Royal Harris
Harris, a program coordinator in the Multnomah County Health Department, Healthy Birth Initiatives Father Involvement Program and a member of the Portland Black Male Achievement executive committee. He lives in Portland.
Portland is currently experiencing a record number of homicides and shootings – 31 homicides and more than 380 shootings as of May 12 – with a disproportionate number of Black men among those murdered. As our city looks for ways to reduce gun violence, it is also time for the citizens of Portland to have the difficult conversation about why in America we believe murder is a legitimate form of conflict resolution. Some people will consider such a comment hyperbole. However, based on my experience growing up in America, murder as a form of problem-solving is as American as Dirty Harry and Rambo.
As a kid, I spent Saturday afternoons watching cowboy and Indian movies and then going outside, toy guns blazing, to play out the killing I had just watched. I remember Sundays spent playing war with my cap gun after watching John Wayne kill the Nazis or Communists to protect democracy and freedom. As I got older it seemed like all the cool guys in movies and on TV carried a gun to fix problems. By the late 80′s and early 90′s I watched as American culture started to embrace murder in the form of “Gangsta” rap and its glorification of killing to obtain respect.
Is it any surprise that this message would take root? American culture’s validation of murder as a legitimate form of conflict resolution has had a dramatic effect on my life. In August 1993 – the year with the most murders in Portland until 2020 – my cousin Torrey Carter was murdered during what would be one of the most violent periods for Black men in the history of Portland. In 2004, my cousin Aaron Crews was murdered after a disagreement in a bar. His murder remains unsolved. In 2013, my brother Durieul Harris was murdered after an altercation. In the years since, over 200 retaliatory shootings have been linked to his murder. I carry these and the stories of dozens of Black men I grew up with and mentored who have lost their lives over perceived disrespects, bruised egos, and the inability to let things go.
With the upswing in violence that is continuing to take the lives of Black men, I am organizing a March Against Murder to take place on Saturday, May 22 at Peninsula Park starting at 1 pm.
The march has three important goals. The first is to unite all Portland citizens to stand together against the premeditated killing of another human without justification or valid excuse. The most important thing we must do as a community is restore the value of human life. While it is important to focus on gun violence, we must be against murder in all forms. Fear, hate or intolerance of a person because of race, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, identity or status are not valid reasons to murder someone.
The second goal of the march is to provide a platform for Black men to present a comprehensive strategy to eliminate murder as a legitimate form of conflict resolution. This platform and strategy have been developed by African American men and organizations with experience in mental health, mediation, conflict resolution, restorative justice, mentoring, community justice, public health, policy development, and most importantly “lived expertise” as part of street culture. Too often, Black men –specifically Black men who are experiencing the problems we look to solve – are not part of the solution. This march aims to feature Black men as the solution generators.
The third goal is to inspire community members to create the change they want to see in their communities. Too often, communities feel powerless and wonder where support and hope will come from. This march is to show people we are the solution we are looking for.
For more information on the march, email thewinnerzcircle503@gmail.com or go to the March Against Murder page on Facebook.
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May 16, 2021 at 08:01PM
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Opinion: Amid spike in shootings, let’s march against murder and the culture that enables it - OregonLive
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