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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 2011)
NEWS BRIEFS says Peter Shapiro of Portland Jobs with Justice. “The new federal law isn’t a ‘government takeover,’ it’s an insurance industry takeover. Tax dollars that could be used to heal the sick are subsidizing an industry that contributes absolutely nothing to our health.” New legislation, called the Affordable Health Care for All Oregon Act, is being introduced in the 2011 Legislature by Rep. Michael Dembrow and Sen. Chip Shields, The bill means Oregon is seeking to join Vermont, California and Pennsylvania in promoting single-payer financing as an alternative to the national legislation. To register for the conference visit www.SinglePayerOregon.org or call (503) 262-4970. Registration is $20, but scholarships are available so no one will be turned away. EUGENE HAS TOP COMMUTE Eugene has the best work commute in the nation, according to a ranking of 90 cities by TheStreet and Bundle news websites. The ranking, based on Census and other data, shows Eugene with a 17 minute commute, 11 hours of congestion delay per year and an estimated average of $348 per month in car and gas spending. That compares with bottom ranked Dallas, Texas, with a 25 minute commute, 53 hour delay and $593 per month transportation cost. The websites’ study (http://bit.ly/ eXxMFf) cites research from the Center for Neighborhood Technology that links urban sprawl and freeway dependence to higher costs of living and wasted productivity. Eugene ranks number one in the nation for bike commuting for a city of its size or larger, has held in sprawl with an urban growth boundary and has a comparatively well supported public transportation system. But the city is now moving forward with a possible urban growth boundary expansion and half a billion dollars in spending on the Beltline freeway while bus and bike advocates struggle to improve cycling facilities and complete a bus rapid transit system. — Alan Pittman ACTIVIST ALERT • Oregon WAND (Women’s Action for New Directions) monthly program will be at 6:45 pm Thursday, Jan. 27, at the First United Methodist Church, 1375 Olive St. (see www.wandoregon.org). On the agenda are immigration and the DREAM Act. Guadalupe Quinn, immigrant rights activist with Amigos, will speak, along with Penny Palmer who will share photos and stories of her experience with “No More Deaths” from last summer. This faith-based organization, headquartered in Tucson, leads volunteer on paths through the desert, depositing gallon jugs of water and picking up empty containers. • Veteran foreign correspondent Reese Erlich returns to Oregon with a new book, Conversations with Terrorists: Middle East Leaders on Politics, Violence, and Empire, and the award-winning reporter will speak at 1 pm Thursday, Jan. 27, at LCC Building 17, Room 309, and later at 7 pm in Harris Hall, 8th & Oak. Free. He will also speak in Portland Jan. 28. For more information, call Progressive Voices at 484-9167. • Author Amina Wadud, who gained national notoriety in 2005 for leading a Muslim prayer service and thus breaking a taboo, will speak on “Islam, Justice, and Gender Reform” at 7 pm Thursday, Jan. 27, at the Memorial Union Journey Room at OSU. • LCC is inviting the public to three long-range planning workshops this week. The first was Jan. 26 and the second is from 1 to 6 pm Thursday, Jan. 27. The third is from 1 to 6 pm Friday, Jan. 28. All are held at the Center for Meeting and Learning (Building 19), Room 214, on the LCC main campus. Contact masterplanning@lanecc.edu • State Sen. Lee Beyer and Rep. Phil Barnhart are hosting district gatherings at 7:30 am Thursday, Jan. 27, at Randy’s Main Street Coffee in Brownsville; and at 7:30 am Friday, Jan. 28, at Creswell Coffee Company in Creswell. Contact rep.philbarnhart@state.or.us or call 607- 9207. • Project Homeless Connect is preparing for its fifth annual event March 17 at the Fairgrounds. Organizers are collecting coats, hats, gloves, scarves, socks, sleeping bags and backpacks, along with personal hygiene products. Donations may be dropped off at any St. Vincent de Paul store. Checks can also be sent to United Way of Lane County, 3171 Gateway Loop, Springfield 97477. CIVIL RIGHTS AND ENVIRO JUSTICE Environmental justice scholar and activist Beverly Wright, Ph.D. will lecture on, “The Perilous Consequences of Public Policy Decisions: Weathering the Storm of Natural and Man-made Disasters in the Gulf,” at 7 pm Wednesday, Feb. 2, at UO’s EMU Ballroom. Wright, founder of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice at Dillard University in New Orleans, has worked for more than 30 years connecting social justice, environmental hazards, community activism and education. “In the U.S., ethnic minorities and poor communities bear the brunt of environmental disasters,” explains Lamia Karim, associate director of the Center for the Study of Women in Society (CSWS) at the UO. CSWS invited Wright to the UO as part of its inaugural Lorwin Lectureship, “Women’s Rights in a Global World.” The lecture series will focus on civil rights and civil liberties, “Dr. Wright’s research offers us the kind of insights we require B EVERLY W RIGHT to think about effective policies to protect our environment and natural habitats,” said Karim. Founded in 1992, Wright’s Center for Environmental Justice focuses on research, policy and community assistance. In 1995, the center received federal funding to develop a training program in dealing with hazardous waste cleanup. In a recent interview, Wright said she estimates that 75 of her trainees are involved in the efforts to clean up the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. For a full listing of the Lorwin Lectureship series visit: www.csws.uoregon.edu — Heather Cyrus EUGENE ON SCREEN AT SUNDANCE Eugene videographer Tim Lewis, known for his YouTube channel PictureEugene as well as his long history of documenting environmental and other protests around town, has footage appearing in a documentary film premiering at the Sundance Film Festival this week. If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front has been screening this week at the festival to positive reviews. The film centers on Daniel McGowan to tell the story of the ecosaboteurs, many of whom lived in Eugene, and who burned timber companies, car dealerships, an Eastern Oregon slaughterhouse that was butchering wild horses, a $12 million ski lodge at Vail, Colo., and other facilities around the Northwest. According to the filmmakers, Marshall Curry and Sam Cullman, the film asks questions about environmentalism, activism and the way terrorism is defined, rather than attempting to answer them. In addition to its focus on McGowan, the documentary features Lewis’ footage of the Warner Creek protest in 1995-1996 and other iconic moments in the environmental and Eugene scene, as well as interviews with federal agents and business owners and others affected by the arsons and other actions. Lewis who is in Park City, Utah, for the film festival says he is videoing his experiences for PictureEugene. — Camilla Mortensen WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM EUGENE WEEKLY JANUARY 27, 2011 11
