KYLE BECKERMAN - IMAGE: oregonhumane.org
- ADOPT A TEAM: Winning teams press every advantage. And so it’s no surprise that the Oregon Humane Society—which arranges adoptions for 96 percent of the pets it receives, several times the national average—is looking to capitalize on World Cup fever. The OHS recently took to naming incoming pets after members of the U.S. national soccer team. And so dangerous out-of-zone offensive threat Graham Zusi is, perhaps appropriately, a miniature pinscher. Kyle Beckerman is a beagle-dachshund mix. And shaggy-bearded DaMarcus Beasley is an even shaggier terrier. All are up for adoption. “Our staff here in admissions names all the pets that don’t already have names,” says OHS spokesman David Lytle. “Having a fun name gives them more personality. With the World Cup going on, it made perfect sense.”
- WAR IN WHITELANDIA: In May, local filmmakers Matt Zodrow and Tracy MacDonald quickly met a Kickstarter goal to fund a documentary about Oregon’s history of discrimination against black people called Whitelandia. But now the husband-and-wife duo—both white—are facing criticism from Walidah Imarisha, a local black educator and activist known for her public programs about blacks in Oregon. In a lengthy blog post, Imarisha details frustration with a Whitelandia trailer that used footage from her program without permission, saying it “reeks of intellectual colonialism.” She goes on: “This means the making of Whitelandia replicates the same oppressive dynamics they are seeking to explore in their film.” In an email to WW, Imarisha said her goal “is not to get involved in a back and forth with the producers, but rather just to state my experiences…in an organized fashion.” On Facebook, Zodrow and MacDonald responded to Imarisha’s blog post by describing their respect for her work while also noting—but not elaborating on—“other aspects of Walidah’s blog post which are problematic in their inaccuracy.” They later added: “We should make a film about making a film about race. It is notable that we did not even start shooting until this week. This film has yet to be made. The proof will be in the pudding.” Zodrow and MacDonald declined to comment to WW.
- COMMUTER COMMUTING: Sellwood’s Bike Commuter bicycle shop is planning to move so it can join shops like Velo Cult in selling beer to cyclists. The shop had applied for a tavern license at its shop at 8301 SE 13th Ave., and had already begun installing beer taps. However, that plan ran afoul of neighbors, says owner Eric Deady. “They thought we would be having wild parties every night,” he tells WW. Bike Commuter has applied for a tavern license at nearby 8524 SE 17th Ave., but Deady says he doesn’t know where the shop will end up except for one detail: “We’ll be in Sellwood.”
- FUTURE DRINKING: You can now enjoy the air-conditioned comfort of three more Portland movie theaters with a frosty pint in hand. Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard’s CineMagic Theatre and the Regal outposts at Pioneer Place and Lloyd Center now sell beer and wine, which means Portland cinemas with booze officially outnumber those without.
