Police Violence Protest in Portland this Weekend
By Reuben Schafir '17
In Portland, following a series of grand jury decisions not to indict officers accused of fatally shooting unarmed african american men and an outburst of press coverage on police violence nationwide, a protest formed Saturday afternoon.
Starting outside Portland’s Federal building, the protest blocked several streets including the North side of West Burnside and National Parkway.
The protest, which remained non-violent as Portland Police kept their distance, moved through the city for four hours before making its way to the Justice Center, where protestors banged on the windows.
At the Justice Center, various protestors spoke, including an African American woman arrested for jay walking and a caucasian woman from Ferguson, Missouri.
Here is CatlinSpeak’s account of the event.
The third to the last picture in this photo essay in incredibly moving. The blurred out cop with the badge in the background in contrast to the thin, scribbled, yet clear letters spelling out r-a-c-i-s-t-s, shows a simple yet powerful approach to the protest. Great job Reuben with this photo essay! It’s great that we have Catlin kids going out into our community and participating/documenting in these protests.