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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2016)
Street Roots • Oct. 21-27, 2016 E d it o r ia l Page 3 ■ r ite in ax . ■ y o u would like ■have ■ m e th in g / / \ A ,— ■— j i b you've ■ it ie n published Hour pages, or would ..\ J \ n \ / / like to get involved as a member of our reporting staff, contact Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl at 503-228-5657. joanne@streetroots.org, We ask that all submissions include the author's name and contact information, if available Street Roots 211 NW Davis St. Portland. OR 97209 503-228-5657 Fax: 503-227-3117 www.streetroots.org Hours: 7:30e.nvSjp.m. Mon.*Frl, 7:30 a . m . - 2 a n d 7:3011 '/ ' Advertising interested in advertising in Street Roots? Ccittact Israel Bayer at israe^streetooteg • Staff Affordable homes campaign unites community magine for a moment, just a moment, , . It’s extraordinary To .people experiencing sleeping outside tonight with only a blanket homelessness and poverty being engaged, between your body and the cold, hard and activated and motivated to get involved in wet concrete. Now imagine sleeping outside with democracy, led by groups like Street Roots. “When so many groups come together from your child or with your grandmother. the homeless and housing community to talk Friends, it’s pure hell. about this campaign — they are bringing live The Yes for Affordable Homes campaign is stories from the front lines about the housing asking Portland homeowners to pay for no more crisis,” said Jes Larson with the Welcome Home than the price of two cups of coffee a month, Coalition, which is made up of more than 140 $6.25 a month, to build organizations. “They are delivering their own affordable housing for stories directly to the voters.” 3,000 seniors and families That’s not all. People of color all over the city living on our streets. are organizing and engaging the larger Who'among us would community. For example, the Yes for Affordable even remotely argue that By Israel Bayer Housing campaign has worked hard to deliver being able to house one multi-language outreach to the broader family, much less community with groups like the Immigrant and hundreds of families, for Refugee Community Organization (IRCO), Living the price of two cups of Cully, the Asian-Pacific American Network of coffee a month is the wrong direction to go? Oregon and the Coalition of Communities of Believe it or not, there are some people in our Color and more. community that would stoop so low as to argue The hope is people who traditionally haven’t against a measure that would allow the city to been engaged in a political campaign or voted in build affordable housing that will serve up to the past will be turning out for the November 60,000 people over the next 80 to 100 years. We ballot. can’t stand for th a t It’s nothing less than The reality is renters in Portland are getting heartless and cruel. bombarded with rent increases, literally. At Street Roots, we watch people who literally In 2015, average rents in Portland increased have nothing, homeless and alone, come together $128 dollars each month in Portland. That’s every single day to support one another. insane. Part of the beauty of the Yes for Affordable The housing crisis and the lack of affordable Homes campaign is it’s changing the way housing units in 'Portland affects all of us, campaigns are done. Dozens of house parties, phone banks and canvasses are being activated in regardless of our circumstances. It’s one of the many reasons you should cast a yes vote for the the community led by local nonprofits and Yes for Affordable Homes ballot measure. activists. Saying that, regardless of how you vote: Vote! This grassroots effort is being driven not by Don’t listen to those pesky cynics that sit on your typical political party machine on the the sidelines telling you your vote doesn’t matter. ground, but instead by first-time volunteers to a It does. So join the revolution and vote for your political campaign. These efforts are resulting in favorite candidates and ballot measures today. hundreds of people new to the political process The future of our city is depending on i t in Portland this November. I BIRICTW S DISK Israel B ayer is the executive director o f Street Roots. You can reach h im a t israel@streetroots. org or follow h im on Tw itter @israelbayer. Executive Director Israel Bayer israei@streetroots,org Managing Editor Joanne 2uhl joanne@streetroots.org Vendor .... coleSstreetroots o rg z Operations Director Sarah Beecroft - Development Director Sarah Cloud Program Assistant Meghann Van Pelt, Jesuit Volunteer Development Assistant Patricia Romero Reporters Emily Green, Suzanne Zaiokar, Sarah Hansell, Leonora Ko, Jared Paben, Amanda Waldroupe, Stephen Quirke Photographers Diego Diaz, Joe Glode Editorial Assistant Monica Kwasnik Canvasser Desmond Hardison Board of Directors Chairman Brad Taylor Vice-Chairman Rachel Langford Treasurer Heather Stadick Secretary Marcus Swift Directors Rich Rodgers, Michael Anderson, Leo Rhodes, Sandra Hahn, John Brown, Dan Jones Volunteers Jan Bayer, John Barker, Stacey Heath, Anjali Rathore, Zoe Kiingmann, Haven Herrin, Dan Jones, Dennis Hogan, Tom Wright, Judy Taylor, Karen Allen, Monica McKune, Susan Wolfe, Lucas Hawthorne, Thomas Buell Jr., Jeanie Lunsford, Yasmin Amirsoleymani, Jason Cohen, Tom Ray, Doug Spangle, Susannah Kamala, Jon Raymond, Hilary Smith, Diana Richardson, Cherie Manning, Paul and Madeline Gefroh, Mary Anne Joyce and Faye Powell. If you're interested in volunteering with Street Roots, please submit a volunteer application at streetroots.org/volunteer. Or you can call our volunteer coordinator for more information at 503-228-5657. '
