Erika Preuitt, director of the Multnomah County Department of Community Justice, is this year’s Health & Civic Engagement Award recipient, while painter and graphic artist Jeremy Okai Davis will be accepting the Art & Social Justice Award.
Memorial for Dr. T. Allen Bethel, longtime Portland pastor and civil rights leader, to be held Wednesday
Updated Dec 30, 2020;
Facebook Share
The celebration of life and legacy for the reverend, who pastored Northeast Portland’s Maranatha Church for 26 years, will be streamed online beginning at 11:30 a.m.
Anyone can view the service on the church’s Facebook and YouTube pages.
Bethel was hailed by the Skanner News as “one of the most influential civil rights leaders in Portland history.” And Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, said he “was a strong and eloquent voice in Portland who brought grace and wisdom in his work for justice and a stronger community.”
Our wish list for a (much better) 2021 December 30 2020
Never has the editorial board of the Portland Tribune been more eager to for Jan. 1 in their annual end-the-year editorial.
Each December, as the new year approaches, we publish in this space a list of our hopes for the coming 12 months. Never in the 20-year-history of this publication have we been as eager as we are today for the calendar to flip to Jan. 1.
A new year will not bring an immediate end to the coronavirus, or magically result in a reopened economy. But this is a moment for looking forward and for a bit of optimism so here is our annual wish list:
On Wednesday the flag at Portland City Hall was flown at half-staff to honor Bethel.
“Portland and Oregon are stronger, more resilient and more united because of Dr. Bethel’s lifelong work,” Mayor Wheeler said. “Dr. Bethel’s legacy and vision will carry on for generations because he was an influential leader that built bridges across differences, envisioned solutions to our city’s challenges, and invited and challenged all of us in enhancing and enforcing civil rights protections for all.”
Here are other statements made by faith and state leaders about Rev. Bethel: The Rev. Dr. T. Allen Bethel was a prophetic voice who preached a message of fierce justice. He believed we had an obligation to free people from oppression. So Dr. Bethel championed police reform, an end to gun violence, and a better Portland for young people. He was a friend. Rev. Dr. Chuck Currie