LANITA DUKE KNOWS the problems with the Portland Public School system first-hand. She’s seen it all. Twice. Born and raised in Northeast Portland, Duke claims that she was “miseducated” by the same public school system that she is now working to reform. Typically, according to Lew Frederickson, spokesperson for Portland Public Schools, African American and […]
City
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Changing the Legislative Guard
Oregon’s Democrats Take Control
PERHAPS THE RACE that best epitomizes Tuesday night’s election results was the victory of Ryan Deckert, a young Democrat from the politically cautious suburbs of Beaverton. His victory helped to break a near decade-long stranglehold on Oregon’ Senate by the Republican Party. By securing a majority of seats in the state senate, the Democrats will […]
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Nein On Nine
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Lon
IF HISTORY PROVES anything about Lon and Bonnie Mabon, the authors of Ballot Measure 9, it’s that their most recent defeat won’t make them, or their perverse dreams for anti-gay legislation, go away. After two previous defeats at Oregon’s ballot box, the Mabons think God Himself ordered them to try once more. Logic would dictate […]
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Tuesday Night’s Silver Lining
Ryan Deckert Brings Hope to the Senate
IN SPITE OF THE DEMOCRATS hope for taking control of the State Senate, on Tuesday night they only managed to gain one seat. Though another two years of a Republican controlled senate is enough to make the most patient liberal shudder, one shouldn’t overlook some of this election’s silver linings. Out of place in Tuesday […]
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Nein On Nine?
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Lon
AT PRESS TIME, the polls indicate that Lon and Bonnie Mabon’s Ballot Measure 9 will be defeated by a narrow margin. Regardless, another defeat won’t make them, or their perverse dreams for anti-gay legislation, go away. After two previous defeats at Oregon’s ballot box, the Mabons think God Himself ordered them to try once more. […]
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Legalize It!
Marijuana Initiative Will Hit the Streets…Again
FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS, a small group of Oregonians has tried to mobilize the state’s reputedly large population of pot smokers. But even as the ballot measures to legalize marijuana went forward in Alaska and California, the issue has yet to reach voters here in Oregon. Since 1995, the Campaign for the Restoration and […]
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High School Athletes Stripped
The ACLU Takes Mandatory Drug Testing to the Mat
LAST TUESDAY, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit that accuses the Oakridge School District of violating the Fourth Amendment; the district regularly orders high school athletes to participate in mandatory drug testing. The issue was raised after 15-year-old Ginelle Weber, a sophomore volleyball player, refused to sign the consent form. “Ginelle is […]
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TEEN MERCURY:
Newsmakers & Heartbreakers!
Even though they’re politicians and activists, they can still be HOT! Check out the dreams and schemes of the cuties who make our city tick! Erik Sten: “I want this to be a city that is as good for everyone as it is for the wealthy. Perhaps the best legacy would be making sure there […]
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Hypocritical Oath
Rape Victims Victimized by the System
A HOMELESS YOUTH who’s only nineteen and living on the street might already be considered a victim. But advocates for these youth, vulnerable as they already are, worry they are being further victimized by a health-care system meant to help them. In April, Joe (not his real name) was kidnapped, drugged, and kept in a […]
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Homophobic Dough
Yes on 9 Campaign Potentially Screwed
WHAT STARTED late this summer as a straightforward effort to compensate Catherine Stauffer–who sustained injuries nine years ago at the hands of an OCA member–has turned into a potentially full-scale dismantling of the OCA’s financial machinery. On Monday, Lon and Bonnie Mabon–leaders of the OCA–took the stand in a Multnomah County courtroom to defend themselves […]
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Camp Delinquent
Wilderness Programs Face Regulations
Three weeks ago, as evening dimmed on Oregon’s eastern highlands, a camp counselor tried to subdue a 15-year-old boy. For the past several days, the Scappoose teenager had been forced to carry a forty-pound pack and hoof it across high desert as part of a program intended to correct his delinquent behavior. Once again, he […]
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Teacher Duh-Merit Pay
Measure 95 Threatens Teachers and Low-Income Schools
SHUFFLED AMONG the array of fiscal ballot measures supported by Bill Sizemore, there is one that would cut teachers’ pay instead of taxes. Coined “teacher merit pay” and sponsored by Sizemore’s organization, Oregon Taxpayers United, Measure 95 aims to completely shift the age-old basis for teachers’ pay–seniority and education–and tie teachers’ salaries directly to their […]