Portland State Vanguard Volume 76 Issue 3

VOLUME 76 • ISSUE 3 • APRIL 13, 2021

COULD DEMOCRATIZE THE ART AND INVESTMENT WORLD P. 8-9

NEWS ASPSU candidates run unopposed P. 4

ARTS & CULTURE The Portland Art Museum is reopening P. 12

OPINION The people should guide public policy on houselessness P. 14

CONTENTS

COVER BY SAM PERSON

NEWS COVID-19 UPDATE

P. 3

INTERNATIONAL THIS WEEK AROUND THE WORLD

P. 10–11

ASPSU CANDIDATES DEBATE AS STUDENT BALLOTS OPEN

P. 4

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ANIMALS ARE GETTING THEIR OWN COVID VACCINE SOON

ARTS & CULTURE THE PORTLAND ART MUSEUM IS REOPENING

P. 12

P. 5

GODZILLA VS. KING KONG

P. 13

INTERNATIONAL UK PROTESTS FLARE IN RESPONSE TO PROPOSED POLICING BILL

P. 6

OPINION HB 3261 DOESN’T GO FAR ENOUGH

P. 14

VIOLENCE AND BLOODSHED CONTINUE IN MYANMAR

P. 7

EVENTS CALENDAR

P. 16

COVER WHAT’S ALL THE HUBBUB WITH NFTS?

P. 8–9

STAFF

EDIT ORI A L EDITOR IN CHIEF Justin Grinnell MANAGING EDITOR Nick Townsend NEWS EDITORS Hanna Anderson Rachel Owen INTERNATIONAL EDITOR Karisa Yuasa SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EDITOR Béla Kurzenhauser ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Morgan Troper

OPINION EDITOR Nick Gatlin

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR Olivia Lee

STUDENT MEDIA ACCOUNTANT Sheri Pitcher

ONLINE EDITOR Lily Hennings

PRODUC TION & DE SIGN CREATIVE DIRECTOR Sam Person

TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR Corrine Nightingale

COPY CHIEF Sophie Concannon CONTRIBUTORS Conor Carroll Analisa Landeros Danny O’Brien Claire Plaster Eva Rioseco Marshall Scheider Sierra Still Alan Rodriguez Tiburcio PHO T O & MULTIMEDI A PHOTO EDITOR Annie Schutz

DESIGNERS Farah Alkayed Sam Garcia Shannon Steed T ECHNOL OGY & W EB SIT E TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANTS Juliana Bigelow Kahela Fickle George Olson A DV ISING & ACCOUN TING COORDINATOR OF STUDENT MEDIA Reaz Mahmood

To contact Portland State Vanguard, email editor@psuvanguard.com

MIS SION S TAT EMEN T Vanguard ’s mission is to serve the Portland State community with timely, accurate, comprehensive and critical content while upholding high journalistic standards. In the process, we aim to enrich our staff with quality, hands-on journalism education and a number of skills highly valued in today’s job market.

A BOU T Vanguard, established in 1946, is published weekly as an independent student newspaper governed by the PSU Student Media Board. Views and editorial content expressed herein are those of the staff, contributors and readers and do not necessarily represent the PSU student body, faculty, staff or administration. Find us in print Tuesdays and online 24/7 at psuvanguard.com.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @psuvanguard for multimedia content and breaking news.

CONOR CARROLL

TOTAL AT PSU AS OF APRIL 11: 46

Three March cases, zero April cases Three new COVID-19 cases have been reported at Portland State since the beginning of March with zero cases reported thus far in April, keeping PSU at 46 cases.

PSU relies heavily on a self-reporting system for people who have tested positive or inconclusive and have been on campus within two weeks. The self-reporting form can be found on PSU’s Coronavirus Response website.

The Student Health and Counseling Center (SHAC) is taking measures to obtain COVID-19 vaccines. Vaccine distribution is controlled by the state and timelines are not clear at this point.

TOTAL IN OREGON AS OF APRIL 11: 170,568 CONFIRMED CASES; 2,440 DEATHS Total vaccinations as of April 11: 528,894 vaccines in progress, 902,888 fully vaccinated More than a dozen current and former inmates have sued Multnomah County over its handling of COVID-19.

In federal court documents filed this week, the inmates alleged they contracted the virus at the county’s Inverness Jail because they were deprived of proper testing and treatment, OPB reported.

The complaint filed on April 5 in Portland also stated the county knowingly put diseased guards and inmates with those who were not infected, further spreading the virus.

The Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, which operates the jail, said in a statement it doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

On Feb. 17, more than 37% of inmates tested positive for COVID-19, court papers stated, while the general population of Oregon was contracting the virus at a rate of 3.5%.

TOTAL IN U.S. AS OF APRIL 11: 30.97 MILLION CASES; 558,843 DEATHS

COVID-19

UPDATE PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

Total vaccinations: 237.79 million vaccines delivered;187.05 million vaccines administered.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been concerns that survivors could have an increased risk of neurological and mental health conditions, according to a Medical News Today report.

Initially, these concerns were based on past experiences with other coronaviruses, but presumed cases linked with COVID-19 soon followed.

In November 2020, an observational study from scientists at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom, reported survivors had a greater risk of “developing mood and anxiety disorders” in the three months after receiving a COVID-19 diagnosis.

An identical research team utilized the health records of more than 236,000 patients in the United States to “estimate the risks of developing neurological and psychiatric conditions in the 6 months after a COVID-19 diagnosis,” according to the new study. Participants received COVID-19 diagnoses between January 20 and December 13, 2020.

The researchers estimate that the overall incidence of neurological or mental health diagnoses was a substantial portion of respondents—34%, or nearly one in three people that have contracted COVID-19. In the six months after their COVID-19 diagnoses, 13% of the participants received their first diagnosis of a neurological or psychiatric condition, according to the report.

That same report, found in The Lancet Psychiatry, found the most common diagnoses were anxiety disorders, in 17% of all the participants, mood disorders in 14%, substance misuse disorders in 7% and insomnia in 5%.

The incidence of neurological disorders was lower—2.1% of all the participants experienced an ischemic stroke, 0.7% developed dementia and 0.6% developed a brain hemorrhage, the report stated.

However, primarily those who had severe or long-lasting COVID-19 symptoms were the main test group showing signs of mental or emotional distress.

NEWS

3

ASPSU

CANDIDATES DEBATE AS STUDENT BALLOTS OPEN EMPTY CHAIRS LINE THE TABLE AFTER HOURS AT THE ASPSU OFFICE IN SMITH MEMORIAL STUDENT UNION. ALEX WITTWER/PSU VANGUARD

NICK TOWNSEND A year into governing via Zoom, ASPSU— the Associated Students of Portland State University—held a series of public zoom debates for 2021–22 elected positions. All candidates currently run without opposition.

ASPSU hosted three debates between April 5–8, offering students the opportunity to hear from their future representatives before casting their votes. Each debate hosted a different set of candidates—the president and vice president ticket on April 5, Student Fee Committee (SFC) candidates on April 6, and Senate candidates on April 8. As part of ongoing pandemic precautions, the debates were held over Zoom for the second year in a row.

With more open seats than students to fill them, all of the candidates on the ballot, both present and absent from the debates, will win their seats in the election, with more to spare. The debates subsequently took the shape of relatively uncontentious Q&A sessions, with candidates answering questions from student media moderators about their platform, PSU’s budgetary crisis, the pandemic, campus police and other issues.

The 2021 presidential race is the first without competition since 2018. Similarly, six candidates are running for seven SFC seats—while only 10 students are running for the 16 senate

4

NEWS

seats. With the pandemic keeping students off campus for over a year and disrupting ASPSU’s normal methods of reaching students, the presidential and vice president candidates quickly turned to the question of increasing student engagement in the governing process.

Student government at PSU can be “a way to build community on campus, especially at a time when it’s notoriously difficult to,” said Nya Mbock, the only candidate for student body president. Mbock and her running mate, James Peterson, are running on a platform of integrating ASPSU more fully into PSU and the student community, through a series of both internal and external initiatives, including attempting to place ASPSU members within relevant academic departments in “student representation positions.” Several departments have already expressed interest in the idea, according to Mbock.

Mbock and Peterson also plan to expand ASPSU’s student internship program, where students interested in joining ASPSU can work as unpaid interns in exchange for course credit and experience working within student government.

According to ASPSU’s website, the goal of the program is to “earn class credit through various activism field activities and tactics like clip boarding, campaign planning and implementation,

volunteer recruitment, and leadership development.” Several 2021 Senate and SFC candidates listed previous experience as an ASPSU intern in their candidate biographies.

Apart from generating more engagement in student government, the president, vice president and SFC candidates also spoke about PSU’s budgetary crisis and the effect it will have on their roles in student government. The SFC—which is responsible for setting and allocating the student incidental fee, which funds athletics, student media, resource centers and ASPSU, according to PSU’s website—met on April 6 and spent most of the debate discussing how and why certain programs are funded through the incidental fee.

“Going forward, we probably won’t expand services,” said Aydia Johnson, incumbent SFC candidate. “[We’re] probably going to try to maintain services and maintain those relationships. As much as we can, obviously. Currently we really value student jobs and student positions and professional staff...and we want to [keep] those wages.”

Tim Knispel, a post-baccalaureate student in the School of Business, voiced concerns about cutting fees to appease student concerns about tuition increases. “I see the SFC as a funding body,” Knispel said. “If...the opportunity arises

that the SFC can save students money, that’s great, but its purpose is to make decisions as to how to allocate student fees to the various eligible, which are part of the university community.”

Johnson agreed funding programs, and especially student wages, was important, but stressed “although [the reduction] does seem very insignificant...that could be multiple meals for someone...or that could be the end of your rent.” Hakan Kutgun, independent SFC candidate, agreed with Johnson and noted that not all students are lucky enough to appreciate the role of the SFC in supporting structures of PSU. “I know people who are so desperate for basic [necessities],” Kutgun said.

The ASPSU voter pamphlet stresses students should cast their ballots in order to give themselves “a powerful voice in the future of student government”, something that several candidates reiterated in debates even as they ran unchallenged.

Students can vote digitally through a custom ballot link provided by email. The first ballot, sent out early on April 12, had “technical difficulties” preventing students from submitting their votes.

A second link was sent out several hours later.

Results will be announced at a Facebook event on April 30. All candidates running are expected to be elected.

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

ANIMALS ARE GETTING THEIR OWN COVID-19 VACCINE IN RUSSIA A DOG QUARANTINED IN MOSCOW. AP PHOTO

BÉLA KURZENHAUSER As COVID-19 vaccines continue their rollout across the world, Russia has registered the first COVID-19 vaccine for animals, which will hopefully prevent the virus from mutating beyond the control of current vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna’s.

The vaccine, which is named Carnivak-Cov, finally exited its five-month phase of clinical trials, with Russia officially registering and announcing the vaccine on March 31.

The existence of a COVID-19 vaccine for animals may confuse some, as most animals aren’t capable of being infected by the virus, and even fewer have shown signs of a significant infection. According to Ohio State University, cases of COVID-19 have only been confirmed within dogs, cats and ferrets, with such cases being exceedingly rare and resulting in mild to no signs of clinical illness. However, with the World Health Organization (WHO) recently uncovering more evidence the virus is indeed zoonotic, there is a possibility that increased transmission between animal species could result in new mutations of the virus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the severity of animal-to-human transmission of COVID-19 is unknown but considered to be relatively low, particularly in comparison to human-to-human transmission of the virus. Human-to-animal transmission, on the other hand, is much more likely. Russia’s Carnivak-Cov vaccine was tested on species such as dogs, cats, minks and foxes—all species that have seen the most COVID-19 cases— but other animals are also vulnerable to the novel virus, such as tigers and gorillas. Most animal cases of COVID-19, like the San Diego Zoo’s infected gorillas this past January, are caused by transmission from humans in the proximity of animals.

The vaccination of more susceptible or vulnerable animal species could prevent new and dangerous mutations from cropping up and disrupting human immunity from vaccines.

According to a survey of epidemiologists performed by The

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

People’s Vaccine Alliance, two-thirds of epidemiologists believe COVID-19 mutations could render vaccines completely ineffective and useless within only a year. Although some vaccines like Pfizer’s are capable of handling some new coronavirus strains, zoonotic transmission still poses a significant threat to the long-term integrity of immunity against the virus. New boosters for many COVID-19 vaccines designed to fight against novel strains are currently in the clinical trial phases, according to CNBC. According to Konstantin Savenkov, deputy head of the Russia’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (also known as the Rosselkhoznadzor), Carnivak-Cov developed antibodies in all vaccinated animals during clinical trials, and that the effects of the vaccine are estimated to last for six months at minimum, as reported

by CNN. Mass production of the vaccine could start as early as this month. Despite promising results, some experts at the Rosselkhoznadzor have deemed widespread inoculation of animals with Carnivak-Cov as being unnecessary, due to the negligible transmission of the virus between humans and animals.

“Experts of the Rosselkhoznadzor see no need in sweeping vaccination of domestic animals because risks of people being infected with COVID-19 from animals are actually negligible and no such official and scientifically proven cases have been registered,” said Yulia Melano, adviser to the head of the Rosselkhoznadzor, to Russian state news agency TASS on March 31. “In case threats occur...we will have efficient resources to eliminate them, including through vaccination.”

The Rosselkhoznadzor noted the domestic fur industry as a significant vector for zoonotic transmission as well as a potential scenario to which Carnivak-Cov could be applied. The most significant and damaging instances of zoonotic transmission of COVID-19 have occurred in the mink farming sector, which was hit hard last year after hundreds of outbreaks

across Denmark and the Netherlands. Widespread infection of mink herds across Denmark forced the country to cull their entire population of 17 million minks, a move that was both devastating to the fur economy and to the mink species.

Danish lawmakers later voted to ban mink farming until the end of 2021 or until the pandemic has subsided.

Oregon itself is an active participant in the mink industry.

One of the state’s 11 mink farms had an outbreak of its own last November and was placed under quarantine by the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Last December, an escaped mink from another Oregon farm tested positive for COVID-19, concerning officials who say that escaped minks could spread the virus to other animals.

“Mink are related to a range of other species...so we know that escaped mink or mink factory farms themselves can oppose disease risks for wild animals,” said Jonathan Evans, legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity to OPB. “Government officials really need to be reporting more about where these disease outbreaks are occurring...and reporting that information in real time to the public.”

Tens of thousands of mink across the United States have died after contracting COVID-19, and mass shallow graves in Europe caused dead “zombie minks” to rise up from the ground in November. Similarly to Denmark, Oregon has proposed their own legislature to ban mink farming by the end of the year. Unlike Denmark, this ban would be a permanent one, shuttering the state’s 11 mink farms in what would be the first mink farming ban in the U.S. “Here in Oregon, we know the threat of diseased farmed mink escaping and putting wild animals at risk is very real, because it happened just last month,” said Lori Ann Burd, environmental health director at the Center for Biological Diversity in a Feb. 25 press release. “The truth is, this industry poses a grave threat to wild animals and public health and should no longer be allowed to operate in Oregon.”

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

5

UK PROTESTS FLARE IN RESPONSE TO PROPOSED POLICING BILL A DEMONSTRATOR KNEELS IN FRONT OF A POLICEMAN LINE DURING A 'KILL THE BILL' PROTEST IN LONDON. MATT DUNHAM/AP PHOTO

MARSHALL SCHEIDER Protests have broken out across the United Kingdom over the past several weeks. According to Reuters, demonstrators are voicing their opposition to a proposed bill by U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, which critics say would increase police powers to stifle political dissent.

The landmark legislation is called the Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts Bill. The bill would offer police new discretionary power to crack down on protests on the basis of noise violations and other disruptions, including “public nuisance.” The bill includes other provisions, such as increased fines for participating in protests deemed unlawful by authorities.

Thousands of demonstrators turned out to oppose the bill in London and Bristol, as well as in smaller cities and towns in England and Wales. Demonstrations have come to be known as “kill the bill” rallies.

The protests have been met with heavy-handed policing and mass arrests. On April 3, London Metropolitan police arrested 107 people during demonstrations, ABC reported.

Opposition to the bill has drawn support from leading U.K. progressives, including former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn. Corbyn urged protesters to “stand up for the right to protest,” BBC reported.

Proponents of the bill say it would give police greater power to ensure public safety and order. Yet critics see it as a threat to civil liberties and part of Britain’s ongoing “culture wars.”

Others see the bill as a reaction against widespread Black Lives Matter Protests across the U.K. last summer, and more recent protests by climate change activists Extinction Rebellion.

The bill proposes stiffer protections for monuments, several of which were targets of last summer’s Black Lives Matter protests. In June, protesters at Oxford demanded the removal of a statue of British imperialist Cecil Rhodes, while demonstrators in Bristol toppled a monument to slave owner Edward Colston.

6

INTERNATIONAL

At a recent “kill the bill” protest in London, the Metropolitan Police drew the ire of protesters when it defended a statue of Winston Churchill. The defence of monuments represents a failure on the part of police and politicians to tackle more pressing public safety concerns, critics say. One Londoner took to Twitter, writing, “We don’t need to protect Churchill, he’s been dead since 1965. People who do need protecting?

Women just going about their everyday business.”

The proposed bill, and the opposition protests, come in the context of intense public outcry about gender-based violence in the U.K., in addition to concerns about policing.

On March 13, London Metropolitan Police violently dispersed a peaceful vigil for 33-year-old Sarah Everard. Everard was abducted and murdered in South London early last month. Her killing has raised widespread concern about violence against women. The man accused of killing Everard is a London police officer.

The public gathering in Everard’s memory was also an “acknowledgement of the shared, omnipresent experience of intimidation, violence and harassment that women constantly face in public spaces,” organizers of the vigil told CNN. Shortly after the socially-distanced vigil began, London Metropolitan Police attempted to disperse the crowd. Police cited COVID-19 regulations which they said prohibit large public gatherings. Police corralled mourners, making social distancing impossible, CNN reported.

Police forcibly detained mourners at the vigil, igniting a “public relations nightmare,” according to a recent report by a government oversight committee. The following day, viral images began to circulate picturing male London Police officers dragging mourners and pinning female vigil attendees on the ground.

Governmental review of the incident, produced by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, found that Metropolitan Police responding to the

vigil incorrectly interpreted the legal restrictions on public gatherings under the U.K.’s tier 4 COVID-19 lockdown. A socially-distanced public gathering is legal under current restrictions, the review found.

Still, the same report said that police responding to the vigil acted “appropriately.” The report has drawn widespread condemnation in the U.K., due to what critics perceive as its general vindication of police conduct.

Critics of Johnson’s proposed bill argue that halting the crisis of gender-based violence should be prioritized, rather than expanding police power to crack down on protests. “They’ve written a bill that tells women more about how they may not protest violence against women than how we are protected from that violence,” said Jess Phillips, an MP for the British Labour Party, to CNN. Supporters of Johnson’s bill point out in the wake of Everard’s death, Johnson did propose separate policing measures which he said would make women in the U.K. safer.

These measures include upping CCTV police surveillance and increasing the presence of undercover police in bars and nightclubs.

These proposals have drawn their own set of criticisms, however. Undercover policing in Britain has come under fire in the wake of the 2020 “spy cops scandal,” which revealed mass undercover surveillance of political groups, as well as widespread extra-marital sexual relations by undercover officers using assumed identities. In this light, critics see Johnson’s proposals as a push to expand disreputable policing structures which have historically done little to protect women.

The recent protests raise sweeping questions about policing, public safety and gender-based violence in the U.K.. As Johnson continues to push forward with his legislation, profound questions concerning British society and institutions hang in the balance.

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

VIOLENCE AND BLOODSHED CONTINUE IN MYANMAR CONOR CARROLL Massive protests have taken place across Myanmar since the military seized control on February 1. Elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and members of her National League for Democracy (NLD) Party are among those in custody while hundreds of people, including children, have been killed, according to AP News.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners confirmed a total of 701 civilians killed by security forces as of April 10—though the watchdog group warned the true toll was probably significantly higher.

Nations the world over have condemned these actions since the military’s takeover, as have international organizations such as the United Nations.

Alice Wairimu Nderitu, U.N. special adviser on the prevention of genocide, and Michelle Bachelet, high commissioner for human rights, criticized the Myanmar military’s lethal, nationwide and increasingly systematic attacks on peaceful protesters since it seized control.

“The shameful, cowardly, brutal actions of the military and police—who have been filmed shooting at protesters as they flee, and who have not even spared young children—must be halted immediately,” they wrote in a joint statement issued on March 28.

“We must ensure accountability for past crimes and deter the most serious international crimes from being committed,” the statement continued. “The failure to address the atrocity crimes [sic] the Tatmadaw has committed in the past, including against Rohingya and other minorities, has brought Myanmar to this terrible pass. There is no way forward without accountability and fundamental reform of the military.”

Myanmar, also known as Burma, has suffered decades of repressive military rule and poverty due to years of isolationist economic policies, and brutal civil war between ethnic minority groups.

The country’s longtime opposition party—the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Aung San Suu Kyi—won majorities in both the chambers of parliament in 2015, and

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

PEOPLE MARCH TO PROTEST AGAINST THE MILITARY COUP IN FEBRUARY. COURTESY OF AP PHOTO

several foreign governments and corporations that had previously spurned Myanmar began participating with it.

But the military, known as the Tatmadaw, has continued to dominate many aspects of civilian life. Military and civilian leaders, including Suu Kyi, have also faced international criticism for ongoing human rights abuses and ferocious violence against Rohingya Muslims in the western state of Rakhine, which a U.N. report stated were committed with “genocidal intent.”

Myanmar has been ruled by a military junta for many of the years since it gained independence from British colonial rule in 1948. The Union of Burma began as a parliamentary democracy, like many of the newly freed nations on the Indian subcontinent.

However, democracy only persisted until 1962, when General U Ne Win led a military coup and maintained power for the next 26 years.

Ne Win instituted a new constitution in 1974 based on an isolationist policy and socialist economics which essentially nationalized Burma’s primary industries. The economic condition declined swiftly, and a black-market economy took hold.

By the year 1988, food shortages, intense wealth inequality and institutional corruption in both business and government, protests began and the army responded to the protesters, killing at least three thousand and displacing many thousands more.

In the aftermath of the 1988 clampdown, Ne Win left as chairman of his party, although he actively continued behind the scenes as another military junta took control.

The junta pushed forward a new constitution in 2008, which is still in place today, which gave the military extensive powers despite civilian rule.

The military junta unexpectedly officially dissolved in 2011 and former army bureaucrat and Prime Minister Thein Sein was appointed president.

President Thein Sein spearheaded a series of reforms, including granting amnesty to political prisoners, relaxing

media censorship, and implementing economic policies to encourage foreign investment. And then came the aforementioned 2015 elections, which were touted as the fairest in many decades.

However, many argued that the 2008 constitution gives defacto control to the military, over the entirety of parliament.

The constitution contains several provisions to safeguard the military’s dominance.

For example, 25% of parliament’s seats are reserved for the military, and any changes to the constitution need approval from more than 75% of parliament, effectively giving the military veto power over any amendment.

That power was threatened in the 2020 elections in Myanmar, with the NLD taking yet another landslide victory. The Tatmadaw even used the constitution in place as an excuse for the seemingly inevitable coup taking place in Myanmar today.

Two months after the coup, the military remains in power and 2,741 people were detained in relation to the coup.

“When the coup council who have been committing crimes announces you as a lawbreaker together with the whole country, you will be more than happy because you are recognised as a hero in this revolution,” wrote Sithu Aung Myint, a journalist put on the military’s wanted list, on Facebook, according to Reuters. “Your next generation will be proud of you.”

Amid military efforts to bar protests, such as internet shutdowns and issuing arrest warrants for those who speak out against the military rule, people across the world have spoken out in support of the protesters.

“The people of Myanmar find themselves once against facing the military’s bullets, but they courageously continue their struggle, unrelenting,” wrote Lotte Leicht, EU director at Human Rights Watch, and Brad Adams, executive director of the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch, in a letter to the EU on April 8. “Myanmar’s junta needs to be shown there are both immediate and longer-term consequences for their grievous crimes.”

INTERNATIONAL

7

WHAT’S ALL THE HUBBUB WITH

NFTS?

8

COVER

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

NFT. COURTESY OF FORTUNE

NEW FORM OF CRYPTO-ART HAS THE POTENTIAL TO DEMOCRATIZE ART AND INVESTMENT WORLD

ALAN RODRIGUEZ TIBURCIO Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are apparently worth millions of dollars, as illustrated by the artist Beeple, the phenomenon seems to be creating a fervor in people ranging from academic economists to internet posters. Let’s take a look at the history and concerns regarding the recent aesthetic phenomenon.

First, it would be helpful to know what an NFT is. The precursor to the NFTs we’re seeing today are colored coins. Colored coins functioned similarly to NFTs—an added layer to a cryptocurrency—with the intent of distinguishing a particular cryptocoin from all others. However, Bitcoin’s network did not offer overt support for the add-on, making it difficult for the concept to survive in the fast-changing crypto-world.

We begin to see a closer manifestation of today’s NFTs with the products of Counterparty.

Though still based on Bitcoin’s blockchain, Counterparty is the earliest large-scale producer of non-fungible and semi-fungible tokens. This original product’s first major use was circa 2015, in the mobile game Spells of Genesis. The game used blockchain technology via Counterparty to create a finite amount of collectible cards, effectively making a trading card the first cryptographic art.

Counterparty’s technology served mostly mobile games until 2016 when it was pushed to resemble contemporary NFTs by an unlikely source: Pepe the Frog. The concept of Rare Pepes debuted in 2016, using Counterparty’s technology to authenticate a Pepe’s data as “rare.” The only difference between the Rare Pepes and most NFTs today is the blockchain platform they are built on, namely Bitcoin via Counterparty versus Ethereum.

Whereas Bitcoin is primarily a store of value, Ethereum intends to be a decentralized system for smart contracts, rather than just a payment platform. Thus, Ethereum’s blockchain protocol is much more flexible, with more functionality than that of Bitcoin.

The Rare Pepe’s demand was not derived from gameplay utility—like NFTs now, they aren’t more than an image, akin to any other JPEG or PNG file, differentiated from every other image only by code. Nonetheless, there was a huge demand—a demand that preceded the creation of the token—such that in February 2017 (five months after launch), a Rare Pepe titled “My Little Pepe” sold for $3,500; in January 2018, a Rare Pepe titled “Homer Pepe” (inspired by Homer Simpson) sold for $38,500; and in February 2021, Homer Pepe sold again for $312,000.

Not everyone trusts NFTs. David Hockney, the creator of the most expensive artwork by a living artist, called NFTs the work of “crooks and swindlers.” This isn’t a very heterodox opinion.

There does appear to be a hesitation in fully accepting NFTs as an art medium. Criticisms of NFTs’ high valuation tend to boil down to three points: they’re nothing more than computer code, the people interacting in this market tend to be of a tech-bro variety and their price is disproportionate to their real value.

The former concerns itself with the form of the artistic medium—a sense that an NFT is inferior to a physical product. Digital art is more accessible than conventional methods, thanks to a relatively low cost to make the art in the long run (after a higher upfront cost), with digital tools giving easier access to mass markets. In other words, since anyone with access to the internet can produce anything digital as an NFT, they serve to democratize a famously persnickety market.

So if it’s not skill, why and how is code valued as highly as it is? Unlike physical art products, where the buyer can see the minutiae done by the artist, NFTs are visually exactly like any copy made of it. The buyer does not get access to, say, the Adobe Illustrator file from which the art originates.

The superficial answer is scarcity of the product.

However, considering the astronomical prices

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being paid, there seems to be something more than scarcity, especially when a replica can be easily procured. It is essential for the demand to be there to that extent, essential that the buyer has that money to offer—and it is not hard to find the source of this.

The crypto market cap recently surpassed $2 trillion and with it, the phenomena of decentralized finance has created tech-savvy millionaires. These tech-savvy millionaires are making big purchases. A blockchain entrepreneur purchased Beeple’s art; a crypto investor purchased Homer Pepe. In addition, by design, purchasing an NFT requires cryptocurrency— indicating that a prerequisite for purchase is a stake in the crypto markets.

Another criticism is that this is a crypto-enthusiast-driven bubble, which isn’t far-fetched.

As a result of the short history of crypto markets, there continues to be volatility across cryptoconcepts like tokens, currencies, etc. As far as the aggregate crypto-trend proves to be a bubble, NFTs might prove to be equally inflated, if not more so. However, just because the current prices of NFTs reflect a bubble does not suggest there isn’t staying power—famously, the internet’s origins produced a spirited bubble, and the internet is still around today.

Finally, if there is a chance of a bubble and this newfound technology has no relevant equivalents, is there any feasible way to gauge the real value of NFTs? Though we can’t determine value exactly in the current moment, we can approximate it by examining the costs and benefits that NFTs procure.

With qualification, NFTs might greatly benefit society. They democratize art production by allowing everyone to make anything and easily access a market of buyers. Furthermore, it provides digital artists a new platform for selling their creations. There are also endless possibilities with smart contracts and blockchain technology; for example, the future might in-

clude not allowing certain digital pieces to be printed without a smart contract.

However, the impact of NFTs on society is not solely positive. The most glaring negativity is the well-documented environmental damage caused by cryptocurrencies. Though it is Bitcoin and Bitcoin mining that tend to get the most criticisms.

Currently, Ethereum’s energy consumption is comparable to the nation of Denmark (population approximately 5.8 million), while its carbon footprint is comparable to Lithuania (population approximately 2.7 million). The two systems use a “proof of work” method as a mechanism to protect the legitimacy of the decentralized ledger; by design, proof of work requires a huge amount of energy, both to create new currency and to deter attacks on the network.

This is the reason that Ethereum is planning to switch to “proof of stake.” While proof of work relies on a competitive incentive by pitting miners against one another, proof of stake creates stakeholder incentives by placing a validator’s—the proof of state equivalent to miners—own currency on the line when asking them to validate the ledger. In this situation, bigger stakes put forth by the validator increases the reward, without requiring high-level energy consumption. Ethereum’s transition to proof of stake began with “Phase 0” in December 2020, with two more phases planned for the future.

What lies ahead for NFTs is far from clear.

If they’re proven to be a legitimate investment, they could serve as a new platform for the computer-based work of artists. However, NFTs still need to overcome the hurdles that confront all crypto-concepts—ecological impact and social acceptance beyond technical crypto-enthusiasts, among others. Though the future does not look bleak; if the past shows us anything, it’s that NFTs will change more before they fully ingrain themselves in society.

COVER

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THIS WEEK

around the

WORLD

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INTERNATIONAL

Apr. 5–10 PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

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April 5

TURKEY

The Turkish government detained 10 retired admirals after more than 100 former senior navy officials issued an open letter regarding the use of Turkey’s key waterways, according to Al Jazeera. The letter criticized decisions of the federal government to build a canal that would go against the 1936 Montreux Convention. “It is unacceptable for some retired admirals to release a statement that is reminiscent of ugly things that have happened in the past. It is obvious what this method and behavior refer to in our political past,” wrote ruling Justice and Development Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik.

“We condemn this primitive language aimed at people’s will.”

People in the ruling party called the letter reminiscent of past coup attempts. “The uncalled declaration, which is based on delusions, by those who have forgotten the value of the title they have carried in the past is an insult to democracy, law, our government and our people,” wrote Interior Minister Abdulhamit Gül on Twitter.

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April 8

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced Australian politicians and judges will no longer be exempt from sexual harassment laws, according to Reuters. Currently, legislators, judges, public servents and some who employ volunteers are exempt from complains about workplace gender discrimina-

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

tion because of a loophole that says they are technically not the complainant’s employer. “Sexual harassment is unacceptable,” Morrison said. “It’s not only immoral and despicable and even criminal...it denies Australians, especially women, not just their personal security but their economic security by not being safe at work.” This announcement comes after weeks of protests over the handling of allegations of sexual harrasment and rape in the federal parliament. “Women are calling for a much deeper commitment by our federal politicians to really stamp out sexism, misogyny, sexual harrasment in the workplace and very serious allegations involving rape,” said Australian Politician Sonja Terpstra in an interview after a protest on March 15. “Women have had enough. It’s simply not good enough and women across Australia are calling on our federal politicians to do more.”

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April 9

LONDON, ENGLAND

Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh and husband to Queen Elizabeth II, passed away at the age of 99. “It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen has announced the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh,” the palace stated, according to AP News. “His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle.” Prince Phillip was the longest serving consort in British history. People traveled to Buckingham Palace to pay their respects and place flower bouquets. “Farewell Prince Phil-

ip - I have a huge amount of respect for a man that can swallow his pride to dedicate his life to supporting the Queen,” a note attached to a bouquet left outside the palace wrote, according to BBC. A ceremonial funeral is expected to take place April 17 with no public access due to COVID-19 restrictions.“While this is naturally a time of sadness and mourning for the Royal Family and the many others who knew or admired The Duke of Edinburgh, it is hoped that the coming days will also be seen as an opportunity to celebrate a remarkable life,” a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said.

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April 10

DJIBOUTI

Incumbent President Ismail Omar Guelleh was elected for a fifth term with over 98% of the vote after the main opposition party boycotted the elections, according to Al Jazeera. Of the 177,391 votes cast, “President Ismail Omar Guelleh obtained 167,535 votes, which is 98.58%,” said Interior Minister Moumin Ahmed Cheick. Only one challenger, Zakaria Ismail Farah, ran against Guelleh, receiving 2.48% of the votes, according to Reuters.

“This outcome is undoubtedly the result of ballot-box stuffing, [which] occurred in the absence of my delegates,” Farah told Reuters. Farah’s allegations of a fraudulent election have been denied by the current administration. “Allegations of ballot-box stuffing are absolutely false, the gentleman who raises them didn’t even vote and in doing so attacked our democracy,” said the president’s chief advisor, Alexis Mohamed.

INTERNATIONAL

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PORTLAND ART MUSEUM. COURTESY OF PAM

THE PORTLAND ART MUSEUM IS

REOPENING

EVA RIOSECO After closing its doors for the second time in November 2020, the Portland Art Museum (PAM) announced that it will be reopening to the general public on April 10. The reopening is slated to be staged in two phases.

The first phase began on April 10. This phase grants visitors access to all galleries, except for certain special exhibitions. The second phase will occur on May 5. This phase opens the entire museum to visitors, including the special exhibitions that were previously off-limits.

The PAM will be open to the public Wednesday–Sunday from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. The museum store will be open as well. Brian Ferriso, museum director and chief curator remarked, “We are looking forward to welcoming back staff and visitors following months of closure. We believe that art, film, and music are essential to our community and to our collective well-being.”

To visit the PAM you must book a timed-entry ticket in advance.

Capacity limits will be in effect due to COVID-19 restrictions. All of the mandates that have been in effect for the last year will still be actively practiced, according to Ian Gilliam, head of Press & Publications. “Masks will be required and guests will need to be six feet apart,” he said. “Luckily, we are a large museum and have plenty of space to spread out.” Additionally, Gilliam emphasized the PAM has an excellent fan and ventilation system that will keep air continuously clean.

Gilliam and the community at the PAM stressed how grateful they are to the Portland community and museum members.

They’re looking forward to having guests in its halls once more, as well as the strong slate of exhibitions they have coming in the next year. Exhibits to look forward to include Queen Nefertari: Eternal Egypt (Oct. 16, 2021–Jan. 16, 2022), Private Lives: Home and Family in the Art of the Nabis, 1889–1900 (Oct. 23, 2021–Jan. 23, 2022) and Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Mexican Modernism (Feb. 19–June 5, 2022).

Additionally, May 5 will be the opening of the much-anticipated Ansel Adams exhibition, In Our Time.

Ansel Adams’ In Our Time will be open from May 5–August 1, 2021; this exhibit will be making its only stop in the Pacific Northwest at the PAM. Adams was an American landscape photographer, educator and environmentalist. He is best known for his incredible western American landscape photography. This ex-

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ARTS & CULTURE

hibit features over 100 of Adams’ best works including Monolith, The Face Of Half Dome. Captured in the Yosemite Valley in 1927, this breathtaking image is one for fans of black-and-white photography and curious explorers alike.

Another notable photography exhibit being featured at the PAM is Though There Be Fury on the Waves. This exhibit highlights the work of Victor Jorgensen, a Portland native. Jorgenson was a Reed College student, as well as a reporter, editor and photographer at The Oregonian. After enlisting in the United States Navy, he was selected to serve in the elite Naval Aviation Photographic Unit in World War II. Jorgenson’s photographs were originally meant to serve as means for recruitment. He was assigned to take pictures portraying the exhilarating and honorable life of being in the Navy.

Jorgenson’s photographs capture the range of actions and emotions that these Navel men went through while facing the unpredictability of war at sea. This is one in a handful of exhibits the PAM is offering a virtual walkthrough of on their official website.

The composition difference in Ansel Adams’ extraordinary landscape photography and Victor Jorgensen’s remarkable portrait work creates an experience that leaves its viewers in awe of both nature and humanity. If you are not a fan of photography, do not fear: there are plenty of other types of art featured in the PAM. If you have an interest in printmaking, the Joryū Hanga Kyōkai exhibit featuring Japan’s female printmakers is of particular note.

When these prints first went on display in Tokyo in 1956, the PAM states, “[they] provided a crucial vehicle for talented female printmakers working in a crowded field of male maestros.” This collection of art brings the history of modern printmaking to life.

If your artistic interests lean toward mixed media, stop by the APEX: Ed Bereal exhibit. Ed Bereal is an educator and artist, and Gilliam described his work as, “biting political art, hurling viewers into a shambolic spectacle that feels all too close to our current events.”

The Portland Art Museum is located at 1219 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97205. Admission is $17 for students and $20 for adults. If you are a museum member, admission is free. If you are not able to make it to the museum, PAM’s online collections or its YouTube channel offer detailed walkthroughs and digital images of exhibits.

A LOOK AT SOME OF THE BEST NEW EXHIBITS

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

GRUDGE MATCH

SAM GARCIA

GODZILLA VS. KING KONG

MORGAN TROPER Grudge match is a semi-regular series in our Arts & Culture section where two or more Portland State Vanguard contributors debate on a divisive issue in pop culture. This edition features a discussion between Morgan Troper and himself on who would win in a theoretical matchup—Godzilla or King Kong—in honor of Godzilla vs. Kong, streaming now on HBO Max. Morgan Troper: So, first of all, let’s establish some context here. This conversation is happening because there’s a new movie out called Godzilla Vs. Kong. The film is exactly what its title suggests. Though I haven’t seen it yet, and I assume you haven’t either.

Morgan Troper 2: Right, no, I haven’t. I made a point to have this conversation before I saw the film. I wanted it to be pure. I should also clarify that I’m not exactly an expert on either of these franchises and their lore. I’m familiar enough with the source material but I’m not some diehard Kaiju-head or anything, and I have admittedly only seen Peter Jackson’s King Kong from 2005.

MT: At first blush this matchup makes a lot of sense, and these seem like similar monsters, but those similarities turn out to be facile. The biggest issue I have is just the size difference—like, doesn’t Godzilla destroy buildings and stuff? And then in the most iconic scene of King Kong, he’s climbing up the Empire State Building. So just thinking about how much bigger this version of King Kong is is hilarious to me for some reason. Maybe this is insane, but I think an extremely giant lizard is more believable than an extremely giant gorilla.

MT2: You’re not alone in feeling that way, although we could also just be the same type of insane. I will say that another thing that’s obnoxious about this film is the Marvel Cinematic Universe-esque world-melding—Godzilla vs. Kong is suppos-

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

edly a sequel to both Godzilla: King of Monsters and Kong: Skull Island, and to me that is just laughable. Why does every franchise need to have some big, obligatory “night to remember” crossover these days?

MT: You’re exactly right, although it isn’t totally out of nowhere. I haven’t seen it either but there’s supposedly a postcredits scene in Skull Island that serves as the setup for this film.

MT2: And then I think the other thing that’s annoying is how these characters are totally deracinated from the political subtext of the source material. Godzilla is famously a referendum on both nuclear warfare and America’s post-World War II interventionist policies. And then I guess King Kong is probably just a cautionary tale about attempting to tame nature, sort of like Jurassic Park?

MT: Right, it’s almost like the people who made this movie had no real familiarity with the source material, and they just saw action figures of Godzilla and King Kong in a collectibles shop and were like, “wouldn’t it be badass if they beat the shit out of each other?” That said, this isn’t the first time they’ve fought—there’s a Godzilla film from 1963 where they fight on top of Mt. Fuji, and it’s hilarious, because they’re both just massive marionettes.

MT2: So let’s cut to the chase here. Neither of us have seen the newest movie or read any spoilers, so who do you think will win?

MT: There’s a difference between who I think would win in an actual matchup and who I think wins in the movie. I think that King Kong will probably wind up victorious because he’s being positioned as the good guy, based on what I’ve gleaned from the trailers and plot summary.

MT2: That just seems so unbelievable to me. Can’t Godzilla breathe fire? Doesn’t he have all of these super powers as a result of the radiation? King Kong is a brute-force guy, like the Hulk. Literally all he has is a humongous body.

MT: Well, think about it this way—there’s no reason they would make him this big only to fail.

MT2: That’s a good point. I think there’s some alternate possibility, where these two characters essentially form some kind of alliance, or maybe unite against a greater evil.

MT: Humanity?

MT2: Well, it would be cool to watch them just destroy everything, and maybe start a new civilization of giant monsters in humanity’s wake.

MT: I don’t think we’re going to get that lucky, but I do think it’s possible that there’s some evil Kaiju they team up to battle—or maybe that’s at least alluded to at the end of the film.

Isn’t that sort of the deal in the Godzilla franchise? Like, that he is initially the antagonist but he turns out to be sort of an antihero?

MT2: Yeah, and I would argue that’s another fundamental difference between these two franchises. There seems to be a little more nuance to Godzilla in general, and more lore there.

King Kong seems like a much more straightforward story, and the character itself seems purely primal and a little less developed.

MT: Primal seems like a great way to describe this film. I saw some critics on Twitter decrying a lack of nuance, and saying stuff such as, “it’s a great time if you want to watch a lizard and monkey fight.” Ultimately, I think the joke’s on us for expecting anything more than that.

MT2: I guess we just have to watch it now.

ARTS & CULTURE

13

DANNY O’BRIEN

HB 3261 DOESN’T GO FAR ENOUGH

On Wednesday, March 31, the Oregon Legislature approved House Bill 3261, which dictates the limited intervention of local governments in the conversion of some properties into emergency shelters for the houseless.

This conversion process that the bill mentions is in reference to Project Turnkey, which gives $35 million to the Oregon Department of Administrative Services specifically so that the department can give this money to the Oregon Community Foundation, a community charity organization which will in turn reallocate the money to other community organizations. It’s an unnecessary game of hot potato.

The majority of the work being done by Project Turnkey is the slippery passing-on of capital to many, potentially greedy hands.

Instead of celebrating the vague and discrete goals of Turnkey, we should be asking why Oregon can’t allocate these funds. Why must it first pass through a private organization?

Further, while some are praising the efforts of H.B. 3261, this bill does not facilitate or stimulate the building or conversion of shelters. In the bill’s language, it only states that there will be a limit on the restriction ability of local governments in this conversion process—meaning state officials or police can’t intervene in this process, assuming the process happens.

The sponsor of this bill, Representative Pam Marsh, said some projects have proceeded, but others have stalled despite community support. But stalls are not okay in this matter, especially now that the state cannot intervene.

It should be noted that any unspent portion of the original funds for Project Turnkey, officialized in November, will be returned to the Treasury on June 30 of this year. This whole project has a short fuse that’s burning away

quickly, so bureaucratic dillydallying and messing around with capital won’t help.

What if, in present circumstances, it happens that these stalls aren’t coming from the state? What if the state was complicit in the conversion process, but Best Western put their foot down? What if Motel 6 said this whole business of shelters and “conversions” didn’t really align with their business model?

What protections do Oregon’s houseless have against these massive corporations? And if a hotel corporation did deny shelter to the houseless here now, is the state now forced to turn a blind eye?

Even if the state, in its strange heart whose arteries are clogged with lobbyists and profit motives, wanted to step in to tell that corporation to provide shelter, this bill effectively disallows that.

H.B. 3261 is not a particularly incendiary bill.

It does not in itself create any hostilities. So far, Street Roots magazine has been a fan of Project Turnkey and its relative endeavors. But it also doesn’t say much when it could say more. It could assure more rights to shelter to the houseless of Oregon, but it decided minimalism was just too in vogue right now (the state seems worried Republicans will make fun of any long bill lengths).

I suppose we should appreciate small strides like this. But I do not think this bill necessitates any celebration. We as Oregonians would do well to check in on the progress of Project Turnkey come June when those funds expire.

We ought to be sure to check in with Marsh about how many projects have proceeded and how many are still stalled.

Bureaucratic machines, rich community organizations and the hospitality industry have ample time on their hands, but that’s not true for those without shelter.

REPRESENTATIVE PAM MARSH. COURTESY OF ORD2

THE PEOPLE, NOT CAPITAL, SHOULD GUIDE PUBLIC POLICY ON HOUSELESSNESS 14

OPINION

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

GIVE GIVE FUC FUCK

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apply online at psuvanguard.com or contact managingeditor@psuvanguard.com

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com

ADS

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EVENTS CALENDAR

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TUE APR 13

WOODEN SHOE TULIP FESTIVAL Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm 9 a.m. $60 Ongoing through May 2

Look out at over 40 acres of blooming tulips during peak blooming season at the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, located in Woodburn. Tickets must be purchased online and social distancing measures will be in-place.

WED APR 14

ISAKA SHAMSUD-DIN: ROCK OF AGES Portland Art Museum 10 a.m. $17–20 Ongoing through August 1

“Isaka Shamsud-Din: Rock of Ages is an intimate exhibition celebrating the Portland artist’s masterful paintings, rich in a narrative combining personal stories and folklore.

Shamsud-Din’s paintings also celebrate and honor individuals by capturing portraits.

Tightly composed and with a vibrancy of color, the works invite viewers to be among these individuals and warm settings. The exhibition is titled after Shamsud-Din’s painting of his father, Rock of Ages (1976), the museum’s most recent acquisition of the artist’s work.”

FRI APR 16

MIXTAPE REVIVAL Oaks Amusement Park 7 p.m. $49 per vehicle 21+ Ongoing through April 16

“Throw it back with the OG hits of the 80s and 90s played live on stage by the coolest retro band in Oregon, The Hair Jordans, while you rock out in the safety of your own car!”

SAT APR 17

Online via Hollywood Theatre $12–35

“The pandemic has turned our collective sense of time inside out: disrupting routines, lengthening days, and obliterating the calendar’s familiar touchstones. It’s the perfect moment to delve into the work of Richard Linklater, the American filmmaker who has spent his career exploring (and manipulating) the passage of time. For this three-week Movie Madness Master Class, we’ll take an in-depth look at Linklater’s filmography. We’ll be joined by Richard Linklater and Melissa Maerz, author of Alright, Alright, Alright: The Oral History of Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused. The Master Class is hosted by Shawn Levy, a bestselling author and former film critic for The Oregonian and KGW-TV.”

LORA WEBB NICHOLS: PHOTOGRAPHS MODE, PHOTOGRAPHS COLLECTED Blue Sky Gallery 12 noon Free Ongoing through May 1; in-person exhibit available by appointment

“Lora Webb Nichols: Photographs Made, Photographs Collected presents a selection of images curated from the photography archive of this Wyoming homesteader and photographer. Lora Webb Nichols (1883-1962) created and collected approximately 24,000 negatives over the course of her lifetime in the mining town of Encampment. The images chronicle the domestic, social, and economic aspects of the sparsely populated frontier of south-central Wyoming.”

NURSES FOR BLACK LIVES VIGIL Pioneer Courthouse Square 10 a.m.

Free

Portland nurses will honor the life of George Floyd with a silent vigil every Friday morning.

NATIONAL PARK WEEK

OREGON SPRING CLEANUP

“Join us celebrating National Park Week 2021 from April 17 to 25! Parks across the country will host a variety of special programs, events, and digital experiences. There are also special theme days during the week to highlight the different ways everyone can enjoy national parks.”

“SOLVE is excited to launch a brand-new statewide event this April called the Oregon Spring Cleanup, presented by Portland General Electric. As we have for over fifty years, we will be supporting the efforts of awesome partners and amazing volunteers from around the state who are motivated to take care of their special place in Oregon. This new event has its roots in the Spring Oregon Beach Cleanup (created in 1986) and SOLVE IT for Earth Day (started in 1990). We hope the Oregon Spring Cleanup will become a new family tradition for your loved ones to join with other Oregonians in making the state a better place for both humans and wildlife, from Astoria to Brookings, Bandon to Burns, and all points in between.”

Free Ongoing through April 25

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ELASTIC TIME: A RICHARD LINKLATER MASTER CLASS

EVENTS

Free Check SolveOregon.org/springcleanup for a list of events

PSU Vanguard • APRIL 13, 2021 • psuvanguard.com