ABOUT THE COVER:
The making of "Backpack Kids" was heavily inspired by true events. I've been displaced most of my childhood, and when my family/friends and I were looking for places to sleep we were called Backpack Kids. The reason we were called Backpack Kids is because we carried everything that we owned in a single backpack and nothing else. I hope that with this illustration I can show other people what it looked like to travel around searching for your next place to sleep. I also want to show the different age ranges that housing displacement can and has affected from my own experience.
-- SAY'YONCE TATE, AGE 16
YOUTH FOR PARKROSE: HOUSING JUSTICE ZINE SUMMER 2021 | LETTER OF WHY?!
In Spring 2021, I led the first Youth for Parkrose (Y4P) cohort on urban planning and policymaking as Historic Parkrose NPI's Mercy Corps NW VISTA in collaboration with Camp Elso, Your Street Your Voice, Parkrose High School, ODOT, and BPS. Y4P consisted of eight 2-hour workshops with 20 Parkrose youth of color. We explored topics such as community placemaking, transportation, housing & anti-displacement, jobs & home-based businesses, and emergency preparedness. The first Y4P cohort revealed the need for more paid and creative opportunities for Parkrose's youth of color where their personal experiences and lived knowledges are valued. The zine's first goal was to attempt to fill this gap and raise more awareness on it. The second goal was confronting the active displacement of underserved households in Parkrose via the zine's five youth of color artists who have experience with unstable housing. Between 2010 and 2019 (*), the percentage of residents part of "communities of color" decreased from 43% to 35% (still higher than Portland, which is 29%). Children under 18 decreased from 25% to 17% of Parkrose's population. Lastly, the median household income increased from $48K to $57K (still lower than Portland's median household income of $71K). As Parkrose becomes less diverse, wealthier, & older, my collaborator Safiyya and I wanted to uplift the feelings and demands of those most affected. We held group discussions with the youth where they called out reasons for displacement in their communities such as rising rent, lack of community spaces, violence, unreasonably small-sized affordable housing, and lack of jobs. The final goal was to encourage investment in Portland's Parkrose district (in or near 99th to 121st on Sandy Blvd) and Parkrose School District. (**) Reynolds School District had the highest percentage of homeless students in Multnomah County for 2018, with nearly 8% of the student body without stable housing. Parkrose followed with nearly 6%. (***) Moreover, as of 2021, Parkrose High School is the most racially and ethnically diverse public high school in Oregon. Since 2019, the pandemic has further shown us how our current systems do not work for historically marginalized communities. These outcomes have especially harmed low-income Parkrose youth of color. We hope that the zine will catch the City's attention to take the next steps and get involved in Parkrose such as following the community on Instagram: @we.are.parkrose and @historicparkrose. You can also donate to Parkrose's McKinney-Vento program (see the last page). Join us now to empower & support Parkrose's youth of color. Love & Rage, LP - lillyanne@historicparkrose.com Sources: (*) Census Bureau's 2019 ACS data (**) www.oregonlive.com/education/2019/11/count-of-homeless-students-in-oregon-increases-2.html (***) www.niche.com/k12/search/most-diverse-public-high-schools/s/oregon/
"It’s really hard to understand or know that you have people around you that care about you and that are actually there to help you out, and you kind of just feel alone in the situation...
Rebecca Loprinzi |Luuwit View Park part 1 | 7/31/21
Age 16
Every day is really difficult because you’re always just thinking: What’s my next meal gonna be? Am I going to be able to eat? Am I going to have a place to stay tonight? Am I going to have to sleep outside and be alone in this situation?...
Rebecca Loprinzi |Luuwit View Park part 2 | 7/31/21
BY SAVVY ALCHEMIST, AGE 16
Rebecca Loprinzi |Luuwit View Park part 3 | 7/31/21
Every thought goes through your mind when you’re having to go through situations like that [being kicked out, having to always move, family issues, domestic violence], and it can be really mind and heartbreaking. It definitely affects your life in a negative way." – Rebecca Loprinzi, Age 18 Zine Workshop Discussion on 7/16/21
BY SAY'YONCE TATE, AGE 16
MEET THE ARTISTS SAVVY ALCHEMIST I am a current student at Parkrose High School, willing to put myself out there and try new things to find my passions. I like going on long walks and hikes, anything that involves the outdoors I find myself gravitating towards. I take a big interest in voicing my opinions and advocating for the things I believe in. SAY'YONCE TATE: CASHAPP $PLUTOPOP & VENMO: @PLUTOPOP My name is Say'Yonce Tate (Seance Tate), I'm a 16-year-old female, and I'm about to be a senior since I got approved to graduate early. I've been creating different types of art with a mix of mediums for a very long time, it's an extreme passion of mine. A big part of my art process is using past experiences and traumas to a creative advantage, as they have made me who I am today. I try my best to turn my experiences into "positive" art pieces and/or raise awareness about certain topics. I take pride in making sure others are content with themselves and know that their experiences can be mutual. As someone who has struggled with many things in the past, and present, I want to make sure that kids and/or people who grew up in stressful/negative situations are heard, and better cared for by society than I was. CECE: CASHAPP $RAEPOGGERS My name is Cece. I'm 16 years old and I'm an upcoming junior. My favorite color is red. I'm so excited that I had a chance to work on this project! Because I’m also someone that grew up in an area like this. I really wanted to do an essay so I can talk about what I feel and talk about how things like this are really like. I hope one day things like this come to a change because I know growing up in areas like this can be a very stressful thing, but it doesn’t make you less different. You’re very strong for doing it! And one goal I have is to try my best to stay out that. Hopefully soon kids will be able to grow up in a more nice and better place.
SHARAE CONEY: CASHAPP $RAEPOGGERS My name is sharae coney. I’m a 16 year old senior who got approved for early graduation recently. I was born apart of a low income bigger sized family. Which means things were always shared privacy isn’t something you got everyday. I am a person who try to see the positive and good in everything, and that is something ill stand by and live by no matter how hard my situation is. I always will thrive to do better for myself no matter what! REBECCA LOPRINZI: CASHAPP $RLOPRINZI My name is Rebecca Loprinzi, I am 18 years old and a senior in high school. A passion of mine is to help others feel they belong in this world. I want to help anyone I possibly can who needs it just as all the people who have done so for me. I want to help the world come to a realization that everyone matters and that everyone deserves a chance to live a good life. SAFIYYA ALGELLAL I started working for Parkrose School District as their McKinney-Vento liaison in 2019. In this role, I am able to work closely with youth and families who’ve been affected by homelessness and housing instability which've helped me gain greater empathy and understanding for all their different struggles. Believing in the imperativeness of fostering a strong community, I seek opportunities to collaborate with different community-serving organizations in the Portland area, including Historic Parkrose. I earned my Bachelor’s in Psychology in 2018 and will be attending Portland State’s MSW program this fall with the hopes of becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the future. LILLYANNE PHAM (LP) I'm a 23-year-old from Columbus, Indiana. I moved to Portland, OR in 2016 to study Sociology at Reed College. After graduating in 2020, I started working with those unsheltered and underserved youth in the Parkrose community through Historic Parkrose (HPR) NPI and Mercy Corps NW. I am passionate about sparking youth's inner makers and leaders. For Fall 2021, I will be a first-year in Portland State University's MFA program for Art and Social Practice, HPR NPI's Youth Program Coordinator, and working on a mural with APANO & Orchards of 82nd.
LOCAL RESOURCES
Janus Youth Programs Phone: (503) 233-6090 Website: www.janusyouth.org/programs/homeless-youth Address:738 NE Davis St, Portland, OR 97232 Hours: Monday-Friday 9am-5pm
Outside In Phone: 503-535-3800 Website: https://outsidein.org/ Address: 1132 SW 13th Ave, Portland, OR 97205
Portland Tenants United Address: 4815 NE 7th Ave, Portland, OR 97211 Alba Collaborative Urgent support for an eviction or Phone: 971-754-4350 (Mon-Fri 10am-6pm) illegal lock out, text PTU at: (503) 461-0369 Crisis line: 503-224-4339 (On-call 24 hrs all year) Email: evictions@pdxtu.org Email: alba@newavenues.org Website: www.pdxtu.org/resources Website: newavenues.org/alba-collaborative Address: 470 SE 165th Ave., Portland, OR 97233 Community Alliance of Tenants (CAT) Drop-in Hours: Mon-Fri 10am-6pm Address: 1320 NE 63rd Ave, Portland, OR 97213 Renter's Rights Hotline: 503-288-0130 Lines for Life (YOUTHLINE) on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Call: 877-968-8491 Saturdays 1-5 PM & Tuesdays 6-8 PM Text: teen2teen to 839863 Email: hotline@oregoncat.org Chat at www.oregonyouthline.org Website: www.oregoncat.org SAFIYYA'S OFFICE AT PARKROSE HIGH SCHOOL - REGION D CONFERENCE ROOM
MCKINNEY-VENTO
What is McKinney-Vento? The McKinney-Vento Act, reauthorized in 2015, under the Every Student Succeeds Act, ensures that students experiencing homelessness have, “...equal access to the same free, appropriate public education, including a public preschool education, as is provided to other children and youth (School House Connection).” If you or your family live in any of You/your children have the right to: the following situations: Enroll in school without giving a permanent In a shelter, motel, vehicle, or address. Schools cannot require proof of campground. residency that might prevent or delay school On the street. enrollment. In an abandoned building, trailer, Receive the same special programs and or other inadequate services, if needed, as provided to all other accommodations children served in these programs. Doubled up with friends or Receive transportation to their school of relatives because you cannot find origin and to school programs. or afford housing. Parkrose School District McKinney-Vento Liaison Contact: Safiyya Algellal | Ph: (503) 408-2692 | Email: safiyya_algellal@parkrose.k12.or.us
NOTE FROM FACILITATOR: I have a lot of love for this community and am proud and grateful to be able to work with such talented and bright students. Parkrose is one of the most culturally diverse neighborhoods in all of Portland, and Parkrose High School is currently the most diverse public school in OR. The varying backgrounds of our students encourage intersectionality that add to the strength of this community, but it is not without its strife. Though not unique to Portland, this city has one of the highest rates of homelessness per its size. Factors such as rent increases, gentrification, mass layoffs, unemployment, unlivable wages, and now a deadly pandemic combined with dangerous climate change are causing even more despair and suffering to a population that is already vulnerable. Our youth deserve so much better than this — we all do. This is an undoubtedly failed system that we cannot continue to accept. It is crucial that we work together in our shared struggles, build solidarity, and improve the unjust conditions of our society. Though my students are resilient, they shouldn’t be pushed into situations where they have to be. —Safiyya If you’d like to donate to the Parkrose McKinney-Vento program, please reach out to Safiyya Algellal (see contact information above).
"Backpack Kids" Cover by Say'Yonce Tate, Age 16 Funded by Regional Arts and Culture Council's Make Learn Build Grant 2021 & Historic Parkrose NPI Supported by Parkrose High School Organized by Parkrose Community Advocates Lead Artist Lillyanne Pham Lead Facilitator Safiyya Algellal