April on the Issues

Homelessness

The housing crisis and COVID-19 have pushed a record number of people into homelessness, and it is straining our city’s resources. We must expand our ability to move our neighbors out of tents and temporary shelters and into transitional and permanent housing. We must also increase participation from surrounding communities, and urgently strengthen collaboration between our city, state and federal governments.

It’s nearly impossible for people who live in constant poverty, who don’t have stable access to food or housing or healthcare, to get out of that situation. It’s very hard to go out and find a job if you don’t know where your next meal is coming from, or where you can take a shower, or where you can safely sleep at night.

Housing not only creates stability, but it creates safety. We cannot make it needlessly difficult for people to access safe shelter, job coaching, mental health services, substance use treatment, and food. We must do more to provide safe housing to people in poverty and people with substance use issues, and we must do more to support Housing First programs.

Housing

We are in the middle of a local and national housing crisis. We must create stability for homeowners and renters, and urgently explore all options to create more housing units. We must prioritize housing for Portland residents over luxury hotels.

Too many people have been forced out of Portland because their building is sold to become luxury condos, or their rent has increased exponentially. Families who have lived in Portland for generations have been forced to leave because they can’t afford rent or property taxes, or their building was sold to become a luxury highrise. Young people and families who work in Portland must live miles away in suburbs because they can’t afford Portland rents, on or off the Peninsula.

Climate & Environment

We are living through a climate emergency, and we must act. As an indigenous person, I believe that we are all the caretakers of the planet, and we have a responsibility to protect it for the next generation.

Portland should be a leader in climate action. We must make climate work accessible to all, and part of every policy decision we make as a city. As a councilor, I helped make municipal curbside composting a reality. I also believe that cruise ships should also start paying a carbon/environmental impact fee, for their pollution of our water and our air.

Racial Equity & Social Justice

As an Indigenous person I have had to navigate through my share of challenges, things that were unfair or unjust, and fight for equity.  It frustrates me when I see Black and Brown families struggling to navigate struggles similar to my own. To achieve equity we must create equitable opportunity for participation in city and community events - like continuing remote access to public meetings and remote public comment, exploring ways to share city business and public participation announcements to residents in an accessible way (e.g. postcards in multiple languages, public posting in community gathering spaces, cultivating better relationships with community leaders to share information), and helping residents understand how to engage with their local leaders in a more accessible way (e.g. councilor introductions or meet and greets, documented communication preferences, some sort of response expectation).

We must also recognize the role that policing currently holds in our community, and work towards what we think it should be.  We need to have true citizen oversight to ensure that our police force is accountable, transparent, and responsive to feedback and community inclusion.