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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2017)
December 6, 2017 Page 13 Opinion articles do not necessarily represent the views of the Portland Observer. We welcome reader essays, photos and story ideas. Submit to news@portlandobserver.com. O PINION Rent Control, Gun Control and Impeachment What would Nelson Mandela do? male capitalists and their me- dia brethren) would insist in the UK, for example, that to abolish slavery would be to destroy the jobs of thousands of UK workers, dependent on the slave trade for their industrial output and pay- by l ew C hurCh The excellent editorial cartoon checks. Likewise, suffragettes and an- and commentary about gun con- trol (Preventing Gun Deaths and ti-apartheid activists later on were Protecting Gun Rights, Portland Observer, Nov. 15 issue) high- lights the need to not lose heart when advocating for what the mainstream media tends to char- acterize as “impossible” goals. At Portland State, our activ- ist coalition has been discussing strategy and tactics with this in mind for three issues: Rent con- trol, gun control and impeach- ment. We believe each of these is vital, and more importantly, achievable sooner, not later. The Italian Marxist organizer Antonio Gramsci once said, “The challenge for modernity is to live life without illusions and without becoming disillusioned.” In terms of political issues in which the powers that be insist “will never told by those in power that giving change,” we at PSU have found it the vote to women and black folk useful to ask, what would Nelson would destroy the smarter, more accomplished white male power Mandela do? I was one of the organizers of structure that creates wealth for five pickets in Portland in support lesser folks. Today, when it comes to the of the American Friends Ser- vice Committee’s anti-apartheid issues of rent control, gun con- Coke boycott, before the white trol and impeaching Trump -- ac- minority, racist government was tivists hear doomsday scenarios overthrown in Pretoria. Some of from those with something to us at PSU (now elders) believed lose by such changes. In Oregon, rent control was that when the suffragette move- ment, and when the anti-slavery blocked in Salem earlier this year movement initially got started, by a blue dog Democrat and land- the powers that be (usually white lord state senator, Rod Monroe. “Rent raisin’” Rod is now being challenged by two Democrats in the May Primary. Portland Gray Panthers, based at PSU, is happy to endorse Kayse Jama of Unite Oregon to replace Monroe. The incumbent would be wise to follow the ex- ample set by Portland City Coun- cil member (and millionaire) Dan Do we think housing and public safety (freedom from gun violence) are important enough issues to launch grassroots, mass movements, like the anti-apart- heid, anti-slavery and pro-suf- frage movements? Does the success of those decades-long organizing movements give hope (rather than despair?) to those of What would rent control, gun control and impeachment look like? With enough grassroots support, these things are totally possible. After 27 years in jail in South Africa to secure voting rights for black folks, and then to become that country’s first black president -- many of us believe that Nelson Mandela would say if you organize long enough, and with strategy, tactics and a timeline -- you can win. Saltzman -- by simply announc- ing he is retiring, Let Jama go to work for tenants, for immigrants, for people of color, for workers and the poor in our state capital. In terms of gun control, I was able to write a funded grant (generously supported by the northwest’s McKenzie River Gathering) for a pro-gun control conference at PSU. I believe that Australia and European countries have acted to stop gun violence. As we know, the NRA, the Re- publicans and Trump -- are refus- ing to do so. us who believe that rent control and gun control alike are sorely needed today? But what about impeaching the current occupant of our White House? Are the offenses against our country and the world tanta- mount to ‘high crimes and mis- demeanors’? Moreover, like rent control in Oregon and gun control in Estados Unidos -- is impeach- ment a ‘feasible’ and desirable goal? We believe it is. Collusion with Russia is trea- son. Trump still wants to “lock” Hillary up, at his rallies a year af- ter she won the popular vote by almost 3,000,000 votes. Trump brags about grabbing women by their privates, trashes Gold Star families and John McCain, de- spises Black Lives Matter and Colin Kapernaek, and says there are “good Nazis” and good pro- testors on both sides of the racist marches at Charlottesville. Trump says Judge Roy Moore is a GOP stalwart, but Senator Franken is sketchy. Trump also adds that NFL players who pro- test racism “should be fired.” Trump’s right wing practices mir- ror his TV celebrity, game show rhetoric. What would rent control, gun control and impeachment look like? With enough grassroots support, these things are totally possible. After 27 years in jail in South Africa to secure voting rights for black folks, and then to become that country’s first black president -- many of us believe that Nelson Mandela would say if you organize long enough, and with strategy, tactics and a time- line -- you can win. Rent control can be legal in Oregon, not just New York City or San Francisco or Berlin. Gun control can be legal in the world’s “best democracy.” And, we can eject a fascist, racist, sexist prof- iteer from what belongs to the people, in a democracy, our White House in Washington, D.C. Lew Church is coordinator of Portland Gray Panthers and founding publisher and editor of two Portland State activist pa- pers, the PSU Reargard and PSU Agitator. Invest in Treatment, Mental Health and Better Medicine The pain behind opioid abuse J ill r iCharDson Donald Trump re- cently declared the opioid epidemic a national public health emergency. At first I thought, is this the first time I approve of something Trump has done? Alas, no. And here’s why: Nine years ago, I lost my brother to a heroin overdose. My brother and I each grew up suffering trauma, and it profound- ly affected each of our lives. For my brother’s part, he dealt with his unbearable pain by using drugs. He died before he could get help. by In my case, I shut down, lost my imagination, cut off my ability to feel both emotions and physical sensations, and lost my ability to have close intimate relation- ships with others, whether platonic or romantic. I’ve suffered daily migraines for 23 years now. I went to doctor after doctor for my migraines, tried 20 different prescrip- tion drugs, mental health counsel- ing, Botox injections, and more. There are just two drugs that help my migraines: opioids and medical marijuana. Until recently, my only option was the opioids, which I get le- gally from a doctor’s prescription. This is how many people get ad- dicted. My tolerance to opioids grows quickly. I try to use them less than once a month in order to avoid needing higher doses to quell the pain. At most I use them once a week, but even then, I start need- ing higher doses quickly just to make the pain stop. Since I’m in pain every day, I can see how someone could get hooked. If I had popped a pill every time I had a migraine in- stead of rationing out my meds, I could’ve been one of the unlucky ones too. Fortunately, I’ve gotten med- ical marijuana in the last few months, and it’s changed my life. I use it legally and responsibly. I don’t drive or work while using it. Now I can get pain relief as need- ed without worrying about form- ing a life-ending addiction. My brother used marijuana too, but he lacked the option to use it legally. Instead, he was arrested for it, which didn’t improve things for him. In my decades of going to pri- mary care doctors, neurologists, and even psychologists, nobody noticed my trauma. My brother suffered on his own too. If we want to get serious about the opioid epidemic, we need to increase the availability of mental health help in a big way. We should have more counselors in schools, and we should train teachers to be more sensitive to and aware of children suffering from trauma, and doctors to be more aware of it in patients. Importantly, we should also de- criminalize marijuana throughout the nation and get serious about medical research on the drug. When the alternative for many is opioids, there’s simply no excuse to maintain the prohibition on pot. Meanwhile, we must keep funding Medicaid, so that the most vulnerable Americans have access to medical care too — including addiction treatment, which barely one in 10 addicts gets. But what does Trump say? Build his wall. Trump’s right about the prob- lem, but dead wrong about the solution. OtherWords columnist Jill Richardson is the author of Recipe for America: Why Our Food Sys- tem Is Broken and What We Can Do to Fix It.
