How can we protect our public lands? From the Trump Administration to the Far Right militants who occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Reserve in 2016, our public lands are under threat like never before. Cecil and Celeste welcome Kristin Teigen to discuss her upcoming course offered through the Portland Underground Graduate School (P.U.G.S.)
Kristin Teigen is an anti-oppression activist, having worked in feminist, queer and people of color movements. She is an educator at Portland State University, where she teaches the history of communities of color in Oregon and issues of women’s homelessness.
Through the class, students will learn the history of how these lands came to be, as well as the laws that have governed them to gain the knowledge to fight for their future. Students will also learn of how issues of race and class intersect with our public lands – how white people stole them from Native peoples and excluded other communities of color from making claims to land in our state. They will also explore the political and social dynamics created among poorer rural communities who depend on public lands for their livelihood. Finally they will move forward to strategize how citizens can protect collective lands and stand for justice with communities of color.
Week One -- The First Struggles - Fights over Land in the United States: Land has always been a fundamental currency in the United States, and has been at the core of some of our most intractable conflicts. What is this history, and how can it affect our current issues?
Week Two - Land in Oregon and the West: Every acre of Oregon can tell a story, a story of genocide, of resource extraction, of farms and suburbs, of majestic forests, mountains and rivers. What are those stories? How do they define us?
Week Three - The Land is Political: What are the movements, both on the Left and the Right, that have defined a myriad of struggles in our state?
Week Four -- Using What We've Learned: How can we move forward as informed, effective citizens to protect our lands and be a voice for justice?
- KBOO