City council this morning appointed a racial profiling committee with the goal of eliminating racial profiling in the police bureau over the next five years.The names of those serving on the committee were read out this morning before a vote, by Jo Ann Bowman, of Oregon Action, who co-authored the report, along with Alejandro Queral of the Northwest Constitutional Rights Center, and Police Chief Rosie Sizer. As we reported last week, the cops union says it will now come to the table, having overcome its earlier resistance. Sizer will also co-chair the committee alongside Bowman.

“For a community to be truly safe,” said Tom Potter, “it has got to be physically safe, and it has got to feel safe. I want Portland to have a safe environment physically and emotionally, so that when people call 911, they’re calling a friend to help them. This is a big step for Portland, actually engaging the citizens to work with the police to take care of it. Perhaps Portland can discuss the issue of race in a way that not only leads to constructive dialogue, but to constructive action.”

Afterwards, Clayborn Collins, who chaired the community listening sessions on racial profiling and will now serve on the committee, stressed the importance of getting results from the work so far.”I’m hoping the city and the mayor are actually serious about eradicating the problem in the police bureau,” he said.

“I’m pleased we have such a diverse group of stakeholders forming the committee, and we have a lot of momentum,” said Queral. “But this needs to combine to create results. Portland is really tired of committees that go nowhere.”