News
Journalist Travis Lupick tells Vancouver, B.C.’s, story in his new book, ‘Fighting for Space’
No major city in North America pushes the envelope on harm reduction further than Vancouver, B.C. It started 20 years ago, when a group of drug users forced the city to look honestly at its drug problem and mounting death toll. But rather than blanch with shame and denial, they put convention to the test.…
African rats are sniffing out landmines for safe detonation in Cambodia
They’re the unlikeliest of heroes, working for peanuts (and bananas) to make Cambodia a safer place. Meet the African giant pouched rat, a TNT-sniffing rodent that is helping clear landmines across the southeast Asian nation. Decades of civil war and international conflicts have left Cambodia with a legacy that is a constant reminder of its…
To keep their daughters safe from kidnapping, parents in Argentina created a school bus system
Layla Nayeli Sainz Fernández was kidnapped twice within 10 months. She was first kidnapped in 2015, when she was 13 years old, and then again in 2016, after testifying in the Gesell Dome during the lawsuit that investigated her first disappearance. One Tuesday at 7 a.m., Layla left her home in a slum in the…
Opinion
Public school teacher strikes show workplace organizing pays off
While those at the top of the income pyramid continue to celebrate economic trends, the great majority of working people continue to struggle to make ends meet. However, teacher victories in West Virginia, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Arizona demonstrate that sustained workplace organizing, labor-community solidarity, and a willingness to strike can change the balance of power…
Director’s Desk: Go big for housing and go big with the Metro bond
A couple falls asleep on their mattress, a blanket pulled up to their chins. Elsewhere, a man nods off in a pink overstuffed chair. These are scenes that might be unfolding in houses across the city, but that mattress is on the side of the road heavy with traffic, partially covered by a freeway overpass.…
Sheeptoast editorial cartoon: May 25, 2018
Portland native Elizabeth Considine is the creator of Street Roots' editorial cartoon, Sheeptoast. Want to see more Sheeptoast cartoons? VIEW OUR GALLERY Street Roots is an award-winning, nonprofit, weekly newspaper focusing on economic, environmental and social justice issues. Our newspaper is sold in Portland, Oregon, by people experiencing homelessness and/or extreme poverty as means of earning…
Vendor Profiles
Street Roots vendor profile: Not giving up
It’s been wonderful to have Chris Van Dam around the Street Roots vendor office this past year. He’s brought a resilient spirit, a ready smile and a philosophy of giving that is contagious. Chris was born and raised in Southeast Portland. The youngest of four boys, he describes his childhood as ideal. The refrigerator was…
Remembering George Mayes, a great vendor and treasured friend
I am being the best I can beI am homelessI am workingI am a carpenterI am an artistI am a poetI am paying my wayI am a sonI am a brother I am a friend -George Mayes If you’re lucky, you work with people who can turn a break in the day into a tiny…
