I don’t know that Portland has ever had more attention.
Nationally, locally, with opinions bandied about like confetti, sensationalized media coverage alongside anxious and earnest attempts to show the good.
I’ll set politics aside here and try to focus simply on the optics and opinions that are everywhere, either fueled by a locals’ love for this city or outsiders’ fearful witnessing of limited perspectives. It can be academic, neutral, fact based rather than so charged, and maybe point us to a better foundation for how we resolve both the challenges Portland faces as well as our differences.
And I’ll fly my Elvis Costello banner high: ‘What’s so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?’
We all seem so desperate to back our beliefs, whether that is that Portland is a War Zone, sorely in need of Federal assistance to right the wrongs of our city, or that Portland is a peaceful, beautiful place to live, and wishing to be left to independently continue addressing our challenges. It seems to me we’re all looking at this in a very polarized way.
Can it be possible that Portland is:
- A place with liberal viewpoints
- A place with conservative viewpoints
- A place with churches and places of worship for all faiths
- A place where one can be free to not worship
- A medium sized, growing city with homeless and crime ratios similar to other cities this size and density
- A city with gorgeous parks and public spaces as well as places you wouldn’t stroll at night
- Areas that are Instagrammable and areas that show you the raw side of humanity that happens nationally? Drug use and mental health issues, homelessness and heartbreak
- A city with a personality that can be shown as somewhat of a caricature of itself: craft beer, vegans, bicycle culture, hipsters and non conformity, but also has what any other city has: families of all shapes and sizes and cultures, communities ‘Bike Bus’ to school — a tolerant attitude, thriving small businesses, businesses facing challenges that all businesses face; industry, tourism, students, sports fans, incredible restaurants, tree lined streets with tennis clubs, the arts; varied and historic to modern housing inventory
It’s easy, and understandable to pick a point of view and dig in, to align to one way of thinking or another. Almost lazy, really, to stop honestly looking at what’s in front of us, and just wholesale malign or praise it.
I’m all for waking up to the possibility that there’s little to gain from being so opposed, so offended, so angry. There’s much to be awake for, to earnestly work toward, to be accountable to, I am going to spend my time on that.
