Think Out Loud

The nightly protests in Portland against police violence have garnered a lot of attention, but people have been gathering to make their voices heard in rural parts of the state as well. We hear from Elizabeth Loera, a University of Oregon student who organized a recent protest in Umatilla and Clarence Carr, who has attended protests in Medford, Ashland, Grants Pass and Klamath Falls.

Timber helped build Oregon, but, since the 1990s, the state’s western counties have lost thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in annual revenue. For decades, much of the blame for the downturn has been placed on the federal government’s decision to reduce logging in national forests. An investigation by OPB, The Oregonian/OregonLive and ProPublica examined ownership and tax data to determine the financial losses for counties in the Coast Range from the decline in logging on federal lands and from tax cuts for the timber industry. We hear from investigative reporters Tony Schick and Rob Davis.

The racism that Black people and other people of color face every day takes a psychological toll. Studies show that workplace discrimination, racial profiling and daily microaggressions can lead to depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. Black, indigenous and other people of color are also at increased risk for cardiovascular problems and other physical diseases. Andrea Redeau is a Portland therapist who specializes in racial trauma and the founder of C4PDX, a collective of therapists of color serving the Portland area. We talk about how Black people’s mental health is affected by racism and Redeau’s tips for how to cope.

Hotels in Astoria have been open for nearly two weeks now and visitors are starting to trickle back in. Meanwhile, the seafood processing industry is hoping to forestall the widespread coronavirus infections that have hit other industries. And the cruise ship traffic has ground to a halt. Astoria’s mayor, Bruce Jones, joins us to talk about how Astoria is weathering the storm.

We get opinions and analysis on the news of the week from Lisa Bates, Jim Pasero, and George Rede.

Multnomah County is not ready to start reopening. The state’s most populous county was expected to get approval this week to enter Phase 1 of Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s reopening plan, but a recent spike in COVID-19 cases led Brown to declare a statewide “pause” on status changes for any counties seeking to enter either Phase 1 or Phase 2. Deborah Kafoury is the Multnomah County Chair, and joins us to discuss the delay.

Many Oregon students graduated this month and, due to the pandemic, their celebrations were small. There were no traditional commencement speeches. But that kind of advice and encouragement is still valuable, maybe now more than ever. So, we asked a number of people who have been guests on our show in the past to send us their own version of commencement remarks.

The Urbanism Next Center at the University of Oregon studies how cities are affected by disruption. Director Nico Larco says the consequences of the COVID-19 disruption may range from the continued increase in e-commerce and loss of small businesses, to the shrinking or re-purposing of office space, to the use of streets as restaurants. We’re joined by Nico Larco and Amanda Howell with the Urbanism Next Center to talk about all these changes and more.

Portland Street Medicine provides medical care to people who are homeless. The small team also helps connect people with the social services they need. They’ve had to be nimble to keep operating during the pandemic, but they say their work has not changed too drastically. We hear from medical director Bill Toepper and acting director of services Drew Grabham.

People with underlying medical conditions have been taking extra precautions to protect themselves from COVID-19. Some worry that Oregon is reopening too quickly, putting immunocompromised people even more at risk. 14-year-old Kira Bailey entered survivorship from leukemia in February, but now has to stay extra careful to protect herself from the virus. Michelle Fullington cares for her 17-year-old daughter, Kira. Kira requires complex 24/7 medical care, and would be extremely at risk if she contracted the virus. We hear why Kira Bailey, her mother Sara Bailey and Fullington think Oregon could be opening too soon.

As protests against police brutality and institutional racism continue nationwide, 16-year-old Aslan Newson is paying attention. Newson is a sophomore at Wilson High School and the president of the school’s Black Student Union. She’s advocated for racial justice at her school after several racist incidents in the past. She joins us to discuss her thoughts on the protests and how they echo the conversations she has repeatedly held about racism in her majority white school.

Farmworkers have been especially vulnerable to COVID-19 infection in Oregon. In response to growing concerns about worker safety — and recent COVID-19 outbreaks on Oregon and Washington farms — the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration has implemented new rules for farmworker housing and field work. We hear from the administrator of OSHA in Oregon, Michael Wood, as well as Executive Director of Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN) Reyna Lopez and Oregon Farm Bureau Policy Council Samantha Bayer.

Portland’s Independent Police Review has received over 2,000 letters about police funding, and several dozen complaints about interactions with police during protests. Ross Caldwell is the IPR director, and explains how the complaints will be evaluated and what the work of his department entails.

The Oregon Legislature’s Emergency Board recently allocated $55 million in federal money for rent assistance statewide. We hear more about how this new pot of money will be distributed from Andrea Bell, director of Housing Stabilization with Oregon Housing & Community Services, and Tim Orr, education and support hotline manager for Community Alliance of Tenants.

Emily Williams is a nurse in the intensive care unit at OHSU Hospital. For the past three months, she’s been working directly with COVID-19 patients on a daily basis. She recorded an audio diary to share what life is like for her right now.

Portlanders arrested at recent Black Lives Matter protests are facing a variety of charges. Attorneys say most are low-level non-violent offenses, like interfering with a peace officer and disorderly conduct. But what happens after that initial arrest? Attorney Viktoria Safarian has represented people arrested at Patriot Prayer and Proud Boys rallies in the past two years, as well as Black Lives Matter protesters in the last few weeks. Safarian fills us in on the legal side of protesting.

The Oregon Health Authority reported Sunday its highest daily count of new confirmed and presumptive coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic. The 146 new cases made a total of 4,808 known cases in Oregon. We talk with Oregon Health Authority director Patrick Allen about the latest uptick, and what that means for reopening plans.

Casinos across Oregon are reopening with social distancing and COVID-19 safety measures. The Mill Casino in Coos County was the first to reopen on May 18. We hear from Brenda Meade, the casino’s general manager and the chairperson for the Coquille Indian Tribal Council, about gaming during a pandemic.

As protests continue around the state and all over the country against police killings of Black Americans, we talk with two local leaders about the specific policy changes they want to see right now. Our guests are Portland NAACP President E.D. Mondaine and Joy Alise Davis, executive director of the Portland African American Leadership Forum. Over the weekend, PAALF put out a plan calling for leaders in Portland and Multnomah County to significantly reduce law enforcement budgets and redirect that money towards reducing health and economic inequities.

The Portland Thorns will start off a new women’s soccer tournament in Utah this month with a game against the Carolina Courage. All nine teams of the National Women’s Soccer League will compete in the Challenge Cup, starting on June 27th. All 25 games will be held at empty arenas around Salt Lake City, and the teams will be housed nearby. Emily Menges, a defender for the Thorns, shares her hopes for the return of professional sports.