Portland and the Public Imagination

Using a variety of disciplinary lenses, Portland and the Public Imagination this course invites students to investigate Portland beyond the headlines to develop new ways of understanding the city, the stories we tell about it, and our relationship to its past, present, and future. Each week, one class is devoted to learning alongside guest experts and local community members, followed by another class session that uses engaged humanities practices—such as close reading and interpretation, open-ended conversation, and historicization–to deepen and extend students’ thinking on the week’s topic.

Below you’ll find the the guest lecture schedule along with all materials we used for the course—click through each entry to see what students were asked to do before and after the lectures, explore readings provided by the speakers, and view photos from the sessions.

Portland vs. Portlands: 5 Stories of the City

Introduction to the Topic:

You can learn about a city in all sorts of ways: through experiences, such as walking around its streets and neighborhoods or visiting its iconic public spaces and cultural landmarks; or through conversation, talking with long-time residents or newcomers. You can also learn a lot about a city by paying attention to how it’s portrayed across different mediums: television shows, movies, billboards, advertisements, and the news media. In other words, the city is a *real place* that we experience every day, and it’s an *idea* that we construct in our imaginations. For today’s class, we’ve selected a set of articles about Portland published across a range of time—from 1992 to 2023—to get us thinking about how the city has been represented in a variety of ways and with a range of effects. As you’ll see, there was a time when Portland was a media darling, with writers from the New York Times and elsewhere flocking to its streets to extol the quirky virtues of the city and its lessons for other urban locales. Fast-forward 10-20 years, and a quite different story of the city emerges: instead of gushing over Portland’s civic pride, the city becomes an easy target for critique, one that this time offers a warning for other cities.  

The purpose in reading these articles as a set—and we recommend that you read them in chronological order, as they’re listed below—is to begin to see the city through a series of different vantage points and subjective perspectives. Rather than attempt to discern which article contains the most “truth” about the city—and it will be tempting to read some of the pieces as especially naïve, wrong-headed or just flat-out problematic—instead, we’d like you to pay attention to how each piece constructs the city and its history and primary characteristics in different ways. As you read, think about each article as if you were reading a short story: who is the protagonist of this version? How does the author portray the central attributes of the city? How do they describe the setting? What is the tone like? You might also consider what assumptions the authors are operating under as well as what blind-spots they might have (e.g. what are they leaving out?) Be sure to respond to the Pre-Reading Reflection Questions BEFORE you read the articles, as they will help prepare you for the reading by priming your thinking about the city and how we tell stories about the places we live. Then after you read, choose two of the Post-Reading Questions to respond to. 

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

  • Each of these articles refers to what might be called a “Portland ethos”—(def. of ethos: the characteristic spirit of a culture, era, or community”)—although they pinpoint that ethos in different ways. How would you describe the Portland ethos in your own words and experience? 
  • How would you tell the story of your own hometown? What would you focus on? And how do you think your parents or another family member or friend would tell the story?  

Read: 

Post-Reading Questions:

#1: Choose a quote from two of the articles and compare and contrast how they describe the city.  

#2: Each article frames the city from a particular angle and attitude which necessarily leaves out other possible angles and attitudes. Choose one of the articles and first describe the angle and attitude it takes on Portland; then write about what you think this angle/attitude might miss. 

#3: Choose two places or objects referred to in two of the articles (one in each) and look them up online. Where are they in the city? What are their histories? And how do they add to the author’s story about Portland? 

#4: How do these articles tell the story of Portland’s history? Compare and contrast the timelines the articles create through their narratives. 

#5: What vision of a successful Portland does each of these articles produce?  

Bike Culture and Advocacy in Portland

Guest Instructor: Dr. Kristin Sweeney (Environmental Studies)

Introduction to the Topic:

Cycling in Portland, both the concept and the practice, fills different roles for different people. For some, it is a thing they do for fun, whether by riding long distances along rural roads or by joining themed group rides during Bike Summer (formerly Pedalpalooza). These group rides are often part of the idea of Portland as “quirky”. For others, it’s a transportation choice, motivated by a dedication to urbanism, climate action, health, cost, accessibility, or other reasons. And for still others, cycling is either inaccessible, dangerous, undesirable, emblematic of racism and gentrification, or downright distasteful. For today’s class, I’ve selected a set of articles about different aspects of cycling in Portland, all written by Jonathan Maus, the pre-eminent source of bike and transportation news in Portland. Like public visions of Portland, the early 2010s saw a bike boom in Portland, and the story is now a bit more complicated, with overall cycling numbers in decline. 

I know that many of you may not be regular bike riders, and these articles are written from a bike perspective. However, I’ll ask you to think as you read about your own transportation choices, bike or otherwise, and whether you think of them as a choice. What goes into those decisions? How do you see your decisions reflected (or not) in the articles and the comments on the articles? The pre-reading questions are meant to help you answer questions about your own transportation before diving into Portland bike culture, priming your mind to think about people on bikes. 

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

  1. How does transportation or transportation infrastructure fit into your personal vision of Portland? For example, think of a “Portland street”. What do you see?
  1. How do you currently get from one place to another most of the time? Think about this question both in terms of number of trips and number of miles traveled (these answers might be different!).
  1. What are the things you think about when you choose how you are going to get somewhere?
  1. Has the way you moved from one place to another changed substantially during your lifetime? Why or why not? Are your modes of transportation similar to or different from the people around you? Has that changed over your lifetime?
  1. Is there anything that would make you consider changing your primary mode of transportation?

Read:

Bike Fun!

From tactical urbanism to permanent infrastructure: case study of Better Naito

Recent takes on biking in Portland

Post-Reading Questions:

  1. Some of the articles depict bicycling as pure fun, while others focus on bicycling as a transportation choice. Is there one of these messages that you feel more drawn to? Discuss whether you think these messages complement each other — can transportation be fun? 
  2.  Spend some time reading the comments (and main text) of the article “How Portland’s chief bike planner explains the decline in cycling”. What are three of the arguments made in the article and comments for why cycling has decreased in Portland? How do these arguments compare to your personal experience (i.e., do they include reasons that might keep you from choosing to bike)? How do they compare to the barriers described in the “Barriers to Cycling in East Portland” report?
  3. Finally, having read the articles about Better Naito, take a look at the planned changes to Willamette Blvd. here:https://www.portland.gov/transportation/pbot-projects/construction/n-willamette-boulevard-active-transportation-corridor . What are your initial reactions? Do you think these changes will move the needle on cycling in North Portland?

Further reading and next steps:

  • Hoffmann, Melody L., Bike Lanes Are White Lanes, Bicycle Advocacy and Urban Planning
  • Fucoloro, Tom, Biking Uphill in the Rain: The Story of Seattle from behind the Handlebars

 Other things to explore

  • Try biking somewhere! If you don’t have a bike, check one out from OPP or get a BikeTown bike. What was the experience like? What surprised you?
  • Find the neighborhood greenways in your neighborhood. Do they feel different than other streets?
Kitchen Confidential, PDX Style

Guest Instructor: Danielle Centoni (Marketing and Communications)

Introduction to the Topic:

Type “Portland” into the article search bar on NYTimes.com, filter for travel, and you’ll get a smattering of small, forgettable blurbs before 2002. But after? A veritable avalanche of love letters to the City of Roses. Why the shift? What could make the nation’s preeminent newspaper suddenly sit up and take notice? A restaurant renaissance unlike anything anywhere else. 

What sparked around 2002, ignited in 2005, and grew into the internationally renowned food scene we have today was a magical, fateful confluence of cheap rent, ambitious talents, unfettered access to pristine ingredients, and a hungry populace that valued individualism and creativity. While the Great Recession rocked the nation, Portland was undergoing the Great Reinvention. Everyone, it seemed, wanted to live here or at least visit, and that was due in very large part to the food and drink. 

For the next 10 years, any story about Portland food followed a tidy narrative: We were a nature-loving craft-obsessed wonderland of quirk led by a cadre of rule-breaking (and often hard-partying) rock star chefs (not to mention brewers, roasters, and distillers). Who wouldn’t want to come and eat their way through town? A popular parody show was born (Portlandia). A national food festival took root (Feast, sponsored by Bon Appetit). Boutique hotels sprouted up like mushrooms. The city was flourishing, at least for those with the means to participate.

We’ve now crossed the threshold into 20 years as a world-class destination for inventive and exciting food. Without a doubt, Portland’s restaurant industry is a major contributor to the city’s vibrancy and quality of life and is an important economic driver of tourism dollars and jobs. 

But much has shifted over the years and the changes reflect the larger shifts happening in our country. Issues of inequity, hidden amid the endless hype, finally started to surface around 2017 as people in the restaurant industry and food media began pushing to change the narrative and expose the uncomfortable truths. We can look back at those early years and ask some very important questions about representation and racism, misogyny and abuse, appropriation and gatekeeping. 

The readings are meant to give you some historical context into the attitudes toward Portland chefs and restaurants over the last two decades, and a little insight into what drives the narrative today. It’s important to ask ourselves what role did the media, industry insiders, and citizens at large play in perpetuating myths that valued one population over all others? Do the city-wide gains from the restaurant revolution in the early aughts justify the exclusionary narrative? What was sacrificed? What does a truly inclusive food scene in Portland look like? Are we there yet? If not, what will it take to make it happen?

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions

  • Portland has a reputation as a destination-worthy dining city. What is it built on — the chefs? The ingredients? The creativity of the dishes? The diversity of the cuisine? Do you think this reputation is deserved or is it media hype? 
  • Think about what you know about Portland’s food scene. How do you know what you know? Where did you/do you get your information? Do you feel like you have a complete picture? Is anything lacking in the media coverage?
  • How would you sum up Portland’s food scene in a nutshell, and how would that compare with other notable U.S. food cities like SF, LA, NYC, Chicago. How much of your perceptions are based on personal experience and how much are based on stereotypes driven by the media and entertainment industries?

Read:

Tales from Portlandia:

 Issues Beneath the Surface:

The New Normal:


For Further Exploration:

Post-Reading Questions

How would you grade the Portland citizenry’s response to allegations of abuse, racism, sexism, and cultural appropriation in the local restaurant industry? Did its citizens support the people raising the issues and help push for change? Or did it support the status quo? How would you grade the media response to these allegations? Do you think there has been positive change? What does this tell you about our willingness as a city to look out for each other? What lessons can we learn that could be applied to issues facing the country at large?

Portland’s food renaissance was born around the same time it gained a reputation as a breeding ground for young, unconventional “hipsters” who value craft above convenience. Who gets to benefit from this stereotype? Which populations does it hurt? How has this stereotype helped and/or hurt the city? Do you think the stereotype still applies?

Consider the kinds of dishes chefs were cooking during the heyday of Portland’s food “revolution,” from the restaurants to the food carts. Which kinds of dishes got the most media attention? What kinds of food were diners willing to pay more for? Was the food predominantly European? If not, was it being cooked by a white chef? What does this say about our culture then and now? How have things changed in Portland and in our country?

What are your thoughts about chefs cooking the cuisines of cultures they don’t belong to? Is it harmful or harmless? When would you consider it cultural appreciation? When does it cross the line into cultural appropriation? Or does it?

How has public perception of Portland’s chefs changed from the early years of the city’s food renaissance to now? Is there a positive shift, a negative shift, or both? If there is a shift, does it reflect changes in U.S. culture in general? 

Portland’s Water Infrastructure: From Rain to River to Tap

Guest Instructor: Dr. Jordy Wolfand (Engineering)

Introduction

Portland’s water cycle is a far cry from what you probably learned in elementary school science class. The city has three underground systems to manage water: stormwater, wastewater, and drinking water. For today’s class, we’ll focus on just two of these systems: stormwater and drinking water. Stormwater is rainwater or melted snow that runs off streets, lawns, and other land surfaces. Drinking water is what you experience when you turn on the faucet! 

The purpose of reading these articles is to understand how these water infrastructure systems are integrated into Portland’s landscape. Several of the sources are links to the City of Portland’s website. Be sure to explore and read the sub-pages on each site. Once we understand the systems that Portland uses to manage and provide clean water, we can begin to explore how they interact with people in the city, climate change, and other environmental pressures.

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

#1: Think about a typical day in your life. How do you interact with Portland’s water cycle?

#2: What questions or concerns do you have about the relationship between urban water systems and public health?

#3: How do you think Portland’s natural features, such as rivers, forests, and rainfall, influence the design and operation of its water infrastructure?

Read:

Stormwater

Drinking Water

Post-Reading Questions:

#1: Portland is often considered a leader in environmental stewardship. How do Portland’s stormwater and drinking water systems reflect the city’s priorities for sustainability and resilience?

#2: Many of you are not from Portland. Use the internet to research the water infrastructure where you grew up. Where is the drinking water sourced from? Is there a similar approach to managing stormwater? How do the systems compare to Portland’s?

#3: What kind of challenges do you think Portland will face in managing its water in the future? What efforts does the City have to address these challenges? Do you think it’s adequate?

#4: Managing water pollution is related to proper waste management. Discuss some ways in which properly managing waste could lead to improved water quality. 

#5: What innovative approaches could Portland or your hometown adopt to enhance water sustainability and resilience?

Next Steps:

Further reading:

Additional ways to explore:

Participate in a litter clean up: https://www.solveoregon.org/volunteer

Paddle the Willamette! Rent kayaks or paddleboards from OPP: https://www.up.edu/recservices/outdoor-pursuits/rentals-services.html

Visit Bonneville Dam to see how the Willamette is used for hydroelectric power: https://www.nwp.usace.army.mil/bonneville/

Take a tour of the Gresham wastewater treatment plant: https://www.greshamoregon.gov/Wastewater-Treatment-Plant/#EducationalTours

History: What We Remember, What We Ignore

Guest Instructor: Taylor Stewart (Oregon Remembrance Project and UP Alum)

Introduction: 

What we choose to remember as well as how we choose to remember history is a reflection of the soul of our society. These videos and readings have been selected to showcase undertold stories in Oregon’s history that have shaped the way African Americans experience the state. White institutions have largely avoided telling these stories and, when unearthed, express resistance to confronting what they mean to contemporary society. This failure to confront has exacerbated inequities in community life, the criminal legal system, housing, safety, economic mobility, etc. To this end, the Oregon Remembrance Project (ORP) was started in 2018 to help communities with truth and reconciliation projects around repairing historical injustice. ORP connects historical racism to its present-day legacies in order to inspire contemporary racial justice action. This class period will explore the stories and legacies that have shaped Portland into the whitest metropolitan city in the U.S. 

Pre-reading questions:

  • Why do you think there are so few Black people in Oregon today? And similarly, why do you think there so few Black students at UP?
  • Americans can sometimes be resistant to unearthing stories of historical injustice. Why do you think that is?

Read: 

Post-reading questions:

  • In “How do you reconcile a lynching?” the speaker uses reconciliation and Alonzo Tucker as the impetus for ending the death penalty in Oregon. What is persuasive about the story of Alonzo Tucker and the legacy of lynching in the Oregon anti-death penalty movement?
  • In Road to Sunshine, Grants Pass Remembrance marches in Boatnik to add a new chapter to the story of the KKK marching in an earlier edition of the parade. How does this participation influence the story of Grants Pass as a former sundown town?
  • Consider the Primer for Multnomah County Changemakers without the historical background. How does this historical inclusion shape your understanding of the issues? Why should policymakers factor in this history into considering the needs of the city?
  • In the Justice for Hakiym video, Hakiym was arrested, tried, and convicted by an all-white jury in Josephine County (where Grants Pass is located). How does the backdrop of Grants Pass’ history as a sundown town shape our understanding of what happened to Hakiym?
  • William “Bill” McCoy was a 1950 UP graduate. He went on to become Oregon’s first Black state legislator and pioneered a path for Black Oregonians in politics. Despite his contributions to Oregon and Portland, there is no acknowledgement of Bill McCoy as a UP graduate anywhere on campus. Similarly, is anything on campus named after a non-white person? If not, why is that?

Further reading:

Next steps:

Connect with Taylor about memorializing Bill McCoy on campus at UP’s 125-year-anniversary in 2026

Follow the Oregon Remembrance Project on Instagram

Follow the Oregon Black Pioneers on Instagram

Consider going on the Moreau Center Civil Rights Immersion trip

At the Corner of NW 6th and Burnside: Where Hope and Gratitude Intersect

Guest Instructor: Fr. Pat Hannon (English)

Introduction to the Topic:

Years ago, someone once told me that despair is not the end of hope; it is the beginning of hope. I’ve ruminated on that thought over the years—collectively—for hours, and I’ve come to believe that it is the truth. Partly this is because I am a Holy Cross priest, a member of a religious order whose motto is, “Ave Crux, Spes Unica” (“Hail the Cross, Our Only Hope”), and partly because I am a human caught in an intersection where two trajectories often meet: the first is the one that moves from despair to hope and the second is the one that moves from regret to gratitude. Perhaps I should add a third intersection, one where joy and sorrow meet. Such is my life now at Saint Andre Bessette Church on the corner of NW 6th and Burnside in Downtown Portland.  I live on the third floor of the building, “above the store” as it were. Daily now my eyes and ears and nose take in the sights, sounds, and smells of destitution, loneliness, desperation, and sometimes rage and violence. And yet. I’m also an often stunned witness to grit and grace and to whatever it is in the human that reminds me of holiness. 

The texts I’m inviting you to read in preparation for our time together will (I hope) get you to think about hope, gratitude and yes, joy, in new ways—ways that will immerse you more deeply into the often head-scratching mystery of the human experience that we all share, whatever our individual circumstances might be, this collective determination we have to never give up on ourselves, others, the world.  They will also prepare us to engage in a lively conversation about why such places as Saint Andre Catholic Church in Downtown Portland (which most pedestrians pass by without even knowing it is a church) can be powerful catalysts for change and civic healing. 

Pre-Reading Questions:

Where in Portland have you found tangible evidence of hope? 

Tell of a time when you found yourself somewhere in Portland feeling suddenly grateful. Looking back on that moment, what do you think was the catalyst for that shift from whatever you were feeling to gratitude? 

Read:

Post-Reading Activities:

1. Each of the selected readings offers us a particular lens—political/social, theological, personal, spiritual—through which we might see that intersection of hope and gratitude in empowering and encouraging ways. Which lens did you find most compelling? Tell us why.

2. Choose a quotation from two of the texts that you found particularly interesting and seem connected in an interesting way.  Line them up as though the two writers are conversing. Now engage them as though the writers are sitting with you. Add a first thought in response to theirs. Now, imagine how each, then, would respond to your thought. Create the conversation. Jump into the conversation, in other words, and thoughtfully (and, of course, imaginatively!) engage the two writers drawing from your own experiences of Portland. 

3. Go to Saint Andre Bessette Church’s website (https://saintandrebessettepdx.org). What did you find particularly insightful about how the website communicates the mission of the parish as Downtown Portland neighbor? Point to at least three places where you encountered a sense of hope and explain why they were effective. 

4. According to a MarketWatch survey from 2020, Portland is the least religious city in the country. Choose either Hannon or Day’s essay, both of which utilize a Christian/Catholic lens to assess and explore responses to  the urban/societal challenges they faced.  Home in on at least three insights you found compelling from the essay you chose. How would you translate them in a way that a non-religious audience would find compelling? Explain why you think your secular rendering of their Christian-infused thoughts will be effective. 

Beyond Tents and Tarps: Humanizing PDX’s Houseless Community

Guest Instructor: Scott Kerman (Blanchet House)

Read:

Serving at the Margins

The Burnside Bridge Replacement Project

Guest Instructor: Dr. Matthew Barner (Engineering)

Introduction:

Portland is nicknamed “Bridge City” because there are over a dozen bridges that span the Willamette and Columbia Rivers. Portland is certainly not unique in being a city built along a river. Our earliest cities emerged along some of the greatest rivers in the world. Memphis along the Nile, Babylon along the Euphrates, and Jingzhou along the Yangtze, to name a few. Rivers are the lifelines for many cities, but can also create a barrier through our cities. Think of all the ways east and west Portland are different due to the Willamette River. Bridges cross that divide and connect us. They are perhaps what civil engineers are most known for. This is why we call them “civil” engineers, sharing the same prefix with “civilization” and “civilians”.

The purpose in reading the text on the provided websites and watching the embedded videos was to orient you towards the challenge many cities and civil engineers face today, aging infrastructure. Most of Portland’s bridges are over fifty years old and were designed and built before civil engineers had a good understanding of how to design infrastructure to withstand major earthquakes. The Burnside Bridge was built nearly 100 years ago in 1926! The readings and videos will orient you towards some of the history behind why the Burnside Bridge needs to be replaced, but they mainly focus on what the replacement bridge may look like. To provide you some additional context, the Burnside Bridge replacement is intended to be the main connection between east and west Portland after a major earthquake. In order for emergency responders to be able to access the entire city and provide a help, bridges need to be functional after such an event. While this is a scary thought, know that there are some newer bridges spanning the Willamette designed with our modern understanding of earthquakes and there are other current replacements/renovations actively in the works or being planned for the future.

As you read and watch, think about some of the bridges you frequently travel. Do you know the history of those bridges? Are they an enjoyable part of your commute? Do you like their aesthetic? While designing structurally sound bridges is the most important consideration, we also want bridges that preserve our history, allow for all users to feel safe while crossing, and be an iconic part of our city.  Be sure to respond to the Pre-Reading Reflection Questions BEFORE you visit the websites. Then after you visit the websites, respond to the Post-Reading Questions.

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

  • What is your favorite bridge in Portland and why? Is there one you enjoy transiting over or looking at from a distance?
  • What is your least favorite bridge in Portland and why? Is there one you do not enjoy transiting over or that you think is an eyesore?

Read/browse:

  • Visit the following website: https://burnsidebridge.participate.online/
  • Read thru the text on each tab, watch the embedded videos and interact with the various different renderings for each bridge option. This may seem like a lot at first, but don’t worry the videos are short and a great way to visualize all the options!
  • Note that the Survey is now closed, but if you are interested in receiving email updates on the project, there is a link to sign up on the Survey tab.

Post-Reading Questions:

  • Explain your preferred bridge type for the Burnside replacement and why based on the information provided from the websites.
  • After the Burnside Bridge is replaced, which Portland bridge would you choose next for replacement and why? Would you want this replacement bridge to have a similar aesthetic to the your preferred bridge type for the Burnside replacement? Or would you want to use it as an opportunity to represent a different option?

Further Reading and Additional Ways to Explore:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_bridges_in_Portland,_Oregon

https://www.opb.org/news/series/unprepared/earthquake-oregon-bridges-collapse/

Portland’s Music Scene: An Evolving Space

Guest Instructor: José Velazco (Digital Lab)

Introduction:

Portland’s music scene has a rich history and encompasses a wide variety of genres from jazz to indie to hip hop. One can point to several historical indicators as to the success of Portland’s music culture: its relatively small size, temperate climate, DIY culture, and (until recently) affordable housing as means for which musicians have been able to thrive and build community.

As the city has grown and become a regional hub for live music, local artists, venues, recording studios and arts organizations; questions have arisen about access to financial support for artists, the city’s livability due to a rise in housing costs, and what inclusivity means in a historically white city.

The following readings, presentation, and subsequent discussion present a look at the city’s music scene and its recent history. How have the portrayals of the city as a center for hip, urban living, the post-pandemic landscape, demographic shifts, gentrification, and external corporate interests, challenged and continue to upend this notion of the city’s perceived identity? How does this reframe the city as a creative center influence its future?

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

  • What is your own experience with live music? Have you attended concerts or performed or assisted in promoting or producing live music? 
  • What inferences can one make about a city given its relationship to supporting live music or the arts? 

Read:

Post-Reading Questions:

1. How do the readings challenge the perception of Portland as a haven for artists and musicians? 

2. Each article uses phrases (e.g., “ethical urbanism” Wortham-Galvin p.202, “amenity paradox”, London, p. 53 etc.) to describe the city’s growth. Consider these phrases or select another of interest within either article. What do these terms mean to you? How do they describe the attempts to create an ideal city for its citizens and difficulties some still face to afford to live in Portland as an artist?

3. Each article mentions the city’s Albina district and nearby Mississippi Avenue neighborhood. Find out more information about this neighborhood. How does its history and current development depict a broader narrative about the city? 

4. Think about Portlandia and how it describes Portland’s relationship to music. Choose one of the following scenes from the show.

Next Steps:

Further reading: The following readings discuss the impacts of closure of a local arts organization and the recent development of corporate interest in the proposal and construction of a centrally located music venue:

Visit the following sites to learn more about Portland’s Music scene:

Portland Music Scene: An Evolving Space: A virtual tour of Portland’s music scene with a guided map, playlist and links.

Additional Links:

Publications: Eleven PDX, Willamette Week, Portland Mercury

Organizations: Music Portland, Friends of Noise

Venues: Holocene, Mississippi Studios, Revolution Hall, Roseland Theatre, Crystal Ballroom, Polaris Hall, Wonder Ballroom, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall

Record Shops: Mississippi Records, Music Millenium, Everyday Music, Vinyl Resting Place

Music Labels: Doe Records, Tender Loving Empire, Mama Bird Recording Co.

Arts Organizations: Regional Arts and Culture Council

Handmade Portland: Cultivating Community through Textiles and the Fiber Arts

Guest Instructor: Prof. Tim Wagoner (Performing and Fine Arts)

       The city of Portland and the state of Oregon have a rich history of textiles and fiber craft that has gained them a special reputation. Littered with a history of large-scale racism and prejudice, Oregon has grown and changed through the decades to bring us to a progressive moment in craft history. Corporations like Adidas and Nike exist here as a result of years of textile companies like Dehen Knitting Co., Jantzen Swimwear and Pendleton Wool Mills. These major players have given opportunity to smaller businesses and individuals to thrive and grow in grass roots ways. Small yarn shops and craft studios enhance the city by allowing fiber-centered communities to form. From ‘Me Too’ to the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movements, local crafters have activated major political shifts by knitting, weaving, sewing and crocheting. “Craftivism”, a term coined by Betsy Greer, is a word now associated with the ways in which locals have expressed their dissent, reinforcing Portland as a creative, handmade city.

       When reading these articles and viewing these videos, consider this excerpt from the “Craftivist Manifesto”: 

“No longer will we be okay with benefiting from the oppression of the other. No more will we tolerate patriarchal, colonial systems of oppression, nor toxic masculinity or white supremacy loosely veiled. No more will we remain silent, complicit. We stand against artificial hierarchies and histories of hate. We are the craftivists. A patchwork of makers, diverse but united in kinship. We stand for justice, universally applied. Through our craft we bear witness. With our skilled hands and compassionate hearts, we mend the tears in the fabric of our society. We make to make connections. We make to raise each other up. We make to make a difference. We make to make change. We resist. ” (Craftivism, Tal Fitzpatrick, 2018)

Pre-Reading Questions:

1. When you think of knitting, crochet or embroidery, what are the stereotypes you think of?

2. These articles show a historical progression of crafts in Oregon from sheep herding to finished textile installations. What is the history of one hobby you have and how does it affect the way you enjoy it?

3. Everyone has, or has had, a favorite garment. Think about one you can remember. Think about the way it was made and the hands that had a part in making it. Write a message to your favorite garment and ask it questions.

Read:

Post-Reading Questions:

1. Amy Wike investigated people’s opinions about her city at a specific time and then created a piece with that information. Looking at the history of Portland textiles, how have your opinions of the city changed after reading/viewing these articles/videos?

2. Brooklyn Tweed’s Jared Flood posited that “The more” you “” you show the more love you receive”. Do you agree or disagree? In what ways can you show whoyou are to the Portland community?

3. One person can make a large impact. Brooklyn Tweed is a Portland based, world renowned yarn business. Yet they are supporting small non profits like SMYRC, Rose Haven, Black Oregon Land Trust and Bridging Voices. How can you, as a Portlander, pass on and serve others through special interests or hobbies?

4. In “Repairing the Social Fabric”, Bonnie Meltzer invites individuals to put their beliefs into metaphorical and physical action, which in turn forms community.What are three new ways can you put your beliefs into action and form a community?

Optional Reading/Browsing for Further Exploration:

Other Ways to Engage:

Create something with two other people

Visit a local yarn store (Starlight Knitting Society, Close Knit, Ritual Dyes, Weird Sisters)

Learn to knit or crochet (Youtube is your friend!)

Invisible Portland

Guest Instructor: Dr. Kali Abel (Environmental Studies; she/her/ella)

Introduction:

We know that there are things we miss. Signals we misinterpret or don’t understand, dead end streets we’ve never gone down, and an infinite number of people we haven’t met or swapped stories with. From the unintelligible spray paint on roads to our mailboxes going from empty to full without any human interaction, the city of Portland operates sometimes in languages we don’t understand or through actions we never witness. So much of the city we live in is, for all intents and purposes, invisible to us. Even more so, many of the people who make this city what it is are invisible to us.

What do we mean by invisible? Academically speaking, invisibility is a structural condition in which an individual or population is uncounted, unregistered, denied, or omitted from formal record-keeping mechanisms such as censuses, surveys, registrations, or citizenship. But it’s also a relational condition – inherently dependent on one entity being ‘seen’ with another doing the ‘seeing’.

This unit explores what it means to be invisible in a city like Portland. We will explore how and why invisibility happens, how invisible populations are woven into the fabric of Portland, and what we as community members can do to safely and ethically bring the visible to light.

One of the stark ironies of talking about invisibility in Portland is that it is rarely studied holistically (likely because it’s really, really, really hard to study things that you cannot see or are intentionally being withheld from you). For that reason, the materials below may seem at best to be a smattering, and at worst, entirely random. I’ll try to provide a rationale for each, but the fundamental goal with these materials is to start a) identifying some of our own assumptions and b) questioning why we hold them, in advance of a more structured classroom conversation. Good luck.

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

1. After reading the introduction above, what comes to mind when you think of invisibility in Portland? Who do you think of first as an invisible population? In what ways are you visible within Portland or your community? In what ways might you be invisible?

Read/watch:

  • Start here. This is a short awareness test to get us going. 
  • The next two videos are about St. Andrew Nativity school in Portland. St. Andrew is Portland’s only 100% low-income, private school. Its goal is to break the cycle of poverty through education and community building. The following videos center on two different families, both of whom live in North Portland. This school is 15 minutes from campus. I’ve chosen these videos because the population this school serves is often invisible within our community, despite the school itself being within the heart of Alberta and its students having connections to schools like University of Portland. Not only is the population often invisible, but many are unaware that the school even exists.
  • This reading is a longform journalistic piece about the lives of three Latin American migrants living in Oregon and the rules that govern their lives. When it comes to invisible populations – specifically families and individuals who have crossed into the U.S. in an irregular fashion – life is often lived by a different rulebook, one that encourages invisibility to ensure safety. While many of those rules are not written into formal laws or governance, they serve as an invisible social force that influences how migrants live in our community day-to-day:
  • Often invisibility occurs through assumption – whether intentional or accidental. In other words, we don’t ask or discover if we assume we already know what we need to know. This video humorously approaches the assumptions we make about other people, and what we might gain by being “curious, not judgemental”. (Warning: there’s a bit of adult language in this one.)
  • When I think about the incredibly steep learning curve involved in, for example, living in a city that is foreign to you, I think of this video. Even the way we pronounce “Willamette” or “The Dalles” or “Couch St.” can identify us as a foreigner, sparking assumptions about who we are and what we are doing here. This video pokes fun at the assumptions we make surrounding the association between names and race. (Warning: there’s adult language in this one too.)

Post-Reading/Video Questions:

1. Think about the substitute teacher video. St. Andrew Nativity is considered an “inner-city school”. What assumptions does the substitute teacher video poke fun at about “inner-city schools”? What assumptions do we often hold about the inner-city in general? What does a school like St. Andrew do that counters those narratives? In your opinion, what challenges does a school like St. Andrew face if it isn’t a well known entity even amongst its neighbors (i.e. UP). 

2. Choose one of the people from “I Came Here for Peace”. What informal rules (i.e. social, cultural, self-imposed) does that person live by? What are the goals of living by those rules? How do those rules amplify that person’s invisibility or ability to share their full selves with the world around them?

3. Invisibility is often chosen. Just as invisibility may be chosen to achieve safety from threats, it can also be chosen to hide illegal or illicit activity. In all cases invisibility is challenging to study, but chosen invisibility may be more so. Think about a population that has chosen invisibility (i.e. undocumented migrants, members of the LGBTQ+ community, informal workers, etc.). How might you ethically explore the issue of invisibility ethically within Portland, without making people visible who do not want to be “seen”?    

Next Steps:

Deliver a thank you to someone on campus who may be or feel invisible (this could be leaving a note for the cleaning staff in a dorm, thanking a staff member in person on campus, learning a few words of a new language to say hello to someone in their native language, etc.). 

Volunteer at Nativity: https://www.nativityportland.org/volunteer

Explore invisibility in a global context by taking one of Dr. Kali’s classes!

Find ways to “be curious, not judgemental.”

Creating Better Neighbors: Carceral Portland

Guest Instructor: Sr. Maura Behrenfeld (Theology)

Introduction:

Most people (up to 90%) who have been incarcerated will be back “on the streets” at some point. Is this a positive reality? Does the Department of Corrections provide an adequate rehabilitation process for those in prison? In Oregon, the recidivism rates of ex-cons this past year (i.e., the number of arrests, convictions or incarcerations within three years by ex-cons) was very high: 51% were arrested again, 35% were convicted again, and 13.5 % were incarcerated again. On the other hand, there are many examples of ex-cons who are now outstanding citizens. In Portland, for example, a formerly incarcerated individual is now the CEO of one of the most effective programs for drug and alcohol rehabilitation in the city. Another ex-con has founded a non-profit so effective it has reduced gun violence by nearly 24% in Portland. Yet another ex-con is running a successful food operation and generously gives back to the community through food donations and services. The list goes on. But why the discrepancy in “results” by those who have spent time in prison? Why does the re-entry process from prison back into society have such disparate results? And what is the response and responsibility of the citizens of a city in relation to formerly incarcerated people? 

The selected preparatory readings, podcast and video for this class offer important insights to begin to grasp the nuanced ideas behind the issue of incarceration and its impact on society. Write down your feelings and perceptions regarding ex-cons and their presence in Portland before you begin the assigned materials and then note if any changes have occurred within you after completing the materials.  During our class, we will meet up-close and personal two ex-cons who walk our Portland streets regularly. We will have the opportunity to hear their personal stories and interact with them as we explore what is implicated in creating better neighbors with the formerly incarcerated in Portland.

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

1.  What do you see as three primary reasons for people to end up in prison? Do you think it is “all their fault?” Explain why or why not.

2.  Describe personal relationships/experiences, news stories, videos, songs or other means of information that have shaped your view of people who have been incarcerated. Is this a stereotypical view? Why or why not?

3.  How do you think the current approach of the Department of Corrections towards people in prison be improved? Provide at least three suggestions.

4.  What do you think are the greatest challenges an individual has to face when they are released from prison?

Read:

Post-Reading Questions:

1.  Identify at least three elements from the materials that effect recidivism. Explain why these elements are impactful.

2.  What factors are crucial to the ongoing success of an ex-con within society?

3.  What changes need to happen within the Department of Corrections to improve the carceral experience?

4.  What can you personally do to help those re-entering Portland after time in prison? 

5.  How important is it to get a job after being released from prison? Provide three thought-out reasons for what changes through employment?

Further Resources

What We Can Learn From Norway’s Prison System: Rehabilitation & Recidivism

The Norwegian prison where inmates are treated like people

Participate in a free Arts Inside Out workshop (a program founded in prison) to be held on Thursday, April 10, from 4:00-5:30 p.m. (sign-up sheet available during our class)

Wheat, Wine, and “Is That Gum?!”: Looking at Global Portland

Guest Instructor: Dr. Blair Woodard (History)

Introduction:

It’s amazing when one thinks that it was only with the flip of a penny that our city was named Portland. This is especially significant, given that the fact that the ports in Portland and the city’s role in trade are one of the most important historical legacies and enduring characteristics of the city. Looking back at the history of Portland one can see that the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia has always been a center for trade. Native Americans fished in the rivers and traded salmon for other goods. The first European settlers also traded, in fish, pelts, and timber. Over the years the city developed to become a hub for international trade from a myriad agricultural products from wine to wheat, hay and hazelnuts to becoming a center for technology, design, and one of the largest auto ports in the United States, trade is at the heart of the city. Portland has also been the host and home to events and innovators over the years that have had a lasting impact on the city and global culture more broadly. These individuals and events have inspired global movements and trends that can still be seen today. Even though the media often focuses on the “weird” elements of Portland, its historical connections to the wider world through its trade, events, and trendsetters, that happens here makes the city have its unique character. 

Pre-Reading Reflection Questions:

1. If you think of Portland in an international context, what do you think about? Products, individuals, activities?

2. If you look out over the bluff, what forms of commerce do you see? Or if you wander between the Kelly Point Park and the Broadway Bridge, what other products can you see?

3. What effects has trade had on the environment and landscape surrounding the University that you can see? 

4. In your own lives, how do you connect globally?

Read:

Post-Reading Questions:

1. How do events like the World’s Fair contribute to a globalized vision of the city? Are there any events now that help create a vision of Portland as a global metropolis? 

2. Who are the innovators, trendsetters, and creators that have had a lasting effect on Portland?

3. Are there any industries or places that used to be important to connecting Portland to the wider world that no longer exist? What are these “hidden” histories?

4. What lasting effects can you see in the city from the global activities that Portland has been a part of over the years?