DIRECTOR’S DESK | There are a lot of ill people surviving on the streets, and they are being left behind Earlier this week, I looked around in the vendor office. Of the six vendors who were at tables, drinking coffee and chatting, three had wheelchairs; t ...
7 Jun 2019 - Kaia Sand
Two Street Roots vendors had been living in the camp for months without hassle On Wednesday, Jan. 10, David Samson called the Street Roots office for his fiancé, Bettyjo Griffiths. His message: Come quickly, their camp was being swept. Before Bettyjo left ...
11 Jan 2019 - Kaia Sand
Everyone deserves secure, quality housing A couple falls asleep on their mattress, a blanket pulled up to their chins. Elsewhere, a man nods off in a pink overstuffed chair. These are scenes that might be unfolding in houses across the city, but that matt ...
25 May 2018 - Kaia Sand
Let’s reject the cruelties of historical injustices compounded by present-day injustices In the morning light in Old Town, an elderly woman trudged down a rain-shiny sidewalk on Sixth Avenue, her backpack full and sagging low. It was unclear how much her ...
19 Jan 2018 - Kaia Sand
The government needs to find a way to prioritize affordable housing in the Portland region Israel Bayer is the executive director of Street Roots. You can reach him at israel@streetroots.org or follow him on Twitter @israelbayer. On the morning of Jan. 31 ...
3 Nov 2017 - Israel Bayer
For every person the system finds housing for, there are more people becoming homeless Thinking about solving the issue of homelessness can feel almost impossible. For the general public it’s hard to understand the relationship that nonprofits and governm ...
1 Sep 2017 - Israel Bayer
Pushing homeless people from one neighborhood to the next is not going to solve the poverty crisis Every summer it’s a different neighborhood or area of Portland being flooded with homeless people. One summer it was homeless punks with skateboards and t ...
21 Jul 2017 - Israel Bayer
Oregon lawmakers have never prioritized housing in a substantial way On the same day Multnomah County announced a 10 percent increase in people experiencing homelessness, Oregon announced cuts to emergency rent assistance. If that didn’t add enough insul ...
23 Jun 2017 - Israel Bayer
Acts of kindness and compassion often go untold In my time at Street Roots, I’ve watched readers do some amazing things for vendors. Readers helping organize first and last month’s rent for a vendor, doctors helping with surgeries, dentists helping people ...
16 Jun 2017 - Israel Bayer
This flawed policy would perpetuate a cycle of madness that's been repeated for decades People tell me all the time, Israel — all my friends, even the liberal ones are tired of it. The homeless. The trash. Something has to be done to clear these camp ...
19 May 2017 - Israel Bayer