We’re back with Slant!

Slant by Editorial BoardPosted on

• Frequent Slant readers know we like to reference The New York Times, but we’re pretty sure that’s not what led the NYT to cover this local paper not once, but twice in a month — it’s because, you, the community, rose up to help! You’ve been saving the Weekly, now buy the T-shirt! It’s thanks to the tremendous community response that you are reading this Slant column in your slightly ink-stained hands. Thank you! As we move forward, we appreciate the ongoing support to help us get back on our feet. Read all about it in this week’s issue and head on over to buy the T-shirt at CaffePacori.com/shop, and if you don’t need a T-shirt, you can fund the little paper that could at Support.EugeneWeekly.com. 

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• Speaking of such things as shopping and money, that’s one way to show your local support for Black-owned businesses this month, by putting your money where your mouth is. Let’s be clear, supporting Black-owned businesses should be a year-round goal, but in honor of Black History Month, make it an immediate goal. You can find a list of Black-owned and other diverse businesses here put together by Lane County by Googling “diverse business directory” Eugene (the directory is great, the URL is a wee bit unwieldy).  

• The new YMCA in south Eugene is far beyond expectations, from its facilities to the details like the murals and the view to the huge crowds using it. Time to bring up our familiar hope that a “Y Annex” will be built across the river to serve that population. It’s just a matter of will and money.

• Mark your calendar — the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) will convene at the University of Oregon, March 1-3. PIELC brings many leading environmental advocates to town to collaborate, share skills, and inspire. This year’s PIELC will have an international flavor, as the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide is bringing leading environmental lawyers from roughly 50 countries all over the world. The conference hits home the global and local implications of climate change and exploitation of our natural resources.

• City Club of Eugene’s Friday, Feb. 8, program “explores current activities and progress of the University of Oregon’s Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health.” The free noon gathering is at Inn at the 5th in the Maple Room. Pondering other events? EW’s What’s Happening Calendar is back in print! 

• Perhaps the second time will be the charm on Feb. 11 when the San Francisco 49ers play the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, a rematch of the 2019 Super Bowl won by Kansas City. Then again, the Chiefs now have America’s greatest influencer, Taylor Swift, cheering them on, so the deck might be stacked against the 49ers. If Kansas City wins, does this mean we all become Swifties? Can a polarized nation handle that?