The Albina Riot of 1967 occurred in the

Albina District Albina is a collection of neighborhoods located in the North and Northeast sections of Portland, Oregon, United States. For most of the 20th century it was home to the majority of the city’s African American population. The area derives its na ...

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, during a year when other cities were experiencing similar civil right demonstrations and urban unrest.

Background

On July 30, 1967, a group of 100 to 150 people gathered in Irving Park. They were there to hear speakers from Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco talk about civil rights, poverty and unemployment, institutionalized discrimination, and police brutality. In addition to other activist leaders, attendees expected

Eldridge Cleaver Leroy Eldridge Cleaver (August 31, 1935 – May 1, 1998) was an American writer and political activist who became an early leader of the Black Panther Party. In 1968, Cleaver wrote '' Soul on Ice'', a collection of essays that, at the time of i ...

, Minister of Information for the Black Panther Party, to make an appearance at the event. After days of rumors there would be civil unrest at the event, parents, ministers, and community leaders urged people to stay home. Police increased their patrols and were present at the event. Cleaver did not appear and tensions increased; young people threw rocks and bottles at the police. The disturbance quickly escalated when the group moved to nearby Union Avenue and set fires, broke windows, and looted a stereo store. The next night saw similar unrest and damage, but the police responded immediately. Mayor

Terry Schrunk Terrence Doyle Schrunk (March 10, 1913 – March 4, 1975) was an American politician who served as the mayor for the city of Portland, Oregon, 1957–1973, a length tying with George Luis Baker, who also served 16 years (1917–1933). Schr ...

and Governor

Tom McCall Thomas Lawson McCall (March 22, 1913 January 8, 1983) was an American statesman, politician and journalist in the state of Oregon. A Republican, he was the state's thirtieth governor from 1967 to 1975. A native of Massachusetts, McCall grew up t ...

alerted the National Guard and State Police and asked them to remain close enough to respond within 10 to 15 minutes if they were needed. The incident left some businesses permanently closed. The riots resulted in 115 arrests and over $50,000 in damaged property.

References

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Background

See also

References

Further reading