Social Justice

Here’s some news you’ll definitely want to take sitting down: Tuesday is World Toilet Day. We’re sure you’re already on the edge of your seat. If you can handle it, KLCC’s Brian Bull plunges into issues raised by local toilet advocates on this solid occasion. 

The U.S. Department of Justice is awarding $273 million to 149 tribes, including several in Oregon.  As KLCC’s Brian Bull reports, it’s to help improve public safety.

Greenhill Humane society says –“it’s kitten and bunny season.”- and that means hundreds more vulnerable animals will need care.  The agency is hosting a foster recruitment event in Springfield on Saturday from 1:30-3:00 pm.

The 41st annual Take Back the Night rally will be held this Thursday at the University of Oregon.

In Eugene, over 300 hundred marchers came out to honor the legacy of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. this morning.  The event centered on youth and the responsibility to carry on Dr. King’s teachings.

Nationally, women and supporters marched in solidarity in Washington D.C. and other parts of the country.  An estimated 2,500 people attended the 3rd Annual Women’s March Saturday in Eugene. But things got off to a rocky start when one of the speakers at the rally used what some called "divisive" language.

Friday, dozens of people wound through the rainy streets of Eugene for an Indigenous Peoples March, one of 16 organized across North America. 

The Third Annual Women’s March is set for this Saturday in Eugene. The route will be identical to years’ past, but there will be a few changes in the focus of the event.

The deadline for people to move out of the temporary homeless camp on Highway 99 has been extended to Wednesday at dusk.

Transient and unhoused people camping at a Lane County owned gravel lot on Highway 99 will have to vacate this week (Monday/Tuesday.) Campers have the option to sign up for a bed at an established site run by Saint Vincent de Paul nearby. In advance of the eviction, KLCC’s Tiffany Eckert visits the site known as Camp 99.

A Eugene community theater actor who allegedly cyber-harassed a black student leader has agreed to an unusual settlement with his victim.

At a special meeting Monday night, the Eugene City Council voted 7 to 1 to expand temporary homeless camping options at sites along Highway 99.

After 46 years in Oregon, Julie Daniel, former director of Bring Recycling in Eugene, will become a U.S. citizen this week. She says she wants to use her new status to help other immigrants who may not have the same resources.

About a dozen tents have re-appeared on a concrete slab of county-owned property in downtown Eugene known as the “Butterfly” lot. Campers are back to protest how the city and county are dealing with homelessness. 

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Eugene federal courthouse tonight to decry President Trump’s firing of now former Attorney General Jeff Sessions. KLCC’s Brian Bull was there.

Over the weekend, volunteers helped move a homeless encampment from the highly visible downtown “Butterfly” lot to another county-owned property off Highway 99 in West Eugene.

Oregon’s legacy of racism - including the prominence of the Ku Klux Klan, as well as resistance against such groups - is the focus of an upcoming publication from the state historical society. As KLCC’s Brian Bull reports, the organization is calling for articles.

Monday was the first day on the job for Claire Hall. The Lincoln County Commissioner has served for 14 years as Bill Hall and has now transitioned to female. 

The history and legacy of the African American community in Eugene dates back to at least the 1890s. Now, there’s an effort to preserve the historic property of one Black family in particular – the Mims.

Two Syrian refugees arrived last night at the Eugene Airport. The women are mother and stepmother to a pair of brothers who already live here.