• November 2007, Volume 5, Issue 5

Community Alliance of Lane County

Young Family from the "What Does Family Look Like" exhibit

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If a picture can be worth a thousand words, then can a collection of pictures organize thousands of people? Oregon’s Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC) has two photo exhibits that travel to local schools and public events to open eyes and initiate dialog on issues of racism, homophobia, and hate activity. It’s part of CALC’s long history of creative activism in Lane County.

When Social Justice Fund was founded in 1978, CALC was already in its second decade of organizing. Founded in 1966 to resist America's invasion of Viet Nam (with a different name), CALC has since expanded and deepened its work, taking on more issues and involving more community members in different ways.

“We're known for organizing communities and we do it effectively,” explains CALC director Anselmo Villanueva. “And we've always integrated art in some form in the work we do.”

Their “We are Neighbors” photo exhibit of people from different countries has been visiting community spaces in Eugene for over a decade. CALC has used it to build support for human rights, and lately, to promote understanding of immigrants.

CALC's "What Does Family Look Like?" exhibit shows families with adoptees, racially mixed families, and gay/lesbian families. Both of these photo exhibits are well-traveled, and are integral to CALC's work for racial and social justice.

“We're building the base of people who we can count on to respond when there’s an attack on human dignity,” says Anselmo. That response can include turning out at key meetings with the school district, or at a vigil. For some youth last summer, it meant being part of a mural project that began as a response to anti-Semitic graffiti. Other CALC activists staffed an interactive display on human rights at the Springfield Children's Festival. For years CALC has organized Cesar Chavez Day or Martin Luther King Jr. Day festivities in Springfield.

CALC’s four staff (two part-time and two full-time) and an army of volunteers are busy creating opportunities for action, and the latest CALC calendar lists events on human rights, Iraq, Iran, and gay/lesbian/bi/trans issues. Some of these events are in the community, while others are hosted at the CALC office, an older two-story house with offices, meeting space, and a kitchen.

“There's a constant hum of activity at the house,” reports Anselmo. “Not just with our activities, but with other groups that come in to use the space. We're a hub and organizations who need support for what they’re doing turn to us.”

Those groups have included the local chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), the Eugene Committee to Support Lt. Ehren Watada, and Eugene's Asian American Film Festival (“DisOrient”).

CALC’s decades of work show no sign of slowing. Instead, they're looking forward to “greening” their organization through energy saving (which they may, in turn, assist other groups with), continuing to build their connections with local grassroots groups, and continuing to grow their list of over 2,000 people who are interested in social, racial and economic justice issues.

Says Anselmo, “People see what it is that we do, and how we do it, and they want to get involved.”