Welcome to our site Jackie. We hope you find many friends.

Though my hometown wasn’t as progressive as it is now, cops were often the most reliable, even coolest guys around.. I’d watch, even admire their restraint when (the record being) seven cars were dispatched to deal with our alcoholic neighbor having threatened to kill ..you name it.

I’d often approach them on my bike, and talk as they watched over the park I also lived near. They represented safety, stability and sanity, to me. A decade later, I was in college to become one.. My hometown, Portland OR, was the first in the nation to require a 2 year degree, and it’s county (Multnomah) was first to require a 4 year degree.

The cops are what the community are willing to pay, invest in, or demand. Portland’s finest have had their problems, but they’ve progressed, reflecting the town & community leaders who hire and support them.

Sure, I was white ...but in a part of town nicknamed felony flats, or the dandylion district, and at times felt expendable… I had my share of encounters.. but respectful, honest, and aware of ‘who was in control of the situation,’ survived them with no emotional scars. I doubt many get a warm & fuzzy feeling when being observed by an officer, but someone’s gotta do the hard stuff, glad it isn't ..or wasn’t me.

Welcome to this place on the web, Jackie.

I'm not minimizing anything you've said, Jackie...what I want to do here is ADD to it. Straight women, bisexual women, transgender women...many more of us are at the MERCY of white men! Think about how many people we've seen beaten, bullied, put down...even when racism is subtle....hatred of ''the other'' is still acceptable among the ''good old boys."

Catching sight of a cop in the vicinity is a nerve wracking experience. I've felt that way my entire adult life.