I'd like to share my editorial for Newsweek that published this morning. I ask mayors across this great nation to continue standing strong and standing together, peacefully, in the face of federal bully tactics against our communities.
www.newsweek.com/portland-may...
We are also proud of the Portlanders who showed up today in peaceful solidarity, demonstrating the strength and clarity of those shared values in the face of federal overreach.
Portland will continue to stand firmly with our immigrant neighbors, who deserve safety, dignity, and the full protection of the communities they help build.
As we prepare to put that law into action, we are also documenting today’s events and preserving evidence. The federal government must, and will, be held accountable.
The City of Portland is moving swiftly to operationalize an ordinance that went into effect this month, imposing a fee on detention facilities that use chemical agents.
I share the need to act. Actions that can withstand the scrutiny of the justice system take time – and we cannot afford to lose this fight.
I share the impatience of those who demand we use every legal tool at our disposal to push back against this inexcusable, unconscionable, and unacceptable violence against our community.
No one is forcing you to lie to yourself, even as your bosses continue to lie to the American people.
Our nation will never accept a federal presence where agents wield deadly force against the very people they are sworn to serve.
To those who continue to make these sickening decisions, go home, look in a mirror, and ask yourselves why you have gassed children. Ask yourselves why you continue to work for an agency responsible for murders on American streets.
To those who continue to work for ICE: Resign. To those who control this facility: Leave. Through your use of violence and the trampling of the Constitution, you have lost all legitimacy and replaced it with shame.
Today, federal forces deployed heavy waves of chemical munitions impacting a peaceful daytime protest where the vast majority of those present violated no laws, made no threat, and posed no danger to federal forces.
"Téllez was on his way to drop his kids at school in north Portland when he was pulled out of his car by federal agents.
"The arrest drew dozens of neighbors into the streets to record the arrest and push back against immigration authorities...
www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...
“We’re working with folks who have fallen through all of the cracks," said a sergeant. "If there was an easy solution it would have been tried already.”
Together, we have proved that progress is possible. Together, we are building a city that cares for every neighbor. And together, we will keep moving forward.
I owe our Portland City Council a debt of gratitude for what we accomplished together. I’m grateful for their support and their votes in the budget process. They’ve been integral to the successes we’ve seen thus far, and I am deeply optimistic about what we’ll achieve together in the coming year.
We will keep pushing forward to save lives, restore livability and prosperity, and ensure that the lowest rung on the housing ladder is never the street.
Most importantly, we are not done. We cannot grow complacent before our crisis is fully ended. We will work with the same tenacity and grit that we have shown to develop our shelter capacity to increase housing production.
Our mission is to maintain capacity so that every person, every night, has access to a safe bed. We’ll adjust as needed, and over time, and we expect demand to decrease are we shift to our housing goals.
Every unique person we reach and every night of safe sleep is a chance to change a life, and maybe even save it. But let me be clear: 1,500 beds was never the finish line. It’s a milestone.
Our data shows that 3174 unique individuals experiencing homelessness in the City of Portland have stayed at least one night at a City emergency overnight shelter. As of October 31, over 49,000 safe nights of sleep were had by those participants in our beds.
My strategic plan was ambitious. Together, we proved it could be done on time and on budget. In fact, we believe Portland has delivered shelter capacity faster than any major city in the country.
Our homelessness crisis demanded a solution that could meet the moment. Today, I am proud to announce that we have met a major goal. We've increased our emergency overnight shelter capacity by 1500 beds and created the ability to add additional beds as needed.
Ultimately, it’s what galvanized me to run for Mayor. When we set the goal of 1,500 overnight shelter beds, we knew it was a big ask. But I knew it was a goal that would, if reached, SAVE LIVES.
Over the last decade, Portland has faced a dramatic and deadly rise in unsheltered homelessness. This crisis is what drove me to dig deeper: to meet with community partners, to listen to those living on our streets, and to study how other cities responded.
Portland values the constitutional right to free speech, and we will defend those rights. We will continue fighting in court and working with state and community partners to ensure public safety, protect civil rights, and stand up for our immigrant community.
As I have said from the beginning, the number of federal troops needed in our city is zero, and today's court ruling vindicates Portland's position while reaffirming the rule of law that protects our community.
I believe this effort will save lives and restore vibrancy and livability to our city. Like you, we’ll be monitoring every step. We’ll scale up our successes, and we’ll learn from our failures. Thank you for all your support.
Finally, I want to say thank you to our City Outreach Team and Portland Police. It's important that they have the resources they need to work with vulnerable individuals on a case-by-case basis.
We've put our heart and soul into our emergency shelter beds and day centers. We have resources available for those who need them. Every person deserves a safe bed every night and to live in a safe, sanitary, and accessible city.
