PORTLAND STATE VANGUARD
VOLUME 72 • ISSUE 33 • JULY 3, 2018
FOURTH OF JULY GUIDE P. 7
News:
Guide:
Arts & Culture:
First police-involved shooting near campus since PSU armed its officers P. 3
Where to get the best fireworks P. 12
The unsinkable Azealia Banks P. 27
What does the Constitution say? P. 18–19
CRIME BLOTTER JUNE 25–JULY 2 Fiona Spring
June 25 Warrant arrest Peter Stott Field At 1:13 p.m., the Campus Public Safety Office contacted non-students for trespassing on the field and arrested one of them who had an arrest warrant.
June 28 Disorderly conduct SW Mill St. and SW Broadway Around 3:45 a.m., a janitorial employee reported having been chased by an unknown male while walking to the MAX stop. The subject is described as a light-skinned Black male in his 20s wearing all gray clothing.
June 26 Theft Lincoln Hall At 5:36 p.m., a non-student reported his bicycle wheel had been stolen from the north side of Lincoln Hall.
Exclusion Art Building
Information Smith Memorial Student Union At 9:06 p.m., a student reported an unknown male had approached him, implying he was stealing electronics.
June 27 Trespass arrest University Pointe At 10:58 a.m., a non-student was issued a citation for trespassing.
At 1:38 p.m., CPSO excluded a non-student from the Art Building. June 29 Found property University Place Hotel At 12:20 a.m., CPSO took possession of a bicycle as found property after a subject ran from police.
Theft Park Blocks At 11:27 a.m., a non-student reported a bag stolen between SW Park Ave. and SW Market St. The theft occurred on June 28 between 8:30 and 9 p.m. July 1 Criminal trespass Smith Memorial Student Union Around 7:30 p.m., CPSO arrested a subject for trespassing inside SMSU.
CONTENTS COVER DESIGN BY SYDNEY BARDOLE
NEWS FATAL POLICE-INVOLVED SHOOTING NEAR PSU CAMPUS HILL TO HALL
P. 3
INTERNATIONAL THIS WEEK AROUND THE WORLD
P. 28–29
P. 3
COMICS
P. 30
STUDENT FEE COMMITEE HOLDS ELECTIONS, ASSIGNS LIAISONS
P. 4
EVENTS CALENDAR
P. 31
PORTLAND COMMUNITY SHUTS DOWN ICE
P. 5
ARTS FIND IT AT 5TH: ‘MATILDA’ AND ‘SANDLOT’
P. 6
FOURTH OF JULY GUIDE
P. 7–26
THE UNSINKABLE AZEALIA BANKS
P. 27
CONTENT WARNING: P. 28–29 CONTAIN MATERIAL REGARDING VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ABUSE.
STAFF EDIT ORI A L EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Evan Smiley MANAGING EDITOR Nada Sewidan NEWS EDITORS David Gillespie Fiona Spring INTERNATIONAL EDITOR Marena Riggan ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Matthew Andrews OPINION EDITOR Katherine Piwonka ONLINE EDITOR A.M. LaVey
COPY CHIEF Missy Hannen COPY EDITOR Justin Knipper CONTRIBUTORS Adam Bruns Cory Elia Andrew Gaines Shandi Hunt Andrew Jankowski Anamika Vaughan PHO T O & MULTIMEDI A PHOTO EDITOR Brian McGloin MULTIMEDIA MANAGER Emma Josephson
CR E ATI V E DIR EC TION & DE SIGN CREATIVE DIRECTOR Sydney Bardole
T ECHNOL OGY & W EB SIT E STUDENT MEDIA TECHNOLOGY ADVISOR Corrine Nightingale
LEAD DESIGNER Robby Day
TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANTS Damaris Dusciuc Long V. Nguyen Annie Ton
DESIGNERS Lisa Dorn Lisa Kohn Kailyn Neidetcher Savannah Quarum Jenny Vu MARKETING & DISTRIBUTION DIRECTOR Evan Smiley
A DV ISING & ACCOUN TING COORDINATOR OF STUDENT MEDIA Reaz Mahmood STUDENT MEDIA ACCOUNTANT Sheri Pitcher
To contact Portland State Vanguard, email info @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 every Tuesday and online 24/7 at psuvanguard.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @psuvanguard for multimedia content and breaking news.
NEWS
JUNE 25–28
JUNE 27: JUSTICE ANTHONY KENNEDY ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT
Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, who has acted as a crucial swing vote in several historic Supreme Court rulings since he began his tenure under the Reagan administration in 1988, announced he will retire from his position effective July 31. The impact of his retirement has sent shockwaves through the political community. As the Trump administration has begun the process of nominating a replacement, Democrats have expressed intent to block such a nomination.
DAVID GILLESPIE
JUNE 25: OREGON DEMOCRATS WITHDRAW SUPPORT FOR REPRESENTATIVE CANDIDATE
Amid reported allegations of sexist behavior and homophobic slurs, Oregon Democrats redacted their support for Nathan Boddie—a Bend city councillor and opponent to Republican candidate Cheri Helt in the upcoming election for Representative of Oregon’s 54th District. Although the details of the allegations have not been revealed by any parties involved, Boddie has publicly denied what he calls “outrageous allegations,” claiming even he has not been informed of what the allegations are.
JUNE 25: SUPREME COURT SUPPORTS REPUBLICAN GERRYMANDERING
The Supreme Court made two separate rulings likely to positively affect the political clout of Republicans in Texas and North Carolina. One ruling upheld the drawing of two legislative districts in Texas that had previously been thrown out by a lower court due to concerns of diluting the voting power of Black and Hispanic Texan voters. The other involved the Supreme Court throwing down a case regarding the drawing of legislative districts in North Carolina to a lower court so it could be evaluated in the light of a recent ruling that upheld a similar style of legislative district manipulation in Wisconsin.
JUNE 28: OREGON WILL NOT VOTE ON ASSAULT RIFLE BAN THIS NOVEMBER
JUNE 28: ACLU CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION OF HOUSELESS DISCRIMINATION BY PORTLAND POLICE BUREAU
Following an analysis published by The Oregonian stating Portland’s houseless population accounted for 52 percent of the PPB’s arrests in 2017, the American Civil Liberties Union has called upon Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and Police Chief Danielle Outlaw to look into the possibility of houseless discrimination among their police force. The ACLU expressed concern regarding what it described as a series of complaints submitted to the organization that detailed instances in which PPB officers stopped houseless individuals for warrant checks and searched their persons without reasonable suspicion or probable cause.
The Lift Every Voice campaign, a Portland–based clergy-led effort, conceded it has failed to gather sufficient signatures to introduce Initiative Petition 43—a petition that would introduce legislation banning the sale of certain assault rifles and high capacity magazines in Oregon—on the ballot this November. Campaign leaders instead vocalized their intent to seek the introduction of such an initiative in 2020.
JUNE 28: FIVE KILLED IN SHOOTING AT THE OFFICE OF MARYLAND’S ‘CAPITAL GAZETTE’
On June 28, a gunman who has since been identified as Jarrod W. Ramos entered the newsroom of the Capital Gazette armed with a shotgun and smoke grenades and opened fire, killing five and injuring two. The suspect allegedly has a history of conflict with the Maryland-based newspaper stemming from their coverage of the defendant entering a guilty plea to a harassment charge. The defendant had previously attempted to sue the Capital Gazette for defamation.
FATAL POLICE-INVOLVED SHOOTING NEAR PSU CAMPUS DAVID GILLESPIE At approximately 1:30 a.m. on Friday, June 29, Portland State campus police officers responded to reports of an altercation nearby the Cheerful Tortoise sports bar on the corner of SW 6th Ave. and SW College St. Shortly after arriving to the scene of the conflict, the officers fired shots and one man—identified by family members as Jason Washington—was pronounced dead on the scene by emergency medical personnel. On July 1, PSU Student Union held a rally in Pioneer Courthouse Square to protest the officers’ use of deadly force and demand campus police officers be disarmed. “[CPSO] consists of an armed and deputized police force trained through the same systems which train the horrifically violent Portland Police Bureau,” PSUSU organizers wrote in a press release. They also referred to CPSO as “an all-powerful armed force that shoots to kill,” and called for PSU students not to “let PSU get away with murder.” “All witness accounts say that [Washington] was trying to de-escalate the fight and that his gun fell out and it was an accident,” said PSUSU member Olivia Pace, quoted by KATU. “There’s nothing to indicate he did anything wrong.” In a statement released a few hours before the rally began, PSU Director of Media and Public Relations Ken Ma expressed PSU’s support for students to organize and participate in peaceful protests while at the same time defending the Board of Trustees’ 2014 decision to hire armed campus police officers, citing it was done to “address safety concerns and improve university security.” Donald Dietz—a Cheerful Tortoise employee who was present for the deadly altercation and stood feet away from Washington when he was shot—described the incident as “a really unfortunate situation.” “I’ve seen police overstep their bounds a lot,” Dietz said.
“I’ve seen it happen; there is a problem. I don’t think that this was one of those situations.” According to Dietz, the altercation began when a man threw a racial slur at another man in the bar. “At that point, we [Cheerful Tortoise employees] got the group that included the person that said the racial slur out the side door and tried to keep everybody else that was mad and trying to pursue him inside, but we couldn’t.” Dietz said the group pursued the man outside. “Someone said that someone had fired a warning shot in the air, so I told them [Dietz’s fellow employees] to call [the police],” Dietz said. “[After that] I went outside to try and make sure that it didn’t get to where it did.” When he stepped outside, Dietz said he only then noticed Washington was wearing a sidearm. “[Washington] was trying to break it up…[But] they were drunk and stubborn, so they kept going.” The fight eventually moved toward the nearby Chipotle on SW Broadway and SW College St. Dietz said, “The moment that people started swinging is when [the police] pulled up and identified themselves as police officers.” By this point, Dietz said, the man who had yelled the racial slur had been knocked unconscious. Washington—who Dietz says had come to the bar with the man who used the slur—went in to try and break up the altercation. It was at this point things took a turn for the worse. “[Washington] tried to push them off and his gun—since he already had it out and had fired warning shots—wasn’t all the way in his pocket,” Dietz recounted. “It fell out of his pocket. [The officers] told him not to reach for it. Once he did have it, they told him to put it down, and he just kind of scooped it up. I’m not sure if he was trying to get away or secure it so no one else could get it, but his gun was on the ground, and he reached
for it. They told him not to, and then they fired on him.” Immediately after the shooting, Dietz said he tried to get people back inside the bar and told patrons if they had no business being there, they should go home. “I’m of the opinion that [it was] a very unfortunate and terrible situation to have been put in, but [the police] didn’t have options, I don’t think,” Dietz said. Those who knew Washington—a Navy veteran, father and grandfather—have described him lovingly. David Norton, a former coworker of Washington, described Washington as a guy who was “friends with everyone.” On a cement pillar near the site of his shooting, messages of love have been written in his remembrance by friends and family.
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NEWS
PATRIOT PRAYER, ANTI-FASCISTS CLASH IN DOWNTOWN PORTLAND POLICE DECLARE EVENT A RIOT FIONA SPRING Police declared a riot Saturday, June 30 when violent clashes broke out between right-wing group Patriot Prayer and local anti-fascist protesters in the streets of downtown Portland. The day’s events began in Terry Schrunk Plaza with a permitted rally organized by Patriot Prayer, a Vancouver, Wash.–based protest group led by Joey Gibson, activist and candidate for the United States Senate. Organizers said the demonstration—dubbed the Freedom & Courage Rally—was in response to what they called suppression of free speech by left-wing groups in Portland. “We’re here to stand up for freedom and to encourage people to start standing up for what they believe in,” high-profile Patriot Prayer member Tusitala “Tiny” Toese said. “Once you say you’re a conservative, everybody looks at you like you’re a terrorist. We’re not going to stand down anymore.” Toese, a regular participant in alt-right events in Portland since 2017, was arrested before the march began in connection with an alleged assault earlier in June. As Patriot Prayer ralliers danced and milled around the plaza, blasting classic rock behind a barricade lined with Department of Homeland Security officers, counter-protesters lined up across the street along the south end of Chapman Square. The counter-protesters, dressed mostly in black with many covering their faces, held signs and banners and chanted slogans like “Immigrants are here to say: Nazi punks, not your day,” and “Portland, this is the hour: Immigrant, Black, union power.” In a public Facebook event, counter-protest organizers affiliated with various local anti-fascist groups, including Eugene Antifa and Rose City Antifa, said the protest was planned in anticipation of violence from Patriot Prayer ralliers following a similar rally on June 3. “We’re just here to protect everybody,” said counterprotester Evan Duke, an organizer with Occupy Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Wash. “We’re gonna show up and defend the community.” Police seized weapons including utility knives, clubs and chemical sprays from counter-protesters early in the demonstration, The Oregonian reported. Following a number of speeches from Patriot Prayer ralliers,
including Gibson, the group of almost 150 people exited the police barricade around 5:40 p.m. to begin a march through the streets of downtown. When the two groups collided on the corner of SW 3rd Ave. and SW Madison St., the floodgates broke loose. Shouting from both sides filled the air as protesters threw eggs, water bottles and firecrackers. Police responded by firing paintballs filled with pepper spray into the crowd. As marchers moved down SW Madison St. and turned right onto SW 2nd Ave., police announced the march permit had been revoked, warning demonstrators to remain on sidewalks or risk arrest. The two groups remained on opposite sides of the street until protesters on both sides got ahead of the PPB vehicles separating them. A fresh round of fighting broke out almost immediately when the two groups made contact. At least one counter-protester was severely injured after being beaten with flagpoles carried by Patriot Prayer protesters, Willamette Week reported. After driving the two groups apart using flash grenades and pepper spray, police declared the event a riot and ordered protesters to vacate the area or face arrest. Following the order, Patriot Prayer demonstrators returned to Schrunk Plaza as counter-protesters reconvened in Lownsdale and Chapman Squares, where they remained even after police ordered them to leave. “If you want us to go away, make [Patriot Prayer] go home,” one counter-protester shouted. Police eventually cleared the area after firing non-lethal projectiles at counter-protesters while surrounding them on three sides. Following the protest, Patriot Prayer representatives accused counter-protesters of inciting violence. “I want to make it very clear that our people did a very good job of staying on our route [and] then [counter-protesters] charged us,” Gibson wrote in a July 1 Facebook post. “Right now there is no First Amendment in Portland. I understand the criticism that we are too aggressive, but it’s not aggressive to simply march in an American city. If the city officials did their job, there would be no violence because we wouldn’t have to defend ourselves.”
ARMOR-CLAD POLICE MARCH TO TERRY SCHRUNK PLAZA. CORY ELIA/PSU VANGUARD Anti-fascist organizations, in turn, have accused police and city officials of targeting them while protecting Patriot Prayer. On July 1, Rose City Antifa tweeted, “Antifascists, as usual, are facing the brunt of state repression following yesterday’s events.” On the same day, Eugene Antifa tweeted, “Cops protect fascists.” “Portland Police planned for today’s protest so that people could exercise their First Amendment rights to speech and assembly,” said PPB Deputy Chief Bob Day, quoted in a press release. In the same press release, PPB reported one officer suffered a non-life-threatening injury when they were struck by a projectile. The officer was taken to the hospital in a patrol vehicle. PPB reported four people—including Toese—were arrested in connection with investigations unrelated to the day’s events. Charges included assault, theft, robbery and disorderly conduct.
STUDENT FEE COMMITTEE HOLDS ELECTIONS, ASSIGNS LIAISONS SHANDI HUNT At 9 a.m. on Thursday, June 28, six members of the Associated Students of Portland State University Student Fee Committee, along with ASPSU Advisor Candace Avalos, held a meeting to elect a new chair and vice chair, assign student liaison positions and conduct a training on Student Building Fees. The committee elected Donald Thompson III and Bethlehem Daniel chair and vice chair respectively. Liaison positions for student resources and organizations were distributed between Thompson, Daniel and SFC members Tristin Crum, Violet Gibson, Jose RojasFallas and Tayde Ramirez. One seat on the committee remains open. Students interested in filling the position can apply online through ASPSU’s OrgSync portal. PSU Associate Vice President for Planning Construction and Real Estate Dan Zalkow
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facilitated Student Building Fee training. The fee, paid for by students, is used to fund new building projects, renovations and construction and to service debt from previous feefunded projects. The SFC is responsible for making recommendations regarding changes to the fee, determining whether fee revenue should be used for small projects or placed in a reserve for future major projects, and making decisions about taking on new debt for large projects. Zalkow estimated approximately $2–2.5 million will be generated from the fee for fiscal year 2019. Of this, approximately $2.1 million will go toward paying back debt. The Student Fee Committee is scheduled to meet from 9 a.m.–noon on Tuesdays and Thursdays in Smith Memorial Student Union 326 for the duration of summer 2018.
NEWS
PORTLAND COMMUNITY SHUTS DOWN ICE national conversation about migrant family separation. “I think Senator Merkley genuinely cared about what was happening, and that’s why he went,” Bureros said. “I don’t think it has anything to do with him being a politician.” The occupation appeared to be sustaining itself even without help from officials. Gesturing to the numerous individuals and tents around him, Bureros said, “This encampment, this blockade all started from people just figuring it out together. It wasn’t some brilliant leadership. It wasn’t an activist brainstorming. It was people in the community who were fed up.” Around IMMIGRATION CUSTOMS AND ENFORCEMENT HEADQUARTERS IN SW PORTLAND. CORY ELIA/PSU VANGUARD the camp, tents were set up offering free water, food and ADAM BRUNS AND CORY ELIA medical supplies. On June 24, many of Since June 17, protestors have blockaded the entrances those occupiers participated in a rally at Portland City Hall. to Portland’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement Originally intended to take place at the ICE facility, the event facility on SW Macadam Ave. What began as a small group moved to City Hall amid concerns about the high numbers of of about 20 protestors swelled to several hundred activists expected participants. and community leaders. On Wednesday, June 20, an ICE During the rally, several local politicians gave speeches spokesperson announced the facility would be closed about the hardships that come with being an immigrant in indefinitely, citing security concerns. the U.S. The politicians who spoke at the event included Reps. On the evening of Sunday, June 17, demonstrator Tony Diego Hernandez, Sheri Malstrom and Rob Nosse and Sen. Hadden—one of the original participants—placed his body Michael Dembrow. in front of the car of an ICE employee attempting to leave Nosse, the representative for Oregon’s 42nd District— the building. When asked if he was afraid, Hadden said, “No. an area that covers Southeast and Nor theast Portland— Actually, I was thrilled. I was having a great fucking time, spoke out against the Trump administration’s immigration because you know what? Fuck this establishment. If they want policies saying, “What Trump and ICE [are] doing to families to fucking hit me, they can fucking hit me.” coming here for their Later that evening, people were around the facility, resting children to have a better in tents or holding signs with slogans such as “Everyone is life is unacceptable,” and he Welcome Here” and the ever-popular “Chinga la Migra,” criticized such practices as alongside its English counterpart “Fuck Border Patrol.” “not reflective of the true The group organizing the protest, Occupy ICE PDX, issued spirit of this country.” a statement saying it would remain at the facility until Following the rally, the “concrete and meaningful action is taken to reunite families.” atmosphere surrounding Although an executive order announced by the White House the occupation of the on June 20 claims it will halt most separations of migrant ICE facility began to turn families, it provides no guidance or resources for reuniting confrontational as both the those that have already been split. federal government and the Organizer Jacob Bureros said he would not be leaving until landlord for the building the ICE facility was removed from the city entirely. “We want itself began to take action. this facility out of Portland because this is a sanctuary city,” he Stuart Lindquist—the owner said. “If our politicians aren’t going to enforce the sanctuary of the building from which city status, then the people of Portland will enforce the the Portland branch of ICE sanctuary city status.” operates—had admitted to Bureros criticized Oregon’s elected officials for speaking hitting an occupier with his out against ICE while not putting their bodies on the protest vehicle while trying to leave line themselves. “If politicians believe in this, they need to his property, and even told stop being scared of children being locked in cages, separated a Willamette Week reporter from their families,” he said. “If that isn’t enough to make you he would gladly fight the step out of the box and do something radical and fight back, if occupiers “one at a time” if that’s not enough to convince you that something beyond your given the chance. legislating needs to be done, then I don’t know what is going to Lindquist had repeatedly get them to take action.” requested that Portland He nonetheless had kind words for Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Mayor Ted Wheeler instruct whose recent video showing him being denied access to a the Portland Police Bureau Texas detention facility for undocumented children sparked a to remove the occupiers.
However, Wheeler had already expressed his desire for the PPB to not interfere with the occupation in any way, telling the PPB to leave the issue to federal authorities. In the early afternoon of Monday, June 25, the Department of Homeland Security served the camp with a notice stating the protestors were breaking the law by blocking entrances to the federal facility and those who continued to block the entrances would be subject to arrest and subsequent prosecution. City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly, who has called for the abolishment of ICE and spent time at the occupation of the Portland ICE Facility, defended the occupiers, saying, “[the protestors’] intent is to shut down [the] facility, so moving out of the driveway and the doors kind of defeats the purpose of the protest.” By noon on Tuesday, June 26, flyers similar to those distributed the day before were offered to occupiers, with many of the protestors tearing them apart or simply refusing to take them. Currently, the protest camp has grown to over 90 tents and anywhere from 100–200 occupiers at any given time. At 5:30 a.m. on Thursday June 28, DHS officers formed a barricade around the ICE office and cleared the front entrances to the building of protesters, tents and anything else associated with the camp, leaving most of the campers belongings on the curb. Several individuals were arrested during the so-called raid, and VICE reported seven were charged with misdemeanors for failing to comply with the orders of federal agents. As of this article’s writing and despite recently losing the ability to block the entrances of the ICE facility, the occupation continues to deeply embed itself in preparation for an indefinite residence at 4310 SW Macadam. The VICE report described efforts among the occupiers to build ramps for the purposes of allowing wheelchair access, as well as covering the ever-growing assortment of tents with a series of tarps in order to avoid the gaze of federal employees working in the upper floors of the ICE facility.
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ARTS & CULTURE
FIND IT AT
‘MATILDA’ AND ‘THE SANDLOT’ ‘90S KIDS FLICKS
SYDNEY BARDOLE
ANDREW GAINES Matilda (1996) is easily the second-best Roald Dahl adaptation—maybe the first best, depending on when you ask me. Matilda perfectly captures the off-kilter reality of the book, depicting fantastical solutions to the trials and tribulations of childhood. The story is fairly simple, like a lot of great children’s’ films. The titular Matilda (Mara Wilson) is a genius child whom nobody appreciates. Her boorish parents—played by Rhea Perlman and a comically grotesque Danny Devito, who also directs—actively deny her chances to read books in favor of watching inane television instead. At school, any respite from home life is destroyed by the monstrous principal, Agatha Trunchbull, played by Pam Ferris in a performance easily placing her in the Evil Authority Figure Hall of Fame.
Of course, this is a kids’ movie, so there are two beacons of hope in Matilda’s miserable life: Jennifer Honey, Matilda’s saintlike teacher, and Matilda’s own burgeoning psychic powers. As the fantastical clashes with the mundane and Matilda strives to create a better life for herself, the film builds to a conclusion that neatly wraps everything up and sees the uncaring parents and principals getting their comeuppance, one way or another. I tend to be somewhat critical of a lot of children’s movies, mainly because I think a lot of them don’t hold up when removed from the nostalgic context we first saw them in, but Matilda’s slight magical realism makes it work a lot better for me than the majority of kids-vs-theworld film. 5th Avenue Cinema is showing Matilda July 6–8.
T? N E V E SE AN
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NATIVE LANDS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT P. 8–9
U.S. BY THE NUMBERS P. 16–17
FIREWORKS AREN’T A BLAST FOR EVERYONE P. 11
THE CONSTITUTION P. 18–19
CELEBRATING INDEPENDENCE DAY: FIREWORKS, FOOD AND FESTIVALS IN PORTLAND P. 12
RED, WHITE AND BLUE AROUND THE WORLD P. 20 AMERICA’S MODERN EMPIRE P. 21
GET INTO THE GREAT OUTDOORS P. 12 CHEAP AND DIRTY BIKE CAMPING FOR BEGINNERS P. 13 IMMIGRATION RESHAPES WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AMERICAN P. 15
MICHAEL MOORE’S ‘WHERE TO INVADE NEXT’ IS PRO-AMERICA AS FUCK P. 22 FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, PLEASE VOTE! P. 23 VEGANIZING THE FOURTH P. 24
‘I REALLY CARE, DON’T YOU?’ P. 15 HOST YOUR OWN BACKYARD OLYMPICS P. 25
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Prior to European contact, Indigenous peoples occupied all North American land.
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Fireworks are fun for people, not so much for pets. Pets are your companion. This Fourth, be theirs. Keep pets indoors during fireworks and stay with them whenever possible.
SAVANNAH QUARUM
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FIREWORKS AREN’T A BLAST FOR EVERYONE MISSY HANNEN Pets, as one might expect, are terrified of anything that makes such a loud noise. Maybe you think it’s cute while they freak out; maybe you bust out a thundershirt and swaddle them. But what about the people you know who have been through trauma and may find fireworks triggering? Even I ooh and aah at fireworks most of the time, but there’s a cost: They damage not only the environment, but also the mental health of your furry and (maybe) less furry friends.
ENVIRONMENT
What is particulate matter, and why does it, well, matter? The Environmental Protection Agency defines PM as “a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets that get into the air. Once inhaled, these particles can affect the heart and lungs and cause serious health effects,” such as “coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath, to asthma attacks, heart attack and stroke, and premature death in people with heart or lung disease,” according to EurekAlert’s review of an National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study. The risk is worse for kids and adults with pre-existing heart and lung issues. Dr. Dian Seidel at the NOAA’s Air Resources Laboratory compiled data from over 300 air quality monitoring sites across the United States from 1999 to 2013. This study was the first and widest of its kind, and it showed some problematic results: “Average concentrations over the 24-hour period starting at 8 p.m. on July 4 are 42 percent greater than on the days preceding and following the holiday.” PM concentra-
tions of course varied from location to location, but with firework sales increasing and showing no signs of slowing down, just think of all that PM you’ll be breathing in this year. And even without pre-existing conditions, you’re at a greater risk of heart attack by a whopping 5 percent. Cocaine, for example, increases a person’s risk of heart attack by 23 times, “but because so few people use the drug, it accounts for only 0.9 percent of heart attacks,” according to a meta-analysis of heart attack risk factors. Whereas with air pollution, everyone’s exposed, so the risk is greater. While it’s been proven that fireworks don’t contribute to global warming, “many fireworks contain oxidisers known as perchlorates, [which] can dissolve in water, contaminating rivers, lakes and drinking water,” according to Science Focus. Are we getting the picture?
MENTAL HEALTH
“If you are a veteran, on the one hand July 4th should be one of the most patriotic holidays that you feel a part of,” said Dr. John Markowitz, psychiatry professor at Columbia University to Time Magazine. “On the other hand, the rockets’ red glare and the bombs bursting in air are likely to evoke traumatic memories, and you might want to hide. It’s a tricky one.” War veterans aren’t the only people who experience posttraumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. What is revered as the Bible of diagnostics, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) defines PTSD with a variety of criteria, but in short, someone could just be exposed to death
SOURCE: WWW.IDREAMOFFIRE.COM/FIREWORKS-LITERALLY-SETTING-YOUR-MONEY-ON-FIRE/
or sexual violence by hearing about it. That event combined with other triggering events that follow and symptoms that last more than a month equal PTSD. People with childhood trauma can experience PTSD later in life by going through a traumatic experience, and people exposed to trauma even once can experience PTSD. If you think you or someone you know is exhibiting symptoms, please contact a health service provider. As someone who has never been to war but experiences PTSD, panic attacks and acute anxiety, I never really know what is going to trigger a panic or anxiety attack (note: not the same thing). Sometimes it’s something most people would find relatively minor, like the sound of footsteps behind me, but I think most people can understand the chestreverberating sound of fireworks can be not only terrifying but triggering. I tend to watch fireworks on TV, but I’m sure there are people who hide away indoors on the Fourth to avoid any incident. I’m not saying you can’t enjoy yourself; please do. There are many reasons to be grateful for our independence from what now feels like an ancient tyranny, and in our current social, political and economic climate, this can be a holiday where we join together to remember we are all one people founded on the ideas of pluralism and freedom. But watch your pets, stay upwind from the gunk that will be in the air, and look out for your friends who say they don’t like fireworks. They may just have an environmental issue, but they also might have something else going on.
SOURCE: NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION
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CELEBRATING INDEPENDENCE DAY FIREWORKS, FOOD AND FESTIVALS IN PORTLAND WHAT TO DO NADA SEWIDAN
Portland is filled with Fourth of July activities. Check out the special events happening throughout town, from parades and festivals to concerts.
The fourth of July is a time for celebration, not only of the United States as a country, but of its people and accomplishments. Here are a few ways to celebrate our Independence Day, from places to go and what to do to buying the right fireworks for your special event.
WHERE TO GET FIREWORKS (THE GOOD ONES)
Thinking about setting off your own fireworks? There are a few places around Portland and Vancouver where you can pick up a batch. You can buy fireworks in Oregon through standard retailers and grocery stores like Target or Bi-Mart, but if you want the good fireworks, you can get them through outdoor tents and stands as well as dedicated fireworks retailers.
TNT FIREWORKS
Located in the Buffalo Wild Wings parking lot in Tualatin, Ore., this fireworks tent is marked by a large blow-up barrel boasting as the #1 fireworks retailer in Oregon, along with a banner offering buy one, get one free discount fireworks. 8515 SW Tualatin Sherwood Rd. Tualatin, OR
MEAN GENE FIREWORKS
This family owned fireworks shop in Vancouver, Wash. imports their fireworks directly from China and offers a variety of options including, Roman Candles, Fountains, Mortars and more. Their main location is open through July 5th. Mean Gene Fireworks – Main Location 6213 NE Hwy 99 Vancouver, WA
BLACKJACK FIREWORKS
Also located in Vancouver, Wash., Blackjack is a simple yet dedicated fireworks retailer. Sign up for their mailing list and get 10 percent off your first purchase. They also offer a handy guide for how and where to deploy fireworks safely.
Star Spangled Parade at Millennium Park
Located in downtown Lake Oswego, this Fourth of July parade includes live music, food, drinks and more. There will also be a fireworks show in the evening to close out the event. The celebration starts at 10:30 a.m. and is free and open to the public.
Waterfront Blues Festival July 4–7
The annual blues festival at Tom McCall Waterfront Park is in downtown Portland and includes over 40 musicians. There will also be dance and percussion lessons for all ages, and to conclude the night, there will be a fireworks display at dusk. For a four-day pass, it’s $40 per person, while a single day ticket is $15 in advance and $20 at the gate.
1314 NE 106th St.
Star Spangled 4th of July Celebration at Willamette Park
Celebrate Independence Day with live music, activities, food and drinks at West Linn’s Willamette Park. This event will also include a raising of the flag, a national anthem performance and various speeches. The fireworks display is scheduled for dusk. The event is free for all ages and open to the public.
Timber Festival in Estacada
Up for a short drive out of town? The Timber Festival at Timber Park in Estacada is a 45-minute drive out of Portland. This event includes competitions such as pole climbing, axe throwing and more. There will also be live music, food and beverages, as well as a fireworks show at 10 p.m. Tickets are $5, and the event is all ages.
GET INTO THE GREAT OUTDOORS
HUNTING, FISHING AND NATIONAL PARKS, OH MY! MISSY HANNEN Are concerts, floating down rivers and lawn games not enough to satisfy your need for adventure this summer? Look no further; we’ve got your guide to hunting, fishing and national outdoors right here! The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife hunting site boasts “34 million acres of public land open to hunters.” Personally, I’m appalled at the idea of hunting, but if this is your thing, it’s going to cost you: $33.50 for Oregon residents and $167 for non-residents. If you’re up for something bigger, tags for elk, cougars, bears and the like cost more. Visit ODFW’s big game hunting site for more information on pricing and fees. How about fishing? ODFW’s fishing site lets you buy fishing licenses online for $41 and $103.50 for residents and nonresidents respectively. You just need a credit card and social security number. To fish, you’ll have to visit one of Portland’s many fishing stores, where you can geek out on tackle, which is the fancy word for fishing equipment and gear: rods, reels, bait, traps, spears,
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nets and so much more. ODFW conveniently has a list of what gear you’ll need to tackle (get it?!) each specific kind of fish as well as a bunch of places to go around Portland. Or you could go the non-lethal route and get a National Parks Pass! It’s only a 16-hour drive to Glacier National Park, which you should probably see before everything, y’know, melts. The national pass gets you into every national park for a year from the purchase date. Also, the Trump administration has proposed to expand offshore drilling into 68 national parks, which, according to a report put together by the National Resource Defense Council, “puts our coasts, communities, and climate in grave danger.” Even if you plan on being a homebody this summer, we live in a gorgeous state in a gorgeous country with landscapes and scenery that might be taken away soon, so get out there and explore. Or just move to Canada and you’ll be fine. LISA KOHN
CHEAP AND DIRTY BIKE CAMPING FOR BEGINNERS
JENNY VU
BRIAN MCGLOIN The four things anyone needs to go on an overnight bike camping trip are a bicycle, basic camping equipment, an interest in getting out into nature, and most importantly, the will to have a little fun. If you need a bike or camping equipment, avoid the big-box retail stores. Don’t be tempted by a $150 new bike—it’s going to be junk. It’d be difficult to maintain, poorly assembled (they often need complete rebuilds by qualified bike mechanics to be safe and functional) and you won’t necessarily have any community support. For the same money, you can rent or buy a used bike in adventure-ready condition and have the backing of the bike community while helping to support it. Don’t worry if it’s the bike you already have—it’s more important that you’re out riding and having fun. The PSU Bike Hub is a great place to tune your bike up for the season, and if you’re on campus or living nearby, it is probably your local shop. The PSU Bike Hub is a community bike shop that is not only a full-service shop but also a host for DIY spaces. The shop is well stocked, and employees can order just about anything they don’t happen to have. PSU students and faculty get free memberships, though memberships are available to the general public for a small fee, which allows access to discounts and use of the workspace. While you’re in the PSU Bike Hub—or any of the numerous local shops and community co-ops such as Bike Farm around Portland—make sure to ask about a rack or inexpensive wire basket, or some other means to carry camping gear with you. While not a local co-op, REI is also a fine resource for equipment and advice. With a bit of luck and good timing, you can score deeply-discounted items at their garage sales. When carrying things on your bike, it’s generally better to opt for a front rack or basket instead of a rear rack if you’re only using one. While it may feel funny steering at first, having your stuff in front generally makes for a more controlled and stable ride than having them on a rear rack. As an added bonus, having a basket in front allows you to stash ride snacks, or maybe a wireless speaker. Baskets can be the humble and ubiquitous, American-made wire Wald baskets that come in many varieties for around $20 or less and last for decades. You can either use the included hardware or attach the basket to a rack
with zip ties, hose clamps or another similar device. Portland Design Works has some nice options, but they’re not always budget-friendly. A good way to keep things strapped to your basket or rack is to use an inexpensive nylon strap from a hardware store. For items like water bottles or small bags, silicone ski straps work well and will last a long time. They’re also good to strap a basket to a rack, making it easier to remove while holding firmly. Another option is using something like John’s Irish Straps, available locally. Really, anything other than bungee cords will work fine.
GEAR
OK, so your bike is working, it fits properly and you have a way to carry some stuff. Now you need to find some gear to strap to your awaiting steed. If you’re camping in summer in Cascadia, you won’t need as much gear as in winter. A basic tent and a light sleeping bag with a pad should get you into Snoreville by way of the Funville Highway. The PSU Outdoor Program has all sorts of camping gear available, from tents and sleeping bags to kayaks and crampons. They also offer classes and trips, in addition to special summer rates on gear rentals. Down sleeping bags are easy to compress and generally have a high weight-to-warmth ratio. The downsides are their cost and maintenance. Down can drastically lose its warmth when its compressed or wet; newer bags overcome these problems, but they’re expensive. Synthetic insulation works better when it’s wet and is much easier to care for; it’s also less expensive. A drawback is less warmth for weight, which isn’t a giant problem in warmer conditions. Renting or borrowing a sleeping bag before your trip will allow you to try it out in a backyard practice campout.
GRUB
Now that you have your bike and snoring sorted out, it’s time to figure out how to feed yourself. Remember, space is at a premium, you won’t have refrigeration and cooking will require either a campfire (where allowed) or a camp stove of some sort. The easiest option is to stop at a local cafe or restaurant and get take-away food on the way to your campsite. There
is no shame in not cooking your own food by the campfire, and it can be pretty magical to relax in a campsite with a burrito or pizza after a long bike ride. Pack some energy bars or other snacks to supplement your take-away meals and remember to practice leaving no trace. The next option is to use camp meals available at outdoor outfitters. The meals are generally freeze-dried and rehydrate into actual food with the help of boiling water. Always read the directions first. While military MRE— meals ready to eat—can be a potential option, they are made by multiple military contractors and vary in quality, and they come with a ton of non-recyclable packaging. You can also mix the two options with a locally-sourced burrito for dinner and instant oatmeal for breakfast.
WHERE TO GO
L.L. Stub Stewart State Park is about 30 miles northwest from PSU and has an off-street paved multi-use path for part of the route. The park has camping, services and trails. About 30 miles in the opposite direction from PSU is Dodge Park. It’s on the banks of the Sandy River, and while it doesn’t have much in the way of services, it’s a nice ride over the Springwater Corridor and country roads. If you’re up for a longer trip and don’t mind crossing the Coastal Range and riding on gravel roads, then the Trask Road Route to Tillamook is a reliable way to the coast. It’s about 60 miles and often remote, but the end of the route is on the Pacific Coast. For more information about on- and off-pavement bike routes, the Adventure Cycling Association and Bikepacking are good resources, though not necessarily for beginners. Other possible resources include WTF Bike Explorers and a recent Willamette Week article about groups that promote biking diversity through a variety of events, from multi-week backcountry adventures to fun local rides and everything in between.
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Lighting wood is good for campfires. Lighting fireworks in the woods is good for burning down half the forest and getting you arrested. Don’t light fireworks in the woods.
LISA KOHN
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IMMIGRATION RESHAPES WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AMERICAN ANAMIKA VAUGHAN
In its more than 240 years of existence, the United States has seen near-constant evolution of the average American. According to U.S. Census data, when the country was founded in the late 18th century, the average citizen would probably have been described as white—having emigrated from western Europe—and rural, with over 90 percent of the population living outside urban areas. However, since the first census in 1790, the U.S. has experienced major demographic changes and seen a steady increase of immigrants in urban populations as industrialization and technological progress impacted the economy. Even today, immigrants from a wide variety of countries continue to reshape the country’s ethnic makeup. “What it means to be an American has evolved over time,” said Marc Rodriguez,
associate professor of history at Portland State. “In the early republic, Catholics were suspect. For some time, immigrants from Ireland were suspect. Then immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe—Poles, Jews, Italians [and] Hungarians. Then Chinese were excluded along with Japanese and most Asians, and then Mexicans were increasingly seen as foreign or illegal. We now see that some [people] in the United States see all non-whites [or] non-English speakers as un-American, which is ironic since many of these people had immigrant ancestors who were seen to be less than American.” “Take Los Angeles, Chicago, metropolitan New York, Dallas, and you have places that have increasingly diverse profiles as people of many different backgrounds work together, share spaces, and to a lesser degree live in the same neighborhoods,” Rodriguez
continued. “These are very dynamic and diverse places.” However, Rodriguez pointed out, the growing diversity in these regions doesn’t safeguard newcomers from social discrimination or anti-immigration policies, including voter ID laws—which some argue disproportionately affect minority populations—and crackdowns on undocumented immigrant populations as seen under the Obama and Trump administrations. “Stereotypes have evolved of course,” he said. “Today there is so much anti-Muslim, anti-Latino—regardless of nation of origin or citizenship, but it seems most acutely focused on Mexicans—and anti-Middle Eastern rhetoric and a general discourse of defining people of color and immigrants out of American status that it seems that these insider-outsider dynamics are new. Sadly they are not.”
KAILYN NEIDETCHER
‘I REALLY DO CARE, DONT’ YOU?’ NADA SEWIDAN
America has a long-standing history of oppression, violence and injustice, but in all of the chaos, there are nonprofits, organizations and people willing to fight the bad with a little bit of good. In response to the jacket Melania Trump wore when visiting Texas during the family separation crisis, multiple organizations throughout the United States fought back with their own version of the saying. The jacket Melania Trump wore stated “I really don’t care, do you?” Wildfang—a clothing company in Portland, Ore.—twisted the insensitive saying and designed its own version of the green jacket—“I really care, don’t you?” The proceeds from the jacket, which sold out the first day, are donated to The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, or RACIES. This is one example of how people have come together to fight injustices in America. There are many similar causes and organizations to get involved in.
TEACH FOR AMERICA
This nonprofit identifies inequity in education and pairs children in those communities with teachers and educators. There are three ways to help, including donating to the charity, interning or working as part of the foundation.
United Way helps over 1,800 communities all over the world by providing sustainable solutions to recurring issues in sectors such as agriculture, education, health and more. There are several ways to get involved, ranging from donating money and bitcoin to volunteering or running a workplace campaign.
THE BORGEN PROJECT
This organization focuses on raising awareness and combating global poverty. The campaign structure is different than a traditional nonprofit, in that The Borgen Project concentrates its efforts on meeting with U.S. leaders and gaining their support on poverty-reducing measures. The project also provides people in communities across the world with the necessary skills to advocate for poverty -related issues. People can get involved through one of their internships, by becoming a donor or through other volunteer work.
RACIES
This organization is a nonprofit located in Texas with a mission to provide low to no cost legal services for immigrant families and children. In 2017, RACIES provided legal aid to more than 50,000 immigrants and helped close a majority of those cases. Get involved by donating directly to the charity in one of three ways—through the LEAF Project for Universal Representation of Unaccompanied Children, international donations or the Family Reunification and Bond Fund. The proceeds all go to uniting families, providing legal services and helping asylum seekers.
UNITED WAY WORLDWIDE
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
KAILYN NEIDETCHER
The ACLU focuses on upholding the Constitution and fighting any active injustices. The organization has been directly involved in historic Supreme Court cases dealing with equal treatment of LGBTQ+ communities, rights to privacy, free speech and reproductive rights. The ACLU was also involved in the famous 1954 case Brown v. Board of Education, in which the court deemed segregation as a violation of the14th Amendment. People can get involved by donating to the organization or becoming an ACLU voter. Currently, the ACLU is urging people to call their state representatives and ask them to vote no against the recently proposed anti-immigrant bill.
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U.S. BY THE NUMBERS U.S. Military Presence 200,000 troops stationed in 177 countries Top 25 countries and number of troops:
Veterans On a single night in January 2017, 40,056 veterans experienced houselessness—equal to nine percent of homeless adults. 40,000
Japan 6,000
9%
30,000
.05%
Iraq Bahrain
Germany 5,000 South Korea
92.9% 7.1%
20,000
86.7% 13.3%
4,000 Italy 10,000
75.4% 6.4%
75.8% 7.3%
Afghanistan
Djibouti
1,000
UAE Belgium Cuba Romania Greece Netherlands El Salvador Honduras Kosovo Egypt
Guam 500
3,000
UK Kuwait 6,000
2,000
Spain Qatar Turkey
2,000
300
Source: HUD 2017 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report
Languages in the U.S. Most Common Languages Spoken at Home (English excluded)
Spanish 37,458,624
Most Common Native American Languages Arabic 924,374
French 2,047,467
Vietnamese 1,399,936
German 1,063,773
Korean 1,117,343
Tagalog 1,613,346 Russian 879,434
Chinese languages 2,896,766
Source: Detailed Languages Spoken at Home and Ability to Speak English for the Population 5 Years and Over for United States: 2009–2013
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Navajo 166,826 Pima 6,990
Yupik 19,750
Dakota 17,855 Cherokee 11,465
Apache 13,445
Inupik 6,740
Ojibwa 9,735 Choctaw 9,635
Hopi 6,075
Keres 13,190
Zuni 9,615
Source: Detailed Languages Spoken at Home and Ability to Speak English for the Population 5 Years and Over for United States: 2009–2013
Gender
LGBTQ+
Estimates for the number of Americans identifying as transgender vary widely, likely due to small sample size and the need for deeper study of the topic.
More Americans now identify as LGBTQ+ 10.052 million, 4.1percent of the population in 2016 as opposed to 8.3 million, 3.5 percent in 2012
Some estimates:
7.3% of Millennials
• 1 out of every 250 American adults identifies a transgender, almost 1 million people. (1) • 0.3 percent of the population identifies as transgeder (697,529). (2) • About 5 percent of LGBTQ+ respondents identify primarily as transgender. (3)
49.2% 5% 50.8%
(1980–98)
3.2% of Gen X (1965–1979)
1. Esther L. Meerwijk and Jae M. Sevelius of UC San Francisco (academic study, Feb. 2017) 2. Gary J. Gates, UCLA School of Law (2011) 3. Pew Research (2013)
10 Most Notable:
Number of U.S. Military Bases
2.4% of Baby Boomers
843 bases in over 70 countries 200
Germany
100
Japan
(1946–1964) Source: Gallup
Disclaimer: This type of polling has limitations because it depends upon people responding truthfully. Some research—as Gallup points out—shows that the number of adults who report same-sex attraction or sexual activity in their lifetime is higher than the number of adults who identify as LGBTQ+.
South Korea 50
Italy Guam Puerto Rico
20
Income
$10,000>
United Kingdom
Median household income $55,322 Mean household income $77,866
$10,000+
Portugal
$15,000+
Turkey
$25,000+
Marshall Islands
$35,000+
0
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2016 data
$50,000+ $75,000+ $100,000+ $150,000+ $200,000< 5% • • 10% • • 15% • • 20%
Source: List of U.S. Military Bases Abroad, 2017
Educational Attainment 100%
Population 25 years and older
Demographics 100%
70%
80%
90%
60%
70%
80%
50%
70%
40%
60%
30%
50%
20%
40%
10%
30%
0%
90%
2017 National Population Estimate: 325,719,178
60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%
Color Key WHITE BLACK NATIVE AMERICAN ASIAN HAWAIIAN/PACIFIC ISLANDER HISPANIC/LATINX OTHER TWO OR MORE RACES
GRADUATE
11.5%
BACHELOR
18.8%
ASSOCIATE
8.2%
HIGH SCHOOL
27.5%
Source: 2010 Census Race/ethnicity; 2012–2016 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates
LISA DORN
0% Source: U.S. Census 2016
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THE CONSTITUTION OF MISSY HANNEN
There’s a lot of information in the first sentence in the oldest working constitution in the world. Take a constitutional law or history class, and you’ll get an earful. But if you want to know what the Constitution really says, in its original seven articles and following 27 amendments, here’s a breakdown:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
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SYDNEY BAROLE
ARTICLE ONE: THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
In Section one, the gist is that Congress— which has a House of Representatives and a Senate—makes the laws. Section two is about the House: Members must be 25 years old and citizens for at least seven years prior to election, and they serve for two years. They have to live where they’re elected. Then we get to membership numbers, which means states with bigger populations get more House members. There’s a part in here about how to add the number of people: Slaves originally counted as three-fifths of a person, and Native Americans didn’t count at all.
THE 13TH, 14TH, AND 15TH
The Reconstruction Amendments redefined what it means to be a citizen. After the Civil War, the 13th ended slavery. The 14th defines people’s citizenship and rights: Citizens are born here or naturalized, and states can’t make laws that deny people rights to “life, liberty, and property.” The 15th says the right to vote cannot be “denied or abridged...on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” Section three is about the Senate: Members must be 30 years old and citizens for at least nine years prior to election, and they serve for six years. They live where they’re elected. There are two from each state. Senators are divided into thirds, with one third serving two years, another third serving four, and the final third serving all six. The vice president of the U.S. is the president of the Senate and breaks ties, and the Senate acts as a jury for all impeachments,
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with two-thirds vote required to convict the person on trial. AMENDMENT TIME! THE 17TH The 17th shifted the appointment of senators from the state legislature to the people. Section four is about how to elect people. It says that each state can decide where, when and how to hold elections for senators and representatives, but that Congress can change this for representatives if it feels like it. AMENDMENT TIME! THE 20TH The 20th was added here to mandate that Congress meet once a year on the first Monday of December, unless members agree to a different date. Section five goes into some detail about how Congress works. The first clause states House members judge if other members have been properly elected. If two people argue about who won an election, their house has to figure it out. It states that members have to meet quorum—meaning more than half of members must attend a meeting for it to be legit—and if people don’t show up, they can be penalized. Section five also states each house gets to determine how they want to run the meetings and punish bad behavior, and two-thirds majority can actually kick a member out! It says Congressional meetings must be written down. The final clause states that either house can’t take more than three days off while in session unless the other house says it’s okay. Section six is about how Congress members get paid: Apparently, they vote on it! There is a fun fact here though: Congress members can’t be arrested while they’re in, or
on their way to or from, meetings in session, “except [for] Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace.” Section seven talks about how bills become law. I think Schoolhouse Rock summarizes that best, so check out the video on YouTube. Section eight lists other powers of Congress: creating and collecting taxes, borrowing money from and regulating trade with other countries and creating rules for immigrants and bankruptcies—all of which must be the same in every state. Congress coins money and determines its value and punishment for counterfeiters, establishes post offices and postal roads, create copyright laws, sets up courts lower than the Supreme Court, defines and punishes pirates (Yes, pirates! Yarr!), declares war and establishes armed forces, which can be used for domestic or foreign issues. Congress organizes, arms and disciplines the armed forces and lets each state appoint their military officers. Congress can only fund armies for two years at a time. This splits the power of standing armies, something the founding fathers were wary of. The president is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, but Congress pays them. Section nine is where habeas corpus comes from. It means if you’re in jail, you have the right to a judge and hearing, unless, and this is tricky, “when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.” Insert lawyers here. It says you can’t pass a retroactive law, meaning if something becomes illegal, it’s
OF THE UNITED STATES only illegal from that point forward. Also, no bills of attainder can be passed, which means people can not be guilty of a crime without a trial. Section nine also establishes that states can’t tax other states for importing or exporting goods. Also, Treasury money can’t be taken out unless Congress says so, and Congress must provide a written account of money spent. Finally, no one in the U.S. gets any fancy titles like duke, baron, prince, etc., nor can anyone take gifts from foreign countries. Section 10 repeats section nine on the state level. States can’t make treaties with other countries, make currency, pass any of those pesky bills of attainder or retroactive laws or give any one those fancy titles. States can’t engage in war unless they’re invaded.
ARTICLE TWO: THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH
This article establishes the office of the president and vice president and sets term limits and age minimums. The president must be born in the U.S. AMENDMENT TIME! THE 12TH The 12th Amendment restructured how the president and vice president are elected by introducing the electoral college. Some interesting factoids: The president and the vice president have to be from different states. If there’s a tie, then the House votes for the president, and if there’s a tie for vice president, the Senate votes. This article also states that the vice president takes over the presidency if the president dies, resigns or is unable to do the job. The president also gets paid, and there’s an oath that must be taken. Section two describes the president’s powers: leading the armed forces, appointing cabinet members, staying executions and pardoning people (except impeachments!), making treaties and appointing ambassadors, Supreme Court judges and other vacancies that occur during their term if the Senate is not in session. Section three states the president “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union. This is where we get the State of the Union address! The final section discusses how to oust a president or vice president. Impeachment doesn’t mean kicked out of office. It means the House accuses the executive of “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors,” then then Senate holds a trial.
ARTICLE THREE: THE JUDICIAL BRANCH
Section one establishes the Supreme Court as the highest court in the country and says Congress can establish lower courts. It also states judges serve for life with “good behaviour.” This section states judges get paid,
and their salaries cannot be lowered while they’re in office. Section two clarifies the Supreme Court decides: “all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States” and any treaties enacted, “all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls,” cases dealing with ships at sea and in U.S. ports, controversies between the U.S. and other countries. The Supreme Court processes all appeals from lower courts. There are several routes depending on what kind of trial it is, but if a case is appealed enough, it will get to the Supreme Court, where currently nine justices will make a final decision. AMENDMENT TIME! THE 11TH AMENDMENT The 11th Amendment discusses how states and people in them can sue other states and people in them. Section three defines treason as waging war against the U.S., fighting for U.S. opposition or “giving [enemies] Aid and Comfort.” It also states that to be convicted of treason, there must be either two witnesses who actually saw the treason or a confession. If convicted, Congress decides how a person is punished, but this has limits. Congress cannot punish the family or heirs of the convicted person, and it can only take property from the treasoner while they are alive.
ARTICLE FOUR: STATES’ RELATIONS
Section one outlines that all states must respect the laws of court decisions and other states. Section two says all citizens have the same rights and protections of all other citizens. Criminals can be brought back to the state in which they committed a crime; here’s where bounty hunters come from. Section three discusses how new states are created: Congress says “okay,” and that’s pretty much it. Additionally, Congress has authority over federal land, and “nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to” change any claims a state or Congress has over property. Section four guarantees to every State a has representative democracy and protection from invasion” It goes on to say if a state asks for help, Congress will help, and if the state legislature cannot convene for any reason, then the state’s executive branch (i.e. the governor) will intervene.
ARTICLE FIVE: MODE OF AMENDMENT
When two-thirds of both Houses feel it’s necessary, it can propose Amendments. Congress will send the proposed amendment to the states, and if three-fourths of the states agree, the amendment is ratified—written into the Constitution. Another way to make an amendment happen is if two-thirds of the states ask for a Convention to propose any number of amendments, and three-fourths of the
states must approve all amendments for them to be ratified. There are two exceptions: The first deals with slavery and is now moot; the second says no state can lose its right to equal representation in the Senate.
ARTICLE SIX: PRIOR DEBTS, NATIONAL SUPREMACY, OATHS OF OFFICE
Article Six addresses several things rather quickly. First, the U.S. will pay all debts owed before the Constitution was enacted. The Constitution is declared “the supreme Law of the Land,” and therefore no other law in the nation can contradict it. Third, all members of each branch of government are bound by oath to uphold the Constitution. It also says there cannot be religious requirements to work for the government.
ARTICLE SEVEN: RATIFICATION
Article seven states that only nine of the then 13 states needed to approve the Constitution for it to be made law for those states.
STOP! AMENDMENT TIME!
The First Amendment says Congress cannot establish any law that favors any religion, nor can it make laws to limit the free practice of any religion. It also states Congress cannot make laws that limit speech, press “or the right of the people peaceably to assemble.” Finally, Congress cannot make any laws that limit people’s rights to ask the government to change laws they might find harmful. The Second Amendment is either the right to own weapons or wear sleeveless tshirts. The country is still confused. The Third Amendment states, “No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner.” The flipside is that Congress can make a law that during wartime, homeowners have to house soldiers. This law hasn’t been made, but it’s totally possible. The Fourth Amendment is where the phrase probable cause comes from. This Amendment protects you and your property from being searched or seized without a warrant. The Fifth Amendment is a big one. It states that no person can be tried for a serious crime—punishable by death—unless a grand jury has indicted that person. During wartime, if the accused is in the armed forces, there may be exceptions. The exceptions are not listed, so bring in that team of lawyers again to sort it out. Ever heard of double jeopardy? That’s here, too. If you’ve been tried for a crime, you can’t be tried for the exact same crime again if a jury found you not guilty. Once you’re declared not guilty, that’s it. There are appeals of course, but that’s not the same thing. The Fifth ends with several heavy hitters. A person cannot “be compelled in any crimi-
nal case to be a witness against himself,” which is where the phrase pleading the fifth comes from, “nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property.” Basically, every citizen is entitled to “due process,” or fair treatment through the judicial system, and the government can’t simply take your property. The Sixth Amendment goes into what due process looks like. This includes a speedy, public trial by an impartial jury. The Sixth also ensures the accused not only knows what the accusation is but also gets to see and hear the witnesses against them. The accused also gets a lawyer and witnesses on their side who must appear in court. The Seventh Amendment states if there’s a lawsuit for more than $20, a person has a right to a jury trial. Why $20? It’s almost nothing now, but in the 1700s, it was a lot more. Nobody messes with the Seventh, and nearly all cases that aren’t settled go to a jury trial. The Eighth Amendment says no excessive bail or fines and no cruel and unusual punishments. The Ninth Amendment clarifies that there are of course more rights people have that aren’t listed in the Constitution. The 10th Amendment states the powers not granted to the federal government by the Constitution belong to the states or to the people. We covered the 11th–15th, 17th and 20th Amendments, so: The 16th Amendment states Congress can collect income taxes as it sees fit, regardless of what the states have to say about it. The 18th Amendment and the 21st go hand in hand. The former made alcohol illegal, and the latter repealed the former. Easy peasy. Let’s do shots! The 19th Amendment let women vote, which was difficult to ratify considering that only men were voting. The campaign against institutional sexism continues! The 22nd Amendment set a two-term limit for presidents. It was approved by Congress in 1947 and ratified in 1951 after Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd president, held office from 1933 until his death in 1945, winning four presidential elections. The 23rd Amendment gave Washington, D.C. the rights to three electoral votes in presidential elections. The 24th Amendment says you can’t tax people to vote. The 25th Amendment outlines the process of the vice president assuming the office of president in the case of the president’s death, resignation or removal from office. The 26th Amendment allows people to vote beginning at age 18. The 27th Amendment says if pay rates for Congress members change, the new rate won’t go into effect until after the next election.
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AMERICA THE EMPIRE MARENA RIGGAN
While the British Empire is permanently in the background of Western imperialism, the United States has never admitted to such a legacy. This is not to say it has nothing to own up to—unless you’re Bruce Gilley, of course—whether that be involvement in Native genocides and land grabs, the transatlantic slave trade, Japanese internment, the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombings, radioactive testing in the Marshall Islands or any other morally decrepit decision. And while it’s not a recent occurrence, the U.S. has come into its role as a modern empire. Perhaps the most obvious and least discussed example of this is America’s 14 colonial possessions, five of which are inhabited: Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands. With the exception of Samoa, the people in these territories are U.S. citizens; additionally, they are only allowed to vote in the primary presidential elections. Each territory has a non-voting member in the House of Representatives and no representation in the Senate. They’re also upheld to different tax structures in which they’re treated as a foreign source rather than domestic. In addition to taxation without representation—ironically, the reason the original 13 colonies revolted and became the U.S.—the very idea of territories was intended to be temporary, defined as either incorporated, meaning on track to become a state, or unincorporated. While the oldest territories, Puerto Rico and Guam, have been under the U.S. political structure since 1898, all five inhabited territories are unincorporated, which begs wondering if their final status is simply to exist in a colonial limbo. A peculiar aspect of the U.S. empire is exporting its socio-political endeavors in an effort to exert control when the initiatives fail at home, such as the Mexico City policy. Commonly referred to as the Global Gag Rule and sometimes shortened to GGR, the policy restricts foreign NGOs from U.S. funding not only if they provide abortions but even if they advocate, counsel or provide referrals for them. Since its inception in 1973, the same year Roe v. Wade mandated abortion to be legal in the U.S., presidential administrations have gone back and forth rescinding and reinstating the GGR. While former President Barack Obama overturned the GGR early in his first term, President Donald Trump re-im-
A FAMILY IN PUERTO RICO STANDS BESIDE A BUILDING DAMAGED IN HURRICANE MARIA. PHOTO COURTESY U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION posed the rule three days into his term. The Center for Health and Gender Equality estimate the impact of his version of the rule will contribute to 6.5 million unintended pregnancies, over 2 million unsafe abortions and almost 22,000 maternal deaths worldwide.
AMERICA’S MODERN-DAY CRUSADES
America’s global influence stems from more than just its political arm. U.S. evangelicals have exported their desired policies elsewhere, most notably to Uganda. According to Vox, the Christian anti-LGBTQ+ organization Exodus International was invited to speak to an audience of Ugandan lawmakers at a 2009 conference, “Seminar on Exposing the Homosexuals.” Shortly after, the notorious “Kill the Gays” Bill was introduced to Parliament and passed in 2013 under its new name, “The Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Act.”
U.S. ARMY OFFICIALS IN A SMALL HELICOPTER CONVOY LAND IN PUERTO RICO SHORTLY AFTER HURRICANE MARIA. PHOTO COURTESY DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Zimbabwe, Kenya and Nigeria have a similar history with U.S. evangelicals. According to The Nation, the Christian law firm American Center for Law and Justice has had Zimbabwean and Nigerian off shoots since 2010, which have expressly designed to train lawyers and promote constitutional amendments with clear pro-Christian, anti-LGBTQ+ agendas.
U.S. MILITARY AND ‘HUMANITARIAN INTERVENTION’
While these foreign interjections may fly under the radar, America’s military prowess is hard to deny even for the most agnostic. According to the Stockholm International Peace Institute, the U.S. spent $610 billion in 2017 on its military— more than China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, India, France, the United Kingdom and Japan combined. And out of the world’s 15,000 nuclear warheads, America’s 6,800 are topped only by Russia’s 7,000. (Cut to Trump v. Putin bigger dick contest.) The United Nations’ Responsibility to Protect is intended to encourage the international community to respond appropriately against humanitarian crimes; however, as Noam Chomsky pointed out in his lecture “Human Rights in the New Millenium,” the Evans Report goes well beyond by allowing NATO to declare for itself its own jurisdictions when responding militarily. Worldwide, the U.S. has over 800 bases in more than 70 countries, and there may be more undisclosed locations. And while U.S. military personel are stationed accordingly, the use of drone strikes may be even more worrisome. The Council on Foreign Relations has tracked the 542 drone strikes under former President Obama’s two terms, as well as the number of civilians killed in each in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia—3,797 total. Additionally, The Intercept reported since 2011, Libya has experienced 550 drone strikes. Like the empires that have come before, the modern U.S. empire continues to assert its influence globally. Whether it’s military imposition and Western, pro-Christian influences in developing nations or pushing anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ+ agendas, the U.S marches forward, continuing to expand its power and reach, but to what end?
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MICHAEL MOORE’S ‘WHERE TO INVADE NEXT’ IS PRO-AMERICA AS FUCK
COURTESY OF MICHAELMOORE.COM MATTHEW ANDREWS This article contains spoilers for the film Where to Invade Next. You’ve probably already made up your mind about Michael Moore. You’ve seen him on the news with a megaphone and on the internet begging you to vote. You may have even shared clips from Bowling for Columbine or Fahrenheit 9/11. But even if you’ve seen Roger & Me and Canadian Bacon, I’m betting you haven’t watched his latest full-length documentary (setting aside the one-off solo show TrumpLand) Where to Invade Next, but you totally should because it’s pro-America as fuck. The thing about filmmakers with any sort of extra-cinematic identity is their reputation can obscure their craft (e.g. Spike Lee). We’re also up against the vanishing center of United States culture: Everything has to be super-right or super-left, and the extremes are always the loudest. So Moore often gets painted as this slovenly hypocrite who hates the U.S. and rakes in millions making Marxist propaganda. Or even if we like the ideas, we still don’t care much about the man—or his films. That’s a damn shame because he’s a pretty good filmmaker. I’ve seen about half his movies now, having binged them recently after decades of dismissing him. They’re funny, charming, far from extreme, and they’re absolutely as pro-America as Mark Twain. Moore’s corny and earnest on-screen persona fits right in with the other gadflies, and although he definitely has a perspective he wants to sell you on, he backs everything
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up with verifiable facts. Go check out Moore’s website and see for yourself: Each movie’s homepage has a facts section sporting a bunch of links to independent sources. Where To Invade Next has such a section—98 items long. This is largely due to the film’s breadth, both geographically and ideologically. The movie follows Moore around the world (well, mostly Europe) as he investigates how they do things, cheekily planting the U.S. flag and stealing all their good ideas. He discovers (as he intends to, of course) they do a lot of things differently from how we do them here. He spends the movie going around talking to workers, students, politicians, prisoners and so on, asking them about their lives and how things work for them. It turns out many hip socio-political ideas—universal health care, decriminalized drugs, free education, workers’ and women’s rights— have been tried in the countries Moore visits. In some cases, they’ve been trying them for decades, and the results appear to be positive. A pre-fame Bernie even makes a cameo with Moore goggling over the audacity of being an openly socialist U.S. senator. The funniest thing about Where to Invade Next is the running punchline: When Moore asks where these sweet ideas came from, people keep telling him, “We got it from you guys!” This is especially striking when he talks to Olafur Hauksson, the Icelandic police-chief-turned-special-prosecutor who went after—and convicted—several high-profile
bankers suspected of financial wrongdoing. Hauksson points Moore to Bill Black, who played a central role in the 1980s savings and loan crisis, and credits Black with inspiring his own investigations. Moore ends at the Berlin Wall Memorial, and from its historic fall derives a metaphor about persistence and resistance: the image of the ordinary people who tackled the Iron Curtain’s concrete embodiment with ordinary hammers and chisels. The wall came down due to a large number of factors, but Moore wants to sell us on the idea that every little bit matters. Call it the drop in the ocean mindset. This part of the film spawned an award series, Hammer & Chisel, honoring individuals who take social justice into their own hands. These include such crusaders as a single father and cook turned union organizer, a former elementary school kitchen manager who became a food security activist after getting fired for giving lunches to students without money, the Seattle-based founder of #shoutyourabortion, a Massachusetts police chief who took a more practical and people-friendly approach to drug offences, and all manner of relatively small-scale activists—people who are mad as hell and aren’t going to take this any more. And that attitude is what drives change. It’s the attitude that started this country in the first place, and it’s why Where to Invade Next is pro-America as fuck.
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD REGISTER TO VOTE DAVID GILLESPIE The primary elections this past May saw the lowest voter turnout since 1970 (or nineteen-GODDAMN-seventy, in layman’s terms). That’s right. A generation of college students who were dropping enough acid to permanently disable the world’s population of elephants managed to vote more than you did. Granted, you managed to give more credence to your civic duties than a handful of states such as West Virginia, which had a 26 percent voter turnout, Ohio with 20 percent and North Carolina with 14 percent, but those poor bastards don’t have the chance to mail in their ballots like you do, so what’s your excuse? Can’t find a mailbox? Go find a friggin’ map at mailboxmap.com. Jokes aside, though, I feel like a lack of knowledge regarding mailbox location isn’t the issue here. I mean, if you sent your ballot, you would have filled it out and sent it in, right? (We are going to assume for the purposes of this article and maintaining my sanity the answer to that question is yes.) “Exactly, Davy. I would have, but I didn’t get one!” you say. “What gives?” you ask. Well, if I were a gambling man, I’d wager you aren’t even registered to vote based on the fact the 2016 census showed 45 percent of citizens between 18–24 years old either confirmed they were not registered, did not know whether they were registered (so, that’s a no) or refused to answer the question (also a no). If you are not registered or are not sure if you’re registered, go to vote.gov and let the supple hand of bureaucracy guide you through the process. If your state of residence is Oregon, then your lucky ass will be able to do the whole thing online. If you are an out-of-state student,
then things are admittedly a little more tricky. However, come election time this November, it’s likely you will be able to submit what is called an absentee vote. To find out what you need to do for that, take a quick peek at www.vote.org/ absentee-voting-rules/. If I seem to be coming off with a hint of frustration, I hope you can understand why. Portland is a beautiful city filled with youthful rebellion and activism. Us Portlanders are always first in line to take to the streets to advocate for what we think is right via protests, rallies, vigils, occupations; you name it. However, the fact remains one of the most impactful things you can do in order to voice
your opinion is to vote. It’s boring, it’s bland and it’s dry, but the impact it has is unarguable. Not sinking in? Consider this: 75 percent of United States citizens ages 45–64 are registered to vote and 70 percent of them actually vote when the time comes. So when you look around and see politicians who seem disconnected from your generation, laws that seem needlessly archaic and an orange dumpster-fire sitting in the Oval Office, now you know why. The Baby Boomers are voting, and you aren’t. What are you going to do about it?
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VEGANIZING THE FOURTH
YOUR GUIDE TO PLANT-BASED SURVIVAL THIS HOLIDAY KATHARINE PIWONKA
A whole day of burgers on the grill, red white and blue dairy delight and friends and family assuming you can only eat salad can be a difficult day to be vegan. However, the Fourth of July is actually the perfect opportunity to show off how fun and easy veganism can be. With a bit of friendly humor, salty and savory seitan or vegan take-out perfection, the holiday can easily be veganized.
THE VEGAN CHEF
Outshine meat and dairy dishes by bringing your own tasty alternatives. Keep it potluck style so everyone can have a bite and later swoon over the recipe, as it’s always the best when people don’t realize they’re eating something vegan. Great sites for vegan main dish recipes are Well Vegan and Minimalist Baker, both of which keep things simple and quick in the kitchen. For starter dishes, chickpea salad and a spinach artichoke dip are safe bets. During the main course, I like to stick to the classics by replacing meat-centered dishes with veganized burgers. My favorite recipes this year are pulled pork sandwiches and smoky black bean burgers. Desserts for vegans can be tricky, but strawberry shortcake is always a crowd favorite. For those feeling adventurous, you can try making Fourth of July themed vegan jello shots.
THE BUSY VEGAN
If you don’t have time to make a smashing showstopper vegan dish, never fear: Grocery stores with vegan alternatives are near. Nowadays, there are a bounty of vegan products good enough to take the place of any store-bought meat or dairy. Fourth of July is the perfect time to try out the revolutionary Beyond and Impossible Burgers. For non-dairy cheeses, creams and spreads, steer clear of the infamous Daiya and try Field Roast, Kite Hill or Mykonos. If you’re still hungry for dessert, I would recommend Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey non-dairy ice cream—it’s by far the best. Let’s say you really don’t want to be in the kitchen at all this Fourth. Don’t give up—go out. Portland is filled with vegan restaurants and eateries that happily cater to your food festivity needs. Virtuous Pie, Paradox, Homegrown Smoker, No Bones Beach Bar and Black Water will all be open this year on the Fourth to curb all cravings. Insider Tip: Petunia’s Pies & Pastries will be cooking up batches of red, white and blue baby cakes and sugar cookies for Fourth of July this year.
THE VEGAN WITH SKEPTICAL FAMILY AND FRIENDS
This goes out to everyone who has ever been asked where they get their protein. I feel you. It’s always hard at social gatherings to be vegan when you’re outnumbered. My advice: Veganism is awesome, and you can own that. It may not be the time to get political, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with telling people how incredible being vegan is. At the end of the day, keep the Fourth of July festivities positive and fun. Eat good food, share with others, celebrate the good happening in your communities and be proud to be living a vegan lifestyle on your terms.
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JENNY VU
HOSTING A BACKYARD OLYMPICS SUMMER GAMES FOR EVERYONE
SAVANNAH QUARUM NADA SEWIDAN Summer is a great time for outdoor games and activities, from the classic Slip ‘N Slide and tug of war to Twister and a water balloon toss. These games can also make for an exciting backyard olympics. Here is a list of summer games—play them separately or combine them for a backyard competition. When opting for the backyard olympics approach, plan in advance and make DIY team t-shirts.
BACKYARD OLYMPICS HOW TO START
Find a wide space such as a backyard or a less frequented public park. Divide into teams; the more people, the more fun. This is best done in four teams of two, but can reach up to four teams of four, unless there’s more space; in that case, the team possibilities are endless. Once teams have been picked, decide on a team name and write each team name on a large board, either a poster board or whiteboard. Make sure to plan out a prize for the winning team; for example, making the other teams follow through with a dare.
THE RULES
There are four games total, and each game is played at least once by all team members. The competition is divided into two teams of two who will face off against each other. The winner of the first set and second set will play the game again to determine a final winner for games one through four. Don’t forget to assign a referee! Whichever team wins the final face-off for game one will be
recorded on the board. Repeat rules for games two, three and four. Whichever team wins the most games at the end, wins the backyard olympics.
For example: Set 1: Team 1 vs Team 2 Set 2: Team 3 vs Team 4 Final Round for Game 1: Winner of set one vs. winner of set two The winner from the first set will compete with the winner from the second set to determine a final game winner.
THE GAMES
For the competition, there will be four games total. The ones chosen here can be subbed for whichever backyard game desired. Game 1: Tug of war This is a classic and extremely fun game. For this purpose, the tug of war is going to be specifically one-on-one. Take a long rope, preferably thick, and lay it on the ground in a straight line. Each member from each team will compete against an opposing member. The end goal is to get a majority of the rope on one side. Tally up how many members won from each team within each set. The winners from the first set and second set will move forward to the next round of game one. Game 2: Relay race Choose an appropriate distance for the relay. Once distance has been assigned, fill two cups of water to the brim. The goal is to
walk as fast as possible without spilling any water. Each member will pass off their water cup to the next member on the team. Whoever reaches the finish line fastest without spilling their water wins. The cup has to be three-fourths of the way full in order to remain qualified. The relay team who wins in their set will move to the next round of game two. Game 3: Paint balloon dodgeball Fill each balloon with whichever paint color preferred. For this game, each team will have a total of 10 balloons. The goal of the game is to dodge the incoming paint balloons. The team with the least paint on them will move on to the next round of game three. Safety note: Only throw the balloons below the head. Game 4: Twister This is another one-on-one game. Each member will compete against the opposing members in their set. Spread the mat on the grass and have the assigned referee spin and call out the combination. The goal is not to fall. The first to fall or place their elbow or knee on the mat loses. Keep track of how many team members in each team win within their set. The winning team from each set will move on to compete in the final round of game four. Tally up which team won the most games. The winning team is then to be awarded with a prize.
TIE BREAKER
In case of a tie, the referee will choose which game the tied teams will play. Each team will pick one member to compete for the final win.
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MARINKA VAN DE KAMP & GRACE GIORDANO
ARTS & CULTURE
THE UNSINKABLE AZEALIA BANKS WHY WITCHES DON’T DROWN ANDREW JANKOWSKI Azealia Banks is essentially the rap industry’s Courtney Love: too loud, too visible, too aggressive and too smart. Like Love, if Banks isn’t working with the right crew, the public gets less of the art and more of the spectacle. Both artists are famous for their online personas: Love was among the first people banned from a website, and Banks—well, Banks is as famous for her online arguments as she is for her music. In numerous arenas, Banks is ahead of her time, earlier than most will acknowledge and messier than most will let her forget. Due in part to her Twitter beefs and seriously misguided endorsement of Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy in 2016, Banks has received an underwhelming response to her recent releases over the last couple years: her acting debut in the RZAdirected movie Love Beats Rhymes (2017), the supremely underrated Slay-Z EP and the “Soda” music video—a single from Banks’ 2016 album Broke With Expensive Taste, which led her to cut ties with Interscope Records in 2013. In 2018 Banks released the hit new single “Anna Wintour.” Born as a remix of her 2015 single “Ice Princess,” “Anna Wintour” blends house, rap and screamo to express feeling in love and finding God. The lyric video uses Josie and the Pussycats aesthetics, and the music video features Banks dancing in an empty warehouse and industrial park in a crisp blue-jeans-white-shirt silhouette, at times referencing her meme-famous Coachella 2015 performance of “Yung Rapunxel.” Simultaneously, Banks sparked controversy over remarks about entertainers Cardi B and RuPaul. Cardi B briefly quit Instagram over Banks’ Breakfast Club interview, where she called Cardi B a caricature of a Black woman after having insulted her online in the past. What most won’t acknowledge is that Banks was not trying to court controversy when asked her opinion on Cardi B, or how aware Banks is that most articles about her work will contain a tit-for-tat update on her online opinions. Banks then accused RuPaul of plagiarizing her 2016 single “The Big Big Beat” with an over-aggressive, unauthorized sample in his 2017 single “Call Me Mother.” It is worth noting, though, that “The Big Big Beat” takes its beat from An Expresso’s 2014 song “I Wish A Muthafucka Would,” which sampled Notorious B.I.G. While RuPaul has said little about Banks or her claims, he’s allowed contestants from VH1’s RuPaul’s Drag Race to wage a proxy war through music and gay media outlets. Billboard ran several stories about Drag Race alumni responding to Banks, while simultaneously declaring “Anna Wintour” one of the top songs of summer 2018. VH1 echoed the Billboard stories. The blogs for hookup apps like Hornet and Grindr also weighed in. Banks’ primary, verified Twitter account was permanently banned after numerous controversies, and was briefly banned from the account for her Cheapyxo cosmetic line, which she founded during her so-called blacklist period. She can still be found on Instagram, however, promoting Cheapyxo, “Anna Wintour” and her long-teased Fantasea II EP, which is set to release Friday, July 13. Banks recently announced on Instagram she is working with Grimes (currently dating Elon Musk), and begged Marilyn Manson to let her pee on him, in part because “he only abuses white women.” Banks is never afforded the same “separate the artist from the art” bullshit argument made to preserve problematic, straight male artists who fall anywhere on the spectrum from H. P. Lovecraft to XXXTentacion. Aaron Carter, who also messily endorsed Trump for attention at the same time
COURTESY OF CREATIVE COMMONS as Banks, was allowed back into the fold after an apologyslash-coming out tour. This is not an argument to downplay times when Banks has been hurtful, racist or homophobic. It’s just that men are allowed to get away with far worse far more often, which stems from numerous cultural expectations that frame women as responsible for reflecting a society’s morality. Music and fashion influencers seek ways to divorce Banks from her aesthetics. This is seen in Banks’ early music videos that have been visually mimicked by pop singers with bigger budgets, or by observing how fashion houses have found ways to use her music without paying her. Imitation is no form of flattery to Banks, and it’s a small wonder how she keeps it together as much as she often does. While Banks is known for being messy in regards to public controversy, she’s definitely not known to be a liar. Her wellpublicized allegations of abuse at the hands of the actor Russell
Crowe and Coldplay’s manager Dave Holmes were initially denied by associates and witnesses, leaving Banks no other option but to drop charges. However, RZA, who previously contradicted Banks’ claims, casually changed course and verified Banks’ version of events. Ultimately, even in the global wake of #metoo, neither case resulted in any consequences for either man. Banks has now taken it on herself to raise funds to sue Crowe over his alleged violence against her. Similarly with fans of Courtney Love, worshipping at Azealia Banks’ altar is a difficult practice, even for the devoted. But for every media frenzy (like that time Banks declared Lorde is not the next Fiona Apple), a previously-unobserved facet of her triple-threat artistry is revealed. Banks might not have invented the current emo nostalgia wave, but who else was going to give us “Anna Wintour”’s truly iconic, screamo-inspired second verse? Pop media keeps trying to drown Azealia Banks, but they forget she’s a witch—and witches don’t drown.
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INTERNATIONAL
THIS WEEK June 26
June 27–29
The first trials in connection with a decades-long infant trafficking scheme have begun, starting with the now 85-year-old doctor Eduardo Vela. Vela, who is believed to have played a critical role, was a doctor at the San Ramón clinic at the time of the suspected trafficking crimes that occurred between 1961 and 1981. Around 1,500 cases have been reported in Spain; however, according to the Los Angeles Times, an estimated 300,000 babies could have been stolen.
The fourth International Quidditch World Cup began in Florence with a match between Italy and Australia. This year, 29 teams are set to participate, including Catalonia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Turkey, and the tournament will run until July 2.
Spain
around the
Italy
Amid anti-Roma comments from Italy’s farright Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, authorities dispersed a Roma camp in the capital city, destroying the makeshift homes that previously provided shelter for an estimated 450 people, half of whom were children. A communications officer for the European Roma Rights Centre reported the government has been evicting Roma for years.
WORLD
June 26
Syria Fighting intensified in the southern province of Dara’a, which lies near the Syrian Golan Heights and the Jordanian border. According to an activist quoted by Al Jazeera, the province experienced “at least 200 airstrikes and 150 barrel bombs” amid escalating clashes between progovernment and rebel forces. Over 45,000 people have fled the area for Jordan while hundreds have fled to the Golan Heights.
June 28
Iraq
At least 300 people currently on death row due to their connection with the former unrecognized proto-state ISIL were ordered to be executed immediately by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. Around 100 foreign-born women were included in the sentence.
June 28
Ukraine A funeral was held in the city of Serne for David Popp, 24, of a June 23 attack against a Roma camp. Europe’s Roma communities are a historically targeted and marginalized population, and the attack is believed to be the work of a suspected far-right nationalist gang, Al Jazeera reported. In addition to Popp, the masked attackers also injured four others in the camp including a 10-yearold boy. Police detained seven suspects between the ages of 16–20 who will face a maximum of 15 years in prison if convicted.
June 25–28
Israel-Palestinian Territories
June 26
Sudan June 25
Plateau State, Nigeria The Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris deployed the Police Special Intervention Force in response to a surge of killings over the weekend which left 86 dead including women and children. The Plateau State is a region where farmers and seminomadic people have a history of tension, Al Jazeera reported the Special Intervention Force has been deployed to restore peace and find the perpetrators of the attacks
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The death penalty for Noura Hussein, a woman convicted of murdering her husband, has been overturned amid celebration from Amnesty International and members of the #JusticeForNoura campaign. In 2014, Hussein’s parents forced her into marriage at 16 years old, after which she was raped by her husband as family members held her down. Hussein later stabbed her husband to death with a knife after he attempted to rape her a second time. In lieu of the death penalty, the court gave her a fiveyear jail term.
June 26–27
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia After decades of conflict between the two countries, an Eritrean delegation arrived June 26 in the Ethiopian capital following peace agreements earlier in June. The delegation was received by Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and led by Eritrea’s Foreign Minister Osman Saleh and included Head of Political Affairs and Presidential Advisor Yemane Gebreab. Ahmed announced the following day flights to Eritrea could recommence. Ethiopian Airlines has not had an Eritrean destination since 1998.
Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, landed June 25 in Tel Aviv on a historic visit to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The trip marks the first time a member of the royal family has traveled to the region since the British Mandate ended in 1948. The three-day trip included a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sarah as well as visits to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial and Occupied East Jerusalem, among other places.
INTERNATIONAL
June 24–July 1 June 26
Washington, D.C. In a 5-4 decision, the United States Supreme Court decided to uphold the Trump Administration’s travel ban, commonly known as the “Muslim Ban” due to its targeting of mainly Muslimmajority countries. The ban prohibits entry to the U.S. from Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and Venezuela.
June 25
Gansu, China A video went viral depicting the suicide of 19-year-old student surnamed Li who jumped to her death on June 20 as onlookers jeered and encouraged her to “jump already.” Li had been sitting at the top of the building for several hours and was even accompanied by a firefighter holding her hands when she jumped from the building. A letter she addressed to Gansu Qingyang People’s Court depicted an incident of sexual abuse by her high school teacher, Wu Yonghou, when she was 16. Though she reported Wu to her school and local authorities, he was never charged or reprimanded, Sixth Tone reported. The video was uploaded to the Chinese site Weibo but has since been removed.
June 27
Indonesia More than 150 million people turned out to the polls to choose governors in half of the country’s 34 provinces. The province of Bandung elected Ridwan Kamil, an architect renowned for his urban renewal services. Khofifah Indar Parawansa, a cabinet member of former President Joko Widodo, won the governor’s seat in East Java while the people of South Sulawesi elected the candidate pair Nurdin Abdullah and Andi Sudirman Sulaiman.
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KAILYN NEIDETCHER
JENNY VU
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PSU Vanguard • JULY, 3 2018 • psuvanguard.com
Matthew Andrews
JULY 3–6 COMMUNITY
FILM & THEATER
ART
MUSIC
STAVVY IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST FUNHOUSE LOUNGE 10 P.M. • $15 A second show had to be added to accommodate the myriad fans comedian and Cum Town cohost Stavros Halkias apparently has in Portland. Google his #AmberRoseChallenge photo!
THREE CENTURIES: CLASSICAL, ROMANTIC & MODERN LINCOLN PERFORMANCE HALL 175 7 P.M. • $10–60 • ALL AGES Pianist Gilles Vonsattel, the Imani Winds, the Dover Quartet, the Kenari Quartet, and others perform classical music by Mozart, J.P. Redmond and George Enescu.
THU JULY 5
THE MAGICIAN (1958) 7 P.M. • $5–9 • ALL AGES Ingmar Bergman regulars Max Von Sydow and Ingrid Thulin bring their traveling medicine magic show to a skeptical Swedish town. Bergmany hijinks ensue. Part of NWFC’s Bergman Centenary Celebration.
ARTIST TALK: ALIA ALI BLUE SKY GALLERY 11 A.M.–5 P.M. • FREE Multimedia artist Alia Ali discusses her exhibit BORDERLANDS, which runs at Blue Sky throughout July. Ali will also present two workshops at Blue Sky on July 7, at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. (online registration required).
FINDING SOUL: A CONSTELLATION OF STORIES COHO THEATER 7:30 P.M. • $20 As CoHo’s Summerfest enters its second week, a trio of local dance artists present a collection of “soul story” multimedia dance narratives. Runs through July 8.
FRI JULY 6
MATILDA (1995) | THE SANDLOT (1993) 5TH AVENUE CINEMA 7 P.M. • $4–5 (FREE W/ PSU ID) Portland State’s student run movie theater kicks off its summer season with a couple of ‘90s kids flicks. See Vanguard’s review on page 6. Also screens Saturday and Sunday.
THE TRAGEDIE OF OTHELLO LENTS PARK 7 P.M. • FREE • ALL AGES Original Practice Shakespeare does the one Laurence Fishburne was in.
VERY NEW@NOON LINCOLN RECITAL HALL 75 NOON • $10–15 • ALL AGES CMNW artists perform works by Mark Abel, Valerie Coleman, Nokuthula Ngwenyama, and J.P. Redmond. Coleman and Ngwenyama also perform on flute and viola.
ANDREW ENDRES COLLECTIVE LIVING ROOM THEATERS 8 P.M.– MIDNIGHT • FREE PSU alum Andrew Endres brings his guitar and his local modern jazz collective to the Living Room Theaters lounge.
SAT JULY 7
NORTHWEST FILM CENTER STUDENT SCREENING WHITSELL AUDITORIUM 4 P.M. • FREE • ALL AGES NWFC isn’t just a great cinephile organization: It’s also a film school! Spring students present their films and scripts, with a reception afterward so you can meet the auteurs.
SAWDUST AND TINSEL (1953) WHITSELL AUDITORIUM 7 P.M. • $5–9 • ALL AGES An earlier Bergman film about a circus owner and the psychological power games surrounding him. Screens again Sunday July 8 as part of NWFC’s Bergman Centenary Celebration.
THE TRAGEDIE OF ROMEO & JULIET ELSIE STUHR CENTER 6 P.M. • FREE • ALL AGES Original Practice Shakespeare does the one you had to read in high school.
JONATHAN SMITH TRIO LIVING ROOM THEATERS 8 P.M.– MIDNIGHT • FREE Guitarist Jonathan Smith is joined by organist Steve Hall and drummer David Burrow, still rocking the vibrant bar-jazz vibe.
SUN JULY 8
THE SILENCE (1963) WHITSELL AUDITORIUM 7 P.M. • $5–9 • ALL AGES Bergman’s erotic tale of conjoined sisters travelling through Europe. The phrase “sexual frankness” follows this movie around like a strong perfume, so prudes beware. Also screens July 6.
EVIL DEAD: THE MUSICAL FUNHOUSE LOUNGE 2 P.M. • $18–100 Please note that Splash Zone seats include a complimentary poncho. Evening performances Thursday– Saturday.
A MIDSOMMER NIGHTS DREAME GATEWAY DISCOVERY PARK 2 P.M. • FREE • ALL AGES Original Practice Shakespeare does the one with all the faeries and actors.
SOUNDS FROM 20TH-CENTURY AMERICA LINCOLN PERFORMANCE HALL 175 4 P.M. • $10–60 • ALL AGES Contemporary jazz-classical music composed and arranged by living composers. Featuring Imani Winds and the Harlem Quartet.
MON JULY 9
SELENA (1997) HOLLYWOOD THEATRE 7:30 P.M. • $7–9 Ya sabe que quiere mirar pero you just needed to be reminded it was happening, ¿verdad? Part of Hollywood’s Ollin: Social Justice Film Series.
BEYOND THE ONE (2017) | FOYER (2016) WHITSELL AUDITORIUM 7 P.M. • FREE • ALL AGES One short Italian film, one shorter French-Tunisian film—both recent and experimental and probably super engrossing—screen together as part of NWFC’s Case of the Mondays series.
FARNELL NEWTON & THE OTHERSHIP CONNECTION SELLWOOD RIVERFRONT PARK 6:30 P.M. • FREE • ALL AGES This is what trumpeter Farnell Newton does when he’s not touring with Jill Scott and Bootsy Collins. Part of Sellwood’s Concerts in the Park series.
TUES JULY 3
KARATE COP (1991) HOLLYWOOD THEATRE 7:30 P.M. • $7–9 Go watch the last cop on Earth kick some more ass in the 1991 sequel to 1990’s Omega Cop. Part of Hollywood’s B-Movie Bingo series.
WED JULY 4 PSU Vanguard • JULY, 3 2018 • psuvanguard.com
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Viking Voices is an open platform, rolling submission op-ed column open to all students, faculty, staff and alumni of Portland State. Please provide your name and major or affiliation with PSU. No submissions over 600 words. Submissions are voluntary, unpaid and not guaranteed to be published. All submissions will be reviewed and selected by the Vanguard Opinion Editor.
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