AC headshot photoThis month, we spoke with Andrew Campbell, a Mentor and Development Specialist at Multnomah County’s Health Department. Andrew serves as Chair on the Board of Directors for Word is Bond and as a committee member on the City of Portland’s Black Male Achievement Committee

Andrew spoke with us about growing up in Portland and seeing his neighborhood in North and Northeast Portland change throughout his lifetime. After coming back from living in the South where he went to college and graduate school, Andrew saw his hometown and the issues here with a different lens. 

Since moving back to Portland, Andrew has continued his passion for mentoring Black men and young people by teaching them exercises to cope with stress and trauma. Andrew has applied his knowledge of community health to advocating for transportation justice within the Black community and other communities of color through his involvement with Multnomah County’s Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) program. Knowing too well the historic impacts of disinvestment and displacement, Andrew has built his career into one that advocates for Portland’s Black community, empowering them with the tools to model self-care and “fight the good fight.”

You grew up in Portland, can you tell me a little bit about where you grew up and what it was like?

I was born and raised in the gentrified areas of Portland. I grew up off of the interstate for my first 5 years of life. I went to Kenton Elementary for Pre-K. 

When I was 6 until 16, I lived by N Williams Ave. A lot of my adolescence and youth were spent within that area before N Williams Ave looked like N Williams Ave now. It was really different.

My sophomore year of high school, my parents moved to east Portland. I used to catch the bus an hour and a half from home to high school and back. I went to Benson High School, Harriet Tubman Middle School, and Boise Eliot Elementary School.

My major at Benson was electrical engineering (EE). It's funny, in college I thought I was going to do engineering because I really liked EE. But I got bored during my freshman year, because of some of the work I had done in high school. My passion then really came out for the social sciences because I wanted to have more of a direct impact on individuals rather than working on technology. If I didn’t go to Benson, I’m sure I would be an electrical engineer now. But because of high school, I wanted to enhance my knowledge and credibility in physical and mental health fields. 

Have you noticed a difference between the Portland you grew up in and the Portland we have today?

The area I grew up in, N Williams Ave, I know that area a lot. I’ve done a lot in that area, especially when I was a kid. N Williams Ave and NE Fremont St are so much taller than they were. There wasn’t a New Seasons Grocery store, instead there was a Wonder Bread bakery. There was more air pollution before they changed N Williams Ave into a 2-car lane.

There were more Black businesses, like grocery stores and corner stores. Now, it’s different; it's more white with taller buildings. It has lost the sense of Black culture. It’s different--the Black community and culture is scattered compared to when it was concentrated in one area. You used to be able to go to this area and find a thriving Black community, but now you go there 20 years later and it’s not the same.

At times, it’s not a really comfortable place for Black and Brown folks to go back because they’re triggered by the environmental changes and by the energy. You can walk around this area and feel like it's not for you even though you have historic context. It can be hard to go back to places that have been gentrified.

When and why did you move to Alabama and then Tennessee? When you were gone, did you miss Portland? 

I moved to Alabama in 2007 to go to Tuskegee University, a Historically Black College and University. I graduated with a psychology and sociology double major. I was the first person in my family to graduate from college. Then, I went to University of Tennessee in Knoxville for graduate school where I received a masters’ degree in Sports Psychology in 2013. 

I migrated my way back to Portland after being gone for 9 years. I missed my family and the nature of the Pacific Northwest, like the air quality.

What did you gain when you moved to the South? 

I gained a lot from living in the South for almost 9 years; knowledge, identity, exposure, and family.

My social capital got better due to my experience in the south. My friends and mentors became my family during my time in the South and being away from home.

As for identity, when you learn your history and follow your roots it really helps with your self-esteem and confidence. I was forced to be independent, seek information, and meet new people.

Also, I was exposed to a new Southern culture. It was great to be introduced to more Black and Brown professionals. Where I lived, it was a normal thing to see Black police officers, firefighters, doctors, and teachers. Here in Portland, people are not exposed to that as much and it's more tokenized.

Word is Bond provides so many amazing opportunities for Portland’s Black community, and specifically for young Black men - to grow, learn, and develop a sense of one’s self and one’s community. What are some of your favorite things about being on the board of this organization?

I think my favorite thing is giving back through mentorship and communication with previous generations--its motivating and hopeful. Well..sometimes it's hopeful. Majority of the time, it is. 

It's good for young Black men to see other successful Black folks, especially if they don’t see it much within their environment or neighborhood.

I was the first to graduate from college and I have a high ACE (Adverse Childhood Experience) score. I say this to share how similar stories can motivate youth to persevere and be resilient. People can manage their trauma no matter what they’ve experienced. Some may have a higher or lower ACE score than mine. Regardless, it's all about how you manage it. 

I like sharing healthy skills like communication, professional, mental and physical health skills. People call me the “wellness guru.” I really like promoting wellness skills we can use since we all get triggered. With Word is Bond, I will not only help youth, but police officers with de-escalation tools and remind them to use these skills. 

Tell me about your role with the Black Male Achievement (BMA) Committee. What are some of the main issues that this committee is seeking to address and how? What challenges does this committee face?

The Black Male Achievement (BMA) Committee is creating practical and sustainable ways to improve the lives of Black men and boys. Creating pathways of opportunity that people can be exposed to. We try to remove barriers to opportunities. I wanted to join the BMA to give back and get involved with the Black community here in Portland.

We have a Summer Works program that gets 16 to 24 year olds into jobs or internships. We also host virtual town halls to build educational awareness on health concerns and a platform to share resources. We connect youth with resources and organizations like POIC, Word is Bond, Play, Grow, Learn, etc.

BMA came out of the My Brother’s Keeper initiative, which was developed by President Obama as a pathway for local governments to invest and mentor young men of color.

I’ve noticed that we face challenges that many groups who serve racial or diverse groups face. It’s hard to find funding to provide for the community. Grassroots or non-profit organizations have to fight over a pot of money, which is often not distributed equitably.

You were on the project team for the REACH Transportation Crash and Safety Report, can you explain a bit about that research? 

Where do I start - this project was pretty big. The team did an amazing job. I broadened the holistic health and cultural health perspective. This report was fun, but hard. The data is really real and hits the people who experience it hard. This report is a great resource and toolkit for transportation planners to create a healthier environment for everyone, but especially for Black and Brown people. 

How does this report impact the work needed to be done in order to promote wellbeing among communities that are disproportionately impacted by poor transportation infrastructure or planning?

This report highlighted the importance of compensating community members when they share their perspectives on transportation plans. Transportation planners have to engage the community on the plan they’re developing, but often they get the same voices commenting on the plan. They don’t get the voices that they really need. This report provided reinforcement and data to argue for why we need to pay communities for their input.

The report also showed how trees benefit a neighborhood by creating a cooler climate. We have all these trees in areas where Black and Brown people grew up in, but now they’re forced out and into places that don’t have them. Same goes with lighting and crosswalks.

This report is a lot to digest. I am hopeful that the County, Metro, ODOT, and PBOT can utilize this information and a public health approach in transportation.

As a “wellness guru,” do you have any recommendations for those reading this interview to manage stress or trauma?

I encourage progressive muscle relaxation. This is when you are intentional about tensing a certain area of your body for a few seconds and then releasing it. I always recommend it because when you experience stress, our bodies unconsciously tense up. [You can find a video of Andrew teaching progressive muscle relaxation here]

Andrew, thank you for sharing your experiences with us, and for your work for our communities!