11-21-2024  5:42 am   •   PDX and SEA Weather

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NORTHWEST NEWS

'Bomb Cyclone' Kills 1 and Knocks out Power to Over Half a Million Homes Across the Northwest US

A major storm was sweeping across the northwest U.S., battering the region with strong winds and rain. The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks through Friday and hurricane-force wind warnings were in effect. 

'Bomb Cyclone' Threatens Northern California and Pacific Northwest

The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks beginning Tuesday and lasting through Friday. Those come as the strongest atmospheric river  that California and the Pacific Northwest has seen this season bears down on the region. 

More Logging Is Proposed to Help Curb Wildfires in the US Pacific Northwest

Officials say worsening wildfires due to climate change mean that forests must be more actively managed to increase their resiliency.

Democrat Janelle Bynum Flips Oregon’s 5th District, Will Be State’s First Black Member of Congress

The U.S. House race was one of the country’s most competitive and viewed by The Cook Political Report as a toss up, meaning either party had a good chance of winning.

NEWS BRIEFS

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of Oregon Announces New State Director and Community Engagement Coordinator

“This is an exciting milestone for Oregon,” said DELC Director Alyssa Chatterjee. “These positions will play critical roles in...

Multnomah County Library Breaks Ground on Expanded St. Johns Library

Groundbreaking marks milestone in library transformations ...

Janelle Bynum Statement on Her Victory in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District

"I am proud to be the first – but not the last – Black Member of Congress from Oregon" ...

Veterans Day, Monday, Nov. 11: Honoring a Legacy of Loyalty and Service and Expanding Benefits for Washington Veterans

Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) is pleased to share the Veterans Day Proclamation and highlight the various...

Rain and snow pummel Northern California in latest wave of damaging weather to strike West Coast

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) — A major storm pummeled Northern California with rain and snow Thursday and threatened to cause flash flooding and rockslides in the latest wave of damaging weather to wash over the West Coast. The National Weather Service extended a flood watch into...

Judge keeps death penalty a possibility for man charged in killings of 4 Idaho students

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The death penalty will remain a possibility for a man charged with murder in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students, a judge ruled Wednesday. Judge Steven Hippler was not swayed by legal arguments made by Bryan Kohberger’s defense team to...

Pacific visits Missouri following Fisher's 23-point game

Pacific Tigers (3-3) at Missouri Tigers (3-1) Columbia, Missouri; Friday, 7:30 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: Pacific visits Missouri after Elijah Fisher scored 23 points in Pacific's 91-72 loss to the Arkansas Razorbacks. Missouri finished 8-24 overall with a 6-11...

Cal Poly visits Eastern Washington after Cook's 24-point game

Cal Poly Mustangs (2-2) at Eastern Washington Eagles (1-2) Cheney, Washington; Sunday, 7 p.m. EST BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Eagles -6.5; over/under is 157.5 BOTTOM LINE: Eastern Washington hosts Cal Poly after Andrew Cook scored 24 points in Eastern...

OPINION

A Loan Shark in Your Pocket: Cellphone Cash Advance Apps

Fast-growing app usage leaves many consumers worse off. ...

America’s Healing Can Start with Family Around the Holidays

With the holiday season approaching, it seems that our country could not be more divided. That division has been perhaps the main overarching topic of our national conversation in recent years. And it has taken root within many of our own families. ...

Donald Trump Rides Patriarchy Back to the White House

White male supremacy, which Trump ran on, continues to play an outsized role in exacerbating the divide that afflicts our nation. ...

Why Not Voting Could Deprioritize Black Communities

President Biden’s Justice40 initiative ensures that 40% of federal investment benefits flow to disadvantaged communities, addressing deep-seated inequities. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

New Zealanders are banned from displaying gang symbols as a new law takes effect

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A ban on New Zealanders wearing or displaying symbols of gang affiliation in public took effect on Thursday, with police officers making their first arrest for a breach of the law three minutes later. The man was driving with gang insignia displayed on...

Nearly 0 million awarded to the family of a man fatally shot in his apartment by an officer

DALLAS (AP) — The family of a man shot and killed by a Dallas police officer who said she mistook his apartment for her own was awarded nearly 0 million Wednesday in a federal civil trial. The jury found after a three-day trial that ex-officer Amber Guyger used excessive force...

New study shows voting for Native Americans is harder than ever

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (AP) — A new study has found that systemic barriers to voting on tribal lands contribute to substantial disparities in Native American turnout, particularly for presidential elections. The study, released Tuesday by the Brennan Center for Justice, looked at 21...

ENTERTAINMENT

From 'The Exorcist' to 'Heretic,' why holy horror can be a hit with moviegoers

In the new horror movie, “Heretic,” Hugh Grant plays a diabolical religious skeptic who traps two scared missionaries in his house and tries to violently shake their faith. What starts more as a religious studies lecture slowly morphs into a gory escape room for the two...

Book Review: Chris Myers looks back on his career in ’That Deserves a Wow'

There are few sports journalists working today with a resume as broad as Chris Myers. From a decade doing everything for ESPN (SportsCenter, play by play, and succeeding Roy Firestone as host of the interview show “Up Close”) to decades of involvement with nearly every league under contract...

Was it the Mouse King? ‘Nutcracker’ props stolen from a Michigan ballet company

CANTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Did the Mouse King strike? A ballet group in suburban Detroit is scrambling after someone stole a trailer filled with props for upcoming performances of the beloved holiday classic “The Nutcracker.” The lost items include a grandfather...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Volcano on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula erupts for the 7th time in a year

GRINDAVIK, Iceland (AP) — A volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland has erupted for the...

At least 38 killed in a gun attack on vehicles carrying Shiites in northwest Pakistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Gunmen opened fire on passenger vehicles carrying Shiite Muslims in Pakistan's restive...

Federal Reserve's likely slowdown in rate cuts could disappoint borrowers

WASHINGTON (AP) — Just a few weeks ago, the path ahead for the Federal Reserve looked straightforward: With...

Ex-UK Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott is hailed as a working-class hero after his death at 86

LONDON (AP) — British politician John Prescott, a pugnacious and personable former merchant seaman who rose to...

Thai court dismisses activist's suit against Israeli spyware producer over lack of evidence

BANGKOK (AP) — A Thai court on Thursday threw out a lawsuit brought by a pro-democracy activist which alleged...

Southeast Asian defense chiefs discuss regional security with US, China and other partner nations

VIENTIANE, Laos (AP) — Southeast Asian defense chiefs met Thursday with their counterparts from China, the...

By Emily Jane Fox

Fast food workers in the south are joining the fight against low wages for the first time since the campaign began last fall.

On August 29, workers will gather in cities across the nation, including half a dozen southern cities such as Memphis, Raleigh, N.C., and Tampa.

They will be asking to be paid a minimum of $15 an hour and for the right to organize without retaliation.

Currently, the median pay for the fast food workers across the country is just over $9 an hour, or about $18,500 a year. That's roughly $4,500 lower than Census Bureau's poverty income threshold level of $23,000 for a family of four.

Latoya Jemes, who's been working at a Memphis McDonald's for the past year, plans to join next week's protests.

She makes $7.45 an hour, and has to work overnights because she can't afford childcare during the day. Her mother watches her children during the night.

"I'm a single parent of three, and I'm living check to check," said Jemes, 24. "I only have enough to pay my rent, and I might be able to squeeze out the things that my kids need, but I'm not making enough."

The move south is a historic one, according to Dorian Warren, associate professor of political science at Columbia University. He said the region rarely sees strikes like this, because the Southern culture is not one that encourages this kind of collective action.

"There are higher barriers to collective action, because most states are 'right to work' states, which makes it hard to form unions," he said. "The fact that workers are going to strike is a sign of a significant turning point in the movement. It's really gone national."

Just last month, the strikes did go national.

Workers from fast food giants McDonald's, Wendy's and Yum Brands-owned KFC walked off the job in seven cities, from Chicago to New York to St. Louis, Detroit, Milwaukee, and Flint, Mich.

Jemes said she was inspired by the other protesters, and hopes the next round will spur the fast food companies into action.

"I hope I can make a change," she said. "With all of the work that we do, they can give us $15 an hour."

The campaign, organized by a coalition of labor, community and clergy groups called Fast Food Forward, has been building momentum since last November, when the protests first hit the national spotlight.

It's even caught the attention of the White House. Earlier this summer, the "low-wage worker" protests were mentioned in a blog post written by National Economic Council director Gene Sperling and chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers Alan Kruege. They said that raising the minimum wage was part of President Obama's economic vision.






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