The Coalition Against Hate Crimes (CAHC) was started in Portland, Oregon as a statewide partnership between community groups and local, state, and federal governmental agencies. It held its first meeting in early October 1997. Its members are representatives from a wide variety of community civil rights groups and government organizations. The Coalition and its members support non-violent solutions to the problem of hate and hate crimes in Oregon.

The CAHC works on three primary levels.

  1. Connecting community groups with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to improve the reporting of hate crimes and to aid in the investigation of hate crimes.
  2. Providing resources to victims of hate crimes and hate incidents, including information on neighborhood mediation and proper legal channels to report hate crimes. The coalition helps to respond appropriately to hate incidents in local communities.
  3. Educating the community about the disruptive nature of hate crimes and the community strengthening value of diversity.

The CAHC also tracks hate crimes and hate incidents as well as hate group activity in the state of Oregon.

MISSION To use the moral authority of the Coalition and its members to give expression to the community conscience as spelled out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Coalition Against Hate Crime (CAHC) does not support or condone violence in any form, including against those who may perpetrate hate. We believe that education and peaceful protest are powerful forces for change in a democratic society, and we defend the rights of individuals and organizations to practice nonviolent resistance. We also believe working with formal institutions of justice allows us to peacefully influence those institutions while strengthening the communities they are charged with protecting.

Administrator: Randy Blazak, Chair. blazakr@gmail.com

Facebook: Oregon’s Coalition Against Hate Crime

 

Coalition Against Hate Crimes Bylaws 

Adopted February 5, 2019

The Coalition Against Hate Crimes is a coalition of both government and non-government organizations. Each organization may determine its participation and adherence to these bylaws.

A. MEMBERSHIP 

  1. A “Member” of the Coalition is defined as any members of the Oregon community, law enforcement organizations, governmental agencies, advocacy and community groups that are concerned with the issue of hate crimes and hate incidents and choose to list themselves or their organization as supporters of the Coalition’s mission.
  2. A “Member in Good Standing” of the Coalition is defined as a member who has been listed as a supporter for at least one year and has attended at least one (1) meeting in a calendar year.

B. MEETINGS 

  1. The Coalition will meet monthly on a regularly selected day that is equally advantageous to government and community partners. Special meetings may be called as needed by consensus of the Coalition. 
  2. Meeting announcements, including location information and call for agenda items, will be sent out by the Chair to members via the Coalition email listserve.
  3. Meeting minutes for each meeting will be compiled by the Chair (or designated Co-chair) and sent out by the Chair to members via the Coalition email listserve within one week of the monthly meeting.
  4. Meetings are open to the public and will be held in accessible locations with regards to parking and people with disabilities and will be announced on the Coalition’s Facebook page.
  5. At least one meeting each calendar year will be located outside of Portland, Oregon.
  6. Monthly meetings shall generally be formatted as follows:

• Welcome and introductions

• Review and approval of the previous month’s minutes

• Member announcements and news items

• Law Enforcement Report

• Old Business

• New Business

• Review of Action Items

• Adjournment and networking

VII. Agenda items may be submitted by contacting any member of the Coalition, who will forward the request to the Chair, or can be submitted directly to at the Chair.

C. ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE 

  1. The Alliance shall have the following organization structure that will serve as the Coalition’s Steering Committee:
    a. Chair (Elected)
    b. Co-Chair/Admin (Designated)
    c. Local Law Enforcement Representative
    d. Department of Justice Representative
    e. Community Group Representative
  2. The function of the respective positions will be: 
  • Chair
  • 1. Set agenda and facilitate discussion at monthly meetings. 
  1. Act as spokesperson for the Coalition (need to identify scope). 
  2. Act as the representative for the Coalition in any other committees or meetings
  3. Maintain Coalition website and Facebook page
  4. Maintain the roster for the Coalition and record attendance at meetings.
  5. Maintain meeting minutes in a readily accessible format
  • Co-Chair/Admin 
    1. Facilitate discussion at monthly meetings when the Chair is not present. 
    2. Take notes at meetings.
    3. Act as spokesperson for the Coalition when the Chair is not available. 
  • Local Law Enforcement Representative
    1. Present recent hate crime data and update Coalition on ongoing investigations and/or case progress/resolution.
    2. Communicate relevant issues to participating organizations. 

• Department of Justice Representative

    1. Present recent civil rights data and update Coalition on ongoing investigations and/or case progress/resolution.
    2. Communicate relevant issues to participating organizations.

• Community Group Representative

  1. Present the dominant issues and concerns related hate crimes to the Coalition.
  2. Provide alternative perspectives to relevant issues with regard to government agencies.

D. Governance

  1. Election of the Chair
      1. The position of Chair shall be a two-year elected position. The election will be held every other April, unless the position is vacated and there is a need to elect a new Chair.
      2. The election will be held via an online voting platform emailed to Coalition Members as defined in Section A.
      3. Nominations will be made by Members in Good Standing and will be made in March of a voting year. The election slate will include an option for write-in candidates.
      4. A new Chair will begin the position the following month after the election and will be aided in the transition by the outgoing Chair.

II. Selection of other positions

  1. The Co-chair will be selected by the Chair and may vary over the course of the Chair’s tenure.
  2. Representatives from the community, Department of Justice, and local law enforcement will be volunteer positions and will stand unless there is a desire by Members to hold a vote on the positions.

III. Responsibilities of Steering Committee

  1. The Steering committee will meet when needed to set agenda items and resolve internal conflicts regarding policies, membership, and public events.
  2. Only members of the Steering Committee will have access to the email list serve held by the Chair.
  3. The Steering Committee will meet each June to discuss upcoming action items by the Coalition and assess the effectiveness of the Coalition over the previous year.

E. BYLAW REVIEWS 

Annually, at the November meeting, the Coalition Bylaws shall be reviewed and amended as needed by a consensus of the Coalition. 

 

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