Opinion
Kaia Sand | Camping bans, mass camps will worsen Portland’s problems
Like a car wrenching into a U-turn on a slick and treacherous road, Portland City Council dangerously pivoted our city when it voted to ban unsanctioned encampments and erect city-sanctioned mass encampments. This stands in strong contrast to constructive policies and could undo existing progress. First, here’s what moving in the right direction: The Multnomah…
Opinion | Organizing across identity, community and the state against Ballot Measure 9
The draconian anti-gay ballot measure put forth by the ultra-Christian Oregon Citizens Alliance, or OCA, in 1992 was barely defeated. It was the first time such a large coalition and varying communities had come together in Oregon to protect LGBTQIA+ rights and dignity. I offer here only a small fraction of these stories in hopes…
Kaia Sand | A quarter century of camping bans, sit-lie ordinances
On Oct. 21, Mayor Ted Wheeler and Commissioner Dan Ryan proposed “a citywide ban on self-sited unsanctioned encampments coupled with designated alternative camping sites.” This camping ban, scheduled to go to a vote this Thursday, Nov. 3, does not exist in a vacuum. The city of Portland has promoted, and been challenged on, restrictions that are…
Vendor Profiles
Street Roots vendor profile | Ice cream and newspapers go hand in hand
Resilience is Kevin Robinson’s unspoken mantra. Kevin could spend his days watching television and playing video games at the East Portland care facility where he lives. Instead, five days a week he fills his backpack with Street Roots newspapers and a sack lunch of ham and cheese sandwiches and motors to a bus stop where…
Environment
Dams, drought and survival in the Klamath Basin
A decades-long effort to remove four hydroelectric dams from the Klamath River may soon come to fruition. In the Klamath Basin, salmon face an increasingly perilous journey to their spawning grounds. Extreme drought, low water levels, deadly parasites and algae plague the river. Although the significant barrier posed by the dams may soon be gone, fierce…
Housing
Joint Office of Homeless Services reduces supply distribution, advocates concerned as colder weather approaches
As another cold winter approaches, homeless Portlanders will soon face bitter conditions many are ill-equipped to confront, and outreach workers say the Joint Office of Homeless Services is failing to make adequate resources available during this critical time. From tents to sleeping bags to clothes to toiletries, mutual aid and nonprofit workers deliver necessities to…
