24 Native Agencies and their leaders gathered over the last year to
create a story in common about the Native people of Portland. In
July of 2007, 18 representatives met to talk about the severe undercounts
of our population and how those create a level of “invisibility” in the Native community.
For example, the lack of knowledge about the Native community and inaccurate
demographic information can lead to inequitable funding. In addition to this challenge,
the group knew that Native organizations in Portland often use different data sets which,
while often necessary, add to the complexity of an already complicated issue.
Following a year of discussions and focused group work, the group formalized into the
Portland Indian Leaders’ Roundtable (PILR). Together, PILR created this amazing 2 page
document describing the Portland Native community, and designed to educate key
audiences to the concerns the Native people of Portland share.
It is the hope of PILR that we can
continue to build on the progress we have made as strong Native organizations,
intent on service to our people. The story, Making the Invisible Visible is a
crucial first step to educating the extended community about our
presence.
For more information contact:
Lai-Lani Ovalles
Indigenous Community Engagement Coordinator
NAYA Family Center
(503) 288-8177 ext. 213
A'ohe hana nui ka alu 'ia
No task is too big when done together.
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