JANUARY 27, 2016
Portland and Seattle Volume XXXVIII No. 17
25
CENTS
News .............................. 3,8-10 A & E .....................................6-7
Opinion ...................................2 Foreclosure Crisis ......... 12
Calendars ........................... 4-5 Bids/Classifieds ....................11
CHALLENGING PEOPLE TO SHAPE A BETTER FUTURE NOW
SEATTLE HIP HOP
2015 was a landmark year for legislation affecting
communities of color in Oregon, according to
Nkenge Harmon John, president and CEO of the
Urban League of Portland.
2015 Racial
Equity
Report
‘Facing Race’ legislative
breakdown says 2015
was a landmark year
A
coalition of community-based
organizations converged on the
Oregon state capitol earlier this
month to release a report on ra-
cial equity legislation.
The report, Facing Race, highlights an
impressive year of racial equity prog-
ress from the state legislature.
The analysis identified 20 pieces of
legislation that would have a significant
positive impact on communities of col-
or; 17 of those bills were signed into law.
Andrea Miller, executive director of
the immigrant’s rights organization,
Causa Oregon, said communities of
color were deeply involved this last ses-
See EQUITY on page 3
PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED
By Arashi Young
Of The Skanner News
Renaissance The Poet, joined a panel of poets and hip hop artists discussing the topic “Black Lives Matter in Hip Hop” Jan. 15 at Town Hall. The event
which was presented in partnership with the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI), Town Hall Seattle and 50 Next: Seattle Hip-Hop Worldwide
covered topics like gentrification, the effects of the Black Lives Movement on hip hop and ways to preserve the integrity of the music.
Work Begins on Historic Freemason Lodge
Last Black-owned property on Mississippi narrowly avoids closure
By Donovan M. Smith
Of The Skanner News
C
rews have begun
work on a historic
property on Missis-
sippi Avenue that,
just months ago, was un-
der the financial threat of
closing its doors for good.
The Sons of Haiti St. Jo-
sephs Grand Lodge, locat-
ed at the corner of North
Mississippi Avenue and
Fremont Street, is now
partially in the clear after
community members ral-
lied to help the 63-year-old
organization offset repair
fees — in the amount of
$50,700 — the organization
needed to meet current
city codes.
“They told me to just sell
the property, and cut my
losses,” lodge grand mas-
ter John Bryant wrote in a
Facebook post earlier this
month. “I did not listen.”
Instead, with help from
the Boise Neighborhood
Association, a communi-
ty-led comedy fundraiser
and a generous grant from
the Portland Develop-
ment Commission, the full
amount has been raised.
But the saga is not over.
The lodge still owes an ad-
ditional $40,000 — fines
the lodge racked up during
the last visit from a city in-
spector.
In the meantime, work-
ers have already begun the
remodel, which is expected
to take about three months
to complete.
In that time, the site will
be excavated, re-gated and
re-paved. Contractor will
also update the wiring
and water system for the
building. The remodel will
Tracy Morgan
Addressing Islamophobia
is Back
Wealthy Brazilians
Invest in Miami
page 9
See LODGE on page 3
Community speaks out in the face of bigoted fear
against the world’s fastest growing religion
By Donovan M. Smith
Of The Skanner News
I
slam is the world’s fastest growing
religion, with more than 1.6 billion
adherents worldwide, according
to a Pew study released last year.
However, in the wake of extremist
groups like ISIS carrying out violent
acts in the name of the religion, there
has been a revved up sense of fear
towards Muslims locally and nation-
wide. Republican Presidential candi-
date Donald Trump calling for a reli-
gious registry and a Dallas, Ore. city
councilor’s anti-Muslim comments
in November are examples.
In response, Portland leaders have
been engaged in a series of public
forums focused on addressing this
form of bigotry.
Earlier this month, a demonstra-
tion organized by the Center for In-
See ISLAMOPHOPIA on page 3
AP PHOTO / ANDREW HARNIK
The comedian is ‘Picking
Up the Pieces’
page 6
allow the lodge to host up
to three more food carts on
the site.
Stephen Gomez sits on
the board for the Boise
Neighborhood
Associa-
tion.
He said after contin-
ued meetings with lodge
members he found they
had indeed made various
attempts to get into com-
pliance with code, but ulti-
mately lacked the resourc-
es to do so. Gomez offered
his help, and re-established
Shiite Muslims pray together while they rally
for peace outside of the White House Dec. 6 in
Washington.