The labor-community Movement for police accountability Keeps Growing!

The mandate to rethink policing has never been more clear. The City of Portland and Portland Police Association are currently bargaining a new police contract, a critical opportunity to advance racial justice and genuine community safety. JwJ has been working with Unite Oregon and a Network of organizations to amass broad support for the people’s demands for police accountability!

Add Your Name! Tell City leadership to represent the voice of the community in bargaining!

Click Here for Unite Oregon’s letter endorsed by over 75+ faith, labor, neighborhood, and community organizations, and email sarah@jwjpdx.org if your organization can add your name in support!

Over 75 Groups in Support of Change As Police Bargaining Milestone Looms

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                    June 3, 2021

Unite Oregon     Portland Jobs with Justice    Portland Copwatch

AS POLICE BARGAINING MILESTONE LOOMS, COMMUNITY SUPPORT FOR CHANGE GROWS
Over 75 Groups Now Signed Onto Letter Demanding Accountability and Open
Meetings

On May 26, the Portland Police Association and the City of Portland held
another behind-closed-doors bargaining session around the PPA’s
collective bargaining agreement for 2021. This was overall the 10th
session since negotiations began in January, and the fifth held out of
the public eye under ground rules adopted by both parties. At the public
session on May 5, the City indicated its intention to incorporate a
requirement into the contract that all sessions be held in public, in
part due to ongoing community support for transparency. The demand for
open bargaining sessions was a key point in a letter sent to the City in
December outlining various key provisions to address around oversight,
accountability, deadly force and bias-based policing.

As the required minimum 150 day bargaining period will be fulfilled in
early June, momentum continues to build in the public for change. In
March, the number of community organizations supporting the letter had
grown from about 30 to over 50, and as of mid-May, there are now over 75
signators. A broad campaign including faith, labor, civil rights, and
neighborhood groups has come together in support of these demands. The
letter can be found at
https://www.uniteoregon.org/policing**

More information, including a summary news release about the May 26
session, can be found at the City’s website on police issues:
https://www.rethinkportland.com/ppa-contract

Recent organizations which have signed the letter include:

Disability Rights Oregon
Oregon Nurses Association Union of United Staff
AFSCME Local 402 (Oregon Health and Sciences University Graduate
Researchers United)
Portland Association of Teachers
Concordia Neighborhood Association
Vernon Neighborhood Association

A version of the letter with links to footnotes and an indicator of the
33 original groups can be found at
https://www.portlandcopwatch.org/ppa_contract_letter2020.html .

Another public session was held on June 2, at which the City indicated
there will be a private session on June 16 and a public session on June
30, several weeks after the 150 day deadline.

For more information contact

 Callie Riley, Communications and Policy Analyst at Unite Oregon,
   callie@uniteoregon.org
 Dan Handelman of Portland Copwatch, copwatch@portlandcopwatch.org
    / 503-236-3065
 or
 Sarah Kowaleski of Portland Jobs with Justice, sarah@jwjpdx.org