Columbia Gorge News
www.columbiagorgenews.com
Wednesday, June 23, 2021
B11
White extremist views strong in Oregon
despite majority opposition, poll finds
Gary A. Warner
■ By Oregon
Capital Bureau
Nearly four in 10 Oregon residents agree
with statements aligned with white extrem-
ists’ views, according to a poll commissioned
by a major progressive group released
Thursday.
A majority of state residents support
the ideals of a multi-cultural democracy,
according to the survey conducted by DHM
Research.
The poll was commissioned by the
Western States Center, a Portland-based
non-profit that says its mission is to mon-
itor extremism in the region and work to
“strengthen inclusive democracy.”
The poll showed a “disturbingly” sizable
population in Oregon from which extremists
can gather followers and sympathizers, said
Lindsay Schubiner, program director at the
Western States Center.
“They are social movements spreading
bigotry to attain political power,” Schubiner
said.
About 40% of respondents said they
strongly or somewhat agreed with the state-
ment, “America must protect and preserve its
White European heritage.”
About 39% of respondents agreed with the
statement, “White people in America face
discrimination and unfair treatment on the
basis of their race.”
The poll was conducted in January with
the release of data today under agreement
between the Western States Center and
DHM Research.
The poll was done as “a community service
by DHM Research in partnership with the
Oregon Values and Beliefs Center,” a state-
ment with the poll said. Both said they are
independent and non-partisan.
The poll asked 603 Oregon adults for their
views on white nationalism, right-wing
extremism and the strength of democracy in
the state and nation. The estimated margin of
error is 4%, DHM said.
The groups were weighted to reflect the
gender, age, race, economic status and geo-
graphical location of the respondent.
The statistics were also divided into
subgroups. The main geographical distri-
bution covered three portions of the state:
The tri-county region of Portland, the rest of
the Willamette Valley, and the remainder of
Oregon.
Just under half of those polled were sat-
isfied with how democracy was working in
Oregon. But the 49% rating was higher than
the 47% who said democracy was working in
the entire nation.
Four of 10 respondents believed “bad
actors” across the political spectrum were
responsible for violence in Portland and the
rest of Oregon.
Far left activists were chiefly responsible,
according to 14%, while 13% blamed far right
agitators.
Another 8% blamed police and 4% pointed
the finger at elected officials.
The remaining 22% said they didn’t know
who was ultimately responsible.
The areas around Portland and the
Willamette Valley skewed higher in per-
centage of those blaming the far right and
police, while the third group that included all
areas of the state outside of Portland and the
Willamette Valley, was somewhat more likely
to blame left-wing groups.
Overall, right-wing militia groups and
white extremists were seen as bad for busi-
ness and the state’s image.
They hurt the economy, according to 74%
of those polled. The armed groups created a
dangerous situation, 69% said, and 68% said
laws were needed to prevent people from
bringing firearms to public rallies.
The pollsters said more than seven out of
10 respondents “were not buying” argu-
ments by militia groups that their presence
was to support law enforcement or protect
the public.
Mild to strong support for militia groups
was highest — 24% — among those who
identified as “rural” Oregonians.
Schubiner said the key to limiting the
damage of white extremist groups was to
see it as a political and social issue, not just
a police issue. The broadest and most vocal
coalition of political, business and other
leaders must speak out against militias and
their ideology, she said.
“It’s incredibly troubling to see the spike in
numbers” of public officeholders who openly
sympathize with parts of the paramilitary,
white nationalist movement, she said.
Eric K. Ward, executive director of the
Western States Center and a senior fellow
with the Southern Poverty Law Center, said
the poll was a wake-up call to Oregonians
that there is a resurgence of racist, some-
times violent attitudes with a deep history in
Oregon.
Ward said Oregon’s early years were built
on “exclusion by design,” with a narrative of a
white agricultural and small town society in
a land devoid of indigenous Americans and
Black people.
Slavery had been barred from new states
by the time Oregon joined the union in 1859.
But its original constitution did not allow free
Black people the right to live in the state, with
those who did not leave within a relatively
short time subject to public lashings.
As civil rights spread in the United States
after World War II, Ward said, reactionaries
embraced the idea of the “Pacific Northwest
Territorial Imperative” — a white ethno-state
— which became part of the philosophy of
groups from the KKK to skinhead Neo-Nazis
and “patriot” militia groups.
When white extremism was pushed
underground, its believers became “early
adopters” of internet technology as a way to
spread their message widely but less openly.
With more open support from some
political leaders, Ward said white separatist
ideas are resurgent. He included the “Greater
Idaho” movement that would cleave most of
Oregon east of the Cascades and fold it into
what they believe is an ideologically more
compatible government in conservative
Idaho.
Ward said the movement is just the latest
attempt to give political cover by presenting
a white ethno-state dream rehashed as a
strictly geographic division.
“Our rugged rural culture east of the
Cascades is somehow incompatible with
West Coast progressivism,” Ward said.
Ward pointed to the presence of groups
such as Patriot Prayer and the Proud Boys at
rallies in Oregon, some of whom later took
part in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan.
6 during the certification of the Electoral
College vote.
Ward noted that extremists targeted im-
migrants and indigenous people of Oregon.
They had defaced the Holocaust Memorial
in Portland. Fliers with images of the mass
murder of Jews during World War II were
distributed by anti-Semitic activists in the
district of Rep. Rachel Prusak, D-Tualatin.
Prusak believes she was targeted for
supporting gun control legislation whose
opponents include some extremists.
The bill passed the Legislature and was
recently signed into law by Gov. Kate Brown.
A group of conservative Republican current
and former state lawmakers has submitted
a proposed referendum that would put the
gun law on hold until a statewide vote in
November 2022.
Ward pointed to the actions of one of the
referendum’s sponsors, Rep. Mike Nearman,
R-Independence. The lawmaker is facing
criminal charges and expulsion from the
House for allegedly allowing violent protest-
ers into the state capitol while the Legislature
was in special session last December. It’s
action that has historical resonance, Ward
underlined.
“The willingness of a state elected official
to open the door to those who espouse racial
violence,” Ward said.
Public Notices
NOTICE SOLIC-
ITING SEALED BIDS
FOR
SURPLUS REAL
PROPERTY
On April 9, 2018,
the City Council of
the City of The Dalles
adopted Resolution
No. 18-010 declaring
the following vacant
and developable lot
as surplus property:
ASSESSOR’S
M A P N O . 1 N 13 E
10BA TAX LOT 7400
The property has
no site address. Its
legal description is:
Lots 6 and 7,
WILL’S FIRST AD-
DITION TO DALLES
CITY, in the City of
The Dalles, County
of Wasco, State of
Oregon
ALSO, the por-
tion of the vacated
area along the North
boundary line of
Lot 6
The City is solic-
iting written, sealed
bids for this proper-
ty’s sale. The min-
imum acceptable
bid to the City is
$50,000.
Written, sealed
bids will be received
by the City until 2:00
p.m. Pacific Prevail-
ing Time on July 7,
2021. The bids will
be received by:
Jonathan M. Kara
City Attorney
City Hall, Second
Floor
313 Court Street
Th e D a l l e s , O R
97058
(541) 371-5585
The bids will be
opened at 2:30 p.m.
Pa c i f i c Pre v a i l i n g
Time on July 7, 2021,
in the Council Cham-
b e rs a t C i t y H a l l ,
313 Court Street in
The Dalles, Oregon.
If the City receives
bids exceeding the
minimum acceptable
bid, the highest bid
will be accepted,
and the City Manag-
er or City Attorney
will complete the
sale.
June 23, 2021
#9172
NOTICE OF
PUBLIC HEARING
The City of Dufur
will hold a public
hearing before the
Planning Commis-
sion at 6:00 PM on
Th u rs d a y, J u l y 8 ,
2021:
File Number:
2021-01CUP/2021-
SP
Hearing Date:
J u l y 8 , 2 0 21,
6:00 p.m.
Hearing Location:
Dufur City Hall, 175
NE 3rd St, Dufur, OR
97021 or via Zoom:
Join Zoom
Meeting https://
us02web.zoom.us/
j / 8 4737 719 0 3 8 ? p
w d = N i 9 t U 0 FJ S 2 h
jMnZRREF0anVybV
Jpdz09
Meeting ID: 847
3771 9038
Passcode: 475601
One tap mobile
+12532158782,,8
4737719038#,,,,*47
5601# US (Tacoma)
+13462487799,,8
4737719038#,,,,*47
5601# US (Houston)
Dial by your lo-
cation
+1 253 215 8782
US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799
US (Houston)
+1 669 900 9128
US (San Jose)
+1 301 715 8592
US (Washington DC)
+1 312 626 6799
US (Chicago)
+1 646 558 8656
US (New York)
Meeting ID: 847
3771 9038
Passcode: 475601
Find your local
number: https://
us02web.zoom.
us/u/kdnvIHgnjA
Applicant:
Jeremi Keyser, 2062
Anthony Way, Eu-
gene, OR 97404
Owner: John Dil-
l o n , P O B o x 3 57 ,
Dufur, OR 97021
Designer: Bell
Design Company,
900 W Steuben St,
Box 308 Bingen, WA
98605
Property Location:
121 M a i n S t re e t ,
Dufur. Tax lot 6000
of Wasco County Tax
Assessors Map 1S
13E 25 CB.
R e q u e s t s : Th e
Applicant is request-
ing a conditional
use permit and site
p l a n a p p ro v a l f o r
the construction
of six apar tments
above the existing
Kramers Market. A
variance to reduce
the off-street parking
requirements is also
requested.
Applicable
criteria:
City of Dufur
Zoning Ordinance
Article 3. Land
Use Zones
3.2 - Residential
Zone “R-2”
3.5 - Commercial
Zone “C-1”
Article 4. Supple-
mentary Provisions
4.10 - Commercial
Uses in Residential
Zone
4 . 11 - V i s i o n
Clearance Areas
4.13 - Off-Street
Parking and Loading
4.14 - Site Plan
Approval
4.15 - Landscap-
i n g a n d D e v e l o p-
ment Standards
Article 5. Condi-
tional Uses
5.1 - Authorization
t o G ra n t o r D e n y
Conditional Uses
Article 6. Excep-
tions and Variances
6.5 - Authorization
t o G ra n t o r D e n y
Variances
6.6 - Circum-
stances for Granting
a Variance
6.7 - Procedure
for Granting a Vari-
ance
Article 8 - Admin-
istrative Provisions
8.5 - Public Hear-
ings
All interested per-
sons may appear, be
heard, be represent-
ed by counsel, or
send written signed
testimony. All written
comments must be
received by the City
prior to the hearing
date or submitted
at the hearing. Fail-
ure to raise an is-
sue in person at the
hearing or in writing
p re c l u d e s a p p e a l
by that person to
the Land Use Board
of Appeals (LUBA).
Failure to provide
statements or evi-
dence sufficient to
afford the decision
maker an opportuni-
ty to respond to the
issue precludes ap-
peal to LUBA based
on that issue.
A copy of the ap-
plication, all docu-
ments and evidence
submitted by or on
behalf of the appli-
cant and applicable
criteria are available
for inspection at City
Hall during normal
business hours, at
no cost. Copies will
be provided upon
request at a reason-
able cost. Interested
persons may obtain
a Staff Report within
seven days of the
date of the hearing.
Please contact City
of Dufur Planning
Consultant, Tammy
Wisco, at 210-896-
3432 if you have any
questions.
June 23, 2021
#9173
WHITE SALMON
NOTICE OF CON-
TINUED PUBLIC
HEARING
NOTICE IS HERE-
BY GIVEN that the
Klickitat County
Hearing Examiner
will hold a continued
consolidated 2-part
public hearing on
July 29 and July
30, 2021, starting
at 9:00a.m. on the
Under Canvas Co-
lumbia River Gorge
Project:
Condition-
al Use Application
CUP2020-13/Rec-
reation Park Appli-
cation RV2020-01.
Applicant: Under
Canvas Inc. The
Project is to pro-
vide a seasonally
operated, 95-tent
luxury camping fa-
cility with individu-
al canvas tents for
sleeping quarters.
Camping would be
offered April through
October (weather
d e p e n d e n t ) . Th e
tents would be a
mix of standard
safari-style struc-
tures using shared
restroom facilities
placed throughout
the site and deluxe
tents with en suite
bathrooms. Tents
would be equipped
with wood-burn-
ing stoves for heat
designed for use
in such facilities,
complete with spark
arrestors and heat
shields. No smok-
ing, campfires, food,
or cooking facilities
would be permitted
at individual tent lo-
cations. Guest tents
would be supported
by a central lobby
including kitchen
and dining area for
guests as well as ad-
ditional guest ame-
nities. Guest tents
may be taken down
at the end of the
season and placed
into on-site storage,
while the lobby tent
would remain year-
round. Maximum
build-out of 95 guest
tents is anticipated
to be completed
w i t h i n 5 y e a rs o f
construction start.
The site is located
between Husum and
BZ Corner, east of
State Hwy 141, the
proposed project will
be sited within Sec-
tion 12, T4N, R10E
and Section 7, T4N,
R11E on portions of
parcels 04-10-1200-
0023/01 and 04-10-
1200-0023/00.
Part 1 of the pub-
lic hearing is to hear
the SEPA appeal on
Thursday July 29,
2 0 21, s t a r t i n g a t
9:00a.m.. No gen-
eral public testimony
will be accepted
during Part 1 of said
hearing.
Part 2 of the pub-
lic hearing is to hear
all interested parties
who wish to testify
for or against the
proposed condi-
tional use permit on
Friday July 30, 2021,
starting at 9:00a.m.
Par ticipation in
these meetings will
only be offered vir-
tually via Zoom. To
join the meeting:
type in https://zoom.
us/j/94908057384
in your browser or
use one of the call-
in numbers below
and Meeting ID: 949
0805 7384
669-900-6833
346-248-7799
929-205-6099
253-215-8782
301-715-8592
312-626-6799
Any person de-
s i r i n g t o e x p re s s
their views on the
permit applications
is invited to join the
hearing virtually. If
you wish to provide
comments before
the Hearing Exam-
iner on Friday July
3 0 , 2 0 21, w e a s k
that you please call
or email our office at
planning@klickitat-
county.org or (509)
773-5703 prior to
5pm on Wednesday
July 28, 2021 and
we can add you to
the list for provid-
i n g t e s t i m o n y. I f
y o u h a v e a l re a d y
contacted the Plan-
ning Department
to be placed on the
list for the original
hearing, your name
will remain on the
list. At the meeting
the names of those
wishing to testify will
be called out and
at that time you will
be able to present
your comments/
concerns regarding
the proposal. The
live testimony from
the public is limited
to three (3) minutes
per person. In the
event a member of
the public has sub-
mitted a written pub-
lic comment, that
individual will only
be allowed to testify
live at the hearing
to those matters not
set forth within their
written comments.
Written comment
period ended on
June 11, 2021 and
no additional written
comment will be
allowed.
If you have
questions regard-
ing the land use
p ro p o s a l o r h a v e
questions about at-
tending a virtual
hearing, please con-
t a c t t h e Pl a n n i n g
Department at (509)
773-5703 or email
planning@klickitat-
county.org
BY ORDER of
the Klickitat County
Hearing Examiner,
dated this 17th day
of June, 2021.
/s/ Andrew L.
Kottkamp
gorge
C O L U M B I A
R I V E R
June 23, 2021
WS #263
WHITE SALMON
VA L L E Y S C H O O L
DISTRICT
C - C O U R T PAV -
ING PROJECT FOR
COLUMBIA HIGH
SCHOOL
INVITATION FOR
BIDS
Bid Date: Thurs-
day, July 8th, 2021
Sealed bids will
be received at the
White Salmon Val-
ley School District
Of fice, Attention:
Superintendent, Dr.
Jerry A Lewis, locat-
ed at 170 NW Lincoln
Street, White Salm-
on, WA 98672, until
3:00 p.m., Thursday,
July 8th, 2021 for the
White Salmon Valley
School District’s
C - C O U R T PAV -
ING PROJECT FOR
COLUMBIA HIGH
SCHOOL.
Th e p ro j e c t i n -
cludes reconstruc-
tion and paving of
a p p ro x i m a t e l y o f
51,000 SF of parking
lot area.
A non-mandato-
ry pre-bid confer-
ence will be held on,
Thursday, July 1st,
2 0 21 a t t h e w o r k
location. Access
is of f of NW Sim-
mon Road, White
Salmon, WA 98672.
Statements made by
Owner or Owner’s
representatives at
the conference will
not be binding upon
the Owner unless
confirmed by written
A d d e n d u m . Th e
meeting will con-
clude after the site
visit.
Bidding docu-
ments for the project
were prepared by
Bell Design Com-
pany.
Availability of Bid-
ding Documents:
Bona fide general
c o n t ra c t o rs m a y
obtain the contract
documents at the
office of Bell Design
Company, located
at 900 W Steuben,
Bingen, WA 98605,
(509) 493-3886 or
download them from
the following link:
https://www.bell-
designcloud.com/
owncloud/index.
php/s/g5EjFK5cXX
UImAe
Bid Security: A
certified or bank
cashier’s check in
the amount of five
percent (5%) of the
bid amount, payable
to the White Salmon
Valley School Dis-
trict, or bid bond ex-
ecuted by a licensed
bonding company is
required with each
bid.
Rejection of Bids:
Th e d i s t r i c t s h a l l
have the right to
reject any or all bids
not accompanied
by bid security or
data required by the
bidding document
or a bid in any way
incomplete or irreg-
ular.
White Salmon Val-
ley School District is
an equal opportu-
nity and affirmative
a c t i o n e m p l o y e r.
Small, minority- and
women-owned busi-
nesses are encour-
aged to submit bids.
The bids will be
opened at 4:00 p.m.,
W e d n e s d a y, J u l y
8 t h , 2 0 21 a t t h e
White Salmon Valley
School District Of-
fice, located at 170
NW Linclon Street,
White Salmon, WA
98672. For more
information, call Mr.
Devr y Bell, PE, at
(509) 493-3886,
devbell@belldesign
company.com.
June 23, 30, 2021
WS #264
July 2021
Reserve advertising space
Sales@gorgenews.com
541-386-1234 Ext. 100