January 30, 2019 The Skanner Portland & Seattle Page 3
News
cont’d from pg 1
PHOTO BY OHSU/KRISTYNA WENTZ-GRAFF
Trail Blazers
Dr. Danny Jacobs, President, OHSU
In addition, portion of
the proceeds from tickets
purchased via this online
link will benefit iUrban
Teen, a STEM+Arts ed-
ucation program that
brings together under-
represented teens and
young adults for career
Michelle J. DePass, President &
CEO — Meyer Memorial Trust
the Trail Blazers Founda-
tion.
Fans already holding
tickets for the Feb. 5
game who would also like
access to the pregame
reception and provide
support for iUrban Teen
should call Trail Blazers
ticket representatives at
(503) 963-3944 for spe-
cial assistance.
PHOTO BY ELAYNA YUSSEN
Dozens of guests stopped by a celebration for Geneva’s Shear Perfection on NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd. last week as Paul Knauls
Sr. – also well known in the community as the honorary mayor of Northeast Portland – celebrated his 88th birthday Jan. 22. The event
was organized by Deborah Hodges with support from Self Enhancement Inc. Hodges has known Knauls for years and walked door to
door with fliers inviting local business owners and neighbors to stop in and say hello.
Kúkátónón
cont’d from pg 1
fornia-Berkeley, who studies the
social and psychological roots of
inequality.
Okonofua’s
presentation,
“When Bias and Threat Per-
sistently Interact: A Holistic Ap-
proach to Understand the Linger-
ing Effects of Stereotypes,” will
take place from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 8
at Self Enhancement Inc., 3920
North Kerby Avenue, is part of an
effort to be more vocal in the com-
munity, said executive director
Krystal Ngene.
“At Kukatonon we’ve under-
gone a lot of structural change
and are transitioning to be more
vocal in the community,” Ngene
told The Skanner.
The idea for the event came out
of a series of discussions with
community members about sys-
temic issues in the education sys-
tem. One issue that came up again
and again was the school-to-pris-
on pipeline – the disproportion-
ate tendency for youth of color
to become incarcerated due to ag-
gressive discipline by schools and
governments.
“We said, ‘Why don’t we have
this conversation that’s been com-
ing up in Portland?’” Ngene said.
Okonofua’s work includes re-
search about teacher-student re-
lationships that result in racial
disparities in disciplinary action
– as well as possible interventions
that might mitigate the school-
to-prison pipeline. He recently
“
We wanted to
dedicate this
year, particu-
larly, at getting
back to why we
were founded.
We realized
that as we grow,
we weren’t as
engaged as we
would like to be
won the Cialdini Award, and is
also currently working through
research grants from Google,
Character Lab, and SPARQ. He
has been featured on MSNBC and
in The New York Times and The
Wall Street Journal, among other
media outlets.
Kúkátónón Children’s African
Dance Troupe was founded 35
years ago within the Portland
Public School system to provide
culturally specific services for
African American children and
their families.
“We wanted to dedicate this
year, particularly, at getting back
to why we were founded. We real-
ized that as we grow, we weren’t
as engaged as we would like to
be. We know that there are bar-
riers and obstacles. Let’s figure
out how we can overcome those
together,” Ngene said.
The organization will also hold
a resource fair Feb. 16, and is
still accepting troupe members.
Ngene is hopeful the community
discussion will be the beginning
of something larger.
“I would hope they can come
away with some answers and a
really solid plan. Our children
are not protected in an environ-
ment where they will learn to
contribute to society,” Ngene said.
“Our children, they’re innocent
in this. Once you involve them in
the prison to pipeline system, it
tends to follow you throughout
your life.”
cont’d from pg 1
Meeting twice per week for two
months, participants of “Your Street,
Your Voice” will focus on designing
within Portland’s lower Albina neigh-
borhood.
“
Paul Knauls Celebrates 88th Birthday
As progressive as
Portland has been
in some of its urban
planning, it’s also
historically ignored
a lot of marginalized
communities
“As progressive as Portland has been
in some of its urban planning, it’s also
historically ignored a lot of marginal-
ized communities,” Swank said. “The
Albina neighborhood is the paramount
indication of this, where the Rose Quar-
ter and the I-5 blasted through this his-
torically Black neighborhood.”
He added that the practice of razing
racially diverse communities is im-
bedded into the fabric of planning in-
dustries throughout history. Change is
much needed.
And to do so, “Your Street, Your
Voice” is removing obstacles and incen-
tivizing students – each will receive a
$250 stipend for completing the pro-
gram.
Students are not expected to be art-
ists or designers. Rather, organizers
are seeking young people who are pas-
sionate about both their city and how
aspects like gentrification, economic
growth, and climate change affect it.
Using a seven-block radius in lower
Albina as a model, participants will
identify a social issue –
from housing or commu-
nity to climate change or
energy – and then select
a site within the neigh-
borhood. With creative
computer software and
3D printing, the goal is to
design a building on the
site that helps solve the
issue.
Swank said the pro-
gram’s goals are closely
linked to the collabora-
tive planning project Al-
Portland high school students can apply to the after-school program
bina Vision, which aims
“Your Street, Your Voice” by Jan. 31.
to right the wrongs of
displaced Black residents
to “Your Street, Your Voice” before
while re-envisioning the
neighborhood as more equitable and the Jan. 31 deadline. Visit http://www.
th e c e n t e r p d x . o r g / wel e a d - a f t e r -
livable.
Students are encouraged to apply school-program.
COURTESY OF THE CENTER
Program
exploration and mentor-
ing.
The
limited-edition
installment of the Trail
Blazers Gameday Poster
Series on Feb. 5 will also
connect to the night’s
celebration featuring a
production by Portland
artist Edmund Holmes.
For each home game,
unique designs from lo-
cal artists depicting that
specific NBA match-up
can be purchased for $12
at Rip City Clothing Co.,
with proceeds from the
poster sales benefitting
PHOTO COURTESY OF MEYER MEMORIAL TRUST
• Dr. Miles Davis, Presi-
dent – Linfield College
First African American
President in Linfield’s
161-Year History
• Michelle J. DePass,
President & CEO –
Meyer Memorial
Trust
First African-American
Chief Executive of One
of Oregon’s Largest
Philanthropic Organi-
zations
• Jo Ann Hardesty –
Portland City Com-
missioner
First African American
Woman Elected to the
Portland City Council
• Dr. Danny Jacobs,
President – Oregon
Health & Sciences
University (OHSU)
First African Ameri-
can President in OHSU
History
• Justice Adrienne
Nelson – Oregon Su-
preme Court
Oregon’s First African
American Supreme
Court Justice
• Chief Danielle Out-
law – Portland Police
Bureau
Portland’s First African
American Woman
Chief of Police