We, the undersigned labor union rank-and-file and union officers of NW Oregon, stand shoulder-to-shoulder with delegates opposing the Portland Police Association's (PPA) entrance into the NW Oregon Labor Council.

Historically and to the present, police serve as strike-breakers across the nation and in Portland, always siding with bosses against organized workers—with the police association lining up with their commanders.

The effort to bring the PPA into the Labor Council represents a total repudiation of core labor values, which are grounded in solidarity, racial & social justice, and collective action.

Instead, the police association's conduct and track record speaks to their self-interest at the expense of other workers, threats and violence against pro-worker public officials, and a resolute commitment to avoid the type of accountability that no other public employee has.

Self-Interest

The Police Association's recent opposition to mild police accountability measures, including Resolution 2025-047 (a measure to clarify bias standards for the Community Police Oversight Board) is the latest in an effort by the Association to avoid accountability for extreme acts of violence and racial bias. This freedom from oversight is not a "privilege" any of us would expect in our own jobs.

Threats Against Public Officials

As The Oregonian recently documented, five on-duty officers—two wearing Portland Police Association-branded baseball caps—descended uninvited on Councilor Sameer Kanal’s February 2025 town hall. The officers, dispatched by North Precinct Commander Rob Simon, lingered silently amid constituents, creating a palpable tension that erupted in jeers from attendees. Days later, Councilor Angelita Morillo encountered a similar tactic: two uniformed officers appeared unannounced at a Montavilla neighborhood event she attended, “lurking” at the back of the room without engaging attendees. When Morillo approached them for answers, they refused to identify the lieutenant who ordered their presence and abruptly departed. Armed officers leveraging their union’s insignia and state-sanctioned authority to surveil critics not only violates principles of worker solidarity but erodes public trust in law enforcement’s role as community partners.

The PPA's own past immediate President, Brian Hunzeker, was fired after he and another officer colluded to leak false information about then Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty to the The Oregonian and conservative political group Coalition to Save Portland, in hopes of smearing Hardesty’s character. This misconduct cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars in the subsequent settlements.

Solidarity For Violent Police

In 2012, Portland Police officer Christopher Humphreys was suspended for beating to death James P. Chasse Jr., who was unarmed and suffering from mental illness. What was the PPA's response? They fought to overturn the suspension and then marched through downtown, sporting signs that said, "We Are Chris Humphreys."