Little did I know, when I took on the role of Executive Director at Oregon PSR nine years ago, that it would become my dream job. What a privilege to work every day on the issues that matter most to the survival of the world. How lucky I am to work with a team of incredible staff and passionate volunteers as we develop new partnerships to expand the movement for climate justice, encourage our congressional delegation to become leaders for nuclear disarmament, and deepen our understanding of how to become effective accomplices to communities most impacted by environmental injustice, racism, and militarism.
We are honored to have been invited to serve as a steering committee member of the Portland Clean Energy Initiative, Oregon’s first environmental ballot measure created and led by communities of color. We are also involved in the fight against Measure 105, an anti-immigrant hate measure that would endanger the health of our communities by repealing Oregon’s thirty-year-old sanctuary law. Working closely with groups representing Pacific Islanders, Japanese and Japanese-Americans, and Hanford downwinders in our work for nuclear disarmament, we are deepening our commitment to lifting up voices of the most affected communities throughout all of our programs.
On our website, you can read our ballot measure voter’s guide, learn how we are protecting our climate and health from short-sighted fossil fuel industry greed, and see how we are engaging young Oregonians to consider their role in combating systemic racism. We’ve also included an update on Mustafa, the Iraqi child injured by US bombing in Fallujah who we helped bring to Portland to receive life-saving medical treatment, as well as a wrap-up of our annual Hiroshima and Nagasaki memorial event, which this year featured the perspectives of Pacific Islanders whose lands were the targets of decades of nuclear weapons testing.
Be sure to get your tickets now for our November 13th event Before They End Us: The New Global Movement to End Nuclear Weapons and Protect Planetary Health with Dr. Tilman Ruff, Co-President of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and founding member of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. This event will also feature Children Remember, a haunting exhibit by artist Yukiyo Kawano and Oregon PSR Advisory Board member Chisao Hata.
You can learn more about, and get more involved, in our work by signing up for our weekly email alerts and by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
I look forward to continuing to work with you as we learn and grow together, striving to create the healthy, just, and peaceful world that all people deserve. Thank you for making this important work possible!
In Peace and Health,
Kelly Campbell, Executive Director
Photo at top of Kelly Campbell (left), Oregon PSR Clean Energy Organizer Damon Motz-Storey, and Oregon PSR Board of Directors Member Elaine McKenzie meeting with Oregon Representative Suzanne Bonamici (center).