by Erin Ergenbright The offices of Dr. Phillip Leveque have a bit of a madcap air to them. He has more patients than he knows what to do with. As the doctor most responsible for approving medical marijuana applications, he’s at the center of a still-brewing controversy over legalized pot. “They’re trying to drive me […]
City
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Staying Put–Again
Dignity Village Holds Out and On to Their Homes
Over the past three years, a group of nearly 50 homeless men and women have become some of Portland’s best-known celebrities. The makeshift squatters’ camp on the fringe of town has been featured in the New York Times Magazine, as well as the news section of the same paper–twice. They’ve been spotlighted in a “vogue […]
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Get Off My Sidewalk
Greek Cusina Security Accused of Roughhousing the Homeless
Though the weather was warm and not a single raindrop fell all weekend long, a group of homeless activists claim they’ve proven their point. They wanted to show how difficult it is to live on Portland’s streets. It’s not the months of rainy weather, they insisted, but rather a bevy of city ordinances and a […]
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Be Prepared, Don’t Be Gay!
Earning a Boy Scout Badge for Discrimination
by Erin Ergenbright The Boy Scouts of America have gotten under Steve Wagenhoffer’s skin. He’s the gay father of two sons, both enrolled in Portland public schools. Over the past year, he’s watched as the schools have given the organization free reign to recruit young charges–in spite of the organization’s anti-gay policies. Wagenhoffer has complained […]
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Dam City Council
Demonstrators Float Idea for Voter Initiative
For the second time in eight months, roughly 700 residents took time from their Sunday afternoons to express disbelief that the city council still refuses to listen to them. They linked hands and formed a circle around the Mt. Tabor reservoir, the large water tank at the center of a fight between neighborhood associations and […]
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Oh, Grow Up!
Underage Musicians Fight Back Against OLCC
The list of clubs and club owners suing the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) reads like a who’s who of downtown entertainment. In late August the ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of a group including everyone from the owner of the Greek Cuisina, to the American Federation of Musicians. Without mincing words, the lawsuit […]
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Hey… Where Is Everyone?
Low Turnout Doesn’t Mean We Don’t Care
by J.B. Rabin Last Sunday, Portland’s downtown streets played host to a “March and Rally for Peace in the Middle East.” Coordinated with other actions around the country, it was meant as an international day for peace, a massive show of anti-war sentiment against the Bush Administration. The event had everything you’ve come to expect […]
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Moving to the Middle
WTO Collapses; No Thanks to Protesters
By Tim Sullivan Just before noon last Saturday, the No War Drum Corps marched up NE 12th Avenue. They rounded a corner and strode into Holladay Park to the applause of a growing swarm of citizens. All were focusing their energy toward the World Trade Organization’s fifth ministerial meeting in Cancun, Mexico. “We want to […]
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Me For Mayor!
Another Rant From Mayoral Candidate Phil Busse
To read The Oregonian‘s take on the political races, one might mistakenly think the size of a campaign’s bank account measures a candidate’s worth. Even Democratic frontrunner Howard Dean, who has ridden a wave of populist support, has fallen into this trap. When President Bush gathered up $1 million in contributions over a recent weekend, […]
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Retribution is a Bitch
Police Steal Zoobomber Bikes
by Anna Simon The bikes, a jumble of banana seats and swooping handle bars, looked like a piece of modern art; a growing fungus of metal and spokes. For nearly the past year, 15 bikes have been locked up along SW Oak and 10th, the collective property of an ad hoc group called the Zoobombers. […]
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Unwilling to Forget
Community Forum Demands Better Police Investigations
“While we are not professionals, we are quite well versed in common sense,” Rev. A.A. Wells told a full house at Maranatha Church on Saturday. Standing in front of 250 concerned residents, Wells led a forum looking into a police shooting of a young African American woman five months ago. In that incident, 21-year-old Kendra […]
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It’s America vs. Chile
It Seems Like Everyone Hates the WTO
By Tim Sullivan For Dave King, globalization feels like a cold, wet fish. A few years ago, King, a retired social worker and union activist, was paddling in the lower Columbia River when a fisherman tossed him a huge salmon. The man, who was wading through piles of fish on his boat’s deck, told King […]