Street Roots has worked to prioritize the voices of immigrants and refugees, the poor, critical thinkers, policymakers and truth-tellers. We will continue to do so. The November election brought big wins for housing across the country. There were 34 ballo ...
16 Nov 2016 - Israel Bayer
If I were currently homeless I would choose living outdoors over living in shelter. Hands down. That doesn’t mean I would be choosing to be homeless. The mayor recently declared an end to his “Safe Sleep” policy in our city. The policy allowed for people ...
4 Aug 2016 - Israel Bayer
Street Roots is a small train that carries a heavy load 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 pub ...
7 Dec 2015 - Israel Bayer
The new investment will go to support "A Home For Everyone," a community partnership to end homelessness Mayor Charlie Hales and Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury announced this morning a $30 million city and county commitment to support ne ...
30 Sep 2015 - Israel Bayer
Portland has left us with an amazing and troubled legacy I had the pleasure of being asked to read a short eulogy, along with other longtime Portlanders, this past week at a funeral for Old Portland. The funeral was held to pay respects to a Portland th ...
20 Aug 2015 - Israel Bayer
The Portland Business Alliance took out a full-page ad in today’s Oregonian with the headline, “We can do better than this.” The ad goes on to say, “Our city is experiencing a crisis on our streets and in our parks. Everyday thousands of people sleep in o ...
15 Jul 2015 - Israel Bayer
The streets are hot, literally. It’s summertime in the city. People are everywhere. If you are a Portlander then you’re probably spending as much time as possible soaking up the sun. It’s that time. The days are longer. Our senses seem sharper. The mornin ...
18 Jun 2015 - Israel Bayer
Gentrification has been slowly eating away at our city for the past 20 years. Although during the past five years, with massive rental increases and the gap between the rich and the poor widening, doesn’t it feel like we are on the verge of completely los ...
2 Apr 2015 - Israel Bayer
Oregonian reporter Anna Griffin talks with Israel Bayer about her special report on homelessness in Portland Anna Griffin has been around the block. After spending 10 years at the Charlotte Observer, Griffin moved west to take a job at The Oregonian. Her ...
12 Mar 2015 - Israel Bayer
One of my first mentors on the streets was the great Genny Nelson, co-founder of Sisters Of The Road. Genny has mentored dozens of organizers, agitators, policy makers, writers and artists over the years. Her life’s work has a footprint on both Portland p ...
30 Oct 2014 - Israel Bayer