remain committed to addressing all forms of gun violence that plague our com- munity. However, despite our historical commitment, we must acknowledge that over the past half-century in New York and half-millennium in the Americas, justice has not been realized. How long must Black Americans — and all Americans — expect to wait for equal justice? The new civil rights slo- gan of our youngest leaders, “Black Lives Matter,” has unique resonance in its de- fiance of dehumanization. It not only serves as a call for transparency, constitu- tional law enforcement, and fairness in police reform, but also demands unapologetical- ly that we be recognized for our beauty and humanity. One Hundred Black Men supports the U.S. Justice De- partment’s Civil Rights divi- sion taking over the inves- tigation in Baton Rouge to increase accountability, and we will continue to support state and federal legislators looking to pass criminal jus- tice reforms that increase ac- countability for the abuse of police powers. We will also work with various law en- forcement agencies, local offi- cials, and our communities to end gun violence, and ensure that racial justice and civil rights remain at the forefront of political discourse.
