04-27-2024  2:48 am   •   PDX and SEA Weather
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NORTHWEST NEWS

City Council Strikes Down Gonzalez’s ‘Inhumane’ Suggestion for Blanket Ban on Public Camping

Mayor Wheeler’s proposal for non-emergency ordinance will go to second reading.

A Conservative Quest to Limit Diversity Programs Gains Momentum in States

In support of DEI, Oregon and Washington have forged ahead with legislation to expand their emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion in government and education.

Epiphanny Prince Hired by Liberty in Front Office Job Day After Retiring

A day after announcing her retirement, Epiphanny Prince has a new job working with the New York Liberty as director of player and community engagement. Prince will serve on the basketball operations and business staffs, bringing her 14 years of WNBA experience to the franchise. 

The Drug War Devastated Black and Other Minority Communities. Is Marijuana Legalization Helping?

A major argument for legalizing the adult use of cannabis after 75 years of prohibition was to stop the harm caused by disproportionate enforcement of drug laws in Black, Latino and other minority communities. But efforts to help those most affected participate in the newly legal sector have been halting. 

NEWS BRIEFS

Chair Jessica Vega Pederson Releases $3.96 Billion Executive Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025

Investments will boost shelter and homeless services, tackle the fentanyl crisis, strengthen the safety net and support a...

New Funding Will Invest in Promising Oregon Technology and Science Startups

Today Business Oregon and its Oregon Innovation Council announced a million award to the Portland Seed Fund that will...

Unity in Prayer: Interfaith Vigil and Memorial Service Honoring Youth Affected by Violence

As part of the 2024 National Youth Violence Prevention Week, the Multnomah County Prevention and Health Promotion Community Adolescent...

Mt. Tabor Park Selected for National Initiative

Mt. Tabor Park is the only Oregon park and one of just 24 nationally to receive honor. ...

Oregon's Sports Bra, a pub for women's sports fans, plans national expansion as interest booms

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — On a recent weeknight at this bar in northeast Portland, fans downed pints and burgers as college women's lacrosse and beach volleyball matches played on big-screen TVs. Memorabilia autographed by female athletes covered the walls, with a painting of U.S. soccer legend Abby...

Oregon university pauses gifts and grants from Boeing in response to student and faculty demands

PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) — An Oregon university said Friday it is pausing seeking or accepting further gifts or grants from Boeing Co. after students and faculty demanded that the school sever ties with the aerospace company because of its weapons manufacturing divisions and its connections to...

Elliss, Jenkins, McCaffrey join Harrison and Alt in following their fathers into the NFL

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Marvin Harrison Jr., Joe Alt, Kris Jenkins, Jonah Ellis and Luke McCaffrey have turned the NFL draft into a family affair. The sons of former pro football stars, they've followed their fathers' formidable footsteps into the league. Elliss was...

Missouri hires Memphis athletic director Laird Veatch for the same role with the Tigers

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri hired longtime college administrator Laird Veatch to be its athletic director on Tuesday, bringing him back to campus 14 years after he departed for a series of other positions that culminated with five years spent as the AD at Memphis. Veatch...

OPINION

Op-Ed: Why MAGA Policies Are Detrimental to Black Communities

NNPA NEWSWIRE – MAGA proponents peddle baseless claims of widespread voter fraud to justify voter suppression tactics that disproportionately target Black voters. From restrictive voter ID laws to purging voter rolls to limiting early voting hours, these...

Loving and Embracing the Differences in Our Youngest Learners

Yet our responsibility to all parents and society at large means we must do more to share insights, especially with underserved and under-resourced communities. ...

Gallup Finds Black Generational Divide on Affirmative Action

Each spring, many aspiring students and their families begin receiving college acceptance letters and offers of financial aid packages. This year’s college decisions will add yet another consideration: the effects of a 2023 Supreme Court, 6-3 ruling that...

OP-ED: Embracing Black Men’s Voices: Rebuilding Trust and Unity in the Democratic Party

The decision of many Black men to disengage from the Democratic Party is rooted in a complex interplay of historical disenchantment, unmet promises, and a sense of disillusionment with the political establishment. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

South Africa remembers an historic election every April 27. Here's why this year is so poignant

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africans celebrate their “Freedom Day” every April 27, when they remember their country's pivotal first democratic election in 1994 that announced the official end of the racial segregation and oppression of apartheid. Saturday is the 30th...

Paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with ketamine before his death avoids prison

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — A former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a powerful sedative avoided prison Friday and was sentenced to 14 months in jail with work release and probation in the killing of the Black man that helped fuel the 2020 racial injustice protests. Jeremy...

Trump promised big plans to flip Black and Latino voters. Many Republicans are waiting to see them

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump says he wants to hold a major campaign event at New York's Madison Square Garden featuring Black hip-hop artists and athletes. His aides speak of making appearances in Chicago, Detroit and Atlanta with leaders of color and realigning American politics by flipping...

ENTERTAINMENT

Music Review: Jazz pianist Fred Hersch creates subdued, lovely colors on 'Silent, Listening'

Jazz pianist Fred Hersch fully embraces the freedom that comes with improvisation on his solo album “Silent, Listening,” spontaneously composing and performing tunes that are often without melody, meter or form. Listening to them can be challenging and rewarding. The many-time...

Book Review: 'Nothing But the Bones' is a compelling noir novel at a breakneck pace

Nelson “Nails” McKenna isn’t very bright, stumbles over his words and often says what he’s thinking without realizing it. We first meet him as a boy reading a superhero comic on the banks of a river in his backcountry hometown in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Georgia....

Cardi B, Queen Latifah and The Roots to headline the BET Experience concerts in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Cardi B, Queen Latifah and The Roots will headline concerts to celebrate the return of the BET Experience in Los Angeles just days before the 2024 BET Awards. BET announced Monday the star-studded lineup of the concert series, which makes a return after a...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Biden officials indefinitely postpone ban on menthol cigarettes amid election-year pushback

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration is indefinitely delaying a long-awaited menthol...

Paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with ketamine before his death avoids prison

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — A former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a powerful sedative avoided prison...

US announces new Patriot missiles for Ukraine as part of new billion aid package

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. will provide Ukraine additional Patriot missiles for its air defense systems as part...

Egypt sends delegation to Israel, its latest effort to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt sent a high-level delegation to Israel for talks Friday seeking to push through a cease-fire...

Burkina Faso suspends BBC and Voice of America after they covered a report on mass killings

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Burkina Faso suspended the BBC and Voice of America radio stations for their coverage of a...

Head of Vietnam's parliament resigns amid corruption probe

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — The head of Vietnam’s parliament has resigned, according to state media, making him the...

Michael Pearson CNN

(CNN) -- Rain-swollen rivers burst from their banks in southern Alberta, Canada, ripping out roads, cutting off communities and forcing about 75,000 people out of their homes in Calgary alone.



"In my lifetime, I have never seen flooding like this," Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi told CNN on Friday.

Authorities said they had completed a challenging overnight evacuation of 25 neighborhoods without any injuries or deaths.

But portions of the city of 1 million people -- famous for the annual Calgary Stampede rodeo -- were covered in deep water Friday, including parts of downtown. Nenshi asked people to stay away, in part to keep roads clear for emergency workers.

They also asked people to limit telephone use out of concern that unnecessary phone calls could overwhelm the system and diminish the ability of emergency responders to do their jobs.

Power was out in portions of the city, and some shelters were filled to capacity, Calgary officials said Friday. Schools were closed in the city.

The emergency in Calgary follows devastating flooding in rural areas of southern Alberta, hitting towns such as High River and Canmore hard. Authorities declared a state of emergency in several cities, including the mountain town of Canmore, where on Thursday, raging waters tore out a portion of the Trans-Canada Highway.

"Like everything, everything, is destroyed there -- our homes, like everything," Alberta resident Melanie Atkinson, who lost her home in the flooding, told Canadian broadcaster CBC.

Rescue crews used heavy construction equipment to rescue people from homes and businesses Thursday in High River, the network reported.

Canada's military was pitching in with helicopters and other assets to help local officials with rescue and evacuation efforts, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those families who have been affected by the serious flooding in Calgary and Southern Alberta," Harper said, adding that the federal government would provide "any and all possible assistance."

No deaths or injuries have been reported.

In Calgary, officials closed many bridges as water levels became dangerously high. The city zoo closed and began moving animals to safer locations.

Nenshi said one of the city's two rivers -- the Elbow -- had crested, but it appeared that the other -- the Bow -- was still rising. Emergency officials have said they expect the river to remain high through at least Saturday.

Calgary police said they were patrolling evacuated areas to ensure that vacant homes and businesses would remain as safe as possible.

The flooding was caused by a slow-moving storm that dumped 154 millimeters (more than 6 inches) of rain on the region from Wednesday to Thursday, CNN meteorologist Sherri Pugh said. As much as another inch of rain is possible northwest of Calgary on Friday, and yet another front is expected Monday, bringing the threat of yet more rain.

Calgary, near the Canadian Rocky Mountains, is perhaps best known for its rodeo, held each July. More than 1.4 million people attended last year, organizers say.

Calgary authorities are using the park where the stampede is held as a staging area for flood response efforts. It will probably see some flooding, organizers said early Friday.

CNN's Joe Sutton and Jake Carpenter contributed to this report.

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The Skanner Foundation's 38th Annual MLK Breakfast