Story by Pete Shaw In July, 2011, approximately 1000 of the 1100 prisoners in the Security Housing Unit (SHU) of California’s Pelican Bay State Prison began a hunger strike to protest conditions. The strike lasted three weeks, spreading to another 13 state prisons to include over 6600 inmates. The Pelican Bay prisoners issued five core…
Category: Headlines
Protesters Target Postal Privatization, Demand Corporate Mail Theft End
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Story by Jamie Partridge • Photos by Jerry Atkin Over forty demonstrators, ten of whom blocked the entrance to the Portland Air Cargo Center (US Postal Service), declared victory against “postal privatizers” today. According to postal service managers, several morning mail runs by subcontractor Dill Star trucking were disrupted by the protest. ”Postal truckers, mail…
Local Video Illuminates Harrowing Pattern of Police Violence
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By Pete Shaw On May Day 2012, when a Portland police officer told the group of folks who had gathered in Waterfront Park for an unpermitted march on Portland’s streets that they should obey the laws, but if not, well, there would be consequences, I had a feeling there would be trouble. There were many…
History of the Portland Women’s Movement: Fighting for Ideas and Dollars
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By Sandy Polishuk In May, History of Social Justice Organizing will present part three of its History of the Portland Women’s Movement: Fighting for Ideas and Dollars Join us on at 7pm on Thursday, May 22nd at Portland State University in the second floor gallery of the Urban Affairs Building, 506 SW Mill Street, for…
Housing Justice Advocates Land Trial Date
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Local housing justice activists will go on trial in June for their attempts to help keep a foreclosed family in their home during an eviction in which police used pepper spray against protesters. In October 2012, deputies from the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and Portland police evicted Patricia…
Big Grain Shuts Out Longshoremen Struggling for Workplace Equity
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Columbia Grain locked out ILWU Local 8’s grain handlers on May 4 in Portland, accusing them of “engaging in inside game’ tactics, including slowdowns, work-to-rule, and demands for repeated inspections of the same equipment – all designed to negatively impact Columbia Grain’s operations.” Late the next day, twenty of…
For God so Loved the 1%…
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Local High School Students Stand Against Standardized Testing
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Story and photos by Pete Shaw Joining the growing ranks of students and teachers protesting standardized testing, over 60 Grover Cleveland High School students walked out of their classes on Thursday April 18. The students, who are members of the Portland Student Union (PSU) see the tests as an unreliable way to evaluate their actual…
Portland Water Fluoridation Debate Flows On
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Story and photo by Pete Shaw The Portland City Council unleashed a torrent of community activism last September when it unanimously voted to fluoridate Portland’s drinking water. Within a month, anti-fluoridation group Clean Water Portland delivered more than twice the necessary signatures to refer the issue to the ballot, where, on three previous occasions, Portland…
Opposition Grows Fierce to Austerity Cuts in Portland
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By Mark Vorpahl On April 11 over 400 people packed the third public Portland Budget Hearing, which was organized by the City of Portland and which left many spilling out beyond the room where the hearing took place. More importantly, for the City Council there was an unexpected critical outpouring from the vast majority who…
