The area I consider Lloyd Center is from Rose Quarter TC to the west and Lloyd Center Mall to the East. It's the heart of the North East Side of Downtown. The demographics of the neighborhood are around 80% White, rent is high, and residents are middle class to high class. However, it is becoming a haven for the cities gangs to sell drugs. The gangs come from other sides of the city, primarily North East in the impoverished neighborhoods with high amounts of gang activity.
I have been in this area many time since it is such a main point of public transportation. I have seen many things go down around the Lloyd Center Mall and i'll share a few stories of my own:
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I was at the Rose Quarter transit center about to board the number 4 bus to North Portland. There was a significantly large line to board the bus and I wasn't so enthusiastic about having to be cramped onto a city bus with many other strangers. Luckily, I was the second in line right behind a young black teenager wearing a white tee shirt and a blue baseball New York Yankees Cap. I got on the bus and showed my TRIMET bus pass to conferm my purchase of a ticket. I got onto the bus and the guy infront of me got surrounded by 4 other young black teenagers. I heard one of them say "What are you gonna do now motherfucker?" The teenager raised his arms and said he didnt wan't trouble, he didn't want beef. Within a second later he hit the ground and more than 10 people were attacking him. The bus driver honked the horn and yelled but couldn't do much else. I ran off the bus thinking shots might be fired, instead I saw 3 of the teenagers friends run and more than 20 teenagers appear and chase them down. A few teenagers wore red bandanas around their faces discuising their true identity. The police came roaring and screaming and I looked back at inside of the bus and blood was dripping off the entrance of the bus. The victim crawled off of the bus and his shirt was covered in blood and it was ripped. It looked like his nose and teeth were broken and one of his eyes were bleeding, almost swollen shut. He didn't stay long and soon after took off before Paramedics came, he took off down the street leaving a trail of blood behind.
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I was at the Lloyd Center train stop making some deals with a couple friends, I had a pocket full of pain killers and a bag of weed. I was at the stop for a few hours and the youngsters started to come. I then see a young hispanic male in a black coat walk up too a heavy built black man wearing a red sweatshirt. He pushed the black man and said "Fuck your set bitch." He then swung a wooden umbrella at the black males head and the guy grabbed it and broke it then hit him with it, the umbrella broke in half. Another black male wearing a red sweat shirt came in and they began to corner the teenager yelling "Fuck 6 Deuce." They kept chanting "Fuck 6 Deuce"!. (6 Deuce is a Crip Gang based off of the North Side of the city full name East Coast Crips 62 A.K.A 6 Deuce). The hispanic teenager quickly walked away as more joined yelling "Fuck 6 Deuce." He just yelled back "Fuck you." and he walked away quick almost running. The two black males made an attempt to run for them and a woman tried to talk them out of it, they pushed her aside and stormed towards the teenager. As they ran about 5 more black males ran toward the teenager too, a few reaching into their wastebands. The jumped on the victim hitting him over and over until police sirens were heard and they all took off. The agressor was now the victim.
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The final story. I was in the food court at the mall eating some Chinese Food with a few friends. It was a quiet afternoon, I saw a fight at the MAX stop earlier, but nothing big. I then heard BAM BAM BAM BAM! We were startled and had no idea what the hell happened. Later, I turned on the news and found out there was a gang related shooting between Hoover Criminals and Bloods in the middle of the crowded mall in the middle of the afternoon.
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