Respond to Racism

If we want to change the culture of racism in LO, we need to attack it at all levels. That includes applying pressure to local government to make sure they prioritize funding, resources, and space for anti-racism work.

The LO City Council is accepting public comment for their 2020 goals until Jan. 10. You can help contribute to making sure anti-racism stays on their radar by submitting comments that highlight these needs. If y...

LO doesn't always do the greatest job of celebrating the history makers in our midst. With that in mind, we would like to congratulate RtR steering committee member Gloria Brown on publishing her new book "Black Woman in Green: Gloria Brown and the Unmarked Trail of Forest Service Leadership." You can read more about the book here.

Mary's Woods has been providing great Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration programming for years now and 2020 will be no different. For their 6th Annual MLK Celebration, Mary's Woods will be featuring Portland Black Panthers founder Kent Ford and music from the Northwest Freedom Singers. For more info, check out the flier below.

Vindictive organizations and individuals attacking the safety and wellbeing of our children is an unfortunate reality. However, we do not have to allow them to promote bigotry unopposed or let them hide behind platitudes about First Amendment rights without exercising ours. With that in mind, Basic Rights Oregon is calling upon all concerned community members to stand up to anti-LGTBQ group Parents Rights in Education, who pla...

A 3 year undercover investigation of racial bias in the real estate business in Long Island, NY. By Ann Choi, Keith Herbert, Olivia Winslow and project editor Arthur Browne. Published in Newsday, Nov. 17, 2019. Read story here.

Mark your calendars.

We are thrilled to share that the Lake Oswego Public Library is partnering with Respond to Racism for the Library’s December First Friday Film Discussion Group.  The Library's Film Discussion Group meets monthly at the Lake Theater & Café, and the Library plans to partner with Respond to Racism for these events on a semi-regular basis.  This partnership is an opportunity to bring community members together...

Community members of Lake Oswego,

As we approach the two-year anniversary of Respond to Racism, it’s important to recognize progress. In regards to the City of Lake Oswego, we were happy to see the adoption of a resolution affirming LO as a welcoming and inclusive city. Likewise, we are excited about the possibilities surrounding the City’s upcoming diversity task force. That said, based on how the process has gone so far, we h...

Respond to Racism is excited to announce that we're partnering with the West Linn Alliance for Inclusive Community and Mary's Woods to host renowned scholar, activist, and author Walidah Imarisha and her presentation "Why Aren't There More Black People in Oregon?" at Mary's Woods on July 23. The interactive discussion delves into the history of Oregon's anti-Black laws and lingering effects that we can still feel to this day....

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 o...

On Apr. 10, Respond to Racism co-founder Willie Poinsette appeared on OPB's Think Out Loud with Dave Miller. During the interview, Poinsette discussed the changes she's seen in Lake Oswego over the course of her 32 years living in town, the events that led to the creation of RTR, and what inspired her to put the town on notice during her Community Leader of the Year Award speech to the LO Chamber of Commerce. Listen to the ful...