News
Coming clean: Oregon considers expunging past marijuana convictions
When Scott Mulgrew was 18 and attending high school in Spokane, he got pulled over for speeding in a school zone. Cops searched his car and found two small bags of marijuana – less than an ounce total – and a scale. Cops said he confessed to selling drugs to school children, though Mulgrew told…
Cultures, crude oil and the Columbia: Portland’s plan for new fossil fuel operations
In September, Mayor Charlie Hales announced that he had a new customer at the Port of Portland – the Pembina Corporation. Pembina, based in Canada, plans to build a $500 million propane terminal at the port, potentially marking the first time the city of Portland enters the fossil fuel export business. The mayor champions the…
Update: Fort McClellan veterans soldier on
Thousands of veterans who trained at Fort McClellan say contamination at the military base caused them to become seriously ill. For more than a decade they’ve demanded the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) acknowledge the source of their sicknesses and approve their exposure-related benefits claims. The VA recently sat down with a Fort McClellan…
Opinion
Stronger families make safer communities
Oregon has recently committed to an exciting new path to improve its public safety system. This path started when the Justice Reinvestment Act, House Bill 3194, was signed into law in 2013. The Justice Reinvestment Act flatlined prison growth for the next five years and was projected to save the state $300 million in averted…
Our state needs more homes; let’s get started
Oregonians are responsible and empathetic. We don’t want to see our neighbors suffer, and often we’re compelled to act when that suffering becomes obvious. At some level we all understand our fates are linked. But Oregonians are also human, which means we can feel deep empathy for one person — often through personal connection or…
Statehouse testimony stresses right to rest, survive
House keys, not handcuffs! House keys, not handcuffs!” Chants and songs rang loud from the Capitol steps on a warm Thursday afternoon in Salem. Advocates, housed and unhoused, traveled from across the state and beyond to voice their support of Senate Bill 629, the Right to Rest Act. A group of about 40 people arrived…
Vendor Profiles
Hard work pays off vendor Jermaine Johnson lands a job
Jermaine Johnson likes living in a place that has low crime and no hurricanes. He lived through Hurricane Katrina, with his home knocked off its foundation, alligators in the streets, and a local man robbed and shot for his shoes. When Jermaine moved to Spokane, Wash., in 2010, he met the mother of his daughter…
