Category: Authors

Giving Thanks

Story and photos by Pete Shaw Another year with Covid in the air, and so another year where I was largely grounded due to health concerns. As well, as comes with age, there were health issues with which I had to deal. But as someone who makes a lot of lemonade, I am once again,…

Portland Teachers On Strike in Historic First

Story and photos by Pete Shaw The nearly 4,500 members of the Portland Association of Teachers (PAT) walked out on strike on November 1. Classroom teachers from the district’s 81 schools came together with students, parents, and other supporters in the community to demand the Portland Public Schools (PPS) administration show respect for them and…

Giving Thanks

Story by Pete Shaw Another year of Covid, and another year spent largely on the sidelines. Still, there is much to be thankful for this year, including the hope that I will sooner than later be back on the streets. After all, for the first Summer in quite a few years, no fascists marched in…

Memorial to Keaton Otis to be Unveiled

Story by Pete Shaw The faded spray paint on the corner of Northeast 6th and Halsey reads, “We will always remember you.” The “you” most directly refers to Keaton Otis, the young Black man was murdered there by the Portland police on May 12, 2010. Since his death, that corner has on the 12th of…

Good Stories, Good Times

Story by Pete Shaw The late Joan Didion once wrote, “We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” While I agree with the general tone of that statement, there are always exceptions to even the most beautiful of rules. When I was a kid, my dad told me many stories. As he was a scientist,…

The Impossible Took 68 Months

Story and photos by Pete Shaw Someday they may refer to it as the BVWU Number, the universal standard for the interval between impossibility and achievement. It sure seems like it should be in an organizing textbook. In April 2015, when the Burgerville Workers Union made its debut, it was taking on the challenge of…

Postal Service Supporters Rally to Strengthen USPS, Dump DeJoy

Story and photos by Pete Shaw As with so many figures who rose to prominence and power during the Republican Trump Administration, US postmaster general Louis DeJoy has never been shy or subtle about his intentions. Appointed by the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service (USPS) in May 2020, DeJoy wasted no…

Farewells

Story and photo by Pete Shaw About 17 years ago, I was hanging out with Friend Cyndy, and after a good amount of Friday drink she suggested we head to a not far away Vietnamese restaurant, Phở Jasmine. Jessica, my better 99%, was game. I forget what we ordered, but I remember it as a…

Giving Thanks

Story by Pete Shaw If 2020 was a trying year, then 2021 upped the ante. Once again, the idea of Thankfulness this year may seem a bit odd. But as I wrote last year, here we are again, most of us if not all, which is worthy of appreciation and gratitude. And for those who…

What Does Solidarity Look Like?

Story and photos by Pete Shaw In late February 2020 I went into something like a lockdown. The novel coronavirus was just making news in the United States, and since I take immunosuppressants, my better 99% and I felt it would be best if I laid low. While I had no illusions regarding how long…