To my dismay, I will not be attending the Portland City Club’s Candidates Forum for Arts and Culture tomorrow at Portland’s historic Armory. It appears to me that people with my background are not welcome at this event.

The organizers had little use for a candidate like me, raised in Portland and already deeply involved in my community, and the format of the event shows their lack of interest in serious policy discussions. Rather than engage all candidates for a longer forum, which could help get as many ideas on artistic and cultural issues out as possible, the few people actually invited will be mostly limited to sound-bites over the course of the 90 minute event.

Portland’s vibrant artistic and cultural currents are of great importance to me and I look forward to discussing them with anybody who wants to hear my perspective and share their own with me.

Link to the Candidates Forum for Arts and Culture: http://www.pdxcityclub.org/calendar_day.asp?date=1/26/2016&event=373

Fred Stewart
fred@fredpdx.com

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