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Commissioner Rojo Letter |
 October 29, 2007 Mayor Potter Dear Commissioners, I am struggling here and I need your help. I know each of you personally. I have been among your staunchest supporters for years. I like to believe that I know your hearts; know that you are all good men with good values and strong ethical standards. I have always felt what I believe is genuine respect from each of you. We have collaborated on important works for the betterment of this community that we all love so much. But something changed last week and no matter how hard I try, I can't make it right in my mind. I am struggling and I need your help to understand how I should feel about our friendship, about our histories together, about what's in your heart today. As much as we would all wish this would all go away and we could go back where we've been, you know where this is going; what is causing this painful request for clarification. You know that every day I look at the wall in my office – an office in which each of you has shared with me – and see the photographic images of the two men, aside from those in my family, who are my heroes: Bobby Kennedy and Cesar Chavez. You know that I need to hear a plain, simple explanation of why I, like my friends in the African American and Japanese American communities, cannot celebrate the life of my Mexican American hero by naming Interstate Avenue in his honor. Let us not speculate about whether the same controversy would arise if the request centered on the other of my two heroes. There is too much opportunity for dissembling, distrust and hypocrisy if we do. Instead let us focus on the message I – and those who look like me in Portland – are forced to confront: we count, but only perhaps and only if it doesn't cause any pain. I and mi gente understand that our arrival in dramatically increasing numbers causes stress. We know that there are those who have trouble accepting people of different cultures, people who look different. But most of us want simply to be a part of a place we live because we love it. Aside from the few of us, as with any ethnic background, who discredit our people with shameful acts, we make our contributions in ways big and small to the place where we live because we understand the connection between our personal engagement and the quality of life to which all Portlanders aspire. Most of all, we know that every ordered society, every community, whether that term is defined by geography, religion or race or in any other way, has rules and standards by which it abides. Because some Mexican Americans are recent arrivals in Portland, either because we only recently physically arrived, or because collectively we have only recently been recognized and admitted to the halls of power, we examine closely the idiosyncrasies of decision-making in Portland. We struggle to understand those processes and act accordingly. That's what makes the Chavez Boulevard discussion so dispiriting. The rules were followed: direction was asked, received and faithfully followed. Controversy, however, appears to have caused a redrafting of the rules. For those of us who have been around long enough to remember the change from Union Avenue to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and the highly charged and thinly-veiled racism that fueled the opposition to that change, it is hard to find a justification for what is easily perceived as an about face on the part of City Council. I have little difficulty understanding why Mayor Potter would evidence his disgust at such behavior. There is an unwritten and largely unspoken standard among Mexican Americans: always seek to emphasize the positive. It is a behavior common to those struggling to improve their lot in life. Positive thought begets positive accomplishment begets a better life. So often, even though we surely encounter ugly racism in our daily lives, we, my Mexican American brothers and sisters and I, don't use that charge as a bludgeon to secure an advantage. We choose instead to work harder, to achieve more, to be better citizens, as a way to show ourselves and the world that we are worthy of respect. In short, we work hard to earn respect rather than to demand it. So where are we now with the renaming? And, how should I see that in light of our years of working productively together? And, how will this be perceived in the near and far term future? I am struggling here and need your help. Sincerely,
501 SE Hawthorne Blvd.,
Suite 600, Portland, Oregon 97214
EDITORIAL---ASHAMED TO LIVE IN OVERLOOK Here it is the morning after the huge OKNA general meeting held at Kaiser Town Hall on September 18. There was an extraordinarily heavy turnout because of three large issues on the agenda: yearly elections of officers, the summer fire on the Bluff and a presentation about a possible Interstate Avenue name change. This last item seemed to have brought out the worst in my usually soft-spoken neighbors. Instead of a civil hearing of opposing points of view, there were interruptions and shouting down of minority views. Instead of civil discourse, there was mocking of the guest speakers and the rule of the squeaky wheels (loudest voices) having their say above all others. Instead of listening carefully to the message of the speakers, there was an assault on the speakers’ integrity. Obviously, there were many exceptions to the above. However, my overall impression of the neighborhood as reflected by this meeting was not a pleasant one. I came away with the feeling that the issue of re-naming Interstate took a back seat to our community’s uncivil reaction to the concept. A meaningful dialogue never happened because sadly, the community would not permit it to happen. I sincerely hope this is an anomaly because the past six years that I have lived in Overlook have been most pleasant and gracious---particularly because of the good nature of my friends and acquaintances living in every part of the neighborhood. My guess is that many of those neighbors didn’t attend the meeting last night. A little background: I grew up and lived on the East Coast for the first seven decades of my life. We know rude. Snarling store clerks proliferate like roaches in those high rise buildings. Say hello to your neighbor or worse, to a stranger? Not a chance, or else you will be accused of harassment. Welcoming a new resident to your building? Don’t even think about it. New Yorkers are notorious for not knowing their next door neighbors’ names even if they have been living in the same building for decades. Coming from this kind of background and moving to Portland resulted in a bit of culture shock. Store clerks at Fred Meyer, New Seasons and practically every retail establishment I visited in the last six years have always been outgoing and personable. My walks around Overlook always result in friendly greetings from neighbors and strangers alike. I have found this to be a welcoming city built on a tradition of good manners. But just where was that tradition at the September general meeting? Certainly not at Kaiser Town Hall last night. There is no doubt that we will discuss contentious subjects at future meetings and despite the OKNA board’s best efforts in this debacle, I hope we’ll be better prepared. My hope too, is that our community will come to realize that there is no place for rude, intolerant and nasty behavior here or anyplace else. A return to civility for which this city is famous would be a welcome replacement. I had to comment on this. There is an effort to change Interstate avenue to Cesar Chavez Blvd. There have been many sentiments about the effort & I just had to throw in my two cents. Attached (see link on left) is an MLK Telegram to Cesar Chavez. We ALL need to support this effort. A contingent of "Interstate business & home owners" ;) are organizing hard against this effort. Their sentiments include, "this will make Interstate a ghetto" and "it will drive down my property values." (BTW: Those are the nicer comments) Many proclaim that this is not about race but rather the historical significance of Interstate Ave. Well, historically Interstate was supposed to be just that, and go to Vancouver, Wa. And I think that the history of roach motels and bars are not what the neighbors are referring to. This, to me, is about the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard). When it is proclaimed that honoring Cesar Chavez is OK.... just not here, to me that means: I don't want them or that (whatever it may be) near my business or my home. If there is an assumption that a home or business owner will be affected in a way other than a mailing address change (Accck... what a hassle) than naturally, there are assumptions/prejudgments that are at least partially related to race. I am constantly hearing about how diverse Portland is...... (Sorry I need a moment)......... well at least I know they aren't speaking demographically. I chalk statements like that to meaning that Portland is a very accepting place. Maybe having a more left wing liberal populace means that race is just something that doesn't really matter in Portland. Well whatever one may think, lets not allow that closed minded supposition to make us blind to our own precognitions and assumptions. If race was simply associated with the way someone looks than why are there such strong cultural assumptions about how one "should" act in order to properly "fit into" any particular group. We all make assumptions that are based on race. So let's stop pretending that race has nothing to do with this. I want to see the liberal Portland that embraces people who are different. I want to see the Portland that is accepting no matter if you have body tattoos, rings in many places, are gay or even if you are Latino. For many folks, you can be sure that their assumptions about what "may happen to my neighborhood" (race based) are a part of their "NIMBYism." If so, than you can also be sure that sentiments of separate but equal are still alive & well in the "regular folks" of America (and maybe even Portland too). Please support this effort. There is a public hearing scheduled for Oct. 9th 6:30 pm at Ockley Green School. We hope you can make one or both of these important hearings. Jared M. Spencer
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Cesar E Chavez Boulevard Committee 2007 |
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