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There's drama this week at the Oregon State Capitol. aimintang / getty images

Good morning, Portland! And happy Last Day of Summer, whatever that means these days.

Here are the headlines!

• In case you missed this enraging news yesterday: A Newberg School District staffer went to school in blackface last week (?), claiming to be dressing as Rosa Parks (??) to protest the district's vaccine mandate for school staffers (???). Everything's going great at the Newberg School District!

Here you can hear from the local reporter who's been breaking all the Newberg news lately:

Here’s tonight’s episode of @TheStoryKGW, where @HaggertyNews and I discuss the Newberg Blackface incident.

Dan connects the last month’s worth of stories to this inflection point, and points out the absurdity of it all. Show starts around the 15:00 mark. https://t.co/kcSsPGf2z6

— Ryan Clarke (@RyanTClarke) September 21, 2021

• Yesterday, a Multnomah County judge ruled that the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) acted illegally when live-streaming protests last summer, because of a law prohibiting cops from surveilling people who are not suspected of a specific crime. "Standing up to injustice is important to me; having my own government deliberately put me at risk for broadcasting my location and political stance — known as ‘doxxing’ — is unbelievable," one protester suing PPB said in a press release.

• Texas' new six-week abortion ban relies on vigilante citizens to sue abortion doctors for its enforcement—and we now have our first lawsuit of this nature. Texas doctor Alan Braid publicly admitted to violating the ban, and is now being sued by an Arkansas lawyer with a history of tax evasion. In a Washington Post op-ed, Braid said the move was part of a legal strategy, writing that "I fully understood that there could be legal consequences—but I wanted to make sure that Texas didn't get away with its bid to prevent this blatantly unconstitutional law from being tested."

The Nabisco workers strike (born in Portland) is over, so I guess it's okay for you to try these now. Nabisco

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• After a fraught (and occasionally violent) few weeks, Portland's Nabisco workers' strike has come to an end after the national union and the company agreed on a new contract—one that local workers aren't 100 percent pleased with. Abe Asher has the details and the report.

Last Monday this number was 4,700.

In other words, a huge, welcomed drop. https://t.co/MFJRSCZP8L
— Brad Schmidt (@_Brad_Schmidt) September 20, 2021

• Warning: Get ready to lose your goddamn mind. I'm just going to leave the opening graph for this story by the Newberg Graphic right here: "A staff member at Mabel Rush Elementary School in Newberg showed up to work in Blackface on Friday, calling herself Rosa Parks and doing so in protest of a vaccine mandate for all school district staff." Newberg has also been in the news because of their heavily conservative school board who banned Pride and Black Lives Matter symbols in their district. Coincidence? I seriously doubt that.

When you read the explanation for this unimaginable choice, it actually gets worse.https://t.co/yDaxV3TFSg
— Shawn Levy (@shawnlevy) September 20, 2021

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

Supporters of the Nabisco workers strike in Northeast Portland attempt to block truck traffic last week. Jordan Brokaw

Good morning, Portland! Let's hope you got your rain fix over the weekend because, summer's back! Expect sunny days in the mid-70s to 80s throughout the week. Some good news: The weekend downpour did help Oregon fire crews slow the spread of still-burning wildfires. Now, the headlines:

- Nabisco workers reached a tentative agreement Saturday on a new union contract with their parent company Mondelez International, ending a strike that began in Portland more than five weeks ago. The agreement was passed despite Portland workers’ strong opposition.

- Two weeks into in-person school, how are Portland Public Schools students and staff doing? Mercury reporter Isabella Garcia brings us up to speed.

- Today in a new segment: "What's the Happs With Mingus Mapps"

In an op-ed for the ⁦O⁩, Portland Commissioner ⁦@MingusMapps4PDX⁩ makes a long-anticipated bid to expand the police bureau: https://t.co/Aq9Lbzq37n

— Alex Zielinski (@alex_zee) September 19, 2021

- A federal advisory group has recommended Pfizer booster shots for people 65 or older, or those who run a high risk of severe illness from COVID-19. Yet Oregon health officials still need to meet with other federal and state committees before green-lighting the rollout of booster shots in the state. OPB's got the rundown.

Scenes from the Nabisco picket line in Portland, where supporters clashed with company security guards. Jordan Brokaw

Members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers’ International Union (BCTGM) voted to approve the contract proposal Thursday and Friday, despite workers in Portland urging members in other locations to vote against the deal—arguing that it still demanded too many concessions.

But when the votes were counted Saturday at the union’s headquarters in Kensington, Maryland, that vocal segment of Portland members was defeated. The contract passed overwhelmingly, with roughly 75 percent approval.

“It’s disappointing, to be honest,” BCTGM Local 364 Vice President Michael Burlingham said. “I’m not surprised, but it’s disappointing nonetheless.”

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!

The Southridge High School girls soccer team kneeling in protest of the Newberg School Board's ban on Black Lives Matter flags. Southridge Athletics

TGIF, Portland! Here are some headlines to take you into the weekend.

In local news:

• Two weeks after returning to in-person learning, Portland Public School students and teachers are reporting cramped hallways, inconsistent masking, and delays in COVID exposure notifications. So far, PPS is reporting 175 COVID cases and nearly 700 students and staff have had to quarantine.

• As the Newberg School Board continues to pursue a ban Black Lives Matter and Pride imagery, the Southridge High School girls soccer team silently protested the ban by kneeling during the national anthem before their game against Newberg Wednesday. Despite eyewitness reports and photos of the protest, Newberg High School’s athletic director claimed it didn’t happen.

Last night, the Southridge HS girls soccer team knelt during the national anthem in solidarity with Newberg’s Black students.

This after a racist Snapchat group was discovered involving an NHS student and the school board’s attempt to ban Black Lives Matter displays. #opreps pic.twitter.com/XUla08Hem5
— Ryan Clarke (@RyanTClarke) September 17, 2021

"A lot of new, interesting Mercury stories is just the thing I need to take my mind off this unnatural growth on my back." filadendron / Getty Images

Whooo! You're a BUSY BEE. Look, it's completely understandable that since you've been SO busy, you may have missed some of the great reporting and stories the Mercury churned out this week! So while you're lounging about this weekend, catch up on the knowledge you need by reading some of these A+++ Mercury articles! (PRO TIP: If you despise being "the last to know," then be one of the first to know by signing up for Mercury newsletters! All the latest stories shipped directly to your email's in-box... and then... YOUR HEAD.)

• Hall Monitor: Portland Police—and Politicians—Have Given Protesters Little Reason to Feel Safe

“The city has done nothing to make us feel like we can practice democracy safely."

How Portland police—and politicians—have done little over the years to assure safety for protesters. https://t.co/bKAJGcuSEi
— Portland Mercury 🗞 (@portlandmercury) September 13, 2021

• It’s the Mercury’s 2021 Fall Arts Guide: Art Is Political!

Portland's art scene has never shied away from politics. But in a year at the intersection of a pandemic, a mass extinction event, and political incompetence, Portland arts are taking a turn toward the radical.
Presenting the Mercury's Fall Arts Guide.https://t.co/GRtzsu5sKA
— Portland Mercury 🗞 (@portlandmercury) September 13, 2021

• Police Identify Officers Involved in Sunday Shooting

Portland police have identified the two officers involved in a shooting Sunday morning in which a person was injured, shedding more light on a largely opaque incident.https://t.co/orzSC8SNrL
— Portland Mercury 🗞 (@portlandmercury) September 13, 2021

Students at Rigler Elementary on the first day of school. Portland Public Schools

“I’m here to tell you that our hallways and classrooms are packed in like sardines,” said Grant High School student Danny Cage during a PPS school board meeting Tuesday. “PPS is not currently following its guidelines.”

A COVID safety agreement between the district and teacher’s union mandates mask wearing, social distancing, regular testing for symptomatic students and staff, and quarantine protocols for students and staff who come into close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID. Despite these measures, 175 PPS students and staff have tested positive for COVID since the school year began on September 1, and nearly 700—or about one percent of the district’s population—have been quarantined due to exposure.

The district’s guidelines are in line with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations, which call for three feet between students when possible.