Story and photos by Pete Shaw “Some of us take risks. We’re asking you to take risks,” said John Schweibert to Multnomah County Sheriff Daniel Staton, during a sit in at the Sheriff’s office staged by Schweibert and four other community home defenders on January 24. Though Staton expressed his support for homeowners, he said…
Category: News & Current Events
GM Worker Willing to Die Seeking Labor Justice
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By Pete Shaw If Jorge Parra lives to see the Portland Auto Show being held from January 24th through the 27th, he will have passed his 65th day on a hunger strike in support of the Association of Injured Workers and Ex-Workers of General Motors-Colmotores (ASOTRECOL). Appearing at press conferences outside the North American International…
Sheriff Ousts Family, Spends Tax Dollars To Maintain Their Houselessness
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw On the morning of January 16, soon after Ron Austin had gone to work, Debbie Austin and her two children awoke to the sound of the Multnomah County Sheriffs and Portland Police banging on their door. At the demand of Fannie Mae, the police forces entered the Austins’ home…
Longshore Struggle Brews On Both Coasts
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By Mark Vorpahl First of two parts It’s a familiar pattern: those on top of the economic ladder enjoy massive profits while expecting workers to sacrifice even more for the “greater good.” This storyline weaves itself into every justification for anti-worker policies. From Washington’s potential Grand Bargain that would cut trillions from needed social programs,…
Bob Dylan’s Latest Album to Bring More Jobs, or How to Distract from the Truth About Coal Exports
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Over 800 people packed themselves into the Abridge ballroom of the Ambridge Event Center on NE Martin Luther King Boulevard on Thursday December 6th for the last of three Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) hearings prior to DEQ determining whether it will issue a draft permit to Ambre…
“We Want Safe Communities!”: Community Tells Sheriff Not to Work with ICE
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Story by Pete Shaw Highlighting the growing national movement away from blanket policies to honor Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) holds, over 75 people gathered outside the Multnomah County Building on December 10th to urge Multnomah County Sheriff Dan Staton to limit the use of ICE holds in Multnomah County jails immediately. The rally comes…
Threat to ILWU Rallying Point for All Workers
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw The contract being offered to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) by the Pacific Northwest Grain Handlers Association (PNGHA) has little effect on wages, but seeks vast changes to workplace rules, particularly those dealing with hiring and safety. Though the contract signing deadline of November 28 has been…
The Power Is With The People
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Sindy Avila is a member of the Oregon Dream Activists, a group working to advance immigrant rights and the rights of all people of color. Speaking at a forum about creating community control and putting radical politics into practice in communities of color, she noted that as the Dream…
Why Aren’t There More Black People in Oregon?
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Story by Pete Shaw “When is history not history?” asks Walidah Imarisha, at a recent Why Aren’t There More Black People in Oregon? presentation sponsored by the Oregon Humanities Conversation Project. Imarisha, a Portland State University and Oregon State University instructor, poses the question to our group after we have spent 90 minutes examining, wrestling…
Foreclosure Resister Unbowed Under Thanksgiving Eviction Threat
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw November 20 — “As you can see, I’m packed up and ready to go.” Debbie Austin doesn’t quite have the sarcasm thing down, at least by my Northeast pedigree, but nonetheless her sardonic tone is underscored by a quick look around the house which bears the hallmark of a…
