Meet Your ‘Raining’ Queen: Slugita Incognita

Royalty is never ordinary. Locals of Eugene know this is the case for the beloved SLUG queen, who presides over the Eugene Parade and, in the past, the (now defunct) Eugene Celebration.

This year’s newest queen (aka the “raining” queen), Slugita Incognita, has her sights set not just on Lane County but the whole world, now that she’s been annointed by the Society for the Legitimzation of the Ubiquitous Gastropod, or SLUG.

Incognita, aka Kara Steffenson, is the executive director of Beyond War in the Pacific Northwest, and she says she hopes to carry the organization’s goals of an environmentally stable planet into her new matriarchy as well.

“I want to be a goodwill ambassador with a sense of humor. That’s what I hope to bring to the local efforts around climate change,” Steffenson says.

One of the ways Steffenson is working on inspiring activism is by promoting and attending the “trial of the century,” the youth vs. government lawsuit filed by Oregon teens and young adults. Our Children’s Trust is a nonprofit organization suing the United States government for not doing enough to prevent climate change, and thus endangering their lives and that of future generations.

Steffenson says she aims to “lighten the burden of difficult issues” such as climate change by bringing her loud alter ego to important events such as this.

She says winning the SLUG queen title was quite a shock to her. Steffenson entered the competition to have a “fun summer activity” — something reminiscent of being a kid during summer vacation. She saw the SLUG queen contest as an opportunity to do camp skits similar to what she did in her childhood, and she engaged everyone from her friends to her son’s girlfriend in the effort.

Before entering the pageant, Steffenson says she’d been feeling depressed about the state of the world. She attended professional trainings for nuclear, emergency and radiation preparedness the week before deciding to participate.

“I needed something lighthearted,” she says.

Her skits were a hit at the competition, featuring a Credence Clearwater Revival song rewritten around the theme of climate change. “Bad Moon Rising” took on a new meaning when it became “Bad Sun Rising.” Steffenson’s performance was accompanied by visuals: a sun with Donald Trump’s face rose slowly behind her as she sang about the dangers of global warming.

People of all ages helped with her skits, from local kids to old SLUG queens. She said the real fun came from working with her friends, and that she couldn’t have won without their help and creativity.

As SLUG queen, Steffenson has spent time reflecting on what slugs do best and how she can live her newly initiated gastropod life to the fullest.

“Slugs move slowly,” she says, moving her arms to imitate a calm crawl. “They are never in a hurry. They eat mostly vegetables, and they leave a sparkling trail behind them. That’s how I want to live my life.”

Slugs make nearly no environmental impact, a fact that Steffenson says has inspired to her to live in a similar manner. As Slugita Incognita, she hopes to inspire those around her to do the same.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!