Friends of Trees plants twice a month from October to
April every year.
“For environmental issues, we are working really hard
on trees that will be resilient to climate change in our
selections,” Burke says. “We’ve been doing experiments
on trees from California for the high vandalism, high rent-
al area west of campus. Urban heat island effect is a really
big one we address.”
Donations can be made to Friends of Trees at friendsof-
trees.org or 503-282-8846. — Jeslyn Lemke
Beyond Toxics Takes On Big Business
Beyond Toxics is everything the Trump agenda hates.
So give this group some love.
The folks at Beyond Toxics stand up for the environ-
mental health of low-income and minority communities
that have historically been disproportionately impacted by
pollution.
“Our concern is primarily with people and their expo-
sure and vulnerability to chemicals,” says Joel Iboa, the
environmental justice community outreach manager.
Grassroots victories include forcing Union Pacific to
clean up wetlands where they dumped creosote railroad
ties, helping coastal communities stop a coal export termi-
nal and fighting (and stopping) aerial herbicide sprays near
some rural communities.
On the policy side, Beyond Toxics helped pass the law
to ban field burning, passed the nations’ most protective
pesticide regulations for school and banned gas stations
from spewing the potent carcinogen benzene into nearby
neighborhoods.
The group says that many toxics problems unfairly
impact lower-income, rural and vulnerable communities.
The concentration of polluting industries and lack of
access to services that promote healthy living is especially
burdensome because political and socio-economic condi-
tions prevent these communities from demanding change,
Beyond Toxics tells EW.
In the Trump era, expect less power for the poor and the
vulnerable and more to go to Big Business and its pollut-
ing ways. Help Beyond Toxics fight for what’s right.
To donate go to beyondtoxics.org or call 541-465-8860.
— Camilla Mortensen
SOCIAL ISSUES
Giving to the Civil Liberties Defense and American
Civil Liberties Union
What civil rights, right? President-erect Donald Trump
— who thinks the Bill of Rights is a crisp twenty — has
already tweeted (tweeted, for Christ’s sake) that he would
like to either jail people who burn the American flag or
revoke their citizenship. For real? Likely we’re heading
for one serious clampdown on civil liberties, with the big-
gest assault coming at our First Amendment rights of free
speech, freedom of the press, peaceable assembly, etc.
It could get ugly quick, but there’s hope.
This is where Eugene’s very own Civil Liberties
Defense Center (CLDC) comes in. Led by founder, exec-
“Since we have 25 years of legal experience from our
attorneys, they’re able to respond to a request by commu-
nity groups,” he continues, noting that the CLDC is step-
ping up its training and outreach in the coming months as
the new administration transitions into office. “Hopefully
this is a wake-up call to some people to be engaged, be
more active and do proactive things to protect and support
their communities,” Denson says.
You can learn more about the CLDC and donate
through their website at cdlc.org, or call 541-687-9180.
And don’t forget to throw something in the stocking for
that other stalwart of civil liberties, the American Civil
Liberties Union, which has a long history of defending
Americans against unconstitutional nonsense; donate or
become a member of ACLU of Oregon at aclu-or.org.
— Rick Levin
utive director and all-around local hero Lauren Regan —
who recently filed a class-action lawsuit for retaliation and
excessive force against cops at Standing Rock on behalf of
water protectors at the proposed North Dakota pipeline
— the CLDC offers, among other things, legal advice and
representation for social justice activists. The organization
has also provided legal observers at local protests and
training for youth activists and others.
So how is the CLDC responding to the coming era of
Trump tomfoolery? “We’re gonna mostly be carrying on.
We respond to community needs,” says associate director
Charles Denson, who points out that the center also offers
“know your rights” training for immigrant communities. “I
imagine that’s going to be very important in coming
years,” Denson adds.
CALC Acts Locally for Human Dignity
Think globally, act locally: It’s the stereotypical faded
bumper sticker here in Eugene, but it’s also enacted by one
of the best nonprofits in town, Community Alliance of
Lane County, commonly known around these parts as
CALC.
CALC program director Michael Carrigan says “the
mission of CALC is to educate and mobilize for peace,
human dignity, racial, social and economic justice.”
Since the election, CALC has created an “I Got Your
Back” rapid response team to address hate crimes in the
area. Its members pledge to respond “wherever bigotry is
happening so none of our neighbors need endure bigotry
alone,” Carrigan explains.
CALC is seeking volunteers to join the response team
to keep Eugene and Springfield safe from hate crimes
because, as Carrigan says, “the best way to fight the Trump
agenda is by taking action.”
CALC also has been involved with a coalition of local
organization supporting the Standing Rock pipeline pro-
test, and currently they’re hoping to find a volunteer with
some organizational skills to help plan events and coordi-
nate efforts.
Adrienne Bennett, CALC’s coordinator for major
donor and volunteer programs, says that “what CALC
really, really needs is people who are willing to plug in on
the day-to-day level. We want people on the administrative
level to help prep us for bigger rallies and other actions.”
“The whole campaign divided us on a lot of levels,”
Bennett continues, “and the great thing about CALC is that
CALC is about community.” She says she hopes to see
Eugene “come together despite our differences to work for
a better future for us all.”
CALC is a place for all kinds of people to work toward
a better future for all. Carrigan says he welcomes every-
one: the rich, the poor, the unhoused, the undocumented,
“communities of color and working class folks who care
about working for peace and justice.”
Interested in volunteering for CALC? Call 541-485-
1755 to see where you can plug in. To donate, go to cal-
clane.org/donate-to-calc to see a list of options. — Kelly
Kenoyer
FRIENDS OF TREES DIGS DEEP
Miserly Billionaires Don’t Care about Poor People
Our billionaire real estate mogul-in-chief might be the
stingiest billionaire on the planet.
Despite Trump’s own claims that he’s an “ardent
philanthropist,” reporters at the Washington Post have
been unable to locate a shred of evidence pointing to
Trump’s charitable cash donations in any amount over the
past five years. When Trump gives, it tends to be in the
form of free rounds of golf at any number of Trump-owned
courses or land-conservation agreements.
So unless Oregon’s homeless are avid golfers or secret
real-estate gurus, it’s unlikely they’ll get much love from
our next president.
Those looking to fill gaps left by the Trump agenda
should consider supporting organizations that assist the
homeless.
In Eugene, Community Supported Shelters provide
what they call “safe spots” (commonly known as rest
stops), replete with drinking water and porta-potties, as
well as trash and recycling services. CSS takes a hous-
ing-first approach by putting up and maintaining four
small, semi-permanent homeless encampments in which
inexpensive Conestoga huts provide the unhoused with
secure places to sleep and store their belongings so that
‘Give’: Eagle Park Slim
Eugene is getting the blues as we face our first
Christmas without the late, great Eagle Park
Slim. On a cold, rainy, windy autumn day in
2014, I went to my friend Slim’s apartment,
digital recorder in hand, to ask him to create a
guitar arrangement and sing some songs I had
written. One of these songs, titled “Give,”
echoes the theme of this week’s cover. On the
third take, Slim nailed it. He leaned back on the
sofa and, smiling with success, said in that
smooth voice of his, “Jimi does it his way, B.B.
does it his way, and Eagle Park does it his
way!” — Richard Hunt
eugeneweekly.com • December 15, 2016
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