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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 13, 2017)
December 13, 2017 The Skanner Portland Page 3 News cont’d from pg 1 “ done from the mayor’s seat, whose current oc- cupier Raiford is partic- ularly frustrated with. “(Mayor) Ted (Wheel- er) has let me and others down in such a tremen- dous way,” said Raiford, pointing to what she sees as a failure to address police accountability and public safety. “It’s time for change in Port- It’s time for change in Port- land that comes from the un-vetted will of the people taken a vocally critical stance against City Hall. Last summer, she filed a $500,000 lawsuit against the City of Portland for her 2015 arrest during a Black Lives Matter demonstration. “Since my nephew’s land that comes from the un-vetted will of the peo- ple.” If her plans for run- ning sound preemptive, there’s a reason, said Rai- ford. “I announced early because Ted has made comments recently that Family Recovering From House Fire Community members are raising funds so a Northeast Portland family can recuperate after a fire forced them from their home on the 100 block of Northeast Lombard Dec. 9. Derrall and Chevon Davis and their children are currently staying in a Troutdale hotel room. Local activists with Don’t Shoot Portland collected clothing, food, cat food and hygiene items at a Dec. 12 event at Artist Repertory Theatre. Funds are also being accepted through a GoFundMe at www.gofundme.com/4u2apc8. James Teressa Raiford, seen here at a 2016 protect, has announced she’s running for Mayor in 2020. death I’ve tried to work with countless leaders in our community that are responsible for pub- lic safety, education, housing and jobs to end trends of poverty and mass incarceration,” Raiford told The Skan- ner. “It’s been disgusting to see how quick people who speak about equity shut out the voices of the most marginalized mem- bers of our community.” Raiford added that while she’s happy to serve her community as an organizer, she be- lieves she can get more Portland needs a two- term mayor and I agree with him.” According to Raiford, she’ll be announcing a platform based on a two- term goal and intends to form strategic partner- ships with political allies she’ll be working to get elected in May 2018, in- cluding Felicia Williams for city council and Don’t Shoot PDX president Maria Garcia for Mult- nomah County commis- sioner. Raiford said she is sup- porting both women in their campaigns. Symonette cont’d from pg 1 among many accomplishments,” Mayor Ted Wheeler said in a statement. “His leadership at the helm of (the equity office) will be missed.” In 2014, James was the subject of a sexual harassment investi- gation regarding comments on a subordinate’s appearance. City investigators substantiated one allegation by a subordinate but dismissed eight others; they also found he had made some “gener- ally unprofessional” comments in front of employees that did not violate city rules. In 2013, The Skanner published an editorial from publisher Bernie Foster criticizing James’ effective- ness and saying the narrow scope of the office’s work did not reflect what activists had pushed for. “We appreciate being invited to meet with the Equity director, but we are not impressed by his work so far -- which appears to in- volve filling shelves full of policy binders and talking with bureau- crats,” Foster wrote. James responded with a letter to the editor, defending his agen- cy’s work improving the relation- ships between city bureau’s and communities of color, and saying the office was not created to han- “ We appreciate being invited to meet with the Equity director, but we are not impressed by his work so far dle civil rights complaints from the general public. “OEHR was never intended to function as a civil rights office,” James wrote. “State and City agencies already exist that han- dle discrimination complaints, including a Civil Rights Compli- ance Officer within the City of Portland’s Office of Management and Finance. OEHR refers com- plaints to those agencies, and will increase publicity to facilitate di- rect access to them.” Koffi “Jean-Pierre” Dessou, who is currently a program director at the equity office will serve as interim bureau director. Dessou, who emigrated to Portland from Togo in 2008, has created train- ing and education programs and co-facilitated training sessions for directors. James is the seventh city bureau director to leave since January, and one of two to depart the city last week: Portland Housing Bu- reau Kurt Creager was also oust- ed last week. Creager will receive $96,715 in severance pay and waived his right to sue the city for age discrimination or any oth- er reason. James will not receive severance. James is also one of two African Americans to leave a city bureau this year: Commissioner Chloe Eudaly ousted Bureau of Devel- opment Services director Paul Scarlett in April. cont’d from pg 1 healthcare in America concern you on the future of Planned Parenthood Co- lumbia Willamette? SS: I think health care is always changing and we’re in a time where health care is changing rapidly. I feel that in the Columbia Willamette area we are in a very lucky spot with a lot of support from our community. But the threat of defunding is something we don’t take lightly. Our slogan is “Care No Matter What” and I think that is really true, wheth- er you have commercial insurance or no insurance. So now, more than ever, it’s important that we keep our doors open. Depending on what happens on the federal level, our services are going to probably be needed more than ever. TSN: How does Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette work to address disparities in racial and ethnically di- verse communities? SS: I think we are doing a better job, but there’s definitely still work for us to do to have stronger relationships with communities of color. One of the areas I work with, in particular, is eq- “ We have gone from having three board members being people of color, to almost half our board uity and inclusion. We have gone from having three board members (out of 19) being people of color, to almost half our board. They represent the Native American, Latino, Black, Asian and LGBTQ communities. So that was the part I thought was important – mak- ing sure that more of the communities we serve have a voice on the board and have access to those services. Since I’ve been on the board I created and hired for the position of Director of Equity and Inclusion, which Sirius Bonner currently holds. TSN: During your tenure on the board, Planned Parenthood Colum- bia Willamette has made strides in increasing equity and inclusion, as you mentioned, as well as providing transgender hormone provision at se- lect health centers. What do you see as your major focus areas in your new role moving forward? SS: As board chair, the focus area is the whole organization, and that’s a lot of moving parts. One of the areas that we’re really excited about is tele- medicine, which we just launched. So we’re going to be able to better meet the needs of people in rural and coastal ar- eas that we haven’t been able to access in the past. That’s also part of our equi- ty and inclusive work, making sure we can bring services to those areas. As well, continuing to make sure PHOTO COURTESY OF PLANNED PARENTHOOD COLUMBIA WILLAMETTE 2010, Raiford’s nephew was shot outside an Old Town nightclub. With a surge of gang-relat- ed gun violence in the years that followed, she launched the social jus- tice organization Don’t Shoot PDX in 2014. She has been active at numerous protests and public forums in recent years, and has PHOTO COURTESY OF GOFUNDME Raiford Sita Symonette, board chair of Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette. that equity, inclusion and diversity are integrated into who we are – and not just something that we do. I think the team at PPCW is really working hard to make sure that that happens. Also, pro- viding transgender care at our health centers in Northeast Portland and Sa- lem is amazing and it shows again that we’re walking the walk of inclusion to reach the people we need to care for.
