Portland’s Black Professional Brain Drain
Dr. Rosco Shields
Today, I shed several tears about the departure of Sharon Seven Day Adventist church Pastor Rosco Shields. Not just because he was the Chair of our NAACP Religious Affairs committee but because I recognized an unmistakable pattern of black professional talent leaving Portland in what seems like droves. We have experienced, for some time, a defacto African American brain drain. Dr. Rosco Shields and his family are the latest. My point is that these people are not only valuable assets to our community in a general sense, but they also are our best hope for solving critical problems and creating an ecosystem essential for developing black prosperity and healing. If we are ever to change the negative black community paradigms, we must stop the unfettered exit of our best and brightest.
Several other recent losses:
Biko Taylor Chief Procurement Officer-City of Portland
Latrica Tillman Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer in Washington Co.
Dr. Markisha Smith Director of Equity and Human Rights City of Portland
Danielle Outlaw Portland Police Chief
