Story by Pete Shaw One of the many great works of art to come out of the Civil Rights Movement was the Billy Taylor and Dick Dallas song “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free,” its best-known version performed by the late, great Nina Simone. Its most poignant line, “I wish…
Category: News & Current Events
Burgerville Workers Union Strikes, Calls for Boycott
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Story by Pete Shaw On second thought, hold the fries. In fact, hold the burgers and shakes too. That was the message sent to Burgerville management from February 1 through 3 when workers at four Burgerville stores went on strike and called for an indefinite boycott of Burgerville. For those three days, outside Burgerville branches…
Advocates for People Without Housing Rally for Proposed Shelter in Southeast Portland
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Another day, another fight over a proposed shelter for people without housing. Saturday January 20 saw nearly 75 people gathered near the corner of Southeast Foster and 61st outside the empty storefront that the City has proposed as a haven for about 100 people without housing. Nearly all of…
Newly Formed Philippines Human Rights Group Members Vow to Defeat Fascism, End Killings
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Story by Drew Elizarde-Miller and Pete Shaw Over 100 human rights activists and leaders from dozens of cities across the US came together at Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church in Vancouver, Washington, on December 9 to launch a national campaign against President Rodrigo Duterte’s “fascist dictatorship in the Philippines” and form the US chapter of the…
Burgerville Workers Union Continues Organizing; Management Steps Up Intimidation Tactics
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw The commerce surrounding the Winter holidays seems to begin a little earlier every year. When I was growing up in the 1970s, it commenced sometime after Thanksgiving, although without the madness now associated with the day after. However, about a month ago I was in a big chain hardware…
11 Million Reasons Why Sanctuary Must Be More Than Words
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw “We will always see ourselves as a sanctuary city and we will continue to be welcome to everyone,” said Ted Wheeler after he was elected mayor. His words were given official imprimatur in late March when the City Council declared Portland a sanctuary city. It was a symbolic gesture,…
Burgerville Workers Union, Community Alliance of Tenants Picket Burgerville; Link Struggles Against Low Wages and Out of Control Rents
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw There are some combinations that seem so natural, it is hard to imagine a world without them. Pizza and beer, burgers and fries, Lennon and McCartney, and Donald Trump and Nazis quickly come to mind. Now you can add to the list, Burgerville workers and the Community Alliance of…
Anti-fascists Overwhelm, Drive Off Meager White Supremacist Showing at Portland Rally
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Story by Pete Shaw Since the white supremacy rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in mid-August that saw the murder of one anti-fascist and numerous injuries to other opponents of white supremacy, people throughout the country have stepped up at similar gatherings to tell white supremacists that they are not welcome. In Boston, thousands of people…
Transgender Rights Activists Rally to Demand Labor Bureau Enact Stronger Workplace Protections, Tackle Discrimination
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Time was not so long ago when a hand-delivered letter meant something. For the composer of the missive, whether something as beautiful as handwritten lines expressing tender and missed love or more mundane items such as a business letter, it showed the importance of what lay within the envelope.…
Anti-Fascism Activists Urge Greater Resistance to White Supremacy; Condemn Police and State Tactics
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Kelly Baur and Jeremy Ibarra, who were arrested during the police crackdown on anti-fascism activists following the June 4 white supremacy rally in Terry Schrunk Plaza, both entered pleas of not guilty on August 17 to the charges brought against them. In doing so, they rejected a plea deal…