|
Dear Portlanders,
Tomorrow I, along with my colleagues Councilor Candace Avalos and Councilor Angelita Morillo, am introducing a resolution at the Community and Public Safety Committee meeting to support and expand Portland Street Response (PSR) as a co-equal branch of our first responder system.
The resolution would affirm PSR's mission as a behavioral health crisis response program responding to 911 calls and prioritize hiring and training until it's fully staffed for 24/7 citywide response. It would also establish a Portland Street Response Committee to provide recommendations on PSR's future.
Unarmed response works, and it's a necessary component of our public safety system. PSR is one of a number of crisis response programs across the country that have successfully diverted 911 calls originally directed to police, reducing the likelihood of use-of-force incidents and strengthening connections to community-based services. Ten other cities have developed 24/7 unarmed response operations, and three other cities have established unarmed response as a co-equal first responder branch.
Portland Street Response is also extremely popular. In 2023, a petition to restore and expand the program garnered over 10,000 signatures in a single week.
You can help by submitting testimony in support of the resolution. Thank you for supporting holistic community safety in Portland.
With gratitude,
Sameer Kanal
Council...@portlandoregon.gov
|
