Oregon’s Racist History: A Brief Look into Racism in Oregon

July 22-29, 2020

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

Post 1

Let’s talk about race in Oregon.

𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐏𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫’s vision and commitment is to address root causes of discrimination in the trans/gender diverse community, and to deconstruct intersectional discrimination of all underrepresented/oppressed groups within and outside of our organization.

With that goal in mind, 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐏𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 acknowledges Oregon has a corrupt and terrifying history of racialized exclusion and violence, which we would like to briefly address in a social media campaign we created to support the Black Lives Matter movement (May 2020), with the help of historical information from V Varun Chaudhry.

We are also offering resources for our trans BIPOC community on our website, and we have a direct email so people can get in touch with a TBIPOC 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐏𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 staff member.

#BlackLivesMatter

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/

Post 2

CW: racism

Why do we say BIPOC, instead of people of color?

In Oregon, it is important to note that “people of color” is a particularly fraught category. While Latinx communities have been a part of Oregon’s population since the 1500s, and people of the Asian community are one of the fastest-growing groups in the state, Black and indigenous populations have been subjected to exclusion and racialized violence since Oregon’s founding. #BlackLivesMatter

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/oregons-racial-history-brief/

Post 3

CW: racism, violence

Fact: Oregon started as racist & exclusionary.

Early laws in Oregon demanded white people could not own Black slaves and were to remove them from the state. But in 1844, voters actually passed a law whereby any free Black person who “refused to leave” would be lashed.

While this law was soon revoked, another law was passed in 1849 which claimed, “It shall not be lawful for any negro or mulatto to enter into, or reside” in the state of Oregon, and in 1857, when the Oregon State Constitution was formally ratified and enacted, delegates included an exclusion clause against Black people. #BlackLivesMatter

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/oregons-racial-history-brief/

Post 4

CW: racism

What is white utopia?

Because laws in the state of Oregon included the active displacement of indigenous peoples and the legalized exclusion of Black people, it was thus founded as a state where white people could live ‘freely’ amongst themselves, by which we mean, free from any reminders of the injustices and inequalities that structure the US as a nation. This was known as white utopia. #BlackLivesMatter

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/oregons-racial-history-brief/

Post 5

CW: racism

Oregon’s racist past is still alive in the present.

The anti-Black exclusion laws baked into Oregon State Constitution were not formally repealed until 1926—nearly fifty years after slavery was legally abolished on a national level—and racist language remained in our state’s constitution until the early 2000s. #BlackLivesMatter

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/oregons-racial-history-brief/

Post 6

“If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free since our freedom would necessitate the destruction of all the systems of oppression.” —A Black Feminist Statement, The Combahee River Collective, 1977

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/oregons-racial-history-brief/

Post 7

CW: racism

Why is Oregon so white?

Oregon’s founding as a site of ‘white freedom’ continues to have consequences to the present day. Our Black population remains small, sitting at less than 2%, while the white population sits at nearly 85%.

Portland continues patterns of gentrification and displacement, and white nationalist groups are active in Eugene, making our city a site of racialized exclusion and violence. #BlackLivesMatter

Courtesy of V Varun Chaudhry

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/oregons-racial-history-brief/

Post 8

As an organization, 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐏𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 is committed to deconstructing intersectional discrimination that persists against all marginalized groups, whether or not they identify with or participate in our organization.

Transgender/gender diverse people come from all racial, ethnic, and class backgrounds. We are represented in all sexualities and levels of ability. Because of this, we must recognize that gender and racial justice are intertwined, and we must actively combat the systemic anti-Blackness and native genocide that structure the state of Oregon, where we live and work.

There is no freedom for some of us, without liberation for all of us. #BlackLivesMatter

https://transponder.community/tbipoc/