Join us for a free screening of short oral history documentaries, part of the Vanport Mosaic “Lost City, Living Memories: Vanport Through The Voices of Its Residents” living archive, followed by a facilitated dialogue.
With special guest Mr. Ed Washington, Vanport survivor and PSU Global Diversity and Inclusion Director of Outreach & Community Engagement.
The event is presented by PSU History Department and Trauma Informed Oregon, and it is part of the 7th Vanport Mosaic Festival May 20-June 7. Full program: bit.ly/vanport2022
2022 marks the 80th anniversary of the building of Vanport, once Oregon’s second largest city, and the largest WWII federal housing project in the United States. At a time when exclusion and racial segregation were the norm, Vanport was a place of belonging for a multiracial working-class community.
This thriving small city was also home to the Vanport Extension Center (VEC), the first publicly supported institution of higher learning in Portland. It opened in 1946 to offer housing and college education to returning veterans under the G.I. Bill, and later became Portland State University.
On May 30, 1948 a flood destroyed the entire city, killing at least 15 people and forcing Portland to open its doors to thousands of local refugees. Many stayed, forever changing the social, economic, and political fabric of our region.
Eighty years later, at a time when today's many crises have highlighted our city's continuing inequities, what can the history and living spirit of Vanport tell us?
Tickets
Free/by donation
RSVP recommended