Opinion
Kaia Sand | Portland Street Response is working — and in jeopardy
Portland Street Response is achieving what it set out to do. Portland Street Response is in danger of being dismantled. Both are true. Kaia Sand is the executive director of Street Roots. This column represents her views. These are my takeaways from the two-year evaluation of the first responder system for non-criminal crises, which the…
Kaia Sand | He risked everything, and the press is stronger for it
He first gave the documents to The New York Times, then The Washington Post. Next came The Boston Globe — his hometown at the time — followed by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and 11 more regional papers owned by Knight and the Christian Science Monitor. Kaia Sand is the executive director of Street Roots. This…
News
Magic Tavern dancers striking to be second unionized club in US
Within months of Magic Tavern opening in November 2022, dancers at the Portland strip club said they realized it had significant security and safety issues. When some dancers spoke up, management fired or removed them from the schedule for “excessive complaining and inappropriate comments,” dancers said. Workers went on strike April 4, calling attention to…
PPB unfairly rejected 49 victim visa applications, report finds
Editor’s note: This story discusses domestic violence. An investigation shows the Portland Police Bureau wrongly dismissed dozens of visa applications from undocumented victims and witnesses of crimes, the city ombudsman announced June 21. Portland’s Office of the Ombudsman found PPB “failed to live up to its responsibilities in handling U visas,” a federal program created…
Vendor Profiles
Street Roots vendor profile | Embracing new beginnings
For 20 years, Melissa Hansen worked a variety of jobs in Alaska. “I fished on fishing boats, logged as a choke setter, worked in restaurants,” Melissa said. “I even went trapping for bears and wolves.” Her Alaska adventure began over 30 years ago, having just graduated high school in Portland, where her father owned a…
