Historic Bus Tour Reveals Important Perspectives on Racial Housing Injustices in Oregon

In Southeast Portland, Oregon, known for its bustling, industrial vibe and lively food-and-drink districts, one might not notice the 14 street signs with Mulugeta Seraw’s name, image, and the years he lived. Who was this person and why were signs devoted to him? It took going on the Fair Housing Council of Oregon’s Historic Bus Tour for me to understand the significance of those signs. 

As it turns out, I was not alone. Seraw’s murder was one of the topics of the four-hour bus tour around historically significant sites in the City of Portland. MFA President Steve Taylor said that learning about the circumstances of Seraw’s death, a little less than a mile from his home, was “a little surreal. It was a lens through which I’ve not seen my neighborhood.” MFA made the investment in staff time to take the tour to gain a deeper understanding of this topic which informs the work we do.

Kathy Lombardi, Principal Engineer, described the impact of the tour saying, “There is a tremendous difference between reading or being told about the impacts of racism, redlining, and segregation and seeing it in person. The most striking time for me was seeing the Vanport community in photos and having former Vanport resident, Mr. Ed Washington, talk about his lived experience. This was contrasted by seeing the golf course that now occupies that space.” 

The tour took us to familiar landmarks including the Multnomah Athletic Club, Dawson Park in the Albina neighborhood, the Expo Center, and Heron Lakes Golf Club, all of which have unseen and significant histories. Legacy Emanuel Hospital is another landmark with painful memories for some due to the displacement of people during its development. Our Director of Data Analytics, Kent Martin, shared that his child was born there in 1998, and he said, “There was no mention or any indication that this area was once a bustling African American community and that the planning and development of the hospital itself contributed to the demise of this historical neighborhood.”

After the tour, we had a rich discussion about what we can do, as members of our community and through our work, to become more aware and responsive to the historic racial inequities that occurred in our communities. Steve Taylor described, “There are real takeaways about the work our firm does and how we must consider the impacts for all stakeholders as well as sometimes unintended outcomes.” MFA team members who participated in the tour were deeply appreciative of the lived experiences shared by speakers, historic images of the impacted communities, and information about the not-so-historically-distant discriminatory laws. The words used most to describe the experience were important and impactful. 

Thank you to our DEI Committee for bringing this experience to MFA. For more information about the Fair Housing Council of Oregon’s Historic Bus Tour visit: https://fhco.org/tours-exhibits/.