Our city recently experienced some unacceptable acts of hate that have threatened our community’s safety. On the weekend of August 9, 2021, the behavior of a few demonstrators escalated into violent acts and speech that incited hate and violence towards others. Last Friday, I signed on to a statement of peace with Governor Kate Brown, Metro President Lynn Peterson, and Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury. Together, we denounced hate and violence, bigotry and racism.
We recently held a virtual community leader gathering to denounce hate and violence – to show solidarity for the vision of a healthier, safer, inclusive, and more resilient city. As we have done before, leaders are uniting across differences to make the same call to action – to cast aside politics and declare and reaffirm our shared values for this community.
The virtual event included a performance by the Brown Sisters and powerful speeches from Eric Ward, Executive Director of Western States Center, Amy Spitalnick, Executive Director for Integrity First for America and other Portland community leaders. Watch “Choose Love: A Community Gathering to Denounce Hate and Violence in Portland” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7Dr3q4W7lA
Eric Ward’s Biography
A nationally-recognized expert on the relationship between authoritarian movements, hate violence, and preserving inclusive democracy, Eric brings over 30 years of leadership in community organizing and philanthropy to his roles as Western States Center’s Executive Director and Senior Fellow with Southern Poverty Law Center and Race Forward. Since Eric took the helm in 2017, Western States Center has become a national hub for innovative responses to white nationalism, antisemitism, and structural inequality, towards a world where everyone can live, love, work, and worship free from bigotry and fear. In his 30+ year civil rights career, Eric has worked with community groups, government and business leaders, human rights advocates, and philanthropy as an organizer, director, program officer, consultant, and board member. Currently Co-Chair for The Proteus Fund, Eric is a member of the Pop Culture Collaborative’s Pluralist Visionaries Program and the recipient of the Peabody-Facebook Futures Media Award. Eric is in high demand as a speaker and media source, and is the author of multiple written works credited with key narrative shifts, including “Skin in the Game: How Antisemitism Animates White Nationalism.” He has been quoted in The New Yorker, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, ESPN, NPR, BBC, Rolling Stone and numerous other media outlets, and regularly publishes on Medium and The Oregon Way blog. Eric is working on a forthcoming documentary about whiteness and race in America and is an aspiring singer-songwriter under the name of Bulldog Shadow.
About Western States Center
Western States Center’s mission is to connect and build the power of community organizations; to challenge and transform individuals, organizations and systems to achieve racial, gender and economic justice.
Amy Spitalnick’s Biography
Amy joins IFA with extensive experience in government, politics, and advocacy. She previously served as Communications Director and Senior Policy Advisor to the New York Attorney General; Communications Advisor and spokesperson for the New York City Mayor; and Communications Director in the New York State Senate. She has also worked on a variety of local, state, and federal campaigns and advocacy organizations. Amy frequently appears in national media and has been awarded a number of fellowships and honors, including being named a Women in Power Fellow at the 92nd Street Y, a Truman National Security Project Fellow, and a City & State 40 Under 40 Rising Star. Amy graduated from Tufts University.
About Integrity First for America
Integrity First for America (IFA) is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization dedicated to holding those accountable who threaten longstanding principles of our democracy—including our country's commitment to civil rights and equal justice. It is currently suing the neo-Nazis, white supremacists and hate groups that organized the 2017 violence in Charlottesville.
Let us choose love.