May 24, 2017
Page 5
Residents flee the deadly devastation when the Columbia River breaks a railroad levy and floods the
town of Vanport on May 30, 1948. (Photo courtesy the Oregon Historical Society)
Mosaic Festival
C ontinued froM f ront
African American community
relied for the most part on pub-
lic transportation and the closest
bus stop was two miles away.
The wooden apartment build-
ings and their foundations were
quickly picked up by floodwaters
and floated away like match stick
houses. People clung to the dark
pitched roofs for their lives; par-
ents waded through waist deep
waters with children in their arms.
Bodies floated down the Colum-
bia River and in final reports, up
to 17 lives were lost.
Options for relocating in Port-
land were difficult with racial dis-
crimination and redlining practic-
es in place and an already packed
Albina neighborhood where black
people were allowed to reside, but
had few options to find homes.
The Vanport Mosaic Festival is
designed to celebrate and preserve
the individual stories and cultural
nuances of Vanport with events
throughout north and northeast
Portland.
Performances of plays from
the African American perspective
will be at the Interstate Firehouse
Cultural Center in tandem with a
museum-quality exhibit of arti-
facts and photos collected from
former Vanport residents.
Oregon Public Broadcasting’s
documentary on Vanport, “Lost
City, Living Memories,” and an-
other
independently-produced
documentary “Priced Out” captur-
ing today’s legacy of housing dis-
placement, will be screened during
the festival. Vanport authority and
history professor James S. Harri-
son will lead an education work-
shop with other local academics
on curriculum development for
teaching the history of Vanport.
One of the festival’s found-
ers and a self described story
midwife, Laura Lo Forti will be
hosting opportunities for Vanport
and Albina residents to document
their stories. Scheduled bus tours
of Vanport are already sold out.
You can download an app on your
smart phone for self guided tours.
There is also a bike tour and oral
history performance titled “Gen-
trification is Weird.” Most events
are free or sliding scale. For a
complete schedule of events and
to make reservations, visit van-
portmosaic.org.
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