11.14.2020. Audrey Conklin wrote on Fox News about Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and her Lyft/Uber driver. The driver and the commissioner apparently argued enough that the driver pulled in to a gas station then demanded Hardesty get out of the vehicle. Hardesty refused and called 911 telling the dispatcher “it was cold and she was a woman and alone.” The dispatcher informed her that no laws were broken. The driver then called 911 because the commissioner would not leave the car. It would seem that laws were broken by Hardesty as the police arrived. No charges were filed. It is also noteworthy that Hardesty has authored an amendment with the city counsel to defund the Portland police.

Then at a city council meeting Hardesty is quoting as saying,

“This is another example of being Black in America and being put in a position where I have to be the one to look out for my personal safety. I didn’t expect the Lyft driver to do it, certainly didn’t expect the police to do it. It was my responsibility to make sure I got home safe. When you’re living in a city where white supremacists are proudly riding around in their big trucks with their flags, and you’re a black person, and somebody wants to put [you] on the side of the road at night — not gonna happen.”

A fair question is “was the station open or closed?” Apparently this occurred at night. So dropping someone at a station that was closed wouldn’t be illegal but it wouldn’t be nice either.

Beyond that question, Hardesty’s statement is BULLSHIT!

Personal safety is just that–personal. It has nothing to do with being “Black in America.” Each of us is responsible to take precautions for own safety. But here a truism, “Bad things happen even with the best precautions”, so there’s that.

Hardesty states that she didn’t expect the Lyft driver to protect her yet she wouldn’t get out of his vehicle when asked. Sounds as though she felt protected with the Lyft driver.

Hardesty further stated that she didn’t expect the police to protect her…and yet… she called the police. I would be curious to know who she would have called if her amendment was successful in defunding the police “for other resources”? Maybe a social worker would have showed up to talk over the situation.

What did she need to be protected from? Her comments suggest the white supremacists. Big trucks. Flags. This is the biggest bullshit of her statement. Nothing short of attempting to make the incident about race, dividing her city. This is pure bigotry, labeling a group of people as such. Unfortunately, many non-thinkers are nodding their head in agreement. A truck and a flag do not make someone a white supremacists any more than hoodie makes a black person a criminal. Both thoughts are bigoted.

So Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty , I call BULLSHIT on your little speech blaming everyone but yourself. And you smell as if you fell into it.