Let’s face it: Occupy Portland (and the greater national movement for that matter) is facing a Public Relations crisis. There are simply too many people unengaged with us while too little word being spread about us as we embark on our 2nd year. And it certainly doesn’t help that the corporate media would falsely label us as “dead”. But with an office space, phone, and 24/7 small-scale “occupation” and vigil at City Hall of 10 months, it’s clear that we have a real, sustaining future for our Portland area citizens. But how could they know?

That is why we are launching a new advertisement campaign to raise awareness ourselves and provide opportunity where none has been before. Our goal is to raise $1,885 (with taxes and fees by Indiegogo, that gives us $1,750) to establish 25 “Michalangelo” ceiling ads inside TriMet buses and MAX lines to last us about 4 weeks.

We believe that riders of public transportation are the perfect target audience to spread the message of Occupy. With the working class, disengaged youth, student, eco-minded and elderly populations all diverging on the same vehicles, we see true untapped potential (or at least sympathy) when we make our presence known to them. We highly anticipate increased traffic of all levels (web, office, General Assembly) through our campaign, as well as maybe some reactions by fellow riders and drivers.

The fun does not stop here: share this campaign far and wide to your friends and family. Connect with us through our main website, check us out at our office at St. Francis Parish, 1131 SE Oak St., Portland, OR 97214, or give us a call at 971-258-1006. Take our online survey by going to tolu.na/Nlr86d And if you have any questions, feel free to email us at info@occupyportland.org.

On Saturday October 6th we will gather at noon in Shemanski park (South Park blocks at Salmon) for a rally and march. Speakers for the rally include Saba Ahmed, Carol Urner, Brian Wilson and Ahjamu Umi, among others. We will also celebrate with music from General Strike, Patchwork Family, Keith Baich, Mo Mack and the Raging Grannies!

Then on Sunday October 7th, there will be teach-ins and workshops conducted at PCC Cascade (North Killingsworth and Albina) starting at noon with a panel discussion by Brian Wilson, Saba Ahmed, Sami Alloy, Steve Goldberg and Ahjamu Umi.

The teach-ins and workshops include:

1:30pm – 3pm:

PCC Peace and Conflict: The Imposition of Order Through Violence: The U.S. in the Muslim World
Freedom Socialist Party: Alternatives to Capitalism and War
KBOO: Peak Oil & Empire
War Resisters League: War Tax Resistance 101
Occupy Portland/People’s Budget Project: Where’s the Money?

3:30pm – 5pm

WILPF: End Wars and Occupations – No Nukes! No Drones!
Radical Women: To Defend Afghan Women, End The War
KBOO: The Surveillance Security State
Cascadia: Cascadia Bioregion/Free Cascadia
AFSC: Non-Violent Conflict Resolution/Building an Anti-war curriculum

Non-perishable food donations will be collected at the PCC Cascade event to benefit Right 2 Dream Too and Sisters of the Road.

Food will be served at the teach-in! So come out to participate in a weekend of actions endorsed and co-sponsored by more than 50 organizations!

https://www.facebook.com/events/276171045822607/

Starting at 5pm, we will be in the park congregating, enjoying some refreshments and engaging in some fun activities. Then from 7-10pm, we will be moving into the dining hall for tabling, door prizes, cake and a performance from The TREE Institute.

The Open House will provide opportunities for the greater community to hear about the successes and challenges that Occupy has faced over the past year, as well as network with community organizations, and learn how to get more involved.  We hope you can join us!

Please contact opdxevents@gmail.com if:

• you are interested in being involved in the planning of the evening
• your group or organization is interested in hosting an information table
• your business or individual creative talents are interested in donating items for a raffle/silent auction
• you have any general questions about the evening

Where: 1900 S.W. 4th Ave #3000

Alicia Jackson, the woman whose home was liberated on May Day, is battling the city once again. She needs help collecting the $413 needed to get her water turned on. The city told her that if she can not demonstrate proof that her gutters are fixed and she has running water, everyone in the house will be evicted. Please help her keep her home. If we all just give a little, we can continue to maintain a roof for a wonderful person.

If you are interested in donating, you can contribute by using the wepay account below, or you can also donate at the event on Thursday.

https://www.wepay.com/donations/95951

https://www.facebook.com/events/362943187113093/

Hope to see everyone out there on Thursday!!

We are calling on our Community to come share your stories, ideas, cooking, art, music, passion and intention to work together to build a more enjoyable world. Sometimes we just need to make time to celebrate what’s possible.

Find us on the web at www.thesymbiosisproject.org

Or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CommunitySupportedEverything

Occupy Portland does it’s bit to raise awareness of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)

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