Portland Mercury

After multiple months of debates and delays, Portland City Council passed a foie gras ban in a 7-5 vote Thursday, June 4. ⁠
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The ordinance prohibits foie gras, or fatty liver that is produced by force-feeding ducks or geese, from being served in restaurants and sold in retail stores within city limits.

Portland electronic duo Visible Cloaks has released a new album, Paradessence, which is full of contradictions—it's synthetic yet nature-informed, prickly yet elegant. That's by design.

Staff writer Lindsay Costello spoke with Visible Cloaks' Spencer Doran about how abstract painting, video game soundscapes, and architectural theory informed the album's development.

Full interview ⬇️

As an all-out war over redistricting upends voting rights law and a battle over congressional maps plays out across the country, Democrats are looking for opportunities to cancel out Republican gains—and they have their sights set on Oregon.

But despite pressure from top-ranking Democrats in Congress, political experts in Oregon say it's the wrong move, and isn't a realistic strategy.

Full story ⬇️

A farmer in Bangladesh raised an albino buffalo, realized it looks a lot like the current US president, and named the animal appropriately. The buffalo has a new home at a zoo, where he now draws large crowds of onlookers.

PLUS, Portland officials commissioned a study to estimate the cost of keeping the aging Moda Center functioning over the next 20 years. That figure was just over $500 million, substantially less than the projected $600 million price tag the city is now being asked to invest to keep the Trail Blazers in Portland.

More news ⬇️

On Wednesday, councilors voted to approve $2.5 million in funding for Black Portlanders.

For months, Council went back and forth on how to fund two projects offering homeownership opportunities for Black Portlanders. Some councilors raised questions about transparency, how to use social housing funds, and a perception that officials may fund orgs they were previously connected to."

Full story 🔗⬇️

"I am not happy with my options for governor right now." writes essayist Donovan Scribes in an open letter to Oregon governor Tina Kotek.

"In the subsequent years since Election Day ‘22, I’ve seen you meander to the 'middle' on many days, and sound more like your conservative Canby opponent, instead of the Portland progressive I voted for."

In his latest edition of THE BLACK BYLINE, Scribes picks apart her centrist policies, and suggests some things she can do to make it easier for people to vote for her this November. Full story 🔗⬇️

The Portland City Council is set to vote on banning foie gras this week, and it appears they have the votes to pass it.

Plus, crows are apparently taking over the area surrounding Legacy Emanuel hospital, sending some into a state of fear, and there’s a new sheriff at the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT): Chris Warner, who is coming to the top ODOT job after three years in Governor Tina Kotek’s office.

More of today's top stories ⬇️