Opinion: Surging gun violence in East Portland needs city’s attention
Updated Feb 17, 2021;
McMullen, Hasenberg and Masciocchi are residents of the Hazelwood neighborhood in East Portland.
In the past several months, East Portland has seen rolling gun battles through the streets, homes riddled with bullets and a mass shooting when a teen and three other young people were gunned down in a park. Violence is a near-daily occurrence and it’s not hyperbole to say people are afraid to leave their homes at night.
We are writing to condemn the violence occurring in East Portland and to insist that our elected officials show leadership on this issue immediately. We agree with the decision to disband the Portland Police’s Gun Violence Response Team in order to be replaced by something more humane and prevention-oriented. However, with no replacement on the horizon, elected officials and Portland Police have created a vacuum that allows criminals to operate with impunity and violence