To Mr. Makboul: I strongly disagree with your statement...
Sam Adams
As reported in the Willamette Week newspaper, Wednesday, 8/17/2005:
"As the frenzy continues over the recent string of downtown
shootings, Portland's top hip-hop club, the Vue, is upsetting
African-Americans with its plan to remake itself into a newer, whiter
venue.
"Club manager Rami Makboul outlined the thinking in an
email he wrote last week on behalf of his brother Ramez, who owns the
club, and sent to Mayor Tom Potter and Police Chief Derrick Foxworth.
"One
time an OLCC inspector told me in private that blacks belonged to
Northeast Portland, not downtown. I was furious with his statement and
I thought he was racist. After seeing the violence of last Sunday night
I owe an apology to that inspector," says the Aug. 10 email, obtained
by WW through a public-records request. "They do belong to Northeast
Portland and they need not to be encouraged in any way to come to
Downtown..."
To Mr. Makboul:
The fact that your comment appeared in a mainstream Portland newspaper compels me to respond: I strongly disagree with your statement and the statement made to you by an OLCC inspector.
I suggest to you that the people we should be seeking to exclude from downtown Portland are gun-toting, law-breakers not African Americans, not Northeast Portland residents.
I suspect that European Americans constitute the majority of lawbreakers in many crime categories -- if true for shoplifting -- your logic would have us exclude European Americans from downtown stores.
Sam
Posted by Sam Adams on August 18, 2005
(8) Comments | Permalink | TrackBack (0)
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Ethan,
Wrong. You imply that dressing "like a hoodlum" suggests or begets race, intent and criminality. That is awful.
Posted by: Jesse | Aug 19, 2005 1:33:07 PM
You are reaffirming my decision to vote for you. Keep up the good work!
Posted by: Laura | Aug 19, 2005 1:42:23 PM
Dear Sam,
Instead of blindly accepting the allegations that a government employee made racist statements while on the job pertaining to his/her job, kindly launch an investigation into the facts of the matter, find the OLCC employee, and force their resignation.
Yours,
Benjamin Kaplin
Posted by: Benjamin Kaplin | Aug 19, 2005 7:10:16 PM
The point is, Mr. Adams, is that I don't think that you're a strong enough politician to do what needs to be done in this situation: revoke the licenses of club owners that don't provide enough security at the doors of their bars to keep firearms off of the street. You can refute racist angst as much as you like, but merely contributing to the conversation is unacceptable from a politician of your rank in this city. Saying something, and doing nothing is irresponsible.
Posted by: Benjamin Kaplin | Aug 19, 2005 7:13:50 PM
Benjamin Kaplin: Good suggestion. See copy of email to OLCC Director: http://www.commissionersam.com/sam_adams/2005/08/teresa_l_kaiser.html
I will keep you posted on any updates. Sam
Posted by: Sam Adams | Aug 20, 2005 5:18:15 PM
Sam,
I personally think that there has been too much attention directed at the club owners (except for the racists comments of one) and not enough attention directed at the owners of the downtown surface parking lots.
I agree that downtown club owners have the responsibility to provide a safe environment inside and around the outside of their clubs. They need to be responsible when serving drinks and checking ID's of those that enter, as well as enforcing no loitering rules outside. For the most part, I think the club owners and their managers have been pretty vigilant following the rules as set down when the receive their liquor license. However, when a bartender "cuts" someone off, generally that person will leave and head to another club to drink. If the other venue(s) refuse to serve that person, the impared person will usually end up back at their SUV, with their friends, parked in an unsecure surface parking lot. Everyone piles in the back of the SUV, or group of vehicles, and drink straight shots from bottles and spark up blunts with their friends. It is in these empty parking lots that the fights start and the excessive alcohol and the addition of drugs greatly impares judgement. Tempers flare when the partiers two car rows down confront the first group, gun shots are fired. Why else do you think these people are able to flee downtown so quick? 'cause they are already in their cars.
To stem the violence the city needs to crack down on partiers using the parking lots downtown as their unofficial "after party" headquarters. If a lot owner wants to operate their lot 24 hours they should be required to staff it with an attendant all 24 hours as well. If this is too much regulation, how about suggesting that lot owners team up with other owners to employ roaming security guards reminding patrons that the party is in the club, and if they choose not to go inside they need to find another place other than their lot downtown to hang out. At the very least the city should at least require these lot owners to put cameras up in their lots, then we might be able to track a license plate, or catch the crimes on tape.
Posted by: MarkDaMan | Aug 22, 2005 10:18:40 AM
That's a great suggestion regarding the partying in the parking lots - and a lot attendant isn't exactly the type who is going to be able to confront 4 or 5 gun-toting, coke snorting gang members, however.
Roaming security guards in tow trucks would work pretty well, in my opinion. Of course, so would developing those damn lots in the first place...
Posted by: Justin | Aug 30, 2005 12:45:48 PM
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Sadly, I have a feeling that the truth lies somewhere in the middle. As a resident of NE, I can attest that the vast majority of my African American neighbors are just like my Caucasian, Hispanic and Asian neighbors . . . so much so that I really prefer living in my more diverse neighborhood.
That said, implying that there is not a serious problem with the attitudes and behaviors of many African American young people is a pretty tenuous argument. As a elected official, maybe you cannot address this head-on, but as a N. Portland resident yourself, you cannot be unaware either.
Maybe the club owner should have said he is going to make his club less attractive to people who choose to dress and act like hoodlums . . . nobody could take issue with that, right?
Posted by: Ethan | Aug 19, 2005 11:20:24 AM