Respond to Racism

Dear Respond to Racism LO community, In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will be suspending all public RtR events until further notice. This includes our upcoming Apr. 6 community meeting and the remaining dates for the BIPOC Speaker Series we were set to co-host with the West Linn Alliance for Inclusive Community and Mary's Woods. While we will not be hosting public events, we will be continuing the conversation online, both on our website and on our respective social medi

It's no secret that the creative arts are a great vehicle for bringing people together to engage with insightful, often difficult discussions about issues like race. The Clackamas Repertory Theatre will be hosting such an opportunity with the west coast premier of "Queens Girl in the World." The play, written by Caleen Sinnette Jennings, directed by Damaris Webb, and featuring Lauren Steele will be showing from Sep. 5-29 and will feature post and pre-show lectures on select d

A year or so ago, LO resident Melissa Fireside came to me with an idea about creating an LO Cultural Center. While ambitious, it struck me as the perfect project to help unite the various communities in LO and provide a space for marginalized people in particular to truly feel empowered. Although neither of us has the millions of dollars necessary to bring this idea into fruition immediately, what we can do is bring this conversation to the larger community and show the rest

At our last monthly community meeting, RtR steering committee member Christine Moses led a discussion titled "A Design Thinking Approach to Belonging." During her presentation, Moses explained how creating a more welcoming and inclusive community for everyone requires us to be intentional in our efforts. Specifically, we have to think about the needs of marginalized people and design activities and approaches that meet those needs, as opposed to demanding that they simply fit

The City of Lake Oswego is putting together a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Ad Hoc Task Force and applications are due Jun. 21, 2019. The task force will meet once a month for six months and, according to the City, will focus on identifying "barriers to participation on the City’s Boards & Commissions" and "methods by which to increase the applicant pool for City job openings." Furthermore, the City has identified a number of different categories which they consider underr

Respond to Racism is looking for new volunteers. In the short time since we began organizing in summer 2017, our reach has grown to levels none of us anticipated. As we move into the next phase of our work, we're going to need more minds at the table to add to the pool of ideas and more feet on the ground to serve the racism-related needs of the community, especially its most marginalized members, and help build the infrastructure for a diverse, equitable, and inclusive Lake

Reframe: Exploring Popular Culture Through an Intersectional Lens seeks to build community through a shared interest in timely, thought-provoking art. Our events feature screenings, food, and informal discussion that explores pop culture through an intersectional lens. In a relaxed setting, we hope to have the conversations that don’t just fulfill the desire to dig deeper into our favorite media, but also help us better understand each other and the world around us. For ou

Respond to Racism is excited to be partnering with Bridgeport United Church of Christ to host a new media screening and discussion series titled "Reframe: Exploring Pop Culture Through an Intersectional Lens." For more info about this new endeavor, read description from our event page below: "Craving connection? Looking for a larger community to enjoy some of your favorite films, shows, music, and more? Reframe seeks to build community through a shared interest in timely, tho