News
How writing inspired Mitch Albom to help people
Author Mitch Albom has made a career of helping people – whether it’s through the 35 million-plus books he’s sold worldwide (that often focus on inspirational people or themes), or his numerous philanthropic endeavors. Starting out as a sports writer in his early 20s, he eventually gained national fame as a sports journalist with the…
Author Patricia Kullberg draws from tragedies she’s seen on Portland’s streets
For 20 years, Dr. Patricia Kullberg was the medical director for the Multnomah County Health Department. She worked directly with those living on Portland’s utmost margins: undocumented people, people dealing with abuse, living with mental illness and experiencing homelessness. Now retired from the health profession, she published a book in August about a girl fleeing…
David Morrison; Watchman of the Wi-Fi
David Morrison’s activist journey began the moment he first saw that cell tower in the bucolic setting of his daughter’s private school and has grown into an all-encompassing mission to protect students from harm by seeing that Wi-Fi is removed. When I went to meet Morrison in a busy coffee house in Southeast Portland in…
Opinion
Taking charge of the holidays key for survivors, victims alike
It’s difficult these days to go to a store, watch TV, or sift through email without being reminded that the holiday season is here. For many people, this time of year brings tremendous joy and connection with loved ones. But the holidays can also be a stressful time for families, even under the best of…
How Houdini tried to save Portland
Around 1920, the United States experienced a wave of “spiritualism.” This interest seems to hit our society in spurts over the decades, coming in and out of vogue. But looking at the early 1920s specifically, many historians point to the tragic events of World War I, and a need to not only try to connect…
The minimum wage fight you don’t know needs to be fought
I’m here to sound an alarm. The minimum wage is not, it turns out, actually the minimum wage. You may not know this, but there’s a minimum wage even lower than that which so many of us are fighting hard to increase. It’s a bargain basement wage this country has permitted for over 80 years…
Director’s Desk: Sharing the holiday spirit with readers, vendors alike
The holidays are upon us. We want to wish everyone at Street Roots a very happy holiday! This year has been a big one at Street Roots. This time last year we were gearing up to go from a biweekly publication to a weekly publication. With your support we began publishing weekly on Jan. 1.…
