Opinion | Street Roots suspended our print edition this week because of the air quality It wasn’t much, but it was pizza – a small effort at fire prevention. Mike D, a Street Roots vendor who coordinates action team outreach, and I crossed the busy St. He ...
12 Sep 2020 - Kaia Sand
OPINION | Extremists' 'antifa' allegations are cruel and dehumanizing. Here's the truth about these Portland communities. W hat I noticed first was the peacefulness. It was that hot time of the day on Sunday, pre-dusk, when I stopped t ...
9 Sep 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | Street Roots and four partner organizations asked 97 houseless Portlanders where they’d prefer to live temporarily during the pandemic Over the past few weeks, the Street Roots vendor-led Coronavirus Action Team fanned out, offering unho ...
22 May 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | There are some things we all can do to stay focused on everybody’s public health The disconcerting phone calls started coming in this week. Antsy to open up businesses, people were once again complaining about all the tents. My response ...
8 May 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR'S DESK | It's all-hands-on-deck when it comes to hygiene support We’re not helpless out here,” Raven Drake told me, standing in front of an eight-person tent that, she explained, would serve as a medical tent should any people in neighb ...
6 Mar 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | Voters need to turn out in droves to pass this homeless-services measure The green and yellow tent backs up to a concrete piling on Naito Parkway. Behind the piling, more tents are equally spaced, an archipelago of brightly colored dwell ...
28 Feb 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | Creativity and resourcefulness are essential for people on the streets, but so are grand solutions from the public sector Mike leaned slightly on his cane as he walked, his white pit bull strutting jauntily next to him. Randy’s bag of ca ...
14 Feb 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | Metro’s proposed ballot measure would fund homeless services through a tax on the Portland area's wealthiest residents After a month when it seemed unlikely, Metro Council is now indicating that it will refer a homeless services bal ...
7 Feb 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | This isn’t just a Portland problem; it’s an Oregon problem It is too easy to live in Portland and view homelessness as Portland’s problem. But here’s a startling perspective. Despite the fact that the Point in Time Count measured a sligh ...
17 Jan 2020 - Kaia Sand
DIRECTOR’S DESK | The yearly Domicile Unknown count underscores the urgent need for reliable health care At least 92 people died while experiencing homelessness in Multnomah County. T hese are the highest numbers since Street Roots began releasing the an ...
16 Oct 2019 - Kaia Sand