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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 9, 2017)
August 9, 2017 The Skanner Page 3 News cont’d from pg 1 ganization — a local fac- tion of the national BMA — advocates for changes in policy and programs, highlights disparities, and works to create awareness to improve the realities for vulner- able African American men and boys. This summer 50 young Black males had a chance to participate in BMA’s “ more mentors,” said C.J. Robbins, head of BMA Portland. “The young men chose the title, ‘No Role Models,’ to inten- tionally be provocative to really get folks think- ing, and also challenge them to question them- selves. Are they doing enough as individuals?” According to Tony Hopson, CEO of Self En- We have a number of Black men in professional roles across this city and county, but they’re not being asked to be role models Summer Youth Expe- rience, a collaboration with Worksystems and the Immigrant and Refu- gee Community Organi- zation. The program took participants inside pro- fessional environments across multiple indus- tries, including city hall, the advertising agency Wieden + Kennedy, Nike, and ZGF Architects. For six weeks, the young men participat- ed in culturally-spe- cific exercises focused on building social and emotional intelligence, and engaged in discus- sions with professionals on how to navigate the workplace as Black men. Saturday’s youth-led summit at Unthank Park is a culmination of their efforts. The capstone event, called ‘No Role Models,’ was organized by the program’s young partic- ipants and will welcome professionals and com- munity members for an afternoon of panels and entertainment centered on brotherhood. “The goal is to highlight what mentorship looks like for Black men and boys, and how do we get Hardesty hancement Inc., commu- nity members could be doing more. “People just don’t show up,” he said. “We need more outreach to places where we think mentors are. I don’t think enough of them are go- ing to knock on your door and say, I want to be a mentor. You need to knock on their door.” “We have a number of Black men in profession- al roles across this city and county, but they’re not being asked to be role models,” continued Hop- son. “You got to have a strategy or a vehicle for those things to happen.” Robbins agrees. He said it’s not mentors that are at a lack, but rather con- nectivity. “There’s enough hu- man capital, when it comes to mentors, so our goal needs to be in bring- ing the systems together, aligning them, and really highlighting best prac- tices when working with young Black men and boys.” ‘No Role Models,’ as part of BMA’s Summer Youth Experience, takes place on Aug. 12, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at Un- thank Park, 510 N. Shaver St. It is open to the public. Mayor Ted Wheeler Names Danielle Outlaw to Lead Portland Police Bureau Mayor Ted Wheeler on Monday announced that he has selected Danielle Outlaw to become the next Chief of the Portland Police Bureau. Outlaw is a 19-year veteran of the Oakland Police Department, where she served as a Deputy Chief since 2013. Outlaw worked for the Oakland Police Department since 1997, beginning her career as an Oakland Police Explorer while she was a student at Holy Names High School. She rose through the ranks, with assignments including Patrol, Community Services, the Office of Chief of Police, the Criminal Investigation Division, Public Information, Internal Affairs and the Office of Inspector General, and the Bureau of Risk Management. Outlaw holds a bachelor of arts in sociology from the University of San Francisco and a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University. Outlaw is scheduled to step into her new role Oct. 1, pending completion of a background check. She will be Portland’s first African American female police chief. Legacy PHOTO COURTESY OF CITY OF PORTLAND Mentors cont’d from pg 1 ed” in North Portland’s Albina neighborhood – the heart of the African American business dis- trict. By the early 1970s, the PDC’s surge of urban renewal projects peaked with the proposed Em- manuel Hospital expansion in the Eliot neighborhood. While it never made it to fruition, the con- struction plans displaced over 170 predominantly Black families. By then, over half of Eliot’s Af- rican American population was pushed out. A half a century later the devel- opment agency — now known as Prosper Portland, and sporting a new equity-building image – has teamed up with Legacy Health and the City of Portland to make good in the neighborhood it once demolished. The collaborative project is the development of a long-vacant 1.7- acre site currently owned by Leg- acy Health and sitting adjacent to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center at North Russell Street and North Williams Avenue. “This development will bene- fit the community by helping to expand Legacy Emanuel’s mis- sion of healing in this communi- ty,” says George J. Brown, Legacy Health president and CEO, in an official statement. “It will also provide a new location for the spiritual center for what was once the center of Portland’s Af- rican American community.” Plans for the development’s use are far from finalized, yet partners are promising a neigh- “ Whatever ulti- mately is built on those proper- ties will be done in collaboration with the com- munity –Mayor Ted Wheeler borhood addition that will both honor and serve Portland’s Black community. To date, they’ve confirmed the center will include medical care services — including a surgery center and patient and family housing — as well as affordable homes, community space, and a business hub for those most im- pacted by gentrification. By fall of this year the partners will be forming a Project Work- ing Group to help guide the vi- sion. They’ll also be seeking input from community leaders and the public. Construction is slotted for 2019. Stakeholders are adamant about not looking at the development as a means to atone for the damage that’s been done. Rather, said Mayor Ted Wheel- er at a press conference last week, “It is to make clear that whatever ultimately is built on those prop- erties will be done in collabora- tion with the community and will include projects that serve and support the community.” As the construction of luxu- ry apartments in place of older properties in North and North- east Portland shows no signs of stopping, the Legacy project fol- lows another initiative aimed at correcting rapid gentrification. The 80-unit affordable housing project, called the Beatrice Mar- row building, is currently under construction on NE Martin Lu- ther King Jr Boulevard, between Cook and Ivy Streets. The city-funded development makes use of the Portland Hous- ing Bureau’s “preference policy,” which prioritizes rental homes for African Americans and fam- ily members who are from the neighborhood. “We cannot make up for what was done in the past,” said Pros- per Portland board commission- er Dr. Alisha Moreland-Capuia of the Legacy site’s tumultuous history. cont’d from pg 1 men — in its history. Journalist Richard Bogle served from 1984 to 1992. Charles Jordan, the city’s first Black commis- sioner, served from 1974 to 1984. Com- missioner Chloe Eudaly, who was elect- ed last fall, is the eighth woman ever to serve on the council. Hardesty stepped into her current role with the NAACP in early 2015. In that role, she’s created a Just En- ergy Campaign for policy to ensure low-income people and people of color benefit from changes to environmental regulations and submitted a bid to have Portland host the national NAACP con- ference in 2020. She also made waves in January an- nouncing the NAACP Portland Branch had withdrawn its support from the an- ti-Trump Women’s March. Hardesty served in the Oregon legis- lature between 1997 and 2001 and ran for Multnomah County Chair in 2001. Since Friday, Hardesty said she has received an “overwhelming” outpour- ing of support. “I’ve had people from all walks of life say, ‘How can I help? I haven’t been in- terested in city council, haven’t been interested in electoral politics but I want to help you get elected,’” Hardes- “ I’ve had people from all walks of life say, ‘How can I help? ty told The Skanner. “And so I think I’ve just been pretty overwhelmed by just the generosity of Portlanders. They’re just ready to do the work.” Hardesty has said she will need to raise $250,000 for the campaign. That number comes from “knowing there’s an incumbent in office who has the abil- ity to raise significant resources,” she said. There’s also the fact that 2018 is an “off ” election year. “It’s not a presidential election year, which means that the turnout will be significantly less than it would be if it was a presidential year. And so it is my job to make the case to voters as to why they should participate in this election, and then why they should vote for me,” she said. “And unfortunately, you can’t do that without money.” Her campaign website includes a platform that emphasizes four areas of policy: access, jobs, housing and polic- ing. Here’s what she told The Skanner about each plank. Policing “I want only one police force. I don’t want a different police force to show up when people of color are protesting, as compared to the police force that shows up when White women are protesting. I want the same police force. I want them to show up as Officer Friendly. I want them to show up being helpful. I do not want them to show up in riot Jo Ann Hardesty gea,r because people of color are exer- cising their right to assembly and [to] seek redress from their elected offi- cials,” Hardesty said. Read the full story at TheSkanner.com