www.portlandobserver.com
Committed to Cultural Diversity
A Legendary Voice
M etro
cl"' ^orttani» © bseruer ’
om m unity
a le n d a r
C
Meal Deliveries Needed
Saturday, Sept. I , through M onday. Sept.
3, the Fishes and Loaves C enter needs
cheerful, friendly volunteers to deliver
m eals to hom ebound seniors. For infor­
mation on how you can help, cal 15 0 3 -7 3 6
6325, extension 86223 w eekdays or 503-
988-5566 on the weekend.
Roberta Flack
sings her hits at
Chinook Winds
See A&E section inside
August 29. 2007
Honoring the
Experience
String trio to
celebrate Jimi
Hendrix’s 65th
See A&E section inside
SECTION
Strength,
P rideand
Dignity
MAiZe Harvest Festival
Saturday. Sept. 1, through M onday, Sept.
3, the M A iZe H arvest Festival on Sauvie
Island, is kicking off the 40th Pum pkin
Patch season by offering free adm ission
to anyone age 40-som ething ( with a valid
photo I.D.) throughout the L abor Day
w eekend. D etails at portlandm aze.org.
Adoption, Mentoring Help
T uesday, Sept. 4, form 6:30 p.m. to 7:30
p.m., B oys& G irls A id,018S .W . B ound­
ary Ct., will provide inform ation about
exploring the possibilities o f infant adop­
tion, foster care and m entoring opportu­
nities. Call 503-542-2392 for details.
Vancouver Sausage Fest
Friday, Sept. 7. thru Sunday, Sept. 9, the
36th annual Sausage Festival featuring
music, food and family fun will take place
at St. Joseph’s Parish in V ancouver. Free
s h u ttle s e rv ic e is a v a ila b le . V is it
stjoevanschool.org for more inf ormation.
Organic Festival
Friday, Sept. 7. thru Sunday, Sept. 9, St.
Phi lip Neri Church, 2408 S.E. 16 Ave., will
host the M uddy Boots O rganic Festival
to educate and raise organic aw areness.
Enjoy m usic, food, fam ily activities and
m ore this w eekend.
Children’s Gardening
W ednesday, Sept. 12, at the W oodlaw n
C om m unity G arden, 7200 N.E. I Ith an d
C larem ont, the first o f three classes begin
teaching children ages 6-12 the art o f
organic gardening. Students will enjoy
sharing the bounty o f their harvest with
the food bank. C ontact portlandparks.org
or 5 0 3 -8 2 3 -1617 to sign up.
Craftsman Workshops
T he N orthw est W oodw orking Studio is
registering participants for fall workshops,
classes, and lectures. Explore wood crafts­
m a n s h ip an d le a rn th e a rt. V is it
north w estw oodw orking.com orcall 503-
2 8 4 -1644 to register.
Elders in Action
A dvocates volunteers are needed to as­
sist seniors in finding solutions to cur­
rent issues. T raining classes start in Sep­
tem ber. V isit eldersinaction.org or call
503-235-5474 for more details.
Tax Help in Rockwood
VITA tax aide for low-income families will
begin to assist clients at the R ockw ood
Com m unity Office, 18709 S.E. Stark. C li­
ents are seen by appointm ent only. A p­
pointm ents will be m ade on W ednesdays
only from I p.m. to 5 p.m., by calling 503-
8161530.
Neighborhood Farm Stand
Locally grown vegetables and bouquets
o f fresh flow ers will be available to the
public, from 10a.m. to 2 p.m. every Sun­
day, at the Redeem er Lutheran Church.
N.E. 20,h and Killings w orth. The stand
supports local refugees and im m igrant
farmers.
Relationship Transformation
Peace-M aking, a local group based on
non-violent com m unication and co n ­
scious aw areness, hosts a sem inar that
includes inform ation how to have better
relationships both personally and pro­
fessionally. For more inform ation, call
503-228-7256.
Interstate Farmers Market
A farm ers' ' market is held each W ednes­
day through Sept. 26 from 3 - 7 p.m. just
o ff Interstate Avenue betw een O verlook
Park and the Interstate K aiser Permanente
Cam pus. The market is known for its
variety o f quality fresh local produce,
baked goods, cut flow ers, artisan cheese,
m eat and fish.
Women in Community Service
V o lu n te er fem ale m entors are being
so u g h , by W om en in C om m u n ity S er­
v ice to w ork w ith in carcerated w om en
a, the C offee C reek C orrectional F acil­
ity. T he w om en provide support and
e n c o u rag em en t
fo r
in m a te s
tran sitio n in g from prison back into the
co m m u n ity . F or info rm atio n , call 503-
570-6614.
I
Acclaimed
photographer
documents social
conditions
Inspiring and unforgettable stories
of individual strength, pride and dignity
are among a col lection of photographs
of Oregonians living life under disad­
vantaged social conditions.
Renowned photographer Bruce
Davidson, who garnered critical ac­
claim for his work during the Civil
Rights Era, photographed 27 Oregon
Health Plan members enrolled in
CareOregon to showcase a diversity
of ages, cultures, natural origins and
social circumstances.
The photos are in clu d e d in
Davidson's "We the People” exhibit,
a landmark Oregon project of national
im portance and the latest in the
photographer's 50-year photographic-
exploration of humanity and America.
Davidson is well-known forhis work
documenting the social conditions of
families and children in East Harlem.
His photographs have been displayed
at some of the most prestigious galler­
ies and museums in the world, includ­
ing the Museum of Modern Art in
New York and Fondation Henri
Cartier-Bresson in Paris.
The intent of the Oregon photos
was to show that the people receiving
healthcare help from Medicaid and
Medicare are our children, our neigh-
78-year-old Louise Johnson teaches her grandson to cook
Cop\ rig h i
pho ton
m B ri
it : D a \ idson / M agni m P hoton
bors, our family and friends.
"These people and others are more
or less invisible to the general public,
and it is important to me that this
imagery be very human where the
'ordinary' person can see it, identify,
and see themselves in the images."
Davidson said. “In talking with the
people I photographed. 1 found their
words tobe incredibly powerful. If we
are taken inside these lives, the com­
m unity w ill see the hope that
CareOregon provides.”
“This CareOregon project was one
of the most meaningful assignments
I've had in my career,” Davidson
added. “To enter the lives of those
who are sick, handicapped or bur­
dened with rare ailments was an eye-
opener. It was a challenge to photo­
graph these people with positive imag­
ery that expressed their vitality, love
and hope.”
The "We the People" exhibit begins
6-year-old Brent Newberry, born with cerebral palsy, washes his dog.
continued
on page US
Small Media Confront Big Issues
Volunteers
keep airways
full of diversity
by R aymond R en di . eman
T he P ortland O bserver
“Anyone in town can get us”
is one of the first things you'll
hear from most volunteers be­
hind the scenes in Portland's
nonprofit media outlets.
They don’t say this in de­
fense of the fact that public-
access cable and independent
radio have fewer listeners or
viewers than most else on the
airwaves. It's said more to vali­
date their selfless commitment
to making a variety of interest­
ing programs.
In a city with several studios
that will allow people to walk in
off the street and soon get on
the air Jonathan Little is a prime
example of someone who has
taken this “it's what you make
of it” attitude to heart.
Even as he spends his days
fixing up houses. Little is think­
ing about how he can inspire
the comm unity through his
weekly "Urban Vibe” show.
Portland Community Media
broadcasts it three times on
cable-access channels avail­
able to 400.0(H) people in the
area, and he knows that all
these potential viewers are hun­
gry for programming with some
local meat.
photo ba R aymond R endi eman /T ih P ortland O bserver
“We try to cover al I the com ­ Portland Community Media producer Jonathan Little tweaks the control panels for “Urban
munity bases.” he says. "There Vibe " Wednesday evenings.
are a lot of interesting stories
out there, and somebody jus,
needs to put in the effort to get
them noticed.”
Spotlights on the N-word
and Katrina, a discussion with
Mayor Tom Potter and cover­
age of summer festivals are
some of the recent additions to
the more than 2(H) “Vibes"
that Little has produced in the
past five years.
Getting ideas from every
imaginable source, his assem­
bly I i ne of stories will not cease
production any time soon.
“I just found ou, that I have
a daughter, so I'll be doing a
show covering absent-father
issues,” Little says. "If there's
someone who comes to me
with an idea. I'll usually let
them on the show."
While Little prepared the
cameras for a recent show,
Andrew Colas was visibly
nervous as he and his father
prepared to talk about their
efforts to diversify the con­
tracting business.
Getting these kinds of sto­
ries and putting their sources
at-ease was just why Little
brought on Mikal Shabazz as a
regular host, who by day has
been responsible for the over­
all management of the Port­
land Bureau of Development
Services' cultural competency
and affirmative action pro­
grams.
Shabazz gently debriefed
continued
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on pone It J