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Opinion | See the Invisible Man

A science fiction story about an invisible man speaks to the experiences of homeless Portlanders, who often only wish for people to recognize their humanity When I was homeless here in Portland, I would save enough money to get a room for the night. I ...

27 Jul 2022 - Leo Rhodes
Portland’s new shelter referral system becoming less effective with time

Street Services Coordination Center offering fewer shelter referrals as sweeps increase Crystal Kelly has lived in a tent near a bus station in Old Town for months. Homeless for a few years now, she’s been trying, as she puts it, “to get clean, to stay ou ...

20 Jul 2022 - Tyler Walicek and K. Rambo
Homeless people are more likely to be victims of violence than housed people

For many housed people, there is a tendency to conflate unhoused populations with violent crime and danger, but crime rates tell a different story. Editor's note: This story contains graphic descriptions of violence. In May, Willamette Week reported ...

13 Jul 2022 - Piper McDaniel
Old Town’s 90-day ‘reset’ yields sweeps with little notice, no advance postings

Unhoused Portlanders swept using the tactic say it undermines safety, stability and human dignity What’s the difference between moving with one hour’s notice and 72 hours’ notice? “A lot,” DJ Husar, Street Roots vendor, said. The city swept Husar, an unho ...

6 Jul 2022 - K. Rambo
Editorial | Interviewing unhoused neighbors requires care

Street Roots maintains an internal set of criteria and considerations regarding interview practices for unhoused Portlanders. Compassion and consent lead the way. Street Roots often receives praise from readers for including the triumphs, concerns and exp ...

6 Jul 2022 - SR editorial board
Police know arrests won’t fix homelessness. They keep arresting people anyway.

In the Lents neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, residents gathered at a public forum last June to voice their concerns about the city’s growing population of homeless individuals. Over the last decade, rent grew twice as fast in Portland as the rest of the ...

29 Jun 2022 - Melissa Lewis
Kaia Sand | When policing is more important than housing, the unhoused are over-policed

Opinion | Stable housing is vital, but remains underfunded compared to policing Imagine a city in which some people have plenty, and some barely have anything at all. Kaia Sand is the executive director of Street Roots. This column represents her views. T ...

29 Jun 2022 - Kaia Sand
City of Portland posts many homeless encampments at least twice before a sweep

The city extends the legal window for sweeps by posting and reposting encampments, which can cause distress and logistical issues for unhoused Portlanders Imagine being told you have between three and 10 days to move, with no way of knowing if the time wi ...

22 Jun 2022 - K. Rambo
Opinion | Lessons from 7 years on the streets

Bronwyn Jones Carver has been homeless since a landlord tried to raise her rent by nearly 100% in 2015. Since then, she's learned to adapt and reach for new heights. My name is Bronwyn Jones Carver. I have been homeless for seven years this June. At ...

22 Jun 2022 - Bronwyn Carver
Kaia Sand | Central City Concern transformed a hotel into housing

Opinion | Portland should build a local Project Turnkey Program The Comfort Inn sign is now wrapped in black plastic, but plenty of hotel amenities remain at River Haven, a housing program for people in early recovery run by Central City Concern. The hote ...

15 Jun 2022 - Kaia Sand