PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN ) — Portland City Commissioner Mingus Mapps is running for mayor. What you may not know is that he’s been getting racist hate mail and emails during his campaign.
After Commissioner Mapp’s chief of staff contacted KOIN 6 News about the hate mail, he addressed these letters and whether they’re affecting his run for mayor on this week’s Eye on Northwest Politics.
“I hope that Portlanders recognize that, despite the kind and caring community we live in, racial threats and racial harassment are still part of our political culture,” he said. “One of the things I want to do is to raise awareness of this. And one of the things I want to do as just a civic leader is to call on all Portlanders to reject hate.”
One email in particular uses racial slurs throughout. Another laments that Portland is not a white homeland, decrying everything from multicultural Rose Festival princesses to black gangs, to critical race theory. Another letter referred to all Black people as “pathological in nature.”
While one of the letters commended Mapps for running as a Black man in a mostly white city, it goes on to say Portland doesn’t need to take a chance on another Black person in a position of power, referring to former Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty.
“It makes me sad for the folks who are reaching out with messages of fear and hate like that. It reminds me that we need to get to know each other better,” Mapps noted. “Although my skin looks different, I am no different from my neighbors who just want to make sure that their kids are safe.”
Mapps also doesn’t believe this has impacted his campaign for mayor. But because of the recent threats, he has upped his security.
“One of the realities of being a Black man in America is you’re going to be the subject of a certain amount of racist abuse,” he said. “I’ve been a black man in my whole life, so this is how I proceed, so we’re marching forward. I’ll tell you what, I do fear for my staff and that is an incredibly important concern for me.”
During the interview, host Ken Boddie touched on a similar experience from after the 2020 election, when he received racist hate mail from a Trump supporter. Police were never able to figure out the sender. Boddie’s response to this letter won him an Emmy, as well as KOIN 6 News anchor Jeff Gianola who interviewed him.
Mapps weighed in, stating this is not a unique experience for public figures of color in this community. However, he emphasized coming together to reject these types of behaviors is what’s most important, while also recognizing they are rooted in fear.
“We are better than this. And I also recognize that the people who are sending toxic letters like this, threatening letters like this, are themselves deeply consumed by fear. I think that’s one of the reasons why I do the work I do,” Mapps noted. “I believe that if we continue to lean into making a better city, our children and our grandchildren can avoid conversations like the one we’re having today.”
This past week, Mapps sided with fellow Commissioners Dan Ryan and Rene Gonzalez, stating it’s time for the city to pull out of the Joint Office of Homeless Services agreement with Multnomah County . He claimed no one on City Council was talking about ending the relationship. However, defining which duties belonged to the county and which to the city is integral moving forward.
“What I want from this agreement is clarity on who does what and frankly, support for our Safe Rest Village clients. We haven’t gotten there as of today,” Mapps said. “One of the things that we’re doing right now is having some tough conversations with our colleagues across the river to try to make the system work better.”
With 30% of Portland voters still undecided in the mayoral race, Mapps had one parting message for them.
“I want people to know that Mingus Mapps is on the ballot,” he said. “And if you want common sense solutions to our most crucial problems, I sure hope that you’ll consider ranking me number one in the mayor’s race.”
Watch the full interview in the video above.
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