Portland
is still relatively safe, but crime is a growing concern.
Many people praise Portland for its relatively low
levels of crime compared to other major cities. However,
as the city grows, people are worried that the crime
rate will rise. People point to deteriorating safety
conditions downtown, the growing number of youth involved
in gangs and juvenile delinquency and increases in drug
use and drug-related crimes to bolster their argument
that crime is becoming a serious problem. They are particularly
worried about Portland’s at-risk youth, who they fear
will be lured into gangs and criminal activity if they
are not engaged in school or positive community activities.
Some Portlanders believe that crime is rising in part
because of an overly-permissive culture and political
atmosphere which accommodates petty criminals and does
not enforce existing laws. Others hold an opposing view,
believing that more needs to be done to help drug addicts,
the mentally ill and others stay out of the criminal
justice system. However, regardless of their perspective,
most Portlanders want to see crime addressed before
it becomes and even bigger problem.
- Many
people experience Portland as a safe city.
- Rising
crime rates threaten Portland’s livability.
- Portland is too soft on
crime and too lenient with criminals.
- Gangs pose a threat to
youth and to the community at large.
- Reducing juvenile delinquency
is a community responsibility.
- What is the most appropriate
and effective response to petty crime?
- Many
people experience Portland as a safe city.
- A large number of respondents value Portland
as a “clean, safe city” especially compared
to other cities in the country.
- Many Portlanders said they live here because
it is safe for families and a good place to
raise children (See Urban
Livability: Family Friendly).
- Many individuals also speak of feeling
safe in Portland, including:
- Individuals who identify as sexual
minorities;
- Immigrants and refugees; and
- Women, many of whom say they feel safe
walking, running or cycling alone in the
city.
- Many people think that Portland’s small
size makes it feel safe and comfortable. Some
of these people worry that the city will feel
less safe as it grows.
- A smaller amount of people love the fact
that they feel safe downtown and believe that
safety will increase with higher density and
more people living near each other.
| "Portland
still feels like a relatively safe city.
If I want to go for a run, I just leash
up my dog and go, no matter what time
of day. As a woman, that means a lot to
me.” |
| “I
value how safe I feel in the city because
feeling safe allows me to run along Waterfront
Park alone at lunch, take a stroll down
the park blocks, or meet a friend for
dinner.” |
| “[I
value] the overall openness of the people.
This is very uncommon for a city of this
size. I feel that someone would stop and
help me if I was hurt on the street and
I feel relatively safe.” |
- Rising
crime rates threaten Portland’s livability.
- Many Portlanders who have lived here for
some time state that Portland is becoming
less safe, with higher instances of crime
and drug abuse.
- This decrease in safety is linked to the
presence of:
- Drug dealers;
- Drug users, many of whom commit crimes
such as property theft; and
- Gang members or groups of aggressive-looking
youth.
- Many feel that the downtown area used to
be safe, but has increasingly become an unsafe
place for shoppers, tourists, families with
young children, and others (For more, see
Health:
Substance Abuse).
- Some people express fear of being victimized
downtown, and others are fearful of crimes
committed in their neighborhoods.
- Those fearing criminal behavior and gang
activity include:
- People living in neighborhoods with
higher poverty rates;
- Some families with young children;
- Teenagers; and
- Elders.
- Portlanders state that we must reduce crime,
specifically the presence of drug dealers
and buyers, in specific areas of town including:
- Downtown, specifically bus malls and
Pioneer Courthouse Square;
- The Park Blocks;
- Old Town;
- Waterfront Park;
- Lloyd Center;
- North Portland;
- Outer Northeast Portland;
- 82nd Avenue;
- East Burnside;
- Rockwood;
- Southeast Powell Blvd..; and
- Local neighborhood parks.
- In addition to gang activity and drug-related
crime, some Portlanders express concerns about
other types of crime such as: car thefts;
home invasions; violence; prostitution; graffiti
and vandalism.
- Portland also needs to address vagrancy
problems in and around the downtown entertainment
district, Old Town and Waterfront Park.
| “Regain
our parks for families and hard-working
individuals from the drifters, druggies,
gang-type people inhabiting some of them.”
|
| “The
street people issue has become …pervasive,
particularly with aimless young people.
There is for the first time in 20 years
a feeling of concern for safety in the
Pioneer Courthouse space in particular.
This is the number one negative comment
I ever hear about Portland.” |
| “I’d
like to feel more safe. I’d like gangs
to go away. I’d like drugs and all the
crime they cause to go away. I’d like
parents to be good role models, priests
to be true and ethical guides, police
to be dependable and for the people. I’d
like there to be good schools, resources,
jobs.” |
- Police should spend more time on
serious crimes and less time on panhandlers
and runaways.
- Crack down on the methamphetamine industry
by focusing on prevention, which is more cost-effective
than buying new jail space.
- Fund and expand jails and prisons to remove
repeat offenders from the streets.
- Address the root causes of crime, drug use
and anti-social behavior.
- Improve the city’s public school system
and provide more options for at-risk youth.
- Encourage neighbors to take back their
neighborhoods by supporting them in their
efforts to reduce crime and gang activity.
- Decrease fraud and property crime through
public safety programs to educate and protect
the public.
- Let the police work on crime and develop
a separate agency, system or facility to work
with the mentally ill.
- Portland
is too soft on crime and too lenient with
criminals.
- There are a number of comments throughout
this section from people who believe that
crime is on the rise in Portland because the
city is too soft on crime.
- These respondents feel the following factors
are partly to blame:
- Portland’s liberal political climate,
which some believe breeds drug use and
criminal behavior;
- Lax enforcement of existing laws by
police officers; and
- An overly tolerant social atmosphere,
which some feel emboldens criminals.
- Existing laws should be enforced strictly
by police officers, including:
o Traffic laws (speed limits, red lights,
etc.)
- Laws prohibiting prostitution;
- Laws banning smoking on Tri-Met platforms;
- Laws prohibiting drinking in parks;
and
- Laws against drug dealing, especially
in public places.
- People who break the law should be held
accountable and punished more harshly.
- Criminals should not be let out of jail
for lack of funding or space.
| “Stop
being so lenient with lowlifes. Stop allowing
panhandlers, drunks and criminals to roam
the City, selling and using drugs everywhere,
threatening people, and basically living
on the buses, MAX, sidewalks and parks.
They’ve become part of the ‘public domain’
and it’s awful. Find other places for
them to live (such as jail!)” |
| "Portland
needs to hold the bar higher for people.
They need to expect accountability. We
need to stop reinforcing the idea that
people can’t do it themselves. What do
you have when you sober up a horse thief?
A sober horse thief. What happens when
we instill and reinforce entitlement issues
in criminal, homeless people, and addicts?
Portland needs to help people who are
willing to do the hard work and stop throwing
money at those who don’t want a better
life.” |
- More funding for jails, so that
criminals can be held for the full duration
of their sentences.
- More police presence in neighborhoods and
downtown.
- Gangs
pose a threat to youth and to the community
at large.
- Some Portlanders are very worried about
gang activity in the city and rising rates
of gang-related crime, including graffiti,
property damage and youth violence.
- Youth gangs have been increasing their presence
in certain neighborhoods, including outer
Northeast Portland and East Portland.
- Many people--particularly elders and families
with children– fear gang activity and groups
of people that appear dangerous or intimidating
loitering in downtown, in parks and some residential
areas.
- Portlanders are also worried about graffiti,
which they consider to be a by-product of
gang activity. Worries include:
- Graffiti makes Portland look dirty,
unkempt and uncared for;
- Graffiti can intensify violence between
competing gangs;
- Graffiti is a significant concern because
so many people value the beauty and cleanliness
of the city and consider it a key part
of Portland’s identity (see Urban
Livability: City Appearance).
- Portlanders should not tolerate gangs and
should work vigorously to reduce gang violence.
| “I’m
seeing…a lot more graffiti and in what
has been considered the ‘nice’ places
which makes me think gangs are more prevalent.
I’ve also noticed more of a drug problem
lately.” |
| “[I
would like to see] a more concentrated
effort to rehabilitate the homeless, to
get kids, drugs, and gangs off the streets.” |
| “I
wish there were more programs for young
people. Also more programs for parents.
Less shootings in the community. There
should be more police in the neighborhood.
No popping wheels or breaking windows.
Less gangsters and more security.” |
- Create and promote early intervention
programs for troubled and at-risk youth that
will prevent them from being drawn into the
world of gangs.
- Provide free tattoo removal for young kids
trying to exit gangs.
- Publish and post more information on how
to report individuals engaged in graffiti.
- "Create a program for youth who want to
be part of a group but are joining gangs for
lack of information."
- Focus juvenile justice on reform, not punishment.
- Reducing
juvenile delinquency is a community responsibility.
- Many respondents look to the community to
prevent youth from joining gangs and/or entering
a life of crime.
- Portlanders want investments early in the
success of all of the community’s young people.
- While the police play an important role,
many people believe that the community—not
the police—is mainly responsible for deterring
youth from a life of crime.
- Portlanders believe that better quality
schools, more programs for youth and greater
community involvement with youth will deter
them from criminal activity.
Improved Schools:
- Portlanders believe that with effective
and flourishing schools, we would have fewer
dropouts, teen pregnancies and juvenile offenders.
- Many respondents believe youth who are
engaged in school and excited about their
education will not be enticed by gangs or
a life of crime.
- Focusing on improving schools will solve
many of the problems that lead youth towards
unproductive, anti-social behavior.
Youth Programs:
- Many youth, especially low-income and at-risk
youth, lack access to inexpensive activities
that can keep them engaged in the after-school
hours and during the summer months.
- Youth request more skate parks, more after-school
programs, and other activities to keep them
“out of trouble” and learning new skills.
Community Involvement:
- Neighborhoods should offer extensive, inexpensive
youth activities to reduce juvenile delinquency.
- Neighborhood associations should be equipped
to take the lead in defusing gangs and giving
young people a place to go and things to do.
- Police should create programs where they
can work with youth and build positive relationships
with young people.
- Local businesses can do more to involve
youth through job shadowing, summer internships
and partnering more with local schools.
| “We
need more places for kids my age to go
where we are not able to get into trouble.” |
| “More
programs to help keep kids out of gangs
and off drugs, and instead into activities
that they can be good at and proud of.” |
| “Educate
our children well so that they don’t fall
into drugs or gangs.” |
- Schools, government agencies and
neighborhood centers should teach the principles
of non-violent methods of conflict resolution
for all age levels.
- “A lot more work in low-income neighborhoods
to work with kids giving them a hopeful sense
of the future so they have no interest [in]
the dead-end life of gangs.”
|
- What
is the most appropriate and effective response to
petty crime?
There is a major disagreement in this section regarding
how best to deal with people who are involved with
minor crimes, especially individuals who are socially
disadvantaged (people experiencing homelessness, people
with mental illnesses or who are addicted to drugs,
runaways, etc.). Most respondents favor a “compassionate”
approach that seeks to understand and address the
root causes of these crimes. Instead of harsh prison
sentences for this type of offender, they prefer community
service, rehabilitation, counseling and other services
to help individuals turn their lives around and become
productive, contributing members of society.
They would prefer that law enforcement officers
spend less time “hassling” these people and more
time focused on preventing major crimes and catching
serious criminals, including drug dealers, violent
offenders, child molesters and others. They want
to see a cohesive, multi-disciplinary partnership
between law enforcement, social service agencies
and the justice system that provides effective services
for “at risk” populations and prevents them from
joining the ranks of serious, hardened criminals.
There is a much smaller group of respondents that
is very opposed to this position. These Portlanders
want to see strict enforcement of all existing rules
and would prefer that drug addicts, gang members
and anyone else who breaks the law serve prison
time, regardless of that person’s circumstances
or life challenges. They are opposed to providing
additional services to people who are breaking the
law or have already broken it, and would prefer
to see those funds spent on increasing prison capacity
and keeping criminals in jail for longer periods
of time.
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