Oregon State University graduate student Samantha “Sam” Kang is the founder of Corvallis Climbers of Color (CCOC), an affinity group for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color that was launched last summer to empower BIPOC in the area, foster safety and access for marginalized groups who are underrepresented and underserved in historically cis-white dominated recreational spaces and activities, and help “change the face and culture of climbing.” Kang founded the network out of their passion to bring more people of color into the outdoors, and joined forces with the Valley Rock Gym to host two BIPOC climb nights every month.
On June 25, Kang took a 20-foot fall while climbing Unicorn Peak at Mt. Rainier. They were airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where doctors found that they had broken their neck, back, and right arm. Since their admittance, they have undergone two surgeries on their arm and spine, are taking physical therapy, and will remain with their family in Seattle after being discharged for the foreseeable future. Kang’s twin sister, Andrea, created a GoFundMe to help cover her sibling’s mounting medical bills and support their recovery.
Kang had celebrated the network’s one-year anniversary with the CCOC community just one month prior, and reflected on how the then-recently opened Valley Rock Gym had transformed after hosting the first BIPOC climb night.
“I heard people speaking their first language, I heard laughter, new friendships and climbing plans being made, stories being shared. I saw shoulders relax, deep breaths exhaled, and code switching turned off,” they wrote in an Instagram post. “This may have been someone’s first time in a BIPOC only space, first time climbing with other people of color, or first time in community since the pandemic. The night was a testament that BIPOC need these spaces and always have…”
In a message relayed by Kang’s sister, Kang noted that cultivating supportive, joyful, community-building spaces for Black and brown folks is not solitary work, and credits the outpouring of creative leadership and collaboration from the CCOC community for the numerous social, volunteering, mutual aid, and climbing education events they’ve accomplished in the past year. They claimed that they didn’t start CCOC to build a movement, but believe that the way the group has been actively mobilizing efforts to support their healing – including hosting a “Climb for Sam Day” on July 1 – is a testament that such communities “function as more than just a gathering space.”
“I may have founded Corvallis Climbers of Color (CCOC), but community is far more powerful than one person, it’s a network powered by hope, love and support,” said Kang. “Seeing what happens when we harness that has been pretty amazing, that’s how movements start. You have a bunch of people who have not felt that sense of belonging, support and connection before, and it’s been transformative to see what happens when they unite and find community.”
To donate to Kang’s GoFundMe , click here.
Support Unhoused Folks Being Displaced by Tree Farm Sweeps: Multiple houseless encampments are being targeted in a mass sweep of a 118-acre property along the northeast corner of West Hills Road and 53rd St. – all without having been given advance notice.
The property, which has been used as a tree farm, is owned by David Lin, whose plans to annex the area for housing development were tentatively approved by the Corvallis City Council last July. Lin had called the Corvallis Police Department to charge the people living there with trespassing; officers have been telling campers that loggers will be coming to clear-cut the area and that they need to move.
Because the land is privately owned, encampments had not been posted in advance by Corvallis Parks and Recreation or the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), and unhoused folks who had been told to leave – some of whom have severe physical disabilities and require assistance with moving – have had no time to pack their belongings and prepare for the evictions.
Prior to this development, the tree farm and adjacent wooded area had been one of the few consistent places in Corvallis where unhoused folks could stay long-term without fear of cyclic displacement; some had been camping there for years. Now, as more folks are being kicked out, there is mounting uncertainty about where else they can go.
In a Twitter thread posted mid-June, Stop the Sweeps Corvallis, a mutual aid group that distributes resources and various methods of support to people impacted by camp sweeps, expanded on the benefits and safety that the emergence of multi-person encampments in certain areas bring to unhoused folks, and how sweeps continually disrupt the possibilities for community care and survival that they offer.
“Unhoused people living in these areas are able to easily share resources for collective survival. Things such as medicine/ first aid, food, batteries, tools, ect [sic] are often kept by a single person but shared as a community resource,” reads part of the thread. “In short, these areas are places where people are able to build community, practice community defense and care, share resources, and generally make survival easier for everyone living in the area. These are also the reasons why sweeps are so dangerous to unhoused people. When people are scattered these forms of community care cease to exist and people really are on their own until their [sic] able to reconnect with one another.”
Stop the Sweeps Corvallis will be heading to the tree farm on Thursday, July 7, at 5:30 p.m. to serve meals and assist those being displaced with moving, making connections, etc. Those who are interested in helping are encouraged to show up and offer their support.
New Name, New Mission for Local Community-Centered Resource Hub: Formerly known as the Human Services Resource Center (HSRC), the public service housed within the OSU Champinefu Lodge has changed its name to the Basic Needs Center (BNC) and expanded its mission and operations to encompass broader ways to support not just OSU students, but anyone in the Corvallis community.
“The HSRC’s transformation to the Basic Needs Center is an important name change and represents a shift in practices,” said Hunter Calvert, an employee with the BNC. “The BNC’s new practices focus more on community resilience as a response to food insecurity and poverty. In the past, the HSRC was focused on providing just a menu of services: a food pantry, emergency housing, laundry, shower, SNAP help. The BNC still does all these things really well, but they are supported by an effort to invite a sense of belonging and community in the center.”
In April, the BNC hosted a free “Art Celebration” open mic event, which invited Corvallis community members to share and display art – be it visual art, music, or poetry – and enjoy a free meal, participate in activities like water coloring and hand painting, and more.
“The BNC is working on building community with more events like this one, and we’d love to collaborate with other Corvallis mutual aid groups or organizations working to support the community,” said Calvert. “Most importantly, community events centered around basic needs and mutual aid help dissolve the stigma around receiving support — we all have unique basic needs, and when we make mutual support the norm, there is nothing preventing folks from getting the critical support that helps them thrive and shine in our community. Community events also center the basic needs conversation more around what people can contribute than just what they lack, a common mistake of charities and many institutional support programs that are well-intentioned.”
Part of dissolving this stigma, Calvert added, is that the BNC is intended to be available beyond just providing “emergency” support; folks in emergency can always come to the BNC for help, but so can anyone and everyone.
“I cannot emphasize this enough — we are open to everyone, and if someone has any interest in the BNC, they should come in and not be stopped by the idea that they are not ‘in enough need,’” said Calvert. “That’s a scarcity mindset. People have different definitions of needs and emergencies. The real goal is to support the unique needs of Corvallis and OSU community members so that they have the energy to share their unique gifts.”
The BNC is located on 1030 SW Madison Ave, Corvallis, and is open to anyone in the community Mondays through Thursdays from 8:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. and on Fridays from 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Summer hours are Mondays through Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Innovative Workshops for Undervalued Creatives: Starting this week, Living Studios, a local nonprofit that supports, amplifies, and collaborates with neurodiverse artists in the Corvallis community, is partnering with the downtown Joan Truckenbrod Gallery to host weekly “design cafes” or art workshops for the month of July.
Living Studios artists will take field trips to the gallery, where they will get to create various projects with diverse materials as well as attend workshops and events led by local community artists that pertain to four weekly themes. The themes are – in order – the celebration and history of self-taught artists, book- and zine-making, language and culture, and fiber arts and multimedia.
Design café facilitators include “photographist” Koa A. Tom, head of the photography hub and multi-purposed community space Light Righter Studios; Angel Black, a sculptor and painter whose work offers empowering narratives of bodily autonomy and critical examinations of the sexualization of women and girls in modern media; Julianna Souther, a recent OSU Photography graduate and multimedia artist whose practice focuses heavily on elevating the diasporic voices of international adoptees and Asian Americans; and more.
Artwork that will be created by Living Studios artists through the design cafes will be displayed at the gallery and viewable to the public on July 21. To learn more, click here.
BIPOC-Led Hunting Organization to Host Free Weekend Educational Event: Hunters of Color (HOC) is a Corvallis-based organization committed to increasing the participation of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in hunting for the sake of supporting forest and animal conservation, promoting food sovereignty, challenging stereotypes and dismantling barriers that BIPOC face in hunting, and preserving and reclaiming ancestral hunter-conservationist traditions.
Currently, HOC is the only nationwide hunting nonprofit led by BIPOC, for BIPOC. And this weekend, they will be co-hosting a free two-day workshop up in Portland for those who want to learn where to start – how to get more involved in hunting, harvesting wild food, and the conservation community.
Beginning on Friday, July 8, a 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. evening event will be hosted at the Portland Filson Store, located on 526 NW 13th Ave, Portland, to help folks navigate where and how to find and build community among hunter-conservationists. The next day, from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., attendees will learn about the ethics of hunting, how hunting ties into conservation efforts, basic skills and gears that are needed, etc., at the FINEX Cast Iron Cookware Co.’s Headquarters located on 2236 NW 21st Ave., Portland.
To RSVP for the event, register here.
By Emilie Ratcliff
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