Portland, OR | February 6, 2020 - In August of 2019, I released an open letter in The Skanner to acknowledge that CAP’s work with the Black community in Portland has been lacking. At the time, our time for showing up at the table was far overdue.  Today as I reflect back, I realize I should have started the conversation with two simple words.

I’m sorry.

You see, CAP, like many organizations, has a long and storied history with the Black community in Portland. A critical step to healing is acknowledging the past and making apologies. In order to rebuild, we must truthfully confront our history of racial injustice before we can repair our painful legacy. To effectively lead with race at CAP, it means finding every opportunity to bring Black and Brown folx from the margins to the center of our story. 

It is with humility and respect that I continue to take responsibility for our organization’s missteps of the past. As the CEO, I want to validate the experiences that Black folx have had with our organization over time and humbly ask for the community’s help in rebuilding a relationship of mutual trust and respect. So, I’m inviting you to reach out to me with your questions and concerns about CAP’s work in the Black community. In return, I am committed to showing up and leaning into these conversations even when they may be uncomfortable. My goal is that folx in the Black community who are living with or impacted by HIV can more easily learn about and access the services they need in the culturally responsive manner they deserve.

Ultimately, there can be no progress in the HIV movement absent an explicit commitment to racial justice.

In the spirit of transparency and accountability, CAP has been engaged in the start of difficult but critical diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work over the last six months. With the launch of a new DEI committee, CAP conducted an equity audit. This audit examined the organization’s equity policies, employment systems, management practices, feedback processes, internal communications, community advocacy and engagement, service-based equity, education and professional development, and systems for monitoring and accountability. Upon completion of the audit, findings were shared with all staff, as well as the Board of Directors. Brainstorming sessions are currently underway as a platform for staff across CAP’s four locations to provide input on our equity journey ahead. By the summer of 2020, our DEI committee will use the audit results and staff recommendations to inform the development of a new three-year equity plan for CAP. This work cannot and will not be done without input from those we serve. Thus, CAP will be expanding our DEI committee to include community representatives in the months ahead. It’s also important that I acknowledge that our initial focus has largely been internal to our organization to ensure we are prepared to proceed in this work in a thoughtful and intentional way. I know that the external facing work is crucially important, and I’d love to share some of the work CAP has been doing in the community.

Partnerships and Presence in the Community

In addition to the equity audit, CAP staff have placed focus on enhancing and increasing our community partnerships, building a presence in the community and improving our internal policies, systems, and training through an equity lens.

Part of our equity process is acknowledging how folx of color working within this organization have historically “showed up and showed out” to help CAP along the way. With that in mind, I’d like to provide a shout out to Uju Nwizu, CAP PrEP Navigator, and Robb Lawrence, African American HIV Services Navigator at the Urban League, for leading in this work and for always pushing CAP to learn from our past, invest in the hard work and to do better! There is a great deal of emotional and mental labor in this DEI work at CAP alongside their primary roles as Navigators and I am so proud of the work they are doing both in this community and to make CAP a stronger more equitable organization.

CAP continues to partner with the Urban League, where Robb is providing medical navigation services to Black folx living with HIV through our MAI funding. We believe this partnership will not only create more accessible HIV services for the Black community, but also allow for both organizations to learn from one another’s expertise in serving communities who have traditionally been furthest from opportunity. Uju & Rob have also been working in close partnership with African American AIDS Awareness Action Alliance (A6), Balm in Gilead, among other Black organizations in Portland. At their request, I am personally reaching out to these partner organizations to schedule sit down meetings and further explore what opportunities may exist for increased partnership and collaborative services for Black folx in our community. We are also examining our events calendar for the year to ensure we are physically meeting Black and Brown communities where they are.

Internal Policies, Systems and Training

Within the walls of CAP, our DEI priorities for the first half of the calendar year 2020 include:

●      Increased transparency and communicating around CAP’s work in Black and Brown communities

●      Creation and implementation of a bias reporting system and response team that prioritizes folx who have experienced harm and their experiences

●      Diversification of our Board of Directors, staff, and volunteers

●      Review and revision of current policies around reporting / navigating bias in the workplace

●      Review and revision of all CAP job descriptions for inclusion of equity as a central piece of our work

●      Review and revision of the CAP performance evaluation process to include at least one equity goal for staff at all levels of the organization

●      Development and implementation of equity training requirements for all staff. At the recommendation of Uju, these trainings will begin with an in-person training on “Power, Privilege, and Fragility,” microaggressions and implicit bias in the workplace, white supremacy in the workplace, gender and gender expression, and training for the Board of Directors and senior leadership on institutional equity

●      Creation of a Diversity Equity and Inclusion Officer at CAP

CAP is only at the beginning of this journey. We are growing as we go, and we know we cannot do this work alone. I look forward to keeping you updated on our progress and hearing from you along the way. Most of all, I look forward to working together to build a stronger organization and community dedicated to enacting racial justice in HIV work.

Tyler TerMeer

Chief Executive Officer

ttermeer@capnw.org

About Cascade AIDS Project

Cascade AIDS Project is the oldest and largest AIDS Service Organization in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Each year, CAP provides housing and support services to thousands of people living with HIV as well robust prevention and education services, including free, confidential HIV and STI testing. CAP also provides compassionate and affirming primary health for the LGBTQ+ Community and beyond through Prism Health.  More information can be found at www.capnw.org