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City Cast Portland

It’s time for some Portland Pride. This weekend marks the 30th year of Portland celebrating (and sometimes protesting for) LGBTQ+ rights with an outdoor festival.

June is the official Pride month, because it coincides with the anniversary of

 — a pivotal moment in the progress toward gay rights in the United States.

And yes, there have already been plenty of local celebrations, but this is the big weekend in town.

Last year, organizers moved the event to July to make it 

 as a welcoming place for the LGBTQ+ community.

We’ve elected queer leaders: Oregon has 

 in the U.S. (a distinction shared with Massachusetts; they were elected on the same day), and her predecessor was 

10 years since the courts made gay marriage legal in Oregon

welcoming families fleeing less inclusive communities

darker moment in current struggles for LGBTQ+ rights

Check out the fun and celebrations around town this weekend, including 

 | 6:30 p.m. | $15 | Tomorrow Theater (Southeast Division)

 | 7:30 p.m. | $30 | Leach Gardens (Pleasant Valley)

 | Noon - 8 p.m. | $10 (suggested donation) | Tom McCall Waterfront Park

 | 11 a.m. | Free | North Park Blocks to Naito (Downtown)

 (queer-friendly market) | 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. | Free Admission | Cart Blocks (West Burnside)

 | 11:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. | $10 (suggested donation) | Tom McCall Waterfront Park

 | 1 - 10 p.m. | $23.18+ | The Sports Bra (Sullivan’s Gulch)

How To Celebrate Pride in Portland, Oregon

How To Celebrate Portland Pride

What Portlanders have been wondering. We break down why things in Portland are the way they are and how they work.

Portland, Explained

, there are 24 million people of Asian descent living in the United States, as well as 1.7 million people who are Native Hawaiian or come from other Pacific Islands.

The annual celebration of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans began as a weeklong observance in 1978, and extended to the full month of May in 1990. President George H.W. Bush officially designated the month of May as 

 in 1992, and it was later renamed Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in 2009.

May commemorates two significant points in time for Asian and Pacific Islander migration to the United States.

The first was in 1841, when 14-year-old fisherman Manjiro 

 after drifting away from his home in Japan and brought to the island of Oahu, where he took an interest in whaling. William Whitfield, the ship's captain, adopted Manjiro, renamed him John Mung, and brought him to his hometown of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, on May 7, 1843. Manjiro is considered to be the first Japanese immigrant to the United States and was referred to as the country’s first ambassador to Japan.

The second major event occurred on May 10, 1869, with the completion of the transcontinental railroad, the 

majority of which was built by Chinese immigrants

‘Because of Bill: William Sumio Naito's Legacy in Portland’

: Check out this new exhibition at the Japanese American Museum of Oregon, which explores the life of civic leader Bill Naito, the challenges he faced, and the ways he transformed the city in the 1960s and beyond.

: Lan Su Chinese Garden is partnering with more than 20 local organizations and artists for a monthlong celebration of AANHPI cultures and stories. Don’t miss Cultural Immersion Saturdays, Family Fun Sundays, and the “Threading Together” exhibit, which displays traditional clothing from eight different countries.

: Come to Beaverton on May 11 for an evening of music and storytelling. Four women from Yemen, Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar will share how they’ve experienced belonging and exclusion.



Find more events here!

According to 2021 census data, there are 24 million people of Asian descent living in the United States, as well as 1.7 million people who are Native Hawaiian or come from other Pacific Islands

Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Portland

Before it was a full-month celebration, there was Women’s History Week. In 1978, a group of women in Santa Rosa, California, recognized that 

 in academics, so they organized a week in March to celebrate and educate others about women’s contributions in the U.S.

During the week of March 8, over a hundred women participated in essay contests, distributed curriculum materials at local schools, and held a parade. The event's success soon inspired women’s groups nationwide to hold similar events.

In 1980, President Jimmy Carter issued the first Presidential Proclamation declaring the week of March 8 National Women’s History Week. Seven years later, Congress designated March as Women’s History Month.

The group from Santa Rosa, now known as the 

, selected the week of March 8 to correspond with 

, officially recognized by the United Nations in 1977.

 of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The first Women’s Day on Feb. 28, 1909, honored the first anniversary of the garment worker’s strikes that saw thousands of women take to Manhattan’s streets. That strike was timed to honor another garment worker’s rally from March 1857. On March 3, 1913, thousands of 

 marched in Washington, D.C., to fight for a woman’s right to vote.

In 1911, inspired by the day of recognition held in the U.S., more than a million people rallied in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland to hold the first International Women’s Day rally. On March 8, 1917, 

many women went on strike during the Russian Revolution

, which many believe led to the selection of March 8 as the international day.

Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

How do you honor Women’s History Month in Portland?

International events, such as International Women's Day, may be why we celebrate women's history in March.

Celebrate Women’s History Month in Portland

Why We Celebrate Women’s History in March

Nestled along the Willamette River under the St. Johns Bridge, Cathedral Park often refers to the park itself, but for the purpose of this feature, we’re talking about the neighborhood that extends up to N. Ivanhoe Street, adjacent to St. Johns and University Park.

Given its proximity to the river, the area around what is now Cathedral Park was first home to many Native tribes, including Multnomah, Kathlamet, Clackamas bands of the Chinook, Tualatin Kalapuya, and Molalla. The site is believed to be 

 in the Vancouver-Portland area during their expedition in 1806.

During the 1970s, then honorary mayor of St. Johns, Howard Galbraith organized a drive that raised $7.5 million to build a park. The park, named after the cathedral-like arches of the green suspension bridge crossing the Willamette River, was officially dedicated on May 3, 1980 during a community celebration that included the burial of a time capsule set to be opened in 2030.

The area is mostly residential, but there are plenty of spots to explore. Here are a few.

 — grab some fuel for a walk in the park.

 — it wouldn’t be Portland without a good taproom.

 — I recommend Wednesday bingo nights (although be sure to enunciate when saying this tavern’s name aloud).

 — one of the best places in the city to enjoy a match.

 — so you can burn off all those bratwurst calories.

 — 2024 dates haven’t been announced yet, but we’ll keep an eye out for you.

Want to get more involved? Cathedral Park staff have been working on a nature patch to foster pollinator habitat and residents can 

. And if you’re curious about what else is going on at the park, here’s 

Cathedral Park is stepped in history. It is mostly residential, but there are plenty of spots to visit.

Get to Know the Cathedral Park Neighborhood in Portland

Get to Know Cathedral Park

Everything to know about Portland neighborhoods: Where to go, eat, shop, drink, and more.

Portland Neighborhood Guides

Neighborhood Guides

November was officially designated as a heritage month

 to recognize America’s original inhabitants and celebrate their rich culture and contributions. But 

efforts to pay tribute to Indigenous people

, a member of the Blackfeet Nation, rode horseback across the U.S. seeking approval for a day to honor Native Americans and presented an endorsement from 24 states to the White House in 1915. The first official American Indian Day was declared in New York in 1916.

 live within Oregon. But for thousands of years, more than 

, speaking about 18 languages across hundreds of villages. By 1855, 

white settlers claimed 2.8 million acres of Indigenous land

 across the Oregon Territory thanks to the Donation Land Claim Act, leading to the displacement of this land’s original inhabitants.

“Celebrating Tribal Sovereignty and Identity.”

 nations, tribes, and pueblos within the U.S. comprising over 

 is at the heart of Native people’s ability to protect and enhance the health, safety, and welfare of their communities.

Here are some places where you can pay tribute in Oregon this month:

All month long, Tuesdays - Saturdays, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

All month long, Tuesdays - Saturdays, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Nov. 18 - 25, Tuesday - Saturday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Tamástslikt Cultural Institute

Nov. 23 - 25, 10:45 a.m. - 2 p.m., Naya Family Center

Nov. 24 - 26, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., PSU Native American Student Center

Nine federally recognized tribes live within Oregon today, but for thousands of years, more than 60 tribes lived across these lands. Here are some places where you can pay tribute to Native American Heritage Month in Oregon this month.

How to Pay Tribute to Native American Heritage Month in Oregon

Portland's neighbor to the south on the eastside is a gateway to Clackamas County — which sometimes is a universe away, for better or worse. But the divide is a little more complicated.

Did you know that part of Milwaukie is actually in Multnomah County? A handful of households on the city's northern edge are indeed Multnomah County residents.

The line between Portland and Milwaukie has become even more permeable since the

 linked the two communities in 2015. The boundary hasn't been consistent, either — a few tracts of land along the Willamette River

 Milwaukie became an industrial hub and then a suburban destination in the second half of the 20th century. Today, the city is home to a unique array of local businesses like

. In recent years, Milwaukie has begun to shed its working-class image and become desirable as a bedroom community: Last year,

 the median home price in Milwaukie was higher

There's plenty to do and see in Milwaukie today. The whole family can play games and catch a movie at the quirky

. It's the home base of several iconic local restaurant chains like

. The ultimate locals' tip, though, is to stop in for some pork fried rice and karaoke at

 where, if you're lucky, you might find a

 2022 Karaoke World Championship finalist

This segment was contributed by City Cast Portland lead producer John Notarianni.

Tell Us: What Are Your Favorite Spots in Your Neighborhood?

Get to Know Milwaukie

You know it’s the holiday season in Portland when our skyline gets a red-nosed reindeer. On the day before Thanksgiving, the stag next to the iconic “Portland, Oregon” sign gets a seasonal Rudolph-like nose. The sign is a piece of city history, but its current iteration and location are relatively recent:

It started as a sign to advertise commercial goods. First "White Satin Sugar,” then "White Stag Sportswear,” and thus arrived the deer.

Later, it promoted “Made in Oregon” shops (like the ones in the airport). The change was a way to get a private venture to keep paying for it.

At one point, it was going to become “Oregon” when the University of Oregon moved into the building.

The city ultimately stepped in to keep the lights on. It became “Portland, Oregon,” in 2010, with an agreement where the city paid $2,000 a month for 10 years in maintenance costs through parking revenues.

aggressive about the trademark when commercial ventures

 have tried to use it in marketing, but it’s actually a pizza shop (not the city) that owns the trademark to use the white stag in 

What's the Deal With the Portland, Ore., Sign and the Red-Nosed Reindeer?

What's the Deal With the Portland Sign and the Red-Nosed Reindeer?

The nutria has a rat-like tail but, like beavers, lives in and around waterways. From afar, it’s a lookalike to that native species. You’re probably wondering, how did they get here? The nutria, native to South America, arrived in Oregon in the 1930s 

. But by the 1940s, that nutria fur trade went bust; nobody wanted the furs. That meant thousands of animals were released into the Oregon wild.

They prospered and wreaked havoc on the environment and on crops.Their burrows along 

. They have been known to chow down on a long list of crops, including 

corn, beets, alfalfa, wheat, barley, oats, and various melons,

 according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.



Under Oregon’s administrative rules, no one can import nutria into the state. That hasn’t helped much, though, as the state’s nutria population has thrived.

For farmers and gardeners looking to get rid of the pests, the state recommends trapping and shooting them, though shooting a nutria within city limits is forbidden for obvious reasons. Relocating the rodents is also forbidden. And watch out: state officials say they can be aggressive when trapped.

Nonetheless, among Portland's many animal lovers, they have 

How the South American Nutria Came to Oregon

Get to know the natural side of Portland: the plants, animals, weather and more that make our city unique.

Portland Urban Almanac

Urban Almanac

In the lead-up to the 1905 centennial celebration of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Portlanders planted roses (


After the Expo, Portlanders planted seedlings of the monkey puzzle tree

 distributed.

These spiny trees stick out wherever they are planted around town. And many appear to be of an age to have come from that original round of planting. (Up in the Puget Sound, they have trees about half as old from a World’s Fair round of planting.)

While rose lovers have their official societies in town, the monkey tree fan club is more unofficial. A 

. Carol Studenmund plotted the map for fellow enthusiasts. “They're charismatic trees,” Studenmund said. “They're so different, so interesting. And I just love them.” (I love that they have a fan club.)They’re the 

.

Monkey puzzle trees come in male and female, with the rounder cones of a female producing an edible seed. They can grow to upwards of 1,500 feet and live more than a thousand years. So the ones around town are really infants in the grand scheme of things.



Their English name comes from the shape. The spiny leaves look like the scales of reptiles and give the tree its distinctive look. They even inspired some wag (in the 1800s), who thought the tree would 

 trying to climb it.

Their distinctive look and their special history here, means that Portlanders have grown attached to them. The threat of cutting down these trees has sometimes counted as news. When the Banfield was expanded in 1985, a monkey puzzle tree got the ax. More recently 

history

How To Celebrate Portland Pride

Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Portland

Why We Celebrate Women’s History in March

Latest articles

How To Celebrate Portland Pride

Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Portland

Why We Celebrate Women’s History in March

Get to Know Cathedral Park

How to Pay Tribute to Native American Heritage Month in Oregon

Get to Know Milwaukie

What's the Deal With the Portland Sign and the Red-Nosed Reindeer?

Latest articles

Get to Know Cathedral Park

How to Pay Tribute to Native American Heritage Month in Oregon

Get to Know Milwaukie

What's the Deal With the Portland Sign and the Red-Nosed Reindeer?

How the South American Nutria Came to Oregon

How Monkey Puzzle Trees Came to Portland