A History of Activism

CALC to unveil social justice mural during Whiteaker Art Walk

In the Whiteaker neighborhood, threads of the Black Panther Party, Central American farm workers, LGBTQ+ community and the Black Lives Matter movement are taking shape in a mural that will be unveiled during the Friday, Aug. 26, Whiteaker Art Walk.  “The mural’s theme is 50 years of social justice struggles,” says Jessilyn Brinkerhoff, the muralist leading a group of multiracial teens in designing and creating the artwork.  Continue reading 

Heat wave brings out scientists and points to need for cooling centers

For those without air conditioning or in some cases without a roof over their heads, heat waves can turn deadly

Prof. Vivek Shandas holds a thermometer and data recorder used to measure urban heat

Last week’s heat wave sent Lane County residents scurrying for shade. Press releases from the city and county offered suggestions for cool places like the library or swimming pools to take cover. But for those without air conditioning or in some cases without a roof over their heads, heat waves can turn deadly. Continue reading 

Citizen Terry

No waste goes to waste on Terry McDonald's watch

Terry McDonald

Standing in a cavernous St. Vincent de Paul warehouse on Chad Drive, executive director Terry McDonald and I survey stacks upon stacks of identical cardboard boxes, each one the size of a watermelon crate. It’s quite a sight. The stacks tower toward the ceiling and stretch horizontally wall to wall, and their Lego-like arrangement creates the shadowy alleys of a deserted city at sundown. All told, the boxes contain more than one million pounds of used books. Continue reading 

Know Your Rights tonight (and get ice water and Gatorade to beat the heat) at Kesey Square

  The Civil Liberties Defense Center is hosting a Know Your Rights information booth at Kesey Square today, Thursday, Aug. 18, 7:30 pm-9 pm at Kesey Square (10th & Broadway). The Eugene Police Department recently increased its presence downtown with its Community OutReach Team (CORT). EPD says in its press release that "Trespass, drug and alcohol use, drug sales, prostitution, robbery and serious assaults typically increase in the downtown area during the spring and summer, as the weather improves." Continue reading 

The Oregon Responsible Edibles Council announces the launch of its initial public education campaign

• The Oregon Responsible Edibles Council announces the launch of its initial public education campaign, “Try 5.” OREC, formed in late 2015, says it “is a non-profit trade association of Oregon edible marijuana processors, with a mission of educating the public regarding the safe and responsible usage of edible marijuana products for adults 21 and over.” The Try 5 campaign “will be able to teach the public about proper dosage levels and help prevent accidental over-ingestion for consumers new to cannabis-infused edibles.” It encourages people t Continue reading 

Linda Burden-Williams

We traveled with eight people, two dogs and a monkey in a school bus with a VW van on top

Linda Burden-Williams

“I started guitar lessons in third grade,” says Linda Burden-Williams, who grew up in Marysville, Washington, and played bass guitar for 15 years in Puget Sound-area rock bands. “Shady Lady, She, Ship of Fools, City Slicker,” she enumerates. “We changed names regularly. We played music on the road, six months at a time. We traveled with eight people, two dogs and a monkey in a school bus with a VW van on top.”  Continue reading 

Former Bundy Attorney Talks to Tea Partiers About the Constitution

Local attorney Michael Arnold was the guest speaker at the monthly 9-12 Project Lane County meeting discussing constitutional law Aug. 9.  Arnold is known for his high-profile cases such as defending mixed martial artist Gerald Strebendt in his murder trial and briefly becoming Ammon Bundy’s attorney after traveling to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge during its occupation earlier this year.  Continue reading