Portland NAACP Speaks Out against URM Placards

The Portland branch of the NAACP is planning to hold a rally on Saturday, January 5th to protest the ordinance passed late last year requiring unreinforced masonry buildings to post placards stating they are unsafe in the event of an earthquake. According to the NAACP, the URM placarding policy "exacerbates a long history of systemic and structural betrayals of trust and policies of displacement, demolition, and dispossession predicated on classism, racism, and white supremacy." The NAACP believes, like other URM building owners, that the ordinance would likely force owners to sell the historic buildings for redevelopment. According to Rev. E.D. Mondainé, the ordinance would adversely affect houses of worship and other spaces important to the black community in North and Northeast Portland. MusicPortland recently posted a list of 30 venues it says are under threat, and plans to attend the NAACP rally in front of City Hall on Saturday. Read more.